Sorry for the long space in between updates. I'm afraid that this will probably be how things will be for this story, as my other one currently holds more of a priority. But this will never be abandoned! As long as I see people reading this, I'll keep writing it. And school starts the 1st for me. So updates will be quite possibly even slower. Sorry. I'll try as best as I can to strike a balance on everything.
Please do enjoy this chapter.

Chapter 4: Team

I woke up groggily the next morning with the Sun already up a bit in the sky. If I were to guess, it was probably already something like ten o'clock. Not like that matters much anyways, since I'm now a Squirtle. Yawning, I rubbed my eyes until I decided to finally open them to the sunlight breaking through the tree branches. Looking around, I found Phloe's bed to be empty.

I waited a few more minutes before I decided to get up, stretching my arms and legs as they came out of my shell. That would definitely be something to get used to. Kinda weird at first, I'll tell you. I stumbled out onto the main branch, walking towards the entrance into the tree.

Once inside, I found the stairs and worked myself down to the ground level of the tree. There I found Phloe sitting there with a berry in her working hand, lost in thought. "She always did like Bluk berries…" she mumbled, continuing to stare at the wall in front of her. I was beginning to wonder if she really was okay. "Uh, is something wrong?" I waved my hand in front of her face. Finally she blinked, taking notice of the world around her once more. "What's going on?" she asked.

"I just came down and saw you staring into space like a zombie. Was something up?" She thought for a second before waving me off. "Heh, no, nothing is wrong. Sorry about that. I was just thinking about something that happened a few years ago." Now I was really curious. "What? What happened?" She frowned. "Don't worry. It's nothing important, really. Maybe someday I'll tell you but…right now, no. I don't really want to talk about it."

I nodded, respecting her wishes. "That's fine. Sorry, I shouldn't have pried like that. I'm just naturally curious, need to work on it." I laughed lightheartedly. She nodded, a smile returning to her face. "Yeah, I understand." She began to think. "Oh, I can't believe I didn't ask already! I presume you're hungry, right?" She couldn't have been more right, for at that moment my stomach grumbled.

"Shhhh!" I said, looking down. "You'll eat when I say so!" She laughed. "I'll take that as a yes. Let me grab a berry for you."

"Okay." She got up and went to a small closet space, which revealed tons of berries and other food within. My eyes exploded from my head upon seeing it. "How much food do you have? And where'd you get it all?" Phloe shrugged. "I just looked around, that's all. Apparently I was quicker than everyone else or just looked around a lot harder, because it seems quite a few pokemon are having trouble getting food." She said as she walked back carrying an Oran Berry in her right hand. She tossed it to me.

"Really?" I asked, catching it. "Why?"

"Well, it seems ever since the meteor shower, things have been a little crazy, to say the least. A lot of meteors hit that night, some destroying sections of forest or travel routes that most of the pokemon used. Therefore, supplies like food are becoming difficult to transport for the time being, resulting in a lot of pokemon going hungry here in Treasure Town and elsewhere."

My mind immediately thought to the last night of my humanity. So the meteors must have struck all over the world. I could only imagine the devastation back in Hoenn, and my home of Fallarbor Town. "So wait, how long has it been since then?" The Treecko thought for a moment. "I think it's been just over a week," she said, still deep in thought. "Yeah, it definitely was about a week ago. Why'd you ask?"

"Well, that's when I was apparently transformed into a Squirtle. Because I was a human that night, then I was attacked…"

"Attacked?" she asked, intrigued. "By what?" I stopped myself just before I answered. Maybe she would actually know. If so, then maybe that could help make things a whole lot easier for me. "Well," I began as we both sat down in two makeshift chairs. "A meteor had crashed right by me, a big one mind you, and it threw me back a ways. I walked up to check it out, and it cracked open to reveal a pokemon I had never seen before." I stopped there, unsure to continue, until Phloe motioned for me to go on.

"Well, it was a weird dragon pokemon with a weird pink aura around it, and two pink spheres in its shoulders. It was huge, by the way, and it stood on two feet with an armored face and blade-like wings. I wouldn't suppose that you would happen to know what kind of pokemon it was, would you?"

"No…" she shook her head. "No I haven't. I've met and seen plenty of pokemon from Treasure Town and beyond, and never have I seen something that fits that. Sorry."

"Nah, its okay. Nothing to worry about. Really, if someday I could figure out what it was, maybe I could try to find it and see if then I can go back home."

