//------------------------------//
// The Positive and The Negative 
// Story: Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Rescuers of Harmony 
// by Codex92 
//------------------------------//

"Ahhhhhhhh!" Twilight stared in awe at the sight of Alakazam's rescue guild's library. It was a large room with shelves that reached the top of the two story building, balconies on the upper floor for those who weren't able to climb any of the sliding ladders to reach the higher shelves. "So...many...books!"

Ignoring the odd looks from the other Pokemon either looking for a specific book or were currently reading, Twilight was practically popping around the whole library, enamored by the different titles of fiction and nonfiction, or trying to peer over their shoulders to see what they were reading. It only brought more joy to the Ralts when all the books on the shelves were organized and categorized by subject while also in alphabetical order. It was proof that these Pokemon were really intelligent as a pony was, and it made studying this world all the more exciting for the former unicorn.

Scott entered the library as he followed her. He stood at the doorway, watching the overly excited Ralts bothering his other guild members while squealing and giggling with glee.

"Oh boy. She's definitely a nerdy one," he mumbled to himself. He calmly approached her, giving the other Pokemon she bothered an apologetic smile. "Twilight, calm down, will ya? It's just a library."

Twilight gasped in horror, giving the Riolu a look of shock. "Just a library!? I didn't think Pokemon could have books of THIS magnitude in one place!" She glanced up at the tall shelf, her eyes sparkling under her hair as she cupped her cheeks in her hands. "So...much...knowledge...And in a whole new world. I think...I'm in heaven."

"If this is heaven for you, I'm afraid to know what's the opposite," Scott mumbled. He sighed and looked around at the shelves. "Well, if you're this eager to learn, you and your friends have got a lot to learn about Pokemon and your own abilities."

"Oh. Right. Rescue teams have to defend themselves, huh?" Twilight asked, snapping out of her daze. She watched Scott browsing the titles on the spines of some of the books, searching for the best ones suited for otherworldly beings new to their world. "Sooo...is there a limit to how many books we can borrow from here?"

"I'm not sure. I really hope so, because I don't want our base to be filled with books YOU want," Scott said.

"Well I want to get everything I can so that we can learn more about your world," Twilight argued. "That includes history, biology, geography, and the like."

"Fine, then. Just...not a lot of books, ok?" Twilight grinned, then began looking around. Scott grumbled and followed her, holding the books the skipping Ralts picked out for her own enjoyment while he grabbed the ones she needed for her and her friends. "Please don't grab a lot of books..."





Sadly, to Scott's dismay, Twilight grabbed way too many books as they finally left. Along with what he had chosen, he was carrying a huge stack of books that nearly hit the ceiling of the entrance to the guild, baffling the other Pokemon as they stepped aside for the Riolu to carry without dropping them. It wasn't exactly heavy with how strong Riolu are, but Scott was incredibly annoyed at the amount he left with. There may be some things he'll want to look up that can be found in a book, but he preferred to learn through experience and training. And Twilight and her friends were going to need a lot of training to better understand their skills as the Pokemon they turned into.

They arrived back at the base, the new sets of beds Alakazam telepathically sent out having arrived before the duo did. Inside, Johann helped the other girls and Spike set up their new beds, but when they greeted Twilight and Scott, the Equestrians-turned-Pokemon weren't surprised to see Twilight return back with a haul of books. The moment Scott placed the books down, Twilight immediately got to reading up on this world, nearly toppling the stack over and on top of the Riolu.

For the rest of the evening, Johann was informed by Scott who the Pokemon with the cutie marks really were, and though he was a bit surprised, it didn't change his mind in the slightest. Then it was the Equestrians' surprise to hear from Twilight that how she got all these books was because, by Scott's decision as one of the two starting members of the rescue team, all seven of them were now enlisted in Team Rescue Rangers. It was thrust upon them so quickly, but Scott assured them that they don't have to do anything dangerous for them, at least until they were properly trained in how to fight as the Pokemon they are. Johann and Scott began to teach them about the different types of Pokemon there are in the world, along with what types they were, which ones with the right moves they can hurt more and ones to be wary of to avoid getting hurt right back, learning what moves they can or possibly learn, and so on. Fluttershy was really concerned, unable to believe that creatures in this world actually grow stronger by fighting others, terrified of even so much as flicking an ear of any of the several Pokemon there were.

After several long hours of real introductions and an understanding of the world, the rescue team and its seven newest members went to bed, some unable to get comfortable with sleeping on hay like Rarity, but she was definitely going to have to make due. Just as the sun was about to peek over the horizon, Applejack instinctively got up with her internal alarm clock, used to waking up at the crack of dawn growing up her whole life on the farm. As she quietly got out of her bed and put on her hat, she exited the base for some fresh air, surprised to see Scott was out on the grass, sitting cross-legged while deep in a meditative trance.

"Did he sleep outside?" Applejack wondered curiously. The Yamper waddled over to him, seeing those appendages on his head were sticking straight out like yesterday. "Are these like...another set of ears?"

"Not exactly." Scott's response startled Applejack, making her jump back in surprise. "You're up early."

"Y-Yeah," Applejack uttered, sighing heavily as she controlled her racing heart. "Consarn it, sugarcube. Ya almost gave me a heart attack."

"Sorry," Scott apologized.

"How did ya know Ah was comin' closer? Ah don't think Ah made too much noise," Applejack pondered.

"I can see your aura from inside the base," he said.

"Aura?" Applejack asked with a tilt of her head.

"It's the life force inside all living things," Scott explained. "My kind have a unique ability where we can sense the aura around us and use it as different ways of attacking our opponents." The appendages drooped down, opening his eyes as he turned to the Yamper. "But for Riolu like me, it takes a lot of training to utilize it to its fullest. I can even sense your emotions with my aura, even this strange swirl of energy that was mixed in yours and your friends'."

"Strange energy, huh? Ya think you're seein' our magic?" Applejack asked.

"Maybe, but whatever it is, it's actually really warm from what I sensed," Scott said. He giggled sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head. "Johann and I also wanted to make sure you guys weren't...well, dangerous. You know, with you falling out of the sky and being from another world."

"Well, Ah can understand that much, so ya don't have to worry about doubtin' us, sugarcube," Applejack said.

"And...being forced into the team after Twilight and I got back?" Scott asked nervously.

Applejack chuckled, looking a little embarrassed. "Well, Ah did say we'd do anythin' to help y'all for takin' us in and help us find a way back home. Ah go by mah word as a good, hard-workin', and honest apple farmer."

"Johann and I won't let you go on any tougher missions until you're really ready, which is why we're gonna teach you and the others the basics on fighting as Pokemon." Applejack nodded, ready for anything, even though it'll be a whole lot different fighting back as a dog than an earth pony. Scott stood up, stretching his limbs while showing the Yamper how flexible of a Pokemon he was. "So, you said you're a farmer?"

"Yup. Grew up farmin' apples, and Ah wouldn't trade mah livlihood for anythin'," Applejack said with pride, trying to cross her paws together like she used to as a pony while exuding her confidence, only to stumble slightly with her stumpier body.

"You think you can use that farm work for some berry groves?" Scott asked curiously. "We can save Poké on food for everyone and keep some for trips through Mystery Dungeons if things get dicey. Maybe even an apple tree to take a couple for incredibly long and winding dungeons."

"Hmm...Ah guess Ah can give it a try." Applejack felt around the ground, giving the grass a little sniff. "This field outside the base has some pretty good soil. Ah'll have to borrow one of them books ya brought. Ah noticed a book about flora in that stack, so that'll come in handy, too."

"Johann can help you out. He loves his berries, and he loves them even more while blended in a smoothie," Scott said.

The sun cast its morning glow on the land while Scott and Applejack waited for the others to wake up, the former continuing his stretches and morning workout while the latter went back inside to grab the book on horticulture for this world. Johann was next to wake up, noticing Applejack as he went outside and saw her digging up a few plots for the base's berry grove. When Scott told him what she was doing, the Charmander's eyes lit up, letting out an excited cheer, then eagerly volunteered to help Applejack build their new berry grove. Once they got some berry seeds, they'll be able to grow their unique grove in no time. The different kinds of berries surprised the Yamper with some of them having unique affects that almost acted like magic when she looked them up in the book, even with how they're known to taste. As long as they have at least one apple tree in their grove, she can easily work her magic on it when she knows her apples.

Dawn soon turned to early morning as the rest of the group woke up. They exited the base, some groaning a little as they slept a bit uncomfortably on their hay beds. Rarity let out a mewling yawn before letting out a whiny, tired grumble.

"Oh my goodness, Rarity, that was adorable!" Fluttershy gushed.

"I don't feel it," the Skitty whined. "No shower, no soap or conditioner. I'm going to have to search around for a spa, otherwise I'm going to be filthy every day."

"W-Well, I think you still look great, Rarity," Spike bashfully commented, his cheeks blushing heavily.

"Oh, you say that all the time, Spikey-wikey, but this is serious! I really don't want to take a bath in a pond or lake to get 'clean'!" Rarity complained.

"No wonder you turned into a cat," Rainbow teased. "You're just as needy as your crazy cat."

"Opalescence is NOT crazy, Rainbow Dash!" the Skitty argued. "She's just...got really high standards, and I love to spoil her."

"Opal can be a bit mean, but she's got nothing compared to the kitty cat you turned into!" Pinkie said as she bounced past Rarity.

"Rarity's a Skitty, Pinkie," Twilight corrected, flicking through the pages of another one of her borrowed books from the guild. "Even if some Pokemon in this world look like animals in our world, they each have their own species, just like how each creature is distinguished back home."

"Then...what exactly is Pinkie?" Rainbow asked curiously. "She's definitely not an animal I've ever heard of."

Twilight skimmed over the pages until she found a similar Pokemon from the illustrations that Pinkie was. "She's...a Swirlix. A Fairy-type, known as the Cotton Candy Pokemon, and..." She took a closer look at the image in the book, then looked at Pinkie. "Oh. That's odd."

"What? What is it?" Pinkie asked curiously.

"It's so hard to tell with your white fluff, but Swirlix actually have feet tucked away underneath," Twilight said.

Pinkie hummed, rolling on her back and managed to poke out two three-toed feet. "Whoa. I actually thought Pinkie was just a ball of cotton candy with a tail," Rainbow said in awe.

"Me too! But then I felt some hoofsies when I was getting comfy before bed," Pinkie said.

"So, what about the rest of us?" Fluttershy asked.

"Let's see..." Twilight flicked through some more pages, finding the rest of her friends' new forms, their species names, and typing. "Spike is a Gible, a Dragon and Ground-type."

"Sweet. I've got two types," Spike gloated.

"Rainbow Dash is a Starly, a Normal and Flying-type." Spike wilted, thinking he was special having two different types. "And mine is a Psychic and Fairy-type. Weird." Twilight continued going through the pages. "Fluttershy is a Buneary, Normal-type. Rarity is a Normal-type as well. And Applejack's known as...a Yamper...and is an Electric-type."

Altogether, the girls and Spike glanced over at Applejack and Johann, the two busy digging up some land while casually chatting about the best kinds of berries for their future grove. They were a bit baffled by how a small puppy like a Yamper was able to generate any form of electricity.

