Dusk and the Roaring Stream
"Cannon Fodder." Efi remarked casually, eyeing a twitching Spearow she had just ruthlessly dispatched. It seemed to be cawing weakly, while its wings and legs seemed unable to support its own weight at the moment.
"You didn't tell me we weren't likely to find any strong Pokémon around here. They're all practically babies!" she whined petulantly at Ash, who simply sighed as the Spearow recovered and ran off, scampering into the nearest bush out of fright.
"Is it any wonder?" Ash responded with a knowing air. "We've been working together on making you as strong as you can be for about eight years now. It's obvious you'll be able to flatten most wild Pokémon with ease."
"Still, I want a challenge!" Efi grumbled slightly, as she hopped back into Ash's bag, head poking out once more.
"You want a challenge?" Ash stopped walking for a moment, as he looked at her with a strange glint in his eye.
"Is it too late to change my mind?" Efi suddenly voiced nervously, as a chill ran up her spine. "Cos, I can always not complain anymore! Ash?"
"Nuuu! Don't make me!" she wailed all of a sudden, seeing just where Ash was intending to go.
/
"I hate you." Efi griped at him once more, as Ash trekked through the middle of the forest, the midday sun only filtering in slightly through the gnarled and leafy trees, growing thick and dense, and slowly closing them in on all sides. "I really hate you." She reiterated.
"Be glad I'm not making you walk." Ash simply pointed out, causing Efi to stiffen and rapidly shake her head.
"I'll shut up now!" she squeaked.
At this, Ash simply sighed. Efi's antics were often either irritating at times, or brightened his day. Mostly the former, though he wouldn't trade her for the world. It had only been a few hours since he left Oak's lab, grumbling about being coerced into trying the Pokémon League Challenge. Of course, Oak had unwittingly gained an ally in that regard with Efi, so he couldn't just outright refuse, especially since he'd promised to make Efi the best Espeon out there. He couldn't refuse to help her achieve her goal, not when they were so close to each other. He only hoped she wouldn't turn out jaded like him, if she ever decided she couldn't do it.
"Besides Efi, if you want to find the strong ones, you need to search for the hardest territory to maintain." Ash added. "Strong Pokémon are often found there. Or, as you know, they form communities to make it easier. Bird and bug Pokémon especially."
"And if it so happens that a single Pokémon controls such a territory, they'll almost certainly be tough." Ash grinned slightly as Efi cocked her head at him curiously.
"Can't promise they'll be tough enough for you though." He frowned slightly. "But we can always train a Pokémon to give you a sparring challenge too."
"Sounds cool to me!" Efi cheerfully input.
"In any case, the strongest Pokémon are usually trainer Pokémon, so you'll have to wait until we get one to battle for that kind of challenge." Ash added, as he violently wrenched a thick branch out of his path. "Heh. This place is becoming pretty rough."
"If I can handle Oak's habitats, I can get through this twisted place." Ash murmured to himself.
Eventually, Ash had managed to force his way through the steadily thickening forest, breaking into a clearing of sorts, yet completely overshadowed by the tallest trees he'd seen so far. Not even a spot of light could penetrate the dense canopy above him, bathing the area in virtual darkness. Twisted branches and the like seemed to become warped in the dark, the area seemingly becoming eerily silent, with no rustling of leaves, branches, or even the slight murmur of wind. Even Efi's eyes seemed to give off an unnatural glow in the gloom, a slight purple sheen that stood out from everything else around them. Her ears twitched rapidly, trying to find a hint of any sound at all.
"I really hate you." Efi stressed, as her head turned from left to right, trying to identify exactly what it was that was unnerving her so.
At this, Ash grimaced slightly, understanding what Efi was trying to convey. In his mind it was a shout for getting the hell out of there immediately, even if she had controlled her own nerves at this point. It was merely another battle she needed to face, and she was doing the best she could.
"I know." Ash replied soothingly. "But this is life. Nothing is always easy."
At this, Efi huffed silently, before she suddenly tensed and became completely still, ears rigid, and eyes fixed on one point in the distance. "Found it." She stated coolly, as she slipped out of Ash's bag stealthily.
"Good girl." Ash gently complimented her. "Do it." He added firmly.
