Eevee: The Evolution Pokemon.

An urban species, Eevee is a genetic marvel that has the ability to evolve in multiple forms, in accordance with its surrounding environment. A brown and cream colored quadruped, Eevee is known for its uniquely unstable DNA structure, which contains an additional base. This base is not found in any other organism on Earth other than in fossils of Mew, and because it is composed of trace amounts of radioactive substance, it is extremely prone to mutating in response to external stimuli.

Currently, there are several known stimuli that can activate an Eevee's evolution, including that of evolutionary stones and certain habitats. The area around a certain mossy rock in Eterna Forest has reportedly been able to produce Leafeon, one of Eevee's branch evolutions. Another possible link to this pokemon's evolution is affection; leading to the appearance of Espeon and Umbreon, two diametrically opposed breeds in both temperament and abilities, as well as Sylveon, a recently discovered species whose background is shrouded in mystery.

Because of the diversity of the possibilities when training Eevee, many trainers have used the pokemon in competitive play to fill a large variety of niche positions. Vaporeon, Espeon, and Sylveon are notorious players in League Cups, and all relatively have superior abilities and hidden abilities. Espeon, specifically, has the hidden ability Magic Bounce, which allows it to repel stat lowering status moves, non-damaging status condition-inducing moves, entry hazard moves, and so on. This ability sets Espeon out as a major offensive wall and threat to the competitive metagame.

Otherwise, many trainers love their Eevee as it is and have them carry around an Everstone to prevent it from evolving. Eevee's fawning and impish nature makes it a popular pokemon within the pokemon community, some starring in their own television shows or in PR advertisements.

Gold and I left Professor Oak's lab after confirming the tickets to the S.S. Anne, which was scheduled to depart for Unova at the end of the month. That gave us approximately a fortnight to get to Vermillion, a week and a half trip (which could be done in a day upon Charizard, if one wanted to regret living for the next month); therefore, we decided to spend the next few days lounging around Pallet -and delaying the momentous news to Mother. She was nonchalant when we arrived back at the residence, already sweeping out the floors with a somnolent Mr. Mime (who, oldened along the years, has become quite a cranky old stooge).

To my surprise, the small vegetable garden she was tending so long ago had become something of an enigma; there were vines and bushes and Budew tangled about within a miniature jungle, which had sprouted from previous memory as a docile plot, with nubs of basil and tomato plants poking out from the soil. Mother had apparently forgotten about ever tending to plants, or simply gave up the backbreaking chore, several months after my initial departure, and lo and behold, the wild Viridian forest pokemon (and Oak's fugitive escapees) had gathered to form a little community within the untrimmed brambles. It made quite a startling contrast with the neatly manicured lawn at the front of the house that I and Blue broke into yesterday.

This wilderness was where we spent the whole afternoon, I mowing the grasses that swarmed like Beedrill towards the back porch, and Gold performing midday radio calisthenics under the sun with his pokemon and Pikachu. The solitary shouts of the DJ from his Pokegear wafted across the yard, in beat with the exercisers, and beads of sweat could be seen staining the dark fur of Gold's Weavile.

"One, two, three, four! Put your back in it, bend down, stretch out!"

"Five, six, seven, eight! Reach up and arch left, then arch right!"

Ahh, youth. The Johto Pokegear have advanced by leaps and bounds since I was able to sneak a peek at the exclusive prototype, back during the Silph Co. technology exhibition. It used to be just a digital wrist watch to call your mother with, how embarrassing…

The newly received Pokedex in my shorts pocket began to vibrate, and I rested my arm on the mower handle, flipping it open with my other hand. Looking at the caller ID, a very functional tool in the age of shameless advertisements and prank calls, the call appeared to be from the devilishly annoying and apparently useless dependent, my rival.

...Nope. I already dealt with you an hour ago, why are you harassing me again?

I sighed, and 'answered' the phone.

"Hallu? This is the Red residence, "

"Oh hey, Red! How you doin! I just snuck out with one of these thingamabobs and it's great! Did you know that you can even download Pong and Tetris on this thing! Needless to say, I used Gramps credit card to pay for…"

Already tired of his rambling, I laid the device gently on the porch, and resumed my siege against the lawn demons.

