CHAPTER NINE

Daniel and Natalie exited the Pewter Gym, feeling relieved. They had both earned the Boulder Badge - an achievement they were both proud of. After they had healed their Pokemon at the Pokemon Center, Natalie asked, "Do you want to visit the Pewter Museum of Sciene?"

"It'll be there when we get back. We should head for Cerulean City now." Daniel said, reaching into his backpack for his Town Map as they walked west, headed towards the outskirts of Pewter City in the direction of Mt. Moon.

"I wonder when we will come back," mused Natalie. "So, where do we go from here?"

"East of Pewter City, there's a route which leads to Mt. Moon."

"What did the teacher say about Mt. Moon?" asked Natalie.

"Not much. It's a site for infrequent meteor falls, the shards of which become known as Moon Stones. A lot of hikers visit there. It's supposed to be dangerous, without a guide." said Daniel. "It'll be dark and scary."

"Or both," Natalie added.

"Probably."

Daniel and Natalie hesitated for a moment.

"We'll have our Pokemon by our side. That's what most important," said Natalie, and Daniel nodded. "They'll protect us, and we'll protect them."

"Indeed," said Daniel. "We'll need to buy a torch and some batteries before we head out."

After visiting the PokeMart, Daniel and Natalie headed for the outskirts of Pewter City. As they crossed the terminus, Daniel felt uneasy. In all his life, he hadn't been past Pewter City.

Daniel and Natalie walked down the route which abandoned Pewter City's buildings in the distance to the west. Now there were no houses or civilisation, only rocky outcrops and tall grass which quivered with wild Pokemon.

"Look, there's Trainers," Natalie pointed. She could see a number of them either looking for wild Pokemon to catch in the tall grass or other Trainers to battle.

"Do you want to battle one?" Natalie asked.

"Do you think we have time?"

"There's a Pokemon Center at the entrance of Mt. Moon. Besides, these Trainers will provide experience for you and your Pokemon."

Daniel turned to her and smiled. "You're right."

Daniel and Natalie headed towards a lone Pokemon Trainer who was itching for a battle, or perhaps the insect bites on his legs on further inspection.

"Hey!" Daniel called, catching his attention. The boy ran over.

"Are you a Pokemon Trainer?" he asked.

Daniel nodded. "Do you want to battle?"

"Sounds good. Will here do?" he asked.

Daniel and the Trainer made enough room to make space for a makeshift battlefield.

"My name's James. How many Pokemon do you have?"

"I have two Pokemon. How about you?"

"Three. Shall we have a two-on-two battle?"

"Make that a three-on-two battle," Daniel said.

"Are you sure?" James asked. "You get the same amount of prize money if you win."

"I'm sure." Daniel said. "I want the experience. Choose your first Pokemon."

James unlatched a Pokeball from his belt and threw it into the fray. "Go, Nidoran!"

A male Nidoran appeared in a burst of red light.

"I choose Meowth!" Daniel said, as Meowth stepped forward.

"Let's get this battle started!" James said. "Nidoran, Tackle Attack!"

"Meowth, Growl Attack!"

Nidoran headed off towards Meowth, its horn lowered, but Meowth stopped it in its tracks with a piercing growl.

"Meowth, Scratch Attack!"

"Nidoran, avoid the attack!" James shouted.

Nidoran recovered just in time, avoiding Meowth's attack.

"Nidoran, Leer!"

Nidoran stared at Meowth with a sharp glare. Meowth instinctively put its paw over its eyes.

"Good work, Meowth! Now use Bite Attack!"

Meowth ran towards Nidoran before it could react and leapt onto Nidoran, biting into its back hard. Nidoran screeched and shook Meowth off, running a small distance away.

"Nidoran, Double Kick!"

"Meowth! Avoid its attack and use Scratch Attack!"

Meowth avoided Nidoran's two kicks, then scratched Nidoran across the face. Reeling, Nidoran tried to stand up -

"Nidoran, use Leer again!"

"Meowth, use Bite! Finish Nidoran!"

Nidoran was too slow, as Meowth leapt upon Nidoran and gave it a hefty bite. Nidoran could barely stand and fainted.

"Nidoran, return!" James returned Nidoran to its Pokeball. "You're a good Trainer. I actually thought you'd be easier."

"Appearances can be deceiving," Daniel said. "Meowth, return!"

