"Hahah, yes I can understand you perfectly. It's no coincidence, you can trust me on that," N replied to the Raltz.

N was a bit puzzled when he heard the Raltz tell him to look out, and it wasn't until he felt a bit of a small gust of wind from the bird that just flew over his head that he realized he almost got hit.

He saw a trainer come over and check on the bird pokemon, then apologize for what had happened.

"No need to apologize Dante," N was the first to say to him. N walked over and reached a hand out. . . but rather than shake Dante's hand, N's hand had moved to the Rufflet instead and was gently rested on Rufflet's head in a gentle manner. "Are you alright little Rufflet?"

Dante

Rufflet felt the man but his hand on its head and showed him that he was alright by stretching it's tiny wings. The hand was had warming feeling as the man was of peaceful presence. Combusken reacted if the man was going to hurt Rufflet, but backed down noticing that the man was just asking Rufflet was alright. Though, Elekid was wasn't paying much attention to the man. Dante, on other hand, was curious on who the man was and he was going to ask him, but decided not to ask. Just then, Dante show a small bruise on the back of Rufflet's right shoulder.

"I'll get that little bruise healed quickly, Rufflet", Dante said when he took off his backpack and started to search for a potion. "Now, where is that potion. Drawing pad, no. Berry bag, no. Ah, here it is!"

Dante took the potion out of his backpack and pointed it at Rufflet's bruise.

"Hold still, buddy", he said to Rufflet. Dante then sprayed a small amount into the bruise. Once he got done, Dante placed the potion back into his backpack. "That will do, and you can't barely see the bruise."

"Anyway, I didn't catch any of your names", Dante said to the group that he was standing with. He then looked at the girl that was wearing no jacket.

What happened to her jacket? Dante thought to himself.

Megaman765 said:

"Wide open plains huh? I'm sure it a site to behold... I'd love to see it for myself Thyme... though in my own defense, the city is sure a sight to see when its night time. If we ever get the chance to, we need to find a tall building to go on top of and just check out the view from there. Not only can you see the bright night lit city, but you can see the rest of the land from there as well... I've never seen it for myself but I bet its breathtaking..." Snype said. He could see himself living with being in plains... he had been used to the outdoors as of late. Though his home environment being caves, that was more perfered then the urban settings.

"Heh... hope Bri's parents like Sableye more then they like Snivys. Kehehe" Snype joked as he rested his head against Thyme's. "Though... I dunno if you'd be interested in Celedon. Personally, I like it but theres alot of shady types around there. The Game Corner is a pretty fun place though if your up for taking a chance... I think Mark would perfer to stay away from Celedon though... he's not too fond of his parents..."

Click to expand...

(OOC: Sorry I haven't posted in a while. :( )

Thyme

"Hm... You may be on to something there Snype. Though, we'd have to leave Bri at home. He's afraid of hieghts... Heheheh, not so much after he climbed up that tree in the forest to get everyone's pokeballs the other day. Remember? When everyone got attacked by those bugs?" Thyme said, neglecting to bring up the fact that she had gone a little weird when she got hit by that poison. She gave an involuntary shudder just thinking about that. Then she thought about what else Snype had said.

"Hm... Well, his father's really nice. He likes pokemon. And Brian's mother, I'm not sure if she had a vendetta against me for ruining her favorite shirts or she just dislikes pokemon in general. Either way, she certainly didn't like me, and I can't imagine why," Thyme said, a note of sarcasm in her voice at the end. But hm... Celadon City? Well...

"Er... Sounds like a rough place. Better not to go there until Brian is a little more grown up. He's very immpressionable, and is also a magnet for trouble. Best to avoid that for now.That, and Mark wouldn't want to go from what you said," Thyme said as she sat, resting her head on Snype's shoulder. She thought she could see some odd man with green hair talking to a few students. Hm... Well, unless he came over here, she didn't care about him or the students he was talking with. They just weren't important to her right now.

Skye sighed. Rama just would not stop squirming. The fox must have smelled something irritating. He thought that about just about everyone though. A blue moon came if he didn't. Rama then let out a furious bark, growling up at someone. There was a scoff and Skye glanced up from trying to soothe his furious Pokemon to see an older student from his dorm. The other boy had black hair and a cold scowl.

"Hey brat," he sneered. "Shut your filthy mutt up would you? It's bad enough I have to smell it, let alone hear it."

Rama bristled and Skye stared with a narrowed gaze. "Filthy," The Zorua spat."I just took a bath!"

Skye got up calmly, gave his senior a cool look, then punched him square in the face. Skye took a deep breath then smiled. He had needed that. Pent-up frustration was a bad thing. The boy stepped back, clutching his nose, which appeared to be broken. "Ih-hif you're gonna tuh-halk big," he told the other pleasantly. "Buh-Back it up." Ciel was gaping and Rama, naturally, was rolling on the floor with laughter. Around them, other students were flat out staring. Some were cheering. It was rare there was a fist fight between trainers in a Pokemon Academy. Some kids, though, were glaring. Pokemon battled, not humans!

The black-haired male glared and threw a Pokeball, releasing a Magby, which spewed Embers without command. Skye sIghed. This just wasn't like him. But... Eh, it couldn't hurt. Rama leapt at the opponent, attacking ferociously with his claws.

Epic Joint Post between myself and Selenastar. :D

Brogan

"What an...inspirational speech Father," said Brogan as her Father finally finished schmoozing all those executive types with the polite conversation and firm handshakes, noticing that his special extra-familiar twist to the convention was only used with certain suits. "Though, I fear, it was wasted on the ears of these people. As I was saying earlier, mere days in their presence and it becomes clear that they have absolutely no idea of proper etiquette or breeding...how they ever expect to make it in life without this basic knowledge is beyond me. They're no better than savages really, I swear tha-"

"Brogan, please!" her Father cut her off somewhat abruptly as they reached the entrance doors to the Conference Centre, turning to her sharply with face drawn with what looked suspiciously like anger and frustration at his Daughter's attitude. "You can't talk about people like this, no matter how little you think of them. You treat people like they won't achieve anything in life and they won't, I've told you all this! How much do you actually know of these people? Have you gotten to know any of them at all beyond the first impression I know you make so quickly?" he asked her with a raised eyebrow and Brogan's face turned dangerously impassive.

"I don't need to," she said with a careless shrug, folding her arms and turning to look in the Conference Centre...spotting a lone Brian...perfect. "All I need is for you to take me out of this hell hole. There is nothing they can teach me, I know you wanted me to learn about Pokemon so that I can bring something more to the company when I finally do work for you, but I know more than these people combined. I will show you, Father, then you will have no choice but to agree and do as I say."

Finishing rather snottily, Brogan turned on her heel and clicked her way over to Brian loudly with a lot of show, her face bright with a wide smile despite the anger burning inside her - her own Father! How dare he even speak to her in that way! She wasn't one of these easily impressed buffoons who would allow him to address her however he wanted, Director of HoTa or not. Father or not for that matter.

"Brian, I wondered if we could have a little friendly battle? You know, get everything rocking here? You do understand, I want this Expo to be a major achievement for my Father, and I believe that having his Daughter illustrate the best battle techniques would be a brilliant way to get it started!" she asked with a small laugh, tilting her head to the side slightly and smiling at Brian innocently, sounding ever so convincing. Even Skye would have difficulty deciphering the lie and hidden agenda!

Brian

Bri looked up when he heard someone approaching, rather noisily at that. Hm... Brogan? What did she want? He felt his cheeks flush and his mind went blank. The same reaction he had to any girl that tried to talk to him. He listened to what she was saying. She wanted a battle? Hm... Well, what was the worst that could happen? He get humiliated in front of the whole school? Been there done that. He looked around for someone, anyone to get him out of that. No one was present. He was all alone.

"Erm... Uh..." He sputtered out. Duster yanked on his hair painfully.

"Bri! I'm bored! Take her up on her offer!" Duster said. Bri nodded wordlessly. He then decided to try and speak again.

"Er... I... I guess it couldn't hurt," Bri said. He wasn't aware of any hidden agenda or anything like that. He tended to take people at their word. He looked around, wondering just what she had in mind. Because, knowing her, this was going to be a big thing that would likely command everyone's attention.

Brogan

Great!" grinned Brogan, practically swooping on the boy and completely ignoring his obvious awkwardness and uncertainty to loop her arm through his and actively lift him off his feet as she dragged him over to the battlefield, throwing a satisfied backwards glance to her Father who had walked into the room to watch Brogan with an expression of fatigue on his face.

"Now, you stand...here...that's great," she ordered, depositing Bri at one end of a battlefield and skipping over to the opposing end, twirling round at the end and grinning widely at the audiences around them who had turned to watch. Of course they had turned to watch, she was Brogan Houghton-Taylor. She couldn't help but turn heads wherever she went. Smirking smugly, she made a mock bow to Brian and pulled a PokeBall off her belt, releasing her prized Buneary.

"Your go!"

Brian

Bri let out a yelp when Brogan abruptly picked him up and carried him over to the battlefield. Duster leapt to the ground and dragged the fallen crutch over to him from where he dropped it.

"Um... Please don't do that again..." Bri said before she skipped away. This was just so weird. He put his hand on Leena's pokeball, but Duster gave a little 'tch' and looked away. Bri shrugged.

