CHAPTER 6

With his speech concluded, Aggron withdrew to his room. "Meet me in just a moment, Rylan," he said.

"Yes," Rylan replied.

"Gallade, proceed," Aggron said as he entered his quarters.

"Sir!" Gallade respectfully responded. He then assumed his place at the speaker's position, and every eye in the room became fixed on him.

"All right, guild," he spoke. "As the Guildmaster has informed us, we will soon be mounting an expedition, and he and I expect you all to do the best you can. Don't overwork, don't underachieve. You will proceed with your daily routines today. We need two members to take sentry duty…"

Sandshrew and Trapinch gleefully stepped forward.

"As always," Gallade said with a smile as he noticed the two of them. "The rest of you are to examine the notice boards for missions to accept. I must ask Vulpix and Buizel, however, to remain behind."

Vulpix nodded. She knew what was coming but was clearly disappointed that Gallade also called for Buizel to stay. Buizel closed his eyes and put his paws on his hips.

"Dismissed!" Gallade commanded.

"Yes, sir!" the Pokémon obediently responded. Everyone left except Vulpix, Buizel, and Rylan.

"What's up?" Rylan asked.

"The punishment, remember?" said Vulpix. "Buizel and I left the guild after curfew last night."

"Oh…" Rylan lowered his head. He felt bad about this, and he also felt it was his fault that Vulpix was being punished. He should have treated her better last night.

Vulpix smiled. "Don't worry about me," she said. "Go see the Guildmaster."

Rylan headed toward the door of the Guildmaster's quarters. Gallade nodded to him, indicating that it was okay to enter. Rylan entered and spotted Aggron at the back of the room.

"Ah, so there you are," Aggron said with a smile. "I have something I'd like to present you with. Come here, please."

Rylan slowly approached Aggron, who was holding up a somewhat large box. He stopped in front of Aggron, who lowered the box to the floor and opened it. Inside, there were a variety of objects. Aggron pulled out a bandana with a small emblem attached to it.

"This is your Explorer Badge," Aggron explained. "As you and your teammates progress as explorers, your rank will increase and you will be permitted to take on much more difficult missions. Your will be given a new badge each time you grow a rank higher. Wear it with pride."

Rylan nodded and accepted the badge. "Yes, sir," he said. He tied the cloth around his waist like a belt since his neck was already occupied.

Aggron withdrew a backpack-like item from the box next, handing it to Rylan. "This is your supply bag," Aggron said. "Do not go on any missions without it. To be more precise, make sure you go on missions prepared. You will need food to satisfy your hunger, berries to heal you when you get hurt, and other items to aid you on your missions."

"Yes, sir," Rylan said. He started to feel honored and excited to be receiving these things. His heart skipped a beat, as though he had never felt this way before.

"Finally," Aggron continued, withdrawing a blue ribbon from the box, "this is a Cobalt Bow. It's a special accessory that will strengthen you when you have to defend yourself. More accessories can be purchased in the town nearby. You can only wear one at a time, so think carefully about which accessory will benefit you for certain tasks."

"Um… Thank you, sir," Rylan said, accepting the Cobalt Bow and tying it to the cloth on his waist. He looked down at himself and was amazed at how professional he looked with his exploration gear.

"However," said Aggron, "You won't be needing them as of today. I've arranged for Gallade to train you in combat. Since you used to be human, you haven't quite tapped into a Pokémon's instinct and intuition. Gallade is an ideal guild member to turn to since both you and he are of the Fighting Type. See him when you are ready."

Rylan nodded.

"Also, the other reason you will not be sent on a mission today," Aggron explained, "is because your teammates are going to be assigned a different mission as consequence for their actions last night.

Rylan wanted to say something about the punishment of his teammates, but the words just wouldn't come out.

"That is all," Aggron concluded. "Dismissed."

"Yes, sir," Rylan said, taking his leave. He didn't think it was fair that Vulpix was being punished just because she was concerned about him. As he left Aggron's room, he returned to his team's room and placed his new gear next to the unfinished bed Vulpix was making last night.

"There must be something I can do," he said to himself. "I don't care if she refuses. I owe her. I have to help."

