Hello, everyone! I'm back! Thank goodness I am, I almost lost everything I've ever written due to a massive, unexpected computer crash...which totally sucked, btw. But, it's okay, I saved everything! That also means IT'S NEW LAPTOP TIME! Yay, I'm Cilan :P
Last time: Aiden decided to challenge Forrest, the leader of the Pewter City gym, to a battle. Despite the protests of Michelle and Brandon, their long time friend and Forrest's son, Aiden goes through with the match and promptly loses to Forrest and his Steelix. After Squirtle is patched up by a familair face, Brock, who is now a renowned Pokemon doctor, Aiden and Brandon have a practice match to give Squirtle some more experience before the gym rematch. During the second battle, Squirtle learns bubble, and Aiden combines it with his new strategy in order to finally defeat Forrest and win his first badge: the Boulder Badge! Before he and Michelle leave, however, Brandon asks if he can travel with the two, wanting to become an experienced Pokemon Breeder. Aiden and Michelle agree, and earn a brand new travelling companion, equipped with a Pokegear and a bad flirting habit...
Chapter Six: Midnight Mystery at Mt. Moon!
"Route 3…this leads us right through Mt. Moon."
Michelle eyed Brandon with a certain look of hesitance. "Mt. Moon?"
"Yeah," Brandon smiled over his shoulder at the girl. When he noticed her less than thrilled expression, however, his lips quickly bent into a frown. "What's wrong, Michelle?"
"There aren't any…bug types in Mt. Moon, are there?" Michelle trembled at the thought.
"No, just a bunch of Zubat," Brandon laughed. "Mt. Moon really isn't all that scary. I used to go there all the time with my Dad and Uncle Brock to search for fossils."
"Thinking there are bugs in Mt. Moon, what a dummy," Aiden chuckled. This comment was met with a swift smack in the back of the head. "OW! HEY!"
He turned and looked at Michelle, who had her arms folded and was looking off to the side as though nothing had just happened. When she felt her brother's gaze on her, Michelle looked towards him and uttered a simple, "what?"
"You just hit me!"
"I did not," Michelle refuted innocently.
"You little liar!"
"I'm not lying," Michelle shrugged.
"I'm gonna' tell on you!" Aiden stormed.
"Oh yeah?" Michelle smirked. "To who?"
"Mom!"
"She won't believe you."
"Will too!"
"Nuh uh."
"Yeah huh!"
"No."
"Yes!"
"No!"
"Yes!"
"NO!"
"YE-"
"GUYS!" Brandon yelled, covering his ears as he did so. Aiden and Michelle stopped arguing and looked at their friend in shock. They had never heard him yell that loudly before. "Sorry," Brandon blushed slightly as he lowered his hands, "but I'd really appreciate it if you two could go maybe 20 minutes without trying to tear each other's throats out."
Michelle twisted her mouth and drawled, "Well, I guess I could try. Good luck with Aiden, though."
"Why you little-"
Aiden's retort was cut off by a loud, echoing screech. The group stopped, their eyes shifting from side to side in search of the source of that terrible noise.
"What was that?" Michelle blinked.
"Sounds kinda' like someone's in pain," Aiden commented.
"Was it a Pokémon?" Brandon continued looking around.
Standing on her toes, Michelle realized that there was a cave opening several feet ahead of them.
"Guys!" She called to the boys. "I think it came from that cave just up ahead!"
Brandon hurried up next to Michelle and gasped quietly. "That's Mt. Moon!"
"I was expecting it to look a little different," Aiden came up to Michelle's other side, tilting his head. "Isn't it supposed to glow or something?"
"Yeah, at night, Brandon nodded. "It's because Mt. Moon is predominantly made up of moon stones, which actually form from shards of fallen meteors."
"You sure know a lot about this place, Brandon," Michelle smirked.
"I've spent a lot of time here," Brandon grinned at the aspiring coordinator.
Suddenly, a burst of fire shot out of the cave, alarming the three young trainers.
"What in the world was that?" Michelle shrieked.
"That was ember!" Brandon awed.
"Zubat can use ember?" Aiden blinked.
Huffing, Michelle folded her arms and sniped, "Zubat, a poison and flying type, using ember? Who's asking the dumb questions now?"
"Then why else would there be an ember attack coming from the cave?" Aiden bit.
"I…don't have an answer for that one," Michelle conceded.
At that moment, a group of frantic Zubat flew out of the cave, shrieking and flying away as if their lives depended on it. Now Aiden, Michelle, and Brandon were even more confused.
"Those Zubat seem pretty freaked out," Aiden observed. "But that can't be right, can it?"
"This is their natural habitat," Brandon nodded. "So they definitely shouldn't be freaking out like that."
"Maybe something disturbed them," Michelle suggested. "Like that ember."