Meowth returned to Daniel's side, as Daniel retrieved a Pokeball from his belt, tossing it into the fray as James selected his second Pokemon.

"Go, Bellsprout!"

Bellsprout appeared in a burst of red light, shaking its leaf arms. James threw a Pokeball onto the battlefield.

"Go, Pidgey!"

Pidgey appeared in a flash of red light, flapping its wings and hovering in the air.

"Flying-types are superior to Grass-Types," James said, as Bellsprout anxiously glanced up at Pidgey. "Pidgey, use Gust Attack!"

Pidgey began circling Bellsprout, creating a small tornado within as Bellsprout was lifted into the air.

"Bellsprout, Vine Whip!"

Bellsprout attempted to lash out at Pidgey with its vines, but it couldn't see where Pidgey had gone to. The tornado became more intense, lifting Bellsprout high into the air. Pidgey emerged, flapping its wings as the tornado disappeared, leaving Bellsprout to fall from a height and slam painfully onto the ground.

"Bellsprout!" Daniel called, as Bellsprout tried to stand up.

"Finish it, Pidgey! Use Quick Attack!"

"Bellsprout, use Wrap!"

Pidgey disappeared into thin air, appearing at the last second before Bellsprout and tackling it head on. Bellsprout rolled over several times and lay fainted upon the grass.

"How do ya like that?" James taunted. "My Pidgey's the winner!"

"Return, Bellsprout," Daniel said, holding out a Pokeball. Bellsprout returned inside its Pokeball in a flash of red light. "Meowth, you're up!"

Meowth entered the field, its claws drawn. Pidgey eyed its new contender as it flapped its wings to stay in the air.

"Pidgey, use Gust again!"

"Meowth, Growl!"

Meowth growled at Pidgey, but Pidgey had already begun its tornado. Meowth's feet left the ground and Pidgey was nowhere to be seen.

"Meowth!" Daniel cried. He couldn't think of anything to do.

"Pidgey, now! Use Quick Attack!"

"Meowth, use Growl again!"

As Pidgey emerged from the tornado, flying inside it to tackle Meowth, Meowth let out a growl which shocked Pidgey mid-air, wings fluttering madly to avoid Meowth.

"Bite Attack, Meowth, and don't let go!"

Meowth grabbed onto Pidgey despite its frantic flapping and bit hard into its body. Pidgey shrieked, flying up into the air and away from the dispersing tornado, but Meowth clung on for its life. Meowth used Bite Attack several more times, and Pidgey slammed into the ground, while Meowth used Pidgey's fainted body to land on. Pidgey was out.

"Nice work, Daniel!" Natalie called from the sidelines. Daniel gave her a smile.

"Thanks," he said.

James angrily returned Pidgey to its Pokeball.

"You did a good job, Meowth," Daniel said, as Meowth walked over to his owner. Daniel gave him a quick pat on the head.

"Now for my final Pokemon: Ekans!"

Ekans appeared in a flash of red light, baring its fangs at Meowth. The rattle on its tail quivered ominously.

"Meowth, Scratch Attack!"

"Ekans, use Poison Sting!"

Ekans opened its mouth and released a series of poisonous barbs headed towards Meowth.

"Meowth, look out!" Daniel cried, as Meowth avoided all but one, injured on his arm.

"Ekans, Wrap!"

Meowth glowed a faint purple as Ekans leapt at Meowth and wrapped its long, serpentine body around Meowth, tightening hard.

"Your Meowth's poisoned!" James said gleefully. "You're no match for my Pokemon!"

Meowth went red in the face, his throat too constricted to splutter and cough.

"Meowth! Use Bite Attack and don't let go!"

Meowth feebly attempted to breathe, then took as big a bite as it could out of Ekans' body. Howling in pain, Ekans released Meowth from its grasp, then stared it dead on as Meowth was barely able to stand.

"Meowth, don't give up!" Daniel called out to Meowth.

"Ekans, finish off Meowth with Poison Sting!"

As Ekans opened its mouth, the charm on Meowth's forehead began to glow with a bright light.

James' mouth was agape. "What - "

"Meowth?" Daniel asked, as Meowth opened its eyes suddenly and from the glowing charm burst several white spheres of light which blasted Ekans backwards.

Daniel took the advantage and reached for an antidote in his backpack as Ekans tried to get up. He found an antidote and sprayed it on Meowth. Within a matter of seconds, Meowth was cured from poison.

