Chapter 7 - Pepper Lunch

Route 203 was a heavily forested area leading to a foreboding mountain trail a few miles out. A path had been carved out for those traveling between Jubilife City and Oreburgh by foot, but most people used the train. In the distance, a highway had been built, but it was far enough away that it wouldn't disturb any wild Pokémon or vice versa.

"Ya'll really do walk everywhere," Phoenix said as he adjusted his heavy black backpack for what seemed like the hundredth time.

"How do you usually get around?" Yurie asked.

Phoenix grabbed one of his Poké Balls and grinned. "My Talonflame is strong enough to take me wherever I want! It's the fastest way to travel!"

Neither Cyan nor Yurie had Flying-types strong enough to fly them around, so they couldn't relate.

"Maybe if you dressed a bit warmer, then walking would be such an issue," Cyan commented, looking down at Phoenix's bare shins. The tall Unovan boy had remained in his loose red t-shirt and white athletic shorts unlike Cyan, who was already wearing a hoodie and long pants.

Phoenix laughed. "You think this is cold? You wouldn't last a winter in Unova!"

Cyan slightly grimaced. "I'm not sure if I'm gonna be able to last a winter in Sinnoh. It's only autumn, but it feels so cold."

"I agree," Yurie said. "Where I'm from, it never snows. It gets cold, but it never snows. I read that it could snow for four months out of the year in Sinnoh. I'm not sure if I'm ready."

Cyan shuddered at the thought.

Phoenix adjusted his heavy backpack again. "So, why were you guys wanting to head to Oreburgh?"

Yurie had no reason in particular that she wanted to go to Oreburgh. Her next contest was a bit up north, but she wanted to wait a while before going. She almost missed traveling with people, so if she could travel with Cyan and Phoenix for a while, even a week, she'd take the opportunity.

"Well," Cyan started. He seemed nervous about what he was about to say. "I'd like to challenge the gym!"

"A gym challenger? Nice!" Phoenix commented.

"It'll actually be my first! When I traveled in Alola, the gyms weren't yet around, so I did the island challenge. And then, I went to the Orange Islands, but my friend took on the gyms, and I just watched and supported them. I'd like to try a gym battle and see how well I'll do!" Cyan explained.

"I see!" Phoenix said. He cocked his head and examined the boy. Cyan was around fourteen years old, about the same age as Phoenix. "Wait up, wasn't the Alola League established about four years ago? You would have been the right age to take it on!"

Cyan just continued to walk forward, paying Phoenix no mind. Yurie patted Phoenix on the back.

"It's a complicated story," she whispered. Not even she knew all of the details, but she had been told of Cyan's troubles with traveling to Ultra Space and other dimensions.

"How about we take a break right here? We can have our Pokémon stretch!" Cyan suggested. He stopped and dropped his backpack on the ground.

"That sounds perfect to me! If possible, I'd like to get in some training," Phoenix exclaimed.

Yurie shrugged and looked down at her Torchic. The Pokémon had to take more than twice the steps to keep up with the trainers, so he was well worn down.

"Go, Venusaur, Urshifu, and Chimchar!" Cyan called while throwing his Poké Balls into the air. His three Pokémon materialized around his Vulpix. Chimchar had immediately warmed up to the group, even if Urshifu unintentionally gave him the cold shoulder.

Phoenix put his hand to his chin. "Nice. Nice. C'mon out, guys!"

One by one, Phoenix's Talonflame, Gabite, Excadrill, and two more Pokémon appeared.

Yurie recognized one of the Pokémon. It was a deep purple Pokémon with a multitude of pointed limbs. It appeared to be two stars pressed unevenly on one another, and in the middle of its body was a hard red core.

The other Pokémon was small with a long red body and large green eyes. It used its almost translucent wings to flutter about in the air in an almost erratic motion.

"You guys know Excadrill, Talonflame, and Gabite. But, please meet Starmie and Yanma! I'm working on getting Yanma to evolve, so we'll take any chance to train that we can get," Phoenix explained.

Yurie carefully put her bag down. It carries the egg that Michika gave her, and she was afraid to do any damage to it. She pulled out two Poké Balls and held them in front of her. They exploded open, and Minun and Eevee materialized on the path.

"This is quite the interesting group," Cyan commented while looking at the different sizes of every Pokémon. "What kind of training do you have in mind?"

