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chapters so far

- chapter 1 : ROUTE 30
- chapter 2 : ROUTE 31
- chapter 3 : VIOLET CITY
- chapter 4 : RUINS OF ALPH
- chapter 5 : ROUTE 32
- chapter 6 : UNION CAVE
- chapter 7 : AZALEA TOWN part 1
- chapter 8 : SLOWPOKE WELL
- chapter 9 : AZALEA TOWN part 2
- chapter 10: ILEX FOREST​

chapter 10 ; ILEX FOREST

Ilex forest lies to the west of Azalea and is, much like the Ruins of Alph, one of the oldest and most mysterious places in Johto. Part of the reason why Azalea isn't well visited by Goldenrod citizens and not always a stop on the way for travelers who don't care about its gym, is because Ilex isn't the most comfortable place to travel through. While there is a main path, even lit in daytime much like the path through Union Cave, the forest's trees are so close together that all light is blocked out, and the forest seems to be in a perpetual night. It also seems to become overgrown unnaturally fast. Azalea's citizens believe that there is a spirit of the forest who makes it happen in order to keep humans away. Goldenrod citizens mostly just think its wilderness is bothersome.

Weather - CLOUDY, not that you'd see it anyways through the thick foliage





situation #1 MAY
Thought the Smeargle gang war in Ruins of Alph was bad? You haven't seen anything yet. Three monkey brothers have moved in and riled up groups of wild pokémon to support them, against each other. It is as if each of the monkeys believes that it has the right to be a "trainer" and send pokémon out into battle against each other... Or by playing pranks on traveling humans. You may find yourself victim of one of these pranks, or perhaps you are suddenly in the midst of an ongoing "pokémon battle" between the brothers and their "teams" of wild pokémon supporters. It is all very weird. Some speculate that the monkey trio was raised in captivity and doesn't know how to be truly wild; being a trainer or pokémon is all they know.

Anyone can meet any of the brothers (Pansage, Panpour, Pansear) but there is only one of each... If you're attempting a capture, your post better show me you deserve to be the one to get a monkey!

situation #2 MAY
There is a pink fairy flying around in the forest, rumored to be the legendary guardian pokémon of Ilex, although the visual descriptions don't seem to match the legends. Some local trainers are arranging casual (or deeply serious and ridiculously well prepared) expeditions to head out and find it...

It's quite alright to invite the GM to your JPs for situation #2 when you've written a bit. You know. Somewhere deep inside the forest. If you get there. It might help, you know. If you like pink.



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A big yawn and a stretch followed as Vincent stumbled out of his bed, nearly tripping over Tank the Beldum as he did. The young man grunted, but did not chastise the small steel type. It was too early in the morning for that. I'll just remind him to sleep away from my bed next time, he internally mumbled to himself. His right hand still stung from the number of cuts and gashes that the mirror inflicted upon him and the distinct memory of the previous night flashed before his eyes as he stepped into the bathroom and saw the wreckage of his punch. Glass littered the ground and the mirror was barely usable as long cracks echoed from the epicenter, a small crater in the middle of the mirror. Vincent glanced down towards his hand and remembered why he did it, as seeing yourself become your loathsome father before your eyes can do terrible things to a man such as Vincent. But he then remembered the tender care that went into wrapping the hand. Vincent still owed Melody, even if it was a small gesture. He found himself owing a lot of people really, and it bothered Vincent more than he cared to admit. Gingerly, Vincent washed himself up and got changed, throwing on a pair of dark jeans, a black and red jacket and his favorite red skull cap. His black hair sprouted out of the hat in every which direction. Perhaps I should get a haircut at one point.

As he returned to his room, Vincent clapped his hands loudly. "Alright, wake up! Let's go!" In a stir, all of his Pokemon leapt to attention. Hanzo was the first, and seemingly teleported to Vincent's side. Brian was quick to follow, perching himself on the open window as he began to peck at himself, cleaning out his feathers. It was sluggish, however, suggesting the bird Pokemon was a hardly a morning type. Exaclibur, feeling sheepish in the early hours, poked at Tank, until the Beldum fumbled around as it rose to a waking levitation. Bane was in his Pokeball, so there was no need to force the Magikarp awake. Vincent wasn't sure what to do with the other water type in general, seeing how as eager as the Magikarp was, it was hardly useful in many ways. Vincent pondered chucking him in the PC downstairs, but he mused that seeing what Illex had in store was probably the more sound approach. "Good, good. We got a forest to conquer so back in the balls, okay?" A number of his Pokemon sighed, enjoying the time free but one by one they conceded.

Vincent left the room, returned his keys to the front desk and bolted out of the Pokemon Center. There was little time to waste as he needed to bail town fairly quickly. The mirror issue was a set of fees waiting to happen and it perhaps best to lose that tail in Goldenrod if he could. He had a home there, so he barely would need to check to the Pokemon Center in the city. Realizing that, Vincent decided to pick up some food and supplies at the PokeMart and immediately head for Illex. He was sure that forest would a rough journey, if probably a short one. Like most Goldenroders, Vincent didn't think much of the forest. It was dark, and hardly traveled. For the most part, the urban street urchin forgot it was a concept. So it was a mystery. Vincent didn't like those too much and wanted to be prepared. He had to be. The last few days taught him that much. This whole journey is not even close to what I thought I was getting myself into. All the more reason to take this seriously. No more Mr. Nice Vincent. At least that is what he tried to tell himself. Grabbing a few snacks, Vincent, like before, fleed the PokeMart with a pace that mirroed that of a robber leaving the scene of the crime and made his way to the forest, hoping that nothing else would creep into his mind to distract him from his intended course of action.