"Let's go inside and find out!" Aiden decided, running into the cave opening. Brandon and Michelle both stared at each other with wide eyes, but knew there was no stopping the determined, and somewhat stupid, young trainer.
"We better catch up to my stupid brother before he gets killed or something," Michelle muttered, strolling into the cave herself.
Smirking, Brandon followed after Michelle and hummed, "oh, I can just feel the sibling love!"
Inside the cave, Aiden stopped shortly after entering. Michelle accidentally walked into her brother, not realizing he had stopped so abruptly.
"Aiden!" Michelle snapped. "Move!"
"I can't see anything!" Aiden complained. "It's too dark in here!"
"I'll take care of that."
A light emerged from behind Aiden and Michelle, causing them to jump. Spinning around, they saw Brandon standing several feet behind them holding onto a flashlight, which he must've fished out of his bag while the two were bickering.
"Much better," Aiden beamed. "Thanks, Brandon!"
"Don't mention it!" Brandon grinned. "Now, to find out where that ember attack came from…"
As if on cue, another flash of ember appeared before the group, causing more Zubat to go flying. Michelle shrieked out of surprise and subconsciously grabbed onto Aiden's arm, simply needing something to hold out of fear.
"What kind of Pokémon could possibly be using ember in here?" Aiden furrowed his brow in deep thought.
"Through all my years coming to Mt. Moon, I've never seen a Pokémon living in here that could use fire type moves," Brandon assisted the raven haired boy in his thinking. "Maybe it's an intruder."
"An intruder?" Aiden repeated.
"A wild Pokémon living around the area of the mountain might've snuck in, looking for shelter or a battle," Brandon suggested. "It's pretty rare, but I've heard of it happening."
"A fire type, though?" Michelle finally managed to find her voice.
"Anything's possible," Brandon shrugged.
Pichu, who had been sitting on Michelle's shoulder surprisingly quiet throughout the whole ordeal, suddenly sprang to life. The baby Pokémon's ears twitched and she pointed ahead with one of her little paws.
"Pichu! Pichu!" Pichu cried.
Michelle turned her eyes onto her little partner, genuine curiosity set into the emerald orbs. "What's up, Pichu? Did you get something?"
"Pi!" Pichu nodded. "Pichupi!"
"I think Pichu caught something's scent," Michelle informed the boys.
The group began to move forward, Pichu encouraging them the entire way with little squeaks. Eventually, they found their way to the heart of the cave, where a giant moon stone sat dull and not shining in the wide open center. In the corner, several feet away from the stone, stood a gaggle of trembling Clefairy, who looked beyond terrified for some reason.
"Clefairy?" Michelle whispered, retrieving her pokedex to scan the alien like creatures.
Clefairy, the fairy Pokémon. Clefairy are very shy and timid creatures, who rarely show themselves to humans. They are among the most intelligent of all Pokémon, and use their signature move Metronome to teleport from place to place.
"Well, they sure seem shy and timid," Michelle commented as she put her pokedex back in her bag. "I wonder why they're shaking like that."
"They must be scared of something," Brandon concluded.
"Growl!"
The young trio jumped as an ember attack was fired straight at them, causing the Clefairy shuddering in the corner of the cave to cry out in terror. Growling, Aiden looked up with an angry expression and saw the source of the ember attack slowly walking out of the shadows, the small being snarling at him and his travelling companions.
"Brandon, I think you were right," Aiden looked over his shoulder at the future Pokémon breeder.
"About what?" Brandon turned his head.
"A wild Pokémon getting into the cave," Aiden motioned his head towards the newly appeared Pokémon. "Take a look."
Brandon and Michelle were now staring at the same creature as Aiden, and both were surprised by what they saw.
"Growlithe?" Brandon and Michelle questioned simultaneously.
"Ever seen a Growlithe in Mt. Moon before?" Aiden asked Brandon.
"Never," the dark pre teen shook his head.
"So what's it doing in here?" Michelle wondered aloud.
"Growl! Ithe!" The fire type barked at the young trainers, who backed away a few steps out of concern for their well being.
"Whatever the reason is, that Growlithe doesn't sound too happy," Brandon noted.
"Cle…fairy…"
The three looked back over at the group of scared Clefairy. From the back, Michelle noticed that two of the Clefairy were standing guard in front of three smaller pink beings, who looked similar to the group in front of them but not exactly the same.
"Guys, look," Michelle nudged her partners. "The Clefairy are protecting something."
Aiden soon saw the smaller Pokémon as well, and got out his pokedex to point at the little ones. "Let's check it out."
Cleffa, the star shape Pokémon, and the pre-evolved form of Clefairy. Meteor showers attract Cleffa and cause the young Pokémon to dance happily amongst each other.
"Cleffa are baby Pokémon, like Pichu," Brandon added.
