Granite Fish
Fossilized Mercury
- 15
- Posts
- 19
- Years
- Seen Feb 5, 2006
If I might take a moment to explain my motivations; this fanfic of mine used to be hosted on my pit of voles account, alongside a GS piece. As the months passed, my GS fanfic accumulated over thirty reviews, some of which commented on my author profile. My pokemon story was never reviewed. Never mentioned. Finally, when the pit started showing writers the hits each of their stories were recieving, and it became totally clear that readers were just choosing not to review this poor little story, I deleted it. Clearly, it needs improving before it is worthy of such things.
So, I implore you, if you have the time and the inclination, please let me know what's wrong with Sibling Jealousy.
Many thanks.
Granite Fish.
Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon or anything else I mention that's copyrighted.
Drew's Notebook.
Friday 24th October, 2008
I have to get this down somewhere. It's been an awful day.
Today is my little sister Fiona's eleventh birthday. When she was ten, she got her Trainer's License and left Newbury to travel all over England. We didn't expect her back today. She always wanted to be a pokemon trainer, ever since she was little. Or an actress. Or just a millionaire. And now - well, at least she's still not a rich film star.
Why couldn't she be more like most kids? All those brats who get their license and a starter pokemon, have a nice camping holiday for a day or two, but come back home when they're out of food and money, all their clothes are dirty, and they can't win a battle. It's not like coming home would have been embarrassing. That three day holiday is there for a reason. I remember, when I was little, (I'm thirteen now, that can't count as little - can it?), I thought the break on my tenth birthday would just be for the double-digits landmark. She could have gone back to school, we could have had another pet... I've heard that some pokemon, ones who are really set on getting trained, leave and go back to the League instead. I'm sure that wouldn't have happened to her, though. Or if it did, she'd get over it.
If she wasn't going to be a faliure or a brat, why couldn't she just be more like me? On my tenth birthday, I had a party. It was great fun, but that's not the point. I wanted to be an author when I grew up, or a scientist, or a millionaire if I ever got the chance, though I didn't think it very likely. Still, like everyone else, I enjoyed fussing over the pokemon new trainers in my year brought into school. When everyone was ten, about two thirds of the class had a pokemon each, and most of those kids went everywhere with their pokemon, more to show off than for protection. Some people had one of a rare species to boast about, but even those with an everyday creature had their pokeballs. They really make a difference, make you cool, and it's not just because you need a trainer's license to buy them for ten pounds each, a huge sum of money for kids. Anyone can have a pet, but being able to call a pokemon to a little sphere so you could stay close at all times, that's the difference, even if it doesn't really mean anything?
For a while after that, I remember, the boys and their pokemon used to hold little battles in the corners of the playground, even though it was against the rules. Not that anyone minded much, as long as they stopped when the excitement wore off. A lot of the girls became trainers without ever trying to leave or fight. I've never been very into fashion, and I didn't see how bonding with a bug or a little bird would give me any real protection. I was always happy just playing with Toby, the family meouth. Some of the girls did try to leave and train, but they don't like talking about it. One girl, Alice, went straight to Reading by train (the nearest town with a gym, I think), battled a few other kids who'd just started and won against all of them. Afterwards, she got her mum to pick her up and drive her home. She wants to be a trainer and says she'll leave at sixteen. Everyone says she's really talented, and she's teacher's pet in Pokemon, Art and Sports. I'm best at Science, pretty good at Pokemon, French, Sign Language and Maths, but rubbish at Sports. Alice has always been more popular than me, of course.
Apparently, quite a lot of people in Fiona's class had wanted to be trainers, so Pokemon was even more 'in' there. While I always got pretty high grades in most subjects, Fiona was usually only just above average, except in Pokemon, where she was near top of the class. Overall we were both good for our age, and as I'm a couple of years older than her, she was always the little sister whatever age she was. That stopped people seeing she was good. But... why was it such a surprise to me? We got along so well. She always seemed to look up to me.
Last year, when she was about to turn ten, Mum sent off a form to the Pokemon League, and on her birthday we got a call to say her trainer's license was at the Newbury pokemon center. She just needed to show up with some ID to collect it and find a starter pokemon. We all went, the whole family, to watch as a nurse called April gave Fiona her license, and see the pokemon she ended up with out of the six or so she talked with, a bulbasaur that she was very excited about. They are quite uncommon around here, but it seemed to be more than that.
As soon as we got home, Bulbasaur started talking to Toby in the garden, and Fiona started packing, wanting to leave the next morning. It was really fun, we went through everything in both our rooms, packing and unpacking everything we thought she might want or need. She was sure she'd be a great success. Plenty of people are even at her age, but I only thought she had a chance in the way everyone's chance is mathematically above zero. While we were packing, Mum and Dad kept checking on us, smiling those little smiles that adults think we don't notice, but which show they think we're being cute. I got annoyed, but when we finally announced that we were finished, they showed us a load of equipment they'd bought that Fiona would need for camping, and in packing that we had to put back everything else except for a few clothes. Then when I talked to my parents afterwards, I found out that they were feeling worried about Fiona, since neither of them had been trainers, but they were trying not to let it show.
It started raining the next morning, but Fiona still insisted on leaving. We drove her and Bulbasaur to the edge of town, and got out her bags as quickly as we could, not wanting to get wet. They were so bulky and heavy, Bulbasaur had to help carry them. As Fiona strode off into the mud, I couldn't help showing one last bit of big-sisterly concern:
"You sure about leaving in this weather?"
"It's okay. Bulbasaur doesn't mind."
Well, since then, she's written letters, but aside from telling me she's doing well they don't mean much to me. Too much trainer talk. I got used to life without a little sister around, answering questions about her at school and spending more time out with my friends. I knew today was her birthday because Mum and Dad had sent a card to be forwarded to her, but I was in a rush this morning and didn't think about it. I overslept 'cause Toby pulled out my alarm clock's plug again. When I was late for school, I thought that would be the worst part of my day.
First lesson was Pokemon, and I was so tired from running the last half of the way to school that (very unusually) I found myself gazing out of the window at the start of today's rain when the teacher asked me a question.
"Well, Drew? Which pokemon?"
"Bulbasaur rep-"
I'd meant to