Alright, third chapter already. First off, you guys who've been getting into my story are great, half the fun of a story is writing it, half is knowing people are reading it. So, I'm trying something different that may become a staple. The one who guesses what it is first wins a theoretical cookie.

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon. Or Robin Hood.

Hi, mom.

I'm in Oldale Town right now, so it shouldn't take long for this to reach you. I'm just going on a little trip right now, but I'll keep writing with updates when I can. Neptune's getting impatient, so I guess I'll end this now.

Love,

Brendan

Brendan stood at the entrance to Route 102. He was about to enter when he noticed a dejected man sitting next to it holding a crumpled piece of paper. "Um, are you alright?" He asked.

The man looked up. "I was sketching the footsteps of a rare pokemon at the entrance to this route, but," and here he started tearing up, "I was just sketching my own!"

Brendan stared at the man for a long time. "Um, well, I hope you have better luck next time."

He proceeded past the man, wondering how people got into those situations. He didn't go more than ten feet into the route before he began fighting trainers. The two he fought were pretty good, but May had been better. Brendan was about to keep going when he froze. There was a tail sticking out of the grass.

Brendan looked down at Neptune, then fished a pokeball out of his bag. He wondered what it would be like to catch a pokemon, rather than simply obtaining it, like he had with Neptune. The two slowly approached, slipping through the grass, until they reached the tail. Brendan pushed aside the grass, and was met with… a Zigzagoon blinking up at him. The two stared at each other, until Brendan finally lowered the pokeball. Then the Zigzagoon slipped up to his legs, rubbing up against them and curling around them happily. Brendan grinned. "Huh. You're a friendly little guy, aren't you?" He knelt down to pet the pokemon, when suddenly the smile on the Zigzagoon's face shifted to one of mischief.

Brendan blinked. The Zigzagoon was five feet away, Neptune had been bowled over in its rush to get away, and his Pokedex was in the Zigzagoon's mouth!

"H-hey! Give that back!" Brendan scrambled to his feet, and ran over to the Zigzagoon, which ducked away, running to the tree line. "Zagoon!"

"Come on, Neptune! We've gotta get my Pokedex back!" Trainer and pokemon both began running after the Normal type, which snickered and ran further into the trees in response. They chased Zigzagoon for several minutes, before both had to stop from lack of air.

"Mu…d…kip." Neptune sprawled on his stomach on the ground, while Brendan remained doubled over, panting in exhaustion. Then he sat down next to Neptune, keeping an eye on the Zigzagoon peeking out from behind the bush.

"What did dad say about Zigzagoons…" Brendan muttered. "Zigzagoons have Pickup for their ability… they always move in zigzags… they like shiny objects… that's it!"

He stood up, gesturing for Neptune to do the same, as he dug his hand into his pocket, and produced his pocket watch. He knelt, and showed it to Neptune, swinging it back and forth as he did so. "This was my grandfather's, Neptune. He gave it to me when I was little. Said I'd go farther with it than any other watch in the world. He died not long after."

Neptune sniffed, and rubbed his trainer's hand. "Mudkiiiiip."

Brendan smiled sadly down at him. "It's alright, Neptune. I still have the pocket watch, and I can remember what he used to say… Water Gun!"

All while he was speaking, the Zigzagoon had been creeping closer and closer, its eyes on the pocket watch. It was completely caught off guard when Neptune suddenly blasted it. It was sent sprawling back, dropping the Pokedex.

"There it is!" Brendan immediately bolted to it, grabbing it up, and stuffing both it and his pocket watch in his pockets. Then he turned to the Zigzagoon. "All this way… I think," he said, looking down at Neptune, "we should catch it."

"MudKIP!" Neptune bellowed, pumping his foreleg. Then he turned to Zigzagoon and crouched as it raced towards him, a purple aura enveloping it.

"Tackle!" Brendan ordered. He didn't like the look of that aura. The two met halfway, pushing back and forth, before separating. Then Zigzagoon suddenly spun, whirling its tail around as Neptune watched, before suddenly using Tackle, and sending Neptune sprawling. "Neptune! That was Tail Whip. Alright, let's try something different. Water Gun!"

Neptune immediately jumped up and opened his mouth, releasing a torrent of water at the incoming Zigzagoon, which was sent back again, eyes spinning. Brendan pulled a pokeball out, pulled back, and threw!

The pokeball hit Zigzagoon, and sucked it in, before dropping to the ground. There it lay, rocking… rocking… rocking… "Ding!"

Brendan stared at the pokeball for a long moment, before turning to Neptune. "Are you all right, Neptune?"

The Water type had a few bruises, one swelling in an ugly manner, but he looked up gamely and nodded. "Kip!"

Brendan knelt, and began caressing Neptune's head, smiling as the pokemon leaned into it. Then what he did sunk in, and a broad grin split his face. "Yeah! We caught a pokemon!"

"So you know Tackle, Growl, Tail Whip, and Thief, huh? And Thief's a rare move on you."

