The six girls and Spike walked through the Everfree forest's more peaceful sibling; Whitetail Woods. This place had mostly harmless bug- types, like Caterpie and Wurmple.
"Twilight?"
"Yes Rainbow?"
"What do you want to do?"
"Well I suppose mainly research, though these gyms would make my Pokemon stronger and help me when I'm looking for some dangerous Pokemon."
"What about the League? Do you ever want to enter that?"
"Oh no; I don't think I'll ever be THAT good; not to beat my brother and especially not my teacher."
"Who is your teacher?" Rarity asked.
"Celestia."
"WHAT???" They all turned to Twilight with shocked looks on their faces, but Pinkie Pie was just humming cheerfully.
"Y'all mean to tell us that you've been taught by the champion herself?!"
"Yes."
"My word." Rarity said. "I knew you were from Canterlot, but this news is just astounding."
"Well no wonder that Gengar of yers is so gosh- darn strong."
"Um, speaking of which, why is it so aggressive?" Fluttershy said quietly. "I mean, I'm sure it has its reasons for acting that way, I was just curious is all but if you don't want to say anything that's fine."
"I don't know why he acts that way." Twilight sighed. "He just does."
"It's not really something she likes to talk about." Spike explained.
"Tailow!" They heard a Pokemon chirping above them and looked to see a flock of Tailow flying by.
"I've got one of those, ya know." Rainbow smiled. "A lot of my Pokemon came from Whitetail Woods, actually." She chuckled as she noticed the sky darkening. All the wild Pokemon appeared to be in a rush to find a spot to sleep; going to the insides of trees and holes in the ground.
"It looks like it's getting late." Twilight commented. "In hindsight, we probably should've left in the morning."
"I agree." Fluttershy cowered behind her friends as her Bunnelby rolled its eyes. Later on, they all stopped and got their sleeping bags out, as well as returning their Pokemon into their Pokeballs. Eventually, everyone was in their sleeping bags, but had yet to get to sleep. Pinkie had cooked their dinners, so their bellies were full. All of the girls were chatting, except Twilight who was buried in her bag, mumbling something. Only Pinkie Pie noticed and went over to see what her new friend was doing.
"Hey, Twilight?" She asked as the girl in pure jumped slightly and looked up.
"What is it, Pinkie?" Twilight was clutching a Pokeball.
"Whatcha doin'?"
"Nothing really." Upon further inspection, the Pokeball looked like a Dusk Ball. "Why do you ask?"
"Oh, the other girls and I were just talking, and you were just on our own, and Spike is fast asleep. You wanna join in?"
"No thanks." Twilight shook her head. "I'd rather just stay here."
"Oh come on Twilight; if we're going to be travelling together I thought we could you know, get to know each other."
"You sound just like Spike." Twilight chuckled, glancing at the little boy in his sleeping bag with an egg kept safe in a ventilated jar and his Dratini in one of the Pokeballs she had given him. "Alright, I'll join in." She crawled out of her sleeping bag and carried it over to her new travelling companions, who gave her friendly smiles.
"So what were you three talking about?"
"Oh, just what we're going to do; our dreams and ambitions as well as just what we think the journey will be like"
"Okay." Twilight said. "Well I've said what I want to do, but I don't know about any of you. What do you all want to do besides stop this 'Team Chaos'?"
"Well dear, I feel as though I can make a career out of my designing." Rarity explained. "I can sell them to contest participants and maybe I'll even try my hand in a few; I could show everyone the beauty and grace of my Pokemon, as well as incorporate some of my designs into them. There's a Pikachu in Hoenn that wears different outfits in contests."
"Alright. What about you, Fluttershy?"
"Oh, well I just want to take care of Pokemon, I guess I'll be a Pokemon breeder..."
"Me? I wanna have the fastest Pokemon in the world so I can join the Cloudsdale Gym; which is where I was born."
"Well shucks, ah don't really know what ah wanna do." Applejack shrugged. "Ah guess maybe ah'll just spread mah families business across the region and-"
"Ralts..."
"What was that?"
"It sounded like a Pokemon."
"Oh, you don't think there's anything deadly here."
"Relax Fluttershy; you've been here hundreds of times before. You of all people would know if there was."
"W-Well, what if a deadly Pokemon wandered out of the Everfree and came here, and we could be about to be killed by a Pyroar or Trevenant as we speak?"
"Ralts..."
"Be quiet all of you." Twilight said. "Let me see what it is." She turned it on and shone the light around the trees and grass. She saw an injured Ralts. It was bruised everywhere and barely standing.
"Oh no!" Fluttershy gasped. The Ralts collapsed in front of Twilight, who quickly picked it up.
"Fluttershy, get some berries. I'll help it feel better with some super potion and-"
"Kaboo!" They heard another cry, but this one didn't sound injured. This cry was repeated multiple times, before some sharp objects were shot at them.