As if on cue, right before Vincent reached the small building leading into the forest itself, he felt himself pulled back by the arm and spun around, confronted with a camera, held by one guy, a boom mic dangling above him held by another, a woman with short hair holding a microphone standing besides the camera, and finally, besides him, a blonde guy, a few inches taller than Vincent, clearly several years older, with a very nice physique, that would clearly make most girls give him a second or third look.

"Whoa there, buddy!" The guy called out with a small laugh, letting go of Vincent's arm and planting his hand on his shoulder, offering him a broad grin that didn't quite reach his eyes. "Take a moment before you head out. You sure you've got everything you need to go through Ilex Forest?"

Vincent was completely caught off guard, and his face grimaced at the camera and microphone in his face and a small pack of people crowding around. The arm dangling on his shoulder made him all the more uncomfortable as the older gentleman parrotted clearly rehearsed lines at both Vincent and the camera. For a moment, Vincent thought he recognized the man, but shook his head. It's clearly no one that important,he thought to himself.

"Yeah, I got everything," Vincent said, removing the hand from his shoulder with his subuded rage. "Thanks for asking," he added sarcastically.

The blonde guy seemed unphased as Vincent removed his hand from his shoulder, simply sending the camera a smirk before turning back to the younger trainer. "Wrong again, amigo! Because thanks to the NTC, we're bringing you a -very- special donation."

Before even waiting for Vincent, the man brought up his right hand, revealing a Pokéball that looked slightly... different. It was completely white, save for the middle line that seperated the top and bottom, which was red. He held it up in front of the camera before grabbing Vincent's arm to plant the ball in the palm, sending a winning smile to the camera. The reporter-lady quickly moved in front of it and launched into a quick-spoken speech about what had just happened, and from the vague things Vincent heard, this blonde guy's name was Marcus.

Then something clicked. Marcus was the name of the talking head that his little brother and sister would watch. Marcus was the name, if he recalled correctly, of Christina's brother. Heh, small world, Vincent thought to himself with a weak smile, which was appropriately timed for the camera. While he wouldn't mind robbing from the rich to benefit the poor (being himself), Vincent loathed charity and hated false charity even more. This "donation" was little more than some gesture to get more fans. Seeing through that act was the easiest thing he had done all week. With a scoff, Vincent shoved the ball back into Marcus' chest. "Thanks, but no thanks. I mean, really? Do I look that helpless to you?"

Marcus blinked in surprise as the ball was pushed back into his hands, but he quickly recovered, bouncing it from his hand. "Well pal, let's just say there's a reason we went up to you of all people, eh?" He sent a 'charming' grin at the camera, the lady choking down a mild laugh. Marcus then, somewhat harshly, planted the ball back in Vincent's hand, sending the teen another smile, though this one was clearly strained. "Either way, you don't look like the type of kid who can -afford- saying no to gifts."

If Vincent was a stronger man, the Pokeball in his hand would have nearly cracked under the intense pressure as his entire body clenched tightly. He went there. This was definitely the man he heard about. The man he saw that people worshipped on television. "Oh, so I don't look like I can afford crap, eh? Well, you look like you couldn't crawl yourself out of a plastic bag because your head is so far up your ass that people are placing your ugly mug on milk cartons! So listen you pathetic waste of space. How about you take your camera crew and your dumbass show and find some other poor sap that buys into your crap? Huh? How's that sound? Or do you want to interview the poor little helpless trainer too? Well, here's your answer to every question: Screw off! Okay!?"

Everyone was quiet for a moment, staring between Vincent and Marcus, before the latter broke off into a chuckle, raising his hands up in an upgiving fashion, shrugging his shoulders. "Ah well, you know, I just figured, since the Pokémon in that ball was offered up for adoption several times and no one wanted it, it'd just be fitting to give it to an equally snot-nosed, unliked little punk on the street, who doesn't-"

The reporter lady made a 'Cut, CUT' motion at the cameraman, who quickly turned away. The lady quickly tapped Marcus' arm, clearing her throat loudly, which halted the older trainer's rant and his increasingly harsh words and flaring attitude. He gave Vincent a final look before shaking his head, his carefree attitude quickly making a comeback as he sent Vincent a lazy smile. "Eh. Not worth the effort. Good luck on your 'journey', friend. Seems to me like you'll need it."

And with that, they were gone.

"I just need a restraining order to keep me from clocking you," Vincent mumbled, hopefully loud enough for Marcus to hear as his parade walked away. Sighing, Vincent looked at the ball in his hand. An unwanted Pokemon? That's a new one. Well, if its unwanted as me, I am certainly curious as to see what it is. Popping the ball open, a small fox-like creature emerged from the light. It's brown fur shook as the Pokemon barked softly, recieving Vincent nervously but curiously. Vincent crouched down and looked at it with a cocked head. "An Eevee? Fancy that," he commented. "Wait till my brother and sister get a kick out of you. Well not a real kick. Come here," Vincent ordered with a surprisely gentle voice. The Eevee came over and sniffed Vincent cautiously, before Vincent carried the small pup gently onto his shoulder. "Hang out here for now. We got a forest to check out."



