Chapter 8: Special Training
The girls chose to carry their eggs in their arms as they walked through the forest. Dragon had to walk alongside his trainer, but he did not seem to mind. Mo walked beside him, and the two casually chatted. At one point, they both ran ahead, laughing and having fun. Their trainers chuckled before running after them.
"Don't get too far ahead!" Gary called.
"If they get lost, I'm not going to look for them," Shelly said.
The Cyndaquil and Tepig did verge off the trail, but it was because they smelled someone nearby. Gabri nearly numbed into Dani as she skidded to a halt. "It's Paul!" the young girl said in surprise.
They had entered a clearing that was also the edge of the cliff. To the left, the cliff jutted down. Below lay a river. The two girls stood close to the cliff, watching the boy. Paul had his back turned to them, and he was focused on something in the bushed. "Quiet!" he snapped. "I'm waiting for a Pokemon to come out."
"What Pokemon?" Gabri asked curiously. She took a step closer. Suddenly, the ground form underneath gave way, and she started to fall down the cliff. Instinctively, she grabbed Dani's arm. Dani lost her balanced and rolled over the edge of the cliff. She grabbed Gabri's hand with her left one and held onto the edge of the cliff with her right.
They both watched in horror as their eggs rolled down the side of the cliff. Fortunately, the cliff was slanted, and the eggs rolled to a stop on a flat part about a fourth of the way down the cliff. Dani struggled to hold onto the grass as she and her sister dangled helplessly. She did not have the strength to pull both of them up.
Paul had turned just in time to witness the scene. He was about to say something when the bushes rustled. He turned to see the Pokemon he had been waiting for scamper out into the open before running away. Paul hesitated, wondering if he should go after it. A moment later, he tore his eyes away and stomped over to the edge of the cliff. Mo and Dragon stood there, staring helplessly at their trainers.
"Hold on," Paul said as he knelt down by the edge. He took a minute to survey the scene and figure out the best way to go about this. "Can you pass Gabri up to me?"
Dani frowned as she glanced down at her sister. "I can try." She struggled to lift Gabri up several more inches. The young girl was then able to grab Dani's shoulder with her free hand. From there, Paul grasped her hand and pulled her up into safety.
"Thanks!" Gabri said in relief.
"Tepig!" Dragon said as he jumped into her arms.
"We're not done yet," Paul said with a grunt. He grabbed Dani's arm and pulled her up as well.
"Thank you," Dani said, smiling at him sheepishly. Then she glanced back over the cliff with a frown. "Our eggs!"
"Quil." Mo followed her gaze sadly.
"What about that Pokemon you were going to catch?" Gabri asked.
"Forget about it," Paul said. "I don't want those eggs to pay for the incompetence of you two."
Dani opened her mouth to say this was an accident caused by her sister, but she closed it when she realized it would do more harm than good.
"Torterra, use Frenzy Plant down that cliff!" Paul said as he tossed a Pokeball in the air. The huge grass Pokemon appeared beside him. A few seconds later, long roots began to sprout out along the side of the cliff. One of them grew up from the ledge where the eggs sat and reached all the way up to the top.
"Wait," Dani said as he started to climb onto the root, "that's dangerous."
"Maybe for you." He then slid down the root and landed on the ledge.
"What's going on?" Shelly said as she and Gary emerged from the trees with Gogoat.
"You should not have veered from the path," Gary said.
"Our Pokemon found Paul!" Gabri said. "Then I slipped, and we almost fell down that cliff. Paul is getting out eggs."
"You let the eggs fall down a cliff?!" Shelly exclaimed. "You've only had them one day, and you're already trying to scramble them!"
"It's her fault," Dani said, pointing at her sister.
Gabri frowned. "Thanks."
Paul dropped down next to the two girls. He pulled out an egg that he had kept in the hood of his sweatshirt, and he roughly shoved it into Dani's hands. "Here." Then he was back down the root.
Dani examined the egg before handing it to Gabri. "This one is yours."
She blinked. "How do you know?"
She shrugged in response.
"You're making Paul fetch them?" Gary said with raised eyebrows.
"He volunteered!" Gabri said. She set Dragon down on the ground to better hold the egg.
Shelly pursed her lips. "Uh huh."
Paul returned several moments later with the second egg, which he also handed to Dani. "They are right about one thing; you two should be more careful."
