A New World, A New Family

by Lance Skyes

3: Forest of Revelation

Deep in the Everfree Forest, Felix, Kanga, and Pinky were trekking through the dangerous woods on their way to the town that Roo was supposed to be in.

“How far away did you say this town was, Pinky?” Felix asked after a while.

“I never said how far away it was,” the Slowbro replied. “I'd guesstimate about a day's walk if we move uninterrupted, but we might be looking at a day and a half or more if we want to sleep tonight.”

“Oh,” Felix said. “I guess all we can do is hope Roo isn't frightened and she's being taken care of.”

Meanwhile at Lyra and Bon Bon's house...

“And then there's the Pokemon Wynaut, which is the pre-evolution of Wobbuffet, but its discovery stayed exclusive to the Hoenn region for a few years before it came to Kanto and Johto...”

“Don't worry,” Pinky reassured. “I'm sure she's fine.”

This reassured Felix a little, but upon looking at Kanga, who was walking next to him, he realized that she wasn't entirely comforted. “Are you alright, Kanga?” the Meganium asked.

The Kangaskhan just sighed. “Honestly, no. I'm not alright,” she replied. “My only daughter is missing, stuck in some town full of Arceus-knows-what kind of Pokemon and the same for how many. I don't know if she's alright, I don't know what she's doing, I don't know if she's being cared for....” Kanga shook her head before continuing. “It's really difficult being a mother who doesn't know how her baby is faring.”

Felix was silent for a moment, expecting Kanga to say something else. When she didn't speak further, Felix said “Try not to stress about it too much. Roo's more mature than either of us give her credit for. I'm sure she's ok on her own.” Kanga once more shook her head in response to this.

“I don't know,” she said. “I just don't know, and it's such a pain not knowing. It's almost as if-”

“Shh!” Felix suddenly said. “Did you hear that?”

All three Pokemon stopped dead in their tracks. “What do you hear, Felix?” Pinky asked.

Felix was silent for a moment, trying to listen for the sound he heard again. “I... don't know...” the Meganium replied. “I sounded like- shh! There is is again.”

After another moment of silence, Kanga spoke up. “Felix, I don't think-”

“Shh!” Felix repeated. “I know I hear something. I think it sounds like... crying? Screaming? A combination of pain and sadness. It sounds muffled, but...”

“Felix, I don't hear anything,” Pinky said. “And I can't even pick up any negative thoughts in our vicinity.”

“I know I hear something,” Felix said. “I know... it's nearby...” Felix then turned to Kanga. “Kanga, take a step backwards. Please.”

“But why?” the Kangaskhan asked.

“Because you stepped on something,” Felix replied.

With a look of confusion on her face, Kanga stepped backwards to find that there was a crushed plant under her foot. It looked like a mangled mess of leaves and pink petals thanks to the Kangaskhan's foot.

“That's what was screaming?” Kanga asked. “But I don't see how... Felix, what are you doing?”

Ignoring his Pokemon's comments, Felix stepped forward and knelt down to the point where he was at about eye-level with the plant. “Shh, shh,” Felix said in a consoling to the plant. “What's the matter?”

“Felix, are you talking to a plant?” Kanga asked.

“Yes he is,” Pinky replied as she walked up next to Kanga. “But fear not, for your trainer hasn't gone crazy.”

Meanwhile, Felix was still busy consoling the mangled plant. “Shh, shh, she didn't mean it. She just didn't see where she was going.” … “No, she's not a monster, she's a Kangaskhan.” … “A Pokemon.” … “Oh, please stop calling her that. She's my best friend, and I know she didn't want to hurt you.”

Kanga flinched a little when Felix called her a “friend,” but she didn't say anything. Instead, she turned to Pinky. “What's even going on here?”

“Felix is a Grass-type,” Pinky explained. “I've heard that most Grass-types have the ability to communicate with plants. Especially in the case of Pokemon like Meganium who are more closely related to plants than, say, a Chesnaught.” Pinky then turned back to watch Felix, who was still trying to comfort the plant. “Let's see how long it takes him to realize what makes Meganium special in this case.”

“I'm sorry, little one,” Felix said to the plant. “You had so much to live for. But please, don't die angry at Kanga.” … “I wish there was something I could to, too.” As he heard the plant's crying cease, Felix let out a loud sigh before getting up and walking towards Pinky and Kanga, the latter of whom looking confused, but the former of whom with a near expressionless face. “What? I heard it crying, and I just.... Actually, I honestly don't know what just happened. I just felt... compelled to comfort it.”

