A Dragon's Tail
Tail 1: Rachael's Tail – Contamination
Tail 1-4: To the Forest Capital
Jasper and Zenpai both became shocked, but they were very good at concealing their emotions.
"…What makes you think that, madam Lydia?" Zenpai asked.
"Because if both of you truly hate each other, you won't become an exchange student and got exchanged to the same village, right?" Lydia answered. "And I saw it in your eyes that if both of you truly hate each other, your eyes would be filled with the spark of hate, but I only see the spark of a very strong bond of friendship."
Lydia's sharp answer cornered both Sceptile and Scyther, and both of them yielded to her.
"…You are right, madam." Jasper yielded.
"B…But if both of you didn't hate each other, why did you have to pretend like you hate each other?" Rachael was confused.
Jasper and Zenpai looked at each other. Both of them didn't seem to want to answer this question.
"Rachael, shouldn't you go and prepare your stuff for your journey?" Lydia asked.
"Oh! I forgot about that!" Rachael said.
"Then we shall take our leave now." Zenpai stood up, and Jasper did the same thing.
"Then, see both of you tomorrow." Lydia said.
"See you too, and thank you for the food. It was delicious." Zenpai and Jasper spoke before they left the house.
"Then, see you tomorrow, mother!" Rachael spoke and moved up to her room upstairs to prepare for tomorrow's journey.
Rachael looked at the bookshelf, and then she picked two books from there. One of them is "Berries and Seed", a book that explained about the berries and seeds such as their usage and how to grow them, while the other book is "War of Jasmine", the book of fairy tale her mother gave to her. She then put it into her bag along with her cloth and other travel accessories such as the map of the Continent of Symmetria and her flower-patterned sleeping bag.
"I have a bit of savings…" Rachael took all of her Pokecoin she saved from the piggy bank and put them in her purse. "I will buy a lot of souvenirs for mother!"
Rachael looked at her bag again. Now she had finished preparing her stuff for tomorrow's journey!
"Tomorrow, I will do my best!" Rachael spoke to herself and moved up to her bed. She then prepared to sleep when something caught her attention. It was the object on her night stand.
"…" Rachael picked it. It is a pendant in the shape of a misty ball that she always carried it with her. Seeing this reminded her of something that is missing from her life now…
"Onii-chan… Where are you?" Rachael mumbled to herself before she put it on the night stand again and fell into a deep sleep.
The Next Day…
"Here you are."
Lydia handed over a basket of food to Rachael. "I had prepared food not only for you, but also for Jasper and Zenpai too. It should be enough for a three-day journey."
"Thank you, Mother!" Rachael said and placed it on the carriage, where her bag and the berries and seeds for delivery were.
"Rachael! Madam Lydia!"
Two voices attracted Lydia and Rachael's attention. And it belonged to Jasper and Zenpai who were just arriving at the Paradise Farm. Both of them seemed to be ready for the adventure.
"Good morning! Jasper! Zenpai!" Rachael greeted.
"Good morning, Rachael, Madam Lydia." Jasper and Zenpai greeted back.
"Are you ready for the journey?" Lydia asked.
"Of course!" Rachael, Jasper and Zenpai answered.
"Then…" Lydia walked up to Zenpai. "Zenpai-san, can I leave Rachael in your care?"
"Of course." Zenpai responded. "I promise that I will always protect her from any harm."
"Thank you…" Lydia spoke before she turned her attention to Jasper. "Jasper-san, can I leave Rachael in your care too?"
"Sure, ma'am." Jasper responded. "I promise not to let any harm touch Rachael."
"Thanks…" Lydia spoke and then turned her attention to Rachael. "Rachael, I wish you a safe travel."
"You too, mother!" Rachael hugged her mom. "Please do not overwork while I am away, okay?"
Lydia smiled gently and nodded. Then Rachael moved up to the carriage and took over the control. This carriage moved automatically without using the living creature's force, but it needed someone to take control of it, and Rachael already knew how to control it. Then both Zenpai and Jasper got into the carriage too.
