Once we'd found a quiet, secluded spot to have lunch, I let out all of my Pokémon. "Alright, it's play time!" I called and they all appeared one by one, calling out in greeting but Latias appeared in my arms, choosing to snuggle close to me so I giggled. "Hey there you, did you sleep well?" I asked and everyone began to crowd closer. "Everyone, this is Latias, the egg you've all helped me to incubate and look after. Isn't she great?" I said and everyone chirped in agreement.
Vaporeon began to dance around my feet so I sat down on the ground, letting her get a closer look at Latias who cooed in greeting then rubbed noses with Vaporeon who gasped in wonder. "Poreon…"
"Pidgeo?" Pidgeot questioned and Latias looked at her next, blinking but gave an innocent chirp of laughter, lifting her little hands that tucked into her chest to wave them. Charizard lowered his head down to make himself seem smaller, looking over my shoulder without wanting to startle the new born but Latias seemed to like him just as much.
Jigglypuff bounced up onto my shoulder and gasped, eyes sparkling at the adorable baby in my arms then clapped her hands. "Jigglypuff! Jigglypuff Puff!"
"That's right Jigglypuff, Latias is coming with us on our journey." I told her with a nod of my head. "But I'm going to need all of your help to keep Latias safe from anyone who might want to take her away. Can I rely on you guys to help me?" I questioned and Dragonair instantly coiled around us protectively with a firm nod of her head before letting us go as the others all chorused.
"Here, I've made some baby feed, this should keep up Latias's strength whilst it's still growing." Brock said, shaking a bottle of milk to mix up the nutrients before handing to me and sitting down at my side.
"Thanks Brock, what's in it?"
"Some Pecha berry juice, Oran berry juice, nutrient powders, baby Pokémon powder milk and Moo-Moo milk. That should do for now until I can figure out the right recipe for it." He said as I gave the baby bottle to Latias and she instantly began to drink from it, sucking it all up with her eyes closed. "You know, maybe we should ask Professor Oak if he knows anything about Latias. I'm not even sure what Pokémon type it is."
"That's right, maybe he'll have some answers." Misty said as she walked over with Ash. "Hey there cutie, were you hungry?" She cooed over Latias who blinked then drew back slightly, giving a little whimper which only made Ash laugh.
"It's scared of you Misty!"
"Is not! You're the one scaring it!" Misty yelled back so I quickly intervened.
"Guys, I don't think Latias likes being so overcrowded." I cut in with a pointed look at everyone so they all moved back. "There you are Latias, is that better?" I asked and Latias instantly nodded her head and snuggled into me.
All the other Pokémon craned their necks to get a better look, each one intrigued by this new addition so I put Latias on the ground then shifted back a little so that she lay on the grass. She gave me a brave smile then stretched out to sniff at a flower which only made her sneeze. "Oh isn't that the cutest thing?" Misty squealed, clapping her hands together and squirming on the spot.
Togepi and Pikachu approached, Togepi chirping happily and together they introduced themselves then everyone in turn. Latias gazed around her in wonder at all the Pokémon and people as I stood with mine, smiling. "That's right Latias. We're your family now." I told her, reaching down and picking her up again. "So you don't need to worry about anything. We'll keep you safe and help you grow big and strong, okay?" Latias nodded her head then let me carry her to the lake where I gave all of my Pokémon a bath.
Pikachu led a racing game where all Pokémon able to go into the water raced against each other from one lake to the other, though those too small jumped onto the back of those either bigger or where water types. Vaporeon carried Latias and Togepi, both of them trilling happily with closed eyes as they enjoyed the splash of water whilst I finished helping Misty to wash off the last of the suds on Bayleef's body to then let her jump into the water too, creating a massive wave which the Pokémon rode with glee.
Dragonair dove down with Pikachu, Jigglypuff and Cyndaquil before leaping back up again, causing a massive spray to shower down over the Pokémon who all squealed with laughter. "They're having a great time and I think Latias has really settled in here." Misty said to me and I nodded my head.
"Yeah it's great. I just don't understand how Latias's egg got here." I said, frowning in thought. "I found it in a nest, but it couldn't have been another Latias's nest, it looked more like a water type Pokémon nest as it was built from weeds, reeds and grass." I said.
"Well maybe Latias is a water type." Misty suggested but Brock shook his head as he approached.
"No, I think Latias is a flying type, judging by its body structure and the wing like fins on its back. Maybe it's just too young to know how to fly yet which is why it hasn't taken off from the ground." He said as Ash joined us too.
"You know, this is great. With a Latias on our side, we can never be beaten again in battle! I can't wait to see what moves it can do." Ash said but I merely reached out and whacked him on the head lightly.
"Cool down genius, we still don't have any information on Latias, so there's no knowing what it can learn. I think our best bet is asking Professor Oak when we get to the next Pokémon Centre. In the meantime, isn't that your egg that Totodile is playing catch with in the water?" I asked, pointing out to where Totodile was squirting Water Gun directly upwards and boosting the egg in its incubator up in the air then blasted it over the lake to then race after it and catch it again.
"Argh! Totodile stop that right now!" Ash suddenly yelled then dived fully clothed into the lake after Totodile who merely sped away, abandoning the egg so it began to tumble down in the air but then Noctowl grabbed a hold of it, keeping it from getting further abused then brought it back to Brock who kept a hold of it as Ash began to flounder in the middle of the lake.
"Well this is interesting." Misty mused as I smirked then snapped a close up photo of Ash as he started to struggle to keep his head above water.