After helping Neptune recover, Brendan had released their new companion to examine and tend to. Zigzagoon took to its new life gamely, with only a sheepish and not at all repentant grin on its face. "And you're a boy. Huh."

He bit his lip, thinking on possible names for his new companion. "You need a name."

Zigzagoon looked at him curiously, although his eyes occasionally slid over to the Pokedex or the pocket watch.

"So, you're a good actor, and a thief…" Brendan mused. Then it hit him. Really, it was the only name that fit. "I think I'll call you Robin."

Zigzagoon looked at him now with some surprise. Brendan elaborated. "Robin is the name of a thief who had a good heart. I think you do, too."

The newly named Robin bobbed his head up and down, and then looked around.

Brendan looked around too, and groaned upon realizing that he had lost sight of the route. Then he groaned again, louder this time, when he remembered that he had neither map nor compass. He looked at Robin. "Could you lead us out of here?"

Robin nodded, then set off in his odd, zigzagging gait through the bushes.

When they got back to the main route, Brendan was relieved. Growing up in the city, he hadn't done much of anything in the way of wilderness survival, although he had taken the course required of all trainers. As such, he was uncomfortable in the forest.

Their respite didn't last long, as another trainer quickly engaged him for a battle.

Brendan looked down at his new pokemon, and nodded. "All right, let's do this."

The trainer grinned. "I'm Jonny, and I choose Poochyena!" He threw a pokeball, releasing a light that solidified into the now-familiar canine pokemon.

"I'm Brendan. Alright, Robin, let's go!" At Brendan's command, the Normal type slipped forward, planting himself in front of his trainer.

The two pokemon stood facing each other, waiting for their trainer's commands. Jonny acted first. "Howl, then Tackle!"

At his words, the Poochyena released a piercing howl, then began charging towards Robin with the familiar aura around it.

"Jump, then Tackle!" Brendan commanded. Robin responded, jumping into the air to avoid Poochyena's attack, then coming down in a Tackle from above. The move scored an almost direct hit on Poochyena, and both pokemon went sprawling before recovering.

"Tackle!" Jonny shouted, catching Brendan, who had been watching Robin with worry, off guard. "No!" He shouted. The attack struck, both brutally and directly, sending the Zigzagoon sprawling. "Zag!"

"Robin, get up, and use Tail Whip!" Brendan ordered. Robin immediately scrambled to his feet, then twisted his tail in the move, causing Poochyena to lull slightly in its guard. "Now, Tackle!" Brendan followed up.

Robin sped towards Poochyena, while Jonny reacted to the tactic. "Dodge it!"

Poochyena moved to the side, but now the uncontrollable habit of zigzagging that was common to all of Robin's species interfered, causing Robin to veer from his original path right into the Poochyena, scoring a direct hit.

Poochyena went sliding away before stopping, sprawled on the ground. "Keep using Tail Whip until he gets up, Robin!" Brendan commanded. He was nervous. The two pokemon were even, and this was Robin's first battle as a trainer's pokemon.

"Poochyena! Use Howl until you can get up!" Jonny countered. He saw that the Zigzagoon was strong, and this trainer was good. Both pokemon responded to their trainer's commands, and when Poochyena rose, it growled at Robin threateningly.

"Tackle!" Both trainers commanded simultaneously. Poochyena and Robin rocketed forward, charging into each other at full speed. SLAM. A cloud of dust was sent pluming over the battlefield.

"Robin!"

"Poochyena!"

Both trainers watched on edge as the dust slowly settled. Then they stared at the results. Poochyena was on the ground, KO'd by the clash, while Robin was curled up on himself, panting in exhaustion.

"Return," Jonny said, calling his pokemon back. Then he pulled out another pokeball, and grinned. "Alright! Now for round two! Go, Taillow!"

The light from the pokeball solidified into a flying bird pokemon, which announced its presence. "Taillow!"

Brendan winced, and pulled out Robin's pokeball. Robin was injured badly from his fight with Poochyena, and that Taillow would defeat him easily. But as he made to return his pokemon, Robin dodged the beam, turning to grin mischievously before turning back to face Taillow.

"Robin! You're injured!" Brendan shouted. But Robin just ignored him, staring at the Taillow. Then Brendan noticed he wasn't staring at the Taillow itself, but at the bag hooked to one of its talons. "Oh, no," he muttered. He winced, and decided he'd make the best of it.

"Taillow, use Peck!" Jonny ordered, as Taillow's beak began to glow with power. Taillow flew down from the sky, charging towards Robin.

"Robin, counter with Thief!" Brendan ordered. If Robin got what he wanted, then maybe he'd be able to call him back before he was defeated.

As the Taillow flew down, Robin was enveloped in a purple aura as he crouched. When Taillow was within a foot of him, he sprang, meeting Taillow in a clash that threw up dust once more.

When the dust settled, Brendan sagged. Taillow was still flying, even if it looked rather bruised, and Robin was down, swirls in its eyes. Then Brendan noticed the bag on Taillow's talons. It was open, and empty.