"Good bye, mother!" Rachael waved at her mother as the carriage gradually moved out of the farm. Jasper and Zenpai did the same thing to her too.
"Take care, Rachael! And send a word to me once you reach the Leafburg City too!" Lydia said as the carriage moved away from her, until it was no longer able to be seen by her…
Normally, travelling from Forezon Town, which located in the northern area of the Principality of Leafburg, to Leafburg City, located in the central area of the nation, through the Leafburg Forest would take five days of walking, but it would take only three days by the carriage.
Actually, if the carriage moved at full speed, they may even reach the capital within tomorrow. However, they had to take good care for the berries or else they will get bruised and bad.
"Here!"
Rachael gave Figy Berries to Zenpai, who had just finished gathering the firewood for tonight, and Watmel Berries to Jasper, who had just finished making a campfire.
"Thanks." Jasper and Zenpai spoke and took a bite at the berry they received from Rachael while Rachael was eating an Oran Berry. The first day's journey ended here. They were lucky that there was no obstacle today. When the sun left the border of the sky, they stopped their journey. Now they are in a small plain surrounded by the Leafburg Forest. Zenpai insisted that they must make a camp here, not only to avoid the forest fire, but also to avoid an ambush from the wild Pokemon too.
"Whew!" Rachael spoke after she finished eating the Oran Berry. "Today went by pretty fast, don't you think, Jasper, Zenpai?"
"Yeah…" Zenpai answered.
"I hope tomorrow would be another good day." Jasper said.
Seeing both of her companion reminded Rachael about something. About the question she asked them yesterday…
"Jasper, Zenpai." Rachael looked at both of them. "Back then, why did both of you have to pretend that you hate each other?"
Once again that hearing the Latias' question made both Sceptile and Scyther restless. Both of them really seemed to not want to answer this.
"…Are you sure you do want to know?" Zenpai asked.
"Of course! Why shouldn't I? Or…" Rachael looked at Jasper and Zenpai. "Do both of you think that I am too young to know anything! Hm! Both of you are so mean!"
Rachael pouted at both Jasper and Zenpai, making both of them even more restless than before.
"W…Wait!" Jasper spoke. "F…Fine! We will tell you everything!"
"Hm! Big meanie!" Rachael still pouted at both of them, but she was still quite lovable even while pouting.
"I…It was because the War of Jasmine." Zenpai finally answered.
"War of Jasmine?!" Rachael said. "Do you mean the tale of Princesss Floria?"
"No, not that one." Jasper answered. "It was one of five great wars that happened on the continent of Symmetria. Do you know anything about it?"
Rachael thought back to when she was doing her homework, but other than the name of five great wars of Symmetria, she couldn't remember much about it.
"Whatever, let's explain." Jasper spoke up, and Zenpai started explaining.
"War of Jasmine was a second war that occurred on Symmetria. It was the civil war among the Pokemon of the Principality of Leafburg. It started 19 years ago, when there were three types of Pokemon that lived in this nation, the grass type, the bug type and the poison type. At first, the Principality of Leafburg was ruled by the poison type Pokemon, much to the displeasure of the Bug and Grass type Pokemon. So, both Bug type and Grass type started a revolution, which was the cause of the civil war. This civil war ended by all the Poison type Pokemon getting banished from the Principality of Leafburg, where they escaped to the north, and the chancellor of the Shadowlost Territory took them into refuge and gave the Venom Island to the west of the Shadowlost Territory to them, thus ended the problem of the refugees. But there's yet another problem…"
"Problem?" Rachael asked. "What's that?"
Jasper then continued the story.