After a grueling fistfight with the weeds that remained after I chopped up the tall grass, I laid stretched out on the veranda, fully satisfied with being able to finally see visible ground. No more Rattata and Spearow nests on my property! Looking lazily at the Pokedex, I could see the call time in faded black, flashing: 36:17.

...Wait, were you so desperate to talk to someone? I commend you on your dedication, but that's just sad…

Gold trundled over, his calisthenics finished, and his outline blocking out the harsh glare of the sun, nearing the midday zenith. Now that I look at him, he was shorter than me by a head, his mid-length hair poking out in sharp locks from his custom gold and black hat. Glistening sweat ran down his arms, well toned and sculpted. He must have spent a good time living near the beach in his youth… On the other hand I'm as pale and as wiry one could get. Instead of jogging on sandy paths I ran throughout underground mazes and snow drifts.

"..."

"What?"

He sat down next to me, legs dangling out over the edge of the gallery.

"It sure is nice out here, isn't it? I was considering whether to report you to the police this morning when I woke up in the middle of Timbuktu, but after meeting Professor Oak, getting a brand new Pokedex, and seeing the great backyard of Pallet, I might just disregard it. It'll depend on how much fun you can give me in Unova, though."

Did he just smirk at me? Should I have just dumped this leech at the Mount Silver Pokemon Center?

"...?￢ﾀﾝ

"Ah! That's right! Red, battle me right now, let's finish what we started on Mount Silver."

"...Bring it."

We stalked out towards the freshly mowed field, and expanding our pokeballs, we prepared to duel. Kanto Champion vs Johto Champion, go!

Two bursts of light flashed, and our second revealed pokemon appeared. Gold's Noctowl gave a triumphant squawk as it descended to the ground, and was met with an opposing growl by my one and only Venusaur before rearing up again. Oh, intelligent predator of the skies, bow to your god! Like my Snorlax who was extremely large for its size, almost reaching the tip of a story building in height, Venusaur planted out over the space of a small room, its petals each the length of a kid. As they say, bigger is better.

My first attack will be retribution for Snorlax.

Witness my pokemon's power!

"[Frenzy Plant]!"

The petals on Venusaur's back pulsed green, and the frantic roots underneath its feet swelled and burst from the ground. Growing thicker than the stems of small trees, they lashed out with startling flexibility.

"Back, Noctowl, back up!"

The roots narrowly missed the startled bird as it flapped away, but they veered back and lashed the wings with brutal force. Noctowl are lesserly-known for their application of echolocation with their superior vision, so it was no surprise that it managed to dodge at the last second the first time with its honed speed.

"...Begin charging."

Since the main objective of weakening Noctowl was secured, I moved the strategy towards another direction. The roots ducked down towards Venusaur and began curling around it like a twister, covering up the main body of the pokemon. Although the top was left uncovered, the living shell would move to attack anything that came right from above.

It was a technique created from observing the use of [Spiky Shield] by another pokemon. A defense that dealt damage with contact could be applied with manipulation of [Razor Leaf], but this was more versatile in terms of cooperation with other attacks, and would not be blasted away with something like [Gust].

Little known from the outside, since the roots also functioned as a dense cover, the flower on Venusaur's back was glowing steadily.

"What is this trickery! Noctowl, [Air Slash]! Wipe it all out!"

With a single flap, Noctowl responded mercilessly, sending a wave of air that dug into the ground, leaving a ditch. It struck the side of the mass of roots, leaving a deep chink in the armor, but which was quickly enveloped and closed up. Also unlike a razor leaf wall, this defense was regenerative based on the Venusaur's energy. And with mine this powerful, it was a only drop in a bucket to maintain it. Talk about being absurdly overpowered. One would have to roast the entire mass alive to take it down.

However, it didn't stop Gold and his pokemon from perceiving what lay within the defense.

"Get in close, and use [Psychic] to break it open!"

You've activated my trap card! Hahahaha, face your demise!