"Razor leaves!" Twilight shouted. Once the attack stopped, five of the same Pokemon appeared before them; all varying in size.
"Let's see what you are." She quickly got out her Pokedex.
Pumpkaboo: The Pumpkin Pokemon.
The pumpkin body is inhabited by a spirit trapped in this world. As the sun sets, it becomes restless and active.
The Pumpkaboo shot more razor leaves at them, and they took cover.
"Whoa!" Spike woke up and covered his egg. "What's happening? Are we in danger?"
"That we are Spike." Twilight answered as she reached for a Pokeball.
"Go, Hoothoot!"
"Hoot!"
"Use peck!" She pointed at one of the smaller Pumpkaboos, which Hoothoot began to viciously peck. The other Pumpkaboos turned to Hoothoot and shot razor leaves at it, and the small amount of damage Hoothoot would've received from the grass- type attack added up and took a substantial amount of damage.
"I have had enough of this!" Rarity said as she threw one of her Pokeballs. "Go, Duskull!"
"Duskull!" Her new ghost- type Pokemon cried out, ready to help its trainer.
"Use shadow sneak!" She pointed at another Pumpkaboo, and Duskull suddenly disappeared into the ground, then popped up right under the Pumpkaboo and struck.
"Use fury cutter!" Rainbow shouted, and her Nincada which she had just sent out began to slash at another Pumpkaboo with its claws.
"Kaboo!" The largest Pumpkaboo floated forward, while the others backed away just behind it. The largest then shot out a barrage of bullet seeds everywhere, and the others followed suit, then they all ran away.
"They left?" Spike questioned.
"Yeah, we beat them so badly that they knew they had to back off!" Rainbow grinned.
"Maybe, but I don't think we're done with them." Twilight inferred. "But for now let's get some rest, it's pretty late." Twilight looked down at the wild Ralts in her arms. "And this Ralts isn't very safe on its own right now, especially when it needs the rest more than us." She sprayed with super potion, then opened up her rucksack and put the Pokemon in so it could be used little bed for the small Psychic- type.
They all woke up, yawning and stretching out until they each felt completely awake.
"We all up?" Twilight asked, and everyone nodded. She looked to her left and saw the Ralts also waking up.
"Ralts?" It looked around slowly, but got more worried.
"What's wrong with it?" Rainbow asked.
"The last it remembers, it was attacked by a bunch of Pumpkaboo." Twilight explained. "I'd be a bit frantic if that happened to me." The Ralts pointed its horn at Twilight, and went towards it, but fell.
"Oh!" Fluttershy ran over to it with Oran berries in her hand. "Don't push yourself too much." She handed some to the Pokemon, who was hesitant at first but still took one, and soon the others.
"So what are we gonna do now?" Rainbow asked.
"W-What?" Fluttershy wasn't sure what Rainbow was saying.
"Well we obviously can't just let those Pumpkaboo torment these Pokemon."
"True." Twilight agreed. "I saw the Pokemon in a rush to find a place to sleep, and those sleeping spots looked more like hiding spots now that I think about it."
"Ah say we find those things and show 'em what for!" Applejack said with a determined look on her face.
"No." Twilight disagreed. "We need a strategy. They'll be ready for us this time, we may have only been able to draw them back because they didn't expect us but they will this time and they have the home advantage as well, which can make it even more difficult. I suggest we prepare for this."
"Okay, so we set train, set traps and stuff, right?"
"Exactly, Rainbow." Twilight sighed at Rainbow's rather blunt way of putting it. "Let's find a place to train." She said as she began to walk away from their camping spot to find one while the others followed her.
Once they were a fair enough distance from their camping spot, Twilight turned around to face everyone.
"Alright then, bring out all your Pokemon!" She said as she got her own Pokeballs out, except one.
"Come on out!" She sent out her Hoothoot and Eevee.
"Alright then, help us out everyone!" Rainbow shouted as her Shuckle, Nincada, Tailow and Eevee.
"Yeehaw! Let's do this!" Applejack's Herdier, Eevee and Phanpy came out to help.
"Very well, we require your assistance!" Rarity's Purugly, Duskull and Eevee popped out, as well as a Glaceon which Twilight had not seen before.
"Hooray!" Pinkie Pie sent out her Sandile, Shroomish and Eevee like everyone else.
"Can you help us? If it's not too much trouble that is..." Fluttershy threw her Pokeballs gently and quietly stood there at her Bunnelby, Audino and Eevee came out.
"Alright." Twilight looked at all the Pokemon for a second, analysing them. "Our Eevees won't be able to attack those ghost- types; they don't have any non- normal moves." She returned her Eevee and the others did the same. "That Glaceon will be useful though, so keep that out Rarity as well as your Duskull. And Fluttershy, does your Audino know any non- normal moves?"