"The War of Jasmine didn't end; even after the Poison type Pokemon got banished. It was the Grass type and Bug type Pokemon. Both of them were into a conflict of who will be the next ruler of the Principality of Leafburg, thus another war followed, much more intense than when the Poison type were still here. In the end, the conflict ended with the death of many, be a Bug type or a Grass type. This civil war finally came to the end when the Bug type and the Grass type decided to make a truce between each other, and a Parasect named Augustine became the Daimyo of the Principality of Leafburg as he is both Grass type and Bug type, thus this brutal civil war between the Grass type and Bug type was named after the fairy tale of a war between the Grass type and Bug type, the War of Jasmine."
"Yawn…" Rachael made a yawn after listening to the long story.
"So, do you see why both of us have to pretend like we hate each other?" Zenpai asked.
"No." Rachael answered. "That conflict was 19 years ago! I don't understand why we have to bind ourselves with a conflict that happened in the past!"
Zenpai and Jasper looked at each other again before Jasper answered.
"When we arrived at the Forezon Village, we saw that this village is a peaceful place where all kinds of Pokemon lived together in harmony, but in the other places, the conflict was much more intense. The Grass type and the Bug type in the Leafburg City didn't like each other, so it won't be good if they knew that we are friends, right?"
"B…But if the Forezon Village is a peaceful place, then why do you have to pretend to hate each other?" Rachael asked before she made a yawn again.
"It's getting late…" Zenpai spoke up.
"Rachael, you should go sleep. Zenpai and I will keep watching here." Jasper said.
"B…But…" Rachael spoke. "Both of you won't get enough sleep if you keep watching…"
"Don't worry. We will take turns for the watching. One of us will stay awake while the other will go to sleep. And even if we don't get enough sleep, we could still do it while we are in the carriage during the day." Zenpai spoke.
"Okay!" Rachael said and unfolded her flower-patterned sleeping bag and got into it. "See you tomorrow!"
"Good night, Rachael." Jasper and Zenpai said.
-The Next Morning
"Jasper! Wake up!"
Jasper's body was shaken. He slowly opened his eyes and felt that someone was shaking his body.
"Breakfast is ready! Hurry! We still have a long way to go!" Rachael spoke after she stopped shaking the Sceptile's body.
"Yawn…" Jasper was still sleepy. It was already 8.00. He had just gone to sleep at 1.30 when Zenpai took his turn for watching, and now he had to wake up again. He looked at the Scyther and saw that his rival's condition wasn't much different than him.
After breakfast, the party continued their journey. Today's journey also went smoothly, and soon, night came. Now they have only a few more miles to go. Zenpai calculated that they will reach the Leafburg City tomorrow before noon for sure if they didn't run into any trouble.
"Jasper, Zenpai." Rachael called both of them after dinner. Now all of them were sitting in front of the campfire. "Back in yesterday, why did both of you have to pretend like you hate each other even when you are in the Forezon Village?"
Jasper became restless and looked at Zenpai, who answered with a serious voice. "…Because if those ninjas who lurked around the Forezon Village knew that I am being friendly to Jasper, the Hokage shall not be pleased."
"Hokage?!" Rachael repeated Zenpai's word. "What is that?"
Zenpai closed his eyes for a bit and used his sense to make sure that no other Pokemon is around here. Then he continued answering.
"As you may already know, the Principality of Leafburg's warriors are Samurai and Ninja, and of course, Jasper is a Samurai while I am a Ninja. Ninja hide and train under the shadows at different places depending on what clan you are in, and each clan will be led by their Hokage. For me, Zenpai Bugslash the Scyther, I came from the Hidden Hamlet of Ninja located somewhere in the Principality of Leafburg, and the Hokage of my clan hated the Grass type Pokemon to the deepest part of his heart because during the War of Jasmine, a Grass type Samurai Pokemon killed his wife."
"Oh!" Rachael cried. "That's terrible!"
"That's why I have to pretend like that, or else the Hokage, or in the other words, my father, would find this out." Zenpai's word shocked Rachael even more.
"Y…You are the son of the Hokage?!" Rachael asked. "T…Then… Oh!" Rachael realized that if Zenpai is the son of the Hokage, then the Hokage's wife that got killed during the War of Jasmine must be Zenpai's mother! "I…I am sorry, Zenpai! For making you remember such a terrible thing."