"Twilight, I know there's a lot of dangerous creatures back home that could do anything, and even use magic, but that's a little far fetched," Rarity said. "I mean, there are timber wolves, but canines that can shock ponies?"

"Well, there's lots of different creatures that can do just about anything," Twilight said. "Johann's like a fire salamander...who can evolve into a big dragon." She shuddered after her encounter with Johann's father back at the guild, terrified to see a more chipper expression on a Charizard's face if it was Johann. "But, just in case we get shocked by accident, let's try not to get in a group hug. And, for Rainbow Dash, be careful around her since Electric-types can hurt Flying-types. There's this helpful typing chart for every type of Pokemon in one of those books and which ones are weak to what types."

"Ugh. We're going to need to learn about a lot of things, aren't we?" Rainbow asked with a groan.

"And you're all going to start training right now!" They looked out across the road, where Scott was carrying several logs about twice as tall as him from the woods. The amount of strength in the Riolu surprised the Equestrians as they watched him set the logs upright with one arm while keeping the others stacked in the other, spacing all seven logs evenly. "Johann, quit setting up your new garden! We got some training to do!"

Johann looked up after finishing his last plot, giving his friend an annoyed look. "Come on, Scott! We were almost done!"

"Hey, these guys are part of the team now, so they need to learn how to defend themselves!" Scott exclaimed.

"Ugh. Fine," the Charmander grumbled. "We'll plan out where to set each berry bush later, I guess."

"Scott sounds like he's got the same trainin' mindset as Rainbow Dash," Applejack said with a chuckle. "Let's just hope he don't take naps five times a day."

The two Pokemon stopped their gardening and made their way over to the "training grounds", the rest of the Equestrians already across the road and on the grass. Applejack joined her friends, each one standing in front of a log while Scott paced in front of them like a drill sergeant with his paws behind his back, Johann staring blankly at his friend on the sidelines.

"Alright, new recruits!" the Riolu announced. "You ladies and boy are going to need to learn how to defend yourselves if you ever encounter enemy Pokemon if you plan to join us in a Mystery Dungeon! Some of us may be peaceful and refuse to fight, but protecting yourself is just as important if you're also a pacifist!"

"Oh my," Fluttershy uttered worriedly. "Umm, can we just...talk to them? Maybe they'll understand?"

"Not all Pokemon will listen to reason; some of us can be quite territorial, or try picking a fight just to grow stronger," Scott explained, to the Buneary's dismay.

"Like you?" Johann asked with a teasing smirk.

Scott turned to leer at the Charmander. "I don't act like that."

"You expected our first mission to be in a Mystery Dungeon, and you were itching to, 'Take on a thief who stole a very important item,' in your own words." Scott flinched, his reaction making some of the girls laugh as Johann flipped the Riolu's words around.

Scott quickly turned away from his friend, wearing a straight face while a bead of sweat ran down the back of his head. "W-Well, I expected us to do something much more dangerous than simple chores, that's all," he reasoned. He turned back to the Equestrians, ignoring the stifled snickering from his friend. "Regardless, you'll never know who we'll run into in a Mystery Dungeon, or even out in the continent. So, to start things off, you guys will practice learning how to fight in your bodies and use moves beginner Pokemon like us can use."

"Moves?" Rainbow questioned. "Don't we just beat them up, bite them, or...-" She let out an annoyed sigh, pointing at her beak with a wing. "-...peck them?"

"Well, we can do that, but it won't do as much damage to another Pokemon than using a move, as we call them," Johann explained. "Some of the basics most Pokemon learn are Tackle, Quick Attack, Pound, Scratch, any Normal-type moves like that. Or, for Pokemon not physically capable like Twilight is, they have different starting attack moves. I think Ralts can use Disarming Voice. Most Psychic-types are pretty powerful with Special attacks."

"But when Alakazam asked me to bend one of his spoons with psychic powers, I couldn't get it to move," Twilight said dejectedly.

"Maybe you're not strong enough to use any just yet," Scott pondered. "With enough training, you could learn Confusion in no time."

"Huh? 'Confusion'?" Pinkie asked. "Sounds confusing already. How many moves do Pokemon know?"

"Heheh. There's quite a lot of them. Some we can learn naturally through training, or through little devices that can be found called Technical Machines," Scott explained.

"We just call them TMs for short," Johann added. "And Normal-types can learn a lot more variety of moves than other types, so Fluttershy and Rarity can learn certain moves none of us can learn."

"Awww! Lucky!" Pinkie whined.

"We're just going to start with the basics for now," Scott reassured. "And until you guys get comfortable, you'll be surprised by what you can do later on." The girls and Spike nodded their heads, Fluttershy being more reluctant as she would have to resort to violently hurting other Pokemon that could be just as cute as they are. "Johann and I will show you just how intense a battle can be, then we'll let you get to practicing on your wooden dummies."

"Sweet. I get the living dummy to train against." Johann chuckled at his joke, both rescuers walking over to the more spacious part of their training grounds.

"Yeah, yeah, yuck it up, flame breath," Scott goaded as he cracked his knuckles.

The Mane Six and Spike watched as the two Pokemon stared each other down, the two rescuers anticipating each others' movements while their audience began to feel anxious about what they'll expect to see. After what felt like several minutes of the silent staredown, Scott made the first move and rushed toward Johann.

"Ember!" Johann exclaimed, then exhaled and shot out several small flames at the charging Riolu.

Scott quickly slid under the fiery embers, sailing inches over his body. When Johann stopped, Scott quickly vaulted back on his feet and continued charging with his arms across his chest.

"Metal Claw!" the Riolu cried out, the stubs on the back of his paws glowing and forming a pair of claws. Johann grinned, knowing that move won't hurt him too much even if he got hit, leaping away and dodging the flurry of swipes. The Equestrians watched in awe at how fast the Pokemon moved, Fluttershy unfortunately whimpering and couldn't bear to  watch as she pulled the fluff around her lower half and covered her face with it. "Getting a bit better dodging me."

"Thanks to all our training sessions," Johann agreed, ducking another swipe, then lunged and rammed Scott with his shoulder, pushing him back a bit.

Scott grunted, but let out a small chuckle, rubbing his chest from the impact. "But can you handle keeping up with me?" Scott asked, crouching slightly, then sped off at incredible speed with a cone of wind forming around him. "Quick Attack!"

Johann braced himself to get rammed by the Riolu's Quick Attack, but Scott decided to show off and taunt his friend, changing directions about two feet away from him, then zigzagged around the Charmander to disorient him. Rainbow Dash's beak dropped as she watched Scott zip around, moving blindingly fast that could rival even her speed.

"Wow, he's like a blur," Applejack uttered.

"This is so cool! It's like watching the Power Ponies in the comics really fight!" Spike cheered. "And we can do all those cool moves, too!?"

"Probably not all of them," Twilight stated.

Johann remained calm, waiting for the right time to strike. He noticed Scott's weaving while moving at high speeds were in a pattern. Taking aim, he unleashed another Ember attack, aiming at the Riolu's legs and where he would end up dashing to. The small flames hit their mark, making Scott yelp in pain from the Fire-type attack and tumble into a roll. He landed back on his feet, only to grimace and kneel down, his paws clutching at one of his legs. Out of all the unfortunate luck, Johann managed inflict Scott with Burn, a painful burn mark appearing around the injury.

The Equestrians gasped in shock, even Johann was a little startled. "W-What?" Fluttershy asked, still hiding behind her yellow fluff. "A-Are they done?"

"Johann just burned Scott with that Ember move!" Rarity exclaimed.

Both Fluttershy's ears perked up, her paws releasing her fluff to see Scott wincing in pain while holding his burned leg. Gasping in horror, she turned to glare at Johann, who gave his friend an apologetic grimace.

"Sorry, Scott!" Johann said. "At least I managed to catch you off guard when moving that-"

"Why would you do that!?" The Charmander flinched when he heard Fluttershy yell. The Buneary was bouncing over to the young fire lizard, Johann staggering away when the angry animal caretaker got up to him, standing on her toes while looking down at him like a mother scolding their child. "This is what you two call sparring!? You just burned him!"

"Uhhh, w-well, I-I kinda didn't mean to," Johann tried to reason. Fluttershy began glaring intensely at him, using her famous Stare she resorts to if any of her animal friends refused to listen or stop what they're doing. Johann was paralyzed, but this wasn't a Glare attack; he was terrified of the Buneary's gaze, silently scolding him and feeling guilty talking back to her. He wilted sadly, looking down in shame as her eyes won over his resolve to explain. "I-I'm sorry..."

"H-Hey, Fluttershy, what's the deal!?" Scott called out. He stood up, wincing from his burn, but toughed it out. "We're still in the middle of our match!"

Dropping her Stare, Fluttershy bounded over to the injured Riolu. "You shouldn't even be fighting with that burn! You can barely stand!" Fluttershy said.

"I'm still raring to-WAH!" Fluttershy knocked Scott over, elevating his injured leg as she examined it. Frustrated, he sat up with an annoyed leer. "Fluttershy, this is normal in battles! I don't need medical attention right now!"

"I don't care how tough you're acting! You just got a serious burn!" Fluttershy scolded. "You're not going to be standing, or fighting, for weeks!"

"That's the benefit of inflicting status ailments to our opponents!" Scott argued. He managed to flick his leg out of Fluttershy's paws, wincing with each movement, but he got back up and balanced on his good leg. "Some moves can debilitate Pokemon and make them weaker! Burns are one of them; it hurts like mad when I try to move, and it lowers the strength of my physical attacks because of the pain!"

"That's just awful!" Fluttershy said. "How is it that you two enjoy doing something like this?"

"Battling other Pokemon and knocking them out helps us grow stronger, which is why we spar to practice in case we run into dangerous Pokemon outside of towns or in Mystery Dungeons. You know, the whole point of us showing you how to protect yourselves?" Fluttershy frowned, her ears drooping sadly. Scott just sighed and shook his head, understanding why someone like Fluttershy would be overly concerned with their health when she mentioned she took care of other creatures in her world. "I guess our sparring session ends in a draw. Next time, try not to get between any Pokemon fighting with each other, or else you could get hurt instead."

"O-Oh..." Fluttershy murmured guiltily.

"Well, now you know." Scott gently patted the Buneary's shoulder. "Sorry for snapping, but you're lucky Johann and I are one of the more sensible Pokemon to stop fighting if it gets too hairy. Others might not be, and can be hard to reason with if the natural disasters get them to be more aggressive than they should." Fluttershy understood with a slow nod, following the hopping Riolu as he went over to check on Johann. That bravado he had earlier was gone, and he seemed to look upset and guilty, which was a surprise to Scott. "Hey, you ok, dude?"

Hearing his voice, Johann snapped out of his guilty daze and looked at Scott. "...Uhh...Y-Yeah. I'm...I'm good."

"Umm...Sorry for...scolding you, Johann," Fluttershy apologized. "I...I don't like seeing other animals getting hurt, and...e-even if it was training, I couldn't help but react like that when Scott got burned."

