Speedy updates are a rare occurrence for me and a lucky thing for all those who enjoy my story. In this story… Well, it's sorta obvious, but I won't spoil it for you guys. I will tell you that it involves a new capture for Grey and that Pokémon's initial adjustment to Grey. All of you enjoy :D
Disclaimer: I DO NOT own the Pokémon franchise in any way. I write this for fun and because the voice in my head told me this was the only alternative to burning things :]
Chapter Four: Lucy in the River with Aspear Berries
Juniper finally made it into Wind Town just as the rain had begun to really pick up. She was wet, but at least she'd left the squall behind for the sunshine of Wind Town. The town was slightly larger than Seabreeze Village with windmills littering every empty space in town. The devices were almost as abundant as trees. The town was in the middle of plains area which was at the last area before a rocky, mountainous zone surrounded by a thicket of trees. Juniper had only been to Wind Town a couple of times before, but she knew the general layout.
"Man," she sighed, wringing out her lab coat. "Those afternoon squalls really get to you, huh, Rosewood?" The Furret shook out her five-foot body, trilling as the water droplets flew off.
"Think we should call Mom?" Juniper asked, picking up and cradling Rosewood.
"Furret," she squeaked, nuzzling into her owner. Juniper laughed and looked out towards the squall she had so narrowly escaped, watching as a particularly violent lightning bolt struck out.
"Ouch," she giggled. "I would hate to still be stuck in that. Oh, well; we got out alive, right, Rosewood?"
"Ret Furret." You're telling me. Rosewood agreed, hating what the humidity of the jungle did to her fur.
"Come on. Let's go tell mom we're alright," Juniper said, walking towards the Pokémon center.
Back on the edge of the jungle, Grey and Rachel had also just gotten out of the squall. Grey turned around and looked towards the miniature storm, marveling at how the rain stopped at the boarder between jungle and open land and the swift river to their left.
"Cool, huh?" Grey said, releasing Soul from his ball. "You never see something like that back home."
"No, I guess you don't," Rachel agreed. "What do you think that giant bird… Zapdos, was it? What was it doing out here?" Grey shrugged noncommittally as Soul wondered what a Zapdos was.
"I don't know. I mean, that thing was supposed to be an ultra-rare Pokémon with control over lightning. It could've just been wandering through and brought that storm out with it. Either way, something like that was a rare sight, but we've gotta get going."
"You're really hellbent on this, aren't you?" Rachel sighed.
"Exactly. I'm not giving this up, so nothing you can say will --"
"Fine, then," Rachel said, cutting Grey off. "I'll follow you on this… this crazy twisted trip you've got planned. If I weren't around, you'd be hopeless," she laughed. Grey's face fell like a ton of bricks.
"Char Charmander," Soul pointed out. That was unexpected.
"You totally ruined the big speech I had planned," Grey laughed. "Well, let's not hang around here longer than we have to."
"Char!" Yeah!
"So, where's the first Gym?" Rachel asked.
"From what Zach told us back in the plane, it's in a place called Knight City. We'll have to cross through a rockier area than this one and that's after the next town, which should be about five miles away," Grey explained.
"Doesn't sound too hard for the two of us," Rachel deduced, letting Mudkip out of his ball.
"Vulpix vul," Vulpix sighed. Speak for yourself.
Mud mud! Mudkip!" Yay yay! A trip!
"Mudkip doesn't seem too mind the trip, but Vulpix seems sort of put off by the idea," Grey laughed.
"I still don't get how you do that," Rachel said, crossing her arms over her chest.
"I learned how to do it from Soul. Well, I sorta just heard him talking one day. It was weird, but I got used to it," Grey shrugged.
"Char char char! Charmander?" It's 'cause we're friends! Right? Soul asked.
"You bet, Soul. Now, enough talk, let's go." Grey adjusted the strap on his shoulder, grin spread on his face, and started onward.
It continued like that for a while, until Grey became bored and decided to give Soul some extra training by tossing berries into the air while Soul attempted to roast them using Ember. Soul's control over his fire was steadily getting better, but his aim still needed work. More often than not, a berry would fall to the ground without being hit. It was one such occurrence that gave Grey another chance at his first capture.
An Aspear berry was just skimmed by one of Soul's Embers, causing the berry to take on a spin and fall towards the river. The rock-hard berry landed on a dark brown-orange head floating in the river and Buizel became enraged, searching for who or whatever dared to hit her with a rock-berry.
"Bui! Bui bui zerul!" Okay, what in the hell was that?! Buizel jumped out of the water and cracked her whiplike tails furiously, searching for what threw the berry.
"It's that same Buizel!" Grey noted from the burn mark on her arm. Realizing how obvious that sounded, he made a mental note never to state the obvious without sarcasm again.
