Episode Nine

In our previous episode, Michelle and Amanda found two Nidoran who had severe injuries. The girls took them to the Pokemon Center, where Nurse Joy was able to treat them and get them back to their full strength. The girls also ran into a tough looking boy named Ace, who not only owned the Nidoran, but was also the one responsible for abusing them. Amanda battled Ace for the right to decide who would get to keep them, and though Amanda won, Ace tried to take the two Nidoran back anyway. Unfortunately for him, he was arrested by Officer Jenny and his Pokemon license was revoked. The two girls happily took in the Nidoran for themselves, giving them new partners and new friends.

"Let's eat!" Michelle and Amand cried in unison. The two girls were having a picnic lunch in a wide open field north of Vermillion. The picnic consisted of cheese sandwiches, fruit pieces and some cookies. Pikachu and Eevee had their Pokemon food, of course, and the two Nidoran were also sharing some of the food as well.

"So Pikachu, have you had a chance to get acquainted with our new friends yet?" Amanda asked. Pikachu nodded his head.

"How about you, Eevee?" Michelle asked. "What do you think about our new Pokemon?" Eevee squealed, and then raised a paw.

"I think Eevee's saying that she likes them." Said Amanda.

"I'm glad you like our new friends." Said Michelle, and they continued having their picnic. As they ate, they found themselves surrounded by a couple of wild Rattata.

"Excuse me guys, but we're eating here. Can't you see that?" Amanda asked. The Rattata simply hissed at her.

"I don't think they're going to leave us alone unless you give them some of our food." Said Michelle.

"They're lucky I like to share." Said Amanda, and she gave some of the fruit to the Rattata.

"Here you go, guys." She said. The Rattata happily munched on the snack, feeling very satisfied now.

"I guess that takes care of them." Said Michelle. Once they finished eating, they got back up off the ground and began to walk down the path. A little further down, they came across a lizard Pokemon with a flame on its' tail.

"I don't remember ever seeing this Pokemon before, so I don't know what it is." Said Michelle.

"I do." Said Amanda. "I saw this in Professor Oak's lab when I was starting my journey. It's a Charmander." She quickly scanned it with her Pokedex.

"Charmander, the lizard Pokemon. The flame on its tail can be used as an indicator to describe both this Pokemon's mood and health. It is said that if the flame ever goes out, Charmander will die."

"Oh, so that's what Charmander looks like." Said Michelle.

"Professor Oak did warn me about what would happen if the flame were to go out." Said Amanda. "What I want to know, though, is why there's a Charmander out here in the woods."

"I'm curious about that too." Said Michelle. "I thought Charmander couldn't be found in the wild."

"Actually, that Charmander's mine." Said a voice from behind the fire Pokemon.

"I have to say, that's a very nice Charmander you have there." Said Amanda.

"Thanks." Said the kid. "My name's Mark."

"Well Mark, I'm Amanda and this is Michelle." Said Amanda. Michelle gave a playful wave.

"Hi." She said.

"So Mark, what brings you and Charmander out here?" asked Amanda.

"We were going to do some training, but since we ran into you, I suppose you and I can have a battle with each other." Said Mark.

"A battle would actually help him with training his Charmander." Said Michelle.

"I think so too." Said Amanda. "So, how many Pokemon are we going to use?"

"You good with two each?" Mark asked.

"That's fine with me." Said Amanda. "You send yours out first."

"Okay." Said Mark. He pulled a Poke Ball out of his pocket and threw it. "I'll start with you, Bulbasaur!" The grass type starter appeared on the field in a blaze of white light. Amanda took the opportunity to scan it.

"Bulbasaur, the seed Pokemon. The bulb on this Pokemon's back provides it with energy through photosynthesis as well as from the nutrient-rich seeds contained within. This Pokemon is known to be extremely loyal even after long-term abandonment."

"Well, missy, what's your first one going to be?" Mark asked. Amanda grabbed a ball and threw it.

"I choose you, Nidoran!" she cried. Her brand new poison type appeared in a blaze of white light.

"Okay Nidoran, this is your first battle under my ownership, so I'm counting on you." Said Amanda. "Horn Attack!" Nidoran ran right toward its opponent and struck it on the head with its horn.