"Duster! You up for this? I mean... After the boat..." Bri said. She glared at him and walked out to her spot in the battlefield. Bri tried to ignore his nerves, and the fact that everyone was now staring at them and think of something that resembled a stratigy.

"Um... Lets... Uh... Let's start with Pound!" Bri said nervously. Duster shook her head and charged at the Buneary in front of her. She leapt into the air and swung her tail right for the Buneary.

Brogan

"Whatever, let's just get to the battle," said Brogan somewhat sharply as Bri asked her, however politely, not to carry him again. Like she would listen. Should she feel the urge to hoist Bri up on her shoulders and run him around the Academy complex she would. Because she was Brogan Houghton-Taylor and she could do whatever she wanted.

"Buneary, combat with Ice Punch," instructed Brogan calmly, Buneary waiting until the Minccino's tail hit her in the side before taking advantage of the close range and swinging her blue-glowing fist towards Duster even as she braced herself against the impact of Pound. But it was okay, Buneary was also a Normal-type so these kind of attacks weren't too harmful to her. And she knew some attacks that could really make this battle interesting...for Brogan, that is.

Brian

Bri gave Brogan an apologetic look when she responded. Had he made her mad? He didn't want to make anyone mad... Hm... He glanced back at the battlefield as Duster was hit by the Ice Punch. Duster grimaced and scamered away from the Buneary.

"Duster! You ok?" Bri asked. Duster flicked her tail at him.

"Yup! That wasn't that painful!" Duster said cheerfully. Bri thought maybe she was trying to put on a brave face. After all, that punch had to have hurt. Still, he appriciated it. And he was beginning to feel a little bit more confident. After all, he and Duster were almost as in synch with each other as he and Thyme were.

"Well then! Duster, use Thundershock!" Bri said. Duster grinned and blasted a powerful bolt of electricity at Buneary. This was one of her more powerful attacks. And she knew it. And was proud of it.

Brogan

Raising a perfectly shaped eyebrow slightly as Bri ordered Duster to use Thundershock she couldn't help a small smile curl the corner of her mouth - well well. Seemed like she had somewhat underestimated her opponent - this Minccino had more than weak Normal-type attacks in its' arsenal. Though, Buneary had more than enough power to withold such attacks - Thundershock in general wasn't a particularly strong move and, as with Buneary and her Ice Punch, Duster wouldn't benefit from any type matches.

"Sky Uppercut Buneary," instructed Brogan, distracted by an irritating chip in her nail polish...when did that happen?? Well, she should really wait until after the battle to sort it...clenching her fist so that no-one would see the flaw, she watched as Buneary was hit by the jolt of electricity and, given the expression on her face was slightly worried she would be paralysed after the attack had subsided. However, once the electricity had dissipated, Buneary's screwed up face returned to normal and she glared at Duster, shooting forwards and up into a Sky Uppercut that would, if it hit, do tremendous damage. But, Brogan obviously wasn't so short-sighted to not have a back-up plan should the attack miss - Sky Uppercut wasn't the most accurate of moves to use, but Buneary had a generally high success rate with it she had been told by her employed trainer.

Brian

Bri smiled. This was... Going better than he had thought it would. Buneary raced toward Duster with Sky Uppercut, and Bri had no idea what it did. He opened his mouth to tell her to dodge it, but Duster had already very swiftly moved out of the way. Well, that suited Bri just fine.

"Now! Use Double Slap!" Bri said. Duster pounced at Buneary and swung her paw in an attempt to smack Buneary around a bit. Bri noticed that Brogan didn't seem very interested in the battle. Well, that was fine. It's not like Brian made for a very good opponent. She was in Suicune Dorm, she was probably just toying with him. After all, Suicune students were the best, right? Surely Brogan was one of the best, or she would not be in Suicune Dorm.

Brogan

"Sky Uppercut," said Brogan insistently, noting how her almost soulless commands and tone differed from the impassioned commands issued by Bri...huh. She just didn't feel the need to go getting all up on this battle...probably because she was so much better than Bri...or because she had never really been one for battling as it was. But her Buneary was powerful, the trainer she had hired before going to the Academy was exceptionally skilled - had to be for the amount he charged her - and that had paid off in Buneary's skill levels.

Allowing herself to be hit once by the Doubleslap, before Duster could swing at her a second time Buneary swiftly hooked her fist upwards and leapt up in her Sky Uppercut - being in such close range to the Minccino, Brogan really couldn't see how Buneary could miss a second time. It was just a case of how long she could hold out...her movements weren't particularly slower, but surely there was a limit of what she could take...

Brian

Duster got hit by the Sky Uppercut and yelped in pain. Bri looked on with a worried look on his face, but Duster was more aggrivated than injured. This was not good. Duster was very fast, but she could only take so much. Bri needed to avoid any more hits like that one.

"Duster! I... Hm... Use Tickle!" Bri said. Duster, who was still in close proximity to Buneary, reached her tail around and began to try and tickle Buneary. Bri remembered the good results it had on Thyme. He hoped Buneary was ticklish. Hm... Also, from watching the battle, it seemed Duster was just a tad bit faster to react to things than Buneary. And half the time it seemed like Buneary reacted to her commands just a little bit slower. That... That made Bri think that maybe Brogan and her Buneary didn't really know each other too well. Shame that it wouldn't do any good here, as the reaction time was barely noticable. Hm... But Duster was doing well, or so Bri thought she was.

Brogan

As the Minccino got hit by Buneary's Sky Uppercut, Brogan guffawed and smirked not-so-slightly...her superiority complex was getting more and more stoked with every moment of the battle that passed. Of course that attack, being a fighting-type attack, would have got that Minccino good...or not, it would appear, Brogan thought with her smirk vanishing, replaced by a frown. How was that..?

'No matter,' thought Brogan firmly as she watched Buneary squeal as Duster Tickled her, wriggling around and batting at the Minccino's tail in what she could tell was an aggravated way despite the squeals of what sounded to be laughter. "Ice punch," she shouted over the Buneary's high pitched noises, watching as Buneary's eyes snapped open. Instead of squealing, she seemed to make grunts of irritation as the tail flicked at her, her retaliations becoming more like aimed attacks rather than senseless writhings. Her fist glowed blue as she pulled it back, hoping to take advantage of Duster's closeness as she swung her fist forward in a lightning-fast punch.

Brian

Hm... It seemed Tickle may not help out that much here. Bri was getting worried as Duster ducked the Ice Punch and leapt away. Bri could tell that last hit had taken more out of her than he had thought, though she was refusing to show that to her opponent. Brogan probably couldn't tell. That was a plus at least. Hm...

"Duster! Thundershock again!" Bri said. He knew Duster's only chance would be to play keep away. Duster had two moves that were able to be used from far away. Thundershock and Swift. And Swift never seemed to miss. At least, Bri had never seen it miss, and Drizzle used it before. He wasn't too sure it's exact effect. Duster scampered away from Buneary and fired off a Thundershock. She knew what Bri was planning. Keep the distance and wear her opponent down. Seemed good to her, because that would give her more time to react.

Brogan

Assuming that Buneary had enough strength left to take the hit of the Thundershock easily, Brogan wasn't flustered as her Buneary was hit by the weak jolt of electricity, even as a squeak that sounded weaker than normal carried over on the wind. However, when Buneary stumbled and fell on one knee on the ground Brogan scowled deeply and stepped forward slightly as though to pick Buneary up. Remembering herself she clenched her fists and stepped backwards, concerned as Buneary got to her feet again somewhat unsteadily but with a steely resolve in her eyes - this bunny would take more than that to take out.

But it was...troubling to say the least. How hadn't she seen this coming? Buneary seemed fine to her...she had assumed that none of those hits had particularly caused much damage. Maybe she just needed to look out for the signs a bit more carefully...but what were those signs?!

"It's okay Buneary, we can do this. Use your agility more than your strength, and use your Sky Uppercut!" she insisted, nodding encouragingly at Buneary who raced towards Duster and pulled her fist backwards, swinging it upwards in an uppercut motion and ready to leap into the air as she grew closer to Duster.

Brian

Bri was a bit worried about Brogan's Buneary. She was clearly pushing herself beyond her limits. But then again, Duster wasn't exactly rolling over and going to sleep, when it was clear that she wasn't doing to well. Bri opened his mouth to say something, but thought a moment more. Who was he to question the methods of a Suicune Student? He wasn't exactly deserving of his own Entei jacket... Anyways, he had to think of something fast, as Buneary was charging at Duster again.

"Duster use Swift! Maybe you can knock her out before she even gets to you!" Bri said, thinking fast. Duster reacted, but a moment too late. She fired a great deal of star shaped rays, which flew at Buneary. But Buneary reached her first and knocked Duster up into the air, where she came down with a heavy thud, unmoving.

"Duster!" Bri shouted. He fumbled for her pokeball. She was clearly knocked out. Not good. He didn't even pay attention to see if the Swift had hit. He returned Duster.

"Good try Duster. Take a good long rest! Hm... How about Frost!" Bri said as he sent out the Sneasel, who assumed a battle stance. This was actually going to be their first battle together. Bri was rather excited by this prospect.

Brogan

ENDURE!" shouted Brogan in a panic as Bri ordered Duster to use Swift - she didn't know much about battles, but she knew that Swift never missed. This was why her employed trainer had attempted to persuade her to teach Swift to her Pokemon while they were still growing and getting stronger...but Brogan had discounted this altogether as the move wasn't anywhere near impressive enough for her Pokemon. But it would seem that this battle had illuminated some huge gaps in Buneary's move pool...she had no distance attacks at all, which left her both vulnerable and without a strategy in certain circumstances. Would she react in time?