"Think you burned her?" Rachel asked.
"Most likely," Grey said, switching into a battle stance. "Soul, get ready. This time, we're catching her." He pulled out the empty ball from before and Soul bounded in front of his trainer.
"Charmander!" Right!" Soul grunted with a nod, fangs showing in a feral grin as he flexed his claws in anticipation.
"It was you?!" Buizel shouted at the Charmander. "I'm gonna rip you apart!" Soul stared at her with a shocked look on his face.
"Think she's mad?" Grey grinned despite the raging Sea Weasel before him. Buizel launched a fierce Water Gun attack, aiming to cause as much damage as possible, but Soul ducked under it before it hit. Buizel then switched to physical attacks as a ring of water appeared at her feet before enveloping her as she rocketed at Soul in an Aqua Jet attack. The blow hit hard, knocking Soul off his feet as Buizel landed with a smug grin.
"Don't give up, Soul," Grey said tersely. He was dealing with a fast, angry Water-type with a Charmander as his only line of defense. Anybody else would've abandoned all hope, but Grey just let the adrenaline flow and kept his spirits up. Soul staggered up, the spot on his gut practically spitting out steam due to the Water-type attack hitting its mark.
To Soul, the water felt like an acid eating away at his scales. He wiped it off frantically, angrily trying to soothe his pain.
"Alright; she's angry, so she won't be able to focus as she would normally. We'll use that to our advantage." Grey looked over at his steaming partner with a smirk on his face. Soul was holding out and for that, Grey was grateful.
"You alright, Soul?" The Lizard Pokémon nodded, ready to continue.
"Then let's do it. Smokescreen, then get in there for Scratch!" Grey commanded, slashing his arm through the air with a manic grin.
Soul took a deep breath and belched out a thick cloud of black, acrid smoke. It washed over Buizel and got into her eyes, making them water and sting. Buizel's eyes turned red and puffy; she scrabbled at them to get her vision back to normal. During her blind groping, she felt a set of sharp claws rake themselves across her back, enticing a howl of pain from her.
"Okay!" Grey cheered. Soul jumped out of his smokescreen and grinned in payback from his earlier defeat. Several Water Guns and Sonic Booms erupted out of the thick smoke as products of Buizel's rage and one of the attacks narrowly missed Grey's head. He surprisingly laughed at it, despite nearly getting a concussion via Sonic Boom.
"Are you crazy or something?!" Rachel shouted. "You could've been killed!" She struggled to keep Mudkip under control, as the little Mud Fish Pokémon was having much too much fun with this battle.
"Mud mud!" Go, red thing! the young one cheered obliviously.
"Soul, target practice! Ember attack!" Grey shouted, his voice nearly cracking. Soul's flame grew as usual, the fireball formed in his mouth and was launched at Buizel with a fierce vigor. The projectile struck, but Buizel shook it off with little trouble, launching another Sonic Boom that struck Soul clear in the head.
Buizel geared up for another Aqua Jet attack, launching herself forward in the cloak of water. However, a combination of the Smokescreen still stinging her eyes and her own anger caused her to miss completely and sail into the ground. As Buizel staggered back up, Grey and Soul saw their chance.
"Soul, full power Metal Claw!"
"Char Charmander!" Got you now! Soul shouted savagely, enjoying the battle with a fervent ardor. His claws glowed a with a metallic sheen as he brought them down on Buizel's head, sending it crashing into the ground and knocking her out.
"Got you now!" Grey echoed his Pokémon, pulling his hand back, the muscles in his arm tensing up as he launched the ball forward at Buizel. He and Soul and even Rachel and her Pokémon watched with anticipation as the ball struck the Sea Weasel Pokémon's head and enveloped her in a bright red light and vacuumed her into it. The Pokéball snapped shut and landed with a metallic thud.
"Did you catch her?" Rachel asked, finding herself watching with anticipation. This was the first time she'd seen something like this happen.
"Hold on," Grey hissed as if the slightest mistake could make this endeavor fail. The ball shook once, twice, three times before it finally stopped and Grey exhaled his held breath. Soul walked up to the ball and picked it up, handing it to his trainer.
A wide, wild grin broke out across Grey's fiace and he punched the air in victory as Soul mimicked his actions.
"Yes!" Grey cried happily. "First capture and it's a complete success!"
"But you lost the first time," Rachel pointed out.
"Don't ruin this for me, woman!" Grey shouted, still dancing in victory.
"Char-man-der!" Soul cried.
"You are so right, my friend!" Grey replied.
"What'd he just say?" Rachel asked.
