Chapter 4

Marie's POV:

The teenaged trainer sat quietly in a tree, her legs dangling over the end of a thick branch. She had pale skin and dark blue hair, and her fingers tapped an irregular rhythm against the bark. Her name was Marie. A Froslass floated peacefully next to her.

"Think we'll find anybody to jump?" she asked her partner.

"Fros," it replied quietly. It wasn't unlike the ice-type, who always seemed silent and preoccupied. She sighed heavily and looked up. It was getting dark.

"Let's just go to sleep for the night," she decided. The Froslass nodded slightly in agreement. She yanked her legs up into the tree and crawled towards the trunk. It took awhile, but she eventually found a fork that would do for sleeping. She unhooked her empty Pokeball belt and looped it around herself and the two branches, in order to fasten herself securely. She would've hated to roll over in her sleep and break her back when she hit the ground.

She yawned loudly as she held out Froslass' Pokeball.

"Sorry, but I'm going to have to return you for now. Goodnight!" the ice-type disappeared inside. She tucked the Pokeball safely underneath her arm and closed her eyes. Maybe she'd actually get some sleep...

CRUNCH!

"Yahhhh!" she screamed in terror as the entire tree shook. Holy Miltank! What could hit a tree with such raw force? Her heart sank.

A Pokemon could. A big one, too.

She forced herself to peek over the side of the branch, and to her horror, saw a Garchomp staring right back at her. Its small yellow eyes had a nasty gleam in them. The blood in her veins turned to ice as she yanked herself around to the other end of the tree to get some cover. There was another crunch and the sound of splintering wood. The tree rocked, and she clung to it like a Barbaracle to a rock.

"I'm going to die! I don't want to die!" she wailed. She wasn't normally such a wuss, but she'd never seen her life flash before her eyes before.

"Garchomp, what are you doing? There's a kid up there!" a sharp voice rang out. The dragon-type stopped and snarled slightly, backing up. Marie's breath was short and squeaky. She didn't look around the tree.

"You can come down. I promise, I'm not here to hurt you," a feminine voice said.

"Sorry, I can't hear you over the sound of a vicious Garchomp growling at me," she shot back. She didn't trust the smooth voice, not for a second. There was silence for a moment, but once more, the opposer spoke first.

"I'm not sure what's up with my Garchomp, in complete honesty. It's been totally restless ever since we were thrown in this Arceus-forsaken jungle. But you won't hurt her, will you, Garchomp?"

"Gaaaar," a more gravelly voice agreed with a touch of disappointment. Marie clutched her Frosslass' Pokeball and closed her eyes. If things got bad, she could do a hit and run. She was good at those.

She dropped down from the tree agilely, landing squarely on her feet. She took one look at the trainer before her face lit up.

"You're... you're... you're Cynthia!" she sputtered. All suspicion was gone now. The champion stared impassively at the shocked girl, hands crossed over her chest. An awkward silence settled between the two of them.

"And you are?" she finally replied.

"Marie. It's an honor to meet you! I'm sorry I was so grouchy. I'm actually a big fan!" the girl couldn't help the words that spilled from her mouth. She was just thrilled to meet a champion. Cynthia raised an eyebrow, casting a quick glance at her dragon-type partner.

"Well, if you're shocked that I'm here, don't be. I'm not sure exactly, but I do know that there are quite a few other well-known trainers here," the champion chuckled.

"Do you think we could team up?" she asked hopefully. Cynthia sucked in a breath. This Marie was the first trainer she'd met, and she seemed quite young and inexperienced. If she was going to team, she wanted to do it with somebody more... well... powerful. Yet she didn't want to just straight up say no. It felt too harsh.

"Fine. We can team. But if somebody shows up and tries to screw both of us into the ground, don't be clinging to my leg for protection," she warned. Marie's smile was so wide that it looked like a Hippowdon's.

"I can hold my own against anybody! My partner and I are pretty tough, if I do say so myself!" she said with a hint of pride. Then she bubbled her way over to the experienced trainer, who was already returning her partner.

"Why was Garchomp knocking down trees anyways? And where are we going?" she asked as the two began to walk off into the trees.

"Trying to gather firewood, I suppose. The trainers aren't the only thing to be worrying about here. There's just plain survival to take into account. It's already getting cold. If that blasted Mew turns out to be doubly harsh, it may plunge the temperatures below zero or some shi-" Cynthia stopped. She rarely cursed, but she was ticked at Mew for dragging her into a death game. But, beyond that, there was a younger trainer in her presence. She huffed to herself.

"...thing. Something. Yeah. And as for your second question, I'm not quite sure."

"We could sleep in the trees!" Marie offered. Cynthia snorted in disgust.

"Trees? What do I look like, a Hoothoot? I'd sooner be sleeping on the ground than trying to perch in a tree like some flying-type," she said sharply. But upon seeing Marie's crestfallen look, she sighed again. They needed sleep, anyways.

"On second thought, I guess. How do I climb a tree, though?" there was thick shame in her voice as she looked up at the nearest tree.

"You've never climbed a tree before?" the young trainer gasped.

"No. Not once," Cynthia admitted. Marie grinned.

"Well, it's easy! First, you have to find a good tree. It has to have thick branches, and..."

As the two of them discussed how they would sleep and who would take turns being on guard, a pair of eyes glinted in the shadows, watching them. There was a sinister chuckle.

"Perfect. The moment they're both asleep, I'll strike from above, swift and silent. They won't know what hit them. And then I'll have one of the champions out of this rat race for good. All the better for me... hah!"

A/N: SCREE! Sorry for taking, like, forever with this. I'm just going to warn all of you now, this is NOT one of the stories I am focusing on (currently, I'm wrapped up in another one of my stories, Pokemon Purple & Gold. If you'd like, you can go check it out! COUGH NOT ADVERTISING COUGH). It could take anywhere from a few days to a month for me to update. I'm sorry, but unless I feel motivated to complete a chapter, I won't work on it. I'm sure you'd all prefer a well-written chapter that took two weeks to get out than a sloppy chapter every other day. But, enough with that boring soapbox. Enjoy the chapter!

AND ONE LAST THING!

I want to give a huge shoutout to XSpicyCharizard. She is an amazing person with a wonderful talent for writing. Without my fellow Steven Stone fangirl, I doubt I'd be where I am now. If you've got free time, check out her story The Monster Within. She loves reviews (shh she doesn't know that I actually read her profile) and I'm positive you'll love her writing even more!

Yeah. Long author note. The End... xD