Later that night, the whole group has come back together around a campfire, just barely inside the boundaries of the falls. The situation is much like the previous night's, but with the addition of two more Water-types.
Harold, naturally, has rooted himself several yards away from the fire. Liu is resting near the base of his trunk, having settled in soon while camp was setting up. Casey, who had gone silent upon being introduced to Geyser, simply sits between Anya and Midnight with his eye focused on the flames.
Geyser and Ryan sit together, the larger Pokémon laying flat on his stomach while the smaller one leans against his sturdy shell. It took no time at all for him to find the one particular section of the shell that contours nicely for leaning comfortably. The shiny Pokémon, however, has settled in the crook of Geyser's arm, resting her head on the limb as her eyes dart about the vicinity.
"...you know, for a blade, you're oddly comfortable near a fire," Midnight points out. Casey glances at her, then back to the fire, not responding. She groans, rubbing her nose with a hoof. "...look, I know you enjoy being the silent moody type, but you need to learn to open up to others."
"I've opened up plenty." His voice is low, as if he still wants to be quiet.
The mare glances over to the candle, then back to him, concerned. "Is it because Anya's nearby?"
"No."
"Then why are you suddenly being so quiet?"
He glances at Geyser, then back to the fire. "...my brother had a Blastoise."
Midnight sighs, wrapping a wing around the sword. "Don't worry. You'll see him again."
"...no, I won't," Casey replies after a moment of silence. "At least, hopefully not for a very, very long while."
"Come on." She nudges him. "Surely you can put aside some petty differences? He's your brother, after all."
He looks at her for a moment. "...yeah. He was."
"...any particular reason you're using past tense?" Her jovial smile falls, a worried frown taking its place.
"...you have death on this world, right?"
She gives him a strange look now, not liking where this is going. "...yeah? It's part of life, isn't it?"
He nods. "Barry had a Blastoise, a Luxray, and I don't even know what else. When I took Anya for safety's sake, he took my father's Zorua, Mercury." He pauses. "...the Rockets never caught me. They caught him, though."
The mare grimaces, picking up a small bag. "...I see... sorry to hear about that..." She holds up a hoof, a fluffy white item resting on it. "...want one?"
"...sure." He sighs, holding out his tassel halfheartedly. "What is it with sitting around a campfire prompting me to reveal all my dark secrets to you?"
"Is it because fires temper metal?" She places the marshmallow on his tassel, taking a few for herself.
Casey actually chuckles a bit at this. "Funny." He pops the treat into his nonexistent mouth.
"...that is so weird to watch." She holds up a sugary morsel, waiting for the right moment.
He notices her doing this and decides to humor her. "It was even weirder to learn how to do."
She tosses it in on the last word, nodding to herself. "I can imagine."
He downs the marshmallow, chuckling. "Am I just your target practice or something?"
"No." She smirks, tossing a couple more. "This is just fun to do."
He shrugs with his tassel and continues eating them as she throws them. "Good thing I can't put on weight. That was always a concern of mine."
Anya offers a comment from next to them. "You didn't seem to have problems with it back on Earth." A berry gets tossed her way. Her mouth opens and she catches it, giggling. "Thank you."
Midnight smiles, getting the gist of it. "No problem."
Casey, meanwhile, shrugs again. "Not after I got you on my team. I was a lot more self-conscious before then. Guess I just let myself go."
"You did have other things to worry about..." the candle comments.
"Meh. I blame having to stay around Saffron City for the most part rather than traveling." He holds up one of the white treats. "Marshmallow?"
"Yes please." She leans her head down. "Toast it a little?"
He holds the marshmallow over her head. "Heh... remember when we first camped out? There weren't enough trees to get wood for a proper fire, so I roasted a marshmallow over your head just like this... you got really indignant about that."
"Then I started getting some too." As it starts getting past golden, she nabs it. "It's like a treat for doing it that I came to like."
Casey pats her on the back with his tassel. "You're the only one besides Derek on the team who actually likes human food, you know that?"
She leans against the ribbon. "To be fair... most of the team doesn't care too much about what they eat since they can absorb what they want."
"Yeah, but still, it's cute to see you have a sweet tooth." He wraps the tassel around her a bit more like a blanket.
Smiling, she snuggles into it. "I did try and like hot chocolate once..."
"Well, if this place has winter, no reason not to try it again." He looks to Midnight. "...it has winter, right?"
The mare nods her head, watching the small flame on her head. "It does... I won't have to worry about you catching on fire, will I?"
"Nah. We're both careful. It's the uncontrollable fires I don't like." He glares at the campfire.
"If you're sure..." She shrugs, taking a few marshmallows and tossing them into her mouth. "I just don't want you to get hurt, even on accident."
He chuckles. "Thanks for caring, at least."
Anya peeks her one visible eye open at this, looking at Midnight a moment before pulling the cloth tighter around herself.
Casey blinks his eye. "...Anya, is everything okay?"
"Just getting comfortable." She wraps the ribbon around herself almost like she's a spool.
He hesitates before chuckling and letting the subject go. "Alright."
Meanwhile, across the flickering flames, another conversation tries to begin. Ryan looks over to the purple-pink form against his friend, unused to seeing such a thing. Something else is what's bothering him, though.
Scooting back a bit so he is sitting straighter, he speaks up. "Umm... Mindy? Are you feeling any better?" Geyser opens his eyes at this, looking between the two small water-types.
She curls up a bit tighter at this, pressing just a hint closer to the shell beside her. "I'm okay."
