Clefairy

"The astronauts landed on the moon yesterday," a girl said, skipping along the rocky mountain path. "An' we all went to the Pokecenter an' watched it on TV."

A step behind her, her brother scanned the area. Recent reports warned of rock slides started by troublesome Geodudes. Those Pokemon were also known for tripping unwary travelers, like his sister. "I know. I saw it too in Cerulean."

"An' they found out that the moon isn't made of green cheese," she went on, not noticing that he was barely paying attention to the conversation. "It's made of lots an' lots of gray rocks. An' craters. Some are little craters an' some are greater craters." She laughed.

"Yeah." They were still under the tree line, so hardy pines were dotted around the path. This side of Mount Moon wasn't that bad of a climb anyhow. Decades ago, a meteorite had crashed into the mountain, knocking off at least a hundred feet from the peak. Now it was a lopsided feature of the Kanto landscape.

"So when are we gonna find a Clefairy?"

"Hmm..." And odd Pokemon lived in the area. They got attracted to the meteorite. It was said that the space rock had a high magnetic field, so compasses got messed up close to it. In his years as a traveling Trainer, he'd learned to rely on other means to get around, over, and through the mountain. His family lived in Pewter, but the most important cities of Kanto were on the other side.

The girl grabbed his arm, nearly causing him to slip down the slope beside the path. "Hey, pay attention when I'm talking."

"Watch it!" He stepped back from the edge and swatted her away. "This path is a bit dangerous. I've traveled it a lot, but don't distract me."

She frowned at him. "I was asking when we'll find a Clefairy."

"We won't be."

"What? But that's the Pokemon I want to start with, a Clefairy! They are from the moon, you know. The astronauts brought one with them, like a guide I guess. An' she was able to leave the spaceship without a space suit, while the people astronauts had to have space suits or they'd freeze instantly, or something like that."

Holding his hand up, he shook his head. It was difficult to get a word in edgewise with her going on about subjects she liked, like the moon and outer space. "I said we won't be. I've been over this mountain dozens of times going back and forth from Pewter to the east side of Kanto. Not once have I even seen a hair of a Clefairy."

"But they're supposed to be here," she said, sticking her lower lip out in a pout.

"You're better off finding a Jigglypuff at the foot of the mountain. I think you'd like one of them. They're practically the same as Clefaries."

"They are not. Clefairies are prettier."

He threw his hands up. "How are they prettier? They're both round, pink, and cute. They both sing well. Too well, cause my Pokemon keep falling asleep to Jigglypuff's lullabies."

"Clefaires got a prettier little curl of fur in front of their face," the girl said, pulling a strand of her own straight hair in front and bending it up. "An' Jigglypuffs have great big blue eyes. They're creepy. Our neighbor has one an' I bet he only blinks once a day. Clefairies have a prettier face that's not creepy at all."

"Well if you run into one, you're welcome to catch it. But I've never seen one in person. Especially not here."

The girl looked down, pouting to more effect. "But Mom told you to help me catch the Pokemon I want."

"I know what she said," he replied in annoyance. "But I can't help you catch a Pokemon we're not going to find."

Spitefully, she didn't speak to her brother the rest of the day.

That night, they camped at one of the public rest sites provided by the Pokemon League. Although her brother was asleep already, the girl couldn't fall asleep. She was supposed to start her career as a Pokemon Trainer this weekend, and she wanted to start with a Clefairy. But her brother was only being as helpful as he had to be. He brought her out here and immediately tried to talk her into catching something else.

She left the shelter and lay on a rock to watch the stars. There was a full moon in the sky. Bright and mystical, yet there were people and Pokemon on its surface right now. That was amazing. And the stars were amazing too. According to scientists, there might be other planets around those stars. Would they have people and Pokemon on those planets too? It was an astounding thought that had fascinated her ever since she saw a movie about aliens and outer space a few months back.

Zip! A pink blur moved just in her range of sight.

Sitting up quickly, she caught a glimpse of a round pink Pokemon flying west. A Clefairy? Maybe. Old folk tales said that they came out under the full moon. The girl chased after it.

The pine needles tried to prick her and the pebbly path tried to trip her. But she persevered and came to a flat clearing. Flying around here were seven Clefairies. They talked in their own language, laughed with each other, and seemed to be having fun. Smiling, the girl stepped into their clearing.

As one, they stopped and turned to her. They were quiet.

For a moment, she thought that they would run away. But when they simply stayed where they were, she put her hands together. "Sorry, I just wanted to play with you."

"Coo?" A couple of them looked to others. A few of them kept watching her. Making its small wings flutter, one flew closer to her. "Coo?"

She pointed up at the moon. "Hey, did you hear that the astronauts landed on the moon yesterday? An' they took a Clefairy with them. I want to go to the moon."

Deciding she must be all right, the Clefairies giggled. The one approaching her took her hand and smiled. "Kwi!"

They let her play with them, showing her how to dance in a round like they did. Several of them sang in their loveliest voices and others put on mime acts. But although the evening was fun, it was also enchanting. She never could remember it clearly later on, other then how beautifully they sang to the full moon.

In the morning, she woke up in the public rest area to her brother's yelp. "Th-there's actually a Clefairy here!"

"Cle fah!" the Clefairy echoed, laughing at him.

After blinking a moment, she realized that her brother was trying to find his Trainer belt, where his Pokemon team was stored. She hugged the Clefairy. "No, she's mine! We're gonna go to space together!"

Fifteen years later, they did precisely that.

…

Clefairy Pearl entry: It flies using the wings on its back to collect moonlight. This Pokémon is difficult to find.

This was posted on the anniversary of the lunar landing.