"Pi!" Pichu squealed happily at the mention of her name. She liked the idea of having something in common with other Pokémon.
"So, are those Cleffa the babies of those two Clefairy?" Michelle questioned.
"It's highly possible," Brandon nodded.
"Growl!"
The group watched as Growlithe charged towards the Clefairy, barking endlessly at the innocent normal types who trembled under the fire type's presence.
"I don't like the way that Growlithe is acting!" Michelle snarled.
"Pi chu!" Pichu agreed angrily.
"What's he gettin' all mad at the Clefairy for?" Aiden huffed. "This is their home, not his!"
"If I had to guess, I would say that Growlithe is trying to take over the mountain as his territory, and wants all the other Pokémon inhabiting the mountain to leave as a result," Brandon mused.
"That must be why those Zubat were all freaked out before," Michelle came to realization. "Growlithe was firing off ember attacks at them to force them to leave!"
Growling, Aiden stepped forward and shouted at Growlithe, "hey! Leave those Clefairy alone! You have no right to take over Mt. Moon!"
Displeased that Aiden was disrupting his mission, Growlithe turned around and set his black eyes on Aiden, looking ready to attack the boy.
"I mean it!" Aiden yelled.
Barking, Growlithe jumped forward with an open mouth, charging right at Aiden. With a shriek, Aiden jumped out of the way and fell down right in front of the Clefairy. One of the pink Pokémon reached out and patted Aiden's shoulder, quietly murmuring, "fairy?"
"Yeah, I'm just fine," Aiden smiled at the fairy Pokémon. "Thanks!"
"I'm pretty sure that Growlithe just tried to use bite on Aiden," Brandon sighed.
"That would've really hurt if it had connected," Michelle frowned, feeling a sense of concern for her twin brother.
Getting back to his feet, Aiden returned his attention to the angry Growlithe and bit, "I'm not done with you yet! I will not let you torture these Clefairy that way! It's wrong!"
"Growl!" Growlithe charged towards Aiden once again.
"Aiden, look out!" Michelle cried.
Effortlessly, Aiden jumped out of the way, one of his hands forming a fist against his chest as he got up to his knees and continued glaring at the fire type that stood before him.
"Wait…I have a water Pokémon!" Aiden gasped in realization. Reaching for his poke ball, Aiden tossed it and yelled, "Squirtle, I need your help!"
The blue turtle materialized in front of his trainer, proudly banging on his chest once he was released.
"Squirt!"
"Squirtle, use bubble beam on Growlithe!" Aiden demanded.
"Squirtle!" The water type unleashed his newest attack, hitting Growlithe directly in the face. Shaking his fur out, Growlithe ran forward and bit Squirtle on the arm, causing Aiden's partner to cry out in pain.
"No, Squirtle!" Aiden yelled.
"Brandon, I think we should help," Michelle turned towards the aspiring breeder.
"Right," Brandon nodded. He grabbed a poke ball and called, "Cranidos, use take down!"
The head butt Pokémon emerged and charged right for Growlithe, crushing the fire type with his powerful attack. Growlithe howled and went flying backwards, hitting the wall of the mountain.
"Help us out, Butterfree!" Michelle tossed her own poke ball. "Stun spore!"
The flying type appeared and rapidly flapped her wings, creating a flurry of orange powder. Growlithe, who was still dazed from hitting the wall, became enshrouded in the mist and was soon left completely unable to move.
"Alright, way to go, Butterfree!" Michelle complimented her Pokémon.
"Pichu, pichupi!" Pichu added from the girl's shoulder.
"What should we do with Growlithe now that he's stunned?" Aiden looked between his sister and best friend.
"Maybe we should take him out of the cave and put him back into the wild," Michelle suggested.
"Sounds like a good idea to me," Aiden shrugged. He approached the paralyzed puppy and went to pick it up, but was interrupted by the sound of a loud explosion.
"What was that?" Michelle gasped.
Before anyone could react, the Clefairy, Cleffa, and Growlithe were all gathered up in a net and pulled up through a giant hole that had been blown into the top of the mountain clearing.
"Hey!" Aiden snapped, looking up through the hole.
"Aw, aren't you an eloquent young man?" A feminine voice drawled sarcastically.
"It's not his fault he has such a tiny brain," a male voice added laughingly.
"Hey, I'm the only one allowed to make fun of Aiden!" Michelle yelled. "Who are you clowns, anyway?"
"Silly girl," the female voice broke through yet again, "I'm surprised you don't remember my gorgeous voice from our previous encounter!"
"Previous encounter?" Michelle repeated inquiringly.
Jumping down through the hole, a trio of figures appeared: a boy, a girl, and a Pokémon. Aiden and Michelle recognized them right away, but Brandon wasn't familiar with the group.
"Team Rocket!" Michelle and Aiden barked at the same time.