"Good move." Said Mark. "Bulbasaur, Vine Whip!" Bulbasaur shot two green vines out from its bulb, wrapped them around Nidoran and smacked the small poison type around. Amanda gasped, but Mark smiled.

"Okay Bulbasaur, change course." He said, and Bulbasaur released Nidoran from the vines. "Razor Leaf." Bulbasaur fired green leaves, but the attack didn't do much damage.

"I thought that would've done more." He said, flabbergasted.

"You, sir, forgot that grass type moves don't have much of an effect on poison types like Nidoran." Michelle said. Mark just let out a sigh.

"Poison Sting." Michelle called. Nidoran fired purple needles at Bulbasaur, stinging it.

"Hang in there, Bulbasaur." Said Mark. "Go for a Tackle attack!" Bulbasaur ran fast toward Nidoran, ready to tackle it, when it suddenly stopped and felt its energy being sapped away.

"Bulbasaur, what are you doing? Why are you on the ground like that?" mark asked.

"Those needles poisoned it. Your Bulbasaur is slowly losing health." Michelle pointed out.

"Try to fight through it, Bulbasaur." Said Mark. "Body Slam." Bulbasaur tried to jump up over Nidoran to perform the attack, but the poison brought the plant Pokemon back down and caused it to faint. Pikachu, who was acting as a referee for this battle, pointed toward Nidoran, signalling it as the winner.

"You did it, Nidoran!" Amanda cried happily.

"I have to admit, that Nidoran is a pretty good Pokemon." Said Mark. "Okay Charmander, you're up." Charmander nodded and took its place on the battlefield. Pikachu raised both arms and yelled "Pika!", which meant 'Begin!'

"Let's start with an Ember, Charmander." Mark said. Charmander shot a ball of red fire at Nidoran, grazing its ears, but not quite burning it.

"You can do it, Nidoran." Said Amanda. "Go for a Double Kick!" Nidoran used its feet to give Charmander some good kicks, and although it dealt some good damage, the fire type hung in tough.

"Skull Bash." Mark ordered. Charmander lowered its head and sent Nidoran backwards. However, the force of the attack caused Nidoran to fall and faint. Pikachu immediately pointed toward Charmander.

"Nidoran, return." Said Amanda. She grabbed Nidoran's ball and recalled the fallen Pokemon. She then grabbed another ball and threw it into the air. "Let's go, Squirtle!" Her trusty water turtle appeared in a blaze of white light.

"Well, looks like all the Kanto starters will have been in action here." Said Mark. "Scratch it, Charmander." Charmander used its sharp claws to scratch Squirtle's shell. The attack didn't do too much, though.

"Squirtle, Water Gun." Amanda called. Squirtle fired a line of water at Charmander, which did a lot of damage, but fortunately, the attack missed hitting the fire type's flame tail.

"You can do it, Charmander." Mark said. Charmander shook off the soaking like it was nothing.

"Flamethrower." He ordered. Charmander shot a huge line of fire from its' mouth, but at Amanda's command, Squirtle quickly withdrew into its' shell to protect itself from damage. Mark was speechless.

"My Squirtle's shell is about as tough as a rock." Said Amanda. Squirtle then popped back out and readied itself.

"Bubble attack." Squirtle shot large bubbles out of its' mouth, and the super effective damage that resulted caused Charmander to faint. Pikachu pointed in Squirtle's direction, officially declaring Amanda as the winner of the match.

"Nice job, Squirtle!" Amanda cried. Squirtle gave a thumbs up before Amanda recalled it. Mark recalled his Charmander and the two trainers shook hands.

"That was a really good match." He said. "Your Squirtle and Nidoran are very good battlers."

"So are your Bulbasaur and Charmander." Said Amanda. "You must love Pokemon a lot, Mark."

"I do." Said Mark. "I'll tell you what. How about you and your friend come to my house."

"What do you say, Pikachu?" Amanda asked.

"Pika pi!" Pikachu cried, which meant 'Let's go!'

"Okay Mark, lead the way." Said Amanda. Mark smiled and led his new friends down the path. What they failed to notice, however, was that Conrad and Sally were watching them from a tall patch of grass.