Not exactly the lively conversation he wanted, he tries again after a minute. "So... how did you meet the big guy here?" He pats Geyser's shall on one of the plates concealing the cannons within.
She still doesn't turn to him, but her answer is longer than before. "He protected me."
When the turtle doesn't elaborate, the former trainer makes a guess. "More bullies?"
"A group." She sighs, tucking her head beneath the larger Pokémon's torso. "One from before..."
Watching her burrow deeper, Ryan feels a small pang. "Oh... sorry... the Lanturn alone was bad enough."
She finally looks to him, if only with one eye, full of confusion and doubt. "...why are you sorry?"
"Because you went through what you did." At the slightest movement from Geyser's head motioning for him to go on, he does. "I'm sorry for the situation as a whole, because I don't think anyone should have to go through that... especially gentle souls like you seem to be."
She observes him for a moment more before turning away. "Thanks, but..." She trails off, shuddering silently. When she speaks again, her voice hitches in her throat. "You... you don't have any idea..."
"Mindy..." He watches as Geyser holds onto her a little tighter before sighing. "No... I probably don't... but that doesn't mean I don't want to help."
"...another one to disappoint..." She groans, shaking her head and burying herself even more against Geyser's side.
Seeing her trying to hide herself, he looks down. "Well... we came here to get Geyser. Now that we've found him, we'll probably try to head back tomorrow, or soon at least. If you want... you could come with us. Maybe make a fresh start, well, another one at least, maybe leave behind bad memories of this place?"
There's a long pause, just enough for him to think she's passed out, before she answers. "...can I sleep on it?"
"Of course. No rush." He actually smiles at this, curling up against Geyser. "Makes a good firm sleeping spot, huh?" Huffing once, Geyser sweeps him up with his other arm, holding one of them in each.
"...I actually find him comfortable."
"Yeah... it only gets better with time as you learn all the good spots on him." Still he snuggles into Geyser's arm. "This one's new though... I like it."
The only response he gets is soft breathing, as the Mudkip has fallen asleep.
The sun rises the next morning to various sleeping forms, including the small group that had assembled the previous day. While the three Water-types sleep in a group and Liu naps at the base of a dormant Harold's tree, a tent has been set up for the remaining three members.
Inside, a single sleeping bag has been set up, on which Midnight lies. A few feet away against the edge had been where Casey was, but at some point during the night, he had been dragged over and is now being snuggled by the sleeping mare. The last one, Anya, sleeps standing up just beside where her trainer-turned-Honedge had been, feeling the lack of a tassel around her as she begins to stir.
Her visible eye opening, she looks around. Seeing the new sleeping arrangements, her face goes blank while her flame flickers between her usual cool blue and an angry red. After a minute, she snorts a bit of hot air and exits the tent, situating herself in the remnants from the fire last night. Taking a deep breath, she breathes out slowly, enveloping herself in flames as though the campfire was never put out. The heat calms her as her form can be seen within the flames, awaiting the others to awaken.
One is awake sooner than she expects, a blue head peering over a nearby log. He watches her for a few seconds, then vaults over the fallen trunk, speaking into the flames. "I'm sorry, Miss Anya, but... wouldn't that melt you?"
The flames die down a little as she sees him. "If I was really just a candle, it would. But, being a Fire-type and Ghost-type gives me plenty of leeway. As long as I don't use an actual attack on myself, it doesn't even leave a mark."
Behind Liu, a familiar Trevenant approaches as well, having awoken and uprooted himself when he felt the Riolu leave. "Good morning, Miss Anya. Are you well?"
Thinking about the questions as the flames flicker around her, she nods after a moment. "Yes... I think I might be, now."
"Now?" Harold settles down by the fire carefully. "Is something the matter?"
She eases the heat for him as she shakes her head slowly. "No, not really the matter... I just had a little surprise this morning. It's probably nothing... and I doubt it'll matter in a few minutes."
"What surprise?" His tone becomes one of worry. "Did something happen to Master Casey or Miss Midnight?"
"Yes, but nothing bad. No need to fret." She waves a waxy hand at him.
"...if you are certain."
Liu tilts his head to one side, an ear flicking slightly. "...then why are you annoyed?"
She flinches slightly, looking away. "Probably just me being silly... I hope so..."
"Miss Anya..." Harold sighs. "For a ghost... you are not very good at fooling others."
She huffs. "It's not like I can use Will-o-Wisp to distract you two like most of my kind can." Sighing, the flames die down to dull embers at her base. "Casey... moved during the night."
Harold's eye widens. "He left?"
"I said he 'moved'." She shrinks a little. "He went to sleep next to me with his ribbon around me... and when I woke up he was being cuddled by Midnight instead."
The Trevenant seems to calm down a bit at this. "Ah... I can see why this may have irked you." His voice sounds a little teasing.
Try as she might, she can't be mad at him for that comment. "Yeah... am I being silly for feeling this way?"
"I suppose that depends on if he moved by choice." Harold chuckles.
Off to the side, they hear the sound of the tent flap opening, and Casey floats there, eye half-open. "I didn't."
A bit of pink tinge comes to the orange flames around Anya before she lifts out of the firepit and floats over to him. "Good morning!"
He looks at her and nods. "Morning. Sorry about last night. I think Midnight's used to having the frog to cuddle with, so she just grabbed me while I was asleep as a replacement." Hearing this, Harold just chuckles again.