"This is Team Rocket?" Brandon blinked. "The same ones that followed my uncle and your parents around?"
"It's a new generation of 'em," Aiden growled.
"They're probably twice as useless!" Michelle stormed.
"Oooh, look Jason, a new brat has tagged along with the baby brats!" Jewel tugged at her brother's arm.
"Ah, yes, hello there, big brat!" Jason greeted Brandon with a wave.
"Big brat?" Brandon raised an eyebrow.
"Just what do you think you're doing with those Pokémon, huh?" Aiden interrupted Team Rocket's little fawning session over Brandon.
"Easy, we're bringing them to the boss," Jason smirked deviously.
"What boss?" Michelle raised an eyebrow.
"None of your business," Jewel huffed.
"I'll make it my business!" Michelle cried. "Pichu, use thunder shock on the nets!"
"Pi…CHU!" Pichu fired off her signature move at the nets full of Pokémon, but it did no good.
"Huh?" Michelle gasped in horror. Pichu was panting heavily on her shoulder, exhausted from using the move. "I don't understand, why didn't that work?"
"Because these nets are shock proof!" Jewel cackled. "We learned our lesson from last time."
"Hey, Jewel, check out the Pichu!" Sneasel, who had remained rather quiet during the whole exchange, pointed a claw at the baby electric type. "It looks like it's gonna pass out at any minute!"
"Yeah, what's wrong with it?" Jewel folded her arms.
"It's still very young, so using attacks like thunder shock will cause damage to Pichu when it uses them," Jason educated his partners in crime.
"Huh, so maybe it is useless," Jewel shrugged.
"My Pichu is not useless!" Michelle bit.
"What losers," Aiden threw in. "Squirtle, try using bubble beam on the nets!"
"Squirt!" The water type used its newest attack to assault the nets that had trapped the Clefairy, Cleffa, and Growlithe. At this point, Growlithe was beginning to regain his strength, and he watched Aiden with careful black eyes.
The evil trio laughed at Aiden's attempts to stop their plan, but quickly halted when they realized…it had worked.
"What?" Jewel panicked. Grabbing Jason's collar, she shook him and yelled, "You told me you got the protected nets!"
"Only from electric attacks!" Jason defended himself. "I didn't think we would need to defend against any other attacks!"
"WHAT?" Jewel was absolutely infuriated, her whole face turning red as fire burned in her violet eyes.
"Hurry, run!" Brandon encouraged the extricated Pokémon. The Cleffa and Clefairy took his advice, running down the cave to find someplace safer, but Growlithe just stood in place, eyes still locked on Aiden.
"You crooks are going to be sorry now," Michelle grumbled. "Pichu, are you up for another attack?"
"Chu!" Pichu nodded eagerly, seeming to have completely recovered from before.
"Awesome!" Michelle beamed. "Pichu, quick, use thunder shock on Team Rocket!"
"Pichu! Pi…CHU!" Pichu sent her electric move barreling towards the trio of devious figures. It was a direct hit, sending them flying back out through the hole in the mountain which they had originally created to steal the Cleffa and Clefairy.
"Another failure!" Jewel wailed, kicking Jason in the back as they soared. "This is all YOUR fault!"
"Me?" Jason shrieked.
"Yes, you!" Jewel seethed. "It definitely wasn't MY fault!"
"Says the girl who spent all the time before attacking the mountain putting on a face full of make up," Sneasel sighed.
"HEY!" Jewel kicked the Pokémon now. "WATCH IT!"
"Team Rocket's blasting off again!"
Aiden, Michelle, and Brandon watched the evil group fly off into the air, disappearing into a little sparkle in the night sky.
"Good riddance," Michelle sighed, lifting the completely worn Pichu off of her shoulder in order to cradle the tiny thing in her arms.
"Man, it got late," Aiden murmured. "We'd better get Growlithe back out into the-"
"Growl!"
Aiden jumped, surprised to see the fire type back on his paws and looking rather agitated.
"Oh man, Butterfree's stun spore wore off," Brandon noted.
"And Growlithe doesn't look too happy…" Michelle cautiously added.
Aiden braced himself for another attack from the puppy Pokémon, but was surprised when nothing happened. Instead, the fire type just kept barking at Aiden, and unless the raven haired boy was mistaken, it sounded like barks of determination.
"What's up with you?" Aiden mused.
"Aiden…I think Growlithe wants to battle," Brandon looked up at his best friend.
"Battle?" Aiden seemed shocked. Glancing back down at Growlithe, Aiden nodded and confirmed, "Alright, I'll battle you. But if I do, you have to leave the cave and all of those Cleffa and Clefairy alone."
"Growl!" Growlithe agreed.
"Awesome," Aiden grinned. "Then let's go! Squirtle, let's see what you've got!"