"What did you just do to my Ekans?" James shouted, watching as the white spheres faded, revealing small golden coins.

Not missing a beat, Daniel cried, "Meowth, finish it with Scratch Attack!"

Meowth ran forward, drawing its claws and scratching Ekans right across the face. Wounded, Ekans fell to the grass, twitching and then finally unmoving. It had fainted.

"We won! We won!" Daniel said, rushing forward to hug Meowth. He handed Meowth a Potion to drink and hugged him. "You did very well, Meowth."

"You win, I guess." James said. He returned Ekans to its Pokeball. "Here you go."

James walked over to Daniel and handed him one hundred and fifty dollars.

"Hey!" Natalie cried out, pointing at James. Daniel noticed as James had been walking away, he was trying to discreetly fill his pockets with the coins which had littered the ground from Meowth's charm.

Squirtle released a jet of water from its mouth which soaked James and tripped him onto the ground, lying face first. Natalie and Squirtle marched over angrily as Daniel and Meowth stood up and joined them.

"You give back those coins right now!"

"They're not his! They came from a Pokemon!"

"I don't care! You stole them! If anyone should have them, it should be Meowth's owner, if not the winner of the battle in which Meowth participated! Give them here or I'll have Squirtle drench you with water until you do!"

"Fine," James sulked, retrieving approximately twenty dollars in coins from its soaked pockets.

Daniel accepted the coins, putting them in his wallet. He was glad Natalie had noticed James' theft. But how had Meowth managed to do that?

"Off you go!" Natalie shouted. "I'll be warning other Trainers about you, James!"

As James ran off, Natalie turned to Daniel. "Are you OK?"

Daniel nodded. "I need to get Bellsprout to a Pokemon Center, though..."

"There's a Pokemon Center at the entrance to Mt. Moon. Just be careful about getting into battles with other Trainers until we get there." said Natalie. "Let's go."

As the two walked up the path, Natalie saw a young girl in the corner of her eye with a Jigglypuff by her side.

"Hey, you! You're a Trainer!" the girl said, bounding over. Do you want to battle with me?"

"You go ahead, Daniel. I'll battle her," Natalie said, as Daniel nodded and walked towards the Pokemon Center.

"Are you a Pokemon Trainer?" the girl repeated, breathless with excitement.

"I sure am," Natalie smiled. "You want to battle me, is that correct?"

"You got it," the girl smiled.

The two girls made space for a makeshift battlefield.

"My name's Robin," said the girl.

"I'm Natalie," Natalie said. "Nice to meet you."

"How about we make this a one-on-one battle? I only have my Jigglypuff." Robin said.

Natalie looked at Robin's Jigglypuff; a spherical shaped pink ball with large eyes and cat-like ears.

"That sounds good to me!" Natalie pulled a Pokemon from her belt and tossed it into the battlefield. "I choose Metapod!"

Metapod appeared in a burst of light, its hard green shell glinting in the sunlight.

"That thing?" Robin scoffed. "My Jigglypuff is much more pretty! Go, Jigglypuff!"

Jigglypuff walked forward into the battlefield, an expression of intense concentration on its face as though it was about to burst.

"Jigglypuff, use Pound on Metapod!"

"Metapod, Harden!"

As Jigglypuff ran forward towards Metapod, it landed a punch using its fist. Jigglypuff squealed in pain. Metapod had hardened its shell to protect against physical attacks.

"Nice job, Metapod!" Natalie grinned. "Use Tackle Attack!"

Metapod launched itself at Jigglypuff, but Jigglypuff avoided the attack.

"Jigglypuff, use Sing!"

Jigglypuff began singing, emitting a tune which made Natalie feel a little light-headed. Shaking her head madly to rid herself of the daze, she said,

"Metapod, Tackle Jigglypuff again!"

Metapod was asleep, however. Natalie let out a cry of dismay.

"Jigglypuff, use Disable!"

Jigglypuff concentrated hard, then released a wave of light which disabled Metapod from attacking.

Shocked by this tactical mastery, Natalie blurted out, "You're good!"

Robin smiled. "Jigglypuff, use Pound!"

Jigglypuff punched Metapod again, squealing again as it hurt its fist. Although Metapod was asleep and couldn't attack, its shell remained hardened. Natalie retrieved an Awakening from her bag and sprayed it on Metapod. Metapod blinked a couple times, suddenly awake and surprised to be in a battle.