"Definitely." I agreed with a grin. We decided to move on after lunch but we stopped in the woods after we found a clearing to rest for the night, seeing as it was now dark. I got a fire started and after we had eaten again, we settled down and calmly watched the flames as they flickered in front of us.
"Huh?" I looked up as Ash noticed something. "There's something glowing in my backpack!" He turned around and pulled out the incubator with a glowing egg inside. "Hey! It's going to hatch!" Ash suddenly cheered before gulping. "What do I do?"
"Just stay calm, take a deep breath and try not to drop it." Brock said to Ash simply as Ash gulped again.
"Hey guys, we're finally going to see what's inside of it! I bet it'll be cute like Togepi." Misty said and I beamed.
"Or my Latias." I agreed but Ash just smiled.
"All I want is for it to be healthy, and get along great with all the other Pokémon. Right Pikachu?" Ash turned to Pikachu who nodded his head with a bright smile.
"Pikachu."
"Whatever it is, this is so exciting!" Brock said, gripping his knees tightly as I scooted closer.
"Do you think it'll be coming soon? Like right now?"
"Yeah, I just want to see it hatch!" Misty agreed. Looking at the glow I could see it wasn't as bright as Latias had been just moments before it hatched, so I guessed it would still be a while before it hatched.
"Hey, why don't we try and get some sleep? If we put out the fire, we'll be able to notice if the egg's light gets any brighter." I suggested and everyone nodded.
"Good idea. Though maybe we should take it in turns to egg sit, just in case." Brock said and Ash nodded his head again.
"Right! I'll go first because it's my egg. You three go on and get some rest." So we settled down and got some sleep, or at least tried to. We were all excited that I don't think any of us got much sleep regardless. In the morning the egg was still glowing the same as before, but just as Pikachu shook me awake, the light began to glow brighter.
"Oh!" I sat up instantly, Pikachu turning to watch with me as the egg grew into shape, small with longish ears and four legs until finally, a blue skinned Pokémon appeared with closed eyes and red stripes curling around its ears with a band across its trunk. The ears flicked out and waved a little as it looked up at Ash then smiled.
"Phanphy!" It greeted sweetly and Misty and I both awed quietly together.
"Alright, it's finally here!" Ash laughed with joy as Pikachu jumped onto his shoulder.
"Pikachu!" Ash pulled out Dexter and listened to the information stored there.
"Phanphy, the long nose Pokémon. Phanphy uses its powerful snout to express affection, not realising its strength can send you flying." Phanphy began to flutter its ears and called out rhythmically as Misty beamed.
"I knew it! It's so adorable, and look at those ears, so cute!"
"Its skin has a nice sheen too, that means it's really healthy." Brock said to Ash who sighed with relief.
"Alright, now all I have to do is put Phanphy inside of the Pokéball Mr Shelby gave me." He said then began to feel around his belt trying to locate it before blinking with worry and hastily checking his pockets. "Uh oh, what'd I do with it?!"
"Don't worry Ash, it's attached to the case Mr Shelby gave you. He knew what he was doing when he made that decision." Brock said reassuringly so Ash gave a little laugh.
"Oh yeah, I almost forgot." He pulled out the Pokéball and enlarged it before holding it out to Phanphy. "Okay Phanphy, return." He commanded but Phanphy jumped out of the way playfully, making Ash frown in confusion. "Come on Phanphy, return!" I watched as Phanphy began to dance and prance out of the way of the return beacon, smiling and flapping its ears as Ash only grew more and more annoyed. "I'm not going to tell you again Phanphy, now get in your ball!"
"I don't think Phanphy is listening to you Ash." Misty noted as Phanphy jumped further backwards.
"That's because Phanphy isn't trained to obey commands, it just thinks you're playing. Maybe you should try baiting it with some food and then see what happens." Brock suggested so I pulled some out from my backpack.
"Here, have some of this." I said, holding out the can then shook some pieces into Ash's hand.
"Thanks! Okay, here Phanphy! I have a special treat here for you, I think you're going to like it." Ash called temptingly, making Phanphy stop its playing around to sniff the air intriguingly. Phanphy walked forwards, still sniffing the food before finally reaching out and taking it.
"That's good Ash." I said with a smile. "You have to remember, Phanphy is only a baby, so you have to be careful how you treat it. You can't think of it as one of your other Pokémon yet, because they're much stronger and have more experience than Phanphy does, so in the beginning you need to nurture and gain its trust."
"Got it, no problem." Ash said, nodding his head. "Hey Phanphy, how about we play a game?" Ash suggested so I dug down deep into my pack and brought out a tennis ball.
"How about this? Catch it Ash!" I called and threw it forwards, making Ash dive for it with a laugh.
"Yeah! Come on Pikachu, let's show Phanphy how to play. Now watch close Phanphy." Ash said and Phanphy blinked curiously as Ash threw the ball up into the air and Pikachu raced after it, turning his head to look up then at the last moment, leaped up and whacked the ball back with his tail. "Alright! Great shot Pikachu!"
"I got it!" Misty called, grabbing the ball then tossed it back to Ash who turned to Phanphy.
"You ready Phanphy?" He questioned then threw it gently over to Phanphy who closed its eyes and wiggled its ears.
"Phanphy Phan!" With that it lifted its trunk then smacked the ball right back at Ash, hitting him in the face at full speed and sent him flying to the ground, making the others gasp and race over but I just keeled over with laughter as Phanphy paraded around proudly.
I gotta say, with Phanphy now in the gang, things are about to get a heck of a lot more interesting. Not to mention how hilarious it was each time Phanphy barrelled Ash over in its excitement. It's only been half an hour and I already have dozens of photos of an excited Phanphy trampling over Ash.