"Squirt!" Squirtle jumped forward, batting his tail back and forth in an excitable manner.
"Growl! Ithe!" Growlithe barked, narrowing his eyes at Squirtle.
"Squirtle, use tackle!" Aiden commanded.
The blue turtle raced forward with his head down, preparing to undertake the fire puppy Pokémon. In response, Growlithe huffed and began to dig his claws into the ground of the cave, eventually building a fairly deep hole and jumping into it.
"Awesome, Growlithe just used dig!" Aiden marveled.
"Aiden, pay attention to the battle!" Michelle scolded.
"Oh, right," Aiden shook his head. "Squirtle, don't come off your guard! Keep your eyes peeled for Growlithe!"
"Squir…" Squirtle began to look around cautiously, waiting for the fire type to make its reappearance. From behind the turtle, the dirt began to rise, and Growlithe jumped out, firing off an ember attack before Aiden or Squirtle could ever react.
"Squirtle!" Aiden cried out.
The water type shouted and began to run around in circles, rubbing at the spot on his shell that had been burned by the fire attack. Growlithe, in turn, landed on all fours, simply staring curiously after Squirtle as he ran around in circles.
"Come on, Squirtle, cut it out!" Aiden groaned. "Try your bubble attack!"
"Squir!" Squirtle finally calmed down and fired off a series of bubbles at Growlithe. These connected right away, causing the fire type to whimper and rub at his face with his paws.
"Alright!" Aiden cheered. "Now use tail whip!"
Squirtle jumped in the air and struck his tail against Growlithe's back. Howling, the puppy Pokémon fell onto his stomach and struggled to get back up to his feet.
"Time to finish this up," Aiden smirked. "Squirtle, use-"
"Aiden, stop!" Michelle ordered.
"Huh?" Aiden looked up at his sister in surprise, which quickly melted into annoyance. "Michelle! I'm trying to battle here!"
"You're done," Michelle placed her hands on her hips. "Growlithe is obviously unable to go on. Don't' annihilate him even further!"
"You and your big words," Aiden huffed.
"Michelle's got a point," Brandon agreed. "Growlithe is really beaten down. In fact, he might be really injured…"
"What?" Aiden looked down at the fire type, and realized he was shaking. Not out of fear, but of total exhaustion. "You're right, Growlithe doesn't look too good."
Approaching the beaten Pokémon, Brandon knelt down next to its trembling figure and ran a hand over the fire type's side. Almost immediately, Brandon gasped and pulled his hand away. "Whoa…"
"What is it?" Aiden blinked.
"I can feel its ribs," Brandon clutched his hand. "And after it got so tired after such little fighting…I'm afraid that this Growlithe hasn't eaten in days."
"The poor thing…" Michelle frowned. "I wonder why he hasn't eaten?"
"I don't know, but we definitely need to get some food into his system," Brandon stood up. "Aiden, Michelle, why don't you make Growlithe comfortable while I whip up dinner? It's getting late, and we could all use something to eat."
The twins agreed and began to work on settling Growlithe. Michelle pulled a brown fleece blanket out of Brandon's backpack and laid it down on the floor cave. Aiden, in turn, gathered Growlithe into his arms and placed the fire type down on the blanket, pulling up the sides to cover the exhausted Pokémon's body. Michelle, meanwhile, stroked the puppy's tuft of cream hair, smiling as the little dog whimpered happily in his shallow sleep.
Brandon, meanwhile, was busy preparing dinner over a hot fire in the corner of the cave after quickly running out to fetch firewood. Fortunately for both him and his travelling companions, Brandon had been taught by Brock how to cook starting at a young age, and was now capable of making good just as delicious as his uncle.
While letting the soup simmer, Brandon took out the cans of Pokémon food and poured them into five separate bowls, one each for Pichu, Butterfree, Squirtle, Cranidos, and Growlithe. Once their own Pokémon were busily eating, Brandon brought the last remaining bowl over to the lightly sleeping Growlithe, placing the food by the Pokémon's head.
Growlithe's nose began to twitch, the scent of the food filling his nostrils. Slowly opening his eyes, Growlithe stretched and got up carefully, timidly approaching the food bowl in order to give it another sniff.
"Just putting the food down was enough to wake Growlithe up," Michelle noted. "His sense of smell must be incredible!"
"I never did check out Growlithe with my pokedex," Aiden pulled out the red device. "Let's see what it has to say!"
Growlithe, the puppy Pokémon. As extremely loyal companions, Growlithe will stop at nothing to protect both its trainer and its territory. They also possess a powerful sense of smell, strong enough to identify the emotions of others.
"Awesome!" Aiden beamed. "Growlithe is a pretty cool Pokémon."
"Growl!"
Aiden and Michelle were both alerted when Growlithe barked quietly. Much to their delight, it was a bark of joy, and the fire type was now busily eating his food without a single glance up.
