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Ash took some of the berries and began to eat some. He could not believe how spicy the Cheri berry was. It tasted surprisingly good despite the burning sensation it left behind. He ate a little bit of apple and used it to help cool his taste buds.
"Anyways, the name is Erika and I'm from Celadon City. I'm a trainer like yourself and came to route 1 because there is an outbreak of some Pokemon from different regions in the western side of the region. Reports are nearly certain that the Pokemon they found don't normally appear in Kanto. As you have seen from my Pokemon, I utilize primarily grass, but the large outbreak piqued my interest and was hoping that there would be some new variations of grass types. I have become infatuated with the grass types since I was a little girl. I'll keep it short and sweet; I was walking home and tried to save an injured Skitty, got attacked by a Weezing, and was saved by Gloom. I asked her if she wanted to come with me and she said yes. Since then, I owe practically everything to these wondrous grass-types."
"That's such a touching story, it really is," commented Ash as he patted Dratini's head. Erika nodded and looked down at the small dragon who was gazing out the boxcar. "I never had a Pokemon until I got Dratini, and we've been inseparable since then."
"You are quite lucky to have a Dragon-type this early in your journey; did you go to the Safari Zone to get her?" asked Erika as she watched the dark clouds start to cover the sky. "Very few people have that type of Pokemon this early in their journey; most people generally have at least five badges before getting one, or at least go to the Safari Zone to fine one."
"Well, I actually got her from Professor Oak; she belonged to an abusive trainer and she showed an instant attraction to me; it was honestly quite strange, if you ask me; that a Pokemon, nonetheless one so rare, took an instant liking to me," explained Ash as he rubbed the small dragon.
"That is indeed strange, but you are awfully lucky; once she turns to a Dragonite, you will have a formidable ally in your party," explained Erika. "Are you aware of the strengths and weaknesses of a dragon type, Ash?"
"Well, I do know that they are strong against grass attacks, but that's about it," explained Ash. "I am not entirely sure if dragon attacks are effective against other types, though."
"You are right about grass types; maybe I should allow you to find out their strengths on your own," suggested Erika.
"That may be a good idea; do you know anything about the first gym leader in Pewter City, Erika?" asked Ash as he looked down at his foot. It was nowhere near as painful as it was before, but it definitely need the attention of a doctor.
"All I can say is that you better get Riolu to trust you before you take on the challenge there," replied Erika as she leaned her back against the metal wall of the boxcar and took an Oran berry.
"Have you had any success finding any Pokemon?" Ash stated as he looked into the fast-moving world; the entire sky had completely been covered with grey clouds and he saw a flash of lightning in the background over the rolling hills.
"I did see some Pokemon that I was not familiar with, but none of them were interesting from my perspective; lots of normal-types and bird Pokemon," contested Erika as a roll of thunder shook their ear drums.
"Looks like we need to need to move fast when we get off so we don't get wet or that wound could get infected," she added as the rain started pounding the roof of the boxcar.
Ash lay down and Erika did the same in separated corners of the car, about 20 feet apart. They figured they still had about 30 plus minutes and would hopefully wake up when the train finally reached the station in Viridian City. Erika soundly fell asleep and started to snore softly and Ash knew that he could then talk to his Pokemon without Erika inquiring how he is able to understand his Pokemon or anything on that score.
"Dratini, you seem really upset; wanna tell me what's on your mind?" asked Ash as he looked deep into the Pokemon's soft, large black eyes.
"Ash, I am really worried about your foot; what if it got infected and you need surgery?" transmitted Dratini to Ash's mind. He look at his female dragon and said.l
"Let's try to stay positive; any negative thoughts will dampen my mood; I'm hoping it's nothing minor and we can keep moving to Pewter City in no time," responded Ash as he looked outside to the drenched surroundings. The rain had really picked up quite a lot in the past few minutes and brought a humid, unpleasant feeling to the atmosphere. Although the temperature had probably dropped somewhere in the range of 78 degrees versus the 90 that was beating down on him earlier, the high humidity did not bring much relief.
Time seemed to drag an hour's duration far longer than one could imagine; with that leg patched up and slightly bleeding, every second counted. Ash's vision gazed deep into nothingness, looking for ways to make time go faster. He looked out and saw a sign that said "Viridian City, 3.5 miles". He knew that there was not much time left until they reached their destination. Ash did some mental calculations; if Erika was right that the average train goes around 15 miles per hour, it would then take at most 14 minutes. He took out an apple and bit into it and Dratini have the rest. She smiled to lighten the mood and began to "talk".
