Kecleon

Some people working on the Pokedex got all the glory: the professors, the kids who became Champions. But there were a lot of folks who did work and were only known as names in the contributors list (which very few people actually read). There were technicians who kept the internet database available and up-to-date. There were the analysts and editors who looked over tables of raw data and chose what to put as average statistics and general growth. And there were photographers who got all the pictures, both amateur and professional.

And then there were people like her, Pokemon watchers. Trainers were great for getting information about Pokemon; at least, info on captive Pokemon. Watchers were important for gathering data on Pokemon in the wild. Camping out in Pokemon territory, she saw how Pokemon interacted with each other, both their kin species and those who were not. Some species antagonized each other, like the Zangoose and Seviper populations. Others worked hand in hand (paw in paw?) like the Jigglypuff and Clefairy groups which occasionally gathered to sing in rounds. Still others would ignore any other Pokemon around.

Right now, she was preparing for an extended stay on Mount Pyre, to make observations of the Pokemon living there. A good number of the residents were Ghost types, including some who were rumored or known to go invisible. But that was no longer an obstacle. She now had special eyeglasses and a camera lens that would allow her to see normally invisible things.

She left Fortree heading east. Mount Pyre was actually southeast of here, but the route to get there from here meandered and was full of ledges. While one could cut out a good amount of time by cutting through the forest, there were only unmarked footpaths in there. Not being familiar enough to know to correct ones to take, she opted to take the official route instead. Even if that meant walking around a large crater lake and then walking back over it to the other side.

She paused right before the wooden bridge suspended over the lake. There were other log bridges built like this one around Hoenn, mostly over small rivers. However, this one was over a large lake. There was a twenty-five foot drop to the water's surface, and a good thirty feet at least to the bottom of the crater lake. Despite this, there were absolutely no guard rails on the sides. There were posts every few feet holding up the bridge, but nothing to prevent people from falling off. She hated crossing this particular bridge, but most sides of the lake were walled off by cliffs; the one shore was on the south edge.

Someday, she would earn the right to use Fly and avoid this bridge altogether. Or maybe find a Pokemon willing to Teleport her around things like this. Staying in the center of the bridge, the watcher walked briskly along. Just look ahead, she told herself. Look at the ribbons on the posts if you must. But don't look dow-ow!

Grimacing from her stubbed toes, she stumbled back until she regained her balance. She'd obviously walked into something. However, nothing was there. And whatever she had hit was off the surface, so it couldn't have been the logs. What was it? Nothing?

And she had just the thing to check. Smiling, she pulled out the glasses from her bag; they appeared to have a smoky gray tint to them, but it was actually a film that let her human eyes see just past their visible range. She looked down at the bridge.

There was a Pokemon there. But not a Ghost type. She would have walked right through a Ghost and just had a strange cold feeling. No, this was a large lizard type Pokemon, with a long curling tail and a frilled head. A Kecleon.

On realizing that, the watcher felt excited. It was known that Kecleons lived somewhere in this area, but few had been recorded wild. That was due to their ability to shift their scales to mimic any surface and any color. If one was caught, it was most likely due to the zigzag stripe on their belly, which could shift color, but not texture. This one was laying on its belly to bask in the sunlight, hiding its stripe. As a Normal-type, the watcher had walked right into it.

She was supposed to start a study of Mount Pyre's Pokemon… then again, who knew when she'd run into another Kecleon? Maybe she could use a quick observation of this one to request a search and study of them later. Even if it meant hanging around this bridge for a long period of time, it would be fascinating to study a rare Pokemon like this in the wild.

After taking its picture with and without the revealing lens, she took out a Pokeball to confirm that this was a wild Pokemon. The Kecleon turned its head to observe her when she brought it out. She didn't need to battle it, though. All she needed to do was get the Pokeball's status screen to indicate that it was a valid target. As captured Pokemon were stored as digital data, it changed them just enough for electronics to tell the unseen difference between a captive and wild Pokemon. As it confirmed that this Kecleon was indeed a valid target, she put the Pokeball away and looked for a place to sit for a bit.