Johann seemed wary, avoiding eye contact with Fluttershy. "Y-Yeah. I get it," Johann said. "B-But, you'd be surprised just how durable we can be. We're...not like any other creatures in your world, so..."

"I-I see now," Fluttershy uttered, then approached Johann and gave him an apologetic hug.

The Charmander was a little surprised by the gesture, but he accepted it and hugged her back, letting bygones be bygones. Fluttershy walked back over to her friends, while Johann helped Scott limp back over to them.

"You sure you're alright?" Scott asked curiously. "I was kinda cringing in pain so all I heard was her yelling at you."

"I-I don't know," Johann admitted. "I tried to tell her this was a part of how we fight, but when she gave me that look, I froze and...gave in to her judgmental eyes."

"Huh? You froze?" Scott questioned. "...Can Buneary use Glare? Or even Hypnosis?"

"I don't think so, but it didn't feel like either of those moves..." The two regrouped with the Equestrians, Johann letting Scott sit down. "I think now's a good time to get some berries from town. Get the berry grove started, get us some breakfast, and lots of Rawst Berries if that happens again."

"From your fire breath or your tail?" Scott teased. "Remember yesterday? You almost burned the Nidos' yard because of that flaming torch attached to your backside."

Johann blushed, grinning sheepishly before turning tail and rushing off to Pokemon Square to get their future berry grove started, and some berries to help with Scott's Burn affliction. "Ya sure you're alright, sugarcube?" Applejack asked nervously.

"I'm fine," Scott assured. "Once I eat a Rawst Berry, I'll be good as new."

"Eating a berry will cure your burn?" Rarity questioned skeptically. "You need ointment or something to at least sooth it."

"You'll be surprised when you see it," Scott said. "But forget about me for now. I'll live. Now, on to practicing, guys!"

The Mane Six and Spike began to practice fighting in their new bodies, even Fluttershy, though only as a means of self defense rather than getting stronger. After seeing the example battle Scott and Johann gave them, they had to be extremely careful when he mentioned status ailments when enemy Pokemon will attempt to use them to gain the advantage. Scott and Twilight made sure to give the others details on their starting moves on the log posts: Fluttershy using Pound, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Spike, Pinkie Pie, and Rarity using Tackle, and Twilight herself using Disarming Voice. While practicing their attacking moves, Scott gave them pointers if they had trouble dealing some damage to their dummies. Fluttershy's Pound always ended up more as a light tap than a hard enough punch, her training definitely going to be fully hands on if she's ever going to let go of the fact that the cute Pokemon around her can all handle themselves in any situation. The others were doing fine, and Twilight felt satisfied she could do something, even if it was at a distance, and it was with her own voice instead of her psychic powers that'll eventually develop.

Johann came back several minutes later with a basket carrying several different types of berries. He placed most of them in the base, leaving one of each inside to grow his berry grove while taking the rest out to the field. He could tell the Equestrians were hard at work, most of them working up a sweat and doing a nice bit of damage to their practice logs.

"Hey, guys! I'm back!" Johann called out.

"Ooh! Look at all those yummy berries!" Pinkie said, licking her lips in hunger.

"Dig in, guys." While the group took their break and helped themselves to the berries, Johann took one of the Rawst Berries and tossed it to Scott.

"About time," Scott teased as he caught the light blue berry. He bit into it, his face grimacing at the bitter taste, but toughed it out and ate it, leaves and all. Once he downed the Rawst Berry, the healing affects kicked in, the Riolu's burnt leg returning to normal like he had never gotten scorched by fire at all. He sighed in relief, vaulting back up on his feet and stretched his formerly injured leg. "Much better. Johann, you'd better plant a whole row of Rawst Berries in that grove. If it doesn't come from your mouth, your tail's gonna burn everyone more."

"I'll be careful next time," Johann promised. "So, how'd they do?"

"They didn't do so bad," Scott said. "A good start, but there's still a lot of work to do." He glanced over at Fluttershy, daintily nibbling on an Oran Berry to taste it. "Fluttershy's...not really much of a fighter. Maybe she can do some supporting moves to help us or debilitate enemies."

"You sure? I mean, with that weird glare of hers, she could stop ANY Pokemon in their tracks if it worked on me," Johann said, emphasizing the look she gave him to Scott.

Scott hummed curiously while watching the group. Their aura still made him curious if what was mixed with their energy was indeed their magic. If so, then what Fluttershy may have done might have been something no other Pokemon is able to learn. Johann didn't get paralyzed, nor was he under Fluttershy's hypnotic commands or fell asleep. He believed Fluttershy could stand up and defend herself, but she's way too kind to so much as hurt any other creature unless they were in a dire situation or someone got seriously hurt.

"Hey, this is a weird looking one!" Pinkie held up a round red berry with soft spikes jutting out from its surface.

While she examined it as she held it in her tail, Johann and Scott flinched when they saw what she grabbed. "Ahh! Pinkie, don't eat that! That's a Tamato Berry!" Johann exclaimed.

"A tomato berry!? Sounds yummy! It's like a vegetable, but it's actually a fruit!" Pinkie giggled, ignoring the Charmander's warning and tossed it in the air, looking up with her mouth wide open and took a bite out of it.

"No! Tamato Berries are-!" He was too late to warn her. The moment the juices poured out in her mouth from that bite, Pinkie's eyes widened in shock, her whole quickly going red from her feet to her ears. Her eyes watered as steam began pouring out of her ears, her cheeks puffed out before opening them in a yell, blowing out flames from the intense spiciness that came from the berry. "-...really spicy..."

"Ahhhh! It burns!" Pinkie screamed, bouncing around in a desperate attempt to find anything to cool her burning mouth. Everyone watched, though Rainbow was the only one who laughed at the hilarious disaster Pinkie brought on herself. Scott quickly ran over, grabbed another Rawst Berry, then managed to tackled the bouncing fluffball to the ground and plop the berry in her mouth. Despite getting sticky from her cotton candy body, he persevered and quickly shut Pinkie's mouth, letting her bite down and let the bitter juices from the Rawst Berry soothe her burning tongue, lips, and gums. The berry did help, though the Tamato Berry left her lips and tongue swollen and red. "Ith's juth ath bad ath when I tathted liquid rainbow in Cloudthdale."

"...Uhh, I have no idea what you just said, but hopefully you learned that, next time, you don't go for Tamato Berries." Scott helped the whimpering Swirlix back on her feet, then looked over at Johann, who gave them an embarrassed grin while rubbing his neck.

"I...got the Tamato Berries for me," Johann said sheepishly. "I know I can handle the spiciness..."

Scott sighed heavily, trying to wipe off the stickiness from Pinkie's sugary fluff from his fur. "Ok. Next training lesson: learning what each berry tastes like and what they can do. So that no one eats another Tamato Berry and mistakes it for something else..." He saw the cheeky grin on the Starly's face, almost as if she was going to plot a way to use a Tamato Berry to prank someone. "And Rainbow, if you try to pass off a Tamato Berry as another kind of berry as a prank, that spicy scent alone makes them stand out from the others."

"What!? Aww, man!" Rainbow whined. "There goes some good pranks I had in mind..."

"On who?" Applejack questioned.

"...Everypony?" Rainbow answered nervously.

The group gave the Starly a blank stare, even Pinkie with her swollen tongue sticking out to soothe it in the much cooler air than in her furnace of a burnt mouth. "...Anyways, moving on to the berries..."





The rest of the day was spent with more training, more important lessons on the world, battling, status effects and which moves can cause what, the berries, and much more. They even had practice duels with the two rescue team Pokemon to get a feel for how battles would work for them. Where most of the Equestrians were into it, even Rarity with how scuffed her fur would get if she missed a Tackle and hit the ground, Fluttershy was still afraid to hurt either Scott or Johann when it came to her turn. They understand she likes all sorts of creatures and finds Pokemon to be just like them, but more sentient, and her friends are able to talk to them like she had with her animal friends back home.

The next morning, Scott and Johann left the girls and Spike to continue practicing while they headed out in the woods to forage for wild berries so they didn't spend too much of their Poké in Pokemon Square's stores. "They seem to be adjusting well," Johann commented.

"Yeah, but let's not expect them to help us with everything," Scott said. "They may be improving, but they're beings from another world. Their world sounds so much more peaceful than ours." Their search led them to an Oran Berry tree, the fruits ripe for the picking. Scott leapt up to the branches, picking each berry and dropped them down to Johann, the Charmander catching them and tossing them in a basket they brought. "I mean, I probably wouldn't mind, but it'd be really boring not taking on a challenge from time to time."

"Can't you just be patient for any serious missions involving taking on other Pokemon?" Johann asked irritably. "For someone who's focused on training our new friends, you want to jump into a Beedrill nest and pick a fight with the entire swarm."

"Hey, you think there is a nest somewhere out here we can take on?" Scott asked eagerly.

"Exactly my point," Johann muttered under his breath with a frustrated sigh.

"I'm kidding! I'm not THAT crazy!" Scott laughed, though Johann didn't believe him for a second.

"Help! Someone help!" The two rescuers looked in the direction of the feminine voice crying out for help. Through the rustling bushes, a small yellow mouse-like Pokemon ran through the underbrush, the tips of her ears and front paws were red, a small red tail in the shape of a plus sign, and her cheeks had red circles with the yellow of her fur marking them like plus signs as well. "Oh, where in the world is the square!?"

"A Plusle?" Scott uttered to himself. He dropped back down to the ground next to Johann, then they both approached the panicked Plusle. "Hey, what seems to be the problem?"

Plusle noticed the two Pokemon, quickly running over to them. "Please, I need a rescue team! I'm trying to find Pokemon Square!"

"Well, you're talking to Team Rescue Rangers," Scott proudly said, showing off their badge pinned to his red scarf.

Plusle looked at the badge, though instead of being grateful to run into them, she looked more concerned. "Umm...What rank are you?"

"Normal rank," Johann answered. "We...kinda just formed our team a couple days ago, but we did a great first job with an elderly couple's yard, so we have some good credibility with daily chores."

Scott gave Johann a sideways leer, then nudged him hard in the shoulder. While the Charmander grimaced and rubbed his shoulder, Plusle sighed and shook her head.

"I'm sorry, but I need more experienced rescuers to help me," she explained, apologizing for getting their hopes up in asking Scott and Johann for help. "My brother's in trouble, and I don't think your rank will help with the situation he's got himself in."

Getting fed up not being able to do any missions for their team not involving important rescue missions, Scott quickly stepped in front of Plusle before she tried to find the square. "Whoa, whoa, hold on a second! We're a rescue team, and we can handle anything your brother got himself into!"

"W-Well, I don't doubt you have the potential, but Minun's been captured by two really dangerous Croagunks, and they're really tough," Plusle explained. "I was out in the forest finding food for us, but when I came back, they began harassing him about giving them our Poké or berries. They're holding him hostage, so I ran away before they noticed me to find help."

"Pth. That's all? No problem," Scott scoffed confidently, startling Johann. "Plus, we just got ourselves seven new members on our team. We'll outnumber those Croagunks and rescue your brother!"