"Gladly!" Efi shouted, before the entire clearing flooded with incredible blinding light, causing a piercing shriek to ring out before it was quickly cut off by a rumbling wave of energy that seemed to tear itself out of Efi, her eyes glowing bright blue, and her crimson gem sparkling with intoxicating power, as she stood on the floor, head held proudly, stance firm and strong with her forked tail swaying behind her. A single moment later, Ash launched a Pokéball, Efi directing it with her psychic prowess, and sucking up the Pokémon in a flash of white light. It rattled for what seemed like an age, before a click sounded loudly in the area, indicating a capture. Quickly throwing the ball back to Ash, Efi's eyes dropped back into her normal purple with white irises, before she curled herself into his bag again.
"Still not good enough for me." She grumbled moodily. "And you know I hate the dark."
"I know Efi. As long as you don't fear it, that's just fine." Ash sighed, as he placed the Pokéball onto his belt, to look at later. "Sooner we leave now, the happier you'll be right?"
"You said it." She replied huffily.
/
A short while later, Ash had cut through the forest in a slightly different direction, heading towards the stream that he knew ran in that general direction, before coming alongside the path between Viridian City and Pallet Town. Efi had eventually managed to pick out the sound of running water amidst the general sounds of the forest, helping direct them more accurately towards their goal.
Efi's joy at finally seeing the sun once more was almost contagious, but it was only expected, Espeon being referred to as the Sun Pokémon, and having being discovered to evolve only under the sun, if exceptionally happy, though that was a point of contention between researchers. Happiness couldn't actually be quantified, but they did at least seem to accept that a poorly looked after Eevee wouldn't evolve into an Espeon, or even its counterpart, the Moonlight Pokémon, Umbreon, regardless of the conditions of the day.
Having set up a makeshift camp for an hour or two, Ash had checked his captured Pokémon by scanning its ball with his Pokédex. An electronic voice quickly identified what was contained within.
"Pidgey, the tiny bird Pokémon."
"Pidgey has an extremely sharp sense of direction and homing instincts. It can locate its nest even when far removed from familiar surroundings. Pidgey is a docile Pokémon, and generally prefers to flee from its enemies rather than fight them. Pidgey protects itself and flushes out potential prey by flapping its wings rapidly and throwing up dust clouds."
"Sex: Male."
"Ability: Keen Eye."
"Known Moves: Gust, Aerial Ace, Tackle, Quick Attack, Faint Attack and Wing Attack."
Ash let out a low whistle of satisfaction, as he put away the Pokédex before palming Pidgey's pokéball.
"Pidgey huh? Well that's lucky. And it even has quite a few strong moves." Ash pondered while talking to Efi.
"Aren't Pidgey docile?" Efi looked at him curiously. "That's what it said right?"
"Yeah." Ash nodded, as he rolled the ball in his hand absently.
"How do you explain what that Pidgey was doing there?" Efi inquired, eyes lighting up slightly in interest.
"Hmm. Well, the Pidgey line can't normally learn moves such as Faint Attack. If I had to guess, perhaps one of its parent's was a Honchkrow? It would explain the behaviour, and probably why it was hanging around in such a gloomy place." Ash frowned slightly. "I know that parents are capable of passing on moves they've learnt, either from birth, where they instinctually know it, or by being taught by that particular species of Pokémon. It takes a rather determined one to learn in the second way. That almost never happens in the wild."
"Besides, you won't see a Honchkrow around Kanto, unless it's a trainer one." Ash pointed out. "I'd place my bets on it being a parental trait. Particularly as it's Faint Attack. I don't think that's even possible to teach a Pidgey whose direct parents don't include a Honchkrow."
"Sometimes I forget you've studied Pokémon for years. I'll buy the explanation. Now are you gonna let the guy out?" Efi conceded gracefully, before it turned into a slight whine at wanting to actually meet the Pidgey outside of such a dark place.
"Yeah sure. We need to grab a bite to eat and make sure the guy isn't too battered by what you did." Ash nodded. "No, I'm not saying you were too rough Efi." He placated her, before calmly releasing the Pidgey.
"Come on out Pidgey." He prompted as the ball opened with a burst of light, directed at a tree stump near the river.
Ash took one look at the Pidgey that appeared, before blurting out in his surprise, and much to Efi's shock and its chagrin. "Well you're an unusual one aren't you?"
It looked a little dazed from the effects of the Psychic, but what grabbed Ash's immediate attention were the odd glossy black tail feathers, mixed in with the standard brown feathers of normal Pidgey.
Pidgey's eyes seemed to gain focus all of a sudden, before they locked on to Ash with unnerving speed, perhaps an indication of its Keen Eye ability, glinting slightly as though daring him to say more. Ash simply stared back, unperturbed, eye unblinking. A few moments later Pidgey ruffled its feathers slightly, looking away from Ash's gaze and cocking its head down slightly.