"Mudkip mud?" What's a 'bitch'? Mudkip asked cutely, turning to Vulpix. "Mud mud, kip Mudkip?" Is that some kind of food?
"Vul… Vulpix!" Uh… Sure it is! Vulpix replied uneasily. She made a mental note to slap Soul at the earliest opportunity for corrupting this child's mind.
Finally stopping his victory dance, Grey pulled his Pokédex from his pocket and held his new Buizel's Pokéball under it. The Pokédex scanned the ball three times over before giving the results.
Buizel, the Sea Weasel Pokémon.
Gender: Female
Known Attacks: Quick Attack, Aqua Jet, Pursuit, Water Gun, Growl, Sonic Boom
Current Condition: Burned
"Sounds like we should get her wounds healed, huh?" Rachel suggested, brining Mudkip and Vulpix over. Mudkip danced around Soul while congratulating the Fire-type before Vulpix slapped Soul with her tails.
"Char char!" That hurt! Soul protested, rubbing his head.
"Vulpix!" Good! Vulpix huffed.
"Yeah," Grey replied. "But we can take care of her burn right here. Hand me a Burn Heal from the bag, will you?" Rachel complied, digging into Grey's messenger bag and handing him the medicine. Grey tossed Buizel's ball into the air and the Sea Weasel appeared in a burst of silver.
Buizel took a confused look at her surroundings before finally resting her eyes on Grey and snarling.
"Bui bui!" Get away! she barked, anger and fear radiating off of her. She'd heard what humans were like when they caught Pokémon in those red and white death spheres they carried around; heard stories of how they abused Pokémon and misused their casual love of battle for their selfish, human gains. Well, Buizel wouldn't have it. She struck out at Grey with her tails when his hand approached and took a defensive stance, her fur standing on end like nettles and her eyes narrowing in rage.
Grey could feel Buizel's emotions coming off of her in droves. He felt her fear in the back of his mind, knowing it wasn't his while he nursed his smarting hand. It hurt Grey to see a Pokémon afraid of him while he was this close. It made him feel afraid, too.
"Charmander! Char char!" Hey! He's only being nice! Soul shouted. Anybody who dare harm his friend would have it with Soul personally.
"Bui~! Buizeru bui bui!" Shut up! Traitor to Pokémon!
"Grey, we have to calm her down," Rachel said as Mudkip and Vulpix hid behind her legs. "It's okay, Mudkip," she said soothingly to the Mud Fish. "Can't you do something?"
"I'm trying," Grey muttered. "Buizel, calm down. I won't hurt you. Sorry that Soul and I had to rough you up a bit, but I guess it's sort of tradition. Let's just be friends, okay?" Grey took an Oran berry out from his bag and offered it to the Sea Weasel, who sniffed it in curiosity. She never let her guard down, though.
While she was distracted by the berry, Grey sprayed the Burn Heal on her injured arm. Buizel screeched in anger, lashing out and biting Grey's wrist. Grey endured the pain, however, determined to get Buizel to like him.
"Does your burn still hurt?" he asked through gritted teeth. Buizel looked down at her arm. Her fur was still blackened by the Ember she sustained, but her burn was completely gone, replaced by a cool, soothing sensation.
"Bui?" she blinked in astonishment.
"I'm not going to hurt you, Buizel," Grey assured. "Soul and I are your friends. Oh, Soul's the Charmander you fought before." Buizel turned around to see the Lizard Pokémon grudgingly wave to her. The Charmander still angry that Buizel attacked his friend.
Grey felt Buizel's emotions calm in the back of his head, but she was still wary of Grey. She accepted the berry from the human and nibbled on it after she was sure this wasn't all a trick.
"Nice job, Grey," Rachel applauded. "You'd make a great ranger if you can do that." Grey groaned in disgust.
"No thanks; I'm just fine," he said, stroking Buizel's head. The other three Pokémon came to approach Buizel with Mudkip eager to meet a new friend.
Hi-hi! My name's Mudkip! What's yours? he asked Buizel cheerily.
I'm Vulpix, the Fox Pokémon said simply. It's nice to meet you.
Name's Soul. Sorry about roughing you up earlier. You fight like a beast! Coming from Soul, this was definitely a compliment.
Uhm… Thank you? Buizel answered tensely. I'm Buizel. It's… she fought to get the word out, nice… to meet all of you.
So, you're the newest addition to my and Grey's team, Soul explained. We're going to be traveling and fighting together for a long time. Buizel visibly showed disgust at the idea of taking orders from a human.
You mean I'm his pet now? she asked with an annoyed tone.
Not pet. Partner, Soul said. Grey's never treated me like a pet before and he won't treat you like one, either. Buizel nodded silently and popped the rest of the berry into her mouth.