"Looks like the twerpettes have a new twerp friend to hang out with." Said Conrad. "You know what that means, right?"

"A perfect chance to steal their Pokémon." Said Sally.

"Right, and I know just how we're going to do it." Said Conrad. He showed Sally the invention he had spent the last several days working on. "Introducing the Super Effective Triple Deluxe Thunderbolt 9000!"

"In other words, it's a Pikachu robot." Sally said flatly.

"Exactamundo!" Conrad exclaimed. "The twerpette's Pikachu will think that it's a friend, and when he rushes up to meet said friend, that's when we strike."

"One question." Said Sally. "What's with the 9000 at the end of the name?"

"Well, uh….." Conrad stammered. He was at a loss for words.

"Spill it, Connie!" Sally demanded.

"Well, that's kind of how much I spent on parts for this thing." Said Conrad.

"Are you nuts?! That's about three months' worth of pay!" Sally cried. "For that much money, this had better be worth the investment."

"Don't worry, it will." Conrad said with confidence. Sally just rolled her eyes at him. Meanwhile, Mark, Michelle and Amanda were still walking down the path. Pikachu and Eevee both sniffed the flowers that they passed along the way. Thirty minutes later, they reached a house that was painted all sorts of colors.

"Well, this is my house." Said Mark.

"It looks pretty cool." Saud Amanda.

"What's with all the different colors, though?" asked Michelle.

"That's simple." Said Mark. "All the colors represent all of Kanto's different starter Pokemon. The blue at the top represents Squirtle, the red represents Charmander, the green represents Bulbasaur, and the yellow represents Pikachu."

"Pretty nice combo of colors, huh, Pikachu?" Said Amanda.

"Pika Pikachu." Pikachu said, which meant 'A very good combo.'

"Well, let's go inside." Said Mark, and he led them inside the house.

"This place looks really good." Said Michelle. "Have you always lived here, Mark?"

"No, I lived in Celadon City before." Mark said. "But then my parents both got new jobs in Vermillion City, so we had to move here. I've been living in this house for about six months now."

"So, I take it that you're still somewhat new to this area then." Said Michelle.

"Yeah, pretty much." Said Mark. "The Pokémon that live up here are pretty cool to hang out with and talk to, but I haven't any actual friends yet since moving here."

"I think we ought to fix that." Said Amanda.

"Amanda and I will be your friends." Said Michelle.

"And so will Pikachu and Eevee." Said Amanda. Both partner Pokemon gave cries of approval.

"Great! My mom's been saying to me to make some new friends, so she'll be very happy to hear that you two girls are my friends now." Said Mark. "Let me show you my room." He led the girls up the stairs into his bedroom, which was filled with Pokemon posters.

"How long have you liked Pokemon, Mark?" Amanda asked.

"Ever since I was six." Said Mark. "You know that Charmander you battled earlier, Amanda?"

"Yeah, what about it?" Amanda replied.

"That Charmander was given to me as a gift for my birthday last year." Said Mark.

"That's similar to how I got my Eevee." Said Michelle.

"You got your Eevee as a gift too?" Mark asked. Michelle nodded. "I've had my Eevee since I was seven, and we're the best of pals."

"That's cool." Said Mark. "So, where are you two from?"

"I I'm from Fuchsia City, and a nice Kangaskhan raised me until I was old enough to start my Pokemon journey earlier this year." Said Amanda.

"I come from the Viridian Forest." Said Michelle. "Amanda and I met when we battled each other, and we've been very good friends ever since."

"Our battle was also how my Pikachu and her Eevee became friends." Said Amanda.

"That is so neat." Said Mark. "I've always wanted to go on a Pokemon journey myself, but my mom and dad always say no every time I ask them."

"May I ask why?" said Amanda.

"Pikachu pi pika." Pikachu said, which meant 'I'm curious about this too.'

"They feel that if they send me out on a journey, something bad will happen to me." Said Mark.

"That's pretty silly." Said Amanda. "Of course there's going to be bad things happening, but that didn't stop Kangaskhan from letting me go on my journey."

"There was nothing to get in my way either." Said Michelle.

"Why don't you try asking again when your parents get home?" Amanda suggested.