Efi stared at this interaction with rapt attention, before inquiring as to what had just transpired in that moment. "Uh, Ash, what just happened?"
"Some Pokémon will stare you down. It's a natural thing for many of them to assess your worth, as it were. Particularly some Dragon-types. Of course, it's surprising for it to be a Pidgey of all things, but I know I've earned his respect." Ash explained smoothly.
"Oh." Efi replied.
"If I hadn't, he would have perhaps refused to listen to me. It's why some trainers struggle with Pokémon, particularly powerful ones." Ash concluded for her.
"So!" Ash piped up for a moment, gaining Pidgey's attention again. "I've never actually seen a Pidgey look quite like you before. I wonder…" Ash began before fading off deep into thought, causing Efi to talk to Pidgey in Pokéspeech for a little while, no doubt explaining his new trainer's eccentricities.
"Ahh. I think I might know why." Ash suddenly input, causing Efi and Pidgey to jump slightly at the unexpected interruption. "I mean, I've seen that some Pidgey are different to the norm, but those are what people call shiny Pokémon, not that they glitter and sparkle, mind you."
"But I think it's more a case of family resemblance here. Usually, the mother will pass on all the species characteristics without exception, which means it should be impossible for a Pidgey to gain the black feathers of a Honchkrow, but in rare cases, several generations of a Pokémon may breed with a certain other type. I'm pretty sure that your mother had a Honchkrow parent, and perhaps others further down the line also do." Ash explained. "Perhaps the Honchkrow genes run in your family much stronger than some would expect, leading to the visible change I can see."
"You're bigger than normal Pidgey, but that's a normal variation, considering Honchkrow aren't that large either." Ash continued. "But I'm sure you have more propensity towards the dark, or low light. I would imagine you have sharper all around vision than most too, considering Honchkrow have good sight in darkness."
"We'll just have to see how you grow, eh Pidgey?" Ash queried suddenly, causing Pidgey to nod slowly, as if slightly bewildered by his new trainer's assessment all of a sudden.
Efi only blinked for a moment, before turning to talk to Pidgey, obviously well versed in how Ash acted sometimes. If only he hadn't picked up that habit from Oak, she had often lamented.
"So how is he?" Ash asked Efi after a lull in conversation became apparent, while he was preparing lunch. Popping off the lid to a pack of generic Pokémon food, he paused as she replied.
"He's alright. Friendlier than I had expected, though that may be because I beat him up?" Efi returned slightly questioningly.
"Should probably warn him to never insult your looks." Ash murmured to himself, which was unfortunately caught by Efi.
"What!?" Efi blared in his head.
Ignoring Efi's slight outrage for the moment, he turned to Pidgey. "By the way bud, I should warn you that if you insult Efi's looks, even as a joke, be prepared to lose all your feathers, rather painfully, amongst other things." Ash shivered as he remembered the last time he had made such a joke, inadvertently causing Pidgey to blanch as well, before looking at Efi warily.
"Did you have to do that?" Efi grumbled at him.
"Unfortunately yes. I'd rather no Pokémon makes that particularly horrifying mistake." He replied soothingly, while inwardly hoping she didn't think he was just warning Pidgey about her, rather than warning him about insulting Efi, as if to play her protector.
Thankfully, she bought it this time. "How nice! I'm glad you won't let anyone insult me… but I'd prefer to do the warnings myself."
"Oh! Not necessary! It's my job, see!" Ash replied slightly nervously, before fumbling with the prepared food for a moment, before catching it. "Ehe! Butterfingers!" he chuckled apprehensively.
Efi narrowed her eyes at him for a moment before shaking her head slightly, as he placed the food in front of both her and Pidgey. Needless to say, the meal was enjoyed, if it wasn't for Ash's unnerving staring at Pidgey, while said Pidgey was determinedly attempting to ignore the gaze. As they finished the meal, Ash shook his head slightly, as if to get rid of errant thoughts, collecting the simple plastic bowls, cleaning them with water from the nearby river.
In the meantime, Efi was once again engaging the poor Pidgey in another conversation, though even she was at a loss to explain what said stare was about.
In fact, Ash was actually planning what to do with Pidgey, depending on what kind of Pokémon he was. He had already judged it to be an obvious loner, because it could simply join the local community of birds, though it was also possible he had been turfed out, so to speak, merely because of his differences. Nevertheless, he had obviously thrived, being far hardier and well developed than any other Pidgey Ash had come across. He clearly had a strong decisive personality, if his short answers to Efi's rapid chatter were any indication, and clearly had experience in battle.