“Well your comforting paid off,” Pinky said. “You might wanna turn around and take a second look at your new friend.”

Felix turned around to see that the crushed plant had begun to glow. Faintly at first, but then it grew to a more intense white light. Then, as though by some magic, the petals and leaves that had broken off floated back into place, the stems straightened back up, and everything that was torn seemed to become completely repaired. Within seconds, the plant was returned back to its former condition. A small group of four pink flowers with a base made almost entirely of sweet-smelling leaves.

“D-Did I do that?” Felix asked as he turned around and looked at Pinky with a shocked expression on his face.

“I thought you knew of a Meganium's natural ability,” Pinky replied. “Your breath has the wondrous ability to revive dead plants. Even if they're completely mangled like that one was.”

“I... can do that?” Felix asked. “That's awesome! I mean, I knew about that power Meganium had, even though I'd forgotten about it recently, but to actually wield that power....” Felix then turned around to the plant he had just revived. “Aw, you're welcome.” … “Hey, keep saying that, and she just might have to step on you again.” … “Oh calm down. I'm just kidding.”

Meanwhile, Kanga could only stare at the sight before her. ”I knew it from the day I met him,” she thought. ”His kind heart, his unrelenting spirit, his willingness to help those in need, no matter how small or insignificant. And now he actually is a Meganium... exactly like Roo's father.”

“Alright, I guess we'll see you another time,” Felix said to the plant. He then turned back to his Pokemon. “Good news, guys. Flores here said that he knows an apple tree not too far from here, and since we helped this little guy, the apple tree would gladly offer us a late lunch.”

“An apple tree?” Kanga asked. “Well, I suppose we aren't going to cover much ground on empty stomachs. Besides, a late lunch is better than no lunch.”

“You sure he doesn't know any Oran Berry trees around here?” Pinky asked.

“I asked Flores, and he told me he has no idea what an Oran Berry is,” Felix replied. “Maybe it's just because he's a regular flower or maybe Oran Berries just don't grow in the forest we're in. If I still had arms, I'd shrug right about now.”

“Well, apples are better than nothing, I suppose,” Pinky said. “But if Oran Berries really don't grow in this forest, let's just hope we don't have to have an encounter with any wild Pokemon.”

“That might not be an issue,” Felix replied. “Flores also said he had no idea what a Pokemon was, so my guess is, for one reason or another, we're the only Pokemon in this forest.”

Meanwhile, unbeknownst to the trio, two pairs of huge, piercing red eyes were watching them from above, both pairs belonging to two of the most dangerous Pokemon discovered in Kanto.

“Let's hope that flower was right,” Kanga replied to her trainer before the three made their way to the apple tree Flores mentioned, the two Bug-type Pokemon following closely, careful not to reveal their presence.

“...Shellos is an odd Pokemon, though,” Roo continued. “It was the first Pokemon discovered where, though its species was the same, its coloring could be different without it being shiny, and its form would be different naturally rather than if certain conditions are met, unlike Castform or Deoxys. Depending on Shellos' habitat, of course. It's different from Spinda, though, because Shellos' forms are set rather than the randomized spot patterns on a Spinda. It's also different from the differences between the two Nidoran because both male and female had enough distinctions to let them be classified as different species altogether. But back to Shellos...”

After about five minutes, Felix, Kanga, and Pinky had made it to the apple tree. As opposed to most of the other trees in the forest, which were dark and foreboding, this tree had bright green leaves, a trunk that was a lighter shade of brown, and, above all, huge red apples growing in it.

“Um... hello?” Felix said to the tree. … “Yes, I know I'm not actually a plant. Hey, do you know a small flower named Flores?” … “My name is Felix, not 'Flower of Life'.” … “Yes, I know my breath can bring life. That doesn't mean that's what my name is based off of.” … “No, she's a Pokemon, like me and the pink one.” … “Man, the plants in this forest are talking like they've never even heard of Pokemon or Oran Berries or anything. It's like we're not even on Earth.” … “Hold on... say that again?”

Felix was silent for an unusually long time. “What's it saying now?” Kanga asked.

The Meganium slowly turned around with an astonished expression on his face. “You guys aren't going to believe this,” he said. “According to Abel, we really aren't on Earth right now.”

“What?” both of Felix's Pokemon asked in the same astonished tone.

“What's that supposed to mean?” Pinky asked.

