Castelia Arc: Nerves On Edge

After giving their Pokémon into treatment, the two sat in the lobby waiting. "So, I don't know about you, but I feel ready for the gym!" Mari exclaimed.
"Ready for the hippie?",
"You're calling him that again?",
"Yep. You know he prefers bug-type Pokémon, right?"
Mari screwed up her face. "Eww...",
"Bug-type Pokémon can be mean.",
"You don't say! Jeez, you're talking to an entomophobe! My dad once put a plastic Spinarak under my pillow for fun and my mom came running up three seconds later because I was screaming like crazy! I know bugs are mean little filthy beasts!",
"I hope you don't have a nervous breakdown or faint in the gym then.",
"I'll see... Urgh." Mari hid her face in her hands. "I'd rather take on dragons or wolves than bugs...",
"I'll take on anyone!" Jacky made an exaggerated heroic victory pose. "The league will tremble before me, I tell you!"
Mari had to laugh. "Hahah... I want to see that.",
"Are you laughing at me?",
"I'm laughing about you. There's a difference.",
"Yeah, right." Jacky grumbled.

When the Pokémon were released from treatment, they joined the trainers. Gabite even laid its head on Mari's lap. "Oh, look!" She petted it gently and the dragon cooed like a pigeon. Jacky had to giggle. "Awww..." Zorua tugged on Luxio's ear.
"Ow. Why are you doing that?" Luxio growled, pushing it away. "It hurts when you bite into my ear!",
"Your ear is fluffy!" Zorua giggled.
"And yours is way too small." Luxio replied teasingly.
"You're bigger than me too, that doesn't count!" It bit into Luxio's collar fur.
"Ouch! Hey! Just wait, you!" Luxio shook it off, then grabbed it by the neck fur itself and threw it up into the air. Zorua landed on its paws and laughed. Luxio jumped on its paws and started chasing it around. Zorua was pretty fast, that was quite noticable. It stopped in front of a wall and then stepped aside as Luxio came dashing up. The Electric Pokémon hit the brakes too late and crashed into it. Zorua couldn't hold in its laughter. Luxio shook itself. "That was mean!" Zorua stuck its tongue out at it and Luxio chased it in circles afterwards. Medicham sat cross-legged on the floor with its eyes closed. It was meditating. Kirlia did not bother to address it. Instead, it watched the two child-heads shooing each other through the lobby- Or rather, how Zorua humiliated Luxio. Absol looked at Kirlia thoughtfully. It noticed its look. "Huh? Is something wrong?",
"Oh, uh... No. Nothing, everything's fine.",
"If you say so...",
"You have a crush on her, Absol." Gabite growled.
"A crush? On her?" It rubbed over its snout. "Nonsense!",
"Since you deny it, you've given yourself away.",
"Shut up!",
"Gabite, please just shut up." Kirlia said coolly.
"Don't overreact like that." Gabite growled. "You really can't take a joke.",
"Since when can YOU take a joke?" Medicham opened one eye. "I'd be extremely appreciative if you could argue a little more quietly."
Kirlia rolled its eyes and Gabite ignored it. "Why does Medicham keep doing that?" it asked instead. "Do you do that too, Kirlia?",
"No.",
"Meditation would do you good too, Gabite." Absol commented. "Your skin is already wrinkling.",
"Shut up."
Absol laughed out. "Frequent bad temper is a sign of old age," it continued to mock.
"Yet, that's more a characteristic of dogs." Gabite countered, taking its head off his trainer's lap. "You just called yourself old with that.",
"I'm not a dog! Just like you don't have a brain!",
"What else are you then, stonehead? A cat?" the dragon remarked. The two began to argue and Kirlia just sighed in annoyance.

