AUTHOR'S NOTE: Greetings, readers! Here is chapter 4 of the continuing adventures of Tristan and Pikachu as they continue their journey in the Hoenn region. And with Wayne, Marc, and Lisa in this cast of characters, this will be fun. I decided to base this episode on the Pokémon: Advanced episode: "You Never Can Taillow." But instead of Tristan catching a Taillow, this honor will belong to...well, you're just going to have to read this chapter to find out who does the catching!

TEASER: Tristan and his cousins travel through the Petalburg Woods, but are ambushed by a flock of angry Taillow. However, someone comes to their rescue just in the nick of time, and someone gets an opportunity to catch a Taillow! But who will?

Chapter 4: REUNION IN THE WOODS

(Music Cue: Kanto Route 1 (as heard at the beginning of the Japanese version of "Mewtwo's Counterattack"))

Still traveling with his cousins Wayne, Marc, and Lisa, our hero, Tristan and his best friend Pikachu, continue their journey through the Hoenn region. They have now begun to travel through the Petalburg Woods toward Rustburo City.

"Wow, this place is so big you could practically lose yourself in it," remarked Wayne.

"Well, duh," replied Marc. "That's why they call it Petalburg Woods."

"And this place is abundant with Pokémon," added Lisa.

"Right, so let's try and stick together," agreed Tristan.

They continued walking until they heard Wayne's stomach growl.

"Uh, I guess it's time for lunch," smiled Wayne nervously.

"But we just left Petalburg City an hour ago," protested Tristan. "You can't be hungry now."

Pikachu agreed impatiently.

"But I can't help it," insisted Wayne. "A Trainer's gotta eat to keep his strength up, right?"

Tristan sighed. He was looking forward to get to Rustburo City. "Oh, all right, we'll take a break. But only because we haven't had lunch yet."

"Yes!" said Wayne excitedly.

"Aww," groaned Lisa. "Do we really have to stop here now?"

"Actually, this is convenient," smiled Marc. "Now that it's close to the middle of the day, I'm ready to cook again, and we can have lunch right here."

"Hey, thanks, Marc," said Tristan. "I suppose I could use a little break from cooking."

"No sweat," replied Marc. "I'll rustle up something really good for today's lunch."

When lunch was ready ten minutes later, Marc and Lisa sent out their Mudkip and Treecko, respectively, while Wayne sent out his Torchic.

Tristan sent out his own Mudkip to join them and Pikachu for lunch.

Everyone sat down and enjoyed their meals.

"Boy, I guess I was hungrier than I thought," smiled Tristan. "This is really good."

"See, I told ya we needed to stop for lunch, didn't I?" smiled Wayne.

"Yup, you did, Wayne," agreed Marc. "And I was happy to make it."

"Yeah, thanks, Marc," added Lisa.

"You're very welcome," replied Marc. "All of you. I guess we should let Wayne's stomach do all the talking from now on." He then gave a chuckle.

"Watch it!" Wayne was a little offended, but lightened up. "Anyway, I like this soup you prepared for us. How'd you make it so good?"

"I got a few tips from Tristan while we were in Petalburg City," explained Marc. "He mentioned that it was important to fill it with wonderful and nutritious ingredients to help Trainers grow strong and healthy."

"Right," agreed Tristan. "Trainers and Pokémon need to keep their strength up on long journeys like this one, so I suggested to Marc that he needed to make it as delicious and nutritious as possible."

Sure enough, Pikachu and the other Pokémon were happily chowing down on the Pokémon food Marc had prepared.

"Wow, Marc, you and Tristan seem like an unbeatable cooking team," remarked Lisa. "Keep that up, and you'll be unbeatable in battle, too."

Tristan and Marc happily agreed.

"Now that we got that straightened out, let's keep eating!" put in Wayne excitedly.

Marc nodded and agreed with Wayne, and they were just about to chow down on another sandwich when suddenly...

WOOSH!

Something flew in and snatched their sandwiches out of their hands.

"Aah! My sandwich!" exclaimed Wayne and Marc.

"What was that?" wondered Tristan.

(Music Cue: Crazy Bike Ride (full version))

Presently, they saw a flying Pokémon with dark-blue feathers, a white underside, a short yellow beak, and a red marking with pointed tips stretching from its chest to its forehead.

"Come back with my sandwich, you robber!" shouted Marc as he angrily ran after the flying thief.

"Marc, wait!" called Lisa as she ran after Marc and the thief.

"Come on, we'd better follow them!" advised Wayne.