"Oh... well, that's alright." She smiles sweetly at him as she peeks towards the tent. "Is she awake too?"
"Not right now. I managed to slip away, so I don't know if that'll make her wake up sooner, but right now she's still asleep." He gently wraps his tassel around her again in the closest thing to a hug he can do.
The flame on her head crackles slightly as she smiles and curls up next to him in the ribbon, a content smile on her face. "She can take her time if she wants..."
"I'd have no problem with that." He chuckles and heads back over to the other two with her. "So I'm guessing the Water-types are still asleep?"
"I think so?" Liu glances over to the group a distance away, unsure. "I haven't seen any of them move from that spot, anyways."
"Well, we can worry about that when Midnight's up." Casey glances back at the tent before sighing and looking over the group. "Which is hopefully soon. I have no clue where we're going next, or if we're dragging the Mudkip with us."
"From what little I heard, the poor thing seems troubled," Anya quips.
Casey chuckles. "Aren't we all..."
Right as he finishes that thought, a pink blur dashes between them, colliding with the Blastoise. The form quickly tries to burrow underneath the larger Pokémon, the sound of footsteps coming from behind them.
As the Mudfish Pokémon disappears under the shell where Blastoise has retracted into, Anya blinks. "What was that about?"
"Maybe she stepped on a twig," Casey remarks, ignoring the approaching footsteps.
Liu's ear twitches, and he turns to the sound, quickly taking a defensive stance. "Or maybe she was being chased."
A trio of Pokémon approach the group, glints in their eyes that promise no good can come of their actions. Leading them is a Grovyle, its species’ typical twig tucked into a corner of its mouth as it walks with a cocky stride. Behind him walks a Hitmonchan, its eyes narrowed and a smirk on its face. Finally, a Lanturn floats a little bit off the ground in the group, anger clearly smouldering in its gaze.
The Grass-type stops near the group, but instead turns to its followers. "Spread out. She can't have gone far."
"Hey." Casey floats closer, letting Anya go. "Looking for someone?"
"Yeah." He looks the sword in the eye, switching the twig to the other side of his mouth. "Little pink bitch that probably zipped by here."
"Huh. Figures someone like you would be scaring away all the girls," the Honedge remarks with just a trace of annoyance. "Haven't seen her. Get lost."
The Grovyle smirks. "You must be blind to not see an eyesore like her. We'll be looking anyway." Over near the dormant shell, a certain frog groggily wakes up, stretching.
"No, you won't," Casey states simply. "This is our campsite, like it or not. If you want to go chasing pink girls, go hunt a Luvdisc or something. We're not dealing with this crap right now."
"If you get out of our way, we'd already be gone. As it stands, all this is doing is making you look suspicious." His eyes narrow.
Meanwhile, Ryan yawns and hops over towards the voices. "What's going on guys?"
The Lanturn glares at the frog, teeth gritted in annoyance. "You again. You trying to hide the bitch?"
Hitmonchan turns to the Lanturn. "You know this guy?"
Sensing the hostility, Harold approaches. "I suggest the three of you leave."
"I think you'd have a better chance of Cresselia giving you a kiss." The blue fish slaps the ground with a fin. "If he's here, then that bitch must be here, too!"
Casey rolls his eye. "You know, just saying 'bitch' over and over again doesn't make you tough or intimidating. It makes you seem stupid." He floats back and forth like a pendulum, speaking in a mocking tone. "Bitch, bitch, bitchy bitchy bitch! Bitch, bitchiness, bitching, bitchery! I can do it too! Look at me, bitches!"
"Yeah, well, you're a son of a bitch." He huffs, gliding past him as he heads towards the frog. "You're going to tell us where she is, and then you'll stay out of this. Got it?"
Fighting the urge to run from the angry partial Electric-type, Ryan swallows and holds his ground. His eyes narrow as a bubbly growl comes from him. "You won't get to her." Remembering the beating from yesterday, he Quick Attacks the Pokémon right between the eyes, skin changing to grey in mid-jump. He recoils from the strike, sent sprawling across the ground.
Taking the opportunity to fight back, Casey suddenly turns, dropping its sheath and striking the Grovyle with a sudden Fury Cutter. The Grass-type staggers back a few steps with a growl before bouncing back forward, shouting out, "Pursuit!" The leaves on his arms glow an eerie black as they connect with the sword.
Casey takes the hit and flies towards the ground... only to disappear into his own shadow.
Grovyle has enough time to say two words. "Well, crap."
He is immediately struck from behind by the Shadow Sneak attack when Casey pops out. "Bitch!"
Meanwhile, the Lanturn lays there for a moment, its body twitching, before slowly getting back up, fire in its eyes. "You just sealed your fate, fool." He sets his fins firmly on the ground and fires wavy, violet rings at the Froakie.
Ryan holds his ground, bracing himself for the force of an attack, only to crack open his eyes when none comes. He immediately regrets this as the world swirls around him, causing him to fall off balance and even have trouble sitting there. "W-What..."
"Confuse Ray." He floats up to him, smirking gleefully. "That should keep you from moving for a bit." He tilts his head up, a dark cloud forming over Ryan's head. "You think you can survive this?"
Trying to focus, Ryan struggles to aim at the blue blur. His hand glows white as he flails around, ducking and diving randomly against his will as he tries to Pound the Lanturn.
The partial Electric-type smacks him on the head and backs up, giving the frog a disappointed stare. "Really?" A bright bolt of lightning strikes the ground right next to Ryan, and the Lanturn chuffs, shaking his head. "Damn it, I missed."