"Ash, Erika says that Riolu would be a good choice at the Pewter Gym. It wouldn't hurt to try to get him to warm up to you," she suggested.
"How? He will probably just slap me again," retorted Ash with a small scoff.
"You won't know until you try," she replied with a strong sense of confidence.
"Well, I guess I could use these last 10 minutes to help talk to him; it's not like he's gonna go anywhere with a moving train, after all," he said. He took out the Pokeball and Riolu popped out.
"What do you want, human? I do not wish to engage in pointless chatter," said Riolu through telepathy in a frustrated and almost cold tone; evidently he wanted to remain in the confines of the red and white sphere. He showed his lack of interest to the raven-haired boy by turning his back to him!
"Look, Riolu, I don't know why you're acting so vicious after I tried to be kind with you," started Ash, "but you need to understand that I'm your trainer and I wanna be your friend. I'm putting in my effort, now you just gotta meet me half-way, if you want to. After all, you do detect the feelings of others; doesn't my sorrow and regret for putting you through that pain for that prolonged period of time make you feel anything? Just have a heart, I'm begging you!"
Riolu turned around and faced Ash; the Pokemon's appendages on its ears began to move and took in the pulses of Ash's aura and analyzed them. A small whimper escaped Ash and he felt like he was almost about to cry. Dratini, who was coiled up but heard the conversation nonetheless, turned to the little aura Pokemon with a determined look on her face.
"Why do you persist on acting so crass to our trainer?" communicated Dratini to Riolu through telepathy.
"Oh! You also know telepathy?" question the amazed Riolu.
"Yes, but don't change the subject; why do you seem to carry a grudge against Ash? Can't you sense his feelings that he just wants to be friends with you?"
Riolu perked his ears and saw that Ash was actually...crying. The Riolu couldn't believe that someone would regard him with that much admiration and would humbly beg forgiveness! It was in a sense flattering, but also demeaning that he would stoop to so low to beg for his feelings.
"That human...er, I mean, Ash, is practically beating himself up for beating me up," pondered Riolu and Dratini gasped.
"You're making it sound like he personally beat you; it was Iwho beat you up; we Pokemon must be loyal to our trainers. Does the dog really have to question its master why it retrieves the stick he just threw? Same principal!"
"I guess you're right...but it's so hard to trust people after what happened to me..." stated Riolu.
"What happened?"
"I don't wanna talk about it...maybe after we learn more of each other," stated Riolu who walked up to Ash. The boy was still pretty upset despite having already stopped crying. "Look, human-uh, no, no. Forgive me. I mean, Ash. I took into deep consideration your words as well as those of Dratini and I've come to the decision after thinking. I'm willing to start over. If we could start from the beginning...I'm open to giving you another chance, and find a place for you in my heart as well as yours."
Ash sniffled one more time and looked at the little bipedal aura canine. He wiped his cheek off and turned to Riolu. "D-do you mean that?" said Ash with raised spirits.
"Yes, I do," said Riolu. "I had a rough start before I met you and it's hard to regain trust after what I went through."
"I won't fail you, Riolu!" stated Ash excitedly as he picked up his small Pokemon and brought him into a hug. Riolu first started to resist by pushing against his trainer, but he felt the warm sensation of the hug and the elated aura the human was transmitting. It felt pleasant to hear the boy's heart pick up and the beating echoed all around Riolu like a soft tune. The blue and black Pokemon wagged his little blue tail happily. He then wiggled his body and that signaled Ash to put him down.
"That was...unexpected," said Riolu. "That does not makes us bff's...at least, not this early."
"I understand. Are you hungry again, Riolu? Have some apple." Ash took out another apple and showed it to Riolu. He sniffed it and his cold wet nose even touched Ash's fingers! The boy giggled and Riolu grabbed the fruit with his small hands and took a bite out of it.
"Mmmm, so juicy and sweet; a very refreshing snack," he stated as he wagged his tail. In about 20 seconds, he ate all that could fill him and set the fruit down and showed it to Dratini, who sniffed the apple before taking a bite. After she finished the rest, she played with the apple core by flicking it with her tail across the boxcar several times till it accidentally flew out. Instead of landing in a huge body of mud, it landed on asphalt. Ash looked and saw that they were now traveling through the city and that they would soon arrive.
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