"..." A slight grin surfaced on my face.

Noctowl swooped in close, dodging the flailing roots and perching on the outside of the defense before an energy burst in its eyes, forming a psychic force around the central body. I could see it was not something to be on leisure about, as the struggle between the force and the roots were punctuated with tearing and groaning sounds. A lumberjack would have to had spent an hour on this, as its durability was hard as rock. Eventually the bundle split open at the center, with a tremendous crack, and exposed the fully powered Venusaur at the middle. A single, pure sphere of light was condensed at the center of the flower.

While Noctowl was engaged with the defense, my side was powering up for the ultimate move!

Gold belatedly noticed this, and shouted out, "Do a barrel roll, now!", but it was all for naught!

I dropped the verdict.

"[Solar Beam]."

Noctowl shot up, and was engulfed in the light. Like a laser beam, [Solar Beam] expanded out to rip into the sky, very death-cannon-esqe.

All that remained in the aftermath of the havoc was baked bird. Noctowl wasn't dead, per se, but knocked out and then some. As a high level pokemon, it unsurprisingly managed to survive the max brunt of the attack. I'd give it a week for it to recover fully. That, or lots of revival herbs.

"Uwahh, so strong!" The shouts of oohs and ahhs originated from the sidelines.

Partway into our competition, we had unsuspectingly gathered an audience. Mother brought out a rocking chair and was recording on her laptop -wait, where did she even get that, Professor Oak was sitting on the veranda petting Pikachu, and the next door neighbor's children and Blue were leaning against the fence of the yard, cheering with his Aerodactyl. Oi, put that thing away. Look, even the children are scared of the screeching predator!

"Final judgement! Noctowl is unable to battle! Red and Venusaur win the match!"

And the crowd of children (and Blue) went wild. Gold recalled his pokemon and prepared to take out another pokeball but was stopped by Mother who went up him.

"Dearies, it's almost time for dinner, why don't you two finish your battle another time, okay?"

That was fine to me, although it seemed that Gold was a little unsatisfied, looking back at his pokeball. I went up to Venusaur, who being the lazy thing he is, was sleeping on the spot. The thick hide on its body was covered in roughish spots that jutted out like calluses, denoting the amount of extensive battling it had went through. Through that mess, it didn't stop me from noticing that a gash issuing greenish blood had appeared on its right flank, slowly closing up.

I thought back to the when Gold's Noctowl ripped into the ground. An [Air Slash] managed to get through the barrier? His Noctowl is really something, alright.

The group of people that crowded our yard for some reason followed us into the house, and with Mother being the considerate person she is, she went and cooked up a storm. It almost reminds me of the relatives coming over for New Year's, and Blue's family bringing gifts and money.

It also reminded me of how I spent my New Year's in a freezing hut with a celebratory hot cocoa.

I think I'm about to cry now.

After supper, everyone left, and while cleaning up the dishes I was overhearing the conversation between Mother and Gold, laughing at her old photo albums. I don't think I've had a picture since the trainer registration at lab, so many years ago. After becoming Champion, I've hid from the press at every opportunity.

Slipping underneath my nice covers an hour later, Gold taking the guest room (across from Mother's), I fell asleep against the soft yellow fur of my partner.

Some time later, I was woken up in the middle of the darkness with the sound of horns blaring outside the house. Who could it be at this time?

Looking up, the alarm clock read 5:45 in neon blue, projecting out on the ceiling. I suppose Mother must've been to Goldenrod or Celadon when I was away, and bought the newest craze on impulse while thinking that 'Red might like this'. She surprisingly has good taste (sorry, mom).

Putting on a black polo, I groggily snatched up a pokeball and opened the window, about ready to fling it at somebody's head. At the front of the house was a red jeep -Professor Oak's red jeep I might add- with the lights blaring out into the darkness of the road. Surprisingly enough, Mother was already outside, waving at me, with the Prof., Blue, and Gold in tow, all sleeping in the backseat.

"Hurry up, dear, we'll be leaving without you! It takes a day to get to Viridian and another three to sail to Vermillion!"

Huh?