"Uhh...I don't know," Plusle mumbled with uncertainty.

"Just stay right here. We'll be back with our full team, and we'll rescue your brother!" Johann gawked at his friend's overconfidence, stammering slightly to try to reason with him about this crazy idea.

Before he could even get the words out, Scott was already sprinting back to their base with glee, forcing the Charmander to chase after him. "Scott, wait!" Johann called out. The Riolu managed to slow down for his friend to catch up, only to get tackled to the ground, Johann angrily looking down at the Fighting-type canine. "Are you nuts!? Why did you tell her that!?"

Scott rolled Johann off of him, quickly getting back up giddily. "Because we're finally taking a mission where we get to fight Pokemon holding someone hostage! Something that rescue teams like us are supposed to do!"

"You're getting in over your head! We don't know how strong these Croagunk are!" Johann scolded. "And you're going to bring our 'full team' to outnumber them!? They're not ready, and you know that!"

"They can just stand by and help on the side while we do the real fighting," Scott reassured. "I told her we'd bring the girls and Spike, but I never told her they'd be doing the fighting. Just surround them to startle them in a fake ambush, and we'll take them out easy-peasy."

"Two of them are Normal-types and two of them are Fairy-types, which Croagrunk can easily overpower with their types, Rainbow doesn't know how to use Flying-type attacks yet, and Twilight can't use any psychic moves because she's not strong enough," Johann reminded the oblivious Riolu. "You think we have the advantage, but if they find out two of our friends don't have the right moves to hurt them badly, they'll target them first before dealing with us."

"Come on, Johann. I've been itching for a real battle, and if we keep doing pointless chores, how else are we supposed to grow our team's rank?" Scott questioned. Johann just gave him a disappointed stare with his arms crossed over his chest. Scott let out a sigh in annoyance. "...Alright, they'll stay hidden with Plusle and watch us fight the Croagunk. If we get in over our heads-"

"If YOU get in over your head," Johann corrected.

Scott rolled his eyes in response. "Ok. If I get in over my head, they can go to the guild and request help if we're in trouble," he rephrased.

Johann continued staring at Scott silently for a moment before responding. "...Fine. But next time, you'll wait for a mission like this when we're stronger and at a higher rank."

"Alright!" Scott cheered, then caught Johann off guard as he picked him up and hugged the Charmander. "This is gonna be awesome! Team Rescue Rangers taking on our first group of baddies!"

He unceremoniously dropped Johann and continued running back to the base, leaving Johann to sigh again, get back up, and slowly follow after him. "What has he gotten us into?" he muttered to himself.





"Hiyah!" Pinkie yelled out as she rammed into her training log in a Tackle. She knocked it over and sent it rolling across the grass, getting better with her new body along with her friends. "Yeah! Take that, log! Nopony can stand the might of delicious sugary cotton candy power!"

Rainbow flew into her log, ramming it harder and sending it farther than Pinkie did. "Man, I am one tough bird!" she said, no longer irritated at what kind of Pokemon she turned into. "I wonder what else I can do. I hope I can move faster than Scott, because I'm the only one who's supposed to be fast around here."

"Practice more and you just might," Twilight said, taking a break from training to read up more on the moves they could each learn.

Applejack was next, crouching low before kicking off and charging forward. While running toward her log, electricity began to spark around her tail. She yelped in surprise and skid to a halt when she felt this strange surge of electricity course through her while she ran, then couldn't when she stopped.

"Whoa nelly," she uttered in awe. "This is so weird. Anytime Ah run fast enough, mah hindquarters get all tingly from this electricity Ah seem to keep makin'."

"You're so lucky you're able to use attacks with lightning!" Rainbow complained.

Applejack just stared blankly at the Starly. "Yeah, sure. Ah'm lucky Ah get to feel lightnin' comin' out from mah flanks and tail," she grumbled while emphasizing her stubby lightning bolt tail.

"According to this, Yamper generate electricity whenever they run, where most Electric-types would be able to discharge their stored lightning from a source on them," Twilight paraphrased. "One such move you can learn soon is something called 'Nuzzle'."

"Nuzzling is a Pokemon move?" Spike questioned while Rainbow laughed at the ridiculous move.

"Oh no! Applejack's gonna snuggle with her opponents to hurt them!" the Starly laughed, which made Applejack smirk, wanting to try it out if she's able to.

"Oh, it's funny, huh? How about Ah try it out on you, Rainbow Dash?" Applejack asked. She pawed at the ground, wiggled her rump, then dashed toward the guffawing Starly. Electricity sparked along her tail as she moved, which began to surge up to her cheeks. The crackling made Rainbow stop, look at Applejack, then yelp and flew up high, barely avoiding her as she hit one of the other training logs with her cheek. The log crackled with lightning as the Electric attack surged over it, then stopped when Applejack moved away. Applejack was stunned, surprised she was able to do that at all. "Sweet Celestia...Did Ah actually do it?"

"I...think so," Twilight said in awe.

"That electricity went right to your cheeks," Rarity pointed out.

"And the log went zappity-zap-zap!" Pinkie added. "Nuzzle me next! I wanna be extra floofy and toasty!"

"And almost got me with that!" Rainbow complained, flapping her wings angrily. "I don't want to know how painful it feels to get zapped like that when I'm not a pegasus anymore, so don't do that again!"

Her hard flaps caused a powerful gust of wind, accidentally aiming at Applejack. Her Gust attack sent the Yamper's hat flying off her head, then sent Applejack tumbling backward a few inches before falling on her belly. It didn't hurt Applejack that badly, but it annoyed her.

"Consarn it, Rainbow Dash, that stung!" Applejack exclaimed. She got up and retrieved her hat, setting it back on her head. "Ah was only teasin' ya, but Ah wasn't gonna actually hurt ya!"

"Huh? But...I just flapped my wings," Rainbow uttered, lowering herself back to the ground, then looked at her wings as she stretched them out. "How did me flapping hurt you?"

"I think that was Gust," Twilight explained. "A powerful wind generated by the flapping of wings, and is a Flying-type move. Thankfully, Flying-type moves won't effect Electric-types, so Applejack isn't too badly hurt."

"Ah am still annoyed by that," Applejack grumbled. "Y'all better stay grounded if ya can't control your wings, Rainbow."

"Heheh. Sorry," Rainbow apologized.

A moment later, Scott and Johann came back to the base, forgetting their berry hunt as the Equestrians could see the excited glint in the Riolu's eyes as he approached them. "Hey, guys! We got some news!"

"You got breakfast?" Pinkie asked, her tummy grumbling in response. "I'm hungry for some more yummy berries!"

Scott winced, as well as Johann, nearly forgetting their basket they left behind with Plusle. "Uhh, well, we forgot," Johann said, making the others groan. "But that's because someone-" He gave Scott a sideways glare before looking back at their friends. "-decided to enlist us to a rescue mission from a Plusle looking for help."

"And I mentioned all of our team would help save her brother, Minun, from two Croagunks," Scott added with a sheepish giggle.

"What in Equestria is a Croagunk?" Rarity asked.

Twilight flipped through the pages of her book, finding an illustration of the Fighting/Poison-type amphibian Pokemon. "Here it is."

"Eww! They're giant frogs!?" Rarity shrieked.

"And they're poisonous while also excelling in martial arts," Twilight added. "They sound pretty tough."

"Yeah. And we're the ones who'll take on the Croagrunks, not a different team who's more experienced handling tougher Pokemon," Johann said, emphasizing Scott's lack of common sense just to pick a fight with tough opponents.

"And...we're going to fight them, too?" Fluttershy asked.

"Well...you guys can stay back and be our backup," Scott said. "Johann and I will be the ones to fight them. But if we don't manage to succeed, then go and get help from the guild and have a stronger rescue team take them on."

"Just so you guys know, this was all Scott's idea, so if we fail, it's all his fault," Johann said, putting his two Poké in.

Scott grimaced, but he nodded, agreeing to taking full responsibility despite him getting fired up for a tough battle. The new rescue team members looked at each other, some a little worried they might lose, but they definitely outnumber the two Croagunks if they work together.

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go save us some Pokemon!" Rainbow cheered, her friends all agreeing despite the danger they might face.

"That didn't take long for you all to agree," Johann said in astonishment.

"We've had our fair share of facing scary baddies back in our world, so this shouldn't be any different," Pinkie said. "We just have more new powers and stuff besides our magic of friendship rainbow beams to defeat our villains."

"If we had the Elements of Harmony with us, that is," Twilight said.

With everyone gathered, Johann went inside the base and grabbed their toolbox, carrying it for the team as he and Scott led the way back to Plusle. They found her where the two rescuers left her, the electric mouse sitting by their half-filled basket of Oran Berries.

"Here we are, Plusle!" Scott called out.

She looked over and saw the rescue team she found by chance. Despite the numbers, Plusle still seemed unsure about a beginner rescue team taking on other Pokemon.

"This is...your team?" she asked.

"Yup," Scott gloated, letting the idea of fame get to him already despite their low rank as a rescue team. "We've already got other Pokemon signing up to join us."

"We just started as a team two days ago," Johann corrected, which made Scott nearly trip over from him telling the truth over his exaggerated statements. "Ignore anything else my co-partner keeps spouting. It's gonna bite us in the tail later anyway."

"H-Hey, we can handle this!" Scott argued. "I don't get why you're not as excited as I am about fighting Pokemon thugs! This is the best thing to ever happen to us, and you're always the one who's so optimistic about everything!"

"I am, but only when I pay attention, follow the rules, and not rush into danger," Johann clarified.

Both Pokemon glared at each other, concerning Plusle as she watched them arguing with each other while approaching their teammates. "Uhh...do they not get along with each other?"

"They do, but they usually poke fun at each other," Twilight said. "Johann seems pretty annoyed deciding to help your brother and fend off these Croagunks holding him hostage."

"Which one's the leader?" Plusle asked.

"I think they both are," Spike said. "But they're great instructors. Taught us how to battle and everything."

Plusle only seemed more worried as the beginner rescue team had rookie recruits, but the Equestrians seemed pretty confident in Scott and Johann's leadership skills and combative prowess. "Well, ok then," she finally said after much thought. "Follow me. My home isn't too far from here."

Plusle guided Team Rescue Rangers through the woods to her home. Scott and Johann occasionally glared at each other, the former sick of being reminded how thickheaded he was while the latter was frustrated with him acting as the decision-making leader and failing to understand what sort of trouble they can get into without preparation. It didn't take long for them to get through the woods to where Plusle and her brother lived. She crouched over to a bush and hid, ushering the rescue team to quietly come closer and peek through or around the leaves. There was the natural den she lived in, big enough for a pair of small electric mice Pokemon like them to live in. Outside, however, there was Plusle's brother, Minun, similar to a Plusle, but with blue paws, ears, tail, and cheeks with the yellow fur on his cheeks and tail in the shape of a minus sign, tied up with rope against a nearby tree while two blue toad-like Pokemon, their midsections with one black stripe then two whites, black toes and fingers, the middle digits on their hands orange, orange pouches on their cheeks that occasionally expanded, and yellow eyes with black markings searched around their den, carrying whatever berries the siblings hoarded for their snack.