"Brandon, Growlithe really seems to be enjoying your food!" Michelle giggled.
"I would certainly hope so, considering he was starved," Brandon chuckled softly.
"I'm glad he won't be hungry anymore after this," Aiden smiled. "But I still wonder why he was starved…"
The soup was soon finished, and the trainers began to eat along with their Pokémon. Growlithe finished before anyone else and yawned before falling back asleep on the blanket that Michelle had laid down for him.
"What a cutie," Michelle trilled. "He seems completely different from when we first ran into him this afternoon!"
"A little bit of food and sleep will work wonders on a grumpy Pokémon," Brandon nodded.
"So, where are we going to sleep tonight?" Aiden asked. "In here?"
"Yeah," Brandon confirmed. "It'll be just fine. I've camped in here with my Dad and Uncle Brock before. The Pokémon never seem to mind, as long as you don't bother 'em, of course. We can even stay right here in this clearing! All we need to do is set up our sleeping bags."
Once the food was polished off and the dishes were cleaned, the trainers decided it was time to head off to sleep. All three rolled out their sleeping bags: Aiden's red, Michelle's bright blue with a light blue floral print on the side, and Brandon's dark green with lighter green stripes. Pichu was the only Pokémon who remained out, having curled up on top of Michelle's sleeping bag as soon as it was rolled out.
"Aw, my little baby," Michelle cooed, scratching behind Pichu's ears for awhile. Since Pichu was just a baby, she fell asleep earlier than everyone else.
Michelle and Brandon were the first ones to change into their pajamas, while Aiden was the last, spending most of his time before bed checking on Growlithe, who was still fast asleep in Brandon's warm fleece blanket. Once he was sure that the puppy Pokémon was content, Aiden crawled into his own sleeping bag, quickly falling asleep with a smile on his face as he kept his eyes locked on the snoozing Growlithe.
XXX
A few hours later, Aiden groaned and reluctantly opened his eyes. He hated when he randomly woke up in the middle of the night. It had been happening ever since he was a little boy. His mother claimed it was because Aiden had always been a light sleeper. Aiden couldn't be sure of the reason himself, but all he knew was that he didn't like it.
Sitting up, Aiden rubbed at his eyes and looked over his shoulder to see what Growlithe was up to. Gasping quietly, his eyes grew wide when he realized that Growlithe was no longer curled up in the makeshift bed that he and Michelle had fashioned for the Pokémon.
Jumping up, Aiden began to wander down the cave, his dark brown eyes slowly adjusting to the darkness as he blinked them repeatedly. Amazingly enough, it became lighter as Aiden walked, which greatly confused the young trainer. It was late at night, after all. So why was it bright enough to be mistaken as daytime?
Continuing his walk, Aiden eventually stumbled upon the light source, gasping when he realized what was casting the bright light throughout the cave.
In the middle of this new clearing was a huge rock, although it held an actual luster to it. The rock was a dark silver-gray, shimmering so brightly that it easily rivaled the light shed from the moon. It was smooth, for the most part, although there were various spots and patches that stuck out in jagged shards.
"Clefairy! Clefairy! Clefairy!"
Aiden tilted his head around the rock and pulled back in surprise when the same group of Clefairy from before jumped out from behind the rock, dancing around it in exuberant fashion.
"Wow, those Clefairy sure look happy," Aiden chuckled. "That rock must be special to 'em!"
"Growl."
"Huh?" Aiden turned his head to the right, looking slightly up. On a throne of rocks, which were simply plain and not at all sparkling like the conglomerate in the center clearing, sat Growlithe, watching the happy normal types with calm black eyes. "Growlithe?"
The fire type set his eyes on Aiden before breathing out softly and placing his attention back onto the Clefairy.
"What're you doing here?" Aiden moved closer to the puppy Pokémon. "I was worried when I saw you were gone. I kinda' thought you ran away."
"Lithe," Growlithe huffed, whipping his tail just once.
"So you're just watching the Clefairy?" Aiden prodded.
Growlithe nodded just once before lowering his head onto his paws, eyes following curiously after the Clefairy as they leapt around. In the corner, Aiden noticed, the three little Cleffa were fast asleep, all cuddled up together for warmth and protection.
"If you like the Clefairy, how come you were terrorizing them before?" Aiden asked the fire type. Growlithe's ears twitched, but he didn't bark or even whine in response. "It just doesn't make sense to me."
Growlithe turned his attention onto Aiden and perked his head up in interest. Aiden didn't notice this change in Growlithe's posture, too transfixed by the actions of the Clefairy. Growlithe just kept staring at the boy, however, contemplating something in his head as he observed the human with genuine awareness.
XXX
The next morning, Brandon and Michelle woke up at just about the same time, stretching and slowly climbing out of their sleeping bags in order to face the new day.