Brogan crossed her fingers behind her back and watched as Buneary seemed to lose focus just before the rays hit her, falling to the ground heavily...she didn't get back up. She hadn't reacted in time...why hadn't she reacted in time? Had Brogan not gotten to her in time? No, that wasn't it...but then...

With a solemn face, Brogan returned Buneary wordlessly and chanced a glance over at her Father - he didn't look disappointed, but he didn't look impressed either. He seemed as though this whole battle was in line with his expectations...that shocked Brogan. Gritting her teeth, she averted her eyes back to Bri, expression set and determined - she would not make a fool of herself in front of hr own Father.

"Wartortle," she said simply, sending out her Wartortle. "Withdraw," she instructed, starting with Wartortle with a different strategy than she had with Buneary. Instead of all out offense, she would use the various defensive and countering manouvres that Wartortle knew.

Brian

Hm... A Wartorle. And it used withdraw. Bri wasn't sure, but it seemed like that move would boost the defense of Wartorle... Bri opened his mouth to issue a command, and promptly realised he didn't know Frost's moves. With a small and nervous smile he pulled out his pokedex. He scrolled to the page with Frost's info. Hm... Scratch, Leer, Quick Attack and Screech he knew. But Faint Attack... What was that? It was a dark type, with a few little numbers next to it that Bri had no idea what they meant. And then Taunt... He didn't know that one either... May as well find out...

"Frost! Use Taunt!" Bri said nervously. He hoped this wouldn't end up like Roar. That had scared him witless. Turns out, Taunt was nothing like Roar. Frost made a mocking gesture with his claws, but it was more than that. Bri could barely make out a bit of energy that flew over towards Wartortle.

Brogan

Taunt? What a laugh, thought Brogan with an actual laugh as she watched Sneasel use Taunt, her Wartortle was inside his shell. He couldn't see the movement of the Sneasel's claws...but he did feel the pulse of energy from the attack that washed over Wartortle's shell, and emerged with a vicious expression moments later.

Unfortunately for the Sneasel, the Taunt had also enraged Wartortle to the extent that he unleashed a powerful Aqua Jet without Brogan even instructing him. Watching as Wartortle appeared basically as a rush of water - moving so rapidly that one couldn't make out his actual body - towards the Sneasel, Brogan let out an irritated yelp. What! Since when did her Pokemon not listen to her or wait for her commands!?

"Wartortle! Stop that!" she shouted angrily, but Wartortle obviously wasn't listening - partly because he was in the middle of an Aqua Jet but partly because he just didn't want to. Brogan flushed with embarrassment...she couldn't even bring herself to look at her Father...

Brian

Bri was shocked into silence, but Frost had anticipated just such a reaction. With amasing speed he flipped out of the way. What had just happened? Frost turned and laughed at Wartortle, waiting for a command. Bri snapped out of it and promptly gave one. He had not expected that response. Did Taunt make an enemy attack randomly or something?

"Faint Attack!" Bri said. Frost obeyed instantly, not wanting to let such a good opportunity pass. Dark energy formed around his claws and he raced after Wartortle. He jumped up and released the energy right at his opponent. Bri was still wondering just what that move did. No time like the present. He turned to Brogan, who still seemed to have trouble controlling her pokemon.

Brogan

"Wartortle!" yelped Brogan as her Pokemon was hit by the dark energy, flying backwards and landing heavily on his stomach before leaping up once more. He was standing oddly, somewhat hunched as though he had injured his torsal area, but still under the influence of Taunt Wartortle seemed not to notice this, let alone be slowed by it. "Wartortle take it e-Okay then, Aqua Jet!" ordered Brogan, wanting to calm Wartortle down before he again launched into an Aqua Jet without her orders. Not wanting to lose any more face, Brogan hoped that she had stuttered 'Aqua Jet' quickly enough so it would seem as though she had controlled her Pokemon.

Brian

Frost cried out as he was hit by the Aqua Jet. He had not been able to dodge this one fast enough, and he went sliding on the ground with a groan. Bri wasn't even paying attention to the fact that Brogan seemed to be having a bit of difficulty controlling her pokemon. He was too worried about Frost.

"Frost! Are you alright?" Bri said urgently. Frost was laying flat on his back. He quickly flipped back to his feet, holding one arm oddly. He turned to face Wartortle and returned to his previous stance.

"Just fine! But my arm kind of hurts..." Frost said in a level tone of voice. He was a bit disappointed that he wasn't fast enough. Oh well. He'd get faster.

"Ok then. Scratch!" Brei said quietly. Frost darted after Wartortle, intent on clawing him.

Brogan

"Wa-BITE!" shouted Brogan, one hand reaching up to clutch at her hair as Wartortle yet again flew forward at Frost without waiting for her orders...okay, so this Taunt attack made him all aggressive and offensive but seriously...why was he ignoring all her orders like this?! He never did as a Squirtle! Well..when she took the time to train him...which was hardly ever...

As Frost drew closer to Wartortle, he span in the air so that Frost's claws scratched across his hard shell, where his defence was still high due to his earlier Withdraw move, hardly even making a mark before twisting his head round and clamping his strong jaw around Frost's arm tightly, snapping his head back and forth so he was tossing Frost from side to side like a rag doll.

Even though he wasn't exactly following instructions...well, Wartortle must have been taught to fight well on his own by the Trainer that Brogan had hired...she couldn't really complain, but neither could she look at her Father...

Brian

Frost cried out in pain when Wartortle bit down on his arm. It hurt, but not too much. He was a Dark Type, after all. Frost flipped so that his feet were on top of Wartortle's head so that he wasn't being shaken like a rag doll anymore. He then wrenched his arm out of Wartortle's mouth and danced back. Hm... That Scratch had been disappointing. Best to do some other attacks.

"Frost! Try Faint Attack again!" Bri said, realising that it was stronger than Scratch. Frost darted toward Wartortle again, his claws charged up with dark energy. Bri now took note that Brogan was have major trouble controlling Wartortle. He shot her a questioning look.

"Everything ok over there?" he asked quietly, wondering what was wrong.

Brogan

"Withdraw, Wartortle, come on!!" shouted Brogan, as she noticed Wartortle seemed to wrench back to sense after that previous turn, looking around as though dazed. She guessed that he had been released from the Taunt, and was relieved when he seemed to be listening to her. It was then, however, that she realised just how few of Wartortles moves she actually knew...she would need to find out maybe, later on...should she feel like battling again.

As Frost reached Wartortle, he drew himself back inside his shell, boosting his defence even further so that the Faint Attack could only hit his hard exterior. Brogan smirked and nodded - she knew that her Wartortle was powerful enough to get through this - before pointing forward. "Now, Aqua Jet!" she instructed, watching as Wartortle shot forward at Frost in an Aqua Jet without even seeming to come out of his shell.

"Absolutely," she shot back towards Bri with a disarming smile, "it seemed as though Wartortle wasn't too big on listening to commands before, but we're good right now."

Brian

Frost ducked as the Wartortle blasted over him. Hm... Bri needed to do something fast. He had to keep Wartortle's defenses down. Maybe Screeching at him would work... Hopefully.

"Ok... Just seemed like you were having a bit of trouble, that's all. Anyways, Frost! Use Screech!" Bri said. He was a tad bit confused. He didn't understand what she was thinking. Was she even being serious anymore? He covered his ears. As expected, Frost let out an earsplitting shriek. Bri then put his hands down.

"Now, try Faint Attack again!" Bri said. Frost dashed after Wartortle again, his claws glowing with dark power. He leapt into the air and flipped, raking his claws at Wartortle.

Brogan

Not at all Brian love," smiled Brogan, watching in satisfaction as Frost attempted to best her Wartortle. Ha, like that was going to happen. She didn't cover her own ears, keeping her face deliberately calm and expressionless even as the noise pierced her brain, before nodding towards Wartortle.

"Withdraw and Bubblebeam," she instructed, watching as her Wartortle ducked back inside his shell, just in time as Frost's claws missed his head by a fraction of an centimetre, a powerful blast of bubbles firing out from the front of his shell at Frost. Brogan put her hands on her hips, smiling to herself. She may have lost Buneary, but this was HER fight, definitely.

Brian

Frost was hit by the Bubblebeam and sent flying. He wasn't exactly that durable, so the constant hits were wearing him down. This last one proved to be too much, and he didn't get back up. Bri wordlessly returned him. He dropped his hand and grabbed Drizzle's pokeball. Drizzle was the toughest pokemon that he had with him that hadn't been knocked out yet. And the two of them worked well together.

"Drizzle! Let's go!" Bri said as he sent out his Buizel. Drizzle smiled confidently and stood with his paws at his side.

"Um... Drizzle! Go ahead and use Water Gun!" Bri said. The attack would not be that powerful against the other water type, but it would be stronger than many of Drizzle's other attacks, especially after all those Withdraws. Drizzle opened fire at Wartortle with a powerful jet of water.

Brogan

Not exactly purposefully, Brogan failed to stifle a snicker that escaped her mouth as Bri released a Buizel. Really? He thought that that would work against her Wartortle? That was insane, just pure insanity! And for that he deserved to be smashed into the ground...in terms of this battle, of course.