"Is this all you seriously have, twerp?" one of the Croagunks questioned the tied Minun. "Just berries? Not even any Poké?"

"I live off the land, you no-good thieves," Minun growled, his cheeks sparking aggressively.

"On your own?" the other asked suspiciously. "We know you little mice exist in pairs, so where's your other half? Foraging?"

"I live alone!" Minun lied, making the Croagunks laugh in disbelief.

"Well, if you did, you probably would have zapped us a bit harder, you little pest," the first Croagunk mocked. Minun growled again, trying not to let the bandits call his bluff. "Tell us where the Plusle's at, and we'll just leave with your stuff without having to rough either of you up."

"I'm telling you I live by myself! I have no siblings or other family!" Minun exclaimed.

The two Croagunks looked at each other, clearly not buying the electric mouse's lie. Plusle whimpered nervously, fearing the Croagunks were going to hurt her brother to get him to talk.

"They can take whatever we want. I just don't want to see my brother get hurt," she said.

"Don't worry," Scott reassured the worried Plusle. "We'll rescue him."

"And how are we going to do that again?" Johann questioned. "Just blindly rush at them and pummel them into submission? Great plan."

Scott's eye twitched in irritation, then brought his attention to his partner. "And you have a better one?"

"Yes: NOT being here and having a more experienced rescue team handle this," Johann hissed, making sure to keep his voice down so they didn't get caught.

"And we'd be getting some of that experience without having our paws held every step of the way," Scott argued, emphasizing his point by grabbing the Charmander's paw and waved it in front of him.

Johann snatched his arm back, the others watching blankly as the two team founders continued bickering with each other. "...So...these two are just going to keep fighting and not come up with a plan, are they?" Plusle asked.

"Afraid so," Applejack mumbled. She decided to take charge, biting Scott's tail and pulled him away from Johann, letting out a yelp as he was chomped. "Y'all need to break it up. Now ain't the time to be squabblin' when we got somepony to rescue."

"Why bite my tail if you're siding with me?" Scott asked bitterly. "Shouldn't you have bitten-?" The Riolu looked back at Johann, who gave his friend a blank stare and pointed to the flaming tip on his tail. "...Ok, point taken, but why me?"

"Because you don't seem to care about our 'new recruits' and their safety when they've never fought other Pokemon before," Johann said.

"I do so care," Scott hissed, his yelping going higher when Applejack bit harder, quickly covering his muzzle to keep the Croagunks from hearing them.

"Enough!" Applejack growled, spitting out the Riolu's tail, then got between the two Pokemon. "You two are best friends, right? So put aside whatever differences ya got and focus on this rescue mission."

"Yeah," Pinkie agreed. "We've faced lots of mean creatures before, so this would be a good experience for us, too. And we'll do it together, as friends AND as a team."

"Ha! They agree with me," Scott gloated, making Johann growl.

"But they don't know how seriously hurt they can get around here!" Johann argued.

Plusle sighed, regretting her decision to ask for Team Rescue Rangers' help when she should have found another rescue team. "I should have just kept moving on to the square," she mumbled. When she looked up, she noticed the Buneary in the team was missing. "Huh? Where'd that Buneary go?"

Scott and Johann finally stopped their arguing as everyone looked around for Fluttershy. Peeking around the bushes, they found her making her way up to the Croagunks.

"Oh, she's just going to try to talk to the Croagunks," Scott said, oblivious to what the animal lover was planning. "But if Johann has a much better idea, I'd love to-" He froze, looking at this friend as the Charmander looked back at him, then back to Fluttershy as they let out a startled gasp. "What is she doing!?"

"Like you said: she's probably going to try to talk to them," Rainbow said nonchalantly. "She does have a knack for taming any sort of wild creature."

"Fighting-type moves can really hurt Normal-types!" Johann exclaimed quietly. "If they know any, she could wind up in a lot of pain!"

Fluttershy calmly approached the Croagunk duo, one of them holding up their fist as he threatened to hurt Minun. Minun glanced over at the Buneary, confused by her randomly showing up, catching the Croagunks' attention as they turned around.

"Hello, Mr. Croagunks," Fluttershy greeted innocently.

"...Umm...Hello?" one greeted back, slightly startled at the random interloper intruding in their robbery. "...Can we help you? We're kinda busy."

"Well, you seem to be taking food that doesn't belong to you. That's not very nice," Fluttershy stated. The Croagunks looked at the pile of berries they took out of Plusle and Minun's den, then gave each other a confused look. "If you were hungry, you probably should have asked first. And there's plenty of fruit around the woods to get a snack."

"We aren't looking for food," the second Croagunk stated. "We're trying to take this Minun's Poké, but the little rat's got nothing."

"I have a lot of different berries," Minun grumbled. "How is that 'nothing'?"

"That's still not very nice," Fluttershy repeated, though a bit more sternly. "Neither is tying the poor thing up to a tree. Now, let Minun go and give him back his food so we can all go on our merry ways."

"Pth. Or what?" the first Croagunk scoffed.

"Or else you two are going to get...the Stare," Fluttershy warned.

"The what?" Minun asked in befuddlement.

Scott and Johann squinted blankly in exasperation at Fluttershy's threat. "D-Did she...just say...'the Stare'?" Scott uttered.

"Ooooh. She's gonna give it to them good," Pinkie said. "Now if only Pokemon invented popcorn, this would be a fun show."

The robbers glanced at each other, then burst out laughing at Fluttershy's threat. "Oh no, I'm going to submit to those innocent eyes!" the first toad Pokemon mocked. The Croagunks calmed down, then gave the Buneary a menacing glare. "If you think you can help this Minun, you're sadly mistaken, little bunny."

"Ok, I guess you two leave me no choice," Fluttershy said.

"She's crazy!" Scott exclaimed. As the Croagunks approached the Buneary, Scott dashed out of his hiding spot with Quick Attack, zipping off to aim for both Croagunks and rammed them away from Fluttershy before she could give them her patented Stare. The Fighting/Poison-types flipped back onto their feet after getting knocked away, staring down the Riolu standing in front of Fluttershy. "Back off or you're gonna tussle with me!"

Johann sighed and shook his head. "Twilight, watch the toolbox," he said, then leapt out from behind the bush and headed toward Fluttershy. "Fluttershy, please stay back. Let us handle them."

"But I was just about to-" Fluttershy was interrupted, gently being pushed over to Minun by the Charmander.

"Who are you runts?" the second Croagunk asked in annoyance. His eyes grew wide when he and his brother in crime spotted the rescue team badges on the Pokemons' bandannas. "A rescue team? Ah. Of all the rotten luck."

"These two are just runts," the first one said. "Those are rookie badges."

"Well, we 'rookies' are gonna kick your slimy butts back to the bog you hatched from!" Scott taunted, which made Johann groan.

"Great. Act like a cocky hero before we're the ones whose butts are gonna get kicked," Johann muttered.

"You should have gotten the adults to handle us, brats," the first Croagunk said. "We're the Poison Twins, Croak-"

"-and Wart!" the second added, the duo getting into fighting stances. "Two thieves looking for Poké from weak runts like you two!"

Scott and Johann prepared themselves, both sides staring each other down while anticipating their opponents' first moves. Johann made the first, using Ember between Croak and Wart to separate the twin Croagunks, Scott charging after Croak while Johann dealt with Wart, who retaliated back at the Charmander with Poison Sting. Johann ducked to avoid the small, poisonous needles firing from Wart's mouth. He kept his distance, letting Wart come to him as the Croagunk rushed at him. Johann avoided several punches and side kicks, thankful to have had his sparring sessions with a Fighting-type like Scott, avoiding each jab and kick while retaliating with his own claws.

Scott and Croak, however, were having a martial arts brawl. Both Pokemon were squaring off, fists and feet flying, punches and kicks blocked or clashed with each other. Croak was a bit impressed the Fighting-type pup was able to hold his own despite being a beginner rescuer, but he wasn't going down without taking him out. While the two teams fought, Fluttershy helped Minun, getting him untied and freeing him.

"Thanks," Minun said. "Are you part of the rescue team?"

"Mhmm," Fluttershy said with a nod. "So are my friends."

She pointed over to the bushes the others hid behind, Pinkie waving at them, signalling them to come over while Scott and Johann have their foes distracted. Taking the opportunity, Fluttershy and Minun ran over to the hidden group, thankfully avoiding getting spotted, and dove through the foliage.

"Minun!" Shaking off the leaves, Minun looked up to see the relieved expression on his sister's face.

"Sis! You're ok!" he said, both siblings hugging each other while nuzzling their cheeks.

"I should be saying that!" Plusle said. The two electric mice Pokemon released each other, then turned away and tapped their tails together, causing powerful sparks to expel from their tail and cheeks. The act was a surprise for the Equestrians, curious if that's something Electric-type Pokemon do. "Now that we're together, I think we should show those jerks a shocking time."

"So would I, but those two seem like they've got it covered," Minun said.

Everyone looked at the battle to see how Scott and Johann were doing. Scott met Croak's fists with his own, ducking and flipping away before lunging into a Quick Attack, ramming the Croagunk and sent him skidding across the ground a few yards.

"Pretty spry for a runt," Croak praised. His eyes glanced at the tree where he and his partner tied up Minun, finding no sign of him or Fluttershy. "Turned out that Buneary was actually part of your team. She was the distraction, and got our little hostage out of there, too."

Scott smirked, even though Fluttershy casually approaching them to catch off their guard and with him and Johann being the real distractions for her to save Minun wasn't as planned, but he went along with it if it perturbed the Croagunks. "Yeah. Exactly as planned," he said.

Croak could see the Riolu's grin twitch slightly, grinning in amusement as the rescuer was merely improvising, even when Johann told Fluttershy to let the two of them handle him and Wart. "Well, you two must be pretty brave for a couple of rookies," Croak said. "But if you're this confident, I think the baby gloves should finally come off." Glancing over at the other two Pokemon, Wart dodged Johann's Scratch attacks, then ducked under his tail as he spun around to smack him with his longer appendage, quickly grappling it while avoiding the Charmander's fire tip. "Wart, let's stop playing around with such 'experienced' rescuers."

Wart's grin widened, keeping a firm grip on Johann's tail as he struggled to pull away from the Croagunk. "Finally. I was done toying with this one, anyway." Johann turned his head, opening his mouth to use another Ember attack, but he gasped when Wart's poison sacs in his cheeks expanded as he took in a deep breath. "Sludge Bomb!" the Croagunk shouted, his cheeks bulging out before he spat out a big glob of purple sludge from his mouth.

The ball of poisonous goop struck Johann point-blank, exploding upon impact, sending the Charmander flying back with a splatter of ooze raining around them. Scott gasped and looked at Johann, watching him struggle to get up while covered in purple gunk, fearing his friend could get poisoned from such a powerful attack. His ears perked up when he heard Croak rush toward him, focusing back on his opponent too late when a powerful jab struck his abdomen, knocking the wind out of him.