Phoenix looked around the clearing and to the nearby forested area. "Well, it wouldn't make too much sense for us to just spar. I think an activity that can help us bond with our Pokémon and get in a good cardio session would be tag!"

"T-tag?" Yurie questioned.

"Yeah! How does that sound? We can all play. We can even use the forest. It'd be fun!" Phoenix exclaimed.

"I'm in! What say you?" Cyan said to his Pokémon. Vulpix, Venusaur, and Chimchar cheered in response, but Urshifu appeared disinterested.

"If you guys want to play tag with our new friends, I'll prepare lunch!" Yurie told her Pokémon. She exchanged looks with Phoenix. "Running isn't really my thing. And, I have to keep an eye on my egg!"

"That makes sense. Who wants to start?" Phoenix asked.

Venusaur slowly raised one of his vines. The trainers and Pokémon gave him a look. Out of all the Pokémon that were going to participate, he was clearly going to be the slowest, but if they left him out for that reason, they knew it'd be rude.

"Alright! You can start!" Cyan exclaimed.

"Give us ten seconds to run, and then begin your chase!" Phoenix instructed. He gazed at the others, and everyone began a wild dash in different directions.

Cyan headed straight for the forest. He hadn't run in so long, and he forgot just how fast he could go. But roughly ten seconds after he started his run, a vine wrapped itself around his waist, putting him to a sudden stop. Cyan looked back, finding that his Venusaur hadn't taken a single step. His vine had managed to extend far out beyond what Cyan thought was capable. And now, Cyan was 'it'.

Cyan scratched the back of his head while Venusaur let him go and then turned the other way. Venusaur began to hop away slowly. Cyan knew he'd be an easy target, but he wanted to try to go for someone else. He looked back to the forest, noticing that a few of the others had the same idea as him. He dashed, hoping to find someone quickly.

Upon entering the thick forest, he was met with mostly silence. He closed his eyes and listened, hoping to find someone close.

Then, he heard the sound of heavy stomps toward his right. He turned, finding Phoenix's Dragon-type stumbling about on its stubby legs. It huffed and puffed, as it had to do a lot more work to run fast than some of the others.

Cyan recoiled and hid behind the tree. He remembered how Gabite's opponents were affected when they made physical contact with him. He knew he had to be careful when he went for the tag. When Gabite was close, Cyan lunged. He stuck out his pointer finger and poked Gabite's side. The Dragon-type was surprised and almost toppled over.

"Tag! You're it!" Cyan explained while he crossed his arms over his chest. "No tag backs!"

Gabite cocked his head and then groaned. He knew that he'd have trouble catching any of his friends, and he couldn't catch the boy in front of him. Then, he felt something below his feet. He looked down, roared, and then dug his claw into the grassy ground. He quickly tunneled through the earth, and within seconds, he came face to face with his comrade in arms, Excadrill.

"Drill?" the Steel-type asked.

"Ga-bite!" the Dragon-type exclaimed. He then touched Excadrill and giggled.

Excadrill rolled his eyes and then dug upward. He slowly worked his way through the ground before he reached the surface. In an effort to not alert anyone of his presence, he quietly came back up. He slowly started to walk through the forest. If he didn't appear to be in a rush, then no one would see him as suspicious.

Then, a little ball of brown fur dashed across his field of vision. He stopped moving, and the ball also came to a stop. Yurie's Eevee turned and eyed him. Excadrill didn't blink.

"Swee?" the Eevee wondered.

"Drill," the Pokémon responded. He then quickly jabbed his claws into the ground in front of him. The area around the two started to shake, and fissures opened up in the ground below Eevee. The Normal-type was startled and leaped into the air, avoiding the attack.

However, Eevee was then surprised. She looked forward, finding Excadrill in front of her. The Steel-type reached out and poked Eevee. The two came back to the ground, Eevee landing in one of the fissures. Excadrill laughed to himself while Eevee tried to shake some of the dirt out of her fur. She cursed in her own special language and then glared at Excadrill.

"Swee! Sweevee!" the Pokémon barked. She rubbed her head against the grass in an attempt to rub out more of the dirt.

Excadrill shook his head and then shrugged. He couldn't help if his method of getting the tag was dirty.

