In the middle of a dark, winding forest stood a lone Treeko, his sharp, giant eyes frantically darting around in a desperate search for anything even remotely resembling another Pokémon. The single blue bandanna tightly wrapped around his neck fluttered slightly as the Treeko heaved a deep sigh, then screamed at the top of his lungs.
"LUKA!"
No response emerged, prompting him to continue forwards with his seemingly fruitless search. "Dammit," The Treeko muttered, lowering his voice to a barely audible growl while gnashing his fangs against a twig, "How many times do I have to tell that idiot to not just charge ahead without thinking?!"
"EIM! HELP!"
The Treeko instantly swiveled his head towards the direction of the sudden, high-pitched cry. With movements swifter than the chilly winds which scraped against his heaving chest and violently thumping heart. Before long, he caught sight of an open field with a lone treasure chest sitting innocently in the center. In front of this chest sat a small figure cowering in fear as a massive, blank-eyed Combusken loomed imposingly over him. Before the crawler could initiate an attack, the Treeko named Eim had already sent a flurry of razor-sharp leaves directly onto its back. The crawler howled in pain, then turned to face its attacker with a malice-filled expression.
"You lay your talons off my partner!" Eim snarled, arching his back and snatching his twig from between his teeth. Even after the Combusken had released an ear splitting shriek which would have sent several larger Pokémon into hysterics, Eim remained steadfast in firmly planting his feet where they stood, his piercing eyes refusing to waver from the crawler for even a split second. The roaring winds seemed to freeze into a complete standstill as the two Pokémon stared each other down, soundlessly daring one another to make a move first.
The Combusken let out another scream of fury, then brazenly charged towards Eim with its wings ablaze and beak agape. The Treeko continued to firmly maintain his position while calmly sucking in deep breaths through his clenched teeth, the single twig held in his paw erupting into a beam of pale green light. It was only as the crawler's limb lay on the cusp of hitting their target that Eim finally leapt forwards with a decisive slash aimed straight onto the crawler's exposed neck. Within seconds, the Combusken's disconnected head fell to the floor and swiftly disintegrated into dust- its flailing body disappearing shortly thereafter.
Upon finishing his attack, Eim calmly wedged his unassuming blade back between his teeth before turning to face the defenseless figure which still lay near the chest. Various rays of light which broke through the trees overhead revealed the pale face of a young, bright-eyed Oshawott with a blue bandana tied to his arm and a dusty knapsack on his back, his paws still tightly gripping the treasure chest which lay behind him.
"What do you have to say for yourself, Luka?" Eim angrily demanded, "Look at what happened when you tried running off on your own again: you're caught off guard and I'm left to save you from getting yourself killed!"
Luka let out a sheepish grin. "C'mon, don't be like that. I had everything under control."
"Which is why you desperately screamed for help?"
"That scream was misleading. It was a scream of triumph at having the situation completely under control."
Eim scoffed at his partner's bold arrogance. "...Are all humans like this?" he muttered scornfully.
"Nope, just the dumb ones!" Luka responded enthusiastically, his grin only widening upon seeing Eim's visible exasperation. The Treeko rolled his eyes, the subtlest sign of a smile wedged against the corners of his mouth.
"Alright, smartass," Eim remarked with a resigned tone, "Your stupidity aside, I suppose you did find us the treasure. Go on, the honor's all yours."
With bated breath and eyes brimming with hope, Luka tightly gripped the edges of the treasure chest and flung the handle open, only for his excited expression to instantly transform into that of outrage. "What the-?! Someone's been here already!" he cried in outrage, reaching into the chest and pulling out a discarded cloth. "All that's left is this stupid green band!"
"Ah well, there's always next time," Eim sighed. "Y'know, I think that dusty old thing would look pretty good on you."
"Ugh, stuff it." Luka grumbled as he forcefully shoved the band into his knapsack, "Let's just get out of here already- I've already suffered through enough excitement for one day." His sly smile returned as quickly as it left. "Y'know, I bet you a hundred Poke that I can beat you on the way home!"
Eim rolled his eyes towards the sky. "You've never beaten me yet, and you're got going to win now. Besides, I just told you to not go running off on your-"
By the time Eim had rested his eyes back towards Luka, the Oshawott was already nowhere to be seen. The Treeko recoiled briefly, then shook his head and chuckled.
"I swear," he muttered lightheartedly to himself, "Where would that kid be without me?"