"You don't know my parents." Mark said. "When they say no, they usually mean it. That means if I try asking them again, they'll just give the same answer."

"You wouldn't be alone, though." Said Amanda. "You'd be with us."

"Amanda's right." Said Michelle. "Hopefully you can convince your mom to let you go."

"I don't know." Said Mark.

"Please, just try." Said Amanda.

"Well, Mom's going to be home pretty soon." Said Mark. "I guess I can try asking her again when she gets in."

"There you go." Said Amanda. The three of them went into the yard so that all of their Pokemon could play with each other.

"I especially like those Nidoran you girls have." Said Mark. "How did you end up getting them?"

"We found them severely hurt, but thanks to Nurse Joy, we managed to get them back to full strength." Said Amanda.

"They were originally owned by another trainer, but he turned out to not be very nice." Said Michelle.

"Oh wow." Said Mark. "How did that other trainer hurt the Nidoran?"

"You don't want to know." Said Amanda.

"Fair enough." Said Mark. They continued watching their Pokemon play, and an hour and a half later, Mark's mom came home.

"Hey there, kiddo." His mom said as she entered the yard.

"Hi, Mom." Said Mark. "I'd like you to meet my new friends, Amanda and Michelle."

"Pleasure to meet you, miss…" said Michelle.

"McDavid." Said Mark's mom.

"Your son's a very got battler, Mrs. McDavid." Said Amanda.

"That's because his father taught him well." Said Mrs. McDavid. "Speaking of which, Mark, your father said this morning before he left that he had to work late tonight, so he won't be joining us for dinner."

"That's fine." Said Mark.

"I have an idea." Said Mrs. McDavid. "Maybe your new friends would like to stay for dinner."

"We'd love that." Said Michelle.

"I'll go ahead and start making it." Said Mrs. McDavid and she headed into the kitchen.

"Aren't you going to do what we suggested earlier?" said Amanda.

"Maybe during dinner." Said Mark. "I didn't think that this was the right time." For dinner, Mrs. McDavid had made fresh pizza from scratch. The toppings included cheese, tomato sauce, pepperoni and mushrooms.

"That pizza looks good, Mrs. McDavid." Michelle said as they sat down.

"It should be. I always make it fresh instead of ordering." Said Mrs. McDavid.

"Why's that?" asked Amanda.

"The last time I ordered pizza, it was undercooked and I got sick as a result." Said Mrs. McDavid. "After that, I decided that I would make it myself."

"They say that homemade food is better, anyway." Said Michelle.

"That's very true." Said Mrs. McDavid.

"Here Pikachu, try one of the mushrooms." Said Amanda. She took a mushroom off her slice and fed it to the electric type. Pikachu chewed it a bit before spitting it out.

"Pikachu!" it said angrily, which meant 'I don't like mushrooms.'

"That's okay, you don't have to eat it." Said Amanda.

"Mom, I have something I want to ask you." Said Mark.

"Sure, honey." Said Mrs. McDavid. "What is it?" Mark took a deep breath and began to ask his question.

"I know you and Dad have been against this, but I really want to go on a Pokemon journey of my own. Can I please go?" he asked, practically begging.

"I don't know how many times you've asked me that question, but the answer isn't changing." She said. "No."

"Please?" he said. "I wouldn't even be alone. My new friends would be with me, and they already have experience traveling. I just know I'd be in good hands."

"Your son does have a valid point." Amanda said. "With Michelle and I accompanying him, he'd be well taken care of."

"Not to mention that he'd also be surrounded by our Pikachu and Eevee, as well as the rest of our Pokemon." Said Michelle.

"See? I haven't even known these girls for that long yet and they're already vouching for me." Said Mark. The girls weren't the only ones to do so, however. Pikachu and Eevee, in their own language of course, explained to Mrs. McDavid the importance of letting Mark go out on a journey.

"Well, I suppose you all make strong arguments." Said Mrs. McDavid. "I still don't know, though."

"Please, Mom?" Mark begged.

"Tell you what. I'll think about it and let you know in the morning." Said Mrs. McDavid, and they went back to their meal.

"At least she didn't say no this time." Said Michelle. After dinner, the three kids went back into Mark's room.