Out of danger for a second, the Froakie holds a hand to his head, shaking it and trying to clear his head. "Come on, focus... you're outmatched..."
Seeing this, his foe takes a deep breath, spitting out water onto his face right after. Still Normal-type from his Protean ability, Ryan lacks the natural resistance to the Scald attack a Froakie would normally have. The water sends him barreling backwards along the ground.
"There. That's better." The Lanturn nods, the cloud forming once more. "Now hold still. I hate to miss."
Immediately, a large branch crashes into the ground mere inches from the Lanturn, the branch leading up to a glaring Trevenant. "As do I. Pity."
He simply turns to the taller Pokémon, the ball on his head glowing bright blue. "Fuck off." He blasts Harold in the eye with his beam, a manic grin on his face.
When the Ice Beam fades, Harold continues to stand with the same expression on his face. "Ouch. I suppose." He lifts his branch and slams down once again with a Wood Hammer, this time not missing. When he raises it back up, there is an indent in the ground, the blue fish effectively buried by his attack.
Meanwhile, Ryan stops tumbling, his skin an angry red in spots, and not from Protean. "Argh!" He lets out a shout as he lands on one of them, feeling worse than the worst sunburn he's ever gotten. Easing himself up, he uses a combination of Bubble and his frubbles to try and ease the sting.
Harold turns to him, gaze becoming more of worry. "Are you alright, Mister Ryan?"
"Ow, umm... I'm conscious so that's an improvement over the last time I met that guy..." He gingerly hops over, wincing every time. "How do you guys take beatings like this?" One eye looks over at the still dormant shell, noting no exit holes from within the mud underneath.
"Training, determination, and a higher level," the Trevenant says with a mild chuckle. "Let's see if we can get you some berries for your burn..."
"Or you can just chill." A wall of ice hits both of them in the back, the fish climbing back out of the hole he was forced into. "Isn't that an ice idea?"
Once more, Ryan finds himself on the receiving end of an attack. The freezing wind tosses him a short distance away, though when he lands, a surprising sigh of relief escapes him along with the groan. "Ahh... that feels nice..."
"Stop liking it, idiot!"
Harold takes the hit similarly, stumbling only slightly before turning to the Lanturn, eye flashing green. A similarly-colored aura comes off of his body and briefly envelopes the part Electric-type. He flinches at this, but, when nothing seems to have happened, he smirks, then hocks up a large sphere, aiming for his eye once more.
This time, Harold ducks before disappearing into his shadow. The Lanturn lets out a loud string of curses, as his following Confuse Ray just barely misses the Trevenant and, instead, hits Ryan in the face.
As the world starts to spin once more, the frog groans. "Not again..." Slightly more prepared than last time, he braces himself on the ground. Aiming for the spinning blur, he launches into a Quick Attack.
He is launched through the air, screeching at the frog as he sails between the two Fighting-types. "Lucky shot!"
The Hitmonchan, who had been dueling with the Riolu at this time, pauses for a second as he watches his friend go by. "...wow."
Liu looks over at the sprawling Pokémon, then to the boxer, an eyebrow raised. "...is he always like that?"
"Usually he's less Flying-type." The Hitmonchan shrugs before going back to his fighting stance.
"So he's more a grounded-type?" The smaller Pokémon grins, lowering his stance as he raises his paws. He receives a Thunder Punch to the jaw for his joke. He growls, his body flashing as he turns his hardened gaze to the boxer. "Rude." He lashes out, striking the Hitmonchan square in the jaw with a Counter.
Hitmonchan stumbles back, nearly falling over, before regaining his balance. He suddenly lashes out again, hitting the Riolu with a Mach Punch before he even realizes what's going on. Liu yelps, holding his nose as he backs up, trying to gauge the situation. He sighs, closing his eyes as he concentrates. His paws raise up in a defensive pose, and his eyes open, revealing a soft glow.
Not missing any chance to get in a quick strike, the Hitmonchan rushes in again for another Mach Punch. He quickly dodges it, drawing back a paw as he glares at his opponent. "Detect." He smacks him in the forehead, his palm glowing a deep blue. "And Force Palm."
Hitmonchan grunts, staggering back as he feels his muscles start to lock up from paralysis. He tries to strike back, but only ends up falling down onto one knee.
Liu pauses at this, surprised. "...wow, I can't believe that did that." He shakes his head, then draws his leg back. "I hear that a boxer's weak spot is his knee." His leg ignites into flames, and he gives a sheepish grin. "If so, sorry about this. Maybe it'll heal, later?" He lashes out with the burning limb, striking solidly on the unprotected joint.
The Fighting-type lets out a howl of pain as he collapses completely onto his side, making no move to get back up anytime soon.
He crouches down, gently patting him on the head. "Again, sorry, but you were going after someone who's defenseless." The only response he gets is a low groan from the Hitmonchan as he slips into unconsciousness.
Growling as he faces off against the floating sword, Grovyle growls as he launches with an Agility, the leaves on his arms glowing and extending with a high speed Leaf Blade. Before he can get close enough to hit, Casey tries to throw him off guard with a Metal Sound.
Gritting his teeth, he squints and continues plowing forward into the sword. "I won't be beaten by a first evolution!"
Taking the hit, Casey falls back before spinning around and hitting him with a Slash. "I could always hand you over to my Trevenant who's probably twice your level if you'd rather lose to him."