"Bit of advice for ya, kid," Croak said. Scott down while gasping for air, finding the Croagunk's triple-digit hand connected with his gut was glowing purple; Croak used Poison Jab, and to make matters worse, Scott's breathing hitched when the poisonous punch took its effects and Poisoned him, his cheeks turning pale and getting incredibly sick. Croak chuckled, leaning his flat-toothed mouth over to the stunned Riolu's ear. "Don't take your eyes off your opponent."

Croak pulled his arm back, his fingers turning back to normal before throwing another punch, hitting Scott right in the face. Scott stumbled back from the blow, but he couldn't defend himself when the Croagunk jumped and kicked him hard in the chest, sending him tumbling across the ground. Johann shook off the sludge coating his skin, hearing Scott groan in pain and saw him getting beaten up by Croak.

"Scott!" Johann called out.

He ran over to help his friend, only to get caught off by Wart, quickly blocking him and delivering a kick into the side of the Charmander's head. "Where do you think you're going!?" Wart cackled as Johann hit the ground with a grunt. "You're mine, little lizard!" Johann growled as he struggled to get up, turning his head as he opened his mouth to unleash another Ember attack. "Sucker Punch!" Wart shouted, his reared back arm glowing a shadowy aura before throwing it, punching Johann in the face hard enough to send him sprawling on the ground in a daze. Wart snickered, lightly shaking his hand from the blow, then clenched his fist. "Come on, brat. I know you're not down for the count just yet."

Behind the bushes, everyone's hopes for Scott and Johann to come out on top quickly went sour when the Croagunks began using incredibly tough moves. "Oh no," Fluttershy whimpered. "They really are strong."

"That was...so vile what that dirty frog did to Johann," Rarity shuddered, thankful that the Sludge Bomb didn't splatter toward them when it blew up in Johann's face.

"This isn't good," Minun growled. "They don't stand a chance." He then looked at the Equestrians as they all just watched their friends getting pummeled from the sidelines. "You guys gotta help them!"

"How!?" Spike exclaimed. "I'm not sure what we can do! We just started learning how to fight yesterday!"

"Well, there's got to be something you can do! We won't be able to find another rescue team in time!" Plusle said. While blaming herself for agreeing to let a rookie team handle two tough Croagunks, she noticed the toolbox Twilight had by her feet. "The toolbox! You guys must have something useful in there that can help them!"

Twilight glanced down at the toolbox, almost forgetting about it as she opened the lid. Sadly, the only items inside were the seeds Scott and Johann earned after doing the Nido couple's yard work.

"T-They only have these seeds," Twilight uttered, trying to figure out a plan while worrying for their friends and team leaders' safety.

Plusle and Minun looked in the box, both of them letting out a gasp when they saw the normal-looking seeds. "No way," Minun uttered. "Where'd they get seeds like THESE!?"

"What good will plain, boring seeds do!?" Rainbow exclaimed. "That's not gonna help!"

Plusle grabbed one of the seeds, holding it up to the confused Equestrians. "You guys have never heard of a Joy Seed? These are incredibly rare, and can help strengthen a Pokemon's abilities!"

"...Is there a difference?" Spike questioned.

The siblings looked at each other in bewilderment. "...What planet did you guys come from?" Minun asked back, earning a hard nudge from his sister.

"It's...quite a long story," Twilight admitted.

"Well, there's no time for stories!" Plusle gave Twilight the Joy Seed, startling the Ralts. "Do you know any Psychic-type moves?"

"N-No. I don't even know how," Twilight said.

"Eat that, and you might be able to learn something, like Confusion!" Plusle said.

"But...these seeds belong to Scott and Johann," Twilight explained. "I can't use something they earned the other day."

"It's in your team's toolbox! I don't think who those seeds belong to doesn't matter when they're getting wailed on!" Plusle pointed out to the fight, where Scott's reactions were slowed down due to being Poisoned and getting knocked around by Croak, while Johann tried to keep his distance from Wart with Ember, but the other Croagunk managed to bob and weave around the fiery bits, then threw his fist into the Charmander's chest when he was close enough, and sent him staggering back before lunging forward for another punch. Everyone cringed when the Poison Twins knocked Scott and Johann toward each other, making them smack into each other and collapse in a groaning heap. "There's not time to look for help. They're going to be the ones next to be held hostage, and your leaders need your help."

Twilight looked at the Joy Seed, then back to Scott and Johann. The two struggled to get up while the Poison Twins were egging them to fight back and be the rescue team meant to stop them. She glanced back at her friends, all of them heavily concerned for their new friends, and they were willing to help back them up despite being warned to go find help now that they were in trouble.

"We have to help them," Twilight said, her friends and surrogate brother all nodding in agreement. Twilight sighed, holding up the Joy Seed. "Hope this thing is more capable than it seems."

She stuffed the seed in her mouth, chewed it, then swallowed after ignoring the bland taste and crunchy texture. After gulping it down, Twilight let out a gasp, surprisingly feeling a bit stronger than before. She looked down at her hands, then down at the toolbox. She began to focus on her new psychic powers, trying them on the toolbox to make it levitate with the power of her mind. Feeling a power from her thoughts, she finally managed to perform a Psychic-type move: Confusion. Her eyes faintly glowed a light blue under her hair, creating a similar glow around the mobile carrier, and lifted it in the air a couple feet. Dropping her concentration after managing to levitate something, Twilight felt a bit more confidence in herself as a Psychic-type Pokemon.

"Whoa! You managed to make it float!" Spike cheered. "You really did get stronger after eating that seed!"

"Yeah. That seed must have helped me discover a Psychic move, and I feel a bit stronger after eating it." She looked out to the battle, glaring intensely at the Croagunks mocking Scott and Johann as the two were on their last legs, covered in bruises and scuffs, and Scott barely able to stay conscious from his Poison status.

Croak and Warts' backs were turned to them as the Equestrians crept out of their hiding place to give them a proper ambush. "Not much of a team, huh?" Wart taunted.

"Even that Buneary friend of yours is long gone with that Minun," Croak added. "But I bet you'd make a much better incentive for getting rescued by a different team in exchange for some Poké."

"Ugh...Y-You-" Scott grunted, falling to his knees as he struggled to stay conscious, his body going numb from the poison damaging him slowly.

"I think it's time to put these babies to bed, Wart," Croak said, his partner chuckling darkly with his fist held up, his fingers turning purple as he prepared to use Poison Jab.

"With pleasure," Wart said with a grin.

Johann winced, preparing himself for a painful defeat as Wart reared his fist back, while Scott weakly raised a paw to try to defend himself. "Confusion," Twilight uttered, holding out her arms with her eyes closed, then opening them with a faint blue aura in them.

Wart yelled and threw his Poison Jab, only for his body to freeze up mere inches before his attack made contact with the Charmander's face, surrounded in a similar aura to Twilight's Psychic attack. "...Wart, what are you doing?" Croak questioned. "We're done tormenting them. Knock them out!"

"I-I...I can't...move!" Wart said, struggling to push his arm forward, but failing to budge. Twilight swung her arms, forcing Wart to jerk about, then punch Croak in the face with his own fist. "Ahh! W-What the-!?"

Johann and Scott looked up, surprised to see Twilight, Spike, Rarity, Fluttershy, Pinkie, Applejack, and Rainbow behind the Croagunks, Twilight holding Wart back with a Psychic move, much to their surprise. "Agh! You idiot!" Croak exclaimed angrily, rubbing his face after getting blindsided by Wart. "Why'd you hit me!?"

"I didn't mean to!" Wart argued, then yelped when he was suddenly turned around. "What's happening to-!?" His breath caught in his throat when he saw the seven Pokemon behind them. "...Uhh, Croak, we've got more company."

"Huh?" Croak turned around, surprised to see Fluttershy again, but also new Pokemon glaring at them. "More? Where did you lot come from?"

"Back away from our friends," Twilight warned. "You've messed with the wrong rescue team."

"Yeah! Team Rescue Rangers are here to kick your plots into next week!" Rainbow exclaimed.

"W-What are you guys doing?" Scott uttered weakly. "G-Go...get...help..."

"You said we're your backup, and we're backing you up!" Pinkie said.

"Guys, they're too strong," Johann tried to reason.

"Maybe, but together, we're stronger than these two brutes," Rarity said.

"An inspirational group speech," Croak taunted, slowly clapping his hands, then quickly stopped and flexed his fists. "Too bad words won't do much to defeat us!"

Twilight quickly swung her arms, her hold on Wart still affecting him as she flung him into Croak, causing the Croagunks to tumble to the ground. "Fluttershy, you and I will help Scott and Johann," she ordered, Fluttershy quickly nodding and hopped over to help Scott up on his feet. "Rainbow, Pinkie, keep their focus on you two."

"Yay! I love being the distraction!" Pinkie cheered while bouncing excitedly, Rainbow smirking cockily as the Starly and bouncing Swirlix dashed off toward the dazed Croagunk duo.

"Rarity, Spike, Applejack, you three attack them when they're too distracted by Rainbow and Pinkie," Twilight said to the other three Pokemon.

"Not a problem, Twilight," Applejack said. "Ready to get your hooves - or should Ah say paws - dirty, Rarity?"

"No, but I will not tolerate these disgusting frogs hurting the Pokemon who helped us," Rarity said.

"And I finally get to go on dangerous adventures with you girls," Spike cheered, then looked at Rarity, hearts appearing in his eyes. "Especially with you, Rarity."

"Spike, just be careful," Twilight said, worried for the Gible's safety.

"If I can be as tough as Scott or Johann, I think I can take a few hits," Spike assured confidently.

"...Ok. I know we're in different bodies, but you're still a baby dragon to me," Twilight said. Spike flashed her a grin, then ran on ahead with Applejack and Rarity beside him to join Rainbow and Pinkie. Spotting the berry pile over near the den, Twilight used Confusion to levitate the fruit over to them, hoping Plusle and Minun won't mind them borrowing their berries to heal Scott and Johann. "Ok, let's see. The round blue ones are Oran Berries, and they help heal injuries. And Poison...Pecha Berries."

Plusle and Minun ran out from the bushes, meeting up with Twilight, not minding her using their small berry hoard to heal the two rescuers. Fluttershy managed to get Scott over to Twilight with Johann limping beside them. The Buneary lowered Scott down on his back, who let out a weak groan from his injuries and the Poison debilitating him further.

"Oh man. He's not looking too good," Johann uttered nervously.

"Not...feeling good...either," Scott weakly mumbled. "...I should have...just listened to you...I'm so stupid."

"Just relax and don't talk," Fluttershy shushed gently, rubbing the Riolu's head softly.

From their lessons on berries yesterday, Twilight found a Pecha Berry in Plusle and Minun's berry pile, which almost resembled a normal peach with its heart-like shape and pinkish color. "Plusle, Minun, I know this is your food, but-"

"Don't worry. We can always find more," Plusle reassured.

"He needs that Pecha Berry really badly," Minun added.

"Thank you." Twilight also grabbed a couple Oran Berries, giving one to Johann to eat and heal his injuries, while she knelt beside Fluttershy with an Oran Berry in one hand and the Pecha Berry in the other. "I'm surprised you didn't get sick after getting hit by that Sludge Bomb attack, Johann."