Yay! New friend! Mudkip sang, tackling Grey's newest capture.
Mudkip, don't tackle her! Vulpix admonished.
"What are they talking about now?" Rachel laughed after seeing Mudkip's show of affection.
"I really didn't catch all of it; they were saying too much. But the gist of it was that they introduced themselves and Soul put in a good word to Buizel for me," Grey explained, picking up his bags.
"Buizel, Soul," he called to his Pokémon. The two turned to him, Soul expecting an order and Buizel with harsh indifference. Grey opened his mouth to say more but then closed it and put his hand to his chin in thought.
"What's up?" Rachel asked. She picked up her two Pokémon, Mudkip now riding on her head.
"It's just… I can't go around and call Buizel 'Buizel' all the time. It seems sort of impersonal," Grey reasoned. He crouched down and faced the Sea Weasel with a look of deep thought on his face. "So, you need a name. But the question is: 'Which one?'"
"Bui?" Buizel squeaked. A name? All her life, she'd just been called by her species name, never really giving any thought to a real name. Grey snapped his fingers, coming out of his reverie with a name he thought fit Buizel perfectly.
"Lucy," he said simply. "That's what we'll call you now. You like that name?"
"Bui." Lucy, Buizel said, repeating the name to see how it sounded. Yes, that name was good; it was simple and elegant. Buizel nodded, still regarding this trainer with caution.
"It's settled, then," Grey grinned. "Welcome to the team, Lucy." Soul jumped up on Grey's back and set his arms and head on the boy's shoulder. Grey in turn picked up Lucy in order to let her ride on his other shoulder. This didn't sit well with the Water-type.
"Bui bui!" she protested and squirmed before grabbing onto Grey's head to keep her balance. Grey just laughed and picked his things up before continuing down the road to Wind Town.
"You're gonna fit in just fine, Lucy," he assured. All the while, Rachel watched, tailing behind Grey with her mind lost in thought. She was still convinced Grey would make a Grey Pokémon Ranger with the amount of kindness he showed his Pokémon. But, sadly, she'd never been able to convince Grey of that.
About ten miles and three-and-a-half hours later, a travel-haggard Grey crossed the threshold into Wind Town. Just as Juniper had noticed before, Grey saw the multitude of windmills in town and the slight but strong breeze that blew through the plains town. The Cloud River ran straight through the town and was kept clean and clear. Bridges and an irrigation system were built so the river wouldn't get in the way of construction.
Soul and the newly-named Lucy hopped off their trainer's shoulder and looked around at all the people and Pokémon in town. It was nothing new for Soul to see people and their Pokémon friends walking side-by-side, but Lucy was completely transfixed and baffled. She'd never thought other Pokémon partnered with humans like his Charmander did. It was entirely foreign to her.
Rachel told Grey she was going off to the Mart to buy some food for her Pokémon before going off on her own. Grey didn't mind a bit; it'd give him more time to bond with Lucy. But, before all that, he'd have to get Lucy and Soul's injuries healed at the Pokémon Centre.
"Come on, guys. It's time we got a well-deserved rest," Grey smiled. Soul followed happily with a hesitant Lucy behind him. The Centre doors pulled apart and Grey walked in, thankful for the air conditioning that slightly cooled him down. Soul grumbled at the drop in temperature and Lucy stayed indifferent.
Looking at the front desk where the Nurse Joy stood, Grey was reminded of his mom. He wondered how she was doing. A pang of guilt rung through him at the thought of her reaction to his runaway, so he figured he'd send a message via family connections.
"Char Charmander," Soul pointed out, referring to the rosette nurse.
"I know, Soul," Grey said. "Hey, Aunt Joy," he called, walking up to the desk. Nurse Joy's face became puzzled. Did she know this boy?
"Hello, and welcome to the Pokémon Centre," she recited. "I'm afraid I don't know you."
"Man, mom's side of the family's huge," Grey grinned. "My name's Grey Thomas, your cousin's son. She's married to a Pokémon Ranger named Van." Joy's face lit up in remembrance.
"Ah, so you're Grey!" she said happily. "Joy's told me so much about you. What are you doing here?"
"On a Pokémon journey; just started today," Grey beamed. "So, you can guess why I'm here," he said, gesturing to Soul and Lucy. Joy nodded in understanding.
"Okay then; just return them to their Pokéballs and I'll take care of them for you. Anything else?" Joy offered kindly. Grey was again reminded of his mom. This was exactly how she acted when rangers and trainers came into the Centre back in Almia and it made him feel a bit happier, if not slightly homesick.
