It really wasn't hard to find Team Rocket. They weren't exactly subtle, even if you ignored the talking meowth. The young adults like to play dress up, but Croagunk could see right through their disguises.
Well, if he was being honest with himself, he usually didn't recognize them right away. He just knew who they were if he knew to look for them. He could usually sense them though, deep down inside of him. It was all because of that wobbuffet of theirs.
While he was trying to find a way to amuse himself, Croagunk had leaned into fighting. It was something he was naturally good at, and his instincts pulled him to it. He didn't pick fights for the fun of it, but he wouldn't hesitate to rise to a challenge or defend himself if somebody tried to start something.
Part of those instincts that pulled him into fighting was that he could kinda feel the psychic energy that a pokémon might have. He wasn't afraid to stand up to any pokémon, but psychic attacks seemed to hit his very core, and it usually brought him down right away. That was where his instinct to anticipate such an attack came in. If he knew there was a possibility that it was coming, he could dodge, and then it wouldn't be a problem in the first place.
Croagunk didn't know if it applied to all pokémon, but those that had psychic energy, whether they were a psychic type or not, they all had a different air of sorts about them. The psychic energy felt different from one pokémon to another. Croagunk hadn't really paid attention to it, because he rarely had repeat run-ins with other pokémon, let alone those that had psychic attacks, but it came in handy for sensing when Team Rocket's wobbeffet was nearby.
As soon as he knew that wobbeffet was there, he knew that Team Rocket couldn't be far. Once he was aware of them, he was able to find the villains in just a short moment.
Finding Team Rocket wasn't a problem. The challenge was trying to figure out what he was supposed to do about them. He knew that he wanted to stop them from stealing pokémon, or whatever it was that they were doing, because that was probably what would impress Brock, but as he watched them, waiting for them to strike with another scheme of theirs, he started to find them more and more pathetic.
Team Rocket seemed to want three things. Croagunk already knew about the first. They wanted to take other people's pokémon by force. That was what they were most passionate about. They spent far more of their time thinking about the other two things, one being food, and the other being money.
They were bad guys, but as Croagunk watched Team Rocket he started to think that they were incompetent people who were struggling to just take care of themselves. They were always hungry, which made them grumpy. When they weren't trying to steal people's pokémon, they were stressing about odd jobs to get just a little money, probably so they could afford food.
Croagunk watched Team Rocket from a distance, so he didn't pick up on everything, but he wondered if Team Rocket just acted so bad because their only consistent job was for really bad people who actually wanted other people's pokémon, and Team Rocket just acted bad because it was a way to get money, which was a way to get food.
As he watched Team Rocket he got to know them a little bit more. He still didn't like them. They were noisy, and he felt crowded just watching them from a distance. Still, he wondered if maybe, maybe, they might not be so bad. Or, at least, they didn't have to be so bad. If they were just stealing pokémon because they needed money, and they only wanted money because they were hungry, Croagunk might understand it.
He still hated that he'd been used in one of their schemes, but he could get over it. This wasn't about him. This was about getting into Brock's good graces, and convincing the trainer that he was, in fact, a good pokémon.
He knew it was unlikely that he could convince Team Rocket to just be good guys. He could never convince people of doing anything. He could at least try though, and he had a plan. If Team Rocket was just hungry, then maybe they would stop if they just got some food.
Croagunk hadn't confronted Team Rocket on his own yet. He'd just watched so far, waiting for the perfect opportunity. And then it came.
Croagunk was just walking in the current town, stepping away from watching Team Rocket for once, because he just needed a break from them. He had no real destination, he just needed some space. He found himself sidetracked by his reflection in a window he was passing by. He couldn't help but look at it.
Since he'd started hanging around cities and towns a little more regularly than normal, because that was where Team Rocket went, he'd gotten more and more frightened and judgmental looks. Apparently people could tolerate a creepy looking pokémon when they were out in the wild, because the humans could understand that even if they didn't like the pokémon, they were the ones intruding on its territory. People could be okay with pokémon wandering around a town without a trainer, just so long as they weren't considered ugly or scary pokémon.
For Croagunk to wander around a town by himself though, for one reason or another it wasn't okay, just because people were scared of him. Croagunk had thought he was used to it, but it was one thing for people to walk on the far side of the road to avoid the rock he was sitting on, and another for them to walk across the street just so they wouldn't have the feeling that he was following them, somehow.
