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Chapter 9:
"...a high stakes game..."
"Wow... what's going on here?"
After we parted ways with Loudred and Sunflora, Azurill and I resumed our search for my friend Blue and Azurill's brother, Marill. While Loudred and Sunflora went to go look around the guilds and shopping districts, Azurill and I wandered back to the main plaza. We were suddenly greeted by cheering crowds, loud music and a whole lot of yelling.
"Is there an event going on?" I wondered aloud as I stared at the sight in front of us. All the Pokémon in the crowd were standing in a big circle around something that we couldn't see. Wooden stands and signs were erected around the place, but I couldn't make out what was written on them from where we were standing.
"I can't see anything!" Azurill balanced on her tail and tried to peer over the heads of the Pokémon in the crowd, "I wanna know what's going on!"
"Maybe we should go somewhere else," I said, glancing uneasily at the wild crowd, "I don't think Marill would be here. It's too loud and crazy for someone like him."
"Mrrgh...!" She pouted angrily as she leaned left and right, trying to peek past the crowd to no avail. I sighed and reached forward to put her back on my back, but then, to my horror, she suddenly bounced away from my paws and toward the crowd.
"I'm going to get a better look!" I heard her shout back at me.
"Azurill, wait! Don't get separated...!" By the time I started to warn her, she had already disappeared from my sight. I covered my mouth in shock.
She was so small, what if a Pokémon accidentally hits her? Or worse, steps on her?! All sorts of horrible thoughts came into my head as I fretted out of worry.
"Azurill!" I shouted out loud, but my voice was quickly drowned out by the cheers around me. I swung my head left and right, hoping to catch sight of her bouncing blue tail, but all I could see were the various unfamiliar Pokémon around me. I continued to weave around the bystanders, constantly yelling out Azurill's name in hopes that she'll hear it.
"Ooh..." I had no choice, I had to find her before she gets hurt! Taking a deep breath, I ran into the crowd after Azurill.
"Contestants 27 and 15, please enter the ring!"
Blue's ears perked up when he heard his number being called. He stood up from the rock he was sitting on and stretched out his arms and legs in preparation for his bout. Xatu, the totem pole – like bird walked up to him, wringing its wings together worriedly.
"What's with that look?" Blue said as he stretched out his arms and legs, watching Xatu fidget nervously, "You look like you have bugs crawling all over you."
"Hush, Riolu," Xatu replied, glancing around him with a worried expression, "You remember our deal, right?"
Blue nodded. All he had to do was get in the ring and win a few battles, and he gets a gift from the creepy bird. It didn't sound complicated or difficult, which was why Blue accepted it in the first place. Xatu nodded back and gave a big sigh.
"Alright," The bird said in a relieved tone, "You go off and fight. I'll have to be somewhere else for a moment. There's something of import that I must attend to."
"You wont be watching me fight?" Blue said, feeling oddly disappointed.
Xatu shook its head, "Although I may not be by your side," It said in a mystical, albeit forced sounding voice, "Let it be known that I – as well as the spirits of my ancestors – will support you in your battles."
"Sure, why not?" Blue shrugged, feeling skeptical, "The more the merrier, I suppose."
"Right, off you go then," Xatu hurried, pushing him toward the ring with its wings, "Be sure to win, remember that!"
"No need to remind me," Blue retorted, cracking his knuckles confidently, "I wont lose."
"Right, right..." Xatu replied, sounding a little uncertain despite Blue's confidence, "Good luck then."
Blue turned and nodded to the totem pole bird. After Blue vanished into the crowd, Xatu sighed and quickly scampered in a direction away from the crowd.
"Azurill?" I continued to shout futilely. My throat was getting sore, and I was coughing from dust getting into my mouth, but I continued to keep yelling out her name, "Azurill, where are you?"
The crowd surrounding the plaza was so dense and so loud that I felt as though my eyes and ears were quickly becoming worthless. Feeling a little dizzy from the noise and action around me, I ducked out of the crowd and into a less populated area of the plaza.