“At a guess, that means we're on an alien planet,” Felix replied. “Maybe the one Clefairy and/or Deoxys are from.”

“No, that can't be,” Pinky said. “That would be physically impossible.” Just then, Shelly bit down hard on her host's tail. “AH! UNLESS SOME OUTSIDE FORCE WITH FAR GREATER POWER THAN WE COULD COMPREHEND WAS IN PLAY!” she shouted. The Slowbro took moment to recover from her shout before turning to Shelly. “Thanks Shelly. You always know when I need a boost.” The Shellder probably would have smiled in reply if its mouth wasn't still around Pinky's tail.

“I suppose that's one theory,” Kanga said. She then turned to Felix. “That could also explain how... this happened.” The Kangaskhan gestured to Felix's whole body.

“Could be the work of a Legendary Pokemon,” Felix concluded. “But I don't see how we'll be able to get to any definite conclusions on empty stomachs.” Felix then turned to Abel the Apple Tree and looked like he was listening for a moment before speaking again. “Flores told me you two were good friends.” … “Oh, the whole forest is connected? Every plant is linked to one another?” … “Every plant and animal. Okay. But what about Pokemon?” … “You mean there's no Pokemon on this planet? Odd.” … “Yes, I believe those strange creatures you're talking about are, indeed, Pokemon.” … “I really don't have time to answer questions right now. We have a lost child and we're trying to find her, but it's a long walk to where she is.” … “Yes, we are going to need food.” … “Could we please just have some of your apples?” … “I have no idea what a Timber Wolf is, but if that's what it takes, I'll be sure to keep an eye out for him.” Felix then turned to Pinky. “Go ahead and grab a few apples, but if we see something that looks like a Mightyena made of branches lying injured on our way to Roo, remind me to heal it.”

“Alright,” Pinky said. She was about to turn to the apple tree and use Psychic to grab a few apples, but it was then that a thought occurred to her. “Hey, Felix, if you're a Grass-type, can't you use Vine Whip or something to grab a few apples yourself?”

Felix was silent for a moment while he tossed this thought around in his head. “I don't know, actually,” he finally replied. “I mean, I know a Chikorita can learn Vine Whip if it's hatched with the move, but its pretty weak; and most of the time, that move is forgotten in favor of a stronger move.” Felix was silent for a moment before continuing. “Then again, I suppose a quadrupedal Grass-type or one who just doesn't have arms would have to keep their ability to at least use vines as appendages in order to grab food and other things. Yeah, I could probably use Vine Whip to grab some apples. The only question is how do I use the move?”

Pinky and Kanga looked at each other for a moment before turning to Felix. “Well for us, using a move like that is as natural as any ordinary movement would be for you,” Pinky said. “My first guess would be to just try.... Form a mental image of yourself using Vine Whip, and then go from there. See how that works.” Pinky then turned to Shelly. “Shelly, don't bite down just yet. I want to see how this idea works first.”

“Okay,” Felix said. He then turned to the apple tree, took a deep breath, and closed his eyes. “Vine Whip... I want to use Vine Whip...” Felix took another moment to try to get the mental image a little clearer before he opened his eyes to find that two vines, just slightly darker in color than the rest of his body, had sprouted from the base of his neck and were hanging in the air in front of him. “Did I do it?” Felix asked as he tried to move the vines around. He tried to send them forward a little. Success. He called them back and then pointed them both to the left. As natural as breathing. “Wow! A few hours as a Meganium and I think I've already mastered this body.”

“Well, you've mastered Vine Whip,” Pinky said. “Well, if you really have mastered it, let's see if you can grab some apples with those vines of yours.”

“No problem,” Felix said. He then turned around and threw his vines forward, both of them quickly wrapping around two apples. “Sorry if this hurts a little, Abel,” he said before yanking the vines back, both apples coming down as well. Felix then tossed the two apples to Kanga and Pinky, the former of whom almost fumbled her apple before getting a grip on it, and the latter grabbing the apple with her psychic power just before it hit her in the face.

“Wow,” Kanga said as she looked back and forth between Felix and the apple in her hand. “You could fool a lot of Pokemon if you told them you've been a Meganium your whole life.”

“Well, I've always been a fast learner,” Felix said as he used his vines to grab one more apple for himself. He then brought the apple up to his mouth and took a bite out of it. After chewing and swallowing the bite, his face quickly lit up. “Woah, this apple's delicious! I don't know what planet we're on, but it definitely has better apples than the ones back on Earth.”

“I suppose I'll agree,” Pinky replied after she took a small bite of her apple.

