A/N- I'm so sorry I've been pretty much dead for *checks calender* five months? More? I'm hoping I can write more with summer here now, but that'll depend on how much inspiration I can get and stuff .
As always, enjoy.
Chapter 2
Meetings and Reunions
The train ride was surprisingly smooth. No bumps, quite comfortable really.
Roselia stared outside the window emotionlessly, watching the scenery around them rapidly shift with a multitude of colors. The "friend" from the Grass region who'd come with her was arrogant and annoying to say the least. Ponyta also didn't seem to like her Region partner and pointedly ignored him, Sceptile, and Greninja with the ultimate poker face.
"Hello, may I sit here?"
A pretty Meowstic had boarded the train too. Roselia nodded and the cat took a seat next to her and Ponyta, who turned to give them a scrutinizing look before nodding, seemingly in approval.
"Hey pretty lady," Charizard tried, but Meowstic sighed and flicked her paw, using her psychic abilities to shut his mouth effectively, and Ponyta sighed in relief.
"Wonderful. I was beginning to think he would never shut up. Do make the other two be quiet too, if you may," she said.
Meowstic raised her paw again but Greninja smirked. "Go ahead and try it, kitty. I'm a Dark type too—GAHMMPH." He was cut off abruptly when Meowstic used Psychic to wrap his tongue around his mouth tightly.
Sceptile swore but quickly said, "Okay okay, we're going!" and ushered his buddies out into the next compartment.
"Ah, peace at last," Roselia sighed.
Sceptile grumbled but as he stepped into the next compartment as well, he came face to face with a familiar face. His eyes widened.
"Sylveon?"
"Sceptile?" She looked stunned. Joy broke out on her face. "God, I never would've thought…"
He scratched the back of his neck awkwardly, full aware that Charizard and Greninja were watching them with interest.
"What're you doing here?" he asked.
She frowned. "Honestly I don't know. After… after what's happened, I thought I'd never run into old teammates again. I dared to hope but…"
Oh great she looked like she was ready to cry. Sceptile was not good with crying girls.
Charizard formed hearts with his claws and mouthed some rather dirty things. Greninja hit him with his now untied tongue. They both recoiled. Idiots.
"I'm gonna head into the next compartment," Sylveon said cheerfully. "Have any of you seen a Meowstic on the train?"
"She tied my tongue," Greninja whined.
"You kinda deserve it when you always have it swinging around in the air, dude," Sceptile responded.
"Yeah, kinda gross man," Charizard agreed.
Greninja sulked.
Sharpedo rolled in then. "WILL SOMEONE PICK ME UP?" he demanded. The already sulking Greninja picked him up… only to drop kick him again against the wall.
"OW," the shark yelled and began to dish out strings of curses.
Sylveon laughed. "Have fun boys. Oh Phantump, Cottonee, don't get lost. Follow me, dears."
The two smaller Pokémon who had been pretty much unnoticeable until then meekly followed the Intertwining Pokémon into the next compartment.
"Daaamn, Sceptile. She's pretty hot." Charizard whistled, his eyes gleaming. "I could just—"
Sceptile punched him in the jaw hard, eyes burning with fury. "She's an old friend. Don't you dare speak ill of her again, or I will do worse than slug you."
XXX
Sylveon looked around at the surprisingly cleared out compartment, save for three other Pokémon. Why was it so empty compared to the other compartments she'd seen?
"Sylveon!" Meowstic burst out, and ran over to greet her friend.
"Meowstic! Did you receive it?"
The psychic cat nodded. "Disposed of it after reading," she said quietly. "It's good to see you, old friend."
"Do you two know each other?" Roselia asked curiously.
Sylveon nodded vigorously. "We met in the wild several months ago and have been close friends for a while, even after my, well…" She coughed. "These sweethearts behind me are a little shy by the way, but is it alright if they and I join you three?"
"But of course," Ponyta said, her eyes never leaving the window.
"Ponyta kinda controls this compartment," Meowstic whispered. "Unintentionally."
Sylveon laughed. "Alright. You two, settle down. Relax until we reach our destination."
Phantump slowly drifted to the ground. "Okay Sylveon," she said softly, then promptly went to sleep, Cottonee doing the same not soon after.
Sylveon smiled. "Guess the poor dears were tired."
"MY CHANCE," a loud scream sounded, making all but Ponyta jump, and a figure leapt towards the sleeping Phantump.
"OH NO YOU DON'T," another voice responded, and a long appendage slammed into the figure's stomach throwing him against the wall with a pained cry.
"Sorry about that," Mawile said, her narrowed eyes not leaving Sableye's twitching body. She then grabbed his foot and promptly dragged him out into yet another compartment.
Roselia sweatdropped. "…What?"
XXX
"My dear, you are exquisite," Sableye hissed. "A fine gem, beautiful gem."
Oh he wanted to eat her. He had not seen such beauty in ages. She would be his. Her purity would be his to defile.
