This is chapter 3 of my story, again, longer than the previous x3. Ill try to make them decently long now, so that you all have alot to read in between each chapter! Again, critiques are always welcome! With that, Enjoy!

Ch 3 - Best Friend Talks, New Pokemon?

As school progressed, everyone finished up the remainder of their studies, including me and Cody, who were sick of studying by now, pretty much ready to pass out. As we made our way out of the building, over to the parking garage, we talked for a bit about that pokemon competition thingy that FIllmore was hosting in a few months. Cody seemed a little nervous about it, mainly because the last time he had a pokemon battle with Sage, it didn't end up well. Cody isn't one to battle much. He just likes to have a pokemon partner there for company, and also the occasional emergency...

...The first time I met Sage was about 6 years ago, after I had met Cody at my middle school for the first time as a 6th grader. He had recently transferred from eastern Denver to west, after his parents decided to move for some reason. It was second semester, and things we're going great for me, so I decided to join a pokemon club. Of course, being that I didn't have a pokemon, you can probably tell it wasn't a requirement to own a pokemon to join a 'Pokemon' club, which, was still a mistake for me to join a pokemon club without having a pokemon to begin with in the first place, but none the less, I did, just hoping maybe I could learn a little bit. After the first week of pokemon club, I was growing extremely bored, wanting to try out battling for a change, but didn't have a pokemon to do it with. It's not that i couldn't catch a pokemon, or couldn't find any. It was because my parents simply said no. Even now, I've been way too busy to even have time to hang out with friends, let alone take care of a pokemon, so I just accepted the conditions. But, my want for a pokemon grew even stronger after a man named Cody Manuel joined the club. Cody was an awesome learner, and would often face the other students when it came to questions regarding pokemon, but battling was a completely different story. For some reason, Cody did NOT like to battle, even though he knew all the strategies and typings of battling and what not, something within him was making it very difficult, if not impossible for him to do so. After a while, I began to notice Cody's struggles with battling, and decided to talk to him. Me and him talked just about every day, trying to figure out why he didn't want to battle. The other trainers would even let us borrow their pokemon to have a battle with the other trainers once in awhile, and as excited as I was, he couldn't battle with me anyway. I loved battling with other trainers, even though I wasn't very good with pokemon battles, of pokemon knowledge in general. I never asked Cody about pokemon too much. I just felt he didn't know too much about pokemon either at the time, but he did. He just didn't like to talk about pokemon that much, because he knew he might get into a conversation over how he didn't like battling. After a month of hanging out with Cody, we became sort of close friends. We would always hang out after school, do homework together, and talk about what pokemon we wanted to get one day. Cody had always wanted a Luxray, ever since he was in the 3rd grade. To him, Luxray was the coolest pokemon ever. I myself, however, have always wanted an Absol. Absol, being a pokemon that can mega-evolve, while looking awesome and stylish, was my go-to pokemon to have. Although, unfortunately, Absol was rare in my area, and were only found in the high rockies, so finding them was very difficult. It never stopped me though, as I told myself one day I would find one. For sure.

On Christmas day of my 7th grade year, me and Cody we're with each other at my house, along with his parents and mine. As we opened presents, I always got the usual things: Underwear, socks, clothes, a few games, and some candy and stuff. Cody, for the most part, got almost the same kind of things as I did, with one little exception. When Cody's mom got up, she told us all she was going to grab a scarf, as she was cold. Cody's mom ran into the other room, while we were still opening the last few presents, and came back out with something in her hand. As she handed it to Cody, we all turned to see what it was. I nearly fainted, as well as my mother, after what we saw placed in his hand. Sitting there, was a bright red pokeball, all shiny and what not, and Cody's face was lit up. For what seemed like the next 5 minutes, he sat there, staring at the ball in his hand. After a while, he spoke up. "Mom. Is..is this...for me?" He was stunned, as if he got hit in the head. "Yes, dear. It is most certainly for you, unless, you don't want it.." "NO, of COURSE I do!" He thanked her many times, hugging her with a wide smile on his face. "Well, aren't you going to open it? Come On, don't keep us all waiting." I said, also happy. He gripped the ball with his hand, then pressed the button. Out came a Luxray, with its shining fur, and beautiful form. Cody was in awe. He was speechless. Nothing in his life was better than this moment. Obtaining the pokemon he had always dreamed of. "Wow, a Luxray! I'm going to call you...Sage!" "Luxray!", the Luxray shouted in seeming agreement as it stood next to him, suggesting he liked the name. Cody tried to muster up something else to say, but was still a little too excited, so Instead, I spoke up. "Wow, a Luxray! So cool! Lucky you Cody.." He noticed I seemed left out a little, so he tried to play it off. "Aww, come on Seth. You'll get that Absol of yours soon enough! I bet ya!", He said trying to cheer me up. "Yeah, it's ok though. I'm happy you got your first pokemon! Thats awesome!" I guess it made me feel a little better. After all, I don't get too upset when things like that happen. After we were done cleaning up that morning, we spent the rest of the day playing with Cody's new luxray. We had a blast that day, and I'll never forget it.

