My Little Pokemon

by Alabenson

Fluttershy, Warrior of Justice

“So, what kind of place is Ferrum Village anyway?” Pinkie Pie asked as the group made their way up the road to their next destination.

“Well, it’s a lot smaller than Aquarius City, for one thing,” Derek replied. “The town’s mostly built around one end of a huge cable car that goes about midway up the mountain. Aside from that, the only really notable thing about the town is the dojo the gym is set up in.”

“What’s a dojo? Isn’t that a sort of big, silly bird?” Pinkie Pie asked.

“No, a dojo is kind of like a Pokémon gym, only they train people instead of Pokémon. Or, in this case, they train both,” Derek said.

“I think that makes even less sense to me than Pokémon battling,” Fluttershy said. “At least with Pokémon I’ve started to understand that they get some sort of benefit from fighting each other. But I can’t even think of what someone might get out of fighting other people.”

“Can’t say I totally disagree with you there, but to each their own, I guess,” Derek said. “That said, if you really don’t get it at all, you could always ask the gym leader about it when we get there. That is, assuming you still want to try challenging her for your next badge.”

“I do! At least, I think I do. I’m pretty sure Croagunk and Quilava want to, anyway. I don’t think Wimpod would be any more interested in getting into a fight than I’d be,” Fluttershy said, prompting a small, excited cheer from Ralts. “And you’re still much too young for that sort of thing.”

While Ralts pouted in Fluttershy’s arms, the group turned a corner to find themselves standing at the top of a hill which directly overlooked what could only have been Ferrum Village. Of more immediate concern, however, was the large sign confirming the fact, which a familiar pair of annoyances were trying to dislodge, albeit without much success.

“Come on, dude, I think I hear someone coming. Pull harder!”

“I’m pullin’ as fast as I can, man! This stupid thing is stuck up here with glue or somethin’!”

“I realize I’m probably going to regret asking this, but what are you idiots doing this time?” Derek asked as he watched the pair continue to struggle with the sign.

“Huh? Aw crud, not you losers again!” Femur cried out. “Well, don’t even think about trying to stop us, but we’re taking Ferrum Village hostage! Once we swipe this sign, nobody will be able to find the place and it’ll stay like that until the league coughs up some serious cash.” Femur punctuated his explanation with a malicious laugh, Ribcage joining in between grunts of exertion as he continued to strain to pull down the sign.

“Let me make sure I understand this. Your evil plan is to steal that sign so that nobody will be able to find Ferrum Village?” Derek asked.

“Yeah.”

“As in, Ferrum Village, the village that’s right over there?”

“That’s the one.”

“As in, the village that we can clearly see from where we’re standing?”

“Yeah, that’s what I said. Heh, our plan must be so awesome that it’s just blowing you’re uncool, loser mind,” Femur chuckled evilly.

“Huh. Well, I was right, I regret asking about this,” Derek said as he started to turn and walk away. “You know what, let’s keep going and leave these two to –”

“That’s the most dastardly, meanie-mean mean pants plan ever!” a horrified Pinkie Pie exclaimed.

“See! She’s just an uncool goody two-shoes but she gets it!” Femur said happily.

“Pinkie, I really don’t think we need to be that concerned with these two this time,” Derek said in an effort to calm Pinkie down.

“Hah, what’s the matter, you scared of getting taken down by a couple of real boneheads?” Femur mocked. “Come on, loser, just try and keep from getting beaten down by me and Weepinbell.”

“No, I don’t think that’s going to happen for a couple of reasons,” Derek said. “First off, Pinkie and Fluttershy here have a fairly established track record of being on the supply-side of beatings when dealing with the two of you.”

“Yeah! That’s right!” Pinkie Pie growled as she pulled out a Poké Ball.

“I wasn’t going to say anything, but even I don’t really think you’re all that scary anymore,” Fluttershy added.

“Secondly,” Derek continued. “You two seem to have either forgotten or just don’t realize just which village you’ve decided to mess around with.”