After a bit of silence, Phloe jumped up, snapping her fingers with her right hand. "I've got an idea! We could go into town, and talk to Wigglytuff! He may just know, since he was an explorer!" I cocked my head in confusion. "Wigglytuff? Who's that?"

"Remember yesterday I told you about the exploration teams? Wigglytuff is the guildmaster of the main guild in Treasure Town, called Wigglytuff's Guild."

"How original."

She smirked at my comment. "Yeah, well no one seems to care about that. Anyways, Wigglytuff has had plenty of experience with exploring. He's been practically everywhere, and knows more secrets about stuff than most other pokemon."

At the moment, this idea seemed great. That is, until a thought came across my mind. "What if Wigglytuff doesn't know? Then I'll be back to square one." Phloe began to think again. "Well…what about an exploration team?"

"What, we get one to look around for information that could help me?"

"No, what if…we made an exploration team?" I gave her an "are you serious" look, but saw she wasn't joking. "Why?" I asked. "Why would you want to make a team with me? I can't even attack, for crying out loud."

"I saw you use that Bubble attack on the Houndoom yesterday, and you had just arrived here as a pokemon," Phloe countered. "It scared him off, too. Pretty good for someone who just became a pokemon."

"Yeah, but that was a random occurrence. I can't even do it anymore." To prove my point, I started taking deep breaths like I had done, and blowing. Nothing. Phloe nodded in understanding. "Alright, so maybe you can't really attack. No problem, I'm sure they can help at the Guild. It's not like they don't get newbies like you and I all the time."

I perked my head up at the last sentence. "What do you mean 'you and I'?" Was that actually your first fight yesterday?" She smiled sheepishly. "Well…yeah. That was in fact my first battle."

"That was unbelievably good for being a first battle. Seriously, I thought that you had plenty of experience, especially since you put such a good fight against the Houndoom." She blushed in embarrassment. "I wasn't really that good. I mean, I still got this." She pointed to her shattered left arm. "Actually, do you think the Guild will still let me in even with this?" she said nervously.

"Wait, you're getting nervous about this? You've apparently wanted to do this all your life and now you're thinking of backing down? No way, you can't do that. It's your dream to make a team, and darn it, you'll make a team, and I'll join it."

That seemed to uplift her spirits enough to get her going. "You're right. Let's go, if we walk we'll make it into town by midday. Then Wigglytuff's Guild is at the highest point in town, it's built into a hill."

"Well then, let's go!" I shouted cheerfully, taking one last bite of my berry before running to catch up with her, since she had already begun to run out the door.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Treasure Town was definitely something. It was the middle of the day by the time we got there, and the town was bustling. Pokemon of all types and species were walking through to go to the shops or to leave for home. I saw some younger ones playing games out of the way from the crowds. It made me think of Slateport and how crazy it could get there. Phloe reassured me that it was only like this due to the shortages. Thank goodness, I think I would eventually be trampled if it was constantly like this.

I had been taking in my surroundings while Phloe steadily led me to the Guild, wherever it was. Coming to the edge of town, the crowds finally thinned out, and we ended up in front of a large hill with a set of steps leading to the top. "This is it." She said, before carefully walking up, trying not to disturb her arm. I followed closely behind, watching to be sure she didn't trip up with her arm.

A few minutes later we reached the top, which wasn't much. It was neat to see a ways around, with the ocean right behind us, but the top of the hill wasn't special. A giant tent covering with a Wigglytuff designed onto it, a few totem poles and stuff, and a weird grate covering a hole. Go figure.

"So what now?" I asked Phloe. The Treecko merely shrugged. "I don't really know. To be truthful, I've never been up here before."

"Come on! Once again, you've wanted to do this for years yet this is the first time you've been this close? Oh well, I suppose it isn't that big of a deal. So what should we do, just walk in?"

"NO! Just STAND on the grate one at a TIME!" a voice rang out from below, causing us both to jump. Overcoming the shock of the moment, Phloe began to talk.

"Well," Phloe said. "I guess I'll go first." She walked up somewhat confidently, standing right over the grate.

"Pokemon detected! Pokemon detected!" A younger voice called from below. "Whose footprint? Whose footprint?" the first one asked.

"Uh…the footprint is Treecko's! The footprint is Treecko's!"