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The battle against Bugsy had come and gone. After the incident with Team Rocket the previous night, it felt good to Melody to finally resume her journey as a normal trainer. Of course, things would never be quite the same as they were before. It would take Melody some time to get used to the fact that she could actually have a conversation with Blossom, her Bayleef. She would also always have that reminder of Team Rocket from the wound left on Napoleon's eye as well. Still, her team was all together, and that was more than enough to satisfy her for the time being.

At the moment, Melody was sitting on one of the benches in the lobby of the Pokémon Center, waiting for her team to be treated. It had been a rather interesting battle to say the least. The last thing she had expected was to do a double battle against Bugsy with Christina as her partner. Then again, there were probably few trainers she'd rather have by her side, and the two managed to pull of teamwork with their Pokémon quite well. Both of the girls had to battle against two of Bugsy's own Pokémon. For Melody, this involved her battling against his Scyther. The battle was quite difficult in itself, even if she did have her Taillow, Hawk, to lead the battle with. That little bird had guts to take on such a dangerous opponent. Even with the typing advantage that Hawk had, there were several close calls in the battle. In the end, Melody knew that she would have ended up losing if Hawk had not evolved into a Swellow at the last moment. She really considered herself lucky to have such a strong team of friends on her side.

Gazing around the lobby in boredom, Melody sighed as she leaned back on the bench. "Sure is taking them a long time to fix Hawk up. I guess now that Rocket's been taken out of here, everything is starting to pick up with business."

Melody shifted a bit in her seat. Her eyes fell to an old magazine that she had already flipped through twice while waiting for Hawk's injuries to be treated. The articles might have been a bit more interesting if they had not been printed about two years ago... then again, she figured that the center's main purpose was probably not to entertain her as much as it was to treat sick and injured Pokémon. Deciding against reading the magazine again, Melody instead shifted her focus to a television that was hanging on the wall.

"The excitemet here in Goldenrod is really starting to peak, Tom!" a female news anchor said. A large, somewhat cheesey grin was plastered on her lips as she spoke. "Trainers and fans of the sport in general are gathering here in anticipation for this weekend's big attraction! One of the best trainers of this region, none other than Cliff Hughes is going to be here and showing his skills in a special exhibition match!"

Melody's eyes widened as her attention focused completely on the television. She slid off the bench and walked straight over towards the screen, possibly getting close enough to get scolded by her mother if she happened to see her this close.

"As many of you may know, Cliff is a veteran trainer from Cherrygrove City. He has taken first place in several local competitions and tournaments, and even participated in our very own Johto League tournament. Unfortunately he was stopped just short of taking on the champion, but that has done little to stop his career! Again, Cliff Hughes is going to be here by this weekend. If you don't wanna miss the excitement, then I don't think I need to tell you twice to get here by then!"

As the news woman spoke, images of Cliff flashed up on the screen. Melody clenched her fists as she looked at his image. That same smug grin was worn on his lips. She could never forget those cold and uncaring eyes he seemed to have. Just hearing his name was enough to make her blood boil.

"You mean to tell me we've been struggling all this time to make ends meet while you get your ego stroked and live high on the hog like you're some sort of god?" A small lapse in her judgement occurred as Melody rather violently kicked the wall under the television. "Makes me sick!"

"Hey Mel, check it out, the kitchen made us a big, packed lunch to get us through-"

The red-haired trainer stopped in her tracks over towards her friend at the sight of the seething girl, as did the oddly brown-ish Quilava following besides her. Christina, after handing in her injured Pokémon from the gym battle, had gone to get the two provisions that would last them their trip through Ilex. However, upon seeing (and hearing) Melody, a small, concerned frown slipped over her lips. She glanced briefly down at Sindy, who blinked up at her trainer, before quickly shuffling over to gently nudge her head against Melody's leg.

"Uhm... Melody, is everything alright? I thought you'd be really happy after how well the gym battle went?"

Melody looked up, a rather spaced out expression taking hold over her face. "Huh...? Um..." she paused, looking back at the television just in time to see a commercial for Snover Frozen Peas ending. "It's... this commercial. I hate peas, they totally make me sick, you know?"

Christina's brow quirked, peering oddly at the shorter girl. From the expression, it was clear that she wasn't entirely convinced, but rather than pursuing the subject, she shrugged her shoulders, offering her friend a faint smile, raising up the two double-sandwich sized bundles in her hands. "Well, you don't have to worry about any of that. I made sure we got the -best- of the leftovers."

A wry grin spread on her lips as she stepped closer, offering one of them to Melody, all the while Sindy seemed content with laying down besides them, resting her head on her front legs. "Man, that was some fight, huh? You and Hawk did really well together. I think I'm pretty happy with choosing to fight with Shade instead of Sindy, myself."

Despite the obvious type advantage of her Quilava, versus a bug-type gym, Christina had opted to go with her Haunter, instead. It made sense, in a way. The Pinsir and Scyther they fought both had normal-type attacks, which didn't at all touch Haunter. That, and she had also only -just- gotten back her beloved companion from Team Rocket. She wanted to enjoy her company a bit more before throwing her head-first into a battle again.

Melody accepted her share of the provisions before taking a seat beside Christina. "It was still pretty close, even with Hawk's advantage. I'm glad he evolved like he did, or you might have been the only one to get a badge from that one." She glanced down at the floor for a moment, before looking back up at her taller friend. "Hey, Chrissie. How about how far is Goldenrod from here? Got any idea?"