Mawile snarled. "Listen here you. Mismagius told us to keep you in line and apparently no one else is doing it so I'm stuck with this until we reach the Center.
He sneered and leaned in close by her ear. "You will be mine."
She lurched away. "No. Do they have a leash in here or something?"
Sableye cackled. "Beautiful gem, sparkling gem… mine mine mine… My precious dear, you are mine to keep, mine to eat." He leaned in again. "Such beauty always has the most delectable taste…"
"You're insane," she shot back, but she averted her eyes when his grin only widened, not daring to stare into his crystalline eyes.
XXX
Delcatty had left Lopunny for a little to take a look around the train. The elegant rabbit had opted to sit there on a seat, bored, instead.
So Delcatty hopped from different compartments, marveling at all the different things that were happening in each one. So far, there'd been some argument involving tongues in one (she decided not to get involved) and in another, which by all means was more peaceful, was a quiet and noticeably more sane group of female Pokémon and younger Pokémon. After she'd left that one, there'd been several screams and thuds, but hopefully nothing had gone astray.
"Listen here, you. I'm the only one who can watch over us both safely. You'll just go wander off and get your head stuffed with stupidity."
Delcatty paused outside a compartment door, hearing the hissed words.
"I'm more in shape than you could ever hope to be, sister. I don't understand your sudden animosity towards me." Tension sparked in the air.
The sister huffed. "I'm smarter! I always will be!"
"Hey Luxio. Hey. You know what I think? You wanna know?" The voice was practically oozing with sarcasm, sounding bored. "I think you need to go get a drink. You're thirsty."
"AGHH YOU'RE SO HARD TO REASON WITH."
"You're the one being difficult."
"You—"
"I'll talk with you later when you're in a more reasonable mood."
Footsteps approached where Delcatty was eavesdropping and she panicked, turning tail and dashing back onto the previous compartment.
Well, tried to.
"Who are you?" A Luxray looked at her curiously.
She paused, turning back around sheepishly. "I… I'm Delcatty."
His expression mirrored her own. "How much did you hear?" he asked, averting his eyes.
"S-sorry! I didn't mean to eavesdrop and…" Delcatty cautiously peeked over Luxray's shoulder into the compartment, where his sister, a Luxio, paced angrily in circles. It was obvious she was in a bad mood now. Bothering her was a definite no.
Luxray shrugged. "I don't mind really. She's just blowing off some steam because she's frustrated that she doesn't know where we're going. She'll cool down later."
Delcatty frowned. "You sure?" She fidgeted, shooting more nervous glances at the swearing Luxio.
Luxray laughed. "You're cute."
"No I'm not," came the immediate reply.
He shrugged. "I'm just stating a fact. Denying won't change anything."
XXX
Zoroark turned another corner in her compartment, then slumped into a seat, bored. Everyone on the train that she'd observed thus far were all oh so predictable. How tedious.
She'd let old habits slip back in. Working for years with a professional talent scout in the field of fashion had had its due effects.
There were a few attractive Pokémon, by model standards, she mused. Bisharp was quite the looker, but as he was a self-proclaimed actor, she supposed it was due to something he had done in the old days. Talonflame also seemed to boast a marvelous coat of feathers, but he was nothing to look at, really. Skarmory had the right idea, beating him down.
Zoroark's claw flexed briefly.
As for the others, she supposed Sceptile and Luxray were also attractive.
Ah, and then there was Gallade. He was up there with Bisharp, but he seemed more modest about it.
She watched as the train passed by multitudes of trees, some freshly planted by Authorities. Can't forget the ladies, of course, she thought, humming slightly.
Lopunny definitely had the true genetics of all Lopunny, and her beauty was definitely model-status. Ponyta, as well, was very well kept and had a lovely personality.
Zoroark snickered. Well, if she could call cold and scrutinizing 'lovely'.
In all seriousness, Ponyta was, indeed, what would have been called perfect in the old days. Zoroark recognized that type of Pokémon immediately. The trainer she'd worked with had told her that those types were always in high demand, both in the fashion/contest industry as well as in battle.
Zoroark stopped humming. Well, she may as well sleep. They didn't seem to be arriving anywhere anytime soon.
She could mess with the others another time.
XXX
"DO YOU SEE THIS MAGNIFICENT SHELL?"
Nincada stared at Omanyte's shell with wide, almost bulging eyes. "Ye-e-e-es," she said, her expression unreadable. Her voice was clacking, spoken in almost a whisper.
Dwebble and Shuckle both backed far away from their Region partners, giving each other horrified looks. Already, the other Pokémon in the compartment had moved to the edges of the compartment as well, or were slowly moving out of the room.
"Are they okay?" Shuckle whispered.
"Honestly, I thought Omanyte had problems…" Dwebble gave them another glance. "Nincada gives him a run for his money, not gonna lie."
They both looked at the two diabolical Pokémon again, and watched as the two burst out into spontaneous laughter. They could almost see the evil aura surrounding them.
