Excitement coursed through her but she kept a straight face as she stood across the floor from the gym leader Lenora. Blue eyes met teal in a battle for dominance, neither woman giving in. Despite being a basement it was a cozy setting, painted lines on cement marking the battle field while the rest was carpeted or hardwood. All in all, it wasn't what Heather had expected.
An older man stood at the side acting as the referee, reading out the rules of the battle. Heather listened closely while mentally calming herself, waiting for the battle to start.
"This official gym battle is between the gym leader Lenora, and challenger Heather for the Basic Badge. This is a one-on-one battle, Lenora may not switch out, use two Pokémon, and may heal once. The challenger may use a full team, and heal as she pleases. Begin!"
"Lets go, Herdier. Show her how we do things here!"
The leader threw an Ultra Ball to the field which released the Pokémon and returned to her hand, the red beam forming a Pokémon similar to a Lillipup. Heather scanned it with her dex, thinking quickly who to send out.
Herdier, the Loyal Dog Pokémon.
The evolved form of Lillipup.
Type: Normal
Height 2′11″ (0.89m)
Weight 32.4 lbs. (14.7 kg)
Ability: Intimidate
It loyally follows its Trainer's orders. For ages, they have helped Trainers raise Pokémon.
Heather put her Pokédex away and took a ball out of her pocket, tossing it onto the field. The red and white sphere opened and released a beam of light, her Panpour being materialized before the ball returned to her. The blue monkey flinched from the dogs intimating stare, making Heather inwardly frown.
"Panpour, lets go! Use Water Gun."
I hope our training was enough, Intimidate will cut a lot off our Physical attack.
"Herdier, Take Down." Lenora replied cooly, calm with the situation despite using a move that would harm her own Pokémon. Panpour braced itself and let out a strong water gun at the Normal-type, making its Take Down veer off course a bit because of water in its eyes. The larger dog nailed into the very side of the monkey, tripping up due to it expecting a full on hit and injuring itself more than usual.
Panpour cried out and Scratched the side of the Herdier in return, jumping away quickly. Lenora, wasting no time, ordered her Pokémon to use Bite, Heather quick to react as the dog barrelled toward her Poké.
"Panpour, dodge it and use Fury Swipe with Water Gun."
What I need is some leverage. Keeping her Herdier wet will slow it down, and it'll make the floor slick too.
The black and brown canine snapped at Panpour as it got close, the monkey narrowly dodging the first snap and soaking the hound with a well aimed gun. Teeth came down on the monkeys leg, a soft crack being heard. Claws raked the Herdier's flank several times in a row and started ripping away fur, causing quite a bit of damage. The result was quick; an angry and soaked dog ignoring orders and trying to get a monkey off its back.
"Herdier! Roll onto your back!"
"Panpour, close range Scald." She calmly ordered, stressed on the inside. Was Panpour okay?
The crack was loud, but he didn't seem to react... I'll return him back if he does before this battle is over.
Scald was a new attack they hadn't worked on much, which had some issues with the temperature. Hoping against hope that it would have the desired effect, Heather watched as her monkey clung on to the bucking hounds back and released a boiling attack.
A howl of pain followed a blast of steaming hot water, Lenora instantly recalling her Pokémon. A tired out Panpour was returned to Heather's ball, being recalled due to his injury.
I need to get him checked immediately after I finish this, winning or losing..
"Herdier has been recalled, Panpour wins the battle. Lenora has one more Pokémon remaining, begin!"
"Watchog, finish this battle."
With two Pokémon ready to battle and a third that could still possibly battle, Heather was trying not to think she had the battle bagged. By the looks of the rodent like Pokémon on the battle field, it was fast. Her own Pokémon were quite swift, but this was pushing it. Quickly she took out her dex, scanning the Poké.
Watchog, The Lookout Pokémon.
The evolved form of Patrat.
Type: Normal
Height 3′7″ (1.09m)
Weight 59.5 lbs. (27.0 kg)
Ability: illuminate
They make the patterns on their bodies shine in order to threaten predators. Keen eyesight lets them see in the dark.
"Alright, here we go. C'mon out, Claire!"
The chinchilla used Growl as it was released, puffing out as she touched the wet battle floor. The gray fluff sized up her opponent and got ready to fight, Lenora calling out the first move.