Eevee growled and then dashed past Excadrill. She could use the wind to blow away some of the dirt, and she needed to find someone to tag as soon as possible. Her search did not take her far. Standing outside of the forest, almost still as stone, was Phoenix's Starmie. It faced away from the forest, which meant that Eevee could sneak up on it. Eevee crouched and lowered her head. She was unsure of how to approach the Pokémon. What was it doing standing in the open?

Before she could allow it to get away, she lunged, ramming her body into the backside of the Pokémon. Starmie was stunned. It turned around to face Eevee, revealing that its frontside had been camouflaged to look like the forest. Its body returned back to its normal purple color, and it groaned.

"Hyah," the Pokémon whined.

Eevee turned and then trotted away. She had done her part.

Starmie was unsure of where to go. It was hoping to simply not get tagged. However, something caught its attention. Talonflame flew through the air with swagger, sure that nothing could touch him. Starmie built up kinetic energy around its body and then started to spin violently. It took into the air and immediately shot for Talonflame.

Talonflame's eyes widened. He believed that no one could reach him, so the sight of the purple star rocketing toward him took him by surprise. He squawked and then dove, narrowly avoiding Starmie's violent attempt at getting a tag. Starmie easily turned its body around while Talonflame flew straight forward. He thought that Starmie wouldn't win a game of speed, but the creature managed to keep up. Talonflame attempted to turn, but it was a mistake. Starmie had more mobility in the air, and as soon as the Flying-type curved, the Water-type managed to strike. It gently collided with Talonflame, earning an angry squawk from the dark red bird.

Starmie cooed happily and then slowly floated back to the ground. It was safe from Talonflame's touch.

Talonflame didn't want to be in this position. He turned his body and then shot for the forest. He had strong eyes, so he would be able to find a target in no time. And in within only a few seconds, he found a small orange Pokémon leaping through the trees. He swooped and caught Chimchar off guard. The smaller Pokémon screeched and then tried to escape by jumping to another tree, but Talonflame was quick. He descended to the ground and then flew upward, letting his wing lightly grace the starter Pokémon. Chimchar landed on another branch and then looked back to Talonflame. He got no taunt from the larger Pokémon. Instead, Talonflame immediately retreated. Chimchar stamped his feet in protest, but he knew it was just a part of the game.

Chimchar put his hand to his ear and tried to listen for any sign of life. There was seemingly nothing, but he couldn't give up. He knew that he would find someone. Then, he could hear it. In the distance, there was a violent buzzing noise. He immediately started to move in the direction of the buzz, remembering that it was the same sound one of Phoenix's Pokémon made.

Chimchar climbed to the top of his tree and put his hand to his brow to shield his eye from the sun. He found the red buzzing creature moving through the trees and then started his mad dash.

"Chim-char!" he cried out, alerting Yanma. He tried to swipe, but Yanma moved in a zigzag motion, avoiding the Fire-type's strike.

Chimchar came to the ground, quickly put all of his power into his legs, and jumped. He flailed about once again, but Yanma avoided every possible tag effortlessly. When Chimchar returned to the ground once again, Yanma shot him a teasing smile and then began to move straight through the forest.

Chimchar moved as fast as his legs would take him. When he was close to a tree, he quickly climbed and then started leaping through the branches. He kept an eye on Yanma, and he was hoping to start gaining on him. But the Bug-type was much too fast, and after continuing their chase for a minute, Yanma had disappeared from Chimchar's field of view.

Chimchar came to a stop and tried to catch his breath. He held at his chest and sat down momentarily. He didn't have too much experience outside of his Poké Ball, and even though he was having fun with tag, he found the game slightly stressful. He looked down, and a small cream-colored Pokémon caught his eye.

"Char!" he exclaimed.

Minun's ears twitched, and she looked up. She had grown bored with waiting to be chased, so she started to eat some of the berries in the area.

Chimchar started to howl and pound his chest. Flames blasted from his bottom and then he dropped.

Minun smiled to the best of her abilities, her cheeks filled with berries. She was excited that the chase had finally begun, but she felt sluggish with all of the berries in her stomach. Chimchar dove forward, but Minun did her best to cartwheel out of the way, dropping some of the berries from her mouth. Chimchar quickly turned and then reached out. Minun wasn't too far away; the Fire-type just needed to reach far enough. But, Minun ducked. She used her ears to keep herself from falling onto her backside. Then, in a move that she learned from her practice with Yurie, she spun, getting out of Chimchar's reach.