"Now then," said Gallade's voice from the assembly hall, "the Guildmaster has asked me to inform you of the stipulations of your punishment."

Rylan took the opportunity to sneak close enough to eavesdrop on Gallade. Gallade handed Buizel and Vulpix two large containers.

"You two are going to travel to Oscuro Canyon today," he said, "and you will be completing a very important assignment. Chansey needs more Oran Berries and Sitrus Berries for the infirmary stock. What you two will do is gather enough of those berries to fill both these containers. Once you have done so, return here and give them to Chansey. However, under no circumstances are you to stray from this mission until you have completed this process six times. If you do not finish today, you will resume tomorrow, and so on, and so forth."

Rylan was shocked by this. Six times? Six trips to the canyon to gather berries and six resulting trips back to the guild? That wasn't fair, he thought.

Vulpix hung her head in shame. "Yes, sir," she said.

Gallade crossed his arms. "Now, now, there's no need to feel bad about anything," he said. "I understand that your intentions were good, but we have rules here at the guild. If we let our members go roaming off late at night, we'd be putting them and our guild in danger."

"Understood, sir," Vulpix said. Buizel nodded his head in agreement.

"Good," Gallade said. "Be sure to prepare well for the mission."

As the two of them walked back to the team room to get their exploration gear, Rylan quickly grabbed his own gear and hid from their view. Vulpix and Buizel checked their supplies, removing what they didn't need and taking what they would need. Once they were done, they equipped themselves with ribbons and set forth.

"Buizel…" Vulpix said as the two left the guild. "I never thanked you for following me last night to make sure I didn't get hurt. Thank you."

"You know I'd do anything for you," Buizel said. "You're the best friend I've ever had, and you've stood by me ever since we first became friends all those years ago."

"I'm sorry if it seems as though I don't show my appreciation enough," Vulpix said.

"No, no," Buizel said. "Just knowing you're by my side every day is enough. You mean the world to me, maybe more. You were always there, even when…"

Buizel put a paw behind his ear, gently touching what appeared to be a large scar.

"It's only natural that friends would want to protect each other from harm," Vulpix said.

"Yes, but do you remember that day when I was attacked?" Buizel asked. "When I was forced from my home, you left the safety of yours to ensure I was okay. Sure, Guildmaster Aggron found us and brought us to safety, but you risked your own future to protect me. I'd never leave you to face punishment alone. I want to be there for you like you were always there for me."

Vulpix smiled warmly. "Thank you, Buizel. It means a lot to hear you say that."

Buizel smiled back at his good friend, but his smile soon faded. "Still… You must know why I don't trust Rylan."

Vulpix gave Buizel a confused look. "I understand why you don't like humans, but I'm sure that not all humans are like that."

"What makes you say that?" Buizel asked.

"Well, think about it," Vulpix suggested. "All Pokémon are different. Some of us are friendly and some of us can be mean sometimes. We come in all different types. I think humans can be like that as well."

"You never lived around them," Buizel stated. "You don't know the things they're capable of when they don't care about something."

"That's right, I don't," Vulpix said. "Here's what I do know, however… Rylan may be a hard apricorn to crack, but I can tell he's a good person on the inside. I don't think he's got the heart to enjoy being mean. He looked so sincere when he apologized to me for yelling and storming off on me."

"I suppose so," Buizel said.

"Could you please give him a chance?" Vulpix asked. "I'm asking you as a friend. I trust Rylan and he's part of our team now. I'd like for us all to trust each other."

"I guess you're right," Buizel said. "Still, if he wants my trust, he's going to have to earn it.

"Woaaaaaaaaaahh!"

A snapping sound was heard overhead, as well as a startled yell. Seconds later, someone had landed on Buizel and both of them were on the ground in a daze.

"Rylan?" Vulpix asked. "What are you doing here?" She rushed over to help the two of them to their feet and dust them off.

"Falling out of trees," Rylan murmured. "Sorry, but I'm coming with you to help."

Buizel cast an angry look at Rylan. "Look, just stay out of this, alright? You got Vulpix and I into this mess. Just go back to the guild. We don't need your help."