"Uhm..." Christina's brow furrowed as she sat down besides Melody, reaching down to pick up Sindy, at which point, she planted the Quilava in her lap and began nuzzling her behind her ears. "We have to go through Ilex first off, which might take a day... and then there's a short road that should lead straight to it. So... two-ish days? Depends what happens on the way, I guess."

She paused briefly to look down at Sindy, who was quietly murring happily from the attention, a soft smile spreading on Christina's lips, looking back up to Melody. "Why do you ask?"

"Um... Well..." Melody began pulling her legs up to her chest for a moment. "There's... this super cool event-thingy going on there this weekend. I was kinda hoping we could get there before it was over, you know? I totally wanna see some of it before it ends."

"An event? Cool! Like a sort of competition? Or is it more like a festival?" She took a moment to glance down at the pokégear resting in her pocket, muttering quietly to herself. "I really should get that map addition to it..."

"Um... I don't think it's anything quite like those... I just know this really famous trainer is supposed to be there, I wanna see him before he leaves," Melody answered quickly. "Lemme go grab Hawk, he should be ready now. Then we can get moving, yeah?"

Not waiting for a response, Melody hopped off the bench and quickly made her way to the counter to reclaim her Swellow. It only took her a moment or two before she returned, not even going out of her way to thank the nurse as she usually did.

As Melody took off, Christina frowned softly, looking after her. She glanced down at Sindy, who, by now, was too occupied with the scritches she was receiving to be worried about her trainer's friend. Once she returned however, Christina eased Sindy onto the ground and smiled at Melody. "Okay, uhm, let me just pick up Shade, and we can take off. Have you got everything you need? Pokéballs, dex, gear...?"

"Yeah, yeah! I got everything!" Melody insisted. "Go get Shade so we can get moving! I feel like we've been sitting around here for months already!"

"Alright, alright! Sheesh!" Christina laughed as she stood up, stretching her arms out over her head with a soft sigh. "I'll admit, I'm looking forward to getting moving again, myself."

Stepping over to the counter, Christina quickly received the ball containing her Haunter, which she stored in the pouch by her hip. Adjusting her vest, she stepped out into the town proper, taking in a deep breath of air. Despite the sky being mostly cloudy, she had the usual, bubbly feeling inside of her, which she felt whenever she was about to head off on the next step of her journey. "Aaaalright, let's get going! The sooner we get moving, the sooner we'll be out of the forest. Apparently it's pretty dense and full of... blergh, bugs."

Melody glanced over at Christina. "You just put down a bug that's over half your size, and you're still all weirded out by 'em? I would've thought that after the gym you'd be a bit better by 'em, Chrissie."

Christina huffed, wafting a gloved hand in the air with a small pout. "Just because I know how to take one out, doesn't magically make them more likeable. Bugs are horrible, and should be set on fire whenever possible, end of story."

"That's a bit of a stretch, don't you think?" Melody replied. The sights of Azaela Town were starting to go behind them as they approached Ilex forest. "Besides, I think we got a few more things to worry about here than just bugs. I hear Ilex is pretty big... it's all dark, and there are lots of turns and twists in there, like a maze."

The red-haired trainer wafted her hand again, her smile returning to her lips, Sindy trotting along happily besides her. "We'll worry about that when we get there. There should just be a path through that we can follow too, right?"

"I dunno. I've never been through it," Melody replied simply. "I've never been past Violet City until recently, you know."

"Yeah, but, like, people travel through here all the time, right? So there -has- to be some sort of path to follow to make it easier on the travellers."

After a few minutes of walking and talking, the two young trainers reached the 'checkpoint' between Azaela and Ilex Forest. It was a little hut with a sliding door. More like a guard station than an actual house. As the three entered, they were greeted by the sight of a middle-aged, short, brown-haired man sitting behind a desk with a radio, a crosswords and a mug of coffee in front of him.

He raised his head at the quiet chime the sliding door gave off and offered the two a smile, raising his mug in greetings. "Hey there youngsters! Off to Ilex, eh? You got everything you need to be alright in there?"

"Of course!" Melody replied. She smiled rather proudly, putting her hands on her hips as she spoke. "We've been around the block more than once by this point! It's gonna take more than a wild Weedle or something to get the jump on us!"

"Really now?" He asked, smiling with raised brows. He went quiet for a moment before pointing at the two, something dawning on him. "Wait, you're not locals... travelling trainers? You must be Pine's kids. So you're on your way to Goldenrod, then?"

Christina nodded her head with a smile, lifting a hand to brush a strand of hair behind her ear, all the while Sindy was sniffing a plant in the corner, the flames on her back and head 'turned off' at the moment. "Yeah, that's us! And we are, yeah. Can you tell us the fastest way to get there?"

The man's brow furrowed, nodding his head slowly as he sipped from his coffee, leaning back in the chair. "You're gonna wanna follow the path. It's not lit up, but it's pretty clear where it is. You know the spiel by now, wild Pokémon off the path, be careful, etcetera." He wafted a hand dismissively in the air. "You're gonna have to be extra careful, though. There's some... things been going on in the forest the past week."

"Some...things...?" Melody questioned. It was part of her natural curiosity to want to find out what, but at the same time the girl was in a hurry. She was wanting to get on the road to Goldenrod as soon as possible. Shaking her head at the thought, the shorter of the two girls shrugged and began to walk past Christina. "Whatever, we'll be fine. Come on, let's go Chrissie."

