Chapter 8: Practice Makes Perfect
A few hours later, Ash and May had stopped to eat lunch. All of their Pokemon were out as well, enjoying some fresh air. Pikachu was showing his teammates his new move, leaving them all impressed. Though Ash couldn't help but notice that Ralts flinched any time Pikachu's tail came near him. He'd have to ask Professor Birch about that later. May, meanwhile, giggled at their interactions.
"I think Pikachu just likes showing off."
"Who, Pikachu? Nah, he's just excited. He'll wear out eventually."
May laughed, then glanced over to her own Pokemon. Torchic and Wurmple were playing tag, while Poochyena was eyeing Pikachu. May couldn't help but feel like Poochyena was a little jealous. Deciding to do something about it, May got up and walked over to him.
"Hey buddy, you feeling okay?"
Poochyena perked up a bit when he saw her coming, but his eyes quickly went back to Pikachu. Something May was quick to notice.
"Oh, are you jealous?"
"Yena."
"Aw, don't be upset! I think you're great."
Poochyena smiled as May stroked his fur. However, he was still a little downcast.
"Hey May, what's up?"
May glanced up to find Ash and Pikachu approaching them.
"I think Poochyena is a little jealous of Pikachu."
"Pika?"
Pikachu, feeling guilty, walked over to Poochyena and began patting him on the back. Poochyena growled, but didn't do anything more. Ash thought for a minute before answering.
"I don't think that's quite it, May."
"You don't?"
"I think it's not so much Pikcahu that he's jealous of, but Pikachu's new move. It means Pikachu has gotten stronger, and he wants to get stronger as well. Is that it, Poochyena?"
Poochyena nodded. May thought for a minute, before smiling.
"Well, why can't you? Maybe not Iron Tail, but I'm sure you can learn a new move!"
Poochyena quickly sprung back to life, tail wagging in excitement.
"Great! And I know just how to do it!"
"Really?"
"Why don't we have a Pokemon battle? That's how Pokemon get stronger, right?"
Ash smiled.
"Yeah! How about Poochyena vs Beldum?"
"Yena!"
"Beldum!"
Pikachu's ears dropped, disappointed that he wouldn't get any action. Ash knelt down, and gently stroked his best friend's fur.
"Sorry buddy, but I want Beldum to get some experience too. Don't worry, next time I promise I'll let you battle. Count on it!"
Pikachu smiled, and nuzzled Ash's hand, making Ash and May smile.
After a few minutes of preparation, the two were standing a few feet apart in a small clearing, Poochyena and Beldum ready for battle.
"Alright Beldum, give it your best shot!"
"Beldum!"
"You too, Poochyena!"
"Yena!"
"Ladies first, Princess!"
"Oh, you're too kind! Use Tackle, Poochyena!"
"You too, Beldum!"
The two Pokemon charged, butting heads in the middle of the battlefield, heads bashing into each other before breaking apart.
"Alright, use Bite, Poochyena!"
Ash opened his mouth to issue another command, only to realize he didn't know what other moves Beldum knew. Unfortunately, the delay was enough to give Poochyena the chance he needed to jump up and bite down hard onto Beldum's head, making the genderless Pokemon cry out in pain.
"Just keep using Tackle, Beldum!"
Beldum groaned mechanically, lunging forward continuously into Poochyena's mouth. Poochyena tried to hold on, but eventually he had to let go, dropping to the ground.
"Keep up with the Tackles!"
"Keep biting, no matter how long it takes!"
The two Pokemon went back and forth like this for a while, Beldum headbutting into Poochyena while Poochyena would bite various parts of the Steel type's body. But as this continued, Ash and May could tell their Pokemon were starting to get worn down.
"Tackle one more time!"
"Bite, as hard as you can!"
Beldum tried to ram into Poochyena one more time, but Poochyena leapt over it and bit down super hard onto Beldum's back. But somehow this time the attack was different. It seemed like there was more power into it, like Poochyena was tapping into some deeper source of power. Whatever it was, the attack did the trick, and Beldum crashed to the ground unconscious. May gasped, shocked by the outcome.
"Did I just win?"
Ash smiled, and nodded.
"Yeah, I think you did."
May's face grew into a wide grin, and she ran over to scoop her Pokemon into a big hug.
"Poochyena, you were great!"
Poochyena smiled, and gave her a few licks. Ash wasn't too upset about his loss, and gave Beldum a few reassuring pats on the head.
"It's alright Beldum, you'll learn some new moves eventually. We'll work on it."
Pikachu gave Beldum a few pats on the back as well, cheering it up a little bit. Ash then turned to May, and gave her a bow of respect.
"Congratulations, Princess. You were splendid."
May giggled, and kissed his hand.
"You and Beldum were good as well. I didn't realize Poochyena's Bite could pack that much of a punch!"
"Actually, I don't think that was Bite at all. I think Poochyena learned Crunch."
May was surprised by this info.
"Crunch? What's the difference between that and Bite? They look the same to me."
Ash opened his mouth to speak, only to close it when he realized he didn't have an answer. At last, he just shrugged his shoulders.
"I don't know, we'll have to ask The Professor later. Maybe he'll know."
May giggled, before stroking Poochyena's fur.
"Well, I don't care what the difference is. I think Poochyena was amazing!"
All of the Pokemon agreed, and began showering Poochyena with praise, making the puppy smile contently. Ash just smiled.
"Yeah, he is. And so is his trainer."
May turned her head, trying to hide her blush.
"Oh…thanks! We should set up camp, we can reach 's house tomorrow."
"Good Idea!"