Perfect Disaster 2

Pallet Town

It was a beautiful day; the sun was shining and the pidgy were tweeting. A slight breeze rustled the leaves of the trees surrounding a small clearing. Now if only the sunlight wasn't directed at his eyes...

"Urgh..." Paul grumbled, shifting in an attempt to shield his face from the light. It'd been a long time since Paul had the chance to sleep on soft grass instead of the harsh stone of so he had full intentions of making the most of it. Especially when Honchcrow would soon wake the others up with her singing. Oh, he would have definitely thought about the benefits of keeping her in her Pokéball overnight if she wasn't infinitely better at keeping watch during the night. And it wouldn't be fair when the others were allowed to stay out at night.

Come to think of it, he felt much too rested. She should have started by now...Actually, he barely even remembered taking his team out of their Poké-!...He didn't.

Memories of the Fairy Legendaries flooded his mind, from their playful game of tag to the sudden green light.

Paul fought against the urge to face palm. He just agreed to help Ketchum, suffer his aura's constant clamour and save the Kalos region without any money or pokemon to help him. All of his supplies were in his bag, which wasn't present underneath his head, so he would have no choice but to rely on Ketchum if he didn't want to cause a paradox with the money system. Great. Just great.

"Stupid aura sensitivity, making me act like a pathetic novice," was what Paul would have said. Only, he had frozen when the sounds coming from his mouth did not sound like words; they sounded like...

Indigo eyes snapped open as Paul abruptly came to full conscious. A black blanket was the first thing he saw. No, he realised with dawning horror, flinching back, it was soft, silky black fur. Pristine white claws replaced humane fingers and a matching sickle shaped tail lay innocently in the grass below him. He raised a shaky pawto his head, feeling a curved horn on his head, actually feeling the sensation of soft fur brushing against the horn.

Sensitive enough to sense disasters, he recalled faintly.

He was a pokemon. To be more specific, a pokemon that still had aura sensitivity and now the ability to act as a live weather forecast.

"ABSOL!" The cry was enough to make a few pokemon flee from the surrounding forest in fear.

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"Ab absol!" It had taken a while but, once Paul overcame his shock, he had taken up the challenge of walking on four legs. Seeing pokemon walk and really walking as a pokemon were completely different and the sun showed that it was roughly midday when he got the hang of it; how ponyta managed to walk so soon after birth was nothing short of astounding. On an unrelated note, the trainer had found out the hard way that Absol tail were used more for attacks than for balance.

Well, walking turned out to be pretty easy once he started obeying, what must have been, the pokemon's natural instincts or muscle memory. It wasn't long before he could run like he'd had four legs his whole life. Sensations from his horn directed him to a humble town due to the brick buildings that blocked some of the natural paths of wind.

The town was visible after a few minutes, seen from the top of a hill the path had gone over. It was completely different to Veilstone city's towering skyscrapers and just seemed more welcoming. Maybe it was the sunlight, or the humble houses. Perhaps it was the happiness every person and pokemon seemed to radiate, both in their auras and with their cheerful smiles.

A small sign, just off the path, announced the name of the place. "Pallet Town." This is where Ketchum lived before his journey.

'No wonder he was so peppy all of the time,' Paul thought. He doubted that anyone could harbour any real negative emotions in the town, not beyond petty arguments and teasing anyway. But those were easily forgiven and forgotten when so many were willing to help you.

After a few more minutes of enjoying the serenity, he reluctantly continued to the town, this time staying close to the trees to avoid detection. He was going to travel with Ketchum, whether the other trainer knew it or not, but he refused to get caught in a pokéball...

...Though Paul wasn't a person anymore. He was a rare wild pokemon that could be engaged in battle for capture, or just thrown balls at. At any moment. Every single day...

...

'Fine,' he growled at the thought, he'd get in a pathetic ball...eventually. Then it would only need to happen once instead of several times a day (when pathetic people tried to capture him). There would always be a chance that he would be too tired to resist capture, so Paul would rather do it on his own terms.

But he refused to listen to Ketchum's commands for anything other than pure training purposes or battling. He would need to do some hard work to make sure he was a valuable asset to the team, enough to be present with Ketchum as often as possible. That meant competing with pokemon who had been training for at least a year, and some would have had more than 5 years if they continued after Ketchum started a new journey.

Then again, the transformed Absol did have a better chance to be on the team if he was a newly caught pokemon. Ketchum was more likely to spend more time understanding a new pokemon's move set, abilities, personality and capabilities than an older pokemon. Granted, the older pokemon would be stronger, but a trainer would have already spent enough time with their pokemon before parting with them for long periods of time.