"Bubblebeam, Wartortle," instructed Brogan calmly, not noticing how the jet of bubbles had ebbed dramatically in strength since last time Wartortle used the attack. The Water Gun sliced through the Bubblebeam with little difficulty and slammed into Wartortle, sending him flying before he could withdraw back into his shell. Slamming into a wall behind Brogan, she didn't even turn to watch, fearing what she would see on the faces of her peers and her Father should she turn her head.

Calmly, she returned Wartortle and swallowed, her face never once changing in expression. Taking a Pokeball from her belt, she released her newly-caught Lapras, watching with a small smile as the majestic Pokemon unfurled her neck on the battlefield, surveying around her regally.

"Lapras, u...what?! no! I didn't say to use that!" said Brogan, startled as Lapras attacked with a Water Gun before she could even instruct her to use an attack. As the jet flew towards Drizzle, Brogan could practically slap a hand to her own forehead. This just wasn't how it was meant to go....

Brian

"Heh, You're not going to beat me!" Drizzle said calmly to Lapras as he leapt out of range of the Water Gun. He smirked playfully at her. Bri was subdued, wondering just what was going on. She didn't seem to have any sort of bond with her pokemon. And she expected them to listen? Hm... Bri didn't have a very high opinion of Brogan's training abilities right now. Bri was not very good in a battle because he just wasn't exactly that skilled with commands.

"Drizzle! Stop making fun of them and use Swift!" Bri said sternly. Drizzle laughed to himself and fired Swift at Lapras. He doubted she would be able to dodge much of anything being on land. Lapras were more sea pokemon. They just couldn't move that well on land.

Brogan

yo-NO LAPRAS!" shouted Brogan, rage within her building as Lapras fired another Water Gun at Drizzle without even waiting for Brogan to open her mouth. The Water Gun collided with some of the stars from Drizzle's Swift with bright flashes, but some managed to hit Lapras, making her cry out. Again, she fired another Water Gun, even as Brogan stamped her foot in sheer frustration, clenching her fists by her sides.

"Lapras, stop acting up! I am your trainer and I demand that you listen to me, am I making myself cl-NO, I DIDN'T TELL YOU TO DO THAT!!!" shouted Brogan as Lapras turned her head slightly as Brogan spoke, her face full of insolence and apathy towards her "Trainer" before slamming her front foot down hard on the ground, the floor shaking somewhat. Glancing at her Father, Brogan cringed...he wasn't even watching anymore...he looked as though he wanted nothing more than to dash back up to his office...was she that poor? Eyes turning back to Lapras, she cringed as the majestic Pokemon yawned loudly and settled her head down on her feet...and promptly fell asleep.

Brogan merely stared forward at Bri and Drizzle, not giving any indication of the humiliation she was internally feeling. She wouldn't give any of them the satisfaction...

Brian

Heheheh! Nice!" Drizzle laughed, pointing one paw at Lapras as she snoozed away. Bri was dumbfounded. He scratched his head. Was she really having that much trouble? It was like she didn't even know her own pokemon...

"Drizzle... Relax a little. It's not nice to laugh at people... Brogan, if you're having trouble with your Lapras, then you can call her back and use a different pokemon you're a bit more familiar with... If you want to," Bri said nervously. Drizzle shook his head. He knew that this girl was so stubborn that she would likely leave Lapras out, even though it would definately cost her the match. Well, if Lapras was going to sleep, then he may as well relax too. He curled up and put his head on his paws, watching Lapras carefully, in case she decided it was time to battle. He was waiting for Brian to give him a command.

Brogan

Growling, Brogan glared at Bri and clenched her teeth together, her jaw popping out slightly with the strain. Who exactly did he think he was, talking to her like that, as though he was teaching her something?! Trouble?

"Trouble?" she asked out loud, voicing her last incredulous thought in a venomous tone, folding her arms across her chest and raising a brow. "No trouble. Lapras and I just haven't exactly had much quality time together, she is a new acquisition, but I daresay she will knock your little water weasel out once she's fully rested up."

With that she turned to the side, as though she had lost interest in the battle altogether - which, in fairness, was true. Being all fired up and ready for battle was okay...but sticking with it? That was a difficulty. She just didn't care enough ultimately...it wasn't as though she were networking with a new major client, or somebody who could eventually further her career prospects or position in society. This was a third-rate battle against a third-rate little boy Trainer. If Lapras couldn't care less...well neither could she..."Just make your move," she said coldly, rolling her eyes and taking a nail file out of her bag - now was as good a time as any to fix up that chipped nail.

Meanwhile, Lapras snored softly, dreaming of streaking through crystal seas under an azure sky...

Brian

"Um... Ok, if you say so... But I only caught Drizzle two days ago. And Frost was caught yesterday... Doesn't seem like you've spent any time at all with any of your pokemon... But that's just how it seems to me. What would I know," Bri said a little bit on the angry side. She may not have had Lapras all that long, but Buneary, who seemed a little unfamiliar with her, and Wartortle, who had flat out ignored her, both had seemed like she had them for a while. And they didn't seem to know her that well. Good thing Thyme wasn't here. Brogan's whole attitude would have just pissed her off. Bri scratched his head and Drizzle yawned.

"Um... If you say so. Drizzle! Use Swift again!" Bri said quietly. Drizzle looked over at Lapras and opened his mouth, spraying a ton of stars at her. The whole time, never moving from his spot at Bri's feet.

Brogan

As Bri spoke, Brogan's face became more and more stormy until she looked absolutely incensed by Bri's words. This, however, turned into a silky smirk as she nodded, dragging the file across her nail one last time before inspecting the nail and returning the file to her bag, pulling out a small bottle of blue nail varnish in it's place.

"Exactly, what would you know. I would advise you against such presumptions about myself and my Pokemon, Bri, no matter how perceptive you may think yourself to be," her voice was almost amused, but it wasn't difficult to sense the irritated undertone to her words as she unscrewed the lid of her polish, painting it across her nail delicately even as Lapras was hit by Drizzle's Swift.

Opening one eye as she was hit by the stars, Lapras let out a roar and fired off a Water Gun at Drizzle - more as though she was irritated at being hurt and woken from her slumber than out of a sense of battle - before laying her head down once more and closing her eyes. Rolling her eyes, Brogan returned Lapras seeing that Lapras was about as into this battle as she was, and released her final Pokemon, Bagon.

"Headbutt," she almost yawned, not even watching as Bagon flew at Drizzle ready to smash his hard skull into him, choosing instead to tap on her Xtransciever.

Brian

"Drizzle! Water Gun!" Bri said. Drizzle quickly darted away from Bagon when he came out and was back on his feet. Brogan wasn't even paying attention anymore. Well, that was her problem.

"Heh, good, someone interesting to battle against! Let's go!" Drizzle said to Bagon as he jumped back and sprayed a powerful jet of water at Bagon.

"Um... You may want to pay attention to the battle. You can fix you nails afterwards. But if you lose focus then you might not win," Bri said nervously, wondering just why he was helping her. It wasn't like she appriciated it. So, why was he even bothering? And why was he so sure that he knew better than she did? Well, on this point he did. He had learned from his few battles here that he had to keep focused or he would lose. And she clearly was not interested anymore.

Brogan

Pausing with a smile on her face, Brogan gave a small huff of laughter and glanced up at Bri slowly from underneath her lashes. Placing her newly manicured hand on her hip, Brogan tossed her hair back and laughed loudly at Bri, nodding towards Bagon as he swiftly rolled out of the way of the Water Gun.

"Have you ever heard of 'multi-tasking' Brian? Women can do that you know. I suppose I shouldn't be surprised...looking at you, you don't really know much about much do you? I doubt you even know as much as you think you do about those Pokemon you've dragged up. Bagon, Twister." she instructed calmly, watching as Bagon's eyes glowed purple and powerful winds formed into a literal twister around him, Bagon directly in the eye of the growing winds. Out of the corner of her eye, Brogan noticed the food and drink of nearby by-standers being whipped out of their hands and a collective mumble rising and falling as they realised who was battling. Brogan smirked - about right, they quickly shut their mouths when they realise it is the daughter of the Director of HoTa that they're slagging off.

Brian

Drizzle was hit by the Twister and sent flying. He hit the ground with a dull thud and hopped back to his feet as quickly as he could. He had a large smirk on his face. Bri was looking rather calm right now. Though on the inside he was wondering if she may be right.

"Er..." Bri said. Drizzle looked at Bri with a concerned look on his face. Was he really buying into her crap? Hm...

"Bri, don't listen to her. Heh, you may not know much, but you do know me and the others. Heheh, that's why you'll win! Just watch. She's talking like that because she's afraid she's going to lose! And you know what, she's right. She is going to lose. Because I'm going to win!" Drizzle said confidently. Bri scratched his head again. He wasn't sure whether he should feel insulted by Drizzle or thank him.

"Gee, thanks Drizzle... And I never said I know a lot. I know I don't know that much. That's why I came to the Academy. But it seems I know a lot more than you do. After all, there is more to pokemon training than the battles. You have to know your pokemon. I know my pokemon! How well do you really know yours? Drizzle! Water Gun!" Bri said quietly. She was beginning to make him mad. Standing over there acting like she was perfect and knew everything. She didn't. Drizzle grinned widely. That had taken him by surprise. Still, he was proud of Bri, standing up for himself and his pokemon. Now, it was Drizzle's turn.