"Treecko? Very well, step aside and let your friend on." Phloe scurried off, allowing me to nervously step on. "Pokemon detected! Pokemon detected!" the young voice called again.

"Whose footprint? Whose footprint?"

"The footprint is…well…ah, the footprint is Squirtle's! The footprint is Squirtle's!"

The other voice sighed. "Sentry Diglett, you are beginning to lag on your timing! You need to work HARDER!" There was a pause for a few seconds as I stepped off of the grate and stood next to Phloe, waiting for what to do next.

"HEY! Are you two still here?" We both replied yes to him. "Good. Come on down, and state your business to Guildmaster's assistant, Chatot, when you come down. He'll be waiting, but don't keep him waiting long!"

I gulped, but went into the tent, steadily walking down the ladder. Once I reached the bottom, I checked to make sure Phloe was doing alright. "Hey, no need to worry about me," she shouted, jumping down right next to me. "See? I can handle myself."

"Good to know." I said. Looking around, I could see a few pokemon in groups walking around, all of which I presumed to be some of the teams here. I would have looked further if a bird hadn't flown up almost right into my face.

"Ah, so you two must be the visitors. Welcome, welcome! Sorry to be in a rush here, but on what business are you two here for?" the bird pokemon, which I saw to be Chatot, asked.

"Well-" I began, before being cut off by Phloe.

"We wanted to join the guild as an exploration team." Chatot looked us both up and down. "Mm-hmm, I see. Very well then, I believe we can do so. We will just need to speak with the Guildmaster first, as he does have the final say on everything. The only problem I can see is…your arm." He gestured to Phloe's broken arm. She looked down, avoiding Chatot's gaze.

"It's fine. Just something that happened yesterday. I was in a fight with a Houndoom and he bit me. It should heal soon."

Chatot nodded, seeming to understand more than we did. "I'll need to speak to Styx and Team Hades about that." He mumbled, not at all audible to us. "Well, of course, on to Guildmaster Wigglytuff. I must warn you though; he isn't exactly in the best of moods at the moment."

"Why's that?" I asked. Chatot winced. "Well, let's just say…when he is missing something valuable, things can sometimes get out of hand."

………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"WAAAHHHH!" cried Wigglytuff as Chatot, Phloe, and I walked into his office room. All three of us winced at the intensity of the noise. "Uh, Guildmaster Wigglytuff, you have new recruits." Wigglytuff apparently didn't hear Chatot, as he continued to cry his head off for no reason. "SIR!" he squawked, this time getting the pink balloon pokemon's attention.

"Oh…oh….eh, what? What is it Chatot?" The bird sighed. "Guildmaster, these two have come in hopes of joining the Guild as a new exploration team."

Wigglytuff's face immediately brightened into an almost frighteningly cheerful way. "Oh, well that's wonderful! We can never have too many teams in the guild, no we cannot!"

"…Right. Now, I presume then that you do approve of this. Well then," Chatot said, turning to us. "To become an official exploration team, you must have a team name."

"A name?" I asked, confused. I didn't know about that. I looked to Phloe for help, but it seemed she was deep in thought at the moment. "I've got it!" she said after a second. "How does Team Impact sound?" I looked at her odd. "Why because of the whole thing with the meteor shower and me?"

"Well, kind of. I was thinking that we both had something rather major impact our lives at one time or another…"

"And for you that would be?"

"Not now…just, not until I want to."

"Okay. That's fine. And the name is good to me as well." Chatot nodded his agreement. "So it is Team Impact. Guildmaster, if you please…"

"Alrighty! Well congrats! Team Impact is now official! Yoom-tah!" He shouted with a Hyper Voice, jumping up from his seat with a fist in the air. "And now, new friends, you get your official Treasure Bag and Guild Badge!" Chatot flew over to a shelf in the room, grabbing a small chest and a badge. He carried them back over, handing them to Phloe and me.

"The Treasure Bag will be a valuable little thing to bring along in all of your missions," said Chatot. "You can store any items you may find or be rewarded within it. Plus, it's so secure that only you two can open it! Now, the Guild Badge is a handy device so that when you finish a mission, you may only press the badge once, and both of you, along with anything or anyone else with you, may be brought back to the Guild. Or, if it is ever necessary, and hopefully it should not, it can be used to quickly return back here if something were to go terribly wrong."