“Yeah? Well, us boneheads don’t have time to worry about stuff like that. Right, Ribcage?”

“Gah! I think I’ve got a splinter from this thing!”

“Well, we’ll see how long that attitude lasts since your biggest problem should be arriving in about three…two…one…” Derek slowly counted down.

“Halt, evildoers!” a woman’s voice rang out as Derek tried to keep himself from bursting out into laughter. Moments later, a figure somersaulted out of the trees nearby, landing directly in front of a visibly confused Femur. Once the initial shock wore off, Fluttershy could see that this new arrival was a young woman dressed in a pink leotard, her head concealed by an elaborate mask featuring a multicolored butterfly over her face. “Your efforts to torment the citizens of Ferrum Village shall come to naught, for you now face none other than La Mariposa, Champion of Justice!” La Mariposa punctuated her declaration by striking a series of heroic poses that would have made Iron Will proud. While Fluttershy wasn’t entirely clear on what any of this was actually meant to accomplish, it certainly seemed to have an immediate effect on both grunts.

“Aww, come one! It’s not bad enough we have to run into the loser patrol again, but now we’ve got a freaking superhero to deal with, too? You know what? We’re done with this whole uncool scene, nobody would probably even notice if this dump went missing anyway.” With that, Femur turned and attempted to strut off for a few steps before abandoning all pretense and dashing off. Femur’s farcical attempt at salvaging what little dignity he had left was further undercut by Ribcage, who dropped off the sign with a dull thud before getting up and rushing to join his friend.

“Wow, you really sent those two baddies packing!” Pinkie Pie exclaimed as she watched the grunts disappear into the underbrush. “Are you really a superhero?”

“What, or rather who, she is is Maria, the leader of the Ferrum Village Gym,” Derek said before receiving a withering glare from the masked gym leader. “Also known as La Mariposa, Champion of Justice,” he added with a deep sigh.

“My position as gym leader is merely part of my responsibilities as protector of Ferrum Village and defender of the innocent. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I must ensure that those ne’er-do-wells are unable to cause any further villainy!” La Mariposa promptly leapt off into the trees and disappeared from sight.

“I swear, at least half of the gym leaders on this island are completely insane,” Derek muttered after a few moments.

*********

Ferrum Village itself was easily one of the smallest towns Pinkie and Fluttershy had visited thus far, only beating out Belladonna Town in size due to the latter being mostly abandoned. The main industry of the village seemed to be hawking wares to passing tourists, and the town’s main throughfare was lined with gift shops and food stalls of all varieties.

“This place seems pretty fun,” Pinkie Pie said as she finished off her latest snack, a set of colorful rice dumplings skewered on a stick. “So, are you really gonna try challenging ‘La Mariposa’?” Pinkie Pie asked, striking a pose as she repeated the eccentric gym leader’s nom de guerre.

“I think so,” Fluttershy replied. “Although, she must be really strong if she really is responsible for protecting everyone in this town.”

“I guess. I do like her fashion sense, especially the mask. I must be really fun to be able to run around wearing a mask all the time, kind of like having every day be Nightmare Night. Only without all the free candy, which is the best part of Nightmare Night, but dressing up is fun too,” Pinkie said.

“It’s not just for fun, Pinkie. Superheroes wear costumes so they can become symbols of justice and so everybody who sees them can feel safe!” Fluttershy said firmly, before blushing slightly. “I’ve actually been kind of interested in them ever since we all pretended bot be Mare Do Well, and then there was the time we got stuck in Spike’s comic. It’s a little embarrassing, but there’s just something about the idea of being brave and rushing around helping other creatures that I really like.”

“There’s nothing weird about that,” Pinkie Pie assured her friend. “Running around helping ponies as Mare Do Well was really fun! Hey, maybe after you battle La Mariposa she could give us some pointers and we could try being superheroes once we get back to Equestria! We could go around saving ponies and stopping bad guys and – ooh! We could ask Rarity to make us costumes so nopony would guess our secret identities.”