"Because you're worried about us?" Dani said innocently.
"No. So I don't have to waste my time saving you."
"But if it's a waste of time, why bother doing it?" Gabri questioned.
"I'm not heartless," Paul said with a low growl.
"Could have fooled me," Shelly whispered to Gary.
"Well, thank you," Dani said.
"Cynda!" Mo agreed from her shoulder.
"It wasn't something anyone else wouldn't do," Paul said indifferently as he returned Torterra to his Pokeball.
"Everyone wouldn't have saved the eggs," Gabri pointed out. "Thank you for that. The eggs thank you too." She smiled.
Paul narrowed his eyes. "You're turning this into something it's not. I do not like you two."
"But we like you," Dani said.
"Why?" Shelly said in exasperation.
"You need a better taste in friends," Gary said, crossing his arms.
"Listen to them," Paul said. "Leave me alone until you get stronger." He turned to leave.
At the word 'stronger,' there was a flash of light and a sound of a Pokemon escaping its confinement. Then Simon the Oshawott stood before Dani. "Oshawott!" he said, pointing at Paul.
Paul stared at him blankly. "What do you want?"
"He's challenging you to a battle," Dani explained. "He likes to go up against strong opponents."
"Osha."
"Hmph. I like that attitude. I have a new Pokemon that could use a warm up before we get into some real training."
Dani bit her lip but nodded. "Alright. Let's battle then." She just hoped her Pokemon would listen to her this time.
"This won't be good," Shelly muttered.
"Let's move away from the cliff," Gary said.
The group found an area further in the forest that suited their needs. Dani handed Gary her egg and Mo as he stood with Shelly and Gabri on the sideline. Then she stood opposite of Paul with Simon before her.
"Larvesta," Paul said, taking out a Pokeball, "stand by for battle!" A fuzzy, moth larva-like Pokemon emerged from the ball and stood before him.
It looked like a fire type to Dani, which was good for her. "Ok, Simon, use Water Gun!"
"Take Down," Paul said.
Simon shot out a stream of water at the other Pokemon. Larvesta darted to the side while running towards him. Simon's eyes widened when he suddenly slammed into him, sending him falling back a couple of feet.
Dani wanted to use Water Sport, but she knew he would not do it, so she decided on something else instead. "Tackle!" They were already standing close together, so this should work.
Simon stood up and took a deep breath. He seemed to be doing something to calm himself, and it almost looked like an attack.
"That's focus Energy!" Gary said.
Dani blinked. "Oh, good. Do that."
"Use String Shot," Paul said.
Larvesta shot out a sticky string that stuck to Simon's body, linking them together. He glared at the bug before shooting out water at him. Larvesta jumped out of the way, but some of the water splashed onto him.
"Run around in circles!" Paul called. "Then jump into the air!"
"Quick, use Water Gun!"
Larvesta started running in a circle around the Oshawott, tying him up in the String Shot. Simon seemed bewildered by this. Instead of using Water Gun, he attempted to break free. Finally, he attempted to run at his opponent for a Tackle. Larvesta jumped in the air to dodge. The String Shot unwound, causing Simon to spin in circles until the string snapped, sending him flying across the grass until he crashed into a rock.
"Now, Ember!" said Paul.
"Water Gun!"
Larvesta took a deep breath and then spit out fire balls. Simon ran forward, dodging most of them as he lowered his head for a Tackle.
"Use Leech Life," Paul said.
Simon succeeded in running into the Larvesta, but the fire type clung to the Oshawott's head. He proceeded to suck some of his energy away to refuel himself.
"No," Dani groaned. "Shake it off and try to use Water Gun."
"Ember," Paul ordered.
Simon shook his head back and forth. Larvesta jumped off of him and then used Ember. The fire sent Simon crashing to the ground, and he fainted.
"No!" Dani exclaimed. "Simon, are you alright?" She rushed over to him and helped him to his feet.
"It did not listen to a word you said," Paul said. "Pathetic. Larvesta, return."
"You too, Simon," Dani muttered, taking out his Pokeball.
"Wait!" Gabri cried as Paul turned to leave. "Can you battle me now?"
"Tepig!"
Paul paused and glanced at the Pokemon in her arms. "Larvesta is tired, and I do not have any Pokemon that could not easily defeat yours. Some other time."
"Ok." Gabri smiled slightly as she watched him leave. Then she frowned as she looked at Dani, who appeared disheartened.