"I also like playing video games too." He said, pointing to a TV with a Nintendo 64 hooked up to it. Inside the machine was a copy of Pokemon Stadium.

"Why don't we play a few rounds?" he said.

"I've never really played any video game system before." Said Michelle.

"They definitely don't have anything like this in the Safari Zone." Said Amanda.

"I can show you." Said Mark. He turned the system on and did a match against the computer. The girls watched closely so that they could see how to play. Mark won easily against the computer trainer.

"That's all there is to it." He said. The girls took turns playing against him, and they found that it was a lot of fun. Mark even taught Pikachu and Eevee how to play. After a couple of hours, they all got tired, and Mark turned the console off.

"It's kind of late for the two of you to head out, so you can stay here tonight." He said. He got into his bed, and the girls got into sleeping bags. Pikachu and Eevee curled up beside each other, and soon enough, everyone was fast asleep. The next morning, everyone had breakfast and went back out to play with each other. A short while later, Pikachu noticed a tall robot standing right near him and Eevee.

"Yoohoo!" called a voice from inside the machine. "We have a little friend for you, Pikachu!"

"Pika?" Pikachu said in a confused tone, which meant 'I don't remember inviting a friend over here.'

"Come say hello. It won't take long, I promise." Said Another voice. Pikachu thought for a minute, and then excitedly ran up to meet the other "Pikachu".

"No Pikachu, don't do it! It's a trap!" Amanda called, but it was too late. The moment Pikachu got close, a pair of robot arms lowered itself down and picked Pikachu up. The electric mouse screamed in pain.

"Pikachu!" Amanda cried.

"Who's there?" Mark demanded. A couple of voices very familiar to Amanda and Michelle started laughing.

"Guess who?" said Sally.

"It's them again!" cried Amanda.

"What are you two talking about?" asked Mark.

"That's Team Rocket." Said Michelle.

"Never heard of them." Said Mark. Conrad and Sally just deadpanned.

"I think it's time to give this kid a dose of who he's dealing with." Said Conrad. He steered the robot towards the group, with Pikachu still trapped inside the robot arm. Pikachu tried releasing a Thunderbolt attack, but the robot absorbed it like it was nothing. Conrad and Sally laughed.

"Good try, Pikachu, but what you didn't know is that this robot is completely shock proof." Said Sally.

"Thanks for giving our batteries a bit of a jolt, though." Said Conrad. They laughed again and started to stomp away, but Mark's Charmander popped out of his ball and chased the robot down.

"Charmander charm!" he yelled, which meant 'Give Pikachu back to those kids right now!'

"I've got news for you, mister lizard. You're not our priority right now." Said Sally. Charmander wasn't satisfied with that and fired a powerful Flamethrower attack, burning the robot and sending Conrad and Sally into the air.

"Maybe we should've made that thing fireproof too." Said Sally.

"I can't even get my money back either." Said Conrad.

"We're blasting off again!" DING! Pikachu dropped safely beside Charmander, and the two of them ran back to Mark's yard.

"Pikachu!" Amanda cried happily and hugged her partner tightly.

"Looks like Charmander saved the day there." Said Michelle.

"Charmander, you're so awesome." Said Amanda. Charmander smiled. A little while later, Mrs. McDavid stepped out.

"Well Mark, I thought about what was said last night, and I honestly see no reason to hold you back any longer. If you want to go on your own journey, you have my support." She said.

"You mean I can go?" Mark said.

"Yes, you can go." Said Mrs. McDavid.

"Oh thank you so much, Mom!" Mark cried, and he gave his mother a happy hug.

"Aw, that's so wonderful." Said Michelle.

"Well Pikachu, it looks like we're going to have a new companion with us after all." Said Amanda. Pikachu was very excited to hear that, and so was Eevee. Mark disappeared into the house, and an hour later, he came out with a backpack full of clothes and other necessities.

"You be safe now." Said Mrs. McDavid.

"I will." Said Mark, and they shared a hug. They waved goodbye to Mrs. McDavid and made their way down the route. Well, another adventure ends with another new friend for the girls. There's plenty more adventures to come, though, so stay tuned for the next one.

TO BE CONTINUED