“Oh, I don’t know if I’d really want to actually be a superhero or anything,” Fluttershy replied quickly. “They’re fun to read about and I do like helping creatures in need, but I think I’ll leave fighting monsters and bad guys to ponies like Rainbow Dash. I’m happy just cheering them on from the sidelines.”

Pinkie Pie shrugged. “If you say so. I still kinda want to talk to La Mariposa, though. She seems really nice.”

*********

“So, you two are headed over to the gym?” Derek asked after reconvening with Pinkie and Fluttershy.

“Yup, Fluttershy’s gonna get her second badge and I’m gonna learn how to be a superhero! Super Pinkie, able to throw super ginormous parties in a single bound!” Fluttershy, meanwhile, gave Derek a look that advised to just go with it. “So, do you want to come with us?”

“As fun as all that sounds, I think I’m going to have to pass. There’s a couple of things that I really need to take care of that I’ve been putting off, so I’m going to handle them while you two are at the gym,” Derek said.

“What kind of stuff?” Pinkie Pie asked.

“Official league business. I work for the Javik League, and I’m supposed to report in every so often, but to be honest I’ve been slacking off a bit there. I was going to check in after Pinkie’s gym battle in Aquarius, but that didn’t really work out the way I thought it would,” Derek explained.

“Things did get pretty crazy,” Pinkie admitted. “Oh well, I guess we’ll see you later, then. Don’t worry, though, I’ll be sure to tell you all about it later so it’ll be like you were really there.”

“I’ll look forward to it,” Derek said as he watched Pinkie and Fluttershy head off down the street towards the gym. “She’ll be fine,” Derek said after a few moments, apparently talking to himself. “She beat Mort without needing me to backseat battle, and he’s a lot trickier than Maria is. The big question is if she can swallow her instincts enough to really let her Pokémon cut loose.” Derek paused and frowned as if he were listening to some unseen voice. “Yes, I’m saying she’s too nice. It’s not a problem you usually run into, typically you have to deal with jackasses at the other end of the spectrum, but…Look, if a trainer continually coddles their Pokémon everytime they get more than just a few bruises, what’s going to happen to those Pokémon?” Derek paused again for a moment before continuing. “Exactly. I’m not saying she needs to start beating her Pokémon with sticks or anything, but battles can get messy, and if you’re going to be battling Pokémon you need to be ready for that.” Derek let out a sigh. “Anyway, we should probably check in with the league’s local office and get this over with. I’m probably just being paranoid, but I’d really like someone to start looking into why a couple of Team Skull members have showed up here all of a sudden. No, but when you ignore the pests you can see you risk missing the pests you don’t, and I really don’t want to have to put up with another Rainbow Rocket situation.”

“Oh, you don’t need to worry about that, because you’ve got yourself a Team Skull situation to put up with instead!”

“Oh, for the love of…” Derek groaned as he turned around. In the course of his one-sided conversation, Derek had absentmindedly wandered down an empty side street that terminated in a dead end, and the way out was now blocked by none other than Femur and Ribcage. “Really? Do you two honestly have nothing better to do than annoy me?”

“We’ve got plenty to do, but you and those two girls you’re always hangin’ with keep crampin’ our style. So now that we’ve got you alone we’re gonna mess you up so bad those other two won’t even think about gettin’ in our way.”

“And that’s just adorable,” Derek said before something seemed to grab his attention. “What? No! I’m not going to – do you remember what happened in Galar? They’ve got a Weepinbell and a Golbat between them, I mean there’s overkill and then there’s just being mean.”

“Uh, bro, who’s he talking to?” a suddenly confused Femur asked as Derek continued his one-sided argument. “You think maybe we should bail on this? I know boneheads cause trouble for everybody, but it’s not right to mess with the crazies, you know?”

“Man, can’t you tell? This loser’s just fakin’ it to get out of his beat down,” Ribcage snorted. “Go Golbat! Let’s thrash this punk!”

“Alright, man, if you say so. Go Weepinbell!”