Coming to a decision as he put away the rest of the equipment, he turned back to Efi and Pidgey, attracting their attention. "Say Pidgey, I'm wondering what you're looking for out of a trainer." He began vaguely, before clarifying. "I know you've been on your own for a while, but I'm just trying to figure out what you're looking for in life. If you have a goal in mind, or just to be free to do what you wish, for example."
Pidgey seemed to look at Ash in slight surprise at being asked what it wished to do, but took it in his stride, as he replied firmly in a series of cheeps, punctuated with some sort of charades, which were obviously some reference to strength, if puffing out his chest and beating it with his wing were any sign of such a thing.
Obviously, as Efi was available as a translator, Ash did not have to think too deeply into what Pidgey was trying to impart to him.
"He says he wants to be strong. As he was beaten so easily, he knows you can make him stronger than he is now." Efi related to Ash. "He can't get stronger alone, although he had wanted to. He believes a strong trainer would be the perfect way of becoming better."
"And what do you think Efi?" Ash returned. "Will he suit us?"
She replied without hesitance. "Aren't you really asking if you suit him?" She cocked her head to the side slightly as she looked him in the eye.
"In any case, I consider you perfect for any Pokémon we come across. You always do your best for me, so you'll do your best for him, and any other who joins us." Efi continued, preventing Ash from answering her original question. "So, yes."
"Wanna be strong Pidgey?" Ash murmured lightly, raising an eyebrow at the patient Pokémon as it looked at him unerringly. "At what cost?" he added, as only his ears heard it. Seeing the obviously affirmative cheep from Pidgey, he smiled slightly leaving his more morbid thoughts on the wayside.
"Well, no time like the present!" he chuckled slightly darkly, causing Pidgey to slightly regret his decision, not for the first time since he had been let out of his Pokéball.
/
"Keep it up there bud!" Ash called out to the Pidgey flying overhead, the slight panting the only indication that he was getting tired.
Having finally set off from the midday lunch campsite, the sun was now on a steady setting course, getting closer to sunset with each passing minute. Ash knew that they were making good time, and would reach Viridian just before it did, giving him time to get a room at the Pokémon Center, amongst other things.
In the meantime, he had decided to work on Pidgey's training immediately, as he knew that the more time he spent finding his current limits, the better he would know how to use his little friend in battle. It was this stage, where building a rapport between Trainer and Pokémon began. It wasn't a good idea to use a new Pokémon in battle, especially if they hadn't gotten used to their trainer yet. It was decisions like those that caused new Trainers to end up getting their Pokémon hurt without good reason.
As for training, Ash had decided to find out just how long Pidgey could keep going before he had no more energy left to give. He had thought it a good idea, as he needed to be able to recognise just how far he could push him, before it was obvious that he needed to be recalled. In order to quickly assess this, he had Efi slowly increase the resistance on Pidgey's flight, using a low powered confusion to begin with, subtly increasing the weight of his wings. However, he didn't recall the poor guy when it was obvious he was now just flying on willpower alone.
"Cut it Efi." Ash murmured.
As Efi released a slightly breathless sigh, her crimson gem dulling, all the pressure on Pidgey's wings lifted off, suddenly causing him a lot of shock, as he literally rocketed away, wings flapping madly as he tried to regain his pace. It was expected, as removing a lot of force would mean that the strength Pidgey was applying to his wing beats no longer had any resistance other than the air, meaning that he accelerated sharply. Cheeping angrily at Ash once he had recovered his momentum, Ash grinned faintly. He was still going. If he could get work Pidgey to exhaustion once in a while, things would become naturally easier. Even his basic moves would have a lot more oomph behind them, when encouraging his wings to develop a lot more power in their flaps. It would also be useful for a certain move he wished him to learn. Though Ash knew that doing such a thing too often could cause harm too. He'd make sure to be careful not to overwork the guy.
Holding out an arm, he gave a sharp whistle, indicating to Pidgey to come down and take a break. Dropping into a dive, the Pidgey accelerated sharply, before stretching his wings wide as a brake, before landing smoothly on Ash's arm, panting heavily as exhaustion finally caught up with him.
"That… was very well done Pidgey." Ash said after a moment of looking at him thoughtfully. "You've earned a break now." He added, calling Pidgey back with a short beam of red light from its Pokéball. "It'll be tough, but you can handle it." He murmured to the Pokéball containing Pidgey, before clipping it back onto his belt, not once stopping his stride.