Tristan nodded in agreement as he, Wayne, Pikachu, and the other Pokémon followed.

It didn't take them long to catch up.

"Guys!" panted Tristan. "What is that Pokémon?"

"It's a Taillow!" answered Lisa.

"You mean a sandwich-stealing Taillow!" put in Marc.

Tristan took out his Pokédex and scanned Taillow with it.

"Taillow, the Tiny Swallow Pokémon. Taillow has a fierce personality, never backing down, even against the most powerful opponents."

Wayne was fascinated with the information. "Wow! A Pokémon that never backs down? Even against the most powerful opponents? I've gotta catch it!" And he raced ahead of Tristan.

They all came to a tree where Taillow was about to eat Marc and Wayne's sandwiches.

"Give back our sandwiches, you thief!" demanded Marc. "And do it right now!"

Taillow, ignoring Marc's demand, put the sandwiches close to its beak and prepared to eat them.

"No! Don't eat it!" yelled Marc, raising his voice.

But it was too late, for Taillow gulped them down in one fell swoop.

"Aaaaaaah!" shrieked Marc as he sank to the ground in despair. "My pride and joy," he sobbed. "I worked really hard on those sandwiches."

"Don't worry, Marc," Tristan assured him. "I'll make us some more food, and we'll be sure to eat undisturbed this time."

"Well, hungry or not, that Taillow's gonna be mine," said Wayne. "Torchic!"

His Torchic eagerly appeared by his side.

"Ready to help me catch this Taillow?"

Torchic nodded and charged into battle.

"Torchic, knock it out of the tree with your Peck attack!" instructed Wayne.

Torchic flew toward the branch where Taillow stood, ready to peck it with its beak, but Taillow easily flew out of the way, causing Torchic to crash into the branch instead, causing it to fall to the ground.

"Torchic! Are you okay?" asked Wayne.

Torchic slowly got back to its feet.

Suddenly, Taillow began shouting towards the sky.

"Now what's it doing?" wondered Tristan.

(Music Cue: Groudon, Kyogre, and Rayquaza Battle (full version))

He was about to find out, for just then, multiple Taillow appeared and surrounded him and his cousins on all sides.

Wayne cringed. "Now we got a problem!" he exclaimed.

"That Taillow just called all its friends!" cried Marc.

"And they don't look too happy, either!" put in Lisa.

"We must've wandered into their territory," grunted Tristan.

"Now I remember why Taillow act so fierce, because whenever there's one Taillow, there's bound to be a whole flock of them!" explained Marc.

"So what do we do now?" asked Wayne.

Suddenly, the flock of Taillow flew in for the attack, and unfortunately, poor Torchic took an awful beating from their multiple Peck attacks.

"Torchic!" cried Wayne. "Leave it alone, you bullies!" And he charged in to try to save his defenseless Torchic.

"Wayne, come back!" cried Lisa.

"It's too dangerous!" put in Marc.

"Pikachu, Thunderbolt!" commanded Tristan.

Pikachu unleashed a powerful bolt of electricity at the flock of Taillow, temporarily stopping them in their tracks and giving Wayne just enough time to carry his injured Torchic to safety.

"Phew!" sighed Wayne. "Thanks, cuz."

"No problem, Wayne," replied Tristan.

"Let's get all our other Pokémon back into their Poké Balls while Pikachu keeps the Taillow busy," suggested Marc.

And so they did. Tristan and Marc returned their Mudkip, Lisa recalled her Treecko, and Wayne recalled his injured Torchic.

"It's a good thing I remembered that Electric attacks are super-effective against Flying-types like Taillow," smiled Tristan.

"I'll say," agreed Wayne. "Then that Thunderbolt should take care of them in no time."

But suddenly, the flock of Taillow broke free of Pikachu's Thunderbolt and prepared to attack again.

"No way!" gasped Lisa.

Pikachu was just as surprised as Lisa and Tristan were.

"How could they shake off that Thunderbolt?! That was a direct hit!" exclaimed Marc.

"Remember what the Pokédex said?" reminded Tristan. "Taillow are fierce, and will never back down, no matter how strong the opponent."

The flock of Taillow charged in for another attack. This time, they were aiming straight at Pikachu, who stood its ground.

"Thunderbolt now!" ordered Tristan.

Pikachu unleashed another powerful stream of electricity at the flock of Taillow, but this time, they easily shook it off.

"Unbelievable!" exclaimed Lisa.

"That Thunderbolt didn't even faze them!" added Tristan.