Luxray sure was an awesome pokemon, and even though I didn't get a pokemon of my own, I still enjoyed the mood change Luxray brought on to Cody. He soon became more confident than ever in pokemon club meetings, and even got the courage to battle a little, but only a little. He rarely battled, but when he did, it was with me, when I borrowed a pokemon. That was the only time he liked battling, when it was with me. Even the few times he did battle, he didn't do that bad. He came close to knocking out a smeargle one time, almost owning it, but then lost in the last seconds. His confidence, even to this day, continues to improve in battles, and today, he's even willing to full on compete now. It's amazing how much a pokemon can affect a person's' emotions. I still will never understand how he came to accept battling, but i'm thankful to whatever caused that spark in his mind, be it Luxray, or something else. Me and Cody have been best friends since then, and will probably be for a very long time...

After we made it to the garage parking structure, we made our way to my bike, then stopped to talk for a moment. "Alrighty Seth, i'll go and grab Sage from my apartment real quick. Then i'll meet you at your place 'aight?" "Yeah, i'll leave the garage door unlocked, just call me when you get here and i'll open it for ya." "K" We exchanged a quick 'later' and we were on our ways. "Man, Cody hasn't been over in a while, since like december. It's been a while, but we've both been so busy with finals crap, we haven't been able to hang out." I said to myself, as I fired up my bike. As I put my helmet and gloves on, as well as setup my music playlist for the ride, I noticed I forgot to fill my damn tank up. I swear, i'm horrible with remembering the slightest of things. As I left the building, I noticed Cody wasn't coming yet, when I remembered He probably parked his bike on the top floor of the garage. He usually likes to park up there to get a nice view of the area as he drinks his energy drink in the morning or whatever. I can't blame him. The views are pretty nice out here.

After filling up my tank, I arrived home at almost exactly 4, with maybe 1 minute to spare. I took off all my gear, as well as my 3 layers of clothing, and sat on the couch for a little while. I figured, since Cody lives about 10 miles away, I could get away with a 20-30 minute nap before he got here. I sat my phone on the table, and set the ringer on 'Max', that way when he called it would wake me up. Sure enough, about 22 minutes later, I heard a ring from my phone: Cody. I got up and answered. "Hey Cody, what's up? You here?" "Yeah, i'll be there in a few minutes. Sage had a nice nap today. He's feelin pretty good, judging by his mood, so a little pokeball time shouldn't upset him too much." "Funny you should mention that. I just had about a 20 min. nap." He laughed a little. "Anyways, ill open the door right now. Just knock when you get here." "Ok, see ya." After I hung up, i got up and pressed my garage door keymote, and heard a rolling motion below, signaling the door was up. I didn't keep anything super valuable in the garage, so thieves wouldn't have much interest. I turned on the tv for a minute, getting a glass of water, whilst waiting for Cody to get here. He always shows up on time. Wonder why he's so late. He probably forgot his wallet, or something stupid, and is searching his bike and clothes for it. He Always forgets things.