"Watchog, Crunch."
"Claire, dodge and use Swift, careful on the floor."
Lenora grit her teeth as Heather spoke the move, knowing there was no way her Pokémon could dodge it. Instead, she watched as the Minccino dodged her Crunch by using the wet floor to slide on, a cluster of stars attacking her Watchog several times. The Pokémon shook it off best he could and ran at Claire who had put distance between them, Lenora's voice a bit strained.
"Hypnosis!"
Great, trying to put my Pokémon to sleep. Ahah!
"Claire, close your eyes and Sing!"
Fire with fire.
"Watchog, stop and plug your... Oh no..."
The brown rat wobbled before he hit the floor, Lenora using her one heal to use an Awakening on her Pokémon. The Watchog stood and shook off, charging Claire to Crunch her. The Minccino reacted fast and retaliated with Encore, delivering a sharp Pound to his nose after a bright white ball hit the Poké. The white light dissapated and made the Watchog shine a bit, showing the effect was active. Fuming, Lenora set her Pokémon to Crunch away, Claire dodging best she could before taking an attack to her side.
Not wanting to push her, Heather returned the Minccino and took out her last ball, sending out Lark. The Snivy quickly shot a small seed at the Normal-type, vines growing on it quickly.
A Leech Seed! Great thinking buddy. Claire tired it out, now we get to beat it.
"Lark, Leaf Tornado."
Her voice was dead calm as she gave her command, full trust in her partner as he dodged a Crunch, the Encore still active before it shimmered out. The Grass snake set a gust of sharp edged leaves at the Watchog, having it get caught in the small tornado until it broke free. Having had enough, Lenora spat out a chain of commands, her Pokémon starting off with a wince as Leech Seed stole some of its energy.
"Retaliate, Hypnosis, Crunch!"
"Lark, Growth, then a Vine Whip. Keep him away!"
The rodent charged Lark who flashed green quickly and grew a bit larger, vines coming out to knock the creature away. The Watchog went directly to its second attack, Lark closing his eyes to avoid it. With a direct opening the Pokémon ran in and Crunched Lark, the Grass snake beginning to glow, blinding the Normal-type for a moment.
In the place of the Snivy stood a taller, longer Pokémon, green with a white underbelly and yellow crest where the grass blades once were, leaves coming out of its back down to its tail.
Heather's jaw dropped at her first Pokémon evolved, tears in her eyes while the new creature lay to waste the Watchog with a bigger, stronger Leaf Tornado. She ran across the field and scooped him up, hugging her partner tightly who returned it excitedly with short leaf like arms.
"Watchog is unable to battle, Lenora is out of usable Pokémon..."
She blocked out the ref to squeal in delight, dropping to her knees and placing Lark down. Excitement made both their eyes sparkle and Heather giggle, hugging her partner again.
"Lark, you evolved! I'm so proud of you! Ah, and we beat the gym!" She nearly yelled as Lenora walked over with the winnings and a smile, chuckling.
"Congratulations, that was a great battle. Your Pokémon evolving was unexpected, but it's always amazing to see it happen. You've won, so here it is, the Basic Badge." The woman handed over the badge and the money, Heather standing to take then. She showed Lark the badge before sticking it in her case, using the storage box to stash the money. Quickly she pulled out her dex, scanning her beloved partner.
Servine, The Grass Snake Pokémon.
Type: Grass
Height 2′7″ (0.79m)
Weight 35.3 lbs. (16.0 kg)
Ability: Overgrow
It moves along the ground as if sliding. Its swift movements befuddle its foes, and it then attacks with a vine whip.
Known moves: Tackle, Leer, Vine Whip, Wrap, Growth, Leaf Tornado, Leech Seed, and Mega Drain.
x—x—x—x—x—x
Heather raced to the center after leaving the gym, handing all three Pokéballs to Nurse Joy. She explained about the Crunch attack and got the nurse to check her Panpour first, worried about her companion. While she waited she looked at the map that was pinned up on the center wall, looking at the part of it that showed Pinwheel Forest. If she wanted to train and explore, the long path would take about a days travel, if they were finished working on the straight through path, it would be much shorter.