Urgh, he hated being ordered around constantly, but if Ursaring, one of the most stubborn pokemon he had ever met, could stand listening to a tiny human shout attacks to him, then he could listen to Ketchum. But, for now, he'd rather not gain attention.

First, Paul would need to bide his time self training to a respectable level before even thinking of following Ketchum on his journey. From what he'd seen from the Legendarys' memories, the other was practically a magnet for trouble, whether it was pokemon organisations or his stubbornness in following his heart over his head. If he wanted to go to Unova, he needed to be able to do some things to care of himself: learn some useful moves, find edible food, fight off other pokemon and, most importantly, avoid being seen by any people.

At least the black fur had its uses now; even if it did put a target on his back for poachers, collectors, fanatics and scientists everywhere.

'Speaking of scientists, Pallet town is where Professor Oak lives,' Paul mused. He'd have to store the pokemon caught on trainers' journeys, which included Ketchum's pokemon. If he want-had to help Ketchum then it would be best if he saw the states of the teen's pokemon first.

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Finally. It had been annoying for Paul to hide like a pathetic coward, but the pokemon compound was definitely worth the trouble.

It was a pokemon paradise: the place was huge, there were areas for every type to feel comfortable, everything seemed completely natural and there would be enough food to prevent fights. It was a shame he had never visited a professor's compound before, there was no need to when all of his pokemon could be taken care of by Reggie.

Professor Oak's house seemed as good a place as any to begin his search, so Paul headed towards it.

Along the way, he had thought about how his transformation was possible and the parts the Fairy Legendaries had played to get to his current situation. Celebi had obviously done the time traveling, but Paul eventually managed to guess the purposes for the others.

Jirachi granted wishes so Ketchum must had wished that he had done thing better, but the pokemon couldn't just send back his future memories (he figured it had something to do with the lack of control they all had when showing him their own memories). Victini could have ensured that the plan was successful, victorious, and Mew must have had something to do with the actual pokemon body. He wasn't certain, but Manaphy was rumoured to switch souls out of their bodies so the pokemon could have transferred his soul or stabilised it.

*Hello, welcome to Professor Oak's lab.* Paul started at the unexpected surprise, head snapping to the direction of the voice as his senses went into overdrive. He barely heard the faint sounds of "bulb bulba" in the background.

No, there was no sign of a trainer or any other person apart from the two that he had planned to avoid. Nope. It was just a bulbasaur. A bulbasaur that was looking straight at him with its head now tilted in concern and wariness.

You couldn't tell, but Paul's mind froze before racing at a sudden thought. He could understand pokemon. Well, it made sense that he would if he got transformed into one, but he could actually fully understand pokemon. He knew his words would just sound like normal Absol calls to any human, but, as obvious as it was, he hadn't thought pokemon could fully understand other species.

The ex-trainer managed to give a perfectly normal nod towards the starter, not giving away his recent turmoil. *Thank you,* Paul said, now able to hear his own voice above the quieter calls of his species.

The bulbasaur had relaxed, the battle ready stiffness, which he now recognised, faded to a more relaxed stature as he nodded back. Impressive. The plant type must have greeted some aggressive pokemon in the past and took measures not to be caught off guard. Paul needed to pay more attention to his surroundings if he had missed the huge potential and protectiveness of the aura before him.

*Would you like something to eat before a quick run through of what's to be expected? Tracy, the professor's assistant, will be providing food very soon* Paul was about to decline when he picked up several scents a short distance away.

*If that's not too much trouble,* he said, before his stomach had the chance to speak up. The other didn't smile but there might have been a quirk on his lips as he turned to lead Paul to the food. In that moment, a brief flicker occurred in the plant type's aura, making Paul blink in surprise.

'One down, another thirty or forty more.'

Pokemon and people formed bonds with each other over time, as everyone knew. Though there was a reason why aura guardians could identify which pokemon were allies and opponents during wars: the stronger the bond, the more apparent it was through their auras. As long as the person and pokemon had a strong bond, and the guardian had felt the person's aura before, pokemon belonging to the person could be identified.

He recognised that aura as Ketchum's. It was also strong, and quite old, almost as old as Pikachu's. This bulbasaur must have been caught during Ketchum's first journey.

The thinning of trees around him made Paul wary without the canopy casting as many shadows over him as before. He really didn't want to be studied; it didn't matter if it was a renowned professor or not. His reluctance turned his graceful prowl into an awkward plod, lengthening the gap between himself and the bulbasaur with his slow pace. Of course, the plant type soon noticed the change in his companion.