The red-haired trainer blinked as Melody just strode past both her and the 'lookout'. She sent the man an apologetic smile and followed after her friend, calling out to her companion behind them. "Come on, Sindy, let's go!"

Scratching his head at the girl's apparent hurry, the man shrugged his shoulders and called out after the two as they exited the hut on the opposite side. "If you see any monkey-Pokémon, just don't engage them! Keep safe!" He finished with a brief wave of his crossword, before slumping back into his chair, shaking his head lightly. "Such a hurry."



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ACQUIRED BADGES

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POKéMON PARTY

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css by Nebula

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No! Please...

Don't! Don't... leave me... no...

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"There," Cordelia said as she pushed down on the folded clothes filling her travel bag. She took one last look through the rest of bag's contents, mentally checking off each item she saw just to be sure she had everything she needed. She then turned to the little blue pokemon floating at her side. "Are you ready, Ring-Ring?" She asked, to which the wind chime pokemon jingled cheerily. Cordelia smiled at him. It was hard not to smile with such a happy little guy around. She looked around at her room to make sure everything was just as clean as it was when she arrived, then turned off the lights and left with her travel bag rolling behind her.

Stepping into the living room, she saw her grandparents sitting in front of the TV which was playing a movie she was unfamiliar with. "Morning Grandma, Grandpa," she greeted despite the fact that it was almost noon already. Her morning workout and packing for her journey had consumed her entire morning. The couple answered in kind while Cordelia made her way to the small house's kitchen off in the corner. She pulled out some eggs, a bag of spinach, and a small salmon filet from the fridge while Ring-Ring, already familiar with Cordelia's routine, grabbed some oil, various spices, and some cookware. Once Cordelia had everything she needed ready, she got straight to work.

"So you're both sure you're okay with this?" asked Cordelia while she rinsed the salmon. "My journey, I mean."

Cordelia's grandfather laughed. "Delia, how many times are you going to ask that?" Cordelia wasn't too sure what he meant considering this was only the second time she had asked, but she didn't say anything about it. "You're a big girl, it wouldn't be right for us to butt in on everything you do. Doing things yourself is how you grow up."

Now it was Cordelia's grandmother's who spoke, saying, "Hell, once she was your age your mom practically raised herself. And look where she is now, married to some rich corporate big-shot! 'Sides, we're not scared of your daddy. He can yell all he wants, it won't change anything." Cordelia didn't feel like she could comment on their parenting style, but her grandmother wasn't lying about that last part. Every time Cordelia's dad called them about her whereabouts in the event that she couldn't answer her own phone, they always told him they had no idea where she was, even though Cordelia always made sure to let them know beforehand. Although it was also possible that they never listened to her when she told them and they really had no idea where she was. Either way, they cared little for her dad's wrath.

Cordelia changed the subject and continued the conversation with her grandparents as she worked on her breakfast. She asked about the movie they were watching and they seemed to light up. Their conversation was mostly one-sided as usual, with Cordelia occasionally chiming in with simple questions to show she was listening. She knew how much they loved sharing their opinions.

After about an hour, her breakfast was done and eaten. Cordelia's grandparents had turned to debating with each other over a certain character in the movie so she and Ring-Ring focused on cleanup. She wondered how much she'd miss all this once she was on her journey, knowing she probably wouldn't be back for at least a few months. Johto was a big region after all, and from what Bugsy had told her Team Rocket had a presence in just about all of it.

She thought about the fact that someone like her was getting involved in something as dangerous as fighting a crime syndicate. It was possible she wouldn't make it through this. She still wasn't sure how this whole thing made her feel, or rather, she couldn't put it into words. While she sifted through her thoughts in another attempt to define it, she was startled by a loud voice.

"Hey Delia! Don't waste so much water, okay?" Cordelia snapped back to reality at the sound of her grandpa's voice. Looking down, she noticed the pan she was washing had filled with water while she was lost in thought and was overflowing. She apologized to her grandpa and hurried through the remaining dishes. It crossed her mind that she still hadn't received a call from her mom today which was strange since her mom was set on calling her every morning, but Cordelia figured her mom was probably just busy and pushed the thought aside.


After a little while, Cordelia left home with a rather unceremonious goodbye. She hadn't really been expecting much, though. Her grandparents were never ones for tearful goodbyes, sometimes even leaving without a word when they would visit her family in Saffron. Cordelia didn't mind it much, though. If anything, a goodbye like that would have made leaving a bit harder, though she doubted it could have stopped her.

Bags in hand, Cordelia took a few steps away from the house before she suddenly found her face sinking into a wall of unbelievably soft floof. "Good morning, Fluffles." Cordelia said to the Altaria blocking her path. Fluffles usually stayed on the roof of the house so she could keep watch and make sure Cordelia never ran off anywhere on her own, probably on her dad's orders. At first, Cordelia wasn't exactly in love with the idea of a bodyguard, considering that a big reason for her leaving Saffron was that she wanted to be alone for a while, but now she is very grateful for Fluffles. It is thanks to her that Cordelia hasn't had any fall-induced broken bones for a while now. Cordelia reached into her pocket to give Fluffles a treat, which the Altaria delightedly accepted.