"Good morning, Brandon, Aiden," Michelle smiled. She was always cheerful after getting a good night's sleep.
"Morning," Brandon replied with a yawn behind his hand. Aiden, however, didn't respond, which caused the red headed girl and her aspiring breeder companion to look at one another in bewilderment.
"Aiden?" Michelle questioned, skirting over to his sleeping bag. She nudged it with her foot, and was surprised to find that it was empty.
"He must've already gotten up," Brandon scratched his head.
"Good joke," Michelle huffed. "Aiden's never woken up before me a day in his life! He could sleep all day if you'd let him."
"Then where could he have gone?" Brandon folded his arms.
"Sleep walking?" Michelle suggested lamely.
"Come on, we'd better go looking for him," Brandon sighed, not even bothering to change out of the orange shirt and green shorts he used as sleepwear. Michelle, in turn, gathered a still sleeping Pichu in her arms and followed after the slightly older boy, feeling a little ridiculous to be walking around in her own pajamas: a long sleeved lilac top with darker purple accents and very short, violet colored shorts.
As the two walked down the small pathway inside the cave, they called out Aiden's name, hoping that the trainer would answer them. There was no reply, however, which caused the two to look at each other in slight concern.
"You don't think he'd run away, would you?" Michelle muttered.
"Why would Aiden do something like that?" Brandon mused.
"Well, I don't know if you noticed, but right before I followed you, I realized that Growlithe wasn't on the blanket," Michelle explained. "What if he and Aiden got into it again?"
"No way," Brandon shook his head. "Growlithe was way too weak and tired to do any kind of fighting."
"Maybe Aiden released him back into the wild," Michelle sighed, wishing her brother would just show up and make their lives easier.
The trainers eventually made their way into a clearing, gasping at the sight before them: a giant, glittering boulder set in the center of the clearing.
"Wow, that's the most beautiful rock I've ever seen in my life!" Michelle breathed. "It's so sparkly; it looks like you could make some really pretty jewelry out of it!"
"That's a moon stone," Brandon commented meekly.
"Like…the evolutionary moon stone?" Michelle questioned.
"That's right," Brandon nodded.
"But aren't evolution stones usually small? I've never seen or even heard of an evolution stone that big!"
"Sometimes, evolution stones can form and break off of a larger boulder," Brandon explained to the girl next to him. "This is especially common in moon stones, since they originate from shards of fallen meteors. They collect and grow much more easily than other evolutionary stones."
"Wow, there's so many amazing things to learn about the world!" Michelle beamed. "Even more than my Dad ever taught me! I can't wait to see what else there is for me to discover."
"Ugh, do you hafta' be so loud?"
Brandon and Michelle turned their heads, gasping at the sight of Aiden sitting against the wall of the cave and tiredly rubbing his eyes.
"Aiden?" Michelle blinked her big green eyes. "What are you doing in this part of the cave?" Turning towards Brandon, Michelle smirked, "I told you he was sleep walking!"
"Are you psychotic?" Aiden narrowed his eyes. "I didn't sleepwalk! I woke up in the middle of the night and walked here on my own free will! I was definitely awake, thank you very much."
"Rude," Michelle huffed, turning her head away in annoyance.
Looking up, Brandon realized that Growlithe was still asleep on a boulder that sat next to Aiden. "Has Growlithe been here this entire time?"
"Oh, yeah," Aiden grinned before chuckling amusedly. "I found him here when I took my midnight walk. He was watching the Clefairy dance around that giant rock, so I kinda' joined him. It was pretty cool to see all of those Clefairy get so excited over something like that!"
"Aiden, that big rock is a moon stone," Michelle's eyes were glowing at the thought that she was sharing this information that, to her, was newly learned. "That's why the Clefairy were so excited! Remember what the pokedex said?"
"Right, they dance around pieces of fallen meteors!" Aiden awed. "That's so cool! I had no idea that was a moon stone!"
"I didn't either, until Brandon told me," Michelle giggled, sheepishly rubbing the back of her neck. At that moment, Pichu woke up, letting out a big yawn before rubbing her still sleepy eyes. Peering down, Michelle cooed, "oh, good morning, Pichu! Did you sleep well!"
"Pi," Pichu nodded just once before climbing atop Michelle's shoulder and perching herself there.
Simultaneously, Growlithe huffed quietly and opened his eyes, getting up to his paws and shaking out his fur before looking down at Aiden.
"Hey, morning, Growlithe!" Aiden greeted cheerfully. "How are you doing?"
"Growl," Growlithe barked quietly, wagging his tail before jumping off the boulder and approaching Aiden, licking the boy's cheek.
"Wow, Growlithe sure looks a lot better than he did yesterday!" Brandon marveled.
"That's awesome!" Michelle agreed. "Now we can return him back to the wild!"