"Nope, go, go, GO," Dwebble said, ushering himself and Shuckle out of the room.
"I DON'T MOVE WELL, STOP PUSHING."
XXX
"Are those muscles real?" Wooper asked Hawlucha.
Hawlucha nodded, then flexed. "HA!"
"Man, I want muscles," Wooper said.
Cubone gave him a scathing look. "You don't have arms."
"Yes I… Oh."
Gallade, who had been brooding while sitting against the wall of the compartment until then spoke up. "You can be strong, regardless."
"Yeah! I'm gonna show off my muscles too!" Wooper struck a pose, exposing his nonexistent muscles.
"Please," Bisharp said. "Allow me."
Gallade sighed. He already didn't like Bisharp too much. He seemed awfully full of himself.
"Delcatty? You in here?"
A Lopunny peered in the doorway. "Oh, my bad," she said, flustered. "Have any of you seen a Delcatty?"
Talonflame, who was preening after his recent beatdown from Skarmory, looked up and let out a squawk. "GOD DAMN YOU'RE A LOOKER."
Lopunny blushed. "No, no, I…"
"Looker? The investigator?" Wooper asked excitedly. He then proceeded to stare down Lopunny, as if expecting a person to come out from a disguise.
"No, he didn't mean it that way, Wooper," Skarmory said, rolling her eyes. She then fixated the bunny with a gentle look. "Hello there, Lopunny."
Lopunny smiled nervously, but responded with a small wave.
Gallade just stared at her, almost in shock. She was easily the most beautiful Pokémon he'd ever seen. Before he could say anything, however, Bisharp knelt before her. "Why, I'd love to help you, my lovely."
Lopunny flushed. "Oh please, there's no need for that…"
"Upon my honor as a gentleman, I insist."
Gallade scoffed, but turned away.
"Hang on," he heard Lopunny say to Bisharp, and a few seconds later, someone tapped Gallade on the shoulder, and he turned to come face to face with Lopunny, who had left Bisharp by the doorway.
"Can I help you?" he asked, refusing to let his voice betray him.
"Are you alright? You look a little sad."
Gallade offered her a small smile. "I'm quite alright. Don't worry."
She tugged on his arm a little. "See, you smiled! I knew you had it in you."
He looked away, embarrassed, but caught Bisharp's fuming glare as he did so. Clearly, the knight was very, very unhappy with his sudden lack in popularity.
XXX
"FIND SOMEONE ELSE TO PICK ON," Zubat screamed as Seviper chased him down a hall.
Seviper sneered, her fangs glinting.
Zubat then crashed into an invisible wall as he entered the next compartment and crumpled to the ground.
"Ow…" he said, dazed.
A Mr. Mime looked down at the fallen bat, then at the quickly approaching Seviper, then quickly left the scene, a silly grin on his face.
"NO, DON'T LEAVE ME!" Zubat wailed.
"What a curiouss predicament, yess?" Seviper simpered. She grabbed him between her fangs and shook the poor bat around like a ragdoll.
A Tyrantrum was watching her actions with interest, while the Noivern sitting a ways off was looking disgusted.
"Great, more sadists," Noivern groaned.
A Lapras who was also in the room sighed. "Well, they could be worse. We could have a mass murderer on the train."
XXX
Sableye cackled, his eyes focused on his prey.
Mawile whacked him in the head with a baseball bat.
XXX
Pancham had wandered away from Zoroark, but he'd made friends with several of the other first-evolutions, like Snorunt, Phantump, Cottonee, Wooper, and Cubone. Well, Cubone didn't seem too talkative, but he was still a friend in his opinion.
"What do you guys think we're doing all gathered together?" Pancham asked. They were all sitting around in a circle, with older Pokémon such as Sylveon and Ponyta watching them.
"I dunno, but maybe they'll have chocolate!" Wooper said. "Or knitting!"
"You can't knit, Wooper," Cubone said. "You don't have arms."
"I'll use my head and tail! Like a coin!"
"How does that even work?" Cottonee whispered to Phantump, who shrugged, letting out a wispy sigh.
Nearby, Roselia was sitting with Meowstic.
"We're getting closer," Meowstic said. "I can feel it."
"I always envied Psychics," Roselia sighed. "They seem on such a higher level compared to the rest of us Pokémon."
Meowstic giggled. "We're not that much better. Like, Ponyta over here could probably beat me any day."
"I probably could," the Fire Horse agreed without turning to face them.
Roselia laughed a little at that.
"You Grass types always seemed so graceful yourself," Meowstic mused. "Elegant and pretty, like yourself."
Roselia hid her smile behind her roses, embarrassed. "Pretty? I don't know about that…"
Meowstic laughed. "Well, all Pokémon see themselves differently, I suppose."
They were both interrupted by Ponyta, who rose abruptly.
Silence fell in their compartment.
"Ponyta, are you alright?" Sylveon asked.
The Fire type's eyes were narrowed as she looked out the window, and the others followed her gaze.
"The Center," she said.
"We're here."