“So, we’re actually doing this?” Derek said as he let out a disgusted sigh. “Fine. Go Isla.” As Isla flopped out onto the ground in front of her trainer, both grunts burst out into peals of laughter at Derek’s choice of Pokémon.

“This loser’s just got no idea what he’s doing!” Femur said. “Weepinbell’s—”

“Isla, Blizzard,” Derek snapped before recalling his Lapras to its Poké Ball. “There, see? That wasn’t even worth my time and now I’m hungry on top of everything else. Hmm, I wonder if that place with the fried dumplings is still around? No, you’re thinking of the bao buns, those were good too, but – yeah, that’s the place I was thinking of. Yes, I can get you something while we’re there…” Derek continued to muse about his impending lunch as he walked past Femur and Ribcage, both of whom were now encased in several inches of ice to the point that they were completely immobilized. Their Pokémon were in a similar state, as was the side street itself and the walls of the buildings to either side for at least a hundred or so feet.

*********

“Ooh, exercise-y,” Pinkie marveled as she and Fluttershy stood in the extranceway of the Ferrum Village gym. While the gyms the pair had visited previously had resembled just about everything other than a gym as Pinkie and Fluttershy understood the term, the Ferrum Village Gym appeared much closer to the common definition. Everywhere they looked, Pokémon could be seen exercising (often alongside their trainers) or sparring in boxing rings.

“Well hey, are you two girls here to join our gym?” Fluttershy turned to see a massive man dressed in a red and white striped unitard and sporting an equally massive moustache approaching her and Pinkie. “Allow me to introduce myself, I’m Barnabas, and we at the Ferrum Village gym are always happy to welcome fellow enthusiasts of physical fitness, be they human or Pokémon.”

“Umm, actually, we were hoping to talk to miss La Mariposa, if it wouldn’t be too much trouble,” Fluttershy replied hesitantly.

“Ah, you’re here for a gym battle then,” Barnabas said, sounding a bit disappointed as we waved away a Machoke that was approaching with an armload of duffle bags, towels, water bottles and other assorted items. “Oh well, Pokémon battling’s an excellent form of exercise itself. At least for the Pokémon, anyway!” Barnabas promptly let out a burst of laughter, with Pinkie Pie cheerfully joining in. “Anyway, allow me to escort you girls to our arena. I believe La Mariposa is back there now getting a sparring session in before she goes off on her daily patrols.”

“Sparring’s like practice fighting, right?” Pinkie Pie asked. “So, who does La Mariposa spar with? I bet they’d have to be someone really big and tough.” Before Barnabas could respond, the air was suddenly filled with a deafening racket, as though someone had dropped a box of cymbals down several flights of stairs.

Barnabas let out a deep sigh. “La Mariposa prefers sparring with her Pokémon, and it sounds like she’s just gotten started with her Kommo-o. This sort of thing is why we can never attract any new gym members,” Barnabas added under his breath. “Well, no point in dwelling on problems you can’t change. Let’s hurry to the arena and let La Mariposa know that she has a challenger to take care of.”

The clanging racket grew progressively louder as Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie followed Barnabas to a set of doors leading deeper into the facility. Beyond the doors lay a massive gymnasium, in the center of which La Mariposa was engaged in an all-out brawl with a grey, reptilian Pokémon whose gilt-edged scales resembled some kind of ancient armor. As the creature leapt about trying to keep up with its far more agile trainer, its scales clashed against each other, producing a metallic cacophony.

“As much as I hate to interrupt your exercise, or anyone’s exercise, really, I need to let you know that you have a challenger!” Barnabas roared over the din of La Mariposa’s training.

“A challenger?” La Mariposa said as she somersaulted away from her Pokémon while pulling out a Poké Ball. “It appears we’ll have to finish this another time. Kommo-o, return!” Once Kommo-o was safely recalled to its Poké Ball, La Mariposa turned her attention to Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie. “I recognize the two of you, you were the civilians who were being menaced by those two villains yesterday. So, you know wish to test the power of the might La Mariposa for yourselves?” La Mariposa asked as she flexed her muscles for her guests.