"Yeah. If you can, I'd like a guidebook for this region and for you to pass on a message to Mom. Tell her I'll call when I get a chance, please," Grey requested. He soon remembered his promise to Professor Hawthorne and quickly added, "Oh, right! Did a girl with red hair come through here? Possibly wearing a lab coat?" Joy put her finger to her chin thoughtfully before answering.
"Yes, Professor Hawthorne's daughter. She dropped off her Furret and Grovyle here a half hour ago and then left to run an errand. When she gets back, I'll tell her you stopped by."
"Thanks a lot, Aunt Joy," Grey said. He pulled out Lucy and Soul's Pokéballs, pointing at them and calling, "Return." The Charmander and Buizel were struck by the red light before becoming absorbed in themselves and called back into their capsules. Grey placed the balls on a tray Nurse Joy had brought out from under her desk and his aunt took them into the back room.
Grey stretched and took a seat near the wall and put his hood up to rest. He'd put in a good effort today, he reasoned proudly. A light rest was well deserved before he got in some training and set off towards Knight City.
The Centre doors opened once more and Juniper walked in with an innocent look on her face. She looked over at Grey sitting off to the side with his hood up and walked over to him to introduce herself. She plopped down on the seat, but when that didn't wake Grey up, she readied her loud voice and said,
"Hi there!" Grey woke with a startled yell and nearly fell out of his seat. "My name's Juniper. What's yours?" she asked innocently. Grey clutched his chest and looked at the girl with a dishevelled look on his face. So this was Juniper. Amelia had been right; she had a loud voice.
"Uh, hi there," Grey said nervously. "My name's Grey."
"Grey, huh? That's a nice name. Where are you from?" Juniper asked with a smile.
"Puel Town in Almia. And your mom sent me to look for you. Did you get lost on your way back home or something?" the boy laughed. Juniper rubbed her head in embarrassment.
"Oh, that… Yeah, I sort of did. Hitched a ride on a Torterra and he decided to drop me off here instead of back home. And I missed my chance to study him, too," the girl huffed angrily. Grey could only laugh. This girl was good for a good one every now and then and she didn't seem as crazy as she was made out to be.
"So, are you a trainer?" Juniper asked, guessing by Grey's clothing. Grey rubbed his nose smugly.
"Yeah, I am. Pretty cool, huh?" he bragged.
"Sure is! When did you start?" she asked. Grey's air of accomplishment deflated like a balloon.
"Uh… just today, actually," he said sheepishly. Juniper giggled softly. "Hey, don't laugh. We all have to start somewhere, right?"
"Yeah, you're right. So, what kinds of Pokémon have you got with you?"
"A Charmander I've had since I was twelve and a Buizel I caught a couple of hours ago. She's still getting used to me, though," Grey said.
"Wow, a Charmander! Those are supposed to be really rare! Can I please study him?" Juniper pleaded, getting down on her knees and clasping her hands together. Grey rose an eyebrow inquisitively.
"S-sure," Grey stuttered. "Has anyone ever tell you you're really… eccentric?" He decided to go with the least offensive word he could think of.
"I get that a lot, so, yeah," Juniper giggled. "It's all right, though. I love being called that. As for the Pokémon I have with me right now, I have a Furret named Rosewood and a Grovyle named Sylva. Rosewood's kind of a priss and Sylva seems to be in a bad mood most of the time."
"That's cool. Lucy, my Buizel, has a pretty bad temper from what I can tell and Soul's just a battle-happy psycho. He's a great friend, though."
"I've always wanted a chance to study the habits of captured Pokémon!" Juniper shouted suddenly. "Can I please, please, please study your Charmander and Buizel?! This is a really rare opportunity!"
"Sure you can, just don't beg," Grey said, slightly scared. "How old are you anyway?"
"Sixteen," Juniper answered simply.
"No way!" Grey shouted mentally. At that moment, he remembered he had to call Amelia when he found Juniper. "Oh, yeah; your mom asked me to call her when I found you. You want to call her number on the vid-phone?" Juniper nodded and got up to dial the number and smiled as her mother's face appeared onscreen.
"Hi, mom," she said. "I made it to Wind Town just fine and I met the boy you sent to come find me. He's really nice." Grey took that as his cue to show himself.
"Hey, Professor H," he waved. "Found her just like you asked."
"I can see that," Amelia smiled.
"What? No thanks?" Grey said, feigning insult. Amelia laughed again.
"Like I said, it's good to have kids like you around, Grey," she said. "Anyway, Juniper, how'd you end up in Wind Town?" Juniper explained everything to her mother; the Torterra, the storm and her ending up in the windmill-strewn town.
"Aah, I see. Well, Torterra have been known to be pretty forgetful Pokémon," the woman nodded sagely.
"Really?" Grey wondered aloud.
"No, not really," the professor deadpanned.