"I'll just Fury Cutter him!" He grunts as another cut opens up in his skin as he blurs into a Pursuit. "All this for that little purple shit?!"
Casey dodges with a Shadow Sneak before striking from behind. "Fury Cutter? Good idea." He follows up his Shadow Sneak attack with one of the aforementioned Bug-type moves. "And don't be a hypocrite. You three are the ones trying to take down a camp full of Pokémon just to torment a Mudkip."
"We have prior business with her, and none of it is any of yours!" Flung forward again, the Grass-type flips back onto his feet, panting. His eyes scan around for an idea.
"On the contrary, I made preventing Pokémon abuse my business long ago." He floats towards him dangerously.
"Abuse? This is just us educating her while she's young and will listen." He grins as he spots Anya sitting out of the battles, watching worriedly. "She's gotta learn, one way or another." With another Agility, he zips over to Anya, picking her up in a headlock as he looks to the sword. "Whatever it takes!"
Casey pauses, not moving, but the glare in his eye speaking volumes. "Put. Her. Down."
"Give. Me. The Mudkip," Grovyle retorts. Anya's eye is wide as she stares at Casey, frozen in shock before it starts to narrow, her flame on her head crackling.
The Honedge stays silent for a few more seconds, eye very briefly flicking off to the side. "I would highly recommend you let her go, or things are gonna get very bad for you."
"Maybe... but it would be worse if I didn't. So, I think I'll take these odds." He takes a few steps to his right, keeping the sword in his sight.
"Don't say I didn't warn you."
A blue light flashes in the corner of the Grovyle’s eye, and he's struck in the side of his face immediately after. While he doesn't let go of the candle, the Force Palm to the face serves to throw the Grass-type off balance and loosen his grip.
With a surprising bit of flexibility, Anya turns herself around, opening her mouth and unleashing a Flamethrower right in his face. Yelling, the Grovyle throws her away, wiping the flames off himself desperately.
Finally, Casey floats over while he's distracted, and in one swift motion, wraps his tassel around the Grass-type. He keeps the Grovyle's arms pinned and his body still as his ribbon starts to faintly glow. Snapping his mouth as best he can at the ribbon, Grovyle makes no move to talk.
Seeing and feeling what her trainer is doing, Anya gasps, floating over to the Honedge. "Casey... you shouldn't do that lightly. Do you really want to kill him?"
"Yes," the Honedge replies bluntly, though now there's uncertainty in his eye. After a second, he sighs, the glow in his ribbon stopping. Instead, he just twists his body and strikes the Grass-type down with Aerial Ace, letting his body drop. "If he bothers us again."
Only a groan comes from the green form; otherwise, it doesn't move. Anya, meanwhile, hugs the sword's hilt, squeezing him tightly.
He hugs back gently with his ribbon before turning to the Riolu. "Thanks for that."
Liu doesn't respond at first, staring at the fallen Pokémon. "...no problem..." He pokes him with a paw, then, when he doesn't get much of a response, turns to the sword, frowning softly. "Well... at least you didn't kill him... but were you really willing to go that far?"
"...probably not," Casey admits. "From what I saw, he didn't hurt her... did he, Anya?" He glances to the Litwick.
She looks down at the slight dent in her wax, smoothing it out with her arms. "I'm fine, Casey." She smiles at him. "Thank you."
He hugs her closer. "Good..." He looks back to Liu. "I think I was just... scared."
The jackal looks at him for a moment before smiling, nodding to him. "I admire how concerned you were. I'm also glad you listened to reason, in the end."
"Yeah... not often I do." He chuckles to try and dispel the tension before looking to Anya. "Nice Flamethrower back there, by the way."
She blushes, still holding onto him. "Thank you. He deserved that at least, definitely."
"Yes. Yes he did." He looks down at the Grovyle, giving him the equivalent of a Honedge kick with his ribbon before leading the other two away.
A large orb of water launches out of the treeline and into the sky. After a few moments, it bursts, dark clouds starting to form above the clearing. Not even a second later, it starts to rain.
Ryan cocks his head at this, his body partially numb and thankfully so considering the attacks he's taken. "Why would he use Rain Dance... we're both Water-types- oh crap. He knows Thunder." He sprints for the cover of nearby trees.
A bolt of lightning splits the sky, ducking between the trees to strike him square in the back. Ryan cries out as his nerves scream just as loud as he does. Between his momentum and the hit, he flops forward, sprawled out on the ground with blackened skin giving off the scent of ozone.
A blue fin comes into his view, its owner looming over his prone form. "Was that the best you got?" He scoffs, a yellow ball of energy forming on his tail. "I'm disappointed."
Weakened from everything that had happened to him, the Froakie gasps out two words. "Screw... you..."
The Lanturn shakes his head condescendingly. "Not very humble in defeat, are you?" He gives him no chance to respond, flipping and sending the ball flying.
At that exact moment, the ground bursts open between the two of them, a purple shape leaping out of it. Mindy, for that's who it was, braces herself, her arms crossed in front of her face, and takes the full force of the attack. She's sent flying, crashing into a nearby tree before falling to the ground, twitching slightly as little sparks of electricity dance across her body.
The fish is completely stunned by this turn of events, not quite sure what to make of it. "...the fuck was that about?"
Grunting, Ryan claws his way across the ground towards the Mudkip, ignoring the threat behind him. "Mindy..."
