Iggy sagged.
"So, she still hates you?" Called a voice.
Iggy groaned. A short guy with messy red hair hidden under a beanie got up and walked over.
"Told you so. So, what room is she in?"
Iggy shrugged him off, grumbling.
"What was that, Ig?"
Iggy scowled and handed the guy a piece of paper.
"Thank you. I'll go go give this to the Miss."
Iggy scowled harder.
"Like you could do better."
Beanie smiled.
"Yeah, well, it's not my fault she left."
Iggy round on Beanie.
"SHUT UP!" He roared, raising a fist.
Beanie fled.
Archie fished her room key out of her bag and opened her door, shutting gently it after her.
She dumped her bag and flopped on the bed sighing.
She pulled out Taru's pokeball, turning it over in her hands. She felt so-so...
...confused. Iggy had been trying. Really trying. Not as hard as he could, but still.
She remembered the look on his face when she had called Lo her new bast friend.
Well, it was true. And since when did he care about her relationships, with anyone but him?
She thumped her head into the mattress, confused.
Why did he even care? She didn't. She jsut wanted him to go away. He knew that. Why was he bothering? Why did she care?
She squeezed Taru's pokeball, her face burried in her mattress.
There was a noise, the sound of something emerging from a pokeball.
Something shaking itself.
Then she heard it speak.
And that's when she knew, it sure as hell wasn't Taru.
Lolita stormed down the stairs before sitting on the bottom one to take a deep breath to get her act back. She didn't like it when people threatened her friends, not since that incident, but that didn't matter. She had to go back to 'normal' or Chichi would suspect something.
Arhie stared. The pokemon stared back at her.
"Chimchar." Said the Chimchar.
Archie screamed. The pokemon jumped, covering it's ears, shaking it's head.
It didn't understand what was going on, and this girl was screaming so loud.
Archie picked up Taru's ball, pointing at the pokemon.
There was a flash of red light.
Taru blinked sleepily.
"Bulbaaaa?"
(Whaaaaa?) He said, then caught sight of the fire pokemon.
"Bulba! Bulbasuar!"
(Hey! What's going on?)
Archie rolled off the bed, hiding behind it.
"Char! Chimchar char!"
(Loud! I don't know!")
Taru shot a glance at Archie, who blushedand began messing around with her pokedex.
(She's being quiet. Now why are you here?)
The chimchar looked around, still upset. Archie hissed in trimuph.
The pokedex began translating what the pokemon were saying.
(Here where? Are we still on the boat? Did I get traded? There must have been a mistake!)
Taru sighed, shaking himself and looking at the chimchar with pity.
(No. As far as I know, I am the only pokemon my trainer has. What about you?)
Chimchar blinked.
(My trainer had lots. I'm one of his favorites. He says so himself.)
Said the Chimchar, preening a little.
"Any paticular type?" Asked Archie, a superstition forming.
(All fire.) Said the Chimchar, looking shocked at the human.
Archie groaned and Taru waddled over.
(How can you understand what we are saying?) He asked, confused.
Archie showed him the pokedex, text scrolling on along on the screen.
She got up with a long grinding groan.
"Okay. Little Chimchar, I'm going to see if I can find your trainer...did he give you a name?" She said, stepping carefully around the bed. The chimchar backed away, nervously.
(Did he, mister?) Asked Taru, making sure he was between Archie and the monkey.
(Leiko, he called me Leiko, and I'm a girl!)
Archie snorted, then smiled.
"Somehow, that makes me feel better. Come on then."
She carefully walked around the edges of the room.
Taru jerked his head at Leiko.
(Go on.) he said, coaxingly. (She's just as scared as you are.)
Leiko hurried out the door, and Taru lumbered after her.
Archie shut the door carefully, then looked around.
A girl, with long gold blond hair stood smiling, a Ninetales scratching it's ear with a back paw.
"Hey, you!" Said the girl, smiling.
"Orabella?" Archie said, taken aback.
"Why yes, so I am!" she replied, holding her arms out to embrace her old friend.
Archie stepped forward, and Orabella poshly air-kissed her on both cheeks, before stepping back and inspecting her.
"You've been crying. Your face has those nasty blotches all over it."
Orabella said, tapping her on the shoulder with a lacy fan.
Archie nodded.
"I keep running into all my old friends, your the first one I'm actually glad to see!"
Orabella laughed, like tinkling bells.
"Well, then you should have called me!"
Arhie shrugged.
"Yeah, but my old phone kinda melted. And I didn't have your number."
Orabella sighed, shaking her head.
"Then you could have wrote. I would have given you my number via snail mail."
Archie shrugged. Taru lumbered over to the Ninetales and they sniffed, judging each other. Leiko stood, wringing her hands. She didn't want to interrupt.
Flaaffy marched around the corner, ahead of her trainer, and stopped when she noticed the group.
"Flaaffy"
(What the hell is going on here?)
Orabella smiled, turning, her rose pink kimono-like dress swishing, and held up her hand, the wide sleeves hanging delicately from her wrists, a real gold trim accenting the dress perfectly.