"Hey, Dragon-face! Eat this!" Drizzle said. He blasted the powerful jet of water right at Bagon.

Brogan

"You think so? Well...I suppose the difference between us is that you care about mundane mumbo-jumbo like that. My Pokemon were trained by the best of the best, the best that money could buy, and ultimately that is something you will never be able to achieve. While my Pokemon were being trained, I managed to cement my place in high society and my future prospects and happiness," she trailed off with a somewhat mocking, wistful smile on her face as she sighed and shrugged her shoulders lightly. "And that, my small-minded friend, is worth more than you will ever know or experience. Bagon, get up and use Outrage" Brogan instructed, watching calmly as Bagon was hit by the Water Gun and knocked backwards and over onto his face.

Leaping up, Bagon roared and his face grew redder as he built up his Outrage, flying towards Drizzle with his claws flailing and his jaws snapping, ready to smash into Drizzle. Brogan smirked and laughed lightly, pulling her lipgloss out of her pocket and applying a layer to her perfect lips - oh yeah. Bagon had this one locked up. She had nothing to worry about.

Brian

Yeah, probably. After all, I have no interest in high society or any of that mumbo-jumbo. But there is more to life than money. After all, my pokemon that I've been training myself are just as strong if not stronger than yours. It's not about strength, Brogan. Anyways, if battling is really not that important, then why did you ask me to battle? Drizzle, use Sonic Boom," Bri said as Bagon charged. Drizzle decided to have a little bit of fun with the dragon. As Bagon drew closer, Drizzle leapt up and put his paws on Bagon's head and flipped over him, landing behind him and dodging the attack. Drizzle Then leapt in the air and spun his tails, firing several bursts os sound at Bagon.

Brogan

"Oh whatever Brian, save me your holier-than-thou bull crap," grunted Brogan, rolling her eyes - she was thoroughly fed up of this boy's attitude now. "I dare you to come and say this to my face when you're hired by one of my many multi-million dollar companies. Until then, if I don't ask for your opinion, please don't presume to offer it, okay? Bagon, continue."

Brogan completely cut Bri out of her mind, not looking at him or even listening to anything coming from his side of the battlefield, stuck in this odd limbo of not focusing on the battle, Bri or...well, anything really.

As the Outrage grew more powerful, Bagon roared louder as he was pushed back by the Sonic Boom before rushing again at Drizzle, this time even faster and more furious in his attacks. He was determined that that weasel wouldn't escape his claws again.

Brian

Well, he had royally ticked her off now. That had been real smooth. Bri looked at the battlfield again as Drizzle was slammed into. But the Buizel rolled with the attack, going flat on his back and kicking Bagon over his head. Drizzle was on his feet again in a flash. He held his paw up and wiggled it at Bagon.

"Not bad, but you've got nothing on me!" Drizzle said. He was hurt, but not that bad. He could keep going.

"I was only trying to help. But fine, if you want to be that way. Drizzle, use Water Gun, as strong as you can make it!" Bri said as he rolled his eyes. He didn't care how many companies she owned. He wasn't going into any kind of buisiness field anyways. He had more important plans for his life. Drizzle smirked and opened up his mouth. The jet of water that sprayed toward Bagon was quite impressive. Well, maybe not, but Bri was impressed. He didn't think he'd ever seen Drizzle use Water Gun that powerfully before.

Brogan

Bri's words floated over to Brogan as though a jumble of sounds and syllables, she wasn't listening, she didn't care. All she knew was that he had probably given her some more sob story or something she wasn't interested in, ultimately she wasn't even sure why she had carried on with this battle anymore...looking round, she saw her Father deep in conversation with some of his men and she rolled her eyes. How typical, of course he had lost interest - he was too much like her to have maintained his observance of this battle.

"Bagon, carry on," said Brogan, stifling a small yawn, and figuring that after a few more moves she would just pull Bagon out and finish the battle altogether - even if it meant she lost by default. Ultimately it wasn't much of a loss to her, all things being relative...

Given that Bagon had used Outrage for three turns, it was ridiculously powerful now as he flew at Drizzle, pushing right through the Water Gun, ready to slam his claws into the Buizel. Hit or miss, however, Bagon would find himself Confused after this attack, something that Brogan had not anticipated in her ignorance.

Brian

Drizzle kept the Water Gun on Bagon until he was slammed into. He went rolling across the floor. He was feeling faint, kind of tired. He hurt all over. He just wanted to lay his head on his paws and go to sleep. But he wasn't going to. He had to win. He had to prove that Bri's faith in him was well placed. He struggle back to his feet and shook himself off.

"Ow..." Drizzle whispered to himself.

"Drizzle! Are you ok?" Bri asked, concerned about his well being. Drizzle waved one paw at him and watched Bagon.

"I can tough it out," Drizzle said quietly. Bri looked at Bagon too. Hm... Something was wrong with him. Wait, Bri had seen that look before! He was confused! Wow, lucky break.

"Ok Drizzle. If you say so! Use Swift!" Bri said quietly. Drizzle grinned and fired a plethora of glowing yellow stars right at Bagon

Brogan

Bagon watched as the stars slammed into him and let out a small yelp, collapsing backwards as they slammed into him, rolling over and laying on his stomach on the floor, looking around dazedly. Getting up, he proceeded to stand on one foot and lose his balance, falling onto his head heavily, leaving him even more dazed and weakened.

Looking up, Brogan frowned deeply. Something looked wrong with Bagon...why was he being like that? He could hardly stand. It was true that Brogan couldn't care less about training her Pokemon, but she did care about them despite what people may have thought...and Bagon looked in serious trouble. "Bagon..?" she called questioningly, frown deepening as Bagon looked round at her voice and roared in answer, looking as though he were about to charge at her.

Stepping back a little, Brogan prepared herself to run as Bagon stepped forward and promptly fell over his own feet, collapsing to the floor...and not getting up again. He'd fainted. She had lost.

Shrugging, Brogan returned Bagon and looked up at Bri with a small smile curling at the corner of her mouth. "Good fight," she said as she mock saluted Bri, turning and walking away from the battlefield, the crowds parting to let her pass. At least she could get her Pokemon healed up now...but would she learn to be more interested in her own Pokemon and their training? Right now...she didn't really know. Ultimately she still didn't care...but she felt a begrudging respect for Brian and the way he had stood up to her.

(OOC: Well, that was thrilling! Now, for my post. XD I'll edit it in after I'm done here.)

Brian

Drizzle stood still, breathing heavily as he watched Bagon get up. He grinned as the dragon type roared at Brogan and then toppled over. He had won. He thrust his paw into the air with a triumphant whoop.

"Told you! Heh, told you you've got nothing on me!" Drizzle said as Brogan returned him. Bri glanced at him then he spotted the still snoozing Lapras.

"Yeah, you too..." Bri said. Drizzle chuckled to himself as he walked over to Bri and picked up the crutch Duster had dragged over there. If only Thyme had been there to see! She would have been awfully impressed at how tough he was! Bri took the crutch under his arm, still in shock that he had actually won.

"Heh, good job there kid! We won!" Drizzle said. Bri stopped and looked down at him.

"Yeah, I know. Wow, my first win ever! Who would have thought it would be against a Suicune Student!" Bri said excitedly as he and Drizzle began to walk away. Drizzle smirked up at him. He was very proud of himself. He was getting a lot tougher.

"Yup! We did good out there! If only Thyme had been here! She would have loved how tough I am!" Drizzle said. Bri shook his head. Poor Drizzle. Thyme had a thing for Snype. Now, not having seen her all day, all he had to judge this on was how she had acted yesterday when she put Snype under Attract. He dared to say she would not try that again for a while. But before he could tell Drizzle that, the pair of them heard some very familiar barking. Bri raised his eyebrow and they began to make their way over to the noise. They got there just in time to see Skye break some kids nose.

"Skye! What'd you hit him for?!" Bri asked, alarmed as Drizzle walked in front of Brian. Rama and some Magby were fighting, but Drizzle was too tired to jump in and join them. And, he wasn't Nova. That mutt would have loved to join the fight, but Drizzle just wanted to sleep.

"Yeah. I remember that whole attack of the bugs situation we got ourselves into... erm, thanks again for saving me from being carried away by that kids Scyther. Who knows where I would have ended up... though I guess I returned the favor when I got some of that poison out of you... old survival trick. Had to do what I had to do." Snype said, remembering the scene she made where she had tripped out. Snype was tempted to ask her what the deal with all of that was.

"Celedon isn't all that rough... well... ok it was the old location of one of Team Rocket's bases but still. The department store has alot of stuff. They actually sell elemental stones there. Water stones and such. I don't know if they can be found in department stores in other regions so ya gotta give them credit for something. Guess another problem is the pollution around the area... though the grimer there are fairly friendly. I've chatted with them. They give off an odd smell that sticks to ya but you get used to it." Snype said.

Snype slowly rubbed Thyme's arm with his right hand, as a means of comfort. Snype could imagine how Drizzle would react to seeing this... He really like Thyme as well... Snype said that he didn't have to worry about him taking her but it seemed that Snype stole her heart first. He felt like a jerk but that's life, Snype guessed.

Skye glanced over at the sound of Bri and smiled sunnily, as though he hadn't just done exactly what Bri had just accused him of. "Feh-felt like ih-hit?" he replied innocently, as Pala stuck her head out. She squeaked at Bri.