I sat down next to the Founders' Fountain to catch my breath. I shook some dust off my fur and rubbed my eyes, which were beginning to get irritated by all the dust. I flipped open my bag and checked to see if my belongings were still inside.
I sighed in relief as I saw my precious treasure gleam dimly inside the cloth bag. Sitting next to my treasure was a small package of food and berries that I saved from my meal at the restaurant. I planned to give them to Blue once I found him, since he probably hasn't eaten anything since we left the Beach Cave.
"...playing a high stakes game, you know that?"
My ears, although sore and ringing from all the noise, suddenly picked up a strange, sly sounding voice apart from the crowd. It came from the other side of the Founders' Fountain, just out of my line of sight.
"I'm aware of the stakes!"
Another voice rang out. This time, I recognized the speaker. Cautiously, I closed my bag and poked my head around the side of the Founders' Fountain. There, standing in the shade created by the fountain statues, and almost completely hidden from sight, stood an odd group of Pokémon.
The group mostly consisted of Meowth, but standing at the head of it all was a large, sleek – looking Persian. All of the cats were holding a gleaming, golden coin in their paws.
I turned my gaze toward who the cats were all looking at, and had to quickly stifle a gasp. It was that odd shopkeeper from the shopping district, the one that sold all sorts of odd trinkets, Xatu. The tall, bird – like Pokémon was standing in front of the entire crowd of Meowth, looking scared out of his (her?) mind.
"I must admit, I was... surprised when you sought us out of your own volition," The Persian, who I assumed to be the leader of the clan of Meowth, deftly juggled his coin between his paws as he spoke to Xatu, "I had assumed you had given up on our deal, prophet."
The Persian flicked the coin up into the air and caught it as it fell down. He held the sparkling coin up against Xatu's beak, waving it back and forth in a playful fashion, as if he was toying with him.
"I... I didn't give up on the deal, Persian," Xatu said in a quiet voice as he brushed the coin out of his face, "I see all, don't you remember? I see our deal being successful for me!"
"Oho? You say you saw something, did you, prophet?" Persian said with a mocking sneer while the rest of the Meowth began to snicker. Xatu appeared to shrink as he was faced with the cats' laughter, "I suppose that would explain why you're so... eager... to gamble on such lopsided odds..."
I watched as Xatu quivered. Whether it was out of fear or anger, I didn't know. But he remained silent as the Persian continued to speak.
"Still, I'm not one to pass up such a delicious morsel such as this," Persian raised his head and licked his lips, "if you're willing to play... prophet... then I will be glad to accommodate you."
Suddenly, faster than my eyes could react, Persian's paw was hovering in front of Xatu's beak. The coin had vanished, and in its place was a set of sharp, dangerous claws. I watched in fear as the cat's claws hovered dangerously close to Xatu's face, threatening to cut him at any moment.
"Be warned though, prophet... If your gamble does not succeed..."
Xatu gulped audibly as he watched the claws inched ever closer.
"Then not even your generations and generations of ancestors can help you..."
Persian's claws suddenly retracted and he backed off, making both Xatu and I sigh with relief. The crew of Meowth all grinned widely at each other and began to snicker loudly. Persian produced his golden coin again and flipped it into the air.
"I wonder, prophet," Persian said in a darkly playful voice, "I wonder if you can truly see the future, heh heh..."
He flicked the coin over toward Xatu, who caught it with its wing, "That coin shall be the symbol of our deal. If your little blue friend is as good as you assume, then consider it yours. However, if the opposite is true, then I must ask you to return that coin... and more..."
The Meowth began to snicker even louder as Xatu nervously looked at the coin. Persian held up a single paw and silenced his crew.
"Good luck, prophet."
The group of cats turned around and walked away. A few Meowth turned around as they retreated, making taunting faces at the frightened bird standing alone in the shadows. Despite how tall Xatu was, in the wake of what just happened, he looked as though he was as small as a Pidgey. Even though I knew it was none of my business, I wanted to go out and ask him if he was alright. But as I was deliberating whether to show myself or not, Xatu suddenly ran off in the opposite direction, completely missing me.