"Minun!" the Pokémon said joyfully. She stuck out her tongue, turned around, and started a headlong dash.

Chimchar knew that he could beat her in a regular chase. He leaped and climbed the closest tree. He kept his eye on Minun while he bounded from branch to branch. Unlike Yanma, Minun was easy to keep up with. Chimchar just needed to find the correct timing to make his tag. He could see that Minun was beginning to slow, and when he was directly above her, he dropped.

Minun was prepared, and as soon as she heard Chimchar's jumping come to an end, she rounded about and dashed in the opposite direction. Chimchar hit the ground, but his target had gone missing. He looked around furiously before his shoulders slumped.

Chimchar was exhausted. He put his hand against the tree that he had dropped from and breathed heavily before collapsing to one knee. He was unsure of what to do. His inexperience meant that he was too slow, even if he was naturally gifted to move through the trees. He closed his eyes. He could feel tears of frustration coming. But then, something tapped him on the shoulder. He looked up, finding Urshifu towering over him.

"Char?"

Urshifu said nothing. He extended his arm and then opened his hand.

Chimchar was unsure of what to do. He had done his best to try to catch Yanma and Minun, but they were simply too fast. Was it okay for him to take this handout from Urshifu? He mulled over his options and accepted that he just needed to train more. He stuck out one finger and pressed it against Urshifu's palm.

Urshifu was officially it.

Urshifu didn't intend to be it for very long. He cracked his neck, lowered his body, and then rocketed forward as quickly as he could. He had many targets that he could go for, but he had been closely observing the game, and he thought that someone who knew should be chosen.

He passed by Starmie doing its best to stay camouflaged. He passed Eevee, his speed throwing more dirt onto her beautiful fur. He passed Excadrill, who didn't even realize it. And then he came to a stop.

"Oh, so you decided to play?" Phoenix asked. He was surprised by the Pokémon's speed, but he wasn't intimidated.

Urshifu struck a fighting pose. He knew that he wasn't supposed to strike hard, but rather quickly and with a gentle tap. He swung his arm, but Phoenix ducked. Urshifu was taken aback by the trainer's speed. He didn't believe any human would ever be able to avoid any of his strikes. He then hammered down, but Phoenix jumped backward, narrowly avoiding it.

Now, the Fighting-type was enraged. He roared and then lunged and jabbed forward. He connected with Phoenix's stomach as gently as he could. But the trainer was still forced to keel over momentarily.

"Ah, you got me!"

Urshifu's eyes widened, and he took a step backward. He was unsure of what to do. If he had hurt Cyan's new friend, then he was sure to get chewed out. But he felt a sudden sense of relief as Phoenix started to chuckle. The trainer stood up straight and wiped some sweat from his brow.

"This is fun! Next time, you won't get me!" Phoenix exclaimed.

Urshifu grunted and then rolled his eyes. Although he had some momentary fun, he was no longer in the mood to play.

Phoenix put his hand to his chin and considered his next move. He was going to struggle to tag most of the naturally fast Pokémon, so he knew he had to take a different tactic. He left Urshifu alone and walked slowly through the forested area. He looked around. There wasn't a Pokémon in sight, so he'd have to be patient. He could hear movement, as some of his Pokémon were unable to utilize any form of stealth. He got as low as he could without his knees or hands touching the ground. Slowly he waddled through the bushes until he came to a small pond.

Yanma buzzed above the pond, looking around to make sure everything was safe. Whenever he felt like the coast was clear, he landed and started to drink.

Phoenix knew that this was his chance. Yanma had almost perfect vision, but from his experience catching the Bug-type Pokémon, Phoenix knew where his blindspot was. Phoenix inched slowly until he was in a straight line behind Yanma. Now, all that he needed was speed. Phoenix quietly took in a deep breath, and then he dashed. He reached out his hand as Yanma became aware of his presence. The Pokémon's wings started to flutter, but before he could get airborne, Phoenix touched his tail with his pointer finger.

Yanma flew upward and then looked back at Phoenix. The trainer had outplayed him, and he knew it. But when it came to tagging another Pokémon, no one could compare to his speed. Yanma began to race through the sky, looking for any target. The Pokémon were all scattered throughout the forest, but most of them had distinct colors that prevented them from blending in. When Yanma found a target, he swooped low.