The cruise was in two days, enough time to stay the night at the center and move out on the short path tomorrow, or start the long path today and hope to reach Castelia by mid morning. Heather thought it over briefly before leaving the map to take a seat on one of the benches, deciding to call her mother. It was late enough that she would be home from work, and gotten her gift.
The blonde pulled her X-transceiver out and called her mother, having it ring a few times before someone answered. On the other end a woman's voice sounded distracted, sizzling heard in the background.
"Hello?"
"Mom!"
"Heather? Are you alright? You aren't hurt are you? I'll come and get you if you need,"
"Mom, mom, slow down! I'm fine. Did you get my present?"
"Present? Oh, yes, I just brought it in, I didn't get a chance to open it yet, I'm making dinner. Aurea, Professor Juniper, is coming over, she's-"
"I know her name, mom."
"Yes yes... She's coming over to talk about some new break through like usual."
"You aren't mad at her and I for... This, are you?" Heather asked with a bit of shame, still feeling guilty about having left without her mothers consent.
"She tells me you've gained a few new Pokémon and won a badge..."
"Two badges! I just won my second one! I battled the gym in Nacrene, I'm just waiting for my Pokémon to be healed before I start my way to Castelia City. It's so amazing mom, traveling with Pokémon... They're so strong and smart, you don't have to worry about me."
"Two? Ah... You're already in Nacrene? How is Neil? Aurea told me you two started together, I feel a little better knowing he's with you..."
"Oh, um...Neil stayed in Striation... He didn't beat the gym, and stayed to train."
And was a complete ass about it. I hope she doesn't ask more... I don't really want to talk about him yet.
"Oh, so you're alone...?"
"No mom, I have my Pokémon! I'm never alone, they're always with me. They would protect me, I'm sure of it."
"Heather? I have a concern about your Pokémon."
"Hold on a sec mom, please."
Heather walked over to the desk where Nurse Joy stood, three Pokéballs in her hand. The nurse frowned as they were given to Heather, pointing to one.
"Your Panpour has a broken leg. I've splinted it, and done the best I can, but he won't be able to battle or travel for some time."
"Oh no... He's okay though, right?"
"Yes, don't worry, he's fine besides the break. He's going to require special care though, which if you're busy traveling, he can't get..."
"Heather? Heather!"
"Ah, yes mom?" She pulled the X-Transceiver back to her ear, listening as her mother spoke.
"Your Pokémon is hurt?"
"Yeah, he had his leg broken in a battle. It won't heal properly unless he can spend time off of it." She answered, thinking over different options.
I could leave him at the day-care, they would take care of him... I can't really take him along with me because he won't get the rest he needs... Unless I stay here until he's better...
"Can you send him to Juniper?" The voice of her mother broke her thoughts, the girl nodding blankly before she realized her mother couldn't see.
"Uh, yeah, I could, but she's always busy, I wouldn't have her take care of him..."
"Send him to Aurea, and I'll take care of him."
... What?
"I thought... You didn't like Pokémon...? Ah! Would you really take care of him for me?" Her eyes brightened and she grinned from ear to ear, having never expected her mother of all people to offer.
"Yes, I'm serious. He's a friend of yours, and he's helping keep my baby safe... I'll make sure he gets better.
"Heather! This is gorgeous! Thank you so much, it's perfect."
The blonde walked over to the transfer machine in the center before her mother started going on, baffling her slightly.
"Oh, the present? I'm glad you like it! I'll send you things along the way, okay? Anything specific you want from Castelia? And I'm starting the transfer now."
She placed the Pokéball on a platform and entered in Professor Juniper's machine number, typing in a message as well. She clicked send and the Pokéball was turned into bits of data, being absorbed by the machine.
"Sent!"
"Alright, I'll give her a call now to make sure she gets him before coming over. As for Castelia, surprise me. I love you Heather, call again soon. Be safe..."
"Don't worry about me mom, I'll be fine. Thank you so much for taking him, I love you too. Talk to you in a while, bye."
"Bye dear."
Click
Smiling, the blonde released her two remaining Pokémon and explained about her Panpour while they went to the shop inside the center, restocking goods for their trip through the forest. With everything they needed ready, they left Nacrene City, ready to face the forest with a few hours of light left.