Perhaps it was for the best, I thought. I've never seen that crowd of Meowth in town before, and I've also definitely never seen that scary Persian ever in my entire life. My gut told me that associating with them was dangerous, and that I should just leave and push that entire scene out of my memory.
But the sight of Xatu, whom I've always known to be proud, if not a little strange, running away like a frightened child made me shudder a little inside.
Blue ducked low to avoid another straight punch from the Mienfoo . From his lowered position, he tried to counter the attack with a right uppercut. However, his opponent was too quick, and deftly avoided his wild swing by simply jumping back. While Blue was recovering from his failed attack, the Mienfoo launched himself off the ground and pounced forward, foot first.
"Guaagh!" Blue tried to leap away to safety, but a sudden spasm of pain from his right leg prevented him from moving. As a result, he took a heavy blow to the chest, knocking the air out of his lungs and sending him skidding backwards. Miraculously, Blue managed to stay on his feet. He clutched his chest, wincing as he felt a bruise forming.
"Hyah!" The Mienfoo shouted a loud battlecry as she mercilessly launched another high – flying kick at the injured Riolu. Blue desperately raised up his arms to block the blow. But it was futile, as the force from the kick simply blew his arms away, forcing him backwards another few paces as his injured chest was revealed. The Mienfoo smirked as she saw the red target painted on the Riolu's chest, and prepared to do another flying kick.
Blue, realizing that he was now in severe danger, quickly tried to raise his arms again, but blocking the previous kick left them numb and paralyzed. Gritting his teeth, he watched as the Mienfoo crouched down in preparation for the finishing blow. The next second, the Mienfoo rocketed forward, her eyes glinting with the prospect of victory.
There was only one chance, and Blue couldn't afford to give it up. Right as the Mienfoo's foot was about to reach him, Blue poured every remaining drop of strength he had left into his legs and kicked off the ground. But it wasn't enough, he still couldn't muster enough power to jump, and ended up awkwardly tossing himself to the side like a rag doll.
But it was just enough to avoid a direct blow. The Mienfoo's kick just barely missed his target, and ended up slicing through the air. The sheer power that the Mienfoo put behind her finishing blow carried her past the fallen Blue and sent her spiraling through the air. A second later, she violently crashed into the dirt in an awkward heap.
Despite his bones and muscles screaming in abject pain, Blue forced himself back on to his feet. He took a single glance at his dazed opponent. He didn't have much time before the Mienfoo recovered. Blue clenched his right fist and drew it back like a bow and arrow. He charged forward, ignoring the cracking and popping noises his legs were making. He had only enough strength left for one more blow, he had to make it count!
"Take this!" Right as he reached the Mienfoo, he slammed his left foot hard on to the ground, forcing himself to a sudden stop. Using the remaining momentum he had left, Blue launched his right fist forward like a cannonball. He heard a satisfying crunch as his fist smashed squarely into the Mienfoo's surprised face. Suddenly, the Mienfoo was airborne again.
Crash! The mouse – like Pokémon found himself lying in a crater of his own making. She groaned in pain and attempted to push herself off the ground. But whatever remaining strength she had left quickly fled her body, causing her arms to wobble and ultimately forced her to flop back to the ground, unconscious. A group of Audino hastily charged into the ring and surrounded the Mienfoo.
"Uoooooh!" The crowd cheered wildly as the Audino waved their arms, signaling that the Pokémon was unable to battle any more. Blue breathed deeply as he raised his right arm in victory. The crowd cheered and applauded again as Blue slowly made his way out of the ring.
"And the winner is... contestant 27, Riolu from Crystal Cave!" The Buneary floating above the battlefield announced, "Congratulations!"