"Guess I got lucky," Johann said, taking a bite of his berry, his injuries slowly beginning to fade away as he swallowed his bite. "Some moves that can cause status problems have chances of affecting an opponent, so it can happen instantly or after several attempts."

"Burnt by you...Poisoned by a Croagunk," Scott uttered. "Guess I'm...not so lucky..."

"Don't talk," Fluttershy gently repeated.

She held Scott's head up while Twilight fed him the Pecha Berry first. Scott took a small bite, slowly chewing it with the juices from the bitten berry dribbling down his lips. The poison in him was slowly beginning to fade, giving him back some strength as he continued nibbling on it until the leaves on the stem were completely devoured. He sighed in relief from the sweet-tasting antidote, then began eating the Oran Berry. With enough strength coming back to him, Scott managed to sit up, looking over at Johann, who finished his berry and was already feeling good as new.

Croak and Wart groaned, untangling themselves and stood back up. "Curse our insane weakness to Psychic-types," Wart grumbled.

"You confused?" Croak asked, being wary of his partner's movements.

"No. I think I'm good," Wart assured.

"Hiya, Good, I'm Pinkie Pie!" Pinkie greeted, startling the Croagunks, barely aware of the Swirlix popping in between them.

"Ah! Where did you come from!?" Wart shrieked, both him and Croak jumping away from Pinkie and faced her in their fighting stances.

"Well, that's easy! When a mommy pony and a daddy pony love each other very much-" Pinkie's story was interrupted when Rainbow rammed into Croak, sending him skidding back while Wart went from baffled to shocked.

"I don't think they're interested in THAT story, Pinkie!" Rainbow said, then flapped away when Croak yelled as he threw a punch at her, barely missing her by a few inches.

"Aww. Fine," Pinkie pouted.

Wart growled as he faced the sour Swirlix. "I don't know what you runts are doing, but you don't stand a chance against-!" Pinkie bounced toward Wart, frontflipped, and smacked him in the face with her tail, stunning him. "...Did you just Tail Whip me?"

"Maybe, or perhaps I'm just gonna torture you with my tail!" Pinkie smacked Wart's face around with her tail, getting him peeved. "And here comes the double tail!"

He was suddenly smacked by two Swirlix tails on both his cheeks, snapping him out of his anger as he looked at Pinkie in bewilderment, confusion, and slight terror. "...W-Wait, what?" he questioned before Pinkie shoved her tail against his nostrils, catching the hint of strawberry sugar from the cotton candy Pokemon.

"Smell it. Smell it," Pinkie taunted. "Now get Tackled by a baby land-shark!"

She flicked her tail away from Wart, tilting his head in confusion before Spike let out a yell and rammed into the Croagunk's side. Spike quickly chomped down on Wart's arm with his sharp teeth, distracting him from Pinkie and Rarity for them to double Tackle the Croagunk. They knocked Wart to the ground, Spike keeping his grip on his arm while Pinkie bounced repeatedly on his stomach.

"Take this, you ruffian!" Rarity shouted, clawing at the Croagunk's face, yelling in pain while flailing his free arm.

Croak ignored his partner's cries for help, too focused on trying to punch Rainbow Dash out of the air. She was too quick for him, constantly taunting and teasing him by making faces, shaking her tail feathers in his face, or dancing around while avoiding the Croagunk.

"Get down here and fight!" Croak yelled, using Poison Jab and jumped after the Starly, missing her feet as she soared higher. He got frustrated as she began laughing at him. "Coward! You weren't flighty when you rammed into me!"

"Well, you're gonna be in for quite a shock!" Rainbow taunted.

"What? You can't learn Electric attacks!" Croak was unaware of Applejack charging up to him, electricity building up as she ran and built up around her cheeks.

"But Ah can!" Croak turned around as he heard Applejack, reacting too late when she lunged toward him, slamming into him cheek first. "Nuzzle!"

The electricity discharged from her cheek, shocking Croak as he yelled out in pain. To add insult to injury, Applejack's Nuzzle managed to Paralyze him, his body twitching and freezing up. Left open, Rainbow dove toward him and began pecking at him. Applejack joined in a bit down hard on Croak's arm, dragging his helpless, literally shocked body over toward Wart. Wart had managed to shake Pinkie, Rarity, and Spike off him, his face covered in scratches from Rarity's sharp claws.

"That's it! I'm blasting you twerps!" Wart screamed, fuming mad while ignoring the comical scratch marks on him. "Sludge Bomb!"

He fired a Sludge Bomb at his three assailants. "INCOMING!!!!!" Pinkie shrieked, prompting the trio to dive away from the ball of purple gunk.

It struck the ground, missing them as it exploded and splattered sludge everywhere. Rarity shrieked as she felt some hit her back, glancing a the disgusting mess that made her fur stand on end from the viscosity and awful smell. She glared at Wart and hissed angrily.

"How DARE you!? You got this disgusting sludge you spewed from your mouth on me!" Rarity screamed. "You better hope this doesn't stick to my fur, because if it takes forever to clean off, I will NOT be a happy Skitty!"

"Oh, it will, and it'll reek, too!" Wart laughed mockingly.

Pinkie and Spike winced, hearing Rarity's growls get worse. "Oh boy. You shouldn't have said that," Spike said.

"Why? What's a weak little Skitty gonna do to-?" Rarity shrieked, startling Wart, only to look back at a very angry Skitty charging into him hard enough to send him flying back into a tree.

"You disgusting toad!" She ran toward Wart again, Tackling him in the gut and pinning him to the tree with a painful grunt. She the turned around and began repeatedly smacking him in the face with her tail in a Double Slap, emphasizing her anger with each slap. "I! Will! Destroy! You! If! I! Smell! Like! A! Skunk! You! Walking! Talking! Sewer!"

"Yup. Knew that was gonna happen," Pinkie said. She looked at the small puddles of sludge, curiously leaning down and took a sniff. She regretted it, her face turning green as she backed away from the purple goop. "EWW! It really does smell bad! BLECK!"

"Pinkie, be careful! Fairy-types are weak to Poison moves!" Twilight warned.

"You don't need to tell me twice!" Pinkie exclaimed while gagging at the stench.

Scott and Johann were surprised by how well they were handling the Poison Twins, even though this was technically their first battling experience as Pokemon. The Oran Berries healed them back to health, getting them back on their feet.

"Wow...They're not doing too bad," Scott uttered in awe.

"Yeah. They did a lot better working together than we tried fighting them one-on-one," Johann said, making the Riolu flinch and his ears droop in guilt.

"You two just rest up," Twilight said to the two Pokemon. "Fluttershy, can you make sure Scott's ok while I join the others?"

"No. I'm going to teach these bad Pokemon they don't hurt our new friends," Fluttershy said, her tone far more serious as she glared at the two Croagunks getting beaten by their friends.

"Are you sure?" Twilight asked. Fluttershy looked at her, giving her a nod. "Ok, then. Let's go!"

Twilight and Fluttershy hurried to join their friends while Scott, Johann, Plusle, and Minun watched them. Twilight used Confusion again, grabbing hold of both Croagunks with her psychic powers and dragged them over to her and Fluttershy. Applejack, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, and Spike regrouped with the Ralts and Buneary, Pinkie and Spike holding back Rarity to stop her from beating up Wart more as she hissed at him.

"D-Darn it. D-Did...we get beaten...by a bunch of runts?" Croak growled, barely able to feel his limbs from the Paralysis along with being held still by Twilight's power.

"Yes you did!" Rainbow cheered. "Don't mess with Team Rescue Rangers!"

"Y'all ready to give up?" Applejack asked.

"I've had enough abuse to my face," Wart grumbled.

"We...refuse to give up," Croak grumbled.

"I guess that's a no after all," Twilight said. "Fluttershy, they're all yours."

Fluttershy stepped in front of the two psychically bound Croagunks. "I'm going to give you two one last chance to apologize to our friends and leave peacefully, or else you really will get the Stare this time," she warned.

Croak and Wart glanced at each other, then leered at the Buneary and her idle threat. "When your Ralts friend lowers her guard, we're going to give you all a world of pain," Croak promised.

"Very well, then." Fluttershy calmly shut her eyes, then opened them and gave the Croagunks her patented Stare.

Wart was about to laugh at Fluttershy's intense glare, but both him and Croak felt unnerved when they looked at her eyes. Those round eyes went from adorably cute to menacing, their hearts dropping to their stomachs and, for the first time since encountering Team Rescue Rangers, they were absolutely terrified of this one Buneary, and just from her eyes alone. Seeing they were under Fluttershy's judgmental glare, Twilight dropped her psychic hold on them, and their own threat faltered as they stood completely still, unable to move in fear. Scott, Johann, Plusle, and Minun were surprised Fluttershy froze them up with just one look.

"H-How?" Scott questioned. The four Pokemon stepped closer, barely getting noticed by the Poison Twins when their full attention was on Fluttershy. "...What is she-?"

"Uhh, might not want to get too close, guys," Rainbow quickly said, blocking them from getting their peripherals within eyesight of Fluttershy's vision. "See, Fluttershy has a thing with other creatures, and she can really stare them into submission without batting an eye. Literally."

"You mean like...Glare?" Minun questioned.

"But Glare causes Paralysis, and Applejack Paralyzed Croak when she used Nuzzle on him," Johann uttered to himself. He then remembered what happened to him when he accidentally got Scott Burned during their example battle the other day. Fluttershy approached him and harshly glared at him, which made him feel terrible despite both of them understanding how dangerous his Fire attacks can be. His jaw hung open, figuring out just what Fluttershy meant when she called her move "The Stare". "...Is her Stare...something she used back in her world?"

"Yup. I think she did that to you the other day when you sparred with Scott, Johann," Rainbow added. "She really doesn't like when other animals get hurt or hurt each other."

"Was that why you froze up?" Scott asked Johann. The Charmander slowly nodded, the duo now understanding not to get on Fluttershy's bad side, even after seeing she can be a bit timid when it comes to fighting back in self-defense. "...I hope I don't get Stared at."

"Now, I want you two Croagunks to apologize to Minun for tying him up like that, apologize to Plusle for worrying her about her brother's safety, and apologize to Scott and Johann for hurting them so badly, especially Scott when you got him sick with that hurtful move you used on him!" Fluttershy demanded.

"A-Apologize?" Croak asked.

"W-Why should we?" Wart asked as well.

Fluttershy's Stare intensified, making the Poison Twins sweat bullets, and to the Pokemons' surprise, they obeyed and ran over to the electric twin mice, fire lizard, and bipedal canine, getting on their knees and bowed to them in forgiveness. "We're sorry!" they both apologized.

The four Pokemon were a bit startled seeing the tough thieves submitting to Fluttershy's demands. "...This is a little awkward," Minun uttered to his sister.

Croak and Wart then crawled back to Fluttershy, forcing themselves to look directly at her eyes, even though she stopped using her Stare. "There, we apologized!" Croak said.

"You'll let us leave now, right?" Wart begged.