"You seem to be getting into the mood already." Efi pointed out slyly. "I was wondering how long it would take before you started doing your thing."
"My thing?" Ash frowned slightly, glancing at the curled up Sun Pokémon in his bag. "I have a thing?"
"Yep!" Efi replied cheerfully. "You just can't help but figure out how to use every Pokémon in battle. Soooo…. How'd you think he'll do?"
"Huh." Ash blinked slightly. "Didn't realise it seemed that way. I only wanted to make him better than he was before. Stronger. That's what he wanted."
"So he did." Efi replied nonchalantly. "You notice how he didn't complain about anything, until you decided to end the training? Well, ending it slightly abruptly did annoy him."
"Ah. I hadn't actually." Ash stopped walking for a moment. "So why didn't he complain? I know that I worked him beyond his limits at the moment."
"Because he knows that you know what you're doing." Efi replied. "He already trusts you to make him stronger."
"He'll put everything he has into this, because he wants to be stronger." Efi ended.
"I hope that's not the only thing that he wants. There'll be a limit somewhere." Ash replied smoothly.
"Then he simply chooses to either accept it, or do something new." Efi replied glibly. "Nothing else to it."
"So simple huh?" Ash murmured, before continuing to walk. "Anyway, still got to work more with Pidgey. But I don't think I'll ever know him as well as you."
"Something tells me you will." Efi seemed to shrug. "Besides, I know you're already thinking of moves to teach him, and how best to work with him."
"Isn't that something every trainer should do?" Ash responded vaguely. "Not really doing anything special here."
"Ash, don't be purposely stupid." Efi grumbled. "You're already trying to understand him. How best to work with him, and how to help him fulfil his desire."
"You're already adding him to our little family." Efi added smugly. "Not every trainer tries so hard for their Pokémon, often expecting it to be the other way around."
"Isn't that a shame Ash?" Efi queried him curiously.
"I suppose." Ash responded hesitantly. "I don't really know how to explain what I think Trainers and their Pokémon should be like. I like to think I'm doing the right thing."
"Trust me, you are." Efi responded enthusiastically. "No matter what happens, you're going to be a great trainer. I know so." She added, cocking one eye open to look at Ash this time, gleaming with a slightly mischievous spark.
"Don't start that Future Sight shtick Efi." Ash sighed. "I don't believe in that sort of fortune telling."
"Mhm, whatever you say Ash." She responded nonchalantly.
Resisting the urge to facepalm for the moment, Ash simply shook his head slightly and carried on walking. He was pretty certain Efi was just playing up the whole Future Sight thing and instead saying that she believed he would be a good trainer, if he wasn't already. Ash didn't really consider himself a trainer in all honesty. Sure, he had Pokémon and he trained them, but he felt he was missing the passion and drive to be the best, which he believed every trainer needed. He couldn't put any words towards explaining what exactly he was. Maybe a drifter?
While he was thinking, some droplets of rain began falling from the slowly greying clouds. This caused him to look up for a moment at the overcast sky. His thoughts of getting to Viridian or taking some shelter to wait out the rain however, were quickly abandoned, as an earth-shaking roar sounded in the nearby area, followed by an ear-piercing scream.
/
Misty Waterflower was at this moment experiencing what people often referred to as 'your life flashing before your eyes' as she stared uncomprehendingly at the mighty Gyarados in front of her, eye's glaring at her in anger, droplets of water dripping off its body in what seemed like slow motion to her suddenly heightened perception of passing time.
She was only fishing for water Pokémon. She had been fishing for years, but fate seemed to have dealt her a bad hand today, in the form of that monstrous creature that even she, a self-professed water Pokémon lover, feared. She hadn't always though. It was only at one point where she had ended up in a Gyarados mouth as a child, that she gained this fear. It wasn't an irrational one either, even if said Gyarados was unusually friendly for the species, it still looked like an apex predator of the sea. Its primal roar could evoke stirrings of fear in the heart of even the sturdiest individuals and Pokémon.
And the Hyper Beam it was now charging? That was only a small glimpse of the destructive capabilities they had. At this one moment, she could only watch in silence at the glowing orb of crackling white hot raw power formed in its gaping maw. Breathtaking, she thought with a sigh, before shutting her viridian eyes, and all thoughts fled from her mind.