It was a hard won fight. Blue staggered out of the ring and into the crowd. A few of the Pokémon in the crowd congratulated him and wanted to speak with him about his battle. Blue, however, ignored them and pushed his way out of the crowd. He wanted to find somewhere quiet and peaceful so he could tend to his wounds.
But, right as he was about to exit the crowd, he suddenly tripped on something underneath him and painfully slammed into the dirt.
"Gah..." He groaned and pushed himself off the ground. He gingerly rubbed his now – aching nose and looked down at what he had tripped on.
Blue saw a pair of blue colored balls attached to each other by a black string. He grumbled as he leaned down to pick up the odd toy, but right as his paw was about to touch it, the ball twitched and rolled away on its own. Startled, Blue withdrew his arm and stared warily at it.
"Ow, ow, ow..." The ball spoke in a youthful, almost childish voice. She rolled itself upright, revealing two tiny feet underneath her. Blue leaned over to the other side of the ball, curious about who she was. He found himself staring into a pair of teeny – tiny eyes as he did so.
"Eeep!" The small ball – like Pokémon bounced backwards, squeaking in surprise. Then, without warning, she hopped on to her feet and suddenly dashed away with surprising speed.
"Hey, wait!" Blue shouted as he quickly got back on his feet. Blue chased after the tiny Pokémon, but his accumulated injuries reduced his speed to a middling pace, allowing the Pokémon to gain a substantial lead.
Eventually, the chase lead the two of them back into the crowd. Blue struggled to keep up with the little blue speed demon as she deftly weaved through the legs of the Pokémon in the crowd. He watched, impressed, as the little girl deftly jumped over an Ekans' tail, swiftly slid under a Tropius and effortlessly dodge past a group of sticky Silcoon.
Blue didn't have quite as much luck as it did. He was snarled at when he accidentally trod on the Ekans, had bananas thrown at him as slammed into the Tropius, and was slowed down even further as several Silcoons got stuck on him. Although he was impressed by the little Pokémon's nimbleness, he wished that the little thing would slow down.
"Aaiiee!" Then, as he was trying to remove the sticky cocoon Pokémon from his limbs, Blue heard the little girl utter a shrill cry. Blue hastily tore the last angry Silcoon off his leg and chased after the scream.
"I'm sorry!" Blue heard the girl scream as he ran out of the plaza into an isolated side road. He saw the little Pokémon lying on the ground, trembling in fear and trying to cover her face with her bulbous tail.
Looming over the girl was a larger Pokémon. It had a wide, bulgy yellow body and a long, snout – like nose. The Pokémon was watching the little girl menacingly with its two, squinted eyes. The trembling girl cried out in fear as her assailant reached out to grab her with a pudgy arm.
"Get away from her!" Blue shouted loudly as he forced himself in between the two, shoving away the Pokémon's groping arm. He stood in between the crying girl and the yellow Pokémon with his fists drawn, daring her assailant to come any closer.
"Hey now..." The Pokémon spoke in a nasally, drawling voice, "That little girl ran into me. Can't you see the bruise she left on my leg?"
He pointed at his brown – colored leg. True to his words, a small red bruise was present on his lower leg. Blue, however, just shook his head and continued to glare at the snouted Pokémon.
"And your point?" He shot back, "It's just a little girl, and it was an accident."
"She hurt me," The Pokémon replied menacingly, "What if it was a serious injury? What then? She'll have to repay me somehow..."
"It's too bad it wasn't," Blue retorted angrily, making the yellow Pokémon narrow his already – tiny eyes, "She apologized already, so how about you leave her alone?"
"Oh, and what makes you think you can decide that for me, Riolu?" He said in a threatening voice. He glanced at the wounds and bruises that covered Blue's body and sneered, "You look like you're about to fall apart at any moment..."
"Try me then," Blue dared as he pointed one of his fists directly at the Pokémon's long noise, "We'll see who falls apart first, me or you."
Blue hoped the bluff would work. His body was screaming in pain. His muscles and bones were aching, and it felt like his nerves were on fire. But, as he quickly glanced down at the little Pokémon hiding between his legs, he knew he couldn't just back off. There was no way he'd allow this creep to have his way!