“Yeah, it is pretty good,” Kanga said, having to stop herself from eating the entire apple whole. “Almost as good as-” The Kangaskhan stopped suddenly, her ear twitched, and she looked to her left. “Felix, Pinky, I don't think we're alone here.”

“You're right,” Pinky said. “I thought I'd sensed other Pokemon around us earlier.”

Felix finished his apple, tossed the core aside, and ran up to the other two. “You mean we might have to battle something?”

“I don't think so,” Pinky said. “I think these two were just following us because they wanted a snack.” Pinky then turned to the bush where the rustling noise was coming from. “You two, show yourselves before I pull you out of there!”

A small “Eep!” was heard from the bush before a Butterfree flew out. “Don't hurt me or my brother,” it said. “We just wanted some apples.”

“Wait a second...” Kanga said. “I think I recognize you. Before you blacked out, you were playing with a baby Kangaskhan, correct?”

“Actually, that was my brother,” the Butterfree replied. “I was still a Metapod when that was happening. Hey, how did you know he and I blacked out in the first place?”

“Because that baby Kangaskhan your brother was playing with was my daughter,” Kanga replied.

“Oh yeah, I recognize you now,” Butterfree said. “Yeah, my brother had all kinds of fun with your daughter.” The Butterfree then turned around and called to the bush. “Come on out, bro. They're those same Pokemon from yesterday.”

“Really?” another voice asked from the bush. Instantly, another Butterfree leapt out of the bush and flew over next to his brother. He then cocked her head to the side as he looked at the three Pokemon before him curiously. “I know I recognize two of you. Kanga and Pinky if I remember right.” The fun Butterfree then flew a little closer to Felix. “I don't think I know you, though.”

“I'm their trainer, Felix,” the Meganium replied. “Well, I used to be. Then whatever this is happened.”

“You got turned into a Pokemon?” the fun Butterfree asked. “I think I saw that happen once before. Back when I was a Caterpie, I saw this boy with green hair turn into a Zoroark. No, wait, that was just Zoroark's Illusion. Never mind. This is the first time I've seen a human turn into a Pokemon.” Butterfree then turned around and looked at Kanga curiously. “Hey, where's your daughter?”

“We were looking for her,” Kanga replied. “She's lost in some town a ways from here, and we were on our way to-”

“Hey, quick question,” Felix interrupted. “Sorry, Kanga, but this was kinda bothering me. Don't Butterfree usually feed off of nectar from flowers or something?”

“We tried,” the boring Butterfree replied. “But all the flowers around here are weird. We tried getting nectar from several, and all of them tried to eat us. It was then that we noticed you guys. We thought you were familiar, but we didn't pay much mind to that when we heard you talk about apples. Those were our favorite food as Caterpie, so we just thought maybe we'd try those and hope we don't get eaten by an apple tree.”

“Well, I don't think this one has any plans to eat us anytime soon,” Felix said. “You two can grab a couple for yourselves, but first I have to ask the tree if he's ok with it.”

“Huh?” the fun Butterfree asked.

“Grass-types can communicate with trees and other flora,” Pinky explained.

“That's... cool?” the fun Butterfree replied.

“What do you mean 'butterfly'?” Felix continued to the tree. “I said 'Butterfree'.” … “Yes, they're Pokemon too.” … “Also good friends of mine.” … “Thank you very much.” Felix then turned to the two Butterfree and nodded. Both of the Butterfly Pokemon then flew up and each grabbed an apple.

The fun Butterfree was the first to take a nibble of the apple. “Oh wow!” he shouted. “This is way better than the apples we'd have has Caterpie!”

The boring Butterfree was a little more reluctant to eat his apple, but hearing his brother's words, he decided the apple was worth a taste. Similarly to his brother, he took a nibble of it, and he instantly lit up. “Well, I guess these apples are pretty good,” he said.

“The apples around here are a lot different from the ones you might be used to,” Felix said before grabbing another apple and taking a bite out of that one. “I dunno what planet we're on, but it has great apples, so that's a plus.”

“What does that mean?” the fun Butterfree asked. “When you said 'what planet we're on', I mean.”

“Oh, I guess you don't know,” Pinky said. “By some mysterious force, we've all been transported from our old world to some new alien planet. At the moment, the consensus amongst the three of us is that it's the work of a Legendary Pokemon.”

“Really?” both Butterfrees asked, their compound eyes somehow widening.