“I…I think so,” Fluttershy began. “I mean, I’m pretty sure my Pokémon are—”

“No! That won’t do at all!” La Mariposa cried out as she grabbed Fluttershy by the shoulders. “A Pokémon trainer must be a beacon of confidence, ready to guide their Pokémon to victory. You cannot merely think you are ready; you must be ready! Now, come, show me your fire!”

“Alright…here goes…” Fluttershy said as she closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “I am ready! My name is Fluttershy and I’m here to challenge you.”

“Hmm, better, there may be an inner fire within you after all, but you still seem to be afraid to let it shine,” La Mariposa said thoughtfully. “Perhaps what you need is something that will help bring your warrior within to the surface.”

“Oh, I don’t know that I even have a ‘warrior within’,” Fluttershy replied nervously. “And even if I did, I’m not sure that I’d really want to let it out, anyway.”

“Come on, Fluttershy, just think about all those times you were ready to stand up to defend innocent creatures,” Pinkie Pie interjected.

“Aha! So, underneath that timid exterior is a defender of the helpless! That I can work with. Come with me, I think I know exactly what you need.” Without waiting for Fluttershy to respond, La Mariposa practically picked Fluttershy up off the ground and carried her off, while Pinkie Pie gleefully bounced behind after her.

*********

“There! Take a look at yourself in the mirror and tell me what you see now!” La Mariposa said as she moved Fluttershy in front of the changing room mirror. Being friends with Rarity for as long as she had had left Fluttershy used to being on the receiving end of impromptu makeovers and wardrobe changes. Even so, Fluttershy still wasn’t entirely prepared for the sight of the figure standing before her. La Mariposa had dressed Fluttershy in a lime green leotard along with a similarly colored mask, complete with a pink butterfly over the face.

“I guess I see myself, but wearing a mask?” Fluttershy suggested half-heartedly.

“You are correct, but perhaps you don’t realize how correct you are,” La Mariposa replied. “In that mask you are dressed as a warrior of justice, a defender of those innocents who are unable to defend themselves. Now, look at yourself and answer me this, if you an innocent Pokémon in trouble, what would you do?”

“I’d help them,” Fluttershy replied without any hint of hesitation. “But, I don’t know if that really means I’d be cut out to be a ‘warrior of justice’, that sounds like it could take someone a lot braver than I am.”

“There are many kinds of bravery, though. Bravery doesn’t just mean that one isn’t afraid, bravery can mean being afraid but standing up and doing the right thing regardless,” La Mariposa said. “So tell me, would being afraid be enough to stop you from helping a creature that needed it?”

“Nope! Fluttershy wouldn’t let anything stop her from helping a critter that needed it!” Pinkie Pie exclaimed as she hopped up beside her friend. Somehow, Pinkie Pie was now dressed in a leotard and mask of her own, similar to Fluttershy’s aside from Pinkie’s outfit being light blue and her mask sported a giant cupcake across its face.

“Well, your friend certainly seems to believe in you (I’m not really sure where she found her mask, though). Regardless, all you need to do now is to believe in yourself.”

“I…I want to believe in myself, but I’m not all that sure how,” Fluttershy replied as she tried to recall the various bits of advice Rainbow Dash and Twilight had given her on the subject over the years.

“The first step to believing you can be something is telling yourself that,” La Mariposa declared. “Look into the eyes of the girl in the mirror and tell her that you are a warrior of justice!”

“Alright,” Fluttershy said hesitantly before staring at her reflection. “I’m a warrior of justice.”

“Again! And with conviction! Declare who you are, not just to that girl but to the entire world!”

“I’m a warrior of justice,” Fluttershy repeated, a little more firmly this time. “I’m a warrior of justice.”

“Better. Once more, this time with all your heart!”

Fluttershy closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “I am a Warrior of Justice!”

“Excellent! Now, Miss Fluttershy, tell me, are you ready to test yourself against La Mariposa?”