As Brendan returned Robin to his pokeball, he had to purse his lips to keep from grinning. Whatever had been in that bag, Robin had gotten it. He pulled out Neptune's pokeball, and expanded it. "Alright, Neptune, let's finish this!"

The light burst from the pokeball, and solidified into the Mudkip as Brendan caught his pokeball. Neptune turned and faced Taillow, who had flown back up out of range of physical attacks. That was alright. Neptune didn't need to get up close.

"Water Gun!" Brendan commanded. Neptune acted instantly, firing jets of compressed water at his flying foe.

"Dodge it!" Jonny shouted. The Flying type proceeded to dodge Neptune's attack, and all of his subsequent shots.

Brendan grit his teeth. It took too long for Neptune's long range attacks to reach Taillow, and he couldn't reach it physically. He wracked his brain for something he could do.

As it happened, Jonny took it into his own hands. "Taillow! Use Focus Energy, then Peck!"

Taillow responded, as a swirl of orange energy spun out then into it, before its beak began to glow once more.

"Shit!" Brendan cursed. Focus Energy was a dangerous move. If Jonny's plan worked, Taillow would plow straight through Neptune's defenses. As the Flying type rocketed towards Neptune, it hit Brendan.

He watched Taillow, waiting until it was to the point where it couldn't veer off. Then he gave his command. "Neptune, Water Gun!"

The little Water type obeyed, opening his mouth and blasting the stream of compressed water once more. Jonny's eyes widened as he realized what was happening, but it was too late. Taillow flew right into the attack, taking every ounce of force that Neptune could put out. That, combined with Neptune's strength and the hit it had taken from Robin, was too much.

Taillow was sent flying back, before landing on its side, defeated. "No!" Jonny yelled, dropping to his knees in defeat. Brendan sighed in relief, returning Neptune to his pokeball. "Good job on that one, buddy. Take a break. You earned it."

Jonny was still bent over his Taillow, so Brendan moved on.

He found a pair of trees with berries on them, and fortunately, he recognized him. He picket two of the Oran berries, and two of the Pecha berries. "These will be useful," Brendan remarked.

All of a sudden he remembered that Robin had stolen something from that Taillow. Brendan released his two pokemon, holding the Oran berries. As he looked at the two, he was surprised to see that there was already an Oran berry in Robin's mouth. Brendan blinked, looked down to see that he still had both Oran berries, then thought about it. 'Aha!'

"Robin?" Brendan asked. "Is that what that Taillow had?"

Somehow, the brown pokemon managed to grin mischievously, even while he was chewing the Oran berry. Neptune happily accepted his own, munching on it, as both looked much better.

Looking at the two of them, one eating his stolen loot, the other eating what was given to him, Brendan suddenly felt something bubble up from inside of him.

"Ah ha ha ha ha ha ha!"

"Brendan? Is that you?"

Brendan froze. He could see Petalburg City in the distance, and he was looking forward to being done with this route. There had only been one more trainer, a girl, and he was thankful for that, because it meant that Robin and Neptune didn't have to fight anymore, despite both doing well in that battle. But he recognized that voice.

He turned. There was May, with her own backpack, smiling brightly at him. Before he could turn and run as fast as he could, she had reached him.

"You changed your mind about coming! That's great!" She beamed at him.

Brendan opened his mouth to say that no, not really, but the smile she gave him made him stop, and change what he was saying. "We- yeah. I did."

He smiled tightly at her. Then May gasped, put her hand up to her mouth, and pointed over his shoulder. "Look!"

Brendan spun, and his jaw dropped open. Flying across the sky past the setting sun, was an enormous group of pokemon. He quickly pulled his Pokedex out and scanned them. "Beautifly" it named them. He understood why.

"Wow," he uttered.

"Yeah," she agreed, and he blinked. She had walked up to stand right next to him, and he noticed that their fingers were brushing each others. "The Beautifly are migrating."

Brendan was quiet, absorbed by the spectacle before them.

When the pokemon were out of sight, May turned, and smiled at him. "Isn't it great? We got to see something like that… the two of us."

Brendan froze at her words, but she continued, clapping her hands together. "Hey, I've got to do a delivery for my dad, but how about we meet in Rustboro City?"

Before he thought of what he was doing, Brendan nodded, not sure as to what he was agreeing to. Immediately she hugged him, and turned, running towards Petalburg, turning back once to say, "see you there!"

Brendan stood there for a long moment before he realized what he had done. 'I was just going to Petalburg.' He shook his head. 'I'm still doing that. Nothing's changed.'

He continued on towards the city, not realizing or accepting that the words were weak in his mind.

Did you guess what it was? Well, you'll find out next chapter. And more deviation from canon! Ah well, it's game canon, and that's the loosest canon of the Pokemon universe, despite the fact that the anime canon's used the most… My apologies to any anime canon fans. But I'll wait to get into that. See you next time.