Meanwhile, Zorua had sat down on Luxio's chest and was stomping around on it. "It's okay, you won! You're stronger than me!" Luxio conceded defeat.
"Yay! I beat Luxio!" Zorua jumped off of it, giggling.
"Brr..." Luxio straightened up and shook itself. "Now, hair of yours is stuck to me!",
"Ouch..." Zorua flattened its ears. "That hurt...",
"Sorry."
Skarmory paid no attention to the two idiots, aka. Gabite and Absol, on the other side, who were now glaring at each other like furious Spearow. Noibat bounced on Kirlia's head. "Why are they arguing?",
"Gabite plays the mighty one and Absol thinks he's way too smart, that doesn't suit the other and now, they are bickering like idiots.",
"Mighty? Smart? Uh..." The bat didn't follow. "Does it actually matter?",
"It's kid stuff, not important. If Gabite isn't picking on Absol, he's picking on Medicham. And Absol always complains when I want to kick Gabite's ass..." It sighed.
"I like Medicham." Noibat said, flapping its wings in glee. "And Absol and Luxio and Gabite and Skarmory and you, yaaa, I like all of you! ...But Gabite scared me..." it then added quietly. Skarmory decided to join the conversation after all. "Who can blame you. When I was your age, I was scared of everything bigger than myself, as well.",
"But the stupid thing is that EVERYTHING is bigger than me!" Noibat whined. When Absol tried to break up Gabite's and its own argument, Medicham made a comment that had something to do with 'No rest'. Gabite snapped at it like a choleric and the steel bird sighed. "Such a fuss over nothing.",
"Yeah, honestly." Kirlia was obviously getting tired of Noibat's weight on its head, because it started tickling it. Noibat was off it faster than anyone could look.

"You have a leaf in your hair." Jacky commented.
"What, where?!" Alarmed, Mari tugged at her hair.
"Exactlyyy... Here." Jacky bent down and pulled it out of her hair.
"Where did I even get this?" Mari asked.
"I guess the bush behind you wanted to join the fight." Jacky smirked. Mari smoothed her hair. "What bush? There wasn't a bush anywhere." Then, she looked at their Pokémon. "I guess they're all friends now, huh?",
"Well... let's say most of them." Jacky looked at Absol and Gabite (they were almost jumping at each other's throats), but still had to chuckle. "I hope those two don't kill each other. Lovers like to tease each other, you know the saying? I think they get along better than it looks.",
"And won't admit it though." Mari added, leaning back. "Maybe it's a trial of strength or something..." Gabite and Absol banged their heads together and growled, hurling the vilest of insults at each other. "...Or not..."

Kirlia couldn't seem to stand it anymore, even with the last fibers of its nerves. It stood up. "SHUT UP YOUR TRAP ALREADY, I CAN'T TAKE IT ANYMORE!" Absol and Gabite winced and jumped apart. Absol bristled its fur, but then lay back down. "Thank you!" Kirlia crossed her arms.

"What was that about?" Mari asked, puzzled. Jacky knelt down on the floor. "What's wrong with you guys?",
'Nothing's wrong with them', Kirlia commented via telepathy. 'They had a nursery confrontation that no human or Pokémon can stand for more than three minutes. They're rivals and can't stand each other. I think Gabite needs some love.',
"What did you say to her? I know you told her something by thought, what did you tell her?!" Gabite asked. Kirlia grinned in his direction. "That you need some love.",
"I don't need it!" it hissed and cashed in an even nastier grin from Kirlia.
"I'm sure that, behind that rough facade, there's a sensitive little Gabite who just wants a hug." Jacky said, smiling at Kirlia.
"WHAT? THAT'S NONSENSE!" Gabite screeched, but didn't get to fuss any further because Mari was hugging it. "Oh, you're the best Gabite that exists.",
"GET OFF ME!" Gabite wriggled like a Basculin on a fishing rod. "She doesn't understand you, stupid. You can clamor all you want." Kirlia relished its position as the only one who could communicate with the two girls on a verbal level. Gabite bombarded her with scowls, but that didn't itch it in the least. It just grinned. Jacky sat back down and her eyes fell on the television that was in the Pokémon Center's lobby as the news began. One news topic in particular caught her attention.