“YES!” Fluttershy yelled.

“And that is the confidence that I want to hear from my challengers! Let us return to the arena so you can show me what your inner warrior looks like when it is fully unleashed!”

*********

Minutes later, Fluttershy, still dressed in her leotard and mask, was once again facing La Mariposa from the other end of the gym’s arena. “This shall be a two versus two match, the trainer who renders both of their opponent’s Pokémon unable to fight shall be the victor. One last time, are you ready?” La Mariposa asked.

“You bet, we’re ready to show everybody how brave and strong we really are!” Fluttershy declared.

“Yeah! You go, Fluttershy! Whoo!” Pinkie Pie cheered from the sidelines, like Fluttershy still wearing her wrestling attire.

“Ralts Ralts!” Ralts cheered as it waved its stubby arms in the air next to Pinkie, safely out of the way.

“Your friends believe in you, and you believe in yourself. Now I shall put that faith to the test. Go Hawlucha!” La Mariposa tossed her Poké Ball into the field, where it unleashed a bipedal, bird-like Pokémon with strikingly colorful red, green and white plumage.

“Oh my, he does look pretty strong,” Fluttershy said before shaking her head. “But I’m not going to let that scare me. Go Quilava!” As Quilava emerged from its Poké Ball, it turned towards Fluttershy and gave its trainer a quizzical look. “I know its not what I normally wear, but I’m trying something to help me be a little more confident. More importantly, we have a gym battle to win, so I need you to use your Flame Wheel attack.” Quilava looked as though it was suppressing the urge to burst out into laughter as it somersaulted towards Hawlucha, curling up into a burning circle of fire as it went.

“It would seem your Pokémon may not be as convinced of your inner fire as I would have hoped. Disappointing, but perhaps its training provides a better reflection. Hawlucha, Karate Chop!” Hawlucha promptly charged forth at the spinning inferno that was Quilava with no regard for the flames spiraling from its opponent. Just before the two collided, Hawlucha leapt up into the air before bringing one of its forelimbs crashing down onto Quilava, the force of the blow smashing Quilava into the ground. As Quilava hit the ground, however, it immediately bounced back into the air like a flaming rubber ball straight towards Hawlucha. Caught off guard in midair, Hawluch had little hope of dodging as Quilava collided with its midsection before ricocheting back to the ground. “Impressive,” La Mariposa conceded as she watched her Hawlucha clutch the area where Quilava had struck it. “Your bond with your Pokémon is deceptively strong. But I am not easily cowed. Hawlucha, unleash the fury of your Aerial Ace!” Hawlucha grunted as it pulled itself upright before practically vanishing from sight.

“Hey,” Pinkie Pie protested. “Where’d it—”

“Quilava, use Ember to your right, now!” Fluttershy called out before Pinkie could even finish marveling at her opponent’s maneuver. Sensing the urgency in Fluttershy’s voice, Quilava turned its head and exhaled a cloud of cinders, right where Hawlucha seemingly materialized out of thin air as it crashed into Quilava. “One of the benefits to being scared and nervous all the time is you become very good at spotting things that might try and jump out and scare you. Or try and jump out and scare your Pokémon,” Fluttershy explained.

“Oh, so that’s how you spotted me last ‘Random Surprise Party Day’,” Pinkie Pie said.

“You certainly are full of surprises yourself, but how long do you think your Quilava will be able to keep this up? Hawlucha, another Aerial Ace!” Hawlucha wiped the smoldering flecks remaining from Quilava’s attack from its face before vanishing from sight once again.

Fluttershy gritted her teeth as she scanned the battlefield for the telltale eddies of air that could give away Hawlucha’s location. Not helping Fluttershy’s state of mind was the fact that she knew La Mariposa was right about Quilava. While the fiery Pokémon was willing to push itself, it wouldn’t be able to take many more of Hawlucha’s powerful attacks. Suddenly, a disturbance in the motes of dust above the arena caught Fluttershy’s eye. “Quilava, it’s right above you! Use your Flame Wheel before—”

“Hawlucha!” With a cry of victory, Hawlucha dove down out of the sky and struck Quilava with a flying lariat. Rather than knock Quilava to the ground, however, Hawlucha’s attack merely pushed it back, though Quilava was left breathing heavily and the flames on its back nearly extinguished.