Croagunk would stare at his reflection to try to figure out why people were so bothered by him. He wasn't very tall, but he crouched on the ground to make himself smaller and less frightening, as well as seem more relaxed, but somehow that scared people more.
Were they scared of the noises he made, even though there were a lot of pokémon that had ear-piercing roars that humans liked and thought were cool? Did they not like the way his poison sacs inflated? Croagunk knew that it looked a little different, but was it really that bad, or was it just that it was paired with his noises?
Or did people just not like his eyes? Was there something wrong with the color? Did he look at people too intently? He wished he knew what people didn't like, and then he would know whether it was something that he could or would want to change.
Croagunk hadn't meant to stare at his reflection for so long, but he always lost himself in his own gaze. He could sit there for hours, studying every inch of himself and pondering just what was so wrong with him.
He would have just sat in front of this mirror, looking at his reflection until he sensed Team Rocket leaving the town, but then he felt someone looking at him. It was definitely more than just a passing, paranoid glance, but Croagunk didn't feel the heat of animosity either. Curious, he reluctantly turned to look over his shoulder.
The streets were busy. He shouldn't have been able to pick someone out from the crowd, but the moment he turned around he saw him. Brock, standing there, staring at him. Croagunk hadn't expected to see him here, now. It made that warmth bubble up in his chest again, just like before. It felt like a mix between excitement, fear, and something else entirely.
Croagunk just stared back at Brock, meeting his gaze. They just looked at each other for a long minute, both of them just studying the other, waiting. Finally, Brock smiled and lifted his hand in a small wave. The warmth in Croagunk's chest increased. He felt like he needed to be near Brock, so he walked away from the window and walked across the street. Brock knelt on the ground to greet him.
"Hey," Brock said. "It's you, isn't it? You're the same croagunk."
"Are you sure?" The girl near Brock seemed to lean behind him. She looked nervous around Croagunk, just like so many other people.
"He looks the same as any other Croagunk to me." The boy with them said. The pikachu on the boy's shoulders tilted its head and looked at Croagunk curiously. "How can you tell?"
"I can feel it." Brock held out a hand towards Croagunk. He didn't really know what he was supposed to do with it. He stared at the extended hand for a long minute before he lifted his own hand and put it on top of Brock's. The boy's smile just broadened. I was wondering what happened to you. You just left. I was worried."
His comment made Croagunk feel both happy and uncomfortable, because he wasn't used to this kind of thing. He huffed and looked to the side, but he still kept his hand on Brock's.
As pleased as Brock was, his friends didn't look as happy to see him. "I thought this was Team Rocket's Croagunk." The boy with the pikachu said.
"Be careful, Brock." The girl clung to his arm. "What if this is part of one of those schemes of theirs?"
Croagunk stiffened and began to pull away from Brock. He'd left just so that he could show Brock that he wasn't with Team Rocket, but of course the kids didn't see that. This was just what he was worried about. Despite the girl's concern though, Brock didn't seem worried. In fact, he turned his hand and gently grabbed Croagunk's to keep him from running out.
He probably could have pulled away from the boy's grip if he wanted to, but he didn't. He let Brock hold his hand as he straightened. Croagunk felt like he looked ridiculous, reaching up and holding Brock's hand like he was a small child reaching for their parent. His pleasure about having contact with Brock was much stronger than any potential humiliation he might feel.
"I really don't think Croagunk's a threat." Brock said. Normally Croagunk would feel insulted at this kind of thing, because even though he was small, he was strong, and he could be a threat to whoever he wanted. However, he just felt relieved and pleased with himself. Brock wasn't saying that he couldn't hurt them, he just believed that he wouldn't hurt them, and that was just what Croagunk had wanted. Maybe this plan would work after all.
"We were going to stop for lunch." Brock said. "Do you want to join us?" Croagunk was still for a long moment of disbelief. Brock had seen him in this city, he'd recognized him, and he trusted him. It was far more than Croagunk had hoped for, and yet there was more. Here Brock was, giving him the chance to spend more time with him. Brock wanted him around.
Croagunk didn't react for a bit as he just stared at Brock, wondering if he had heard him right. Finally Croagunk nodded. Of course he wanted to join them. Brock looked happy and relieved at his response. Still holding Croagunk's hand he began to lead the way into a store. Brock grabbed some ingredients while the younger kids went to look for snacks.