"Knock it away!" a voice rang out a little way away, causing Misty to open her eyes for a sudden moment, as a lilac blur crashed directly into the side of Gyarados's face, but failing to stop the Hyper Beam from being released in a deafening roar. The beam crashed into the ground just a short way to Misty's side, tearing up the ground and smashing through several trees as Gyarados toppled over with a mighty splash. A moment later, the lilac Pokémon stood in front of her prone form with a blur of speed, staring at the increasingly angry Gyarados, cool and collected, and causing Misty's rapidly beating heart to slow, just that bit more.
"Swift." the voice called out smoothly, causing Efi to twist her head, as a series of golden stars materialised in the area in front of her. A single moment later, she thrust her head forwards slightly, causing the stars to fly straight at the downed form of the Gyarados. "Confusion." was the instant follow-up command, as Efi's eyes glowed blue, and her gem sparkled, causing the stars to erupt into glowing blue light and scream towards her foe like deadly bullets. Each star hit their mark with a sound like glass shattering, and explosions of force marked the deceptive power they held behind them.
Gyarados could only let out a pained roar as it held its head high once more in defiance, before the voice rang out again, with finality in its tone. "Quick Attack into Iron Tail." Without hesitation, Efi sprang off in a blurring white-lilac light, forked tail sheening silver trails behind her, as she barrelled into Gyarados's weaker underside, where the throat would normally be located on a human, sweeping her tail around like a whip crack, smashing its throat with devastating blunt force further enhanced by the speed boost of Quick Attack.
That was enough to cause Gyarados to whimper in strangled pain as its head snapped back and its eyes snapped shut, before it fled with a wail, head diving below the water, and a wave washed up over the riverbank as it sped away, powerful tail propelling it through the water.
A small sigh of relief cut through the chaotic silence that was left behind. "That was close." The lilac Pokémon had joined a figure standing on the small cliff above the waterfall, leading down into the small valley that Misty had set up in. Misty couldn't bring herself to say anything at the moment, and it seemed that the figure, who had sounded like a boy to her, understood, by the simple shrug he made, before he hoisted himself down the small cliffside, dropping the last metre to land on his feet smoothly.
"So." He said, as he turned around to see her himself. Misty was surprised to note the eye patch which seemed to be for actual necessary use, rather than a fashion statement, though how it could be a fashion statement, only her sisters could know. Ignoring her wandering thoughts for a moment, she refocused her attention on the slightly taller guy in front of her, noting his seeming lack of reaction to her daze. Perhaps he expected it.
"So, are you alright?" Ash spoke to her gently. "I mean, that must have been scary."
"I'd say so." Misty mumbled as she cast her mind back to that fleeting moment of acceptance she had felt when the Hyper Beam was about to fire at her. "Thank you by the way." She added, suddenly remembering what he had done.
"Ah thank Efi. She's the one who dealt with it." He shrugged lightly, seemingly uninterested in her thanks. Efi gave a prideful nod at his words, looking at her beseechingly.
Misty could only seem to chuckle nervously at her look, before she gave in. "Thank you… Efi was it? I owe you one." Efi seemed to give a purr of acceptance in response, before she hopped up into the boy's shoulder bag, curling inside it with a slight yawn.
"Name's Ash by the way." He added after an awkward moment where they both stared at Efi's actions. "You?"
"Uh… Misty." She replied awkwardly, picking up her abandoned fishing rod with slightly trembling hands. "Thanks again and all."
"Don't mention it." Ash shook his head slightly. "Doesn't matter."
Something about his attitude seemed to get under the orange haired girl's skin though, as she stiffened for a moment. "Doesn't matter?" she asked, deceptively softly. "Gee, thanks for giving a damn." She added in slight anger.
"Uh?" he replied confused for a moment, scratching his head with a hand as he tried to understand where the sudden anger had come from.
"I'm sure you can go back to your little happy life, and quit giving a damn, because it's obvious really, you're just trying to play yourself up as the quiet hero who asks for no thanks, aren't you? Boys." She snarled slightly, causing Ash to blink and back up for a moment.
"Here I am, a pretty, helpless damsel in distress, and you just couldn't help yourself could you!?" she continued ranting randomly. "I could have handled this myself!"
"Now-" Ash started before her tirade suddenly gathered in power and ferocity.
"Look what you did to my bike!" she scowled at the shattered pieces of warped metal where the Hyper Beam had originally hit. "You're paying for that!"
"Don't even think of getting out of this one." She added, glaring at him for a moment. "If it weren't for your Espeon, my bike would be perfectly fine!" she ended, ignoring the fact that she was only a whisker away from personally being vaporised. At her words, even Efi exchanged a glance with Ash, that seemed to say "Did she really just say that?", and "Yes she did.", all in one moment.