"They're strong...too strong," remarked Wayne.

Then the flock of Taillow flew in at Tristan and his cousins.

"I guess this is it!" cried Lisa.

"We're done for!" added Marc.

"If you've got any bright ideas, Tristan, now's the time," advised Wayne.

Tristan grunted as he, his cousins, and Pikachu braced themselves for a very hard hit from the oncoming flock of Taillow.

But suddenly, a humanoid Pokémon with a white body jumped onto the scene.

Everyone gasped in surprise.

"What's that?" wondered Wayne.

"It's a Ralts!" exclaimed Tristan.

Sure enough, that's was it was, for Ralts' eyes glowed blue and it unleashed a powerful Confusion attack, making the Taillow flock glow. Then in one shot, it sent them flying into the distance, shrieking as they went.

Suddenly, a girl appeared and landed neatly on her feet behind her Ralts. "Excellent job."

Tristan recognized her immediately. "Hillary? Is that you?"

"Hillary?" gasped Wayne, Marc, and Lisa together.

The girl gave a chuckle and turned around, and sure enough, to Wayne, Marc, and Lisa's surprise, there was Hillary, Tristan's younger sister, who had saved them just in time. "I thought you could all use a little help."

A familiar Spike Ball Pokémon trilled in agreement, confirming it and Hillary's return.

"Thanks, sis, we're lucky you came by," said Tristan as he and the others caught their breath outside the forest a few minutes later.

"Aw, don't mention it," replied Hillary. "It's good to see you all again. And in one piece, too."

"Yeah, you, too."

Pikachu and Togepi were especially thrilled to see each other again, like two old friends.

"Aw, that Togepi looks adorable!" remarked Lisa. "Quick, Wayne, see what your Pokédex says."

"What am I, an encyclopedia?" retorted Wayne. "But since I'm feeling nice, I'll do it just for you." He took out his Pokédex and looked up Togepi's entry.

"Togepi, the Spike Ball Pokémon. Togepi is said to exude a relaxing aura that grows stronger when treated nicely."

"By the way, what are you doing out here in the first place, Hillary?" asked Tristan.

"Well, truth told, I missed traveling with you," explained Hillary. "Plus, Lugia and Silveena are doing fine, especially now that their egg safely hatched."

"That's good news," smiled Tristan.

"And since Grandma and Grandpa encouraged me to keep on traveling to find my calling, I decided, why not? So I headed to Littleroot Town to see Aunt Amy and Uncle Greg. I figured I should ask them where you were headed, and they told me that you were heading to Rustboro City, so that's when I decided to come and find you and Pikachu. And wouldn't you know, I found you traveling with Wayne, Marc, and Lisa."

"Boy, Hillary, your Ralts' Confusion attack was super-strong," remarked Marc. "How'd you get one that was that powerful?"

"That's just it, I didn't know," answered Hillary. "I was just as surprised as you all were."

"So how'd you know I was in danger, Hillary?" wondered Tristan.

"Well, you see..." said Hillary as she began her story.

(Music Cue: My Friend, Pokémon (full version))

"It actually began just a little while ago," explained Hillary. "Togepi and I had gotten ourselves lost in the Petalburg Woods. I couldn't decide which way to go. Then I smelled a delicious aroma. I figured it had to be Tristan's cooking, but it didn't have the familiar scent that I'm used to. Unfortunately, the wind changed direction at that moment, and my nose lost the scent trail. I felt sad and sat down on the ground, thinking I'd never find you.

"Then suddenly, a friendly Ralts Teleported itself to me, sensing that I was missing you so much, and wanted to help. As you know, Ralts usually senses positive or happy feelings, but once it knew I meant no harm to it and knew how close I was to you, it came to me instantly, and we formed a really strong bond. Then just by a stroke of good luck, we saw a Thunderbolt from not too far away and ran to see if it was Pikachu. I figured it was yours, and Ralts knew that I needed help finding you because I feared you were in trouble, so I asked it to transport me somewhere close to your location using Teleport.

"What I saw was not a pretty sight. It was a whole flock of Taillow attacking you in their territory, and that's when Ralts came to the rescue and used its Confusion attack to drive the Taillow flock away. I was amazed at its immense power. It almost reminded me of an attack coming from a Legendary Pokémon."

Tristan was amazed. "So you and Ralts did this...just for me?" He began to get teary-eyed. "Thank you. I missed you so much, sis."

"I missed you, too, big bro," replied Hillary as she and Tristan embraced.

This made Wayne, Marc, and Lisa very proud to watch that incredible moment.

