Chapter 27:The Denied Hunters
I stood up straight as the two men approached, wide grins on their faces. I just stared at them passively, keeping a calm expression on my face as they looked between me and Krysta, the fox looking fearful.
"Nice going, kid!"the short guy grinned up at me."You saved us the trouble of tracking her down!"I glanced at Krysta, who looked back at me in alarm and worry.
"Is-Is that true?"she stammered. I gave her a kind smile and simply shook my head.
'Nah, these idiots have it all wrong,'I replied telepathically.'If they want to take you away, they'll have to go through me and the others first. And I really doubt they'll be accomplishing that anytime soon.' The Ninetales tilted her head at me, looking surprised again.
"Hey, kid, are you listening?"the tall man asked. I looked back at them to see confused frowns on their faces.
"You both are going to leave,"I stated bluntly."Right now."They stared at me in shock for a moment, then glared daggers at me.
"Oh no you don't,"the short man growled, eyes narrowed."We found that fox first! We get to keep her, not you!"
"Yeah, we're getting the money for that Ninetales!"the taller man declared.
"You didn't find her,"I replied coldly, the sudden ice in my voice making them blink in surprise."You went to her home, captured and dragged her away from where she belonged, and when she managed to escape you, you jackasses decided to hunt her all over this side of Hoenn for a quick buck, which, if memory serves, is a federal crime instituted by the National Pokemon League."The two men stared at me for a very long moment, flabbergasted and mouths agape as I simply glared back.. Finally, the men managed to compose themselves as the others came up to us.
"Well, if you know all that...somehow...then you realize we went through a lot to chase that fox down,"the taller man said, irritated."There's no way we're going to let some stupid kid take what belongs to us."
"That Ninetales will earn us a fortune on the black market,"the short man said. His eyes widened for a moment, as if he was realizing something, then he glared at me again."Wait, I get it. You just want that Ninetales for yourself!"I blinked at them, a frown now on my face.
"What?"I asked incredulously, feeling offended at being accused of something like that. The two men smirked at me, stupidly believing they'd figured it out.
"That's it, isn't it?"the short man chuckled."You hypocrite. You just want the money for yourself. And you were spewing that we were breaking the law?"
My eyes narrowed as I struggled to control the rage I felt from his accusation."Alright, you idiots. I want you to listen to me very carefully."I walked forward a few steps so that I was standing within arm's length of them, and they watched me with surprised expressions."My name is Ken Woods. I'm the most recent Sinnoh League Champion."The two froze after hearing that."And as a champion, I have some rights and privileges other trainers don't. First off, I'm allowed to take pokemon into my custody if I deem them in need of protection, regardless of how many pokemon are already in my team, so I'm going to bring this Ninetales back to her home. Secondly, I'm more than capable of arresting you two imbeciles here and now for attempt to illegally capture and sell pokemmon on the black market, and unless you leave RIGHT THIS MINUTE, you better damn well believe that's exactly what I'm going to do."The two backed away from me, eyes wide in shock.
"Y-you can't prove anything..."the taller man stammered, looking more like he was trying to convince himself of that.
A cold smile crossed my face."Is that so?"I asked rhetorically, then I glanced over my shoulder."ZC, could you show these two men a little program you picked up when you evolved into a Porygon2?"The normal type nodded, then a rewinding noise sounded from their body, which was followed by a recording.
"That Ninetales will earn us a fortune on the black market,"came the fat man's voice. ZC then rewound the recording and played it two more times, probably just to rub it in, before stopping. I looked back at the two men and smirked. The expressions on their faces were freaking priceless.
"...Th-that...that won't do you any good if you don't know our names,"the short man stuttered.
"Reginald Johnson and Steven Ramsley,"I replied coolly, thoroughly enjoying the looks on as I read their minds. Before they could even think of a way to coherently ask the question they were wondering, I simply jabbed a thumb over my shoulder at Psyche. I immediately sensed feelings of amusement from not only him, but the rest of the team and even Krysta, and they all sounded like they were trying not to burst into laughter. I couldn't blame them, even I was trying not to laugh at the looks of pure shock on their faces. Finally, they looked at each other before simply turning on their heels and running off. Everyone waited for a moment to make sure the two men were out of earshot, then everyone broke out into hysterical laughter. Even Krysta was giggling pretty hard.
"That was fun,"I smirked.
"Nicely done, Ken,"Psyche chuckled."A smart move on your part telling them that I read their minds to take any suspicion from yourself."
"That was the idea,"I replied, turning around to face them all. I glanced at Krysta, who was staring at me with an amazed expression."You okay?"
"Yes, I'm fine,"the fox replied."And I must say, you are the most brilliant human I've ever seen. And I've seen quite a few in my 300 years on this planet."
I blinked, me and the team looking at the fox in surprise."300? You don't look a day over 30."
Krysta smiled, looking flattered."Why, thank you."I looked at them all again.
"Alright, let's get back to what we were doing,"I said."Somehow, I doubt we've seen the last of those idiots, but we shouldn't try dwelling on them."The others nodded in agreement, then dispersed to go back to what they were doing, except for Serenity and Krysta, who I sat down."So, back to your training. Uhh..."I paused, trying to think."Uhhh..."I gave them a Mareepish look, scratching the back of my neck awkwardly."Err...what were we doing again?"The two females laughed.
"You were saying Hypnosis, Ken,"Serenity giggled.
I nodded."Right, right."Then, just to be funny, I rambled a little."Well, technically, I said "Hyp-", then that guy spoke up, then I finished with "-nosis," but yeah, basically the same principal."The two laughed again as I brought a hand to my chin."Now, how do we go about doing this...?"
"Well, we could take turns trying to Hypnotize each other to sleep,"Serenity suggested.
I looked at her."Well, that's not a bad idea, but I've got an alternative."
Krysta raised an eyebrow."Oh? And what would that be?"
I cracked a grin."Simple. You both try to put me to sleep."I jabbed a thumb at my chest as they blinked, then looked at each other in surprise before looking back at me.
"Are you sure about that, Ken?"Serenity asked skeptically."Do you really think your mind could stand up to both of ours?"
"Or do you think we're simply too weak to take you on our own?"Krysta asked, giving me an annoyed look.
I regarded them with a calm expression."Look, I'm not bragging or trying to insult you two, but my mind is pretty damn strong. And not just because I'm psychic."
"Very well,"Krysta conceded as Serenity nodded in agreement. I sat down cross legged in front of them and held my hands together, taking a deep breath. I bowed my head for a moment, closing my eyes and concentrating before looking back at them with a cool expression."Bring it."
Jeez, did they ever...
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End of Chapter
Ugh, this has taken FAR too long. For those who haven't read my profile, my computer has broken down completely and doesn't work anymore. But I've managed to access another computer to get this chapter out.
To anyone still bothering read this, please review.