"Boy mean," she said gesturing at the other kid, who was still clutching his nose. "Call Rama bad thing, " Pala said with a wise nod. "Rama got angry so Skye hit mean boy."

"Precocious little cub," Chika said gently from next to Ciel, looking fondly at the bear.

Rama yowled. "Get outta my face before I bash yours in too," he sneered at the Magby. It scoffed and spewed more embers at him, causing Rama to dodge quickly and ram the Magby to the ground. He slashed recklessly at the face, causing the Magby to yelp and punch him off.

"Magby," the older boy growled through the pain. "Fire Spin!" A tornado of fire whirled toward Rama's mid air form. Unfortunately, he didn't count on the fox's ability to pay attention through pain. Skye didn't even glance toward the fight, hearing the frenzied yelps as Rama's Dark Pulse easily slammed the Magby to the ground as he landed on the floor.

Rama cursed up a storm for a moment. "What kind of cheapo carpet is this? That hurt my paws! Seriously, not a soft landing? You bastards." Pala blinked innocently as Skye covered her small ears. Foul language was not good for a developing Pokemon. She might start mimicking his idiot fox. Rama shook himself off and leapt into the air, a pink aura engulfing. It wasn't very manly but like he cared. Return hurt. This time he was hit by the fire. But he tore through it, ending up burned as he knocked into the Magby. Yet that still knocked it down and it struggled to get back up. Rama snarled and tore into the creature's face again.

Thyme

Yeah, who knows what would have happened to me if you hadn't," Thyme murmered. She didn't want to talk about how she had freaked out when the poison effected her head. That had been scary. Then she listened to what Snype said about the department store. That sounded like an interesting place to go...

"I'm not going anywhere near Grimers. Not a chance. I like my scent the way it is, thank you very much," Thyme said as she reached her hand up and grabbed Snype's hand, giving it a gentle squeeze.

Brian

Drizzle laughed and sat down on the ground.

"Rama, I would offer to lend a paw, but one, you're probably bite my paw if I did that. Two, you got this. Three, I'm too tired to care," Drizzle said sleepily. Even if Rama had been in trouble, he probably would not want help. Well, Drizzle was past caring. He curled up and lay his head on his paws and watched the fight going on with little interest.

"Skye... You shouldn't go around hitting people because they make fun of you or your pokemon..." Bri said plaintively. Drizzle's ears perked up and he looked up at Bri.

"Hey, tell him about how awesome I was!" Drizzle said happily before laying his head back down. Bri nudge him gently with his foot.

"Not now Drizzle. Now isn't the time for that," Bri said. He looked at the two squabling pokemon. Well, they certainly didn't need help.

N chuckled a bit at Raltz. "You should be a little nicer to your friend Raltz. He's only human after all."

He turned back to Dante. "You are a student at the Academy correct? I am a new intern there. My name is N Harmonia. You may call me N. I hope you and your friends will be able to attend the classes I'll be in. I look forward to seeing you and your friends there."

He simply smiled and continued rubbing the little Rufflet's head. "I have a feeling my friends would enjoy getting a chance to meet you little one," he said as he smiled to the little Rufflet.

His head turned back to Jason and Valorie. "A battle? This should be interesting to watch. Dante, would you and your friends care to stay and watch?"

Snype sniffed a bit to get Thyme's scent. "Hehe, I don't plan on taking you anywhere near them. I like your scent as is... I'm sure your bound to find something good down at the department store. They got all sorts of things. I'd have to make a list of all the stuff they have there." Snype said. He remembered some of the stunts he did back in the department store... he was fairly popular around those parts. He already told Thyme about that stuff on the boat though.

"So Thyme, what do you think of good ol Kanto so far? Neat place isn't it?" Snype asked.

Skye shrugged. "I-hi'd ruh-hather hah-have puh-punched him thah-han leh-let Ruh-Rama muh-haul him luh-like thah-hat puh-poor Mah-Magby." Ciel couldn't help but agree. That Zorua looked about ready to murder that little Fire-type. Magby leapt up again and puffed out a poisonous Smog. It was slow-moving though... and Rama yawned before yelping in pain from the burn.

"Heh," the black-haired male sneered, words slurred through his nose. "Gob 'im now~ Brick Break!"
Rama yelped and threw himself into the air as the Magby punched at where he had been. Oh... if that hit... Rama didn't want to think about it. So he wouldn't. Yet for some reason, the Magby began to scramble backward, running away from the feral-looking fox.

"Oh no you don't," Rama yowled, leaping in Pursuit. He tackled Magby to the floor. The impact caused a wild shout and a burst of embers. Rama went flying back and didn't move for a few moments. Then Magby got up panting. He smirked arrogantly, only for Rama to tackle him across the ground in a Faint Attack. Rama rolled off, unconscious. Magby didn't get up either.

Skye walked over and picked up his unconscious fox, placing him next to Ciel. At least he would be quieter now. Skye went to sit down but the other boy shouted. "Hold it kid! We ain't done yet."

"Uh-hokay," SKye said pleasantly. The other growled.

"That first one was just a fluke! We'll get you now." He released a Tyrogue, who held out a palm to face his opponent. Skye glanced at Volca's quiet Pokeball and released the bug.

The other boy snorted before wincing. "Wha's that? Weak little bug! Get 'em Tyrogue!" Skye shook his head as the Tyrogue was nearly slammed into a person by a Psychic. Great...

(me and -DeepImpact-'s JP My posts are in Grey his are in black)

Sticking around the hall was fairly boring for Sam. He wasn't the kind of guy who stuck around in halls listening to boring speeches. This was a field trip, he was supposed to stretch his legs, not stay cramped up in a building. He sat in a corner, on a chair, his eyes closed. He was half asleep, when he heard the noises of a Pokemon battle in the distance. His eyes quickly snapped open, and he walked to over to a place where there were several spectators watching a Pokemon battle. He was instantly flushed with excitement.

"Finally, some action" he thought. He looked around for a partner to battle with. Unfortunately, all the good ones were already battling, but he still didn't give up. He wanted to find somebody relatively weak, but not too weak, who couldn't even provide him with a challenge.

He spotted a fair girl with pink hair near the entrance. She seemed to be just right for the battle, and he popped open Nick's Pokeball. Nick emerged out of it, and Sam pointed at the girl. "Is she strong enough?" He said. The Treecko shrugged, and leaned against a wall.

"Ah well." He put Nick back in his Pokeball, and walked over to the girl. "Hey! You there!" He shouted at the girl. "Wanna battle?"

Geneviève sighed to herself rather lonely as she stood off by herself. She had listened to the speech word for word and was excited about the field trip. But she wasn't having much fun. So far in her entire time at the academy she hadn't said a word to another student, keeping to herself she was so shy and insecure. After awhile the sounds of Pokemon battles caught her ears and she went to watch taking down notes of the Pokemon she observed.

"I could gather more facts if I would just work up the nerve to challenge someone to a battle" she thought miserably sighing a bit as she brushed her pink hair out of her face. But just as she was starting to give up all hope she heard the sounds of someone walking towards her.

"Hey! You there!" a boys voice shouted at her "Wanna battle?". Looking up Geneviève turned her head and saw a boy with blonde and blue hair a good deal taller than her but she could tell he was at least a year younger than her.

"S-Sure" she said a little uncertainly. "I only have one Pokemon at the moment but a battle should be a lot of fun" she added smiling a bit not that used to talking to other people but doing her best as she glanced at him looking away again as her hand grabbed the Pokeball from her belt.

"A nervous one, eh? Anyways, let's get it started!" Sam yelled. He grabbed a Pokeball from his pocket, and tossed it onto the air. The capsule flashed, and in a blast of red light his Pidgeotto, Ace, emerged from the Pokeball. Ace immediately spread his wings, sparkling the place.

"Think you can match up with him?" Sam taunted, grinning. He was pretty confident about this battle.

Geneviève watched as he summoned his first Pokemon a Pidgeotto. "Ah Pidgeotto, also known as the bird pokemon Pidgeotto claims a large area as its own territory. This Pokémon flies around, patrolling its living space. If its territory is violated, it shows no mercy in thoroughly punishing the foe with its sharp claws." she said before looking down embarrassed.

"Great another know it all comment" she thought before looking up and tossing her Pokeball into the hair. In a flash her oddly colored Simipour, Sapphire was in front of her. "I can take you" she said trying to seem confident.

"What? Well, alright then, Pokedex, thanks for all the info!" Sam said, waiting for her to call out her Pokemon.

She tossed a pokeball into the air, and a Simipour came out. The Simiour was not like any ordinary Simipour though, it had bright red eyes.

"What is that thing?! It's a monster!" Sam laughed. He was taunting and teasing the girl, trying to get the psychological edge over her in battle. Injuring her mentally would make her lose focus.

Sam smiled to himself as he stared at the Simipour, but then nearly fell over when he saw Ace already sleeping. "Wake up, you idiot!" He whispered. Ace immediately opened his eyes with surprise, as if he didn't know where he was.

"Ace, start off with your signature move! Aerial Ace!" Sam yelled, and Ace immediately flew forward with lightning fast speed, his wings cutting through the air. One of them glowed silver, and Ace aimed and slashed at the Simipour.

"Nick woulda been a better choice here... But meh, who gives a damn."

Geneviève bit her lip as the boy called her Pokedex and proceeded to call Sapphire a monster. "D-Don't lose focus" she thought planing on doing her best and as she looked up again she saw the Pidgeotto asleep but after it woke up it flew towards Sapphire quickly one wing glowing Silver.