"Wow, I never realized that Tristan and Hillary shared such a strong bond," remarked Wayne.

"Me neither," added Lisa. "I guess close bonds with siblings really do happen after all."

"Watching the beauty of a sibling reunion coming out of danger really makes me wanna cry, too," put in Marc.

"Oh, yeah, I just remembered, I have an injured Torchic from the Taillow flock's attack," interrupted Wayne as he held out his Poké Ball.

"Right, let's see your Torchic, Wayne," agreed Tristan.

A few minutes later, Tristan had finished treating Torchic's injuries. "Your Torchic's gonna be just fine."

"That's a relief," sighed Wayne. "But I still wish I had more Pokémon to battle with. I think catching a Taillow would really help me grow stronger as a Trainer. So I've decided that the very first Pokémon I catch is Taillow!"

"Great, that's the attitude, Wayne," commended Hillary.

Just then, Pikachu pricked its ears up. It was sensing something coming their way.

"What's up, Pikachu?" wondered Tristan.

Pikachu pointed to a familiar small Flying Pokémon coming toward them.

"No way!" gasped Tristan.

"It's one of the Taillow that attacked us earlier!" added Marc.

Taillow squawked, issuing a challenge to somebody in the group.

"I'll take care of this," said Tristan. "Stand back, everyone. Ready, Pikachu?"

Pikachu gave a hard nod.

"No, wait, look," said Marc as he pointed forward.

"What's up, Marc?" asked Tristan.

(Music Cue: Team Aqua & Magma Grunt Battle (full version))

To everyone's surprise, Torchic had stepped forward toward Taillow to battle it.

"Hold on, Torchic!" called Wayne. "You have to rest!"

But Torchic shook its head. It felt determined for some reason.

"What's up with Torchic?" wondered Lisa. "I know it can be hot-headed like Wayne, but I've never seen it this way before."

"I understand now," said Hillary. "Torchic must've been so upset with itself for losing against the flock of Taillow, so it must've wanted to battle it one-on-one in a rematch."

"You think so?" asked Tristan.

"I know so," replied Hillary.

Wayne was a little surprised. "Is that true, Torchic? Do you really wanna settle the score with that Taillow over there?"

Torchic gave a hard nod. It wanted to help, even if it meant possibly losing again.

"All right, Taillow, we accept!" said Wayne. "Let's do it, Torchic!"

Torchic leaped into battle as Taillow flew higher into the air.

"Torchic, use Ember!" ordered Wayne.

Torchic fired a stream of little fireballs from its beak at Taillow.

But Taillow quickly dodged the attack and proceeded to counterattack with its beak.

"Watch out, Wayne!" warned Marc. "That Taillow's using its Peck attack!"

"Dodge it now!" ordered Wayne.

Torchic jumped high into the air and dodged Taillow's Peck attack, situating itself right above it.

"Now, Torchic, Ember attack, let's go!" shouted Wayne.

Torchic unleashed another stream of little fireballs from its beak and scored a direct hit on Taillow, sending it earthward.

"Yeah, that's the way! Good job, Torchic!" cried Wayne excitedly.

Torchic gave a happy reply.

But Taillow was not to be denied, for it recovered and flew back into the air.

"No way!" exclaimed Marc. "That Taillow's still wanting to battle!"

"I've heard through the grapevine that Taillow are fierce, and won't give up no matter how strong the opponent is," said Hillary.

"Yeah, well, we won't give up, either, because I've been wanting to catch that Taillow," replied Wayne. "Okay, Torchic, let's keep up the pressure with another Ember attack!"

Torchic stood its ground and launched another stream of little fireballs at Taillow.

But Taillow again dodged the attack and grabbed Torchic by the feathers on its head, carrying it high into the sky.

"Torchic!" cried Wayne.

"That little Torchic's in big trouble!" exclaimed Lisa.

"This could present a problem, for Taillow can fly and Torchic can't," added Hillary. "That's a clear advantage for Taillow."

"Yeah, but don't forget, Hillary, that Torchic wants to prove itself to be just as strong as Taillow, if not stronger, so it won't back down without a real fight," reminded Tristan.

Once again, Tristan was right, for Torchic struggled to free itself from Taillow's grip, and when struggling didn't work, it blasted it with an Ember attack at close range, causing Taillow to lose altitude and bring it closer to the ground, receiving damage from Torchic's attack in the process.

Just then, Taillow threw Torchic toward the ground.

"Torchic, soften the landing with Ember!" instructed Wayne.