"Jigglypuff, use Defense Curl!"

Jigglypuff began spinning around wildly, a blur of pink as it gathered momentum. Metapod, frozen in place, was unable to attack or move.

"Metapod, snap out of it! You're in danger!" Natalie cried.

"Now, Jigglypuff!" Robin shouted, as Jigglypuff reached peak spinning speed. "Tackle Metapod!"

Jigglypuff launched itself at Metapod, hurtling towards it at an amazing speed. Metapod suddenly bounced out of the way in the nick of time, its Disable having worn off.

"Metapod, String Shot!" Natalie cried.

As Jigglypuff's attack missed and it stopped spinning to turn around, Metapod released a stream of string which landed on Jigglypuff and coated it in a sticky, binding mess.

"Jigglypuff! Use Sing!"

Jigglypuff, however, was unable to move, let alone use Sing, and tried to untangle itself with poor results.

"Metapod, finish Jigglypuff! Use Tackle!"

Metapod launched itself at Jigglypuff, landing a sharp hit to its chest. Jigglypuff rolled over, quite exhausted and gave up with a high-pitched squeak.

"Stop!" Robin cried, as Jigglypuff fainted. "You win."

Natalie cheered for Metapod, racing into the battlefield as Robin returned Jigglypuff to its Pokeball.

"You did well, Metapod." Natalie hugged Metapod, then stood up and approached Robin. "I believe you owe me a winner's fee."

Grumpily, Robin handed over two hundred dollars. "I'm off to the Pokemon Center."

As Robin walked away, Natalie reached for her Pokeball. "I'm happy for you, Metapod. You've done so well since - "

Gasping, Natalie watched as Metapod began to glow.

"What - what's happening?" cried Natalie in dismay.

Metapod glowed with a bright light, changing shape and form to evolve into Butterfree, emitting a joyful cry and soaring into the air.

Natalie watched, dumbfounded. "You're beautiful."

Butterfree was not unlike an anthropomorphic butterfly, with large red eyes, antennae on its head and white wings striped with black. Its body was purple, while its nose, hands and feet were blue. Its body was dwarfed by its patterned wings.

"Let's go to the Pokemon Center, Butterfree. I want you to enjoy the fresh air before we enter Mt. Moon."

Natalie skipped happily to the Pokemon Center, her new Butterfree drifting alongside her.

Amy sat in the patch of tall grass on the route between Viridian Forest and Pewter City, with Growlithe and Nidoran by her side. After the humiliating defeat at the Pewter Gym, she had rushed to heal her Pokemon at the Pokemon Center and let them run around as she watched them, play fighting with each other while wild Rattata, eager to join in, watched warily from the sidelines. Amy's clothes were a little damp and wrinkled, but she ignored the discomfort. Her mind was stuck on replay, the horror of seeing her Growlithe pounded into submission by Brock's Geodude. How was she to defeat his Rock-type Pokemon?

"Growlithe, Nidoran, come here," Amy said, as Growlithe and Nidoran bounded over. Absently she scratched them behind the ears and fed them the last of the Poketreats from her bag. She looked up at the cloudy sky, with rays of sunlight peeking through and wondered what it'd be like to have a Flying-type Pokemon, to sail through the skies atop -

"Amy!"

Amy turned around in alarm, for she recognised the voice. She saw her brother standing there. His hair was ruffled and his shorts were dirty with mud, while his muscles were faintly visible through the sweat-stained singlet he wore.

"Liam?" Amy managed to collect herself, hiding her gentle nature behind a superior, sneering facade. "What are you doing here?"

"Adventuring," he grimaced, wiping his sweaty brow with his hand and glancing down to where Growlithe and Nidoran were animated upon glimpsing a familiar face.

"They've already been fed - " Amy sighed as Liam fed them an entire packet of Poketreats, ignorant and wasteful as usual. Happily, Growlithe and Nidoran dug into the food.

"Liam, I'm serious - "

"Mum thinks you're on the S.S. Anne!" blurted out Liam, taking delight in his normally well-mannered sister's disobedience. As siblings, they had always fought and largely Liam had won because he held their mother's fancy.

Amy steeled herself. "I've decided to become a Pokemon Trainer, too."

"But you are a Pokemon Trainer already," he pointed out the obvious. "But Mum said you're not allowed to leave home."

His growing delight at her predicament made her nervous. Amy fidgeted, not wanting to lose face. "I've decided to tour Kanto and collect the Gym badges."

