Glalie and Bellossom

The air was cold and damp. The skies were cloudy and dim. The ground was icy and hard. Although it was below freezing, Duke Glalie was perfectly happy with the circumstances.

Some said that Duke had once been a Geodude, with a heart so frozen that the ice spread out to protect his body. Others said that he was a vengeful ghost, keeping the land as cold as it had been when he had died. And it was even said that he was the son of Winter itself. The stories were all ridiculous, but he enjoyed them secretly.

He lived in a castle that he had built himself, although no one else knew how. It was made of clear ice, warping the light into cold glares and bright spears. It had corkscrew spirals instead of stairs, open slots instead of windows, and frozen sculptures instead of furnishings. In the central and highest room, Duke had made a grand throne from which he liked to gaze over his creation and, indeed, what he thought of as his lands.

Most of the Pokemon living near Duke's Castle were too busy trying to survive the harsh winter to challenge his rule. And the Glalie never demanded anything, unless one strayed into his courtyard. Then he wanted unquestioning respect. So most would leave him and his castle of ice alone.

One day, a stranger came into the castle. He was a small Pokemon, with a bright green body, red flowers for hair, and a thick grass skirt down to the ground. He shuffled into the throne room. "Hey, what's this castle here for?"

"It's my castle, and it'll be where I want it to be," Duke replied. "What are you dong here, you... plant?"

He made a dramatic bow, then twirled around. "I am one of the Bellossom. I come here every year, about this time, to dance and make the sun shine!"

"You can't do that. This is my land and I don't want it to be sunny."

"But I have to make it sunny. Spring is upon us."

"Not anymore. I like winter and so it's going to stay winter."

The Bellossom put his hands to his mouth in shock. "But spring has to come! Or we will all die."

"That's not true. And I won't allow any sun dances to go on."

"But you can't do that."

"I can make you stop!" He took a deep breath, then blasted a stream of ice at the smaller Pokemon. The Bellossom squealed and ran out of the castle. "Stupid plant."

Five minutes later, another Bellossom came into the throne room. She pranced in by twirling in a zig-zag fashion rather than walking in straight and practical. "Hey, what's this castle here for?"

Duke Glalie growled. "Are you here to dance for the sun too?"

She smiled, bowed, and twirled around. "Yes! Every year, I..."

"Not this year!" He nearly hit her with his ice breath as well, but she managed to rush out before he did.

Five minutes later, another Bellossom came in. Duke didn't wait for this one to say anything. Instead, he drove her out immediately. Four more came in, but also got driven out. After a while, the seven Bellossoms gathered near the outer wall of the castle.

"What do we do now?" the youngest one asked. "We have to dance and bring the sun back out. But that mean Glalie has put his castle right on our dancing field."

"Can we dance somewhere else?"

"No," the oldest one said. "It has to be this spot, because it's always this spot."

Another one clapped her hands together. "I know! Can you see that mean Glalie from here?"

"No," the others said.

"Because the wall's there. That means he can't see us either. So, we can dance right outside his wall!"

"Great!" the oldest one said. "So let's begin right away."

In most cases, they would sing as they danced for the sun. Since they had to be careful, this time they danced in silence. It was an ancient dance passed on through generations, two circles around a leader, twirling and swirling in graceful patterns. As it was still cold and icy, the dance was solemn. But once the air grew warm and the land grew green, they would repeat the dance in cheer and celebration.

It took many rounds, over an hour of constant dance before the cloud cover broke, allowing golden rays to filter down to the ground. Once it broke through, the sun quickly dispersed the clouds and shone bright over the white landscape.

Squinting, Duke looked at the now cleared sky. "Bah," he said to himself. "So they got the sun to come out. But that doesn't matter! They cannot end the winter where I rule."

But as the clouds went away, they pulled warm air into the area. The sun reflected off every icy surface, further bringing the temperature up. The ice weakened over the rest of the day, dripping down to the ground and cracking as various Pokemon came out to explore. And Duke's Castle became frail.

He became angry. "They can't do this to me! I'm the ruler here! I'll show them." He began rolling around his castle, using the sheer frigidness of his power to enforce the supporting columns.

But as soon as he'd strengthen one column, three others would begin to crack. The floor creaked and trembled under his weight. The reflected light became spread out and brighter. Finally, as the sun was close to touching the horizon, there was a mighty crack and the whole ice castle crumbled in on itself.

The seven Bellossoms clambered onto the pile of ice shards and approached Duke Glalie. "You should come dance with us!" the youngest said. "Dance for spring!"

He burst out of his broken castle. "What? Never! I'll be back next year, and you won't be able to defeat me then!"

Then he fled for the icy caves of the north.

…

Ruby entry: Glalie has a body made of rock, which it hardens with an armor of ice. This Pokemon has the ability to freeze moisture in the atmosphere into any shape it desires.

Leaf Green entry: Bellossom gather at times and appear to dance. They say that the dance is a ritual to summon the sun.

It should be obvious, but this was posted for the first day of spring. I like this kind of mini-mythic tale.