On this crazy rail-less bridge, the best spot was near one of the support posts. The watcher walked around the invisible Pokemon and put herself by one of them, closer to the Pokemon's head. Most of them felt more secure if a human watcher was in their sight. This Kecelon eyed her, then put its head down and relaxed again.

There was a slight breeze, but nothing to worry about. The watcher became absorbed in recording data about the sighting. Granted, there wasn't much to write about when a Pokemon was just sleeping there, but any observation could turn out to be important. In the background, she heard footsteps running across the bridge. But she was busy transferring the pictures and sorting out a new file to really notice.

That is, until a teen girl ran right into the Kecleon, tripping right over it and falling on her face.

The watcher jumped, nearly tossing her notebook computer off the bridge and into the lake. A Sceptile turned around and bounded back to the girl in concern; it made a worried query about her condition. On the other hand, the Kecleon merely looked up, undisturbed that someone had just tripped over it.

"Are you okay?" the watcher asked, turning to her bag. "I can get you a first aid kit."

She got up onto her knees and felt her face. Nothing was bleeding, so it seemed. "No time," she said, getting onto her feet. "Gotta race."

But before she could run off, the Kecleon raised its upper body higher off the ground. Its tongue snapped out in the blink of an eye, snatching a candy treat out of the girl's pants pocket. While it lay back down and worked on getting the wrapper off, she jumped and nearly stumbled into her Sceptile turning around. She couldn't see the Kecleon, though.

She could see her. "Hey, what was that for, you weirdo?" she complained, rubbing her hip.

The watcher held her hand up. "I didn't do anything, I swear. You can't see it, but…"

"Gangway!" a boy yelled, rushing down the bridge with a Swampert right behind him.

That was kind of scary, the watcher thought, seeing a bulky Pokemon like that rushing right for her. She grabbed her bag and pulled her knees closer. Nearby, the Sceptile crouched down, ready to fight, or at least stall them. But then the boy tripped over the Kecleon too, crashing into the girl and causing her to yelp. Their combined motions sent them tumbling off the edge of the bridge and into the lake. The Swampert veered off the edge after its Trainer just before it hit the Kecleon. As the first crash sounded, the Sceptile leapt off the bridge too.

Stunned, the watcher just sat there for a moment, blinking. What were those kids up to? A race of some kind? She would never want to race across a bridge like this herself. When she looked over the side, she could see that the boy was clinging to his Swampert, while the girl had called out a Gyrados. The two were arguing.

And the drop left her feeling dizzy and sick to her stomach. She hated straight drops and agreed to the Mount Pyre watch primarily because it didn't have many steep grades. She would still have to avoid the cliffs, though. When she looked back, the Kecleon still looked unbothered by the fuss it was causing.

There was another pair of footsteps running across the bridge. Now, there was a boy and a Blaziken rushing across. That would really not end well, the watcher thought. So she waved her hand. "Watch out kid, there's a…"

"Stay outta my way!" the boy called back, moving himself to the other side.

Good, the watcher thought. He'd at least miss the Kecleon. But his Blaziken was still in the middle, so she tried to wave it over too.

No luck. Not only did the Fire Pokemon run right into the lounging lizard, but the Kecleon stretched its tail out at the right moment to catch the boy and cause him to fall over too. Out of concern for its Trainer, the Blaziken tried to grab hold of him to keep him from hitting the bridge. But their combined motions conspired to throw them off the bridge instead, and into the lake just like the pairs ahead of them.

The watcher looked to the Kecleon, who was still working at the hard candy and lazing about. It curled its tail in and settled its forelegs under its chin. A perfect picture of contentment. Or amusement?

"You really get a kick out of that, don't you?" the watcher asked.

"…cleon…" the Pokemon muttered softly. But there was a sparkle like laughter to its eyes.

Lesson of the Day: If you don't want to be the April Fool, don't hurry.

…

Kecleon Sapphire entry: Kecleon alters its body coloration to blend in with its surroundings, allowing it to sneak up on prey unnoticed. Then it lashes out with its long stretchy tongue to instantly ensnare the unsuspecting target.