*Is something the matter?* Red eyes peered at him carefully, scanning for injuries that may have escaped his notice in the few rays of sunlight that reached ground level.

*No, it's just that...* The bright sunlight shone mockingly in from of him, just a foot from the end of the forest. He signed.

Paul stepped forward to allow the light to reveal his unique colouring: black fur with a glossy purple sheen and the rest an icy white. As predicted, surprise jolted through Bulbasaur's aura and...nothing? What, no hatred or fear, not even rejection? The other must have seen his surprise because a more realistic grin curled the corners of his mouth.

*Colourings are not a problem here. Unlike wild pokemon, humans are usually fascinated by new colourings. If you look around the compound, you'll find that you aren't the only one. My trainer caught a shiny noctowl, and she was accepted just fine.* With that said, the bulbasaur turned back around and walked away. It took another amused glance back for Paul to stop staring and actually follow.

It wasn't like there was long to go. Now that he was paying attention, Paul could hear someone calling to pokemon up ahead whilst pushing, what sounded like, a trolly with a squeaky wheel or two. The scents were even stronger now and that meant that the trolly was probably loaded with pokemon food.

"Alright, everyone, it's time to eat!"

*Come on, everyone!* A bayleef? Professors rarely gave away starter pokemon to trainers in different regions without a reason.

Admittedly, the reason could have been something as small as the pokemon liking the trainer, but... He shook his head, refocusing on following Ketchum's pokemon outside the protection of the trees.

It seemed that the pokemon was right; barely any of the other pokemons' aura fluctuated at the sight of him, the worst reaction being a few curious stares and some second glances. And that wasn't just because they didn't see him because his dark fur stood out like a blot of ink on a plain page. A lot of work must have gone into creating this harmony. No pokemon would just decide to let go of their beliefs, even if they were captured.

Paul stopped a few feet from the trolly and looked at the wide variety of coloured bowls...How was he suppose to pick one up? With his mouth?

The problem was solved when two deceiving thin vines wrapped around a black bowl, presumably for dark types, and placed in down beside the trolly. Watching the vines return, he was met with playful maroon eyes and a small smile. Her aura was strong enough to rival some of the Meganium he had seen on his travels.

*Hello, you must be new! Here, have some pokemon food, it's specially made for dark types. Oh, but we didn't really have these formulas until a pokemon breeder, Brock, showed the professor how giving pokemon their individual type's certain ingredients make them happier! Did you know that, I didn't know that, has Bulbasaur already shown you around?* Paul blinked at the sudden wave (though it was closer to a tsunami) of enthusiasm from the grass starter. Another one of Ketchum's pokemon already? If this kept up, he would be able to start training sooner than he thought.

Realising she was waiting for an answer, he shook his head but Bulbasaur answered before he could. *No, we decided to have some food first.* She smiled wider, closing her eyes.

*Alright! I hope you enjoy the meal, and meet everyone soon!* The absol just stared after her as she return to giving out bowls of food. He turned to his guide, who already had a green bowl in front of him, patiently waiting for his charge to start. Though the ex-trainer was still dazed.

*...Is she always so,* he paused, trying to find a word to describe the bayleef. A nod and another smile was the response...Okay then.

Paul sat on his haunches and lowered his head to sniff at the food. The alluring scent hadn't changed and he was still hungry. No, he sighed inwardly. This was normal. If he wanted to survive being a pokemon long enough to fulfil his task then he was going to have to get used to eating without using hands...Why couldn't he have been a bipedal pokemon, or just any pokemon with two things he could use as hands, like Bulbasaur's vines?

Opening his mouth, the absol bit a small bit a small pellet off the top of the ones piled into the bowl. Then paused, eyes widening as the flavour burst on his tongue. The only thing he could vaguely recognised the combined spicy, sour, bitterness of Tenga and Chople berries. They boosted defence against bug and fighting type attacks so they were used in some healing salves and medicine for dark types. However, pokemon clearly had some different preferences to humans because he distinctly remembered drinking a jug of MooMoo milk to get rid the taste (Reggie had used his curiosity as an opportunity to tease him. How people could think that he was nice when he tricked his 8 year old brother into trying that vile mixture, Paul would never know).

He tried to hide his surprise under a mask of nonchalance, though he had the feeling that Bulbasaur was only accepting the act out of politeness and amusement. At least Paul was able to control himself enough eat at a normal pace instead of stuffing himself.

Maybe the situation wasn't as bad as he thought.