"W-Well, it knows disarming voice..."
"So it knows move that'll attack all of them and never miss; Audino stays out. Same for your Herdier Applejack, I've seen it use bite. Rainbow, a lot of your Pokemon have advantages over grass- types, so we'll need you Tailow, Nincada and Shuckle."
"Alright, Twilight."
"Pinkie Pie, what ability does your Shroomish have?" Twilight asked
Oh, effect spore." Pinkie replied.
"Perfect." Twilight smiled while the Ralts just looked at her. They all began to train their Pokemon. Spike was not actually going to help them, but he was still training his Dratini with them. They had also been talking about a strategy of some kind. The Ralts just watched them, particularly Twilight.
"Alright, let's go over this again. First, Audino will attack them with disarming voice, then lead them over here, where Shuckle will-"
"Ralts?"
"Oh!" Twilight was so in the heat of explaining her strategy that she jumped slightly when she saw the Pokemon they'd saved go up behind her. "Hello?"
"Ralts!" The Ralts pointed towards the place they were training, and had a determined look on its face.
"I think it's saying that it wants to help." Rarity told Twilight.
"I don't know, it is at a disadvantage, and I'm not sure if it's fully recovered."
"Ralts!" It said again, and it made a bit of distance between itself and Twilight's Hoothoot, while she got out her Pokedex to record it's data.
Ralts: The Feeling Pokemon.
It is highly attuned to the emotions of people and Pokémon. It hides if it senses hostility.
"Alright then, Hoothoot go!" She pointed at the wild psychic- type.
"Ralts!" It let out a loud cry, and Hoothoot cringed slightly.
"Using growl to weaken Hoothoot? Pretty good, now use confusion Hoothoot."
"Hoot!" Hoothoot's eyes lit up, and Ralts clenched it's head, as if it had a piercing headache, and let out another cry, but this one stopped Hoothoot's attack entirely.
"A disarming voice!" Twilight thought to herself. "Okay, use peck!" She said to her Pokemon, who flew forward and pecked Ralts. Hoothoot then started to get its own headache, as Ralts had used its own confusion attack, then jumped away while Hoothoot was still suffering from the move. It opened its eyes only to have a disarming voice knock it down.
"You are pretty good." Twilight admitted while the Ralts smiled, but it's attention was drawn to the Dusk Ball on Twilight's waist, before it was hit by another confusion.
"Did you just get distracted there?" Twilight asked as she went up to the Ralts, who pointed at the Dusk Ball, which made Twilight frown.
"You can help us, sure..." Twilight said. "I'll put you with Fluttershy's Audino." She walked away. "I'll look around the woods some more to see if there's anymore good places to position our Pokemon."
"Ralts?"
The sun had long set, and they were all lying in wait for the Pumpkaboo to appear. They didn't expect them to appear just yet, but soon. Fluttershy had already layed out some of her berries as a trap. Twilight was away from the group, murmuring to her Dusk Ball again. The Ralts stared at her, and walked over to get a closer look.
"What is it?" Twilight looked up and saw the psychic and fairy- type in front of her, and it pointed at the dark- green Pokeball she was holding, and cocked it's head slightly to the right in curiosity.
"Oh, this? It's just a Dusk Ball I keep one of my Pokemon in, it's fine." She said, but the Ralts shook its head and gave her a look of concern.
"Right, you can sense emotions, can't you?" She sighed and got up. "I've got a Gengar in this Pokeball, but it's kind of aggressive. My mentor told me a while ago that if I talk to it in it's Pokeball, it might hear me. It sounds silly now, but I do it to stay close to Gengar in a way."
"He wouldn't listen to me at first, but after a while things got better; he began to actually stop ignoring me and we worked together a bit more in battle." She smiled. "Then one day, I let him out of his Pokeball for the day because Celestia told me that it was good to occasionally and that it helped the Pokemon keep their energy up and stay active. I don't want to say what happened on that day, but I've hardly let him out ever since that day, so I've just been back to square one with him..." Twilight trailed off.
"Ralts." The Pokemon hugged Twilight, and put its hand on the Dusk Ball.
"You need to be ready, those Pumpkaboo will be here any minute." She walked off, but gave the Ralts a smile, while Ralts ran back to its position with Audino.
She got her Pokegear out and decided to call Pinkie, who was lying in wait, watching the bait of berries for Pumpkaboo to eat as bait.
"Are the Pumpkaboo there yet, Pinkie-"
"It's like my Rattata is in the top percentage of Rattata!"
"What?"
"I said they're not there yet, silly." She giggled. "Wait, I see something rustling in the bushes." Pinkie stared at the bush intently. She was dressed in a black bodysuit with yellow goggles, and while Twilight would've said something, the others just summed it up to Pinkie Pie being Pinkie Pie.