"Anyway, Mom," Juniper cut in, "D'you think it'd be okay for me to travel with Grey for the time being? It'd really help my research and I think it'd be interesting to watch how Pokémon captured by trainers behave in contrast to wild ones."
"Well, I don't know, June," Amelia said hesitantly. "You don't have a full supply bag or anything right now and you'll need supplies for your Pokémon as well." Juniper's face fell.
"Awww. Okay, Mom. I'll come home if --"
"But!" Amelia started again, cutting her daughter off. "I could just mail you some money and a fully packed bag if you really want to." It was remarkable how decisive yet indecisive the woman was.
"Grey, where are you headed to?" she asked the boy.
"Knight City, but I thought you said that --" Grey began.
"Oh, nonsense!" Amelia laughed, waving the thought off with a hand. "She can't just stay cooped up in the lab all her life. Field work is a great opportunity for her, given the number of Pokémon living in the archipelago! I say go, and that's final. Bye-bye now~!" And with that, the abnormal professor hung up the phone, leaving the two teenagers in a state of pure confusion.
"Well, that's Mom for you," June said sheepishly. "Always changing her mind at the weirdest possible time."
"Yeah, I noticed," Grey said just as uneasily.
"Juniper Hawthorne and Grey Thomas, you're Pokémon are ready for pickup," Nurse Joy called out in her soothing voice. The two in question picked up their Pokéballs, with Grey picking up the guidebook he asked for, and thanked Nurse Joy.
"I sent my sister Rachel out for supplies a while ago, so, when she gets back, we'll set off for Knight City," Grey said as soon as they'd left the Centre. "But first…" Grey tailed off, enlarging two Pokéballs. "Lucy, Soul, come on out!"
The balls split open at the middle, letting twin waterfalls of silver land on the ground and form into a Buizel and Charmander.
"Juniper, meet Soul and Lucy," Grey introduced, pointing to his Pokémon in turn.
"Charmander?" Who's the chick?
"Bui Buizeru!" I hate that thing! Lucy shouted, biting Grey's arm in anger.
"Ouch!" Grey grit his teeth to get through the pain. "Nice to see you again, too, Luce." The Buizel let go and crossed her arms indignantly. "Oh, come on. Are you going to do that every time you come out of your ball?"
"Bui!"
"Oh, wow!" Juniper exclaimed, marveling at Soul. "I've never seen a Charmander up close before! He looks really healthy and his flame seems to be really strong," she noted, writing the details down on a clipboard she produced from nowhere. Before Grey could ask where she got it from, she began looking over Lucy.
"She seems kind of angry. Has she always acted like this?" she asked Grey, pointing at the Buizel with her pen.
"As far as I know." Grey rubbed his head. "Originally, I failed to catch her. But, Soul managed to burn her, so I guess she's still ticked about that. She also seems to have a bad view about humans so I'll need to prove her wrong about that." He crouched down next to the Buizel and put his hand on her head.
"You need to calm down. If you're always angry, you never have any fun," Grey grinned.
"Bui?"
"Yes, fun," Grey repeated. "You know; enjoying yourself. Having a good time is what I mean. You can have fun traveling with Soul and me, too."
"Bui bui zeru," Lucy muttered.
"Okay, if you say so. But I'll prove you wrong, Luce." Grey looked around, seeing if he could actually implement what he had in mind.
"You can understand her?" Juniper asked, also noting this on her clipboard. "How come?" Grey sighed, annoyed at having to explain his ability to everyone he met. He turned his attention to looking for a fight while opening his mouth to explain.
"Dunno. It just happened when I heard what Soul was saying to me one day. Now, help me find a good battle." Grey's eyes finally landed on a kid just a few years younger than he was with an Elekid and Starly following him.
"There!" Grey shouted, chasing after the boy. "Hey, you! I challenge you to a fight!" The boy turned around and grinned.
"Yeah, sure! Let's get to it right away," the kid said enthusiastically. "I choose Starly first!" The Starling Pokémon flew off its trainer's shoulder, eager to please.
"Star Starly!" it chirped hyperactively. Soul immediately jumped forward and flexed his claws, thinking he was up first.
"No, Soul; Lucy's going first," Grey said. The Charmander's face fell in disbelief. But he ALWAYS went first! First Buizel attacks Grey and then it takes his coveted spot as leader? There's going to be grilled Sea Weasel tonight, Soul thought evilly.
"I know, I know. But you and I are already best friends. Right now, I have to get Lucy to trust me, okay?"
"Char char," Soul sighed, returning to Grey's side.
"And you are not grilling Lucy," Soul added in a deadpan. Soul's mouth fell open when he realized that Grey had heard him. The boy turned to Lucy and nodded at her to get on the field. The Sea Weasel stood rooted to the spot at first before grudgingly moving forward.