Shopping with Brock wasn't that much different than shopping for himself, but Croagunk liked this a lot more. He followed close behind Brock, holding his hand until the boy needed to have his hand available to grab ingredients. When Brock's hands were full and he asked Croagunk to carry a bag, he actually found himself agreeing, and he wasn't sure why.
Brock did his best to include Croagunk. When he was looking at different types of pokéfood he asked for Croagunk's opinion. He didn't really care, but he appreciated that he was being asked, so he picked a bag at random. He didn't know if it was the right choice or not, but Brock gave him an encouraging smile and grabbed a bag of the pokéfood.
Brock called out to 'Dawn and Ash', and the two other kids came to meet with them. Croagunk hadn't really cared about these kids the way he did about Brock, but he could be bothered to at least remember their names. Brock clearly cared about them, so it was worth at least a little effort.
They went to a park in town and Brock started making food, just like before. Dawn and Ash trained and did mock battles together. Croagunk watched them. It was interesting to watch training. He'd never really trained to improve his strength. It was just something that came easy to him. He didn't think he would really have fun training, but he couldn't help but watch anyway.
Brock looked down at him. "Do you want to join them? I'm sure Aipom would be more than happy to give you a rematch."
Croagunk huffed and turned away from the battle training. He didn't want to train in the first place, but he especially didn't want to be reminded of the battle he'd lost. It didn't matter that he'd only lost because he'd had multiple battles with little recovery time between, he'd still lost, and he hated it.
He decided to watch Brock cook instead. He didn't know if the human liked cooking, or if he just liked taking care of people. He just knew that it looked like Brock was enjoying himself. Croagunk desperately wished that he knew how to do that.
Once again, when food was done Brock set some aside for Croagunk, and when he didn't feel like joining the group the boy would follow him to sit under a tree where they would have some privacy.
Croagunk didn't think he was happy, but he was definitely comfortable, and it was nice. He liked to just listen to Brock tell him what he'd been up to since he'd last seen him. He didn't know why Brock was telling him all of this, or talking to him at all, but he appreciated every moment of it.
Brock had made a lot more food than was necessary for just three children and their small horde of pokémon. Ash ate a lot of food, but even he couldn't eat everything. Maybe they just liked leftovers that they could heat up really quickly, instead of stopping so long three times a day.
Croagunk knew that Brock had made this food for him and his friends, but as he stared at all of the food he remembered Team Rocket. Last time he had seen them they hadn't been planning any schemes, but they'd been hungry. If they were hungry for too long they eventually gave up on looking for food and they started looking for pokémon to steal. If he gave them food, maybe it could stop them from resorting to theft.
At the very least, maybe he could delay Team Rocket at least until Brock and his friends left town. It wouldn't be a good thing for Team Rocket to steal anybody's pokémon, but if they were going to steal from anybody at all, Croagunk just didn't want it to be from Brock and his friends.
He could just sit here all day, but Brock's friends were finishing eating and they looked anxious to pack things up. Croagunk knew they didn't trust or like him, so they wouldn't be happy if he tried to follow them. He thought that Brock would be fine with him lingering around, but he also knew that the boy cared about his friends. If they weren't comfortable with Croagunk, would Brock feel like he had to ask him to leave?
Croagunk thought that would be the case. He didn't just have to win Brock over, but his friends too. He needed more time to prove himself. This lunch break with Brock had been nice, but it was time to stop playing pretend. He had a job to do.
Croagunk stood up and wandered to the table where the food was. Brock followed him, watching as he reached for the food that was just out of his reach.
"Are you still hungry?" Brock asked. He grabbed a sandwich and offered it to Croagunk, who took it, but didn't eat. He still reached for the food. Brock's brow furrowed as he tried to figure out what he wanted.
"What's going on?" Brock knelt and looked Croagunk in the eyes. He stared back, for the first time wishing that he could just talk to people and tell him what he wanted. Brock stared at him for a long time before he smiled. "Do you want to take some food with you?"
Croagunk blinked. He didn't think that Brock had understood what he had said, but he still knew just what he wanted. Croagunk had heard that some people, when they were really close to their pokémon, could understand them, or their hearts, or whatever it was. He hadn't understood it, and he hadn't thought much of it because he didn't think it would ever apply to him.
Croagunk had been sure that no trainer would ever want him, and even if by some miracle somebody did they wouldn't care so much about him that they could actually understand him. And yet here was Brock, who had only known him for a short period of time, and he knew just what Croagunk wanted. It made Croagunk's chest feel like it was going to explode or something.