"Don't worry about me, Rachael." Zenpai spoke. "I was just 3 years old when my mother died, so I couldn't remember anything about her… Except…"
"Except?" Rachael asked.
"…Never mind. I was just lost in thought." Zenpai answered, and Jasper spoke up.
"Zenpai and I met each other several years ago, and both of us were impressed by each other's battle skill, so we became friends, or should I say, friendly rivals? But as Zenpai said, we had to pretend like we hate each other, or else he will be in trouble."
"But…" Rachael seemed worried about something. "Isn't being a ninja mean that you must hide your identity and your life from anyone? So, why did you tell me your true identity?"
Zenpai looked into Rachael's eyes before giving an answer to her. "Rachael, I don't know why, but ever since when we first met each other, I felt like… we have something in common… And I also felt like I could trust you, even more than as a friend."
"Me too." Jasper spoke up. "It was like the time Zenpai and I met each other for the first time! Even if both of us are rivals, we could feel that both of us have something in common, and we both also felt that with you. I still don't know why Zenpai and I feel like that, but I am sure that we will know the answer soon. Plus, I think that you are cute and adorable, Rachael."
"Heehee! Thanks!" Rachael smiled innocently before she remembered something. "Jasper, if Zenpai said that his clan hate the Grass type Pokemon, what about you? Does your family hate the Bug type Pokemon?"
Jasper was about to answer Rachael's question when he suddenly stopped moving, and Zenpai was seemed to be in the same state as the Sceptile too.
"Hm? Jasper? Zenpai, what's wrong?" Rachael asked.
"Shhhhh…" Jasper made a gesture to tell Rachael not to speak. Then both Sceptile and Scyther stood up and closed their eyes.
"…There!"
Zenpai opened his eyes and threw a shuriken at high speed to a bush not too far from him. This made a Pokemon who hid in the bush got sent out of its hiding place. The moonlight revealed it as a wild Beedrill.
"EAAAEEE!" Rachael cried in fear.
"Get behind me, Rachael." Zenpai spoke up.
"Leave the battle to me!" Jasper spoke and opened his eyes.
After it got attacked, the Beedrill quickly looked around to find the one who attacked him. It then saw Rachael, who was paralyzed with fear. It then wasted no time charging at the Latias, preparing to attack her with Fell Stinger!
However, just a bit before it could attack the Latias, Jasper appeared and used his katana to block the Beedrill's attack! He then thrust his katana and sent it back a few feet away from Rachael.
"Bzzzzzz…" The Beedrill made a noise as it looked at Jasper, who was in an offensive stance. He then dashed up to the Beedrill and slashed it with his katana! He acted so fast that the Beedrill didn't have any time to defend itself!
"That's for trying to attack Rachael…" Jasper firmly gripped his katana. "And this…" Jasper prepared to attack the Beedrill again. "IS FOR INTERRUPTING US! HAAAAAA!"
Jasper quickly slashed his katana at the Beedrill again with the hope of ending the battle right now, but this time, the Beedrill could use one of its stingers to block Jasper's attack!
"W…What the?!"
While Jasper was flinched that the Beedrill could block his attack, the Beedrill used its another stinger to stab Jasper's right arm!
"GAAAAAAHHHH!"
Jasper roared in pain and dropped his katana. This gave the Beedrill's a chance to attack the off-guarded Sceptile!
But…
"BZZZZZZ!?"
The Beedrill got shocked when a sharp blade penetrated its belly! And before it could react, its head was sliced of by a kunai!
"Whew…" Zenpai drew his blade-like arm from the Beedrill's body and then threw the dead Beedrill's body into the bush. "This should take care of it. Rachael, Jasper, are you alright?"
"I…I…am…alright…" Rachael answered. Her body still shook with fear.