“Quilava, I think you’ve don enough,” Fluttershy said as she pulled out Quilava’s Poké Ball. “I know you could keep on fighting, but maybe you should—”

“QuiLAVA!” With a roar of rage, Quilava pulled itself fully upright as the flames on its back burst into a veritable inferno and a crimson aura suffused its form. Fixing its furious gaze on Hawlucha, Quilava tumbled forward in a spiraling firestorm that flattened Hawlucha to the ground.

“Hawlucha has been left unable to battle,” Barnabas declared as La Mariposa recalled Hawlucha to its Poké Ball.

“I – I don’t understand. What’s gotten into you all of a sudden?” Fluttershy asked as she stared at Quilava, who was already glancing around for its next opponent.

“You must have never allowed your Quilava to push itself to its limits before. What you see now is a power known as Blaze., It allows your Quilava’s inner fire to burn brightest when forced to the brink,” La Mariposa explained. “Your Quilava is a truly fearsome opponent, frighting it has been an honor. However, it has no hope of victory against my next Pokémon…Meditite!” La Mariposa’s second Poké Ball sailed through the air before releasing a short, blue-bodied creature with an onion-shaped head.

“Quilava, are you really sure that you want to keep fighting like this?” Fluttershy asked, only for Quilava to respond with a snort of annoyance. “Quilava! Where did you learn language like that? Well, I’ll let you stay in if that’s what you really want, but you and I are going to have a long talk when this is over.”

“Am I listening to a trainer or a mother scolding her misbehaving child?” La Mariposa laughed, which only seemed to anger Quilava further.

“That really isn’t helping,” Fluttershy sighed. “But if this is how you want to do things…Quilava, use Flame Wheel!”

“Not good enough! Meditite, Force Palm!” As Quilava spun through the air towards its opponent, Meditite calmly pulled its arm back, a glowing ball of white light forming inside of its palm. Just before Quilava slammed into it, Meditite struck, thrusting its palm forward with enough force to send Quilava bouncing helplessly back along the ground.

“Quilava!” Fluttershy cried out as she watched her Quilava came to rest crumpled up on the ground. While the sound of Fluttershy’s voice caused Quilava to stir a bit, it made no effort to get back onto its feet.

“I’m afraid your Quilava’s been left unable to battle, miss,” Barnabas said.

“I can see that,” Fluttershy said as she recalled her Quilava to its Poké Ball. “Don’t you worry, once we finish up here, I’ll get you to a Pokémon Center and they’ll get you all fixed up. For now, though, I choose you, Croagunk! Go!”

“A Croagunk? I would not have expected you to fall back on a Pokémon…like that,” La Mariposa said as she recoiled slightly, as if in disgust.

“And just what’s wrong with Croagunk?” Fluttershy demanded.

“Poison-type Pokémon are often employed by trainers who favor less honorable methods. But, that is no matter now, your Croagunkhas no hope of victory here. Meditite, use Confusion!” Meditite promptly fixed its gaze upon Croagunk as its eyes began to glow with violet energy. Fluttershy could only watch as Croagunk was levitated into the air before being slammed back to the ground again and again. With each blow, however, light seemed to pulse out from Fluttershy’s Z-ring, growing brighter each time. Eventually, Meditite seemed to grow bored with its assault and Croagunk was tossed aside like a piece of rubbish.

“Croagunk, are you alright?” Fluttershy asked, her voice strangely calm.

“Croa…gunk,” Although the effort appeared to take every ounce of its strength, Croagunk pulled itself back to its feet and faced Meditite with a fighting stance.