"I'll referee!" Juniper said eagerly, holding her hands out. "Starly vs. Buizel! Begin!" she cried, throwing her hands down.
"Starly, Wing Attack!" the unnamed boy shouted. The gray bird Pokémon flapped its wings to get airborne and threw herself at Lucy, wings glowing with a blinding light.
"Lucy, Aqua Jet into the air, then come back down on top of it!" Grey commanded. Lucy looked at him, frustrated because Grey was ordering her around like a pet and confused because of the order itself. Her train of thought was immediately derailed by the impact of Starly's wing on her head. The starling flew back to its master to await further orders while Lucy barked at it angrily.
"Lucy, trust me. If you don't, you'll get creamed out there," Grey pleaded as Starly geared up for a Quick Attack. Lucy grit her teeth and reluctantly nodded, eager to get back at the infernal bird. Starly streaked forward, leaving a trail of white light behind it as it aimed for Lucy's stomach.
"Same as before, Luce! Aqua Jet up and then turn back around to strike!" This time, Lucy obeyed, cloaking herself in water from the atmosphere and jumping up, leaving Starly to tackle through a curtain of water. Lucy used Aqua Jet again, pointing herself down and striking Starly in the back like a giant arrow of water. To add both insult an injury, Lucy cracked her tails twice, her double Sonic Boom attacks hitting Starly in the head and left wing.
"Nice improv, Lucy!" Grey cheered. "I knew you'd do great!" Hearing the praise coming from Grey's mouth, Lucy felt proud of herself; prouder than she had whenever she won a battle in the wild.
Okay, she thought, maybe this human is annoying, but at least he isn't anything like I've heard. I still better be careful.
"Don't take that, Starly!" the nameless boy shouted. "Get that rat back with your Wing Attack!"
"Bui!?" Rat?! Lucy screamed angrily. She fired a Water Gun with intent to kill, striking Starly in the head and sending it reeling as Grey cried,
"Nice shot, now fire another!" Lucy happily obliged this time, launching another Water Gun that sent the Starly crashing into its trainer, completely unconscious.
"Starly is unable to battle," Juniper judged loudly. "Buizel wins!" The angry boy then marshaled his Elekid in to fight next, shouting,
"Quick attack into Thunder Punch!" Elekid raced forward as Starly did before him and slammed his electrically-charged fist into Lucy's stomach before she could react. The Buizel's eyes bulged out of her head as the attack did double-damage to her and left an electrical burn on her stomach. Lucy skidded backwards, holding her stomach in pain with one eye tightly shut as residue static sparked off her body.
"Crap," Grey cursed, realizing Lucy's type disadvantage. He didn't want this battle to end like Soul's first battle against her and have Lucy hate him as a result. He sighed, holding Lucy's ball up. "Return!" he shouted, calling her back into the ball. "You're up, Soul. Kick his ass."
"Charmander," the little salamander grinned, jumping into the field and flexing his claws.
"Tch, this is too easy," the nameless kid said arrogantly.
"Let's prove him wrong, Soul. Double Ember," Grey commanded. As usual, Soul's tail flame grew as the fireball formed in his mouth. He fired the first, then a second, smirking as both connected with Elekid's face. The other boy ordered Elekid to strike back with Thundershock and Elekid rotated its arms wildly to charge up enough power. When it was finished, Elekid shot the electric shock out from its antennae like a tiny shock dart. The attack connected, making the muscles in Soul's body contract and expand against his will, leaving him numb afterwards.
"Now another Thunder Punch!" Elekid's attack struck, a burst of electricity sparking out from the point of impact. Soul's body became rigid from the impact of the electricity being driven directly into his stomach while his body involuntarily twitched. He glared at Elekid as it geared up for another Thunder Punch, deciding then and there that he did NOT like Electric-types.
"Roll to dodge, then trip him up," Grey ordered. Soul obeyed, rolling to the side just in time as Thunder Punch went straight over his head. As Elekid dodged, Soul lashed his tail out like a whip at Elekid's legs, sending it falling on its face.
"Close range Ember, then Metal Claw attack!"
Soul blasted an Ember straight into Elekid's back to tenderize it then slammed his steel-hard claws into the same spot. Elekid screamed out in pain and threw Soul off with a charged fist before launching another Thundershock.
"Ember!" Grey shouted. Soul launched yet another fireball which met the volatile, needle-like dart in the middle of the field and exploded with a loud bang and a large plume of black smoke. "Again!" The last fireball blasted out of the smoke and into Elekid's face once more, knocking the baby Pokémon unconscious.
"Elekid is unable to battle," Juniper laughed. "Charmander wins!"