Fluttershy hummed in thought, then shook her head. "I don't think you two aren't punished enough," she said, making the Croagunks gulp and sweat bullets. "You two are going to report yourselves to the authorities and turn yourselves in for what you did today, and every other day you've harmed other Pokemon or stolen from them."

Croak and Wart grunted in shock and fear. "W-What!? No, please! Anything but that!" Wart begged.

Fluttershy gave them the Stare again, silencing anymore of their pleas. While they were the ones being held hostage, Scott ran off to get the Pokemon in charge of handling wanted ones that have a bounty on their heads. He reached Pokemon Square in no time with his speed and quickly returned with another Pokemon. This Pokemon wasn't a living creature like the others, which surprised the Equestrians as this machine-like Pokemon hovered alongside Scott. This was Magnezone, a metallic, almost robotic Pokemon with a silver steel circular body in the shape of a flying saucer, its red eye as its main eye in the center of its body while its "shoulders" had small black ones, screws jutting out from them with its arms resembling magnets, even a third magnet on its back that resembles a tail, and had a yellow antenna on top of its head.

"Oh no," Croak uttered. "Magnezone..."

"AH! IF IT ISN'T THE POISON TWINS! BZZT!" Magnezone said in a robotic tone. "UP TO NO GOOD AND BESTED BY A RESCUE TEAM! YOU TWO ARE UNDER ARREST!"

"What is that?" Rainbow asked curiously.

"That's Magnezone," Minun introduced. "He's like a security drone, but he also handles carting off wanted Pokemon once they've been captured."

"In other words, he's the 'authorities' Fluttershy mentioned," Croak grumbled.

Magnezone hovered over to the two Croagunks, then, with his magnets, he released a sort of shock that shifted the gravity around the Poison Twins, causing them to hover in the air and in his magnetic grasp. "I WILL NOTIFY YOUR RESCUE GUILD ABOUT THESE TWO MISCREANTS AND SEND THE BOUNTY TO THEM! BZZT! BRAVE WORK, YOUNG RESCUERS, BUT BE CAREFUL HUNTING MORE RUTHLESS CRIMINALS! BZZAP! A TEAM AT YOUR RANK SHOULD NOT ATTEMPT TO GO AFTER POKEMON AS INFAMOUS AS THESE TWO!"

"Y-Yeah. Will do, Magnezone," Scott said.

Magnezone then took Croak and Wart away to send them to jail, everyone watching the officer escort the Croagunks before Plusle approached Scott. "Thank you all for saving my brother," she said gratefully. "I had my doubts when you were a beginner rescue team, but your friends worked really well together and beat those two thugs."

"...Uhh...Y-Yeah, they sure did," Scott uttered. He glanced back at Johann, his ears drooping after Plusle praised Twilight and her friends for their teamwork. He and Johann were supposed to be a team, but they fought each Croagunk alone, and he made the choice for them and their Equestrian friends to take on this dangerous mission without any forethought or proper preparations. He would have cost them their lives thanks to his recklessness and over-eagerness to do what much higher ranked rescue teams can do. "...No problem..."

"We have to thank you all for this in some way," Plusle offered.

"That won't be necessary," Johann interjected. "Those berries we borrowed to heal us were enough payment. This wasn't even an official rescue mission anyway."

"Are you sure?" Plusle asked curiously. "Doesn't sound all that fair after fighting two tough Pokemon."

"I think I've got something we can reward them with, sis." Minun ran off into their den, then came back out a moment later with a bundle of sharp thorns bound together with some string. There were twenty of them, all of them shaped similarly like throwing darts. "I found some of these Iron Thorns lying around while scavenging for berries in the trees and stored them up. I hear these can be really useful darts that can cause quite a bit of damage from a distance in Mystery Dungeons. Maybe you guys can put them to use in the future."

Scott and Johann looked at each other, both of them surprised to see quite a stack of strong projectiles that really could aid them if they exhaust their energy going through Mystery Dungeons. "...Uhh...if you insist, I guess we can take those."

"Great!" Minun gave Johann the bundle of Iron Thorns, then returned to Plusle's side. "Next time we're in trouble, we'll come to you guys!"

"Maybe after we've gotten a bit more experience as a rescue team," Johann said.

"Right. Until then, we'll request your help if my brother gets into trouble again," Plusle reiterated with a giggle.

Minun gave his sister an annoyed glare, giving her a weak zap even as she kept teasing him. Team Rescue Rangers said goodbye to the positive and negative electric mice twins, making their way back to the base to relax after their first difficult mission out of many more yet to come.





Later that evening, Scott sat by the edge of the lake behind their base, letting the experience they had today sink in. Applejack and Rainbow Dash went out to gather berries after finding the basket Scott and Johann left as they returned and continued their task for them. Spike helped Rarity clean off the strands of sludge from Wart's Sludge Bomb here earlier, even though the Skitty wished she had some type of soap to clean her fur with. The Riolu let out a sigh, regretting his actions and realizing that being in a rescue team isn't as easy as he thought it was.

"Still out here?" Scott's ear twitched, hearing Johann approach him from behind. He didn't turn to look at him, feeling ashamed to be his friend and teammate after behaving like a cocky, overconfident thrill seeker. "We're about to eat dinner soon. Or...are you busy meditating?"

"I wasn't meditating. I was...reflecting," Scott said. With a heavy sigh, Scott stood up and faced his friend. "...I really messed up today."

"Well, you kinda did," Johann agreed. "What were you even thinking?"

"...I really wasn't," Scott said. "I'm sorry. I was just so excited being in a rescue team, and I wanted us to take on a challenging first mission, not do chores..." Johann remained silent, but he was hearing Scott out as he apologized. "And I never meant to just...take charge like that. I should have listened to you, and you were right; we aren't ready for any tough missions like that. And like an idiot, I forced the others along and endangered them, because I was so eager to do a real mission, and they shouldn't get too involved with tough jobs like that." Scott waited for Johann to respond or harshly agree with him that he was dumb, but his blank silence only made him feel worse. Scott lowered his head, turning away with a sigh. "...We started this team together, and we're supposed to work like a team, too...Twilight and the others did so much better than we did...I don't feel bad that I almost lost; I feel terrible for letting my expectations as a rescue team outweigh our friendship, making every decision for us without talking to you about it, and acting like the leader when we're both supposed to lead this team together...I'm really sorry, Johann..."

After a moment of complete silence, Johann walked up to Scott, then gently placed his claws on the Riolu's shoulder. "Well, at least there's something you finally learned about being in a rescue team," he said. Scott lifted his head, then turned to look at the Charmander, who was giving him a small smile. "I was upset at first with how much you want to just get right into it, but even without telling me you told the guild master the others were joining our team, I would have agreed with you regardless."

"Really?" Scott asked curiously.

"Of course. They needed our help, and we promised to help them in any way we can," Johann said. "It was dumb bringing them along, but without them helping us, we probably would have been goners."

"Yeah...Yeah, you're right," Scott agreed. He turned around, giving his friend a nervous smile. "If we have to do anymore missions tomorrow, I'd rather do another old couple's chores then go through our first Mystery Dungeon."

"Haha! Really!?" Johann laughed. "Who are you and what have you done to my partner?"

Scott let out a sheepish chuckle and rubbed the back of his neck. "I'm not sure myself. But I won't do anything like that again. Swear on my stubs," he promised as he held the backs of his paws to the Charmander. Johann chuckled, taking his word for it by giving him a nod in acceptance. "So...we still friends?"

"Duh. Best friends and partners," Johann assured, then held his claws out in a fist to Scott. The Riolu grinned, clenching his paw and gave his friend a fist bump, feeling relieved to be forgiven. Suddenly, Scott's stomach began growling, making him groan and rub his hungry belly. "Heheheh! Sounds like you're ready for dinner."

"Yeah. I've been sitting out here feeling guilty since we got back, and I'm starving," Scott said. "I hope Applejack and Rainbow Dash found a big haul of berries. I can't wait until your grove fully grows and we get a ton of delicious berries to eat."

"And with Applejack as a great teacher in farming, we'll have enough to eat for snacks and store some for future missions." Scott and Johann began heading back to the base. "Think we should give them a tour of Pokemon Square and look for some missions?"

"Sounds like a plan," Scott agreed. "And we'll take things slow. No more rushing, and we can face everything in our way if we work together."

"I don't know how I feel about this," Johann teased. "You making sense and playing it safe is so weird."

"Oh, so you want me to be my old, reckless self? Ok! Let's find ourselves a Beedrill nest!" Scott tried to drag the shocked Charmander deeper in the woods to actually find a Beedrill hive to attack.

"W-Wait, you're not seriously gonna-!?" The Riolu snorted, unable to hold back his laughter as he stopped dragging Johann, then ran on ahead toward the base after pulling his small prank. "H-Hey! Come on, don't do that!" Johann called out as he chased after Scott. "I don't want to get stung by Beedrill!"

"You're a Fire-type!" Scott shouted back. "You could overpower those Bug Pokemon with one breath!"

Johann winced, realizing that his Ember attack could scare off an angry swarm of Beedrill if they really ran into one. "Oh...B-But still, you're insane for thinking about doing something like that!" He heard Scott laugh, watching him speed on ahead through the woods, reaching the base faster than he could. Panting heavily, Johann finally arrived back at the base, staggering inside while catching his breath. He found his friend sitting with their Equestrian friends, already stuffing his face with Oran Berries. "W-Were...you...always serious...about that...Beedrill nest?" Johann asked Scott while gasping for breath.

"Hmm?" Scott mumbled, his cheeks filled to the brim with chewed berries.

"Uhh, question: What's a Beedrill?" Spike asked.

"I'm guessing it's some sort of bee by the name," Rainbow said.

"Yes," Johann said, finally able to breathe normally as he stomped his way over to Scott and pointed at him. "And Scott's crazy enough to just charge into a swarm of them in their nest and risk getting stung by them!"

Scott swallowed his mouthful, then gave the Charmander a teasing smirk. "Hey, it could be fun." Johann growled and puffed out his cheeks angrily. The face he gave made the Riolu laugh. "Dude, come on! I'm just messing with you! No Pokemon's that insane enough to attack a Beedrill nest!"

Johann finally gave up and just sighed heavily, plopping down with the others with a pout. "I hate when you do that sometimes," he grumbled before grabbing a berry and chomped on it.

"Ah think that's a sign of a good friendship, Johann," Applejack said. "Two friends pokin' fun at each other, and then laugh it off in the end."

"Providing nopony ends up hurting each other," Rainbow added, lightly smacking the Yamper's side with her wing. "Don't actually zap me if we have to spar with each other."

"Can't promise nothin' with mah runnin' causin' electricity to surge around me," Applejack said, then poked Rainbow with her paw. "Zap!"

"AHH!" Rainbow shrieked, flapping up to the ceiling of the base to avoid getting shocked in fear of it hurting a lot more than what she's experienced as a pegasus.

Applejack began to laugh, soon followed by the others. Rainbow grumbled, hovering back down with a ruffle of her feathers while she was being teased. Johann grinned and laughed a little as well. He glanced over at Scott, glad to have a friend like him, despite his faults and constant teasing.