"So, how will you pay me back?" she added, glaring up into his bewildered face. Ash could only look at her in complete shock, being unable to find any words to say. Eventually, as her face seemed to grow even angrier, he steeled himself and picked out the words.
"I'm not." He stated flatly.
Before she could yell at him, which he was now certain she was about to, by the way her hands clenched, and her teeth ground together, he forcefully continued, this time brooking no argument, made clear by the way his eye fixed her with a powerful stare.
"For one, I didn't destroy your bike." he held up one finger to accentuate his point. "Two, I saved your life in exchange for said bike." He continued holding up a second finger this time.
"Three. I just don't want to." He ended with a thunderously soft voice, as though he had barked it into her ear with ringing force, yet as soft-spoken and quietly as the gentlest soul.
"Is that clear?" he added after a moment of stunned silence, drawing a slightly startled nod of agreement from Misty. It seemed that she wasn't used to being refused in such a manner, and as such, couldn't really respond to his painfully true points.
"C-Clear." She stuttered for a moment, looking at what seemed to be a boy made of stone in front of her. He didn't even raise his voice at her, calmly stating a few things as to why he wouldn't agree with her assessment of things. It didn't help that the eye patch and the scar that was only partly hidden, seemed to make him seem far more imposing than her original impression of a fairly laidback and relaxed person hinted.
"Now, I will escort you to Viridian City. After a shock such as that, you need a nice calm and relaxing room for the night." He added flatly, picking up her backpack for her, before holding it out, and having Misty snatch it from his grasp slightly nervously.
"Shall we?" he added, before walking off, leaving Misty to splutter wordlessly before she hurried to catch up with him.
"Hey wait up idiot!"
/
"Misty Waterflower…" Ash seemed to taste the name on his tongue, testing how it flowed. This seemed to be an odd reaction, Misty thought, though his sleepy Espeon hadn't batted an eye at it. Perhaps this was normal for him?
"Yeah." She affirmed instead, after a moment. "It's my name, not food." She added, cringing slightly at her own words, and causing Ash to blink.
"I mean, I don't keep calling you Ash Ketchum do I?" she added at his odd look.
"I suppose not." He shrugged after a moment. "Sorry." He added in reflex.
"Ehe, no problem Ketchum." She chuckled slightly nervously at the increasing oddity of the conversation.
Ash simply nodded, as he continued walking with Misty at his side, Efi curled up in his bag, silently having a conversation with him.
Or at least a one-sided whinge.
"I don't like her Ash." She seemed to scowl in his head. "Why did you have to get her walking with us?"
"Ash, I'm ever so tempted to finish that job Gyarados started."
"Does she ever stop trying to talk to you?"
"For god's sake carrot-head, he doesn't care about what you have to say!"
"Please, for my sake, shut her up!"
And various other complaints and whinging were studiously ignored by Ash, who simply responded, "Deal with it."
Ash could only grumble in his own head about two sources of annoyance, both now as irritating as each other. Instead of showing this, he decided to learn about his temporary companion. He had recognised the Waterflower name as being from Cerulean City, more specifically the gym, which specialised in Water-types, ironically. Though Ash was certain that Misty wasn't the gym leader, because he thought she was too young. Though, she might be a good trainer, and if she hadn't frozen up against Gyarados, he would have seen what she was actually capable of.
"So… fishing for Pokémon?" he queried randomly, interrupting Misty's half-hearted attempts to get him to reciprocate a conversation, and in fact completely ignoring what she had been saying. Though to be fair, he hadn't exactly been able to separate her chatter from Efi's whining, which might actually have highlighted some similarities between them, but he vowed never to go there if he valued his existence.
"Wha- uh yeah I was." Misty responded after a brief fumble. "Why?"
"Just wondering whether you were interested in water Pokémon." He shrugged, only to regret asking as she completely turned personalities on a head.
"I love water Pokémon! They're amazing, dreamy, the best Pokémon you can ever be friends with! Nothing comes close to the dazzling beauty, the cuteness and coolness of a water-type!" she passionately proclaimed, her eyes seemingly becoming love-hearts.
"That's a yes." Ash murmured lowly to himself. "Oh good." He replied out loud for Misty to hear.
"You're a trainer right?" Ash asked a moment later.
"Yeah, of course I am!" Misty replied, cocking her head at his question.
"What are you a trainer for?" Ash queried seriously this time, giving Misty the impression he was actually interested, and not just making small talk.
"Uh, well…" Misty began nervously before trailing off, hand pulling at her short denim pants slightly.