Gary sighed as he ran a hand through his hair. "I told you that guy is no good."
"Why won't Simon listen to me?" Dani asked helplessly.
"Some Pokemon take longer to adjust than others. It may help if you two did some special training to get in sync."
"Could you help me?" She smiled at him hopefully.
He nodded. "Sure. I'll teach you some of my old training methods tomorrow."
"Awesome. Thanks, Gary."
Gabri smiled, glad a plan had been developed. She then glanced at Shelly and saw she did not seem quite as happy. Hmm...
The next day after breakfast, everyone split up. Shelly and Gabri went off to train by themselves while Gary and Dani stayed behind at the camp. Mo ran over to Gogoat to play with him while his trainer released Simon. "We're going to do some special training today," she said to the Oshawott.
"Osha Oshawott!" he said, seeming pleased.
Dani glanced at Gary. "Ok, what do we do?"
"An important component of winning battles is being in sync with your Pokemon," Gary said. "You need to trust each other and know each other well. Simon should be listening to your commands, but you also need to get to know his battle style so you can call attacks he will feel comfortable using in the specific situation."
"I never thought about it that way."
"When starting out, it can be helpful to train with your Pokemon. Let's start with some exercises to warm up." He took out a Pokeball. "Umbreon and I will do it too."
Dani, Simon, Gary, and Umbreon spent the next half hour performing basic stretches and exercises. They finished with a jog through the forest. "That was refreshing, wasn't it, Simon," Dani said as they arrived back in camp.
"Oshawott," Simon agreed.
"Now what?" Dani asked the other trainer.
"Practice some of his moves," Gary said. "Try to get into it with him and see things from his perspective."
An hour of this type of training passed. When Dani wanted to stop for the day, Simon objected. Frowning, Dani looked for Gary to help.
"A break would be good," he told the Oshawott. "You don't want to overdo it." He glanced at Dani. "Playing with your Pokemon can be as important as training with them."
She raised her eyebrows. "Play?" Somehow, she did not think Simon was the playful type.
"Guys!" a voice called from the forest. They turned to see Gabri running towards them, Dragon on her heels. She stopped in front of them and panted before continuing. "I found a pound. I think we should go swimming!"
Dani looked at Simon and smiled. "Do you want to swim? It would be good training." Plus, it was fun. As a water type, she thought he would enjoy it.
Simon seemed to think about it before he nodded. "Osha."
"Let's find Shelly and go," Gary said.
Gabri grinned. "Yay!"
Everyone soon arrived at the large pond. It was rather clean pond that was good for swimming. There seemed to be no Pokemon currently living with it. The humans had changed into their swimming suits and jumped in. The Pokemon belonging to them were all out of their Pokeballs. The fire type Pokemon stood on the shore together and guarding the eggs while everyone else was in the water with their trainers.
Simon treaded water away from the group. He watched them playing around and having fun with interest. Then Hiccup, Shelly's Wartortle, swam over to him. "Wartortle," he said.
"Oshawott."
"Wartortle." He splashed him.
Simon blinked in surprise before glaring at him. "Oshawott!"
Hiccup grinned. "Wartortle!" He dove under water and swam under Simon. Then he popped up under him, causing him to fall over and splash into the water.
Simon's head popped out of the water, and he searched for Hiccup. "Oshawott!" The Wartortle grinned and swam away. Simon sped after him.
Shelly noticed the two of them and smirked. "I think Hiccup is trying to get Simon to play."
Dani followed her gaze and smiled at the water types. "That's good." She decided now was a great time for further bonding with her Pokemon. She swam towards her Oshawott, easily watching up to him. When she got close, she dunked him under water.
When he bobbed to the surface, he turned around to look at her in shock. Hiccup laughed from behind him. "Oshawott!" He used Water Gun right in her face.
Dani blinked in surprise and wiped the water out of her eyes. She looked at Simon uncertainly, wondering if she had upset him. Then she saw him grinning, and she knew everything was just fine.
Everyone immensely enjoyed the rest of the morning in the pond. Dani was glad that Simon was finally opening up to her and having some fun. Eventually, they all returned to shore to get started on lunch. It seemed that Simon was ready to get back to training. He took a battle stance with a confident look on his face.
"After lunch, do you want to have a practice battle with me?" Shelly suggested.