The Pokémon stared warily at Blue's outstretched fist, then at his determined face. After deliberating for a second, he took a step back and said, "Tch... you're not worth the trouble..."
"Don't be mistaken that you've won though..." The yellow and brown Pokémon glanced down at the little girl hiding behind Blue's legs and smirked meaningfully, "I don't forget grudges easily..."
"Get out of here!" Blue shouted angrily, drawing his fist back as emphasis. The yellow – colored Pokémon just snorted at Blue contemptuously and slowly walked away, vanishing behind a building.
Relieved that he was gone, Blue relaxed his fists and dropped his arms. He looked down at the tiny Pokémon, who was trembling fearfully with her eyes shut tight. She had tightly wrapped her long black tail against his right leg for support. Blue leaned down and gently prodded her trembling head with a finger.
"Hey now, don't cry," Blue said in a gentle voice. The little girl timidly opened one of her eyes. She looked around them, still terrified. Blue patted her head comfortingly and smiled at her, "It's alright now. You don't have to be scared, I got rid of the bad guy."
Hesitantly, the little Pokémon slowly untangled her tail from Blue's leg and backed up a little. Blue bent down on to his knees and continued to comfort the scared little girl by patting her head.
"T – thank you mister..." She said quietly, giving Blue a small smile.
"It's nothing," Blue replied nonchalantly, grinning back, "Are you alright? Did the bad guy hurt you?"
She shook her tiny head, "No, but he was really, really scary looking..."
You don't have to worry about that anymore. Just forget about that gross looking guy now, alright? You'll feel better that way."
The little girl giggled when Blue insulted the Pokémon. She reached up with her long tail and wrapped it around his paw affectionately.
"So what's your name?" Blue asked as he gently lifted the girl up with his arm, letting her hang upside down by her tail. She giggled as she swung back and forth on his arm like a pendulum.
"My name's Azurill," Azurill said as she nimbly swung herself on top of Blue's paw. She gave him a big smile as she balanced delicately on top of his arm, "What's yours?"
"Well, everyone seems to be calling me Riolu lately," Blue remarked wryly as he lifted Azurill closer to his face, "But you can call me Blue, if you want."
"Blue?" Azurill giggled as she playfully jumped on to his shoulder, "That's a color, not a name, silly!"
"Heh, I know," Blue replied with a grin, "But it's just happens to be my name as well."
"Hee hee!" Azurill spun around on his shoulder, wagging her tail playfully, "Then I wanna be called Blue too! Since I'm also blue!"
"Haha, no way!" Blue replied loudly, pretending to be mad, "That's my name! Besides, you're more of a light blue anyway!"
Azurill puffed out her cheeks, pouting, "Then you're a dark blue!" She turned away in a huff and whacked Blue on the back of his head with her tail.
Blue grinned and poked the little Pokémon on the cheek playfully. He was glad that Azurill was no longer feeling scared, and happy to see her so cheerful. Although he was still a little concerned over what that creepy Pokémon had said, he figured that as long as Azurill was safe now, there wasn't anything to worry about.
He reached up and took the little blue Pokémon off his shoulder. But, right as he was about to put her down on the ground, he felt a sudden painful shock rush through his head. It was like a lightning bolt of pain shot shot up his spine and struck the base of his head. The agony in his skull forced him down to his knees, clutching his head as he trembled uncontrollably. He gasped in pain and shut his eyes as an all – too – familiar headache began to ravage his mind.
"Blue?" He heard Azurill's worried voice from somewhere in front of him, but by the time he managed to pull his head back up, his vision had already vanished. An inky blackness swirled in front of him, blotting out the bright, sunny plaza. Silence overwrote the noise and clamor of the crowd, and soon, Blue found himself kneeling in the midst of a dark and silent land.
'...this... not again...' Blue groaned in pain as he forced his eyes to open. A thousand drums were beating inside his head, pounding away at his skull. With great exertion, he staggered back on to his feet.