The least-damaged Water-type starts moving toward him, only to suddenly find himself knocked away by an oddly stronger X-Scissor attack. Turning, he finds himself staring into the familiar eye of a Trevenant. "Hello." Without waiting for a response, Harold grabs the Lanturn and disappears with him down into the shadows.
Reaching the fallen pink form, the frog gently lays a hand on her, eyes full of concern. "Hey... are you still with me? That looked bad... you didn't have to take that hit... you were supposed to hide."
"...I couldn't just... let you guys take their anger..." She rolls onto her side, grimacing slightly as she looks over at him with one eye open. Her gaze falls onto the scorch mark on his back, her pained expression soon melting away into a sorrowful one, the rain falling across her face like the tears she tries to hold in. "...I... I'm so sorry... I didn't mean for you all to get hurt..."
Putting on a smile for her, he eases down, laying flat on his stomach. "I'm pretty sure the others can take care of themselves... I'm mostly glad they didn't get to you - well, before you came out - and that I'm still conscious." He gives a weak chuckle.
"I'm glad, too..." She slowly sits up, holding her side gingerly. "...his attack didn't really hurt that much, though... it was mostly the tree that got me..."
He looks at her before pushing himself up a bit, blowing bubbles into his frubbles and regaining his usual blue hue. Scooping out a bit of the mixture, he offers it to her. "These seem to make good padding. They're nice and cool too."
She silently looks at it for a moment, then takes the offered bit. She places a small amount on her injured side, sighing in relief as her pain ebbs away. "...t-thank you..."
"No problem... heh, I might have to make myself a cocoon of that stuff later." He chuckles and winces. "Again, I have to miss potions for quick healing. A nice Super Potion would do the trick." He shakes his head. "But, I guess I just have to do it the Pokémon way, right?"
She opens her mouth, about to say something, but stops herself, a thought occurring to her. "...oh, right... you're a trainer..." That last word seems to leave a bitter taste in her mouth, as her nose - or at least, where it would be - scrunches slightly, and she turns away. "...we heal fast. You should be fine in a day or two."
"Amazing..." Still, he looks at her curiously, wondering why she turned away, but battle-worn as he is, thoughts pursuing that soon slip from his grasp. "So you'll be okay too? Are you going to need bandages?"
"No. I'll be fine." She slowly gets up, looking up at the sky as it clears. "At least your bubbles won't wash away, now."
"Let me know if you need more." He waves to his frothing neck. "These things never run out."
"I'll take your word for it."
Suddenly, out from the shadows comes Harold and the Lanturn, the latter being dragged by the former by his tail. The Trevenant looks at the two, a calm expression in his eye, and he lifts the fish Pokémon up. "My friend has something he wishes to say." It dangles lifelessly, the faintest murmur of a noise coming from its throat. "He says sorry."
"I said let go of my fucking tail." He gets violently shaken around like a maraca in response.
"...he's still an ass." Ryan sighs as he continues laying on the ground. "At least it's over. You have anything to say to him, Mindy?"
She stares quietly at the Lanturn, who looks green around the gills from his rough handling. She scoffs and turns away, walking past Harold. "Why bother? He'll just keep coming back... he always does..."
He blinks, surprised she isn't happier. Grunting and working himself onto all fours, Ryan walks after her with an awkward stride, the mere thought of hopping painful for him. "Umm... well, at least he'll think twice after this, right? You won't have trouble getting away for a while."
"...you really don't know those guys like I do..."
"I've gotten that... but surely you want to be away from them or something, right?" He continues following her, for some reason not wanting her on her own; maybe because of those enemies, or maybe just so she doesn't wander off and leave. "I can't stand the thought of them coming after you... and maybe succeeding..."
"...your concern is... odd..." She still doesn't look at him, even as she makes her way to the campsite.
"How's it odd to look out for a friend?" he asks.
"Because..." She falters slightly, unsure what to say. "...I don't know... it's just... odd..."
He manages to catch up a bit. "Well, odd or not, it's the right thing to do. So, looks like I'll keep doing it." He gives a small chuckle.
"...you're odd, too..."
"Is that a bad thing?"
She stops at the edge of the treeline, her lips pursed as she mulls over his question. Eventually, she simply sighs and bows her head, her voice dropping to a whisper. "I don't know... and that worries me."
"Ryan!" The black mare prevents any reaction from the frog with her outburst, rushing over to him. She reaches forward but stops short, taking notice of the mark on his back. "I... I heard you all were fighting from Casey, but... h-how'd you get this?"
He looks up at her, croaking once. "You... probably don't want to know, especially with everything else I took. This is just the most visible thing."
"He says it's a long story and you don't want to hear it." The Honedge floats over lazily as he translates. "I agree with him for once."
Her expression grows even more concerned at this, but she doesn't push it. "Well... you'll at least let me help dress that, won't you?"
He nods gratefully, easing back down onto his stomach. After a moment, he waves a hand at Mindy. "Her too, if she wants it."
"I'm fine." The Mudkip smiles weakly, then walks over to where Geyser is, laying down next to him as Midnight pulls out her first aid kit.
Ryan frowns at this and sighs, looking to the sword. "How's everyone else?"
"Liu's practically untouched. Anya still seems nervous, but she wasn't hurt much either. And I haven't seen Harold in-" His eye glances to the side and sees the Trevenant coming out of the forest calmly, the Lanturn nowhere to be seen. "...okay, there he is now, making me a liar. But he seems fine too; nothing Ingrain won't fix."
"And you?" The frog looks over the sword. "I don't see a lot of damage... then again with your typing it may be hard to tell."