“Good,” Fluttershy said simply as she raised her arms, her Z-ring now blazing with power. “You and Quilava have both put everything you’ve had into this battle, and I won’t let all that go to waste. Now get ready,” Fluttershy continued as she began the movements to unleash her Z-move. “Acid Downpour!” Energized by the power flowing into it from Fluttershy, Croagunk leapt into the air and spat out a torrent of sickly, violet needles that melted into the floor of the arena, turning the ground into a hissing, toxic morass. Caught off guard, Meditite scarcely had time to react before being pulled underneath the surface. Moments later, the poisonous mire receded, leaving the unconscious Meditite lying motionless in the middle of the arena.

“Meditite has been left unable to battle. And that means the challenger is the winner!” Barnabas declared.

“You truly are full of surprises, Miss Fluttershy,” La Mariposa said as she recalled her Meditite to its ball. “I admit, even after encouraging you, I had my doubts about your inner fire, but you and your Pokémon battle with true heart and ferocity. And with honor, as well,” La Mariposa added with a respectful nod to Croagunk, who gave a her a self-satisfied grin in return. “With that said, it is my pleasure to present to you the Justice Badge, as well as a piece of Fightium-Z. May they both serve you well on your journey.”

“Thank you,” Fluttershy said as she accepted a small box from La Mariposa containing a pin in the shape of a pair of scales along with a light brown crystal. “I don’t mean to be rude, but I really need to go and get my Pokémon to a Pokémon Center, especially Quilava. Although, I think I probably should change first.”

La Mariposa nodded in agreement. “That most likely would be for the best, though you may keep the outfit if you wish. Consider it a gift from one warrior to another.”

“I’m still not really sure I’d call myself a warrior, but thank you,” Fluttershy replied.

“What?” La Mariposa cried out. “After all that you’re still unsure of yourself?”

“Oh no, I know that I can battle, or rather, that my Pokémon can,” Fluttershy said. “But I think I’d be better at supporting them as just Fluttershy, without the ‘warrior of justice’ part. Besides, its not as though we need to worry about running into any real bad guys or anything.”

*********

“Hey, Femur?”

“Y-yeah?”

“Can you move y-yet?”

“N-nope, still frozen. H-how about you?”

“Nah, m-me neither. Y’ know w-what?”

“W-what?”

“This s-sucks.”

Comments

[BeastofGilchrist]

My guess is Shy's gonna start having a similar problem as Twi soon: her Pokemon not listening and acting out. Though this time, it's for the completely opposite reason, as rather than treating her 'mons as mindless beasts who only exist to fight, she's treating them as delicate little statues who'll irreparably shatter if an opponent so much as BLINKS in their general direction.

[CyberDemonSlayer]

I understand that flutter shy doesn't like fighting but Rainbow dash is a Black Belt meaning that they at least have stuff like that in Equestria so she should at least get the fact that it's a Martial Arts thing.

Can't wait for more character development lol

[Xanderfox]

11134509
Ture but Flutters has one advantage that will make her time much easier, that she can understand what her pokemon say. Twilight will be stuck haveing to decode body language, Fluttershy's Pokemon will just tell her how they feel, when Quilava becomes Typloshion he'll be like dealing with a snarky teenager.

[Xanderfox]

What I always find funny is when the Mane 6 claim they are not or are characterized as "not super heros" despite the fact they wield ancient magic powers and take down super villians on the regular. They might only be part timers and lack costumes personas but they have powers and fight foes like other super heros. Heck when the girls became the Power Ponies they adapted quickly to the new powers once Spike told them what they where and it was barely a upgrade to Dash and not even a upgrade for Twilight. Dash just got weather conjuring added to her power set she already has super speed and weather minipluation. As for Twilight her existing power dwarfs Might Matterhorn significantly, she has more raw magic power, more durability, flight and can copy most spells and cast them better than most Unicorns Matterhorn's array of horn beams Twilight can easily use herself.
The comment about bravery Maraposia said is very true, bravery is not lack of fear. Bravery is not the lack of fear, the the ability to act regardless of fear.