“Well, the 'alien planet' thing is all we know for sure,” Kanga said with a shrug. “We're still not 100% sure how Felix was turned into a Meganium.”

It was then that Felix had finished his apple. “Still, that's a mystery we need to save for later,” he said. “The sun's going down, and we should probably get moving. Also, these apples are remarkably filling! Whatever planet this is, the apples are definitely something else.”

“I'll agree with both of those points,” Kanga said. “It's killing me not knowing how Roo's doing.”

“Then I guess we should get going,” Felix said. However, he was stopped when the fun Butterfree flew in front of him.

“Um... Felix?” he said. “Could we come with you?”

“Why?” Felix asked.

“Well, my brother already told Kanga, but you don't know yet. Since we were Caterpie, it's been our dream to travel with a trainer. I mean, I know you're not a human anymore, but...”

“Sure,” Felix said with a smile. “If you want, I can take you two with me.”

“Really?” the Butterfree asked. “That's awesome!” He then rushed up and hugged Felix's neck, followed shortly by his boring brother hugging Felix from behind. “Thank you, thank you, thank you, Felix!”

“You're welcome,” Felix said. “Now, could you please get off my neck? You're kinda weighing me down and it's a little hard to breathe.” Both Butterfree quickly got off of Felix and flew over in front of him.

“We can't thank you enough, Felix,” the boring Butterfree said. “But, if you could do us one more favor, we've also always wanted nicknames.”

“Oh, that's easy,” Felix said. “The fun Butterfree?” the same Pokemon flew forward slightly. “How would you like the name 'Butters'?”

“Butters...” Butters said as he thought about the name for a moment. “I like it. Thanks.”

“You're welcome,” Felix replied. “And the boring Butterfree, how does 'Breeze' sound?”

“It's definitely a lot better than 'the boring Butterfree',” Breeze said. “Actually, I think I really like that name. Thank you, Felix.”

“You're both welcome,” Felix said. “The only thing I can't provide for you is a Pokeball, but something tells me you wouldn't be big fans of that anyway.”

“Yeah, that's the only reason we haven't tried harder to get caught,” Butters said with a shrug.

“Well then, Butters and Breeze, you might not be my Pokemon, but you can definitely be my, no, our friends on this trek to find Roo,” Felix said. He then turned to Pinky. “Alright Pinky, which way do we go again?”

“West,” Pinky replied. “Same direction as the sunset.”

“Right,” Felix said. He then looked up, just barely seeing the sun beginning to sink beneath the canopy of the Everfree. “We can probably move a little further, but we'll have to stop soon if we want rest.”

“Okay,” Kanga said. The five then began moving again, but Felix stopped for a moment to massage the side of his head with one of his vines. “Are you alright, Felix?”

“Yeah,” Felix replied. “Just a little headache. It's nothing.” He then began kept moving.

“Not long before his memory's fixed,” Pinky said with a sly smile as she walked by Kanga.

“Why you little...” Kanga growled before following the others. It was true, though. Kanga knew she only had a couple hours before she had to face Felix about the conversation she had with him back on Earth. She wasn't sure if Felix had gotten over all the changes that he had just gone through, and she wasn't sure if he'd be able to handle everything Kanga said whether he was over his new body or not. And above all, she wasn't sure if she was ready to confront him about it. At least, not now that she really had to follow through with it.

Author's Note:

You probably thought we'd never see the Metapod brothers again. Well, if you thought that any more than two days ago, you would have been right. They were originally supposed to be there just to showcase Felix's caring personality, but now they're back and joining Felix and the others to find Roo.

You make it sound like some grand quest. But seriously, how can even Butters and Breeze not guess that I'm the one who brought everyone to Equestria?

Wait a second! What are you doing here? This story's non-canon!

That doesn't mean I can't pop by just to say hi. I am a god, after all.

Well, Arceus' sudden appearance aside, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. Trust me, I've got some more interesting stuff in store for later chapters. Until next time, goodbye.

Comments

[rarishy0824]

Felix then tossed the two apples to Kanga and Felix, the former of whom almost fumbled her apple before getting a grip on it, and the latter grabbing the apple with her psychic power just before it hit her in the face.

I think you messed up the names. I'm sure you ment pinky.

[Nitro Indigo]

“And then there's the Pokemon Wynaut , which is the pre-evolution of Wobbuffet , but its discovery stayed exclusive to the Hoenn region for a few years before it came to Kanto and Johto...”

Pokémon being associated with one region is a non-diagetic concept, for the most part.