"What a sweet little Flaffy!" She said, clasping her hands, a perfectly plucked eyebrow twitching.
Archie blinked at it, feeling dazed, beforing clearing her troat.
Orabella turned back, grasping Archie's hands, between her own.
"Ass I was saying, I'm so glad to see you again. When you left it's like you dropped off the map! I was devastated to loose my little breath of fresh air!"
Archie smiled wryly.
"Shallow 'friends' get tiring fast, huh?"
Orabella sighed in relief.
"Of course! We simply must catch up. I want to know what you've being doing with yourself!"
Archie choose not to comment, but simply nodded, watching Orabella's perfect porcelain face glow with happiness.
Orabella clapped in tiny little taps, manicured hands, doing little jumping motions in excitement.
"Oh Anna, you have no idea how much I missed you!"
"Me too, Belle. Many things reminded me of you." Archie said, leaning against a wall.
Lolita blinked when she saw that Flaaffy had stopped and hurried up, her two pokemon on her narrowing their eyes questionally. Why had Flaaffy stopped? They rounded the corner and blinked at what they saw (they seem to blink alot)
"Chichi? Who's this? And whats with the Chimchar thats with you?"
Orabella turned again, and a perfect eyebrow creased slightly, making tiny wrinkles in otherwise smooth creamy skin.
"Chichi?" She inquired, puzzled. Then the eyebrow rose, and she smiled again.
"Oh, a quint little nickname!"
Archie quietly facepalmed, and Orabella zoomed forward, in a swoosh of expensive jasmine perfume and expensive organic silks.
"Please, do allow me to introduce myself, as Anna tends to be rather inept when in comes to introductions."
She held herself up straight, with an almost regal posture.
"I'm Orabella Gavivi Gladstone-"
"Nine!" said the Ninetales.
(Ora!)
Orabella blushed slightly, before looking done at the pokemon
"And this is Silk." She finished, sheepishly.
Archie grinned wanly at Lo, winking.
Orabella propped herself up again, blush banished.
"And you are?"
"I would be Lolita, and these are Squirtle, Slowpoke and Flaaffy, my pokemon. I'm the one who travels around with Chichi now, did you know her from before?" Squirtle and Slowpoke, meanwhile, had leapt down and walked over to the other pokemon.
"Yo, whats the Chimchar doing here, huh? I thought she didn't like fire pokemon."
"Don't be stupid." stated Slowpoke, slowly "Of course its not hers, its probably missed place from that other guy who was annoying her."
Orabella smiled, tilting her head.
"OH! A traveling companion! How very wonderful. I see my Anne had been making friends after all! She tended to be a bit anti-social you see..."
Orabella nodded, trailing off.
Archie rolled her eyes, then looked down at the chimchar.
"Oh, your still here...well, I guess I'd better find your trainer..."
Orabella jumped.
"Oh dear! Is the poor dear lost?"
She said, swoopign in on Leiko who froze, terrifed as Orabelled fawned over it, babbling.
Achie tapped Orabella on the shoulder.
"Belle, the 'poor dear' is lost. And it's a she."
Orabella blinked, a little taken aback.
Archie knew that she should havbe kept and eye on Belle, lest her old habits return.
"Well, then it should have a ribbon then. Here!"
She took the one tied around one ankle and looked down at the Chimchar carefuly.
"Nine! NineTales!"
(Ora! It's time!)
Ora started and looked at a designed watch tucked way in one ornamental sleeve, then sighed.
"Sorry, must be off! Take care of the little lady for me! Oh and here's my card."
Orabelle passed the ribbon and card to Archie and floated off around the corner.
Archie sighed and tucked the card away, before fidding with the ribbon, she tied it in a elaborate knot, resulting in a flower like a cross between a rose and a lilly.
She tucked it away in her pocket, then leaned against a wall again.
She'd forgotten how draining Orabella could be.
Lolita blinked and tilted her head.
"Ooookay then..."
Arhie sighed, and looked at Taru, who looked stunned. She hadn't been
"She can be like that. Old friend. Rich, seems shallow but that's just the surface really."
"Bulba." He said, simply.
( I know.)
She blinked, then looked at the Chimchar, who looked anxious, wringing her hands and shifting from foot to foot.
"Char."
(Ohh.)
Archie sighed.
"Damn, should have asked if her Ninetales could track your trainer..."
Archie said, restarting her Pokedex.
Leiko sighed, thinking.
Archie cussed.
"Dammit, I can't find the program."
Archie looked over at Lolita, hoping she may be able to pull something out of her sleeve.
Lolita sighed and brought out her pokedex, scanning the chimchar and then searching her programs.
"no...no...no...no...no...AH! Here we go... TO THE BASEMENT!"
Archie frowned, confused.
"We happen to be on a ferry? How it there a basement?"
Leiko looked Taru, who shrugged.
Lolita and Squirtle (and Slowpoke too, as he was on her head) And frowned at the three, Flaaffy just sighing at their sillyness, she was already getting used to it.
"Of course theres a basement, THERE IS ALWASY A BASEMENT!" And she marched down the stairs, returning Slowpoke and Flaaffy on the way.