There was nothing around him. No buildings, no crowd, no Azurill. He was standing in the middle of darkness.
'I remember this...' Blue thought back to the beach, when he first met Fée, 'This... this is that strange phenomenon I felt on the beach...'
Then, he collapsed.
I bit my lip worriedly as I weaved my way through the enormous crowd of Pokémon. Everyone around was shouting wildly and cheering for something that was going on in the center, I was mildly interested about what kind of event was going on, I decided that finding Azurill was more important that satisfying my curiosity.
I wandered around at the outskirts of the crowd, hoping to spot Azurill's conspicuous tail sticking out of the horde of Pokémon, but to avail. There was just too many different Pokémon flooding the plaza, not to mention the sheer amount of dust that was being kicked up by all the movement was blocking my vision more than anything.
Guilt and worry flooded into me as I continued to circle around the crowd, desperately trying to find her. No matter which way I looked though, all I could see was dust and unfamiliar Pokémon. I looked up and saw a Buneary floating in the air, hanging on to a Drifloon. I wildly imagined myself doing the same thing, trying to find Azurill by looking down from the sky.
I shook my head, ridding myself of such fantasies. If I had time to imagine fanciful things, I could be using it to find her! I slapped myself on the cheeks and continued to search for the little blue Pokémon.
I wandered over to the other side of the plaza, the side that lead to the guild district. A massive cliff made of stone rose up from the ground at the edge of the plaza. In the center of the cliff was a large staircase that was carved directly into the cliff. I glanced up at the stairs briefly. At the very top, near the sky, I could just barely make out the pink tips of the tent that housed Wigglytuff's Guild.
I clutched the bag around my neck and stared nervously at the giant stone stairs. I remembered how I nervously walked up the steps yesterday, hoping, wishing that I would have enough courage to succeed. I smiled mockingly to myself, obviously, I didn't succeed.
But, I didn't feel depressed. Today was different. I held my bag with both of my paws and opened it again, letting the sun shine on my precious treasure.
"That's right," I said to no one in particular, "I'm different now... today, I'll walk up those steps bravely, and I'll ask... I'll ask them to accept me an apprentice..."
Blushing a little, I quickly glanced to my sides, embarrassed. Thankfully, no one was noticed me talking to a set of stairs. Sighing, I replaced the flap on my bag and resumed my search for Azurill.
As I walked down a road that lead away from the plaza, I noticed that less and less Pokémon were present. They must all be at that big event down at the main plaza, I thought. I felt a little relieved by the relative quietness of the road. Then, the silence was quickly shattered by a group of girls walking down opposite me. For no real reason, I hid into a side alley as they passed by.
"So, so, did you see the last match?" A Pikachu said, waving her heart shaped tail around eagerly.
"Oooh yes, I did!" Replied a Furret, who was practically wiggling with excitement, "Wasn't the victor super handsome?"
"I thought so too!" A Roselia added, "Especially the way he just nonchalantly walked out the ring afterwards. I felt faint when he walked past me, ooh!"
"Hm, hm, hm..." The Kirlia standing in between them smirked, "Well, luck's on your side girls, I just so happen to know that Pokémon!"
The other three gaped at her incredulously. The Pikachu recovered first and pointed an accusing finger at the white – dressed Pokémon.
"Don't just say that and not tell us the details!" She said, her red cheeks bristling with electricity, "Come on, what's he like?"
"Well, he was kinda cool, but he didn't really talk much."
The rest of the girls didn't seem to enjoy that answer and proceeded to grill the Kirlia for more information as they walked off.
I thought about what they were rambling about. I've never really cared too much about "cool" or "handsome" Pokémon. In fact, thinking back, I've never really had much contact with other Pokémon my age. I've always sequestered myself inside Mr. Mime's library or hung out with Azurill and Marill.
...though, I suppose Blue would count as a Pokémon my age...