"Sapphire dodge and use Rain Dance!" Geneviève ordered biting her lip as her Pokemon failed at jumping back taking the hit and a good bit of damage as she was knocked over. Come on Sapphire you can do this she thought letting out a sigh of relief as her Pokemon stood up and started the steps for Rain dance a series of grey clouds started forming above their heads.

Grey clouds formed above the heads of the 2 trainers, it was soon dark. Sam looked upwards, and could feel a drop or two fall on his face. He stretched his palm out, and raindrops fell on it. He looked at the two Pokemon again, and saw Ace happily dancing with the Simipour.

"What the heck are you doing Ace?!" He yelled, surprised and shocked. He would have been laughing if it hadn't been his Pokemon. Ace turned around and looked at him with a confused expression, tilting his head slightly.

"You're supposed to be fighting!" He yelled at the Pokemon. The Pidgeotto made made an expression that said, "Oh, right." And immediately braced himself for the fight. Sam stared at the clouds, and had an idea.

"Ace, use Fly!" Ace jumped up, and disappeared over the dark clouds. He was practically invisible from there, and could easily attack from above with the element of surprise. Ace suddenly dived from somewhere over the other side, behind the girl. He dived dangerously close the the girl's head, and straight towards the Simipour. Unfortunately, due to the water around them, his speed was much slower than before.

Geneviève smiled to herself as the rain started falling and she saw the Pidgeotto happily dancing with Sapphire. "it's just a friendly battle no need to take it too seriously" she called out to the boy with a smile "By the way my name's Geneviève what's yours?" she added as she saw his Pokemon disappear into the clouds.

"his Pokemon is moving slower than before. I have to time this right" she thought waiting a moment as the bird dived at her pokemon. "Sapphire dodge and counter with Hydro Pump!" she yelled smiling as her Simipour jumped back a ball of water forming in her hands.

"The name's Sam" Sam said with a grin. The girl seemed to be friendly, it wouldn't harm him to be friendly himself. She had a beautiful smile, it looked good on her.

Just as soon as Ace dived at the Simipour, the Pokemon jumped back. The bird Pokemon was approaching quite quickly, and couldn't stop himself in time. Ace smashed into the floor with a loud thud, but soon got up, although he was dazed. As soon as he got up, he was hit by the Simipour's Hydro Pump in the face, and was sent flying backwards. He landed somewhere far off, his eyes closed, not moving.

"Aw, crap." Sam thought. He couldn't lose this battle, not at all. "Come on Ace!" He yelled at the downed Pokemon. "You can do this!" Ace's eyes snapped open, and he got on his feet, ready for some action. Sam grinned, and Ace flew up into the air.

"Ace, use Steel Wing!" Ace dived at the Simipour, his wing glowing a bright silver.

"Nice to meet you" Geneviève said smiling more at him but her smile fell replaced by a worried look when she saw his Pokemon crash onto the floor. "As much as battling is necessary I hate seeing Pokemon get hurt" she thought letting out a soft sigh as Ace got back up after Sapphires attack hit and flew towards her wings glowing a bright silver.

"Sapphire.." she started but stopped when she saw the attack hit sending Sapphire to the ground. "Come on get up" she thought a few tears forming in her eyes as she watched her Pokemon on the ground. At this point Geneviève had closed her eyes ready to admit defeat when she heard her Pokemon's voice cry out.

Opening her eyes Geneviève smiled a bit again "Sapphire use Scald!". Sapphire nodded at her trainer and ran towards Ace her attack's power boosted from the last minutes of Rain dance. Sapphire hit Ace with the attack leaving him burned from the hot water and sending him back a ways to the ground. Biting her lip Geneviève waited not seeing the Pokemon get up.

"Dammit!" Sam yelled. Ace was lying nearby, completely still, not moving.

"Ace! Get up!" Sam yelled, his voice full of desperation. He didn't move at all. Sam sighed, and took out Ace's Pokeball.

"Aight Ace, come back... You did a good job." Sam wasn't happy. He had underestimated the girl, which had caused Ace to be knocked out. But this time, he was going to take her seriously. Sam took out his second Pokeball, and tossed it into the air. Nick got out of the Pokeball in a flash of red, and he seemed to be ready to fight.

"This time you're going down..." Sam thought and he looked at the girl's face. She looked almost ready to cry. "What the heck?" Sam whispered to himself. But this was no time to worry about that. He had a battle to win.

"Nick, pretty easy, use Quick Attack!" Nick jumped and charged forward, and in a flash hit the Simipour. It wasn't as effective though, doing little damage.

"The Simipour's already quite weak... one more hit..." The Simipour was down on the ground, and Sam ordered Nick to retreat.

"It's time Nick! Use Solarbeam!" Sam yelled. Nick quickly absorbed some of the sun's rays coming in from several windows, concentrating the energy into a single bright beam. He opened his mouth, and quickly shot it at the downed water monkey.

Geneviève let out a sad sigh as she saw the other Pokemon knocked out. She knew that this meant she was one step closer to winning but that's not why she wanted to battle. She battled purely for fun and it always upset her to see a Pokemon hurt. Looking up she saw Treecko being called to battle and before she could even order an attack Sapphire was hit with quick attack and was struggling to get up.

"S-Sapphire! you can do it!" she yelled more tears forming in her eyes as she watched his Pokemon power up a solar beam. "Come on get up!" she yelled not wanting to see her Pokemon get hurt as Solar beam was sent at her. The attack hit leaving a blinding light forcing everyone watching to look away for a few minutes.

When the light cleared Geneviève looked back and saw Sapphire on the floor unconscious. "Y-you did a good job Sapphire" she whispered calling her pokemon back a few tears falling "Nice battle you win" she said to Sam turning away not wanting to be made fun of for being about to cry.

"Whoa..." Sam said. Nick winked at him, and ran back towards his trainer. Sam grabbed the Treecko, yelling, "We did it Nick! We did it!" He was grinning. He could see Nick had grown stronger from the battle, and Nick seemed to be as happy as him. Sam looked at the girl who had just lost, she seemed to be crying.

"Uh, crap..." He was no good at this kind of situations, and he had no idea what to do. He called Nick back into his Pokeball, then walked towards the girl. He blushed a bit, then he grabbed her hand and shook it.

"That was an, uh, awesome battle Geneviève!" He said with a smile. Then, he let go of her hand, and walked away from the place briskly.

Dante

Dante turned his head after hearing that the man he was talking to was N from the Unova region, mostly because that he heard of him while traveling throughout his journey before going to the academy.

Wow, an intern at the academy, how cool is that! thought Dante after hearing that N was going to be an intern.

"Yes, I am a student at the Pokemon Academy", Dante said to N with a smile. "In fact, I'm in Entei dorm."

That's when Dante saw Valorie send out her Charizard. Dante's ears perked when heard the words "watch" and "battle". At that point, he really did want to see what is going to happen.

"Sure, N", said replied to N's question. "Through, I wouldn't know who to root for."

Nicodemus

Nicodemus Grey wasn't what you'd call materialistic.

For one, he was utterly lacking in 'materials' to hoard. His life had given him many good things, but one thing it hadn't given him was money. The fact that he'd finally received a job of any sort was a small grace.

Second…well, all he really craved outside of Pokémon was knowledge. Knowledge came from books, as a rule. Oh, and his Pokedex. The Pokedex was one of the few mechanical devices that Nick owned. Granted, mechanical devices always seemed to act up around him. Why exactly was that?

"Deep in brooding, I see," said a voice. Morgan Freeman's voice.

Instead of panicking on the spot and flinging his arms around, Nick merely smiled and pulled out the Pokedex he kept in his back pocket. A sense of static energy lingered about it. Oh, and it had a couple eyes and a mouth filled with razor sharp teeth, bared in a deadly grin.

Nick snorted. "You know, I'm going to get some anxious looks if I carry you around. Most Pokedex devices utilize a more…conventional voice system."

"But Dexter is boring," whispered the Pokedex, still using the famous actor's voice. "As are all of the other preprogrammed voices. Think about it. Morgan Freeman starred in Seven with Brad Freaking Pitt." The voice changed again, this time a shade higher. "You afraid to have a near-life experience?"

"Ha. Haha. You kill me." Nicodemus glanced around at his hotel room, nearly as bare as it had been when he'd first arrived in Saffron City, and took out a Dunhill cigarette. He didn't have much money to spend on them, but every time he felt he'd achieved some small victory, he'd light up. Getting this job – this prestigious of a job at his age, especially – was a victory of unprecedented sorts. For Nick, at least. "Literally."

"Your usage of 'literal' in place of 'figurative' is highly illogical," said the Pokedex, this time in Spock's voice. This last remark elicited a snort from his Master at last, and the teeth on the Pokedex broadened considerably. He finally reverted back to Freeman's voice. "Besides, the way I sound should be the least of your worries. Most people would think your sanity in question if you're openly conversing with a Pokedex."

By the time his companion had finished showing off his vocal prowess Nick had lit the cigarette and bore a smirk. "You bring up a valid point, Rotom. Eh, madness be damned, I don't need the approval of my coworkers to function. That makes one of us."

The ghost-electric Pokémon winked at the usage of his name. "Only one of you? Looks like not all your chickens have hatched, boss. No offense."