Casey blinks. "Uh... well, a little tired and still high on adrenaline, but I'm not too badly hurt." The sound of his voice clearly indicates surprise.
The mare stops in her gentle application of salve, raising an eyebrow at the sword. "...Casey, adrenaline can keep you from feeling pain." She frowns, pointing at him with her clean hoof. "Take that sheath off, real quick."
Ryan pauses looking to the pinkened sections of his skin where his brief burns had been. "...that still sounds weird."
Casey sighs, pulling himself out of the sheath. As it slides off, it reveals his blade, a strange black liquid starting to leak out of various cuts along the metal. His eye widens, but he says nothing.
The pegasus stares at him, shocked. "...uh... is that blood?"
"...I have no idea." He stares down at himself for a moment. "...I think so, though... either the adrenaline's wearing off, or the placebo effect is real, because now it hurts to all hell."
Midnight sighs, returning to treating her current patient's wounds. "If only I had my possessed-sword med kit. I hope some pain killers will be fine, in its stead."
Ryan waves a hand. "Submit yourself to our lovely nurse and pray she doesn't have welding equipment."
"...I think I'll just put my sheath back on and sleep it off instead."
"Catch." She tosses a deep blue item at where his mouth would be, a bit too fast to clearly tell what it is.
He does so, grumbling after swallowing it. "Stop doing that."
She sticks her tongue out at him. "What if it's too fun to stop?"
"Then I have no problem showing off my idea of fun."
The mare blinks at this, a length of gauze draped on her hoof. "...I'm probably going to regret this, but what's your idea of fun?"
He pauses before sighing. "There goes that bluff... I was trying to just unnerve you so you'd stop."
"Well, you got me." She giggles, starting to dress the frog's back. "So, are you two starting to feel better?"
"A bit, thank you." Ryan smiles at her, casting a glance over to the curled up purple form.
"Still bleeding, but the pain's fading." Casey sighs. "You could've just told me that was an Oran Berry."
"...what's an Oran Berry?"
"...the thing you gave to me just now." He narrows his eye. "Are you saying that your first instinct upon seeing me injured was to throw a random fruit at me for the hell of it?"
"Well... that reptile had it on him, so..." She shrugs slightly, a nervous smile on her lips. "...yes?"
He growls. "I hope you never work in a hospital. Contrary to popular belief, shoving random shit down peoples' throats isn't gonna heal them. What if that was poisonous?!"
A glob of frubbles hits him in the face. "Hey, calm down!"
"Why would he be carrying something poisonous around?" She huffs, nodding over her shoulder towards the Riolu, tending to his little pot. "Why would he be growing a poisonous plant?"
After a glare at the frog, he directs it to the mare. "He's a kid. How would he know any better? As for the reptile carrying it around, if you haven't noticed, people carry dangerous stuff around for when they get into fights. Or it could have just been safe for him and not me; I bet you half the food I ate as a human would make you sick or kill you." Ryan debates lobbing more frubbles, but holds off for the moment.
"...fine." Her gaze softens, and she turns back to Ryan, gently picking him up. "I'm sorry I didn't think my actions through. I was just trying to lighten the mood..."
Casey sighs and shakes his body. "Next time, just tell a joke or something." He floats off to check on the other two Ghost-types hanging out near each other.
"...but I don't know any jokes..." She sighs quietly, looking down to the frog in her embrace. "...I don't think he'd laugh at much, though... do you?"
Ryan thinks and shrugs. "Nothing I can think of..." Still, looking himself over, he gives her a quick hug for the first aid.
The mare smiles softly, leaning down to gently nuzzle the top of his head. "You're welcome, cutie. Wish I could've helped fight, though." She holds up a hoof, smirking at him. "They would've gotten a face full of iron if I saw them hurt any of you."
His smile twitches slightly at the thought as he chuckles. Still, he's glad she stayed out of the line of fire. Something occurring to him, he pokes her and twists his hand in a questioning motion, gesturing around them.
"...if you're asking where they are, I put them under a tree." She points behind him, where the two are laying together, against each other. "Still can't believe Liu beat up a girl like that, but I guess it was necessary..."
While he didn't know this, he once again pokes her chest and looks to her questioningly.
"...I'm sorry, but I don't know what you're trying to say." She sighs, laying back and putting him on her belly. "I really wish we didn't need a translator..."
He pats her softly, smiling. "For what it's worth, you seem to get most things I say. Surely there's some way though... writing and relying on the others isn't always easy..."
She doesn't quite understand this, either, looking up at him as she thinks. "...would you like me to get your notepad? It might make this a bit easier..." He nods. "Come on, then." She wraps him with a wing, carrying him over to the tent. "It should be with the rest of our stuff..."
A lone Dark-type fox stops his aimless journey under a large tree, sighing. Aside from himself, the only things around were trees and the occasional Bug and Grass-types, none of which bothered him. Still no sign of civilization.
"...well, this sucks." He sighs in a disheartened manner, letting himself fall to the ground between two large, exposed roots. "I'm going to go mad if I don't find someone to chat with... that didn't mention flowers every five minutes..."
A voice comes from the tree. "Are you troubled, young one?"
He stares up at the tree for a minute before sighing, rubbing the side of his head with a paw. "...damn it, I've already gone mad."
A chuckle comes from the plant. "Far from it, Zorua. Shall I call you that, or do you have a name?"
He sits silently, still doubting himself, before giving a tentative answer. "...my name is Mercury."