Fluffles and Ring-Ring greeted each other and then the trio went on their way to Ilex Forest. The town was quiet as ever as they passed through. Sure, the streets had all kinds of people walking around and going about their business, but it was nothing compared to Saffron City, the way its streets and sidewalks were clogged with honking cars and talking people. She was able to cover the distance from her grandparents' house to the city gate station far more quickly than it would have taken her to cover the same distance back home since there were almost no obstacles.

Inside the station she was greeted by the guard who addressed her as "Delia" the same way her grandparents did. Actually, most of the town did, something that was probably her grandparents' fault. "What's all the luggage for?" the guard asked, gesturing to the travel bag rolling behind the girl. "Are you going home already?"

"Not exactly," Cordelia answered with a smile. "I decided I wanted to see a bit more of the region while I was here, starting with Goldenrod City. I mean, I'm not sure I could convince my parents to let me travel alone like this again after how difficult my grandparents have been with them."

"True, those two have always been the types to just do whatever they wanted." He fell silent and furrowed his brow. "But are you sure you should be going alone with your condition? You've heard the rumors of thieves and thugs running around Johto, right? There've also been a bunch of troublesome pokemon running around the forest lately."

"Please don't worry so much, I'll be fine. I have Fluffles to keep me safe and Ring-Ring to make me better if something does happen. And if I'm ever in serious trouble, I can always call dad for help. Being in a position like that gives him plenty of connections. So please don't worry about me."

After some hesitation, the guard finally gave in. "Well alright then, just be extra careful."

"Thank you for understanding," Cordelia said, sounding relieved. She motioned to her companions and the trio took their first step together into the forest.​

.

Fin paused as she noticed a pile of leaves on the ground, similar to the ones that had led her to the Pansage in the first place. Only, this pile was much more scattered and uncontrolled than the ones she'd followed before.

She ran over to the pile and examined it. She searched for any signs of water of sand, but there were no signs of her pokemon. She sighed, and bowed her head. The exhaustion she'd felt before her encounter with the Beedrill was catching up to her, but with help, there was hope she'd find her team.

"I'm not sure what, but it looks like something happened here, and Pansage was involved!" She called out to Vincent.

"At least we are in the right area then," he commented. "But it barely helps. I am not exactly a tracker, and I'm not exactly packing a Growlithe or anything with me to find a scent or something." Vincent scratched his head and tried to think logically. "I guess if we keep our eyes open, maybe you or I will find a similar pattern or something that will narrow down the search."

Finley nodded. "When I had my first run in with him, he left neat piles of leaves for me to follow behind. This one seems alot more frantically placed, almost as if he either didn't mean it, or didn't have time to neaten up the pile." As she searched deeper into mess of leaves, she noticed multiple blackened ones that were also mishapened. She glanced up at Vincent, presenting her discovery to him.

"Why would they blackened?" He asked.

She glanced up at him blankly before responding. "They're...burnt."

Vincent smirked a little, if only because things suddenly got interesting: "So we have a fire type running around throwing the little guys into a panic. Well, lead the way and we keep tracking. See what happens."

Finley noticed Vincent's smirk and responded with one of her own. "Y'know, if you cant recognise a burned leaf, tracking this thing may be pretty difficult." She grinned cheesily. It was difficult for her to resist showing how proud she was of the jibe.

"You do realize I can leave you right?" Vincent snapped back to match her remark. After all, he had the Pokemon and she didn't. Regardless, that would be crude and for whatever reason, he wanted to be the stronger person. "Anyway, I want you to find your team yourself. I'll merely....help when needed. If you can't find your Pokemon yourself, I guess I am saying you don't deserve to lead them."

Finley let out a light sigh, before picking up the leaf and placing it in her pocket. "You're right. I've already let them down once, and I won't let it happen again." She took to her feet, and began heading off in the direction that the trail of Pansage leaves began to narrow. "Thanks again by the way, I appreciate you helping me here." She continued without turning to face Vincent. Her voice trailed off as she continued onward and spoke.

Vincent aimlessly followed, not really paying attention to anything Finley was saying. He got his message across and she seemed to take in most of it. That's what mattered to him. Much like he did with Melody, or at least tried to, his goal, for whatever reason, was to...well, he would probably use the word independent. Vincent was forced to learn that and it worked. Though, being forced and being taught are two vastly different concepts. "If you are lucky, you won't really need much of it," he added.

Fin glanced back, but offered no verbal response to Vincent's notion. She continued on the trail, facing out into the distant forest. Despite the onlooking mouse pokemon, her thoughts focused on her elder sister. What would she do in this situation? She thought to herself.

"Is that a Pokemon over there...?" Vincent asked blankly, pointing at the mouse-like creature. "It's not one of yours is it?"

The sudden instant in which Finley noticed the small yellow mouse caused her to jump back in a panic."No. I never had a Pichu." She groaned. The Pichu prepared to dart off, but the enclosure of trees trapped it into a corner. Fin took a moment to think. She sighed. The Pichu backed up into a corner, prompting Finley to grab a pokeball from a bag.

The panicked pokemon glanced around frantically. It watched the two large figures that stood before it, full of fear. Out of nowhere, a pokeball came flying at the pichu, sealing her inside.

The ball shook once, but the Pichu managed to escape, and again tried to dart away from Finley. "Dammit!" The trainer groaned. She grabbed a rock off of the ground, aiming it in the direction the Pichu had ran.