Dani glanced at the Oshawott. "Will you trust me and listen to my commands?"
Simon nodded. "Oshawott."
Dani smiled and glanced at her sister. "Ok, let's do that."
After lunch, Shelly chose her Meowth, Paws, for the battle, and returned her others to their Pokeballs. They stood off against Dani and Simon. Gabri, Dragon, Gary, and Mo watched from the sideline.
"You can have the first move," Shelly said.
Dani nodded. "Ready, Simon?"
"Oshawott."
"Ok, use Water Gun, and don't stop until you hit him!"
"Paws, use Scratch!"
Simon shot out his water at the cat. Paws dashed to the side while running forward, but Simon kept up the water, moving is head so that he finally struck the Meowth and sent him to the ground.
"Good job!" Dani said. "Now use Tackle!"
"Fake Out!" Shelly called.
Simon ran forward with his head lowered. Paws waited for him to come to him. When he was close, he clapped his paws together, creating a shockwave of air that pushed Simon all the way back to his trainer.
"Good one, Paws."
"It's alright, Simon. Use Focus Energy."
"Bite!"
Simon took a deep breath and let it out slowly while Paws ran towards him on all fours. He made no move to dodge.
"Now, Water Gun!" Dani ordered.
Simon blasted a jet of water at the Meowth, stopping him in his tracks, and soaking him. He tried to shake the water off but failed, shivering.
"Paws, leap into the air and use Bite!"
"Simon, Water Gun again!"
Paws ran forward and jumped into the air. Simon attempted to hit him with water again, but the Meowth was moving too fast. Paws landed on top of him and bit into his skin. Simon cried out in pain and ran around in circles, trying to shake him off.
"Calm down," Dani said soothingly. "Use your scalchop." The Pokedex had said Oshawott used their scalchop for offense and defense, so she thought it was time hers practiced with his. It would be great if he could learn how to use Razor Shell.
"Paws, use Fake Out again."
"Water Gun!"
Simon grabbed his scalchop and swiped it at the Meowth, but Paws jumped off him before he could hit him. Before Paws could clap his paws together again, he hit him with another stream of water.
"Good," Dani said. "Now use Razor Shell." He looked at her questioningly. "Try it. I believe in you."
"Paws, use Scratch!"
Simon turned to face his opponent confidently. Once again, he stood still and waited for him to come to him. Just as the Meowth leapt into the air with his claws extended, Simon grabbed his scalchop, which was now glowing a bright blue, swung it back to cause the aura around it to stretch and harden into an energy blade, and then slashed Paws with it. The normal type cried out and fell to the ground in a heap. Simon stood victoriously over the fainted Pokemon, scalchop in hand.
"Simon, you did it!" Dani said happily. "You won! We won."
"Osha?" Simon said. Then he turned to his trainer and grinned. "Oshawott!" He put his scalchop back in place and ran over to him.
Dani smiled and picked him up. "Good job, buddy. I'm proud of you."
"Thanks for trying, Paws," Shelly said, returning him to his Pokeball. "We'll have to do some more training later." She nodded at her older sister. "Good battle, sis."
"Thanks." She set Simon back down, and Mo ran up to him and started to talk to him excitedly.
"Simon was awesome!" Gabri said.
"You two worked together well," Gary said.
Dani turned to him with a smile. "We couldn't have done it without you. Thanks for all your help." Without thinking much, she wrapped her arms around him in a hug.
Gary seemed surprised at first, but then he smiled and hugged her back. "You're welcome, Dani. You'll have to continue your training if you want to progress."
Dani stepped back and nodded. "Of course." She glanced at her sisters. "Do you want to hit the road?"
"Sure," said Gabri.
"Ok," Shelly agreed.
Dani chose to let Simon stay out of his Pokeball so that they could bond some more. He seemed unsure of himself on her left shoulder, but Mo smiled at him from her right, and he seemed to settle down.
Just as they were starting down the path through the forest, Shelly pulled her older sister aside and whispered, "Just so you know, Gary's mine. I claim him."
Dani blinked in confusion. "Excuse me? You can't claim a person."
Shelly rolled her eyes. "You know what I mean. Don't get any funny ideas."
Dani shrugged and looked forward at the road. "Whatever. I'm just trying to make friends."
Shelly watched her uncertainly. She did not doubt that her sister was telling the truth, but she knew her too well to know she better not refrain from keeping an eye on her.