Just then, I heard a knock at the door. "I'm comin!" I screamed. I opened the door, and in came Cody, sweaty as hell, and a little worn out. "What's up dude! Traffic was a little rough leaving, sorry! Hey, hows about I order some pizza? I'm buyin." He always likes to do little 'favors' like that. I say it's fine, i'll get it, but he never lets me. such a nice guy. Sorta.. "Sure, come in. Place is a little messy, but it's not too bad. Make yourself at home." "Thanks" We both went over to the couch and took a seat, Cody literally falling onto the couch he was so exhausted. I wouldn't blame him. Biking can be exhausting sometimes. "Anyways, so are you ready for the semester finals? I heard its gonna be pretty tough. I mean, not too bad, i've heard mixed opinions." "Well, yeah, it shouldn't be that bad. Plus, we've studied all damn day today, even finishing another 100 or so pokemon in pokemon class. All I got left is like a hundred, then I'm done with that stuff. I'm just thankful that finals are going to be over tomorrow." "I couldn't agree more dude. I'm sick of it. Hey, what kind of pizza do you want? I'm getting garden." I can't believe he even asks which kind I want by now. After all, we've eaten like a million pizzas. It shouldn't be that hard. I think he just likes to piss me off or somethin. No, he definitely likes to piss me off for fun. "Pepperoni. We've been over this a billion times man." "Alright, i'll be in the other room. While I order, play with Sage for a minute." He pulled out his pokeball from his waist, then pressed the button, with Sage appearing in front of me. "Lux!" He barked at me. "How are ya, Sage. Cody is getting pizza. He'll be back in a sec." He barked at me and lay on the floor, waiting for Cody's return. It was only about 3 minutes later, when Cody came down the hall. "Alright, I got one garden, one Pepperoni. I also got two cokes. It'll be here in a half hour she said." "Alrighty. Thanks dude!" "No problem. Hey Sage, how ya doin bud?" Sage jumped up from his crouched position and ran over to Cody. "Lux! Luxray!" He barked, happy to be out of that ball for once in such a long time. We sat on the couch, the luxray following, sitting beside us. We turned on the tv, watching some news and stuff, then we started playing cod for a bit. Sage liked to watch us play. I wish we could let him try, but paws don't work very well with a controller, so he just sat there and watched. As we started our 12 game of search and destroy, we heard a ring at the door, which we assumed was the pizza guy, which, was late by like 15 minutes. "I'll get it." I told Cody as I got up from the couch. I made my way over to the door. "Hello, good afternoon!" He said. "Hello!" "You ordered the two pizzas, one pepperoni, one garden, and two cokes, correct?" He said, read our confirmation order form. "Yes, that's correct." "Ok, is that going to be cash or credit?" "Cash" I handed him 18 bucks, plus a five dollar tip. "Thanks sir! Sorry about the delay, traffic is a little rough this afternoon man. Anyways, have a good night!" "You too! Thanks!" I shut the door, carrying two pizzas and a drink. "Damn, that smells goooood!" Cody said as I set them on the counter. Man, I love pizza. Especially pepperoni. You can never go wrong with a little pizza. "Alright, i'll get plates, hang on." I went to my kitchen and grabbed a few plates out of the cabinet. I only have a few glass plates, since I mainly use plastic silverware and plates. Makes things easier, also, I'm just too lazy to do dishes. I also grabbed two glasses for the coke. Didn't really need 'em, just figured I'd be a little fancy, idk. "Here ya go. Plate, and a glass." I gave one of each to cody, then sat down and gave myself a plate and glass. "So.." Cody spoke up. "What pokemon we're you thinking of for sure?" This kinda surprised me a little. I know I wanted absol, but I wasn't entirely sure. After all, it was hard to find, let alone train. "Well..you know I want an absol. But, the're too hard to, you kno-" "Find?" "Yeah." "So what? Just because something's hard to find, dosen't make it impossible, does it?" I guess he had a point. I mean, It couldn't be that hard. Can it? "I guess not.. but...how?" "How what?" "How do I find one? I mean, it's not like I have the time to go out and freaking look all day long for one." "Maybe after finals, Ill try my hand at looking around a bit." Frankly, I didn't feel like looking at all, but I really wanted a pokemon, especially since that competition is going on in a few months, but I would need to find an Absol pretty fast if I wanted a chance at even preparing for my first battle.

That afternoon, I began to wonder if I would ever find an Absol to call my own, let alone a pokemon at all. We sat there till about 9:00, just talking and gaming, whilst talking about where I could look, or how I could find an Absol, or whatever. I wondered for a bit, thinking of how I always thought to myself it would never happen when I was young, and how I might have a chance, now that I am much older, as I have the resources to do so. So many questions ran through my mind that after Cody left that evening, and I began to have second thoughts on finding an Absol. 'What if something happens while i'm searching? What if Absol doesn't stay in a pokeball, or doesn't like me?' with all the bad things that could happen, I wasn't taking any chances, especially since I don't have any pokemon, which would make catching an Absol 10 times worse. At that note, I should probably either borrow Sage from Cody, or just have him come with me. I still don't know how or when the hell i'm gonna start looking. I could just look for a breeder, but it would be cheaper to find one, or at least try.