"You have a dream right?" Ash interrupted knowingly. "To be something?"
"Yeah." Misty replied seriously after a moment's thought. "I want to be a water Pokémon master."
"Ash don't you-" Efi began seriously, before Ash ignored her by replying anyway.
"What does that even mean?" he pointed out instead. "What does being a master mean to you?" he clarified, as Misty frowned.
"I want to be the best trainer of Water-types out there." She answered vaguely, confused as to his point. "It proves I'm the best."
To who? Harry thought shrewdly, but instead allowed Efi to claw him back onto safer ground. "Well good luck Misty. It'll be hard work though."
"I know." Misty replied seriously. "It wouldn't mean anything otherwise." She added, causing Ash to frown subtly.
"We'll be there soon." Ash pointed out after a small period of silence.
"Yeah…" Misty replied slowly. "So… why are you a trainer?" she asked after a moment.
"I'm not a trainer." Ash responded with surety, causing Misty to blink, viridian eyes narrowing slightly.
"You train Pokémon right?" Misty asked him slowly. "That means you're a trainer. But fine, don't answer my question jerk." She added scathingly.
"Don't trainers want to be the best?" Ash responded, ignoring her tone.
"That has nothing to do with being a trainer!" Misty exclaimed, while Efi nodded her agreement. "You just have to have Pokémon to be a trainer."
"See, Efi agrees that you're a trainer." Misty added to Ash. "Don't you have other Pokémon too?"
"I have a Pidgey." He replied smoothly. At Misty's surprise, he added, "I started travelling today."
At this, Misty blurted out. "But you seem so experienced!"
Ash simply shrugged. "Depends what you mean by experienced?"
"You took out that Gyarados like it was nothing!" she retorted. "You can't have only started today!" she added with a slight tone of jealousy amidst her proclamation.
"That Gyarados was only a baby." Ash replied simply. "A more experienced one wouldn't have reacted in such a way."
"Besides, me and Efi have been together for years." He added at Misty's look of utter blankness. "I know she's capable of beating a Gyarados like that."
"Heck…" he added after musing for a few clock ticks, "I think even my Pidgey could have beaten that Gyarados."
"No way in hell Ketchum!" Misty suddenly fired out. Espeon was one thing, but a Pidgey? No way jose, she wasn't buying it!
"Not head on." He replied simply. "That would be stupid." He added, making Misty feel like an idiot with his matter-of-fact tone.
"I know my Pidgey is faster than that Gyarados." He continued. "Sure, he might not have enough oomph to cause a lot of damage, but he would run rings around it, so either Gyarados eventually leaves or gets worn down by getting hit."
"And you say you're not a trainer." She muttered vehemently in response, before angrily stalking away, leaving a confused Ash behind for a short moment.
"What did I say?" he asked Efi curiously.
"Don't be stupid." Was the aggravating response.
AN 27.08.2014
Took a while to write out everything, but here it is. So Ash catches a Pidgey – and I give a small explanation on the possible variations in Pokémon, as well as a case for slightly different looking ones of the same species, aside from natural variation. That said, every Pokémon won't be super special or anything, but I just like Pidgeot and wanted to make 'him' in this fic, at least something different to the average one, when he evolves. Misty is standard, same age as Ash and more grown up than in anime, so she's more world wise, but still seeing the world through rose tinted glasses, and she can still switch personalities rather easily. I always liked the Bike excuse, so there's a slight variation this time. I also intend to further showcase how Ash's mind works in battle and otherwise, while Misty will be similar but not entirely the same as she was in anime.
Next time, Viridian City and Team Rocket – and not the trio of bumbling fools they were in the anime – they'll be a bit more competent at least and aren't just 'Pikachu hunters' or Efi hunters in this case. Also, Ash and Misty will have more interaction, and Ash bumps into an old… friend… in a manner of speaking, as well as catching a new Pokémon in Viridian forest, word count permitting. I'll aim between 7-10k a chapter for consistency, but I tend to end it where it falls naturally.
I intend to make sure that the moves Pokémon learn are the only ones they can actually learn in the game, through breeding and otherwise. As for Ash's battling style, you'll understand it after a few bites of the apple so to speak. The only thing you saw here was him not allowing any resistance, hitting hard and fast to keep them down. Well, it was a Gyarados, you don't let it up to wreak havoc.
I'm sure I'll eventually hit a good way to describe battles and moves, it's not completely satisfying yet, but it was simply wild Pokémon scraps.
Til next time!