He was caught up on the feeling that he didn't respond to the question for a long moment. Brock waited patiently though, so Croagunk nodded. The boy gave him an encouraging look and grabbed some more food, which he started to put into a bag.
"Whatever you need." Brock said. "We have enough to spare." He grabbed some more sandwiches, a thermos of soup, and some other stuff that Croagunk didn't know what they were called. Just as he had said, Brock continued to grab food until he filled the bag, which he passed to Croagunk.
"Do you think this is enough?" Brock asked. Croagunk nodded. He knew that Team Rocket would be able to eat everything that Brock had made and still have room for more, but he didn't want to take advantage of Brock's generosity. This would be enough for now.
Croagunk took the bag and began to walk away. He refused to look back, because he knew if he did then he wouldn't have the nerve to keep going. He would just run back to Brock's arms and cling to him, not wanting to leave him.
He made his way back to where he had last seen Team Rocket. They were still right there, arguing about food. Croagunk finally approached them. Jessie noticed him first. She cringed back and made that familiar expression of disgust that most people gave. Croagunk really didn't care though. He still felt too good from his time with Brock.
"What is that creep doing here?" Jessie gave an exaggerated shudder.
"Did he follow us?" James also looked a little disgusted, but mostly intrigued. At least they recognized Croagunk, unlike Ash and Dawn.
Croagunk just croaked and brought the bag closer to them. Jessie inched away from him, but Meowth came closer. "What's your deal?" Meowth asked. Croagunk held out the bag. He was just here to give them food. They had seemed desperate enough before, they shouldn't really care why.
"I resent that." Meowth huffed, though he took the bag. "But you're right." He looked at his friends. "We have lunch!" Just those simple words made the caution, disgust, and curiosity disappear from Team Rocket's eyes. They practically ravaged the food, fighting over every bit. It was an odd sight. Croagunk just sat back and watched.
When they were all eating comfortably James looked at Croagunk. "What's the catch?" He asked, his mouth full of food.
There wasn't really a catch. Croagunk just wanted to see if they would stop stealing pokémon if they had food. Meowth snorted and gave him a condescending look.
"Yeah, like that's going to happen." Meowth narrowed his eyes at him. "Why do you care? You didn't really care before."
He hadn't cared because he hadn't known what was happening. Besides, now he had somebody that he wanted to impress and make happy. If getting Team Rocket to stop could accomplish that, then it was worth a shot.
Meowth frowned, a weird look in his eyes. "You're trying to impress someone? Who?"
Croagunk croaked in irritation and warning. This was really none of Meowth's business. He was getting food out of it. What did he have to complain about?
"Hey, I ain't complaining." Meowth objected. He was quiet for a second. "You know, I know a thing or two about wanting to impress someone. We're not going to change what we're doing, but I'll make you a deal. Can you get us more food?" Croagunk nodded. Maybe he wouldn't be able to get more food from Brock all the time, but he could figure something out. But why should he?
"I'll tell you why." Meowth smirked. "You get us food, and maybe I can give you some of my practiced wisdom." Croagunk didn't know if Meowth could even give him any useful advice, but there was a chance that he might. At the very least, Croagunk could see if Meowth would act as a translator, if he got that desperate.
Croagunk could give the deal a try, just so long as Team Rocket didn't even try to use him for one of their schemes. He wasn't going to be used like that again.
Meowth grinned, showing off his sharp fangs. He looked mischievous, but Croagunk thought that every meowth looked a little mischievous. It was no reason to distrust him. Croagunk knew first-hand how wrong first impressions and appearances might be. If he wasn't as creepy and disgusting as people thought he was, then maybe Meowth wasn't as mischievous as he looked either.
"Happy doing business with you." Meowth said. He took another bite of his food and patted the log next to him. Croagunk reluctantly went to sit down next to him. "So, why don't you tell me about this guy you're trying to impress?"
Croagunk glared at him. He'd already said that he wasn't going to tell him about Brock. Meowth held his hands up defensively.
"You don't gotta tell me who he is." Meowth said. "I'm just wondering what kind of person could catch your interest. You don't seem like the kinda guy who impresses easily." And he really wasn't. Things and people came to Croagunk's awareness, and then just slipped away. Brock was the first one that kept his attention. That made it special, and he didn't want to let it go.
Maybe he could tell Meowth about Brock without letting him know it was Brock. Who knows? Maybe Meowth would have advice worth listening to. It was worth a shot.