"Y…Yeah…I…th…think that…Guh!" Jasper's body trembled heavily and he had purplish blush on his face. He could feel that his power was being drained.
"The move that Beedrill used to attack you…" Zenpai spoke up. "It was 'Twinneedle', a Bug type move with a chance of poisoning the target, right?"
"I…guess…so… Ah..." Jasper fell down on the ground. "I..It see..m… l…like the….goddess…of ….luck….didn't…bless….m…me….t…today."
"H…Hang on, Jasper!" Rachael moved up to the berry basket her mother gave to her and tried to find a Pecha Berry, but it was too dark and there were so many kinds of berries in there.
"W… Where are the Pecha Berries?!" Rachael was so worried about the Sceptile that her paws were trembling. And then, she remembered something!
'T…That!' Rachael remembered. 'I can use it to help Jasper!'
Rachael moved back to Jasper, who could hardly hold his consciousness.
"Please hold on, Jasper! I will help you now!"
Rachael rested her paws on her chest and released a fragrant smell from her body, filling everywhere around her with a refreshing smell of flowers!
"T...That move..." Zenpai spoke, before turning his attention towards Jasper. The purplish color on his face started to disappear as the venom running through his veins began to be neutralized by the fragrance. Soon, the poison was completely gone.
"Whew! That should do it! How are you now, Jasper?" Rachael asked after she finished using the move Aromatherapy.
"Thanks, Rachael. I am fine now." Jasper spoke and finally be able to stand up again.
"By the way, Rachael…" Zenpai looked at Cheryl with a curious face. "…How could you learn to use the move Aromatheraphy? I don't think that a Latias could learn this move normally…"
"Um… I don't know…" Rachael answered with a sad voice. "I remember that I could use Aromatherapy since the day I bec— I mean, the day I could remember. But… I am not very good at the battle as I only know two moves, Aromatherapy and Helping Hand, both which aren't offensive moves…"
"Hey, don't worry about that." Jasper spoke up. "Today you may not, but in the future, you may become a strong Pokemon, and I am sure that you can."
"You think that I could? Teehee!" Rachael became happy again. "Thank you, Jasper, Zenpai! Both of you are the best! Yawwwn…."
"Hm?" Zenpai looked at Rachael when she started to become sleepy. "It's getting late. Rachael, you should go to sleep already."
"Okay!" Rachael moved to her sleeping bag and got into it. "Good night, Zenpai, Jasper!"
"Good night, Rachael." Jasper and Zenpai said as the Latias quickly fell into a deep sleep after that unexpected event for the night…
-The Next Day
After breakfast, the journey continued. The last day's journey was also as smooth as yesterday, and only a few minutes left before they reached the Forest Capital.
"Oh, I forgot…"
Zenpai suddenly stood up while he was sitting in the carriage, making Rachael look at him.
"What's wrong, Zenpai? Did you forget something?" Rachael asked.
"I have to go now. See you later, Rachael, Jasper." As he finished speaking, Zenpai jumped out of the carriage and disappeared into the woods!
"W…Wait! Zenpai! Where are you going?!" Rachael asked, but Zenpai had disappeared already.
"It's normal, Rachael." Jasper spoke up. "Do you still remember that both Zenpai and I have to pretend that we hate each other? So it won't be a good thing to let others see both of us come to the forest capital in the same carriage, right? Plus, Zenpai has to go back to his clan's village to report to his Hokage about his actions during the time he was at the Forezon Village, so don't worry about him. He will come back soon."
"Okay…" Rachael mumbled.
"Oh! Here we are!" Jasper said as the carriage reached the northern gate of a big city "Welcome! Rachael!" Jasper spoke with a cheerful voice. "To the forest capital of the Principality of Leafburg, the Leafburg City!"
To Be Continued…
Dragon of Vale: In this chapter, we learn more about Zenpai's past, as well as about the War of Jasmine, and we finally arrive at the forest capital, the Leafburg City.
A special thanks to Ridin Valon for helping me with the error correction.