The next day, after school, Cody and I agreed to go on a quick search in the afternoon, just to scout, so went down to the local poke-mart to look around, searching for anything we might need to catch and maintain a pokemon. Cody told me it wasn't that hard to take care of Sage. All he needed was food, water, medicine (for battles, of course, and some health needs), and the most important thing he said I would need is patience. Cody told me that Sage didn't always like him like he did now. "It takes time to form a bond", he said. "No two pokemon take the same amount of time to train." We looked around for a while, and I bought a few pokeballs, mainly normal ones, but I got a few Ultraballs for good luck. After we bought the neccessities, we made our way over to Cody's place, as he has a four-wheel drive that we can use to get to where we needed to go. "Hey Seth, i'm gonna go get the truck loaded with our stuff." he said. We didn't have much more than some extra clothes and stuff, along with some hiking gear, and of course, my pokeballs. "Hey Cody, when did you say was the best time to head out?" "Around when the sun is setting, because that's when Absol usually like to come out, although it can also be at night, too. They are dark types, you know." He loves to tell smartass jokes all the time. I can't really complain, cause I do that sometimes as well. "Alright, so how much longer do we have to wait, you think?" "Only about 20 more minutes." We both sat there, watching youtube for a little while, waiting for the sun to do its thing. After about 15 minutes, the sun was creeping ever so slowly downward, and we decided it was time. We hopped into Cody's truck, which, considering it was about 10 years old, was still pretty damn good looking, and in good condition, too. We crabbed some remaining items, then got in the truck, and we were on our way.

After about 20 minutes, we arrived at our destination, which wasn't much of a hassle, as it hadn't snowed for about a week, making travel up the mountain slope much easier. We traveled up about 6000 feet, before finally deciding on a spot. We parked in an open area, so we could find our back, incase of trouble. When we got out, we both carried our supplies to an open area, suitable for a campsite, and began to put our tents up. It was pretty cold up there, barely making it into the teens, but we managed to keep warm by putting up the tents. "Hey Seth, let's take a break for a bit, i'm gettin' tired as hell". He always wants to take breaks, though this time, I couldn't help but agree, as the cold was getting to me. "Alright, I guess a little break couldn't hurt. Did you bring the snacks? I'm hungry.." "No, there in the car". "Uhhhgg. I'll be right back…." I didn't feel like walking all the way over to the car again, but my stomach can really take over sometimes. I wondered if I would ever find an Absol, or any pokemon, to be honest in these conditions. Man, I can be doubtful sometimes.. 'Man, I don't know about finding anything up here. It's soo dark, and I can't see anything. How the hell am I going to find an Absol in these conditions? Welp, I'm trusting in Cody's knowledge, and he does own a pokemon after all, so...I guess itll be fine'. I was never one to question anyone, mainly because I hardly ever get lied too. I guess when your honest, no one bothers to lie to you.' "Here, I only brought some of them, so deal with it. It cold." "Did you bring the chips?" "Yes, and the guacamole, and a few others and that's it." I don't know why we even brought this crap up here, but we figured we'd get hungry, and what better than every fat guys dream? Potato chips and Guacamole. "We should probably head out in a minute, because, if there is an Absol around here, they won't stay out for long. The sun is almost gone now." We both agreed to head out after finishing our chips, so we grabbed our pokeballs and such, and we made our way off the path. I love the mountains. Theres always a comforting feeling whenever I come here. Maybe it's the quietness, or maybe its just me, but I like it. We were searching for a while, when we came across some tracks, not far from the main trail. "Hey Seth, check this out!" He called me over to come look at some footprints leading into the foliage. "Do you think it could be an absol?" He had a strange look on his face, and it made me nervous. "Cody!" He snapped out of his daze and turned around, looking at me with fear. "Seth. I think we should leave.." "Why would you say that? We just started looking." "Well, I don't like the looks of these tracks. They look..almost..l..like Charizard footprints." That made me laugh a little. Since when were there wild Charizard up here? "Oh, comeon, Cody. Save that sh*t for April fools." I think I pissed him off when I said this, because he raised hi tone. "Dude, im not playing around. Im pretty damn sure these are Charizard footprints!" I knelt down to have a closer look. They sorta looked like an Absol's foot, except 3 times as large. Yup, this was definantly a Charizard, or at least a dragon-type. "Alright, I guess you're right. But, why do we have to leave?" I always ask the stupidest questions just to piss people off sometimes, I swear. "Well, unless you want to try and be friendly to a Charizard, I suggest we leave!" "Its always worth a shot. And besides, who knows. Maybe its just a trainer." "Alright, well Im going to wait in the truck. You go look for a while then, and turn on your emergency siren if you get into trouble. Please, Seth, be careful." "I will. I promise. I just really want a pokemon, that's all."