Snatching Finley's wrist in a tight grasp, Vincent glared in the direction and tossed out a Pokeball with his free hand, unleashing Brian the Pidgeotto into the fray. "My turn," Vincent said flatly to Finley, squeezing her wrist tight enough to make her loosen her girp on the rock. "Plus, last I checked we don't chuck rocks at Pokemon." As the rock tumbled to the ground, joining its companions, Vincent looked at Brian: "Follow the Pichu. We're fetching ourselves a new team member. I'll be right behind you." Orders given, Brian took the canopy and followed the small mouse Pokemon, chirping every few seconds to keep Vincent alert and focused. "Well, you coming for this little diversion or am I leaving you to find your team on your own?"

Finley hung her head in shame. Her hair cast a shadow as it hung over her face. "I guess I'll...follow behind." She mumbled with a sigh. "Not like I can do much beyond rock throwing to that damn Pansage anyway." She continued to mumble, this time under her breath.

"Alright," Vincent replied with little emotion. He knew he essentially won the debate, but it was a hollow victory. Regardless, he would hate to lose something so pointless. Turning away, he trudged into the sea of trees, following Brian's chirps. They were distant at first, as the meaningless debate with Finley had delayed Vincent from making a quick advancement. Two near falls over fallen branches, thick bushes and ancient roots that broke the surface generations ago. His progress sunk into a meandering crawl, but Brian's chirps seemed closer in distance. "Slow down," Vincent whispered to Finley, to which the girl simply responded with a nod. "Brian stopped moving, meaning the little Pichu probably did too." Vincent looked around, and barely peered through the canopy well enough to figure out where Brian perched. He began to make his approach, crouching down to minimize the sound of each step. Brian's chirps, while infrequent, echoed in Vincent's ears more and more until, he felt the sound coming from directly above him.

Vincent placed a finger on his mouth, indicating to Finley his intent of completing this task quietly.

Fin nodded. Opting to wait it out and let Vincent handle the situation, she withdrew back into the bushes.

Brian hopped down to Vincent, balancing on a branch a half meter or so away from the trainer. Using a mix of body language and calls, Brian tried to comunicate where the Pichu burrowed away. "Right," Vincent recalled Brian, latching the Pokeball onto his belt. "Electric types tend to do well against flying types. So," Vincent paused, before turning to his Eevee. "You will handle this one. You shouldn't have too much difficulty," he continued, kneeling down to speak with it. "Alright, let's sneak up on this little guy," Vincent offer a hand for a shake and Eevee obliged with a little bark to indicate her willigness to try.

Pichu was burrowing in a small clearing, seeming to mid his own business. Vincent and Eevee creeped in the bushes, rustling the environment. Pichu seemed to detect them, turning his head violently to find the source of the noise. Pichu failed, and Vincent leapt on the opportunity: "Now, Eevee! Quick Attack!" Eevee darted out of the bushes and pounced on the hapless Pichu. The electric mouse fell back, rolling in the dirt as Vincent crawled out of the foilage to obtain a better view of the small battleground. Engineered by instinct, Pichu fired a wave of lightning, of which Eevee, despite some agility, couldn't dodge completely. Vincent quickly caught on, knowing all too well that Pichu landed a Thunder Wave, paralyzing Eevee for the moment. Pichu fired off a Thundershock soon after and Eevee, unable to effectively move, took the attack, yelping in pain as the surge of electricity coursed through the frail body.

"Damn it," Vincent spat. Maybe I should recall Eevee and send in Tank or Exaclibur, he considered mentally. It would certainly solve everything, as they are more than capable. But, no. Eevee needs to learn to fight if she wants to be a part of this team. "Eevee, use bite!" Eevee fought through the pain and charged forward, latching onto the smaller Pokemon. With a sharp shake, the Eevee tossed the Pichu to the side. Eevee wanted to follow up with a tackle, but as she approached, Pichu batted away Vincent's newest Pokemon with a Tail Whip. Eevee remained persistent and tackled through the mild distraction, and the small Pokemon rolled away bruised and battered. Seizing the opportunity, Vincent tossed forward a Pokeball and the small mouse Pokemon was swallowed up in a flash of light. The ball crumpled to the ground and shook.


​

"Hi daddy," Cordelia said as she answered her phone.

"Hi Princess," answered her father. "I finally managed to sneak away from work. Is everything okay over there?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," she replied as she wrung out her soaking wet shirt. She sat down and unraveled it, looking at the hole that had been burned into the back. It wasn't too big, but it bothered her that she could fit her whole hand through it. It was unfortunate since she rather liked this shirt. Fortunately she had packed plenty of other clothes, so it wasn't like she was stuck with it.

Cordelia looked over at Fluffles, who was also drying herself off. She shook the water off her feathers fairly easily, which surprised Cordelia. Sometimes she forgot that the fluff on an Altaria wasn't actually cotton, no matter how much it resembled it.

The girl thought briefly on what had just happened, the way her shirt suddenly caught fire and the way Fluffles immediately dragged her into the small lake beside them. It was a startling turn of events, but as usual, Fluffles kept her from any real harm. Cordelia had to wonder where her dad found the Altaria. She also had to wonder what could have set her on fire. She'd been to the forest plenty of times, and she'd never seen a Fire-type anywhere. Well, whatever it was, it didn't seem to be trying again. She started to consider keeping her clothes wet in case it did.

"What about you?" Cordelia asked, continuing the conversation. "Everything okay at the office?"