"Well that was a mouthful." I said, beginning to get bored. That and I wanted to get out of the room. Wigglytuff's stare made it feel like he was reading my thoughts. "So, is that about it?"

"Only for the moment," answered Chatot. "To let you both know, meal times in the morning and evening are regularly scheduled, so be back in the dining hall by sundown. Chimecho always prepares well for the teams. And besides that, you'll find out more tomorrow when your team will be assigned their first mission. For the moment, I would just wait around in the main hall here until we get a room ready for your team. I'm sure we have a few left around here…" he said, flying off and out of the room to look.

Phloe looked at me and shrugged, taking the badge and walking out. I followed, picking up the Treasure Bag, which was lighter than I imagined, and leaving the room. As we exited, another team entered Wigglytuff's room, one composed of a Beedrill, a Gligar, and a Qwilfish. Each was carrying a satchel full of the shiniest and most beautiful looking apples I had ever seen. Before I could get a better look, the team shut the door behind them. It was only a few moments later that I heard Wigglytuff clearly shouting another "Yoom-tah!"

We both took a seat down against a wall, waiting for Chatot to get back to us. A few pokemon stopped by and greeted us, if but for a moment. I really was finding the whole thing rather strange. I still hadn't completely adjusted to becoming a Squirtle and living among pokemon. I really just wanted to get to the room or somewhere secluded and take some time to think some more.

I didn't have to wait too much longer before Chatot flew back to us. "Follow me," he ordered, leading us out of the room and down a hallway. "Sunflora has gone ahead with the preparations to your team's room. I hope it works, but then again, all rooms are standard. Feel free to decorate if you want to, just don't complete destroy it. We will need to use it again for another team eventually." As he spoke we went down a floor until we reached one last hallway. "Let's see…ah, here we are." Chatot announced to us, stopping in front of a door. "Your living quarters, for however long your team may be here. Go ahead, make yourselves comfortable, and enjoy the rest of the day. You will be woken tomorrow and assigned for your team's first mission."

With that the bird flew off, leaving us standing in front of the door. "Well…let's go on in." Phloe said, turning the doorknob. Walking in, it really wasn't too much. There were two beds randomly placed, one on either side of the room, among a few pieces of makeshift furniture like several chairs and a table. A medium-sized window let in a cool breeze, as well as the mid-afternoon sun.

"What should we do now?" I asked Phloe, setting the Treasure Bag down. She walked over and placed the badge inside of it. "Dunno. Want to just walk around town for a while?" I shook my head, walking to one of the beds and dropping back onto it. "Maybe in a little while. I really need to clear my head for the moment, this is just so crazy."

"Why's that?"

"Do you even know what this feels like to be thrust into this when I was a human all of my life? I'm sure I'll get over it, but right now it just seems so weird. Pokemon all over the place, living life in such a calm and inviting society. Living life as a human was never like this. There was always chaos and calamity, not that there isn't any here," I rocked on the back of my shell rubbing my temples as I spoke to her. "And then there's the problem with the fact that I WAS a human only a week ago. How am I to explain that to everyone? Oh yeah, I was a human until that meteor shower, that's why I can't attack or do anything right. That's why I'm such a weird little Squirtle."

"Hey," Phloe said, trying to calm me. "It's not going to be that bad. Just give it a few days, and things will start to get better. I could help you a bit with learning how to attack, or maybe the Guild knows of some special place to train. All we have to do is ask, since we're now official members. As for your humanity thing, I suppose we don't really have to tell anyone," She began to think. "Then again, we should talk to Wigglytuff about this. He may know something, like I had said earlier."

I chuckled at the last statement. "Yes, because after meeting him I can totally take him seriously and trust his level of intelligence."

"Yes, you should. Now come on, Tide." She grabbed my arm with her free one, dragging my back along the ground. "We'll go talk to him right now. I'm sure he's not terribly busy."

Oh yes, how generic and typical of a PMD fic. Hey, at least the stuff I'm doing is setting the stage for later events. Just wait and see. And I still have openings for two more teams. Thanks to SakuraFurude for her submitted team.
Here's the format so you guys don't have to go back:
Team Name
Members w/Gender, Names, Species
Background/Experience
Moves
And that's it for now. Remember, just two more teams will be accepted. I may open up for more in the future, but for right now I want to start small. I have four major teams of my own creation, and currently one of three submitted ones.
Review if you'd like. Don't care, but it'd be uplifting to me.