At this, Growlithe frowned and whimpered. Aiden was the only one who took notice of this, however, and gently patted the fire type on his furry head.
XXX
Once the group was all dressed and had packed their things away, they exited Mt. Moon, waving goodbye to the Clefairy who were busy working around the cave before exiting. Aiden and Michelle paid particular attention to the three Cleffa, who were bouncing around everywhere and being chased by the two exasperated Clefairy who had been protecting them from Growlithe just the day before.
"Hey Aiden, they remind you of our family, don't they?" Michelle giggled. "It's like the Clefairy are Mom and Dad, and those three Cleffa are you, me, and Elizabeth!"
"Well, the Cleffa definitely act like us, that's for sure," Aiden chuckled.
Growlithe trailed behind, looking fairly miserable as he trudged his way after the three trainers. Before passing the Clefairy, Growlithe howled and caused the normal type Pokémon to turn their attention onto him, blinking their beady black eyes in curiosity. Growlithe barked and whined a few times, causing the Clefairy to smile and jump up and down. This seemed to bring some relief to Growlithe, who finally smiled and managed to catch up with the group fast enough to be walking next to Aiden.
"I wonder what Growlithe said to the Clefairy," Aiden pondered aloud.
"Maybe he was apologizing for scaring them so badly yesterday and trying to kick them out of their own living space," Michelle suggested. "If so, that was certainly the right thing to do."
"Guess you learned a lesson, huh little guy?" Aiden smiled down at Growlithe.
"Growl!" Growlithe replied, wagging his tail once again.
Soon, the group reached Mt. Moon's entrance and stepped outside, taking in the fresh air of the brand new morning.
"Wow, it's so nice outside!" Michelle marveled.
"It's a great day for you to go home, huh?" Aiden knelt down before Growlithe.
Suddenly, the fire type became despondent again, whimpering and lowering his ears before sitting down in front of a very confused Aiden.
"What's up with Growlithe?" Brandon questioned from behind the amateur trainer.
"I…don't know," Aiden blinked.
"Growl…ithe," Growlithe whimpered, nudging Aiden's knee with his head.
"What's up, Growlithe?" Aiden tried.
Growlithe looked over his shoulder and whined before looking back at Aiden and shaking his head.
"I could be wrong, but I think Growlithe is saying he has no place to go," Brandon guessed.
"Is that true?" Aiden inquired.
Growlithe nodded and lowered his head, looking rather ashamed by this fact.
"That must be why he was trying to force the Clefairy out of Mt. Moon," Michelle frowned. "Growlithe had no home, and probably not even any shelter to protect him. Maybe that's why he was so hungry, too. He must not have had any food around either. The poor thing is all alone."
Aiden suddenly felt very bad for the fire type. Reaching out, he started to stroke the Pokémon's fur, smiling as Growlithe barked happily and finally wagged his tail again.
"Hey," Aiden began, his eyes sparkling slightly, "do you want to come with me, Growlithe?"
"Growl?" Growlithe questioned, tilting his head to the right.
"Yeah, you could become part of my team!" Aiden beamed. "It'll be so much fun! I can tell that you're a really strong battler, so you'll make an awesome addition! And you'll never have to be lonely, or hungry, or anything like that ever again! So, what do you say?"
"Growl! Growlithe!" Growlithe jumped up and down, nodding his head frantically.
"I think that Growlithe really likes that idea!" Brandon chuckled.
"Then it's settled," Aiden's eyes glimmered. Reaching for a poke ball, he tossed it at Growlithe and yelled, "poke ball, let's go!"
Growlithe allowed himself to be hit and sucked up by the red and white sphere. It landed back on the ground and shook a few times, Aiden watching on with a determined look on his young face. Eventually, the ball stopped moving and clicked close, much to the delight of the raven haired boy watching over it.
Stepping forward, Aiden picked up the poke ball and held it in the air, yelling, "alright! My first ever capture! I caught a Growlithe!"
"Pi-chu!" Pichu congratulated Aiden on his accomplishment.
"Way to go, Aiden!" Brandon added his own applause.
"Now we both have two Pokémon each!" Michelle smiled.
"Yeah!" Aiden held the poke ball close and grinned down at it. Finally, he had caught his very first Pokémon. His team was starting to take shape, and Aiden was determined to train Squirtle, Growlithe, and every future Pokémon he would eventually catch to the best of their ability.
Watch out, Dad. I'm coming for you.
So, Aiden catches his first Pokemon, Growlithe! A water and a fire type, really not too bad :P Like Michelle said, she and Aiden now have two Pokemon each! What will happen next on their Pokemon adventure? Stay tuned (or, reading...) to find out!
And remember to leave a review, because they make me happy, and being happy is fun. It also helps me with my writing :P Thank you, lovely readers! You all rock!