"Busy, as usual. Did you eat? Do your exercise routine? Have your mom's parents given you any trouble?" Her father spoke in a rushed tone that made it clear he didn't have much time to talk. She considered trying to hurry and end the conversation early to not cause any trouble for him, but she knew how much he valued talking with her and decided against it.

"Lots of Calcium and Vitamin D, you know I always do, and no. You don't have to worry so much, dad. I'm fine on my own. But speaking of mom, I'm surprised she hasn't called yet. Do you know if she was busy today?"

Her father fell silent, a rare thing in these calls. After a few seconds, her father spoke again. "Your mother is going to be taking a trip, sweetie. I probably won't be the best person to ask about her for the next couple weeks." Cordelia was rather surprised. Her mother hadn't mentioned anything and she usually wasn't the type for spontaneity. But she supposed that neither of her parents had exactly been themselves lately.

"I see. No problem then, I'll just call her later if she still hasn't called by then."

Her father started to say something, but Cordelia could hear talking in the background. Nothing she could make out though. But given that this wasn't the first time this had happened, she figured it was probably his co-workers who needed him for something. "Sorry honey, I've got to go. I'll try to call you tomorrow. Love you."

"Hey dad?" Cordelia blurted, almost interrupting him. He stayed on the line. "Thanks for always calling."

"No problem, precious." With that, he finally hung up.

Cordelia stared at the phone in her hands fondly with a wide smile on her face for almost a full minute after the call ended. Then her smile began to fade. She turned her gaze upwards, now watching the thick canopy of trees denying the forest underneath anything but the smallest rays of sunshine. "What's wrong with me…" she muttered, eliciting a low, worried ringing from Ring-Ring who was floating nearby.

Deciding that was enough sitting around, Cordelia moved to stand only to find herself pulled right back to the ground by her hand. The next moment her partner's ringing became frantic. Cordelia didn't have time to react to Ring-Ring's warning before she felt whatever had grabbed her hand tighten. Hard. Cordelia cried out in pain as she felt the bones in her wrist begin to crack.

Fluffles reacted immediately, rushing over to jab at the root holding Cordelia down with her beak and freeing her. Cordelia stood up and looked back to see what turned out to be a little Phantump who had snuck up behind her and begun expanding its roots. Phantump usually preferred to stay deeper in the forest, so why was this one here? Well regardless of the answer to that, it seemed it would be getting a battle. Fluffles and Ring-Ring stood between it and Cordelia, and they didn't look happy. After thinking about it, she decided it would probably be a good idea to catch it. For all their enthusiasm, Fluffles and Ring-Ring weren't exactly fighters, whereas Phantump evolved into the fearsome Trevenant.

"Ring-Ring, Astonish! Fluffles, Pluck!" Her team rushed forward, but the Phantump was ready. Its eyes began to glow as it formed a ball of bright orange energy above it, launching it at Fluffles. Ring-Ring was quickly at its side, making a loud noise and what he probably thought was a scary face. Energy waves from the shout battered harshly at the Phantump. Cordelia may not have ever gone to trainer school, but she'd played enough trainer sim games to get the basics of type-matchups at least.

Fluffles' attack never hit its mark though. Instead, the Altaria was thrashing around wildly, ramming itself into nearby trees. Cordelia was really thankful for Fluffles' protective fluff. Looking back at Ring-Ring, she saw the Phantump fighting back with it's own Astonish attack. The Phantump's attack clearly dealt far more damage than Ring-Ring's, sending him reeling back. The Phantump's ingrained roots then began glowing as it absorbed healing nutrients from the ground. She was facing this pokemon two-on-one and it still wasn't looking good for her.

It was clear to her that Ring-Ring wasn't going to be able to beat it alone. "Ring Ring, keep it busy!" Ordered Cordelia. "No fighting though, just run around!" It seemed that Astonish hit wiped away some of his bravado, because Ring-Ring immediately began fleeing with a panicked expression. The Phantump tried to chase him for a bit, but it couldn't exactly move very quickly while it was ingrained into the ground. It then decided on launching another Confuse Ray at him instead.

In the meantime, Cordelia returned Fluffles to her pokeball for a few moments before re-releasing her. Maybe it was something about the way pokeballs worked, what with turning pokemon into energy or however it worked, but it tended to cure certain status effects. Well, at least it did in her games. She was glad to find that this translated over to reality when Fluffles emerged from the ball healthy, but quite unhappy as well. She turned her gaze to the Phantump who had managed to inch its way over to the confused Ring-Ring and was now attacking it mercilessly. Cordelia returned Ring-Ring to the safety of its pokeball.

Fluffles seemed ready to jump back into the battle, but Cordelia stopped her. "Hold on Fluffles, use safeguard first." Fluffles made what sounded almost like a sigh before spreading her wings and beginning to glow white. It was good timing, since the Phantump now seemed to be preparing another confuse ray. The orange energy ball flew at Fluffles, but this time it simply dispersed the moment it hit her. "Nice. Now Pluck it!" Suddenly, the Phantump's ingrain turned its position from a fortress to a prison, the grass type unable to flee from the flying type's approaching beak.

Cordelia let Fluffles have her fun with the Phantump for a little while before she pulled a pokeball out of her purse. It wouldn't do for Fluffles to have any leftover resentment for the little ghost if she managed to get it to join them. She let Fluffles get a few more jabs in before tossing the ball at the poor little stump. The Phantump was enveloped in a red light and absorbed into the ball, which fell to the ground and began shaking.
​