Torchic unleashed another stream of little fireballs at the ground. It landed on the ground with a hard thud, but it didn't take as much damage from the fall thanks to Ember softening it.

"Great thinking, Wayne!" said Marc.

"But it's not over yet," reminded Hillary. "Wayne and Torchic have to finish this up once and for all."

"Hillary's right," said Wayne to himself. "I have to find a way to defeat that Taillow." Then he saw Taillow coming straight at Torchic again. "I got it! Torchic, get ready to jump on Taillow when I say!"

Torchic nodded and stood its ground, waiting for its signal.

Taillow flew in, and when it was close enough...

"Now, Torchic!" shouted Wayne.

Torchic jumped into the air and landed neatly on Taillow's back.

"All right, Torchic, start off with Peck, and finish it off with Ember!" instructed Wayne.

Torchic used its beak to peck at Torchic, forcing it to fly lower and lower to the ground. Then with all its might, it unleashed its most powerful stream of little fireballs from its beak, scoring multiple direct hits, causing Taillow to fall to the ground.

Taillow lay on the ground, defeated.

"Good job, Torchic!" praised Wayne.

Torchic jumped up and down for victory.

"Now's your chance to catch it!" said Lisa.

(Music Cue: Lugia Appears! (as heard in the Japanese version of "Revelation Lugia"))

"All right, go, Poké Ball!" shouted Wayned as he threw it.

The ball hit Taillow, causing it to turn into red energy and disappear inside. Then the ball wiggled as the red button light flashed.

Everybody watched anxiously, especially Wayne and Torchic.

Torchic stood by, ready to battle again just in case Taillow broke out.

Fortunately, Taillow didn't break out, for the red light stopped flashing on the Poké Ball, which emitted a tone, indicated that it had been caught at last.

Wayne was confused at first. "Uh, I think Taillow was caught, right?" Then he started to smile. "Then that means..."

(Music Cue: Opening Selection B 2002-2005 (full version))

He picked up the Poké Ball and proudly proclaimed, "Yes! I caught a Taillow!"

His Torchic jumped up and down, leaping into Wayne's arms.

"You were awesome, Torchic," commended Wayne.

Torchic gave a happy reply.

"Congratulations, Wayne," said Lisa.

"Yeah, you battled hard and caught a really strong Pokémon," added Marc.

"Yup, you earned it," put in Hillary.

"Hey, thanks, guys," replied Wayne. "But I couldn't have done it without all of your help. But I think all of the thanks should go to Torchic, because it did all the work. Right, Torchic?"

Torchic gave a happy nod.

"Hey, sis, I hope you don't mind my asking," said Tristan. "But are you wanting to travel with me again? I really miss having you along on my adventures, and I'd love it if we could go on more adventures together."

"Are you kidding? Of course!" replied Hillary. "That's why I came out here in the first place, right? So I could find you and travel with you again...that is, if you don't mind."

"Mind? I don't mind at all. In fact, I'd love that!"

And Tristan and Hillary shook hands and embraced one another as Wayne, Marc, and Lisa looked on.

"This is great!" said Wayne excitedly. "Now we'll have five people instead of four!"

"That means there's nothing that'll stop us!" put in Lisa.

"Yeah, and with sibling bonds like this one, it doesn't come better than this," finished Marc as tears came out of his eyes.

Pikachu and Togepi happily looked on as their Trainers hugged in reunion.

"So what's the plan now, big bro?" asked Hillary.

"Well, we're planning to go to Rustboro City so Wayne and I could compete in our Gym battles," explained Tristan. "But first, how about a little lunch to celebrate the occasion?"

"Yeah, I'm in," agreed Hillary.

"Us, too!" added Marc and Lisa.

"And me!" put in Wayne. "I could never travel on an empty stomach!"

"You know, Tristan, could you cook up lunch this time, please?" asked Marc. "I really don't want our food to get stolen again."

"Marc!" everyone else groaned.

"Just kidding!" smiled Marc. "I'll cook up a huge meal to celebrate."

Everyone gave a sigh as Marc took out his utensils and got to work.

Hillary shrugged. "Well, there never seems to be a dull momemt. It looks like I didn't miss too much, does it?"

Wearily, Pikachu and Togepi agreed with her.

And so, Wayne catches his first Pokémon, Taillow, while Tristan and Pikachu reunite with his sister, Hillary. And with her joining the cousins for a little bit, there's no doubt there will be extra excitement as their journey to Rustboro City continues!

TO BE CONTINUED...