Nicodemus left the room, lazily strolling while taking intermittent drags of his cigarette. "I thoroughly despise that expression, and you know it. 'No offense' is just another way of saying 'this is surely going to offend you, but I want to be able to get away with it.'"

"And I do get away with it!" Rotom beamed, or did his best to convey the emotion of glee…it's difficult to do so when your mouth is almost permanently smiling. "Ah, let's take a stroll outside, shall we? Let the boys out for once? I like this city. And excellent place for a field trip. So full of life and emotion, so full of delicious ecstatic hormones…" The Rotom trailed off as Nicodemus swung open the doors, wandering in no particular direction.

Nick licked his lips and eyed the Pokeballs he kept on his belt. Should he? Why not! Being a teacher is supposed to have perks…and besides, there are Pokémon practically rampaging around at the moment. It can't hurt.

With that thought, Nick took out his four Pokeballs – he'd never needed to confine his Rotom after he befriended it – and clicked the individual buttons, heart pounding. Light flashed each time, and a Pokémon appeared in its spot, each one beginning to talk to each other with vigor.

"Okay, this is different from back home fellas – let's try and keep it classy. Chandelure, don't have to worry about you, just try and keep Cofagrigus from ripping some poor student's soul out of their body. Haunter, stay away from anyone that looks like they may be asleep. On second thought, you might just want to stay by me. Froslass…" Nick glanced around for a minute at his other Pokémon before feeling a cold presence on the back of his calf. He stared down at the ice-ghost, smiling gently as it slowly sank into the ground. "It's alright, girl. You can stick by me. We'll have to adapt to being here, and this is as good a way as any."

Cofagrigus let out a hollow moan, something that would have terrified most novice trainers. For Nicodemus, it was something about as scary as a child whining about how they couldn't play on the big-boy swings. "Cheer up, chump. It's not like you won't have a chance to battle later."

There was a small sizzle of electricity from the Pokedex, and suddenly Rotom was floating in front of Nick. It was incapable of speech now, but the question was easy enough to answer. "Rotom, you can do pretty much whatever you want…just stick close."

The ghost Pokémon vanished without a word, as tangible as mist in a quiet neighborhood. Nick simply walked forwards, taking left and right turns on a whim, not paying much attention to where he was actually headed. Every now and then, he'd lift the cigarette to his mouth again, but besides that, he was perfectly quiet.

He slowly came back to reality as the Dunhill became little more than the filter, and he glanced up. A warning fizzle let Nicodemus know that Rotom had returned, as well as a very Freeman-esque cough.

Nick didn't understand the small noise at first, but he glanced around and realized that he was literally maybe ten feet away from a congregation (four people seemed like a congregation to Nick, considering his limited experience with people in general) of trainers and…well, a man barely older than Nick himself. The girl took a Pokeball from her belt and tossed it forwards, unleashing a rather imposing figure in Charizard before leaping ahead of it in a rather hilarious pose.

Nicodemus knew that the others would likely notice him, despite his surreptitious style, but he didn't particularly care. He leaned up against a trash can no more than a few feet away from the man with green hair, feet casually splayed in front of him. The air suddenly grew cold as Nick's ghost Pokémon drew nearer, but he didn't flinch at the clamminess of his skin. Instead, he simply took a last drag of the near-dead cigarette, held it, and exhaled at the ground so as not to seem rude. His eyes flashed up at the Charizard, then back to the trainer, and he lifted the cigarette once more.

"Cofagrigus," he said, loudly enough to be heard. Less than a foot behind Nick, the tall coffin-like ghost appeared. Nick tossed the cigarette over his shoulder without glancing back and the Cofagrigus lunged, swallowing the cigarette butt hole. After another moment of chewing, he slowly faded, drawing darkness around him like a veil.

"I've always quite liked Charizard," said Morgan Freeman from the Pokedex in Nick's hand. "I hope the little girl wins."

Nick still said nothing, but the hint of a smile tugged at the corners of a cheek. He was used to the cold his ghastly Pokémon brought by now, and it felt like a sort of morbid blanket he could cover himself with.

Nicodemus cocked his head. The first battle he'd witness at his new home, where he'd be teaching – this would be interesting.

Nicodemus Grey

As Nicodemus watched the battle grow more and more imminent, he took note of a few things. First off, he noticed that the girl seemed confident in her Pokémon, and more than that, in her abilities as a trainer. Not a bad thing at all. Confidence is only bad when you can't back up your claims, after all, and even then it tends to be called arrogance.

Second, he was bemused by the ferocity and courage the tiny Ralts was displaying. Either he had a lot of respect for his master or he had a lot of pride in his own fighting skill. Then again, it could be both. Then again, it could be a façade, and in all likelihood it was. Either way, Nick admired the little Pokémon's will in the face of such a overwhelming obstacle.

Lastly? He noticed Rotom murmuring things from the Pokedex, translating the exchange between Pokémon.

"Ralts is a fiery little nut, even if he is totally outclassed by that massive Charizard. I'm more worried that he'll be squished than anything else, and my suspicion is warranted…that Charizard looks like he is capital P-O-ed. I don't think the female trainer even has to take it easy to walk out of this one." Rotom the immaculate Freeman imitator stopped, thinking. "Anyone else hungry? Looks like the Charizard might have Ralts for lunch. I'm not going to lie; he does look like a delicious little morsel."

You don't know how strange it is to hear Morgan Freeman talking about eating a small Pokémon until you experience it for yourself.

"Hmm," said Nick softly, still not having moved from his leisurely position against the trashcan. "Hmm. Perhaps I can even this fight out a tad. Or maybe…even incorporate my first lesson."

The Pokedex whirred excitedly. "Translation: you feel bad for that Whopper Jr. on the battlefield, and you feel it is your solemn duty to scare the more powerful trainer as a result."

"Bingo."

"Can I do it, please? I've been working on my death rattle, and it's really coming along quite nicely. I might even be able to find a meat freezer to inhibit for a while, maybe spill a bit of pig's blood on her…? Pretty please?"

"No time to find a meat freezer mate, and besides, that'd be disrespectful to the owner." The reprimand was gentle, more joking than anything. "No, I believe it's Cofagrigus's turn anyways…you went last, Rotom."

"Haww, haunter haunt," whispered something into Nick's ear.

"He says it's his turn, and that you're not being fair," relayed the Rotom inhibited Pokedex.

"Well sure, it would be," responded Nick. He rolled his eyes. "I mean, I'd be fine letting you prank people…if your version of a prank wasn't putting them to sleep and setting them on fire while trying to drain their life force via dreams. Come on, man."

The Haunter giggled wildly.

"Cofagrigus?" said Nick, his voice even softer than it had been before. What he was doing wasn't strictly against the rules of Pokémon, particularly since these two were his students, but he wanted to play it loose, keeping the girl trainer (who said her name was Valorie) off guard. She seemed intensely focused on the battle about to begin, and there was no point wasting the incredible opportunity.

Nick didn't turn, but a harsh rasp and icy shivers told him that the coffin-Pokémon had heard him quite well. Excellent.

"Listen mate, are you hungry?"

Another rasp, this time more excited.

"Too bad."

A dejected rasp this time.

"The good news is that you get to act it out…isn't that fun? I'll leave the rest to you, just creep up on that girl over there and try to make her crap her pants. Without killing her. Or maiming. That sort of thing."

There was no more noise, and for a second, Nicodemus thought the Pokémon was ignoring him. Then a feeling like being doused in icy water flooded over his skin, minus the wet feeling, and Nick smiled. Valorie was in for one hell of a surprise.

Cofagrigus drifted an inch over the ground, his body invisible to all but the spirit world. His eyes were slits and his mouth was shut, doing his utmost not to make any noise – and for a ghost, it's not too tough to do that.

As he approached the smaller girl, excitement flooded him like some sort of sweet drug. He was still a few feet away, but the life she emitted was vast and delicious. He wanted nothing more than to eat it all up, to materialize right behind her and rip into –

Right, right, those days…they were behind him. Nicodemus had a good point when it came to humans. They're just so full of trans fat that it's not worth it at all. It takes a decent bit of effort to keep a respectable figure, even as a ghost. But this girl, she didn't know that Cofagrigus was a reformed sort. So when he got close, roughly a foot behind her, he waited, emitting a cold pulse and gradually raising his rasping voice.

The Charizard surged forwards, and at the same time, the ghost Pokémon did too – albeit more slowly. He had this down. The theatrics were half the fun. With his phantasm black arms, he 'pulled' apart the spirit realm to enter the human world – in all reality, he was just allowing his middle to appear more quickly than the rest, but to a bystander, it would be a truly awesome sight. The rest of his body was unveiled as he drifted forwards, now practically screaming in a harsh, wailing rasp. He raised his hands up just as he passed through the girl in a cliché "BOO" pose.

This had all taken less than two seconds to do, since the Charizard moved forwards. But now, it was time for the finale, the piece de resistance to compliment the rest of Cofagrigus's work.

Currently, his back was to the girl. But with a small amount of effort, he forced his face, which essentially consisted of two blood-red eyes (typically, they were more of a light red, but blood red tends to scare more easily) and a mouth of gaping teeth, to come to the side facing her. He forced his eyes to bulge and his mouth to stretch farther as he screamed, not having stopped since he started. Cofagrigus even stuck his tongue out for good measure.

And as he screamed, he waited with eager anticipation to see (and hear!) the girl's reaction.