The image of his profile floated up inside my head. I guess he was pretty cool, and I suppose you can call him handsome as well... I felt my face turn bright red as I realized what I was thinking about. I quickly shook my head, that wasn't what I meant!
Feeling even more awkward than before, I quickly dashed out of my hiding spot and continued my walk down the road. Jeez, why do they have to talk about things like that? I quickly quashed my previous thoughts and refocused myself on finding Azurill.
"Féeee!" Suddenly, something small and fast struck my back, almost sending me tumbling forward on to the ground. I quickly turned around and saw little Azurill clutching my hind legs.
"Azurill?!" I felt a surge of anger and worry rise inside of me when I saw her. I was just about to start scolding her about running away, but that desire quickly melted away when I saw her face.
"What happened Azurill? Why are you crying?" I quickly picked up the little Pokémon with my paws. Large tears were pouring down her face as she sobbed loudly at me, "Are you hurt? Please, tell me what happened!"
"Fée... Fée..." She cried out my name as she tightly wrapped her tail around my paw, "Fée, you need to help him! Please..."
"Azurill, it's okay, it's okay..." I held her close to my chest, hugging her tightly as she cried dejectedly into my ruff. I didn't know what happened, but I tried to console her as much as I could, "It's okay Azurill, I'm here..."
"W – we were just talking and jok – joking when he – when he...!" She tried to speak, but her words kept being interrupted by waves of hiccups. I gently patted her back, trying to ease her pain as she struggled to keep talking.
"H – he suddenly fell over and – and he's not moving anymore... just like – just like mom did...!" As soon as Azurill finished that sentence, a new wave of tears flowed out of her eyes. She sobbed even harder into my chest, drenching my fur with tears.
"Please, you have to help him! Please... Fée!"
I didn't know who she was talking about, or what even happened. But as I looked at how upset Azurill was, I knew the details didn't matter. There was someone in trouble, and I needed to go help.
"It's okay Azurill," I said as I put her back down on the ground. I gently cupped her cheeks between my paws, brushing away her tears, "I need you to take me to whoever this is, right now. Alright?"
Azurill gave me a teary nod and ran off toward the other side of the road. I adjusted the bag around my neck and ran after her.
A few moments of frantic running later, Azurill stopped. When I reached her, I covered my mouth in horror.
It was Blue. My friend was lying down at the side of the road, his was head propped up against the side of a building. The scars on his arms and legs were freshly bleeding, and his chest sported a large, angry looking bruise. Dried dirt caked his blue fur, staining it brown. His eyes were closed as if he was asleep.
"B – BLUE!" I screamed in horror as I saw his injured body. I rushed over and cradled his head with my paws, "Blue! Blue, please, wake up! Blue...!"
"I – I tried to help him as much as I c – could," Azurill said, sobbing beside me, "But he wouldn't wake up!"
I leaned my head against his chest and listened to his heartbeat. It was beating erratically, and his breathing was quiet, but ragged.
"F – Fée.." Azurill cried beside me as I let go of Blue's head. I fiercely ripped my bag off my neck, ignoring the tearing sound as I did so, and spilled its contents all over the ground. My treasure and all the berries I saved earlier came rolling out of the bag like marbles. It didn't matter, I had to do something!
I quickly picked out the small, dark blue Oran Berry from the rest. With a shaky paw, I held it over Blue's chest. With great effort, I squeezed the berry as hard as I could. It burst in my paws, spewing blue juice everywhere.
Throwing away the now drained Oran Berry, I scooped up as much Oran juice as I could and spread the dark blue liquid around his chest with my paws. To my great relief, Blue's breathing slowly calm down from its frenetic state as I continued to gently massage his chest. He was looking better, but he still wouldn't wake up.
I wiped the blue juice off my face and out of my eyes as I reached back to the pile of berries on the ground. I sifted through the colorful pile and selected another berry. This time, it was a plump, golden – colored Sitrus Berry.