"Tor-chic!" the Fire-type exclaimed once he saw what was coming for him. He was going to begin eating a few berries that he had found on the ground, but he knew that now wasn't the time. He sucked in air and then blew out small embers from his mouth. The embers flew directly for Yanma, but he swiftly maneuvered out of the way and continued his downward path.

Torchic screeched and then turned the other way. He began to run, but he just knew that it wasn't going to be enough. When he could feel that Yanma was close, he dove to the ground. Yanma swooped overhead, completely missing him. Torchic then got back up, turned again, and started to run. He looked back at Yanma and laughed. He had outsmarted the Pokémon.

But then, Torchic came to a sudden and violent stop. His face collided with a tree as he tried to look forward, and he slowly slumped down. Yanma flew in and looked at Torchic curiously. When he saw that the Pokémon was only writhing and not completely knocked out, he tapped him on the head and flew away.

Torchic slowly recovered. He was unsure of what to do next, but he knew that he needed to find someone to tag. He was lucky enough to remain untouched up until this point, and he knew that he wasn't going to be the fastest of the group. He had to hope that he'd get lucky.

And to his luck, he got lucky.

Minun waddled past him, carrying what looked like a dozen small berries in her arms. She made eye contact with Torchic, and the two froze. Minun didn't know that Torchic was the one she needed to avoid, but from the look in his eye, she could tell that he was suspicious.

"Nun?" she wondered.

Torchic cocked his head and answered, "Torchic."

"Minun," she responded, making him promise.

But Torchic could tell no lie. He slowly smiled. "Tor-chic!"

"Minun!" she called back. She threw her berries into the air, as she tried to escape.

Torchic pecked, but Minun quickly ducked. She twisted out of the way, but Torchic was motivated to catch her. The two started their adrenaline-fueled dash through the forest. The chase wasn't as fast as the others, but it was just as intense. Every time that Torchic thought he had caught Minun, she managed to dodge, bob, and weave out of the way.

"Torchic!" the Pokémon called, claiming that he'd catch her eventually.

"Mi-nun!" she shouted back, taunting her friend.

But then, Minun's foot caught a small branch that had been uprooted. She toppled over, falling flat on her face. She groaned as she slowly turned over, finding Torchic standing above her with a devious smile on his face.

"Nun?" she said, asking for a truce.

Torchic shook his head, but then something to the right caught his eye. The two Pokémon looked, finding that they were close to one of Cyan's Pokémon. The white Vulpix lay at the base of the tree, curled up. Her six tails surrounded her body, keeping her warm as she slept.

The two Pokémon inched closer, not wanting to wake the Ice-type. Minun hoped that Torchic would take the opportunity and tag the vulnerable Pokémon. But, Torchic had no intentions of doing so. The two just gazed at Vulpix, allowing her to sleep.

The group continued to play tag with one another while Yurie cooked. She fried some of the rice that she had made at the Pokémon Center and mixed in bits of corn. She cooked thin slices of pork and then chopped them up before adding them to the mix. It was a simple recipe that only required a lot of black pepper to finish.

Once she had prepared their lunch, she opened her bag and pulled out a small red envelope. On the front was her name poorly written in kanji, but she appreciated the effort. She opened up the envelope and started to read, and a smile slowly formed on her lips.

AUTHOR'S NOTES:

A bit of a different chapter, but I wanted to find a way to show off some of the Pokémon's different personalities.

REVIEWS:

pokemonking0924 - "Another excellent battle and Phoenix is quite the trainer, I'm looking forward to seeing more battles from him if he joins Yurie or Cyan on their travels (unless they all travel together). I also found it interesting how Nix reminds Yurie of her boyfriend due to both boys being from Driftveil City and being tall." - Nix will have various traits that will remind Yurie of Logan. I'm excitedly to explore his character.

Bezzy - "With Nix added to the team, I think that you have a good mix of personalities and interests for the traveling group. It will be interesting to see how you balance their ambitions. Typically the anime has had mixed success with sharing the spotlight between different goals." - I think I did a decent job in Kickin' it in Kanto with balancing everyone's goals. As long as I have an idea of where I'm going, I'm hoping that everything will be fine. I'm hoping.