I guess he felt the way I feel about not having a pokemon, cause he was like that before he got Sage. After Seth left to the truck, I followed were I thought the footprints led into the brush. I made sure to leave glowsticks along the way, in case I got lost. After I while, I got tired, walking through all the snow and such, so I took a quick break, had a snack, took a drink of water, then was back on my feet. After a while, I sort of wondered if these tracks were even fresh. I trust Cody on these things, and even though it hasn't snowed in a while, there's still no way to know for sure. Besides, I haven't been looking too long, so maybe I still have a chance. It was about 20 minutes later, when I was finally about to give up, I thought I saw something. In the distance, about 100 feet or so, I could see a light of some sort, which sort of looked like a flame. I called up Cody to check in, being as quiet as possible. "Hello?" "Cody, sorry i've been out so long, but I think I may have found something!" "Wait, you mean you actually found a pokemon?" He sounded all surprised. "Well, yeah! but-" I was cut off. "Be quiet Seth! If you did find something, you don't want to scare it off!" "Oh, right. Heh.." I sound like a little kid right now, all yelling on the phone. "Ok, do you want me to come out there Seth and help?" I was debating this, wondering if I should have him come and help me out. I didn't want 'Help' catching my first pokemon, though. I have to admit, a dragon type like Charizard wouldn't be easy to handle. Screw it, ill take my chances. "Nah, i'm going to try and catch it by myself!" "Seth, are you sure? There's so many scenarios that could go very wrong here! For example you could scare it off, or you-" "I get it, I get it, i'll be fine." "Hmm, alright, but you'd better call me if anything happens. I better not get a call to attend a funeral." That made me feel a little scared, not gonna lie. "Alright, I promise to be careful!" "Ok, i'll be waiting for you in the truck. Hurry up." As I hung up, i'd noticed the creature had moved since I last saw it. I quickly but quietly made my way down a hill, over to a large tree. I got ever so closer, walking until I was about 30 feet away, when I was finally able to make out what that creature was. A rather large flame was connected to a large tail, extending up its broad midsection, going up to it's neck and head, with a large jaw, 3 spikes on its head, as well as massive wings. There's no way. This is a Charizard, but not any old Charizard. No, this was, by the looks, a Mega Charizard Y. I was stunned. I didn't know how this was even possible. A Charizard in mega form, not in battle. The fact there was even an actual charizard up here was awesome. As I got a little closer, I realized it was resting against a tree. It seemed to be holding something, almost trying to do something with it. As I was about to pull out my phone to take a quick picture, a voice stunned and turned me cold. "Hey, who is that over there! Show yourself!" I couldn't even move for about 10 seconds, but I managed to check my phone, to see if that was a voice message or something. To my horror, it wasn't my phone. I turned, only to find the charizard standing about 5 feet away. I couldn't think of anything. I was frozen in place, staring at this charizard, who was staring me down. Finally, after about about a minute, it spoke up. "I said, WHY have you come?!" I didn't know how to respond. I was so shocked that I almost fell over. "Um..n….nothing." "Don't lie to me." "I was...looking...for a...uh...p-po-" "Pokemon?" "Y-yes" I can't believe I wasn't dead right now. Yet again, there was also the fact that a pokemon was TALKING to me. "P-please don't hurt me, Chari-" "My name is Sage. Call me Sage. And i'm not going to eat you, or whatever." "Sage, ok..." This was literally the dumbest conversation i've ever had. Or at least, right now it was. "Listen," Sage said. "Look, I know you didn't expect all this, and sorry for getting angry and all." Sage said, almost in a sad tone. I sorta felt bad for him (Assuming its a he.), even after he seemed to be filled with hatred. He spoke up again. "Listen, uhh-" "Seth. Seth's the name". "Listen, Seth, I just want to be alone right now, so can you leave me be?" "Why, what's happened? We can talk about it?" He didn't like that idea very much, given his facial expression. "Listen, Seth, it's a long story, and I don't think you'll understand." "Well, if it makes you feel any better, I can tell you a personal story, in exchange for yours." He contemplated this for a second, and agreed. "I... Uh….oh what does it matter. Fine. Ill tell you."