Unlike the Oran Berry, the Sitrus had a thick, rough – textured skin that had to be peeled first before it could be eaten. I extended a claw from my paw to try and cut the skin, but it wasn't strong enough. My mind thought back to the claw I saw on the Persian's paw earlier, wishing it was mine right now. Shaking my head, I dismissed that thought and looked back the berry. With no other choice available, I did the only thing I could think of.
I bit into it. The rough, sandy surface scraped painfully against my mouth as I tore into the skin. After a few seconds of painful ripping, my teeth finally pierced through the thick skin. A burning, sour juice seeped out of the tiny hole I made, sending a tingling sensation rushing through my body. I ignored it as much as I could and continued to pull the berry's skin away.
After a few minutes of heated tearing and ripping, I was left with the semi – transparent, jelly – like insides of the Sitrus Berry. I gingerly scooped away a tiny piece of the goopy, sour berry. It jiggled awkwardly on my paw as it threatened to slide off and on to the ground.
"Okay, hold his mouth open, Azurill," I said in a hurried voice. Azurill nodded obediently and used her tail to gently push up his noise, exposing his mouth. I took the clear jelly and placed it on the tip of Blue's tongue. Then, I tilted his head backwards. The jelly easily slipped over his tongue and down his throat. I motioned for Azurill to close his mouth.
We watched with bated breath as the berry piece traveled through Blue's body. Azurill stood next to me, still crying softly. I gulped worriedly as I tried to hold back my own tears. I was scared. I didn't know if what I did helped or not. I thought back to the beach yesterday, where I helped resuscitate him with an Oran Berry. I desperately hoped in my mind that the same thing will happen again.
"Fée..." Azurill whimpered as she clung to me, frightened, "Will he be okay?"
Azurill was probably even more scared than I was. I don't know how she met Blue, or what occurred, but she saw him fall over and faint in his injured state. It must've been terrifying for the little girl. I picked her up and held her close to me, trying to console her. And myself at the same time.
Four, maybe five tense minutes passed before we saw any sign of movement from Blue. His right arm began to twitch slightly. At first, I thought I just imagined it, but when I saw his arm begin to move, I nearly dropped Azurill out of relief.
"A...u...ghhh" A pained moan came out of Blue's mouth as he began to stir. I felt as though a heavy weight was suddenly lifted off my back. Unable to hold them back any longer, warm tears began to spill out of my eyes.
"...Fée?" Blue said in a slurred, unfocused voice as he slowly returned to consciousness. He placed a paw against his chest as he slowly breathed in and out. Then, a strange look flitted by his face as felt the sticky juice against his chest, "What is this stuff?"
"Blue..." I quickly tried to wipe the tears off my face before he noticed that I was crying. Blue groaned again and sluggishly tried to push himself off the ground. But before he even got a single inch off the ground, Azurill suddenly leapt forward and tackled him in the chest, knocking the air out of his lungs and sending him back on to the ground.
"You're alright!" Azurill shouted as she wrapped her tail around his chest. Her face was getting stained a dark blue from all the Oran Berry juice left on his chest, but she didn't care. She just kept rubbing her face against his fur joyfully.
"Ow, ow, ow!" Blue winced as the little Pokémon bumped against his bruise, "Easy there, Azurill! You're – ow! – getting all this sticky gunk over your face!"
"I don't care!" She cried out happily, giving Blue a big, sticky smile, "You're okay! You're okay!"
Azurill laughed happily as she hugged Blue. I couldn't help but smile as well, watching Blue try in vain to pull the little Pokémon off him.
"Fée, a little help?" He looked at me imploringly. I sniffed and walked over beside him, but I didn't try to pull Azurill off. Instead, I also grabbed on to Blue's chest and hugged him tightly.
"Jeez, not you too..." He sighed as he raised up his arms in defeat.
Azurill and I shared a smile as we hugged him even harder. Answers can come later, I thought. What's important now is that Blue's okay, and that we're now all back together again. I was aware of the strange looks that the passerby was giving us, but I didn't care. I just held on to my friend.