"Kaboo!" One of the grass and ghost- types they were looking for had come out and saw the berries. Four others came out and looked at them.
"Is that them, Pinkie?"
"Yup, and they look like they're having a good time eating, and-"
"Pinkie!"
"Right, sorry." She apologised as she put the Pokegear down. "Hope you two are ready." She said to Audino and Ralts, who walked out and minute one of the Pumpkaboo saw them, they became hostile.
"Ralts!"
"Audino!" They both fired a disarming voice; hitting all of them and not missing. They got angry, and followed the two Pokemon. They followed them, one was hit with a fury cutter, and another with wing attack, before Shuckle used struggle bug.
"Icy wind!" Rarity called out as a freezing cold wind was blown at the Pumpkaboo. The ghost and grass- types were all visibly affected by these attacks.
"Yeehaw!" Applejack cheered. "Now let's drive these varmits outta this forest for go-"
"Glaceon!" Rarity ran towards her Glaceon, which was just hit by an incredibly powerful razor leaf.
"Where did that come from?" Twilight turned around, to see a large Pokemon with three Pumpkaboo surrounding it.
"What's that?"
Gourgeist: The Pumpkin Pokemon.
It en-wraps its prey in its hairlike arms. It sings joyfully as it observes the suffering of its prey.
"Gourgeist!" It used shadow ball on Duskull.
"Use peck on Gourgeist, Hoothoot!" Hoothoot flew in to peck the grass- type, but then copies of the Pokemon flew around Hoothoot, causing it to stop using the attack out of confusion. The copies flew around everywhere, the real one attacked the Pokemon but no one could see where they came from.
"Hoothoot!"
"Glaceon!"
"Herdier!" These Pokemon as well as the others had to endure the barrage of attacks from not only Gourgeist, but the other Pumpkaboo.
"We have no idea of knowing which is which." Twilight thought as she tried to avoid the attacks, when she looked at Ralts. "Hold on..."
"Ralts!" She called the Pokemon, who had it's hand covering it's head and it turned around. "Use disarming voice!" Ralts took in a deep breath, and gave the attack everything it had. It hit all the Pumpkaboo and exposed Gourgeist.
"Use bite, Herdier!" Applejack pointed at Gourgeist, who was now trying to shake the Loyal Dog Pokemon off to prevent further damage.
"Ice shard!" Shards of ice were thrown at Gourgeist, as it was pushed back. Then it used astonish on Shroomish and began to move towards Ralts, but suddenly felt stiff.
"Effect Spore paralysed it." Twilight grinned. "Now Hoothoot, use confusion!"
"Glaceon, icy wind and Duskull, night shade!"
"Can you use disarming voice, Audino? If it's okay with you..." These attacks all at once damaged Gourgeist greatly.
Now use peck!"
"Bite!"
"Struggle bug!" Hoothoot, Herdier and Shuckle all attack Gourgeist physically at the same time. The fully evolved ghost- type could barely get up. It looked around; it was outnumbered and all its workers were knocked out. It floated up into the air and flew away.
"Yeah!" Rainbow Dash punched her fist in the air. "We did it!"
"Yes Rainbow, we did it." Twilight sighed. She looked around and some Pokemon were coming out of their hiding spots to make sure they were really seeing what was in front of them; the Pumkaboo were all knocked out and Gourgeist had been driven away. They didn't have to stay awake in order to avoid and stay away from those Pokemon anymore.
"Well it's time to go." Twilight said. "Los Pegasus isn't very far from here."
"I hear it's really cold this time of year." Rainbow commented.
"Well, it's a good thing I brought a coat then." Rarity said happily.
"Ralts?" They turned around to see the Ralts that they had helped.
"Do you want to come with us?" Twilight asked, and it nodded.
"Okay, go Eevee!" She threw a Pokeball and her Eevee came out. "Eevee has never been in a battle before, so I want this one to be its first." The Ralts nodded.
"Okay, use tackle!" Eevee ran forward quickly, and Ralts used confusion to stop it.
"Now swift!" When Eevee fell down, stars came from its mouth which hit Ralts.
"You're not the only one with an attack that never misses." Twilight smiled. Ralts then let out a large growl that made Eevee shiver. Ralts also let out its other sound- based attack.
"Swift again." The two never- missing attacks hit both Pokemon.
"Tackle!" Eevee quickly got up and ran towards Ralts, and landed a direct hit, but also tripped and damages itself as well. When Eevee quickly got off Ralts Twilight saw an opportunity and threw a Pokeball. It shook for a few seconds then went idle. Twilight smiled as she picked up the Pokeball.
"Welcome to the team." She smiled as she put the ball in her pocket.