"Another win!" Grey cheered, letting Lucy out of her ball to congratulate her. He hugged the Buizel and Soul together in congratulations until Rachel's laugh was heard from behind.
"Aww, so cute," she teased. Mudkip and Vulpix trailed behind her, each with an apple in their mouths while she carried a shopping bag from the mart. "She warm up to you yet?"
"Almost," Grey said, still grinning, even as Lucy chomped down on his wrist yet again. Soul danced on the spot, fangs bared in a grin as he punched the air. All the while, Juniper was noting their actions on her clipboard. Rachel stared at the motley crew with apprehension.
"Hey, I forgot; Rae, this is Juniper, the girl we were sent to find. She's gonna be traveling with us from now on," Grey introduced. Juniper looked up from her clipboard and waved warmly at Rachel before going back to her scribbling.
"Oh, just perfect; another crazy person," Rachel sighed exasperatedly. "Mudkip, Vulpix, why do we always get the crazies?"
"Vul-pix."
"Mu~d Mudkip."
"Then again, I guess Mudkip's not the very definition of normal either," the ranger sighed.
"Mud Mudkip. Kip, mud kip kip." So many fights. Vulpix, can Mudkip fight too? Mudkip asked the Fox Pokémon. Vulpix shrugged as best she could.
"Vulpix… Vul Vulpix vul, pix..." I don't know… Rachel doesn't like battles, so…
"Mud… Mudkip!" Oh… Mudkip said, slightly disappointedly. Okay, then!
"Well," Grey said, suddenly standing up and dusting his pants off. "Rae, you get our supplies?"
"Mhm," Rachel nodded, shaking the bag in her hand. "We ready to go?"
"You bet," Grey nodded. "We just need to head through…" Grey trailed off. He started flipping through his guidebook to look for the next landmark, pressing his finger on the page when he found it. "Geo Path. That's just east of here; all we have to do is follow the river."
"We're making good progress, but don't you think we're pushing too fast?" Rachel asked warningly. Grey disregarded her; faster was better, right?
"No. I'm confident that we'll be in Knight City by tomorrow. A day and a half, tops," Grey said solidly. Slinging his bag over his shoulder and picking up Lucy and Soul to ride on his shoulders, Grey took a running start toward the northern exit of Wind Town.
"Wait!" Juniper shouted, hurriedly scribbling on her clipboard while struggling to keep up with Rachel's pace. "Don't you want to hang around Wind Town some more?!"
"Of course not! I'm going all the way and there's no time for the scenic route!" Grey grinned mancally. "Knight City or bust!"
And so was the beginning of a motley crew of characters brought together purely by the actions of a headstrong young boy, his Pokémon Ranger sister and a professor-in-training. It was a group so odd, it'd be considered impossible anywhere else.
"Oh, great. Just great!" a voice rang out, frustration layering his voice. A boy stood in the middle of the forest in Geo Path, a Scyther and Duskull standing loyally next to him. The boy had pale skin, black hair and brown eyes wearing a blue fleece jacket and jeans. The boy's name was Jameson Rhodes and, currently, he was up shit creek without a paddle.
Jameson threw the map in his hands on the ground in anger. This was the fifth time he'd gotten lost in this infernal forest and it was driving him crazy.
"Aaaugh!" Jameson screamed into the sky while he pulled out his hair. His Scyther, Sniper and his Duskull, Shishi, stared at him with raised brows. "I hate this! We've been in here all day and we still haven't found our way out! Why can't I find my way out?!"
"Scy. Scyther Scy," Sniper said pointing to the map. Jameson looked at the infernal piece of paper again, realizing that, upon closer inspection, he was holding the map upside down. Jameson blinked in embarrassment before clearing his throat and picking the map up again.
"Right… Well… Thanks, Sniper. Now let's get going to Knight City," he said sheepishly. Sniper laughed his head off at his trainer while his Duskull companion just smacked his masked face in embarrassment. Having a directionally challenged trainer was extremely frustrating.
Tada~! Chapter 4, up and running. So, Grey makes his first capture, Juniper's sent *cough*forced*cough* to travel with Grey and Rachel and Mudkip expresses some interest in battling. More to come.
As I said before, Grey's incredibly headstrong and rushes into things. Will this be a detriment to him in the future or a blessing?
Looks like we've got a war going on between Sea Weasel and Lizard Pokémon. Who will come out of this alive? Only one answer: MORTAL KOMBAT -- er, POKEMON BATTLE!
And, introducing the last new character for what may be a while, Jameson Rhodes who belongs to Shadow Minamoto. Thanks for the submission, dude.
Keep on the lookout for the next chapter, coming to a site near you.