"Mercury, then." There's a pause. "I see you are traveling alone."
"Not by choice."
"Hmm..." It goes quiet once more. "Would you mind waiting there for a little bit?"
"Sure. Why not?" He rests his head on one of the roots, an ear twitching idly. "I could use a rest, anyways."
"Then we will give you some time to do so before we come by." The voice goes silent again, this time completely.
"...strange. I thought being insane would be more entertaining." He chuckles softly. "Guess I'm really not out of my mind." Several more minutes of silence pass before he once again hears a sound, this one of grass and bushes rustling as something draws closer. Mercury turns to them, jumping when he sees a tree moving closer. "Maybe I am, after all... am I seeing things?"
Finally, upon coming further into view, the moving tree turns out to simply be a Trevenant; not an unknown species to him. The Litwick riding on one of its branches is similarly familiar.
The Trevenant smiles and nods. "Hello there. Thank you for waiting."
"...that explains how you talked to me, earlier."
"Indeed." He chuckles. "Would you like to come back with us to our group? I would like to learn more about you, and why you are alone."
"We have quite the diverse group. I'm sure someone's personality would match well with yours," Anya mentions, smiling at the fox.
"You two have a group?" He glances at the candle, his expression going blank for a moment. He quickly shakes his head, chuckling quietly. "...yeah, I'd be up for it. Though, if I may say something?" He walks over to the Litwick, about to say something when something catches his attention, distracting him. "...you know you have a metallic scent around you?"
Her cheeks go a little blue as she giggles. "Well, I have been spending an awful lot of time with a Honedge..."
"A lot of time," Harold adds with a smirk, the three of them starting to head back to their group.
He tilts his head to one side, baffled. "Isn't she a bit young for that?"
"Size does not determine age," the Trevenant remarks. "And have you not heard it is impolite to bring such a topic up with a lady?"
"Nope." He grins cockily. "I didn't have any manner lessons. That, or I forgot them." He shrugs. "Take your pick."
Anya snorts, grinning at him. "Aren't you a little young to be that sarcastic?"
"I bet I'm older than you." He sticks his tongue out at her, his form changing in a brief moment to hers. "I bet I look better than you, too... ah, who am I kidding, you wear this better than I do."
"I should think so. Careful I don't just start using you as a mirror." She smirks.
"Really?" He shows his teeth, where a piece of blue fruit is stuck. "Because I think you should know you missed this."
She squeaks, putting her hand in her mouth and feeling around for the fruit. Harold just sighs, rolling his eye. "Youngsters..."
"Wow, you really fell for that?" He laughs brightly, changing back to himself. "I was just kidding!" The dark fox leaps up into one of Harold's branches, grinning down at her. "That was a neat little reaction, though. Who knew candles could make that noise?"
She huffs, crossing her arms and looking away with a blush. "I need to look my best..."
"Why? Got someone to impress?" He snickers, crouching low. "I'm flattered, really, but you look nice as you are!"
She puffs a small amount of Smog at him. "Thank you, but I have my eyes on someone else."
He actually loses his collected air at this, surprised. "Wha... really?"
"Yes... is that so hard to believe?" She gives him a flat look.
"We are arriving back at the group soon," the Trevenant interjects. "Perhaps hold off on the arguing?"
"Well... maybe?" He doesn't seem to notice what the tree says, looking down at his paws. "I guess I should've expected it, but I was still kind of hoping..."
"Aww..." Anya floats over and pats his head. "Another little one looking for love. Don't worry, you'll find someone to be your mate. I'm sure of it."
His ears turn backwards, and he frowns softly at her. "...I'm eighteen, you know."
She pats his head a little harder as she smirks. "Still younger than me." Her blue tongue sticks out at him for a moment.
"We're here," Harold interrupts once more as they exit into the clearing to find the rest of the group.
Midnight looks up from where she's sitting, Ryan on her lap, and smiles at them, waving them closer. Geyser does much the same, trying not to move as Mindy backs out of one of his cannons, pulling out a stick that had fallen in. Liu doesn't react to their appearance, struggling to keep the watering can in his paws from falling on his budding plant. From the way he's trembling, it doesn't seem he'll be able to hold onto it much longer.
Lastly, Casey floats forward to greet the two, a couple berries in his tassel. "Welcome back. Who's the new guy?"
Harold nods in greeting. "Master Casey, this is Mercury. He seemed lonely, so I decided to bring him back here for a time." Anya's eyes shoot open as they dart to Harold and then to the fox.
"...weird." He looks to the candle, gesturing to the sword. "He has the same name as this human I know."
Casey floats forward, curious. "...I think I am the human you know." He taps him on the head. "I really hate to ask, but... does the name 'Barry' ring a bell?"
"Yes. It does." He backs away from the tassel, concerned. "...why did you become a Honedge?"
"Like Arceus said... all good humans were taken here and turned into Pokémon..." He still seems taken aback by the sudden revelation.
Anya nods, floating down and hugging his hilt. "And now he's one of us!" She floats back over to the fox, looking at him with wide eyes. "But… that's really you, Mercury?"
"Yeah, it's me." He tilts his head, things coming together. "And… you're Anya. I-I thought you'd have evolved, by now..."
She shakes her head. "No... you know I don't fight much. Plus, I like me this way... I think Casey does too."
Casey just blinks before nodding to the rest of the curious group. "Come on over, Merc. We have a lot to talk about, I think."
"I think we do, yeah."