"Amy... you're a girl." said Liam, to Amy's revulsion.

"What do you mean by that?" demanded Amy. "A girl can't be a Pokemon Trainer?"

"You're not exactly the Pokemon battling type. Remember all those battles we had back home? You never won once."

"I believe I did, once or twice..." Amy said, stung by the comment. Truth be told, their mother never let Amy have the time to train Growlithe or Nidoran on her own, where Liam had all the time in the world with his misfit, pampered Pokemon.

"Did you tell Mum?"

"I don't care about that." Amy retorted. "Once she sees what a good Trainer I am - "

"She doesn't care about that," said Liam. "She only wants you to smile for the right people, not go digging in caves in search of Pokemon."

"Oh, and because I'm a girl - "

"Not because you're a girl," scathed Liam. "Because our mother says so, and you need her money, and you'd never slum it."

"You don't want to get on Mother's bad side, because you're a mummy's boy."

Stung, Liam stomped his foot on the ground in anger. "I am not!"

Amy turned away from him. Her Pokemon, sensing their Trainer's emotions, snuggled up close to her.

"I'm not coming home, Liam."

"You know she'll just blame me for all this. She'll found out we met and that I didn't convince you and she'll blame me because you always have to have your own way."

"I'm staying." Amy said, turning to face Liam. "I don't care what Mother says."

"Fine." Liam looked at her for a long time. "But you're gonna need to call her. I'm not taking the blame for this."

"I will tell her," retorted Amy. "When the time is right."

"She's going to find out sometime."

"You're a Trainer!" Amy stiffened. "What's so different? I wear a skirt so I can't throw a Pokeball!"

"Come on, Amy. You're gonna battle Trainers every day to pay for a hotel room each night? Gimme a break."

"I should be given the choice, at least. Pokemon are everywhere in this world. Why can't I be a Trainer?"

"You can have Pokemon... just do it back in Celadon. I don't want Mum mad at me."

"It's always about you, you, you," Amy rolled her eyes.

"Yeah? Well you're stuck up for putting me out on the hook like this," spat Liam.

Amy's eyes flared. "You know what? I've decided I won't call Mother. Not now, not ever."

"No, Amy, please," Liam leapt for her, his tone pleading.

If anything persuaded her little brother, it was the threat to put him out of favour with his mummy. "You've got to call her. If I do it, she'll march down here herself and drag you home."

"You can tell Mother whatever you like." said Amy. "Nothing will change my mind."

"OK, OK... how about this? If you call Mother, I'll give you a Pokemon in return."

"What?"

"I caught this useless, piddly Cubone back in Diglett's Cave - "

"What's Diglett's Cave?"

Liam pointed to a path through the trees, inbetween Viridian Forest and Pewter City.

"It's a secret route for hikers. It's full of Diglett, so a lot of Trainers who bring Pokemon weak to Ground-types find themselves lost pretty quickly."

"Where does it lead to?"

"Vermilion City. Where you boarded the S.S. Anne - "

"I know."

"So?"

"So what?"

"So, will you call Mother?"

Amy stared at Liam for a long time, bristling, "I don't need a Pokemon, though - "

"I'm not stupid, Amy. You've got to take on the Pewter City Gym Leader with these two," Liam indicated the Fire- and Poison-type Pokemon who recoiled from his unnecessary harshness. "I may not have come first in my class, but even I know Brock's Rock-types will bash you."

Amy willed her composure not to break, that she already knew how tough Brock could be. "So?"

Liam revealed four Pokeballs on his belt. "I've got enough Pokemon to train as it is. We're taking on the Pokemon League."

"So that's why you're here," concluded Amy with dawning comprehension. "The Gym?"

Liam snorted, wiping his nose with his arm. "The Pewter Gym? I won that badge ages ago."

Amy had a sinking feeling in her stomach. "Oh."

"So?" Liam hawked and spat, to Amy's visible distaste. "Will you do it?"

Amy considered the matter for a moment. She did need a Pokemon to beat Brock, and she was no fool not to know a Ground-type had certain advantages over Rock Pokemon... but for her brother to just give away a Pokemon seemed more than a bit cruel. However, she could give it a better life...

Amy shrugged insouciantly. "I'll call her, I suppose. Let's head to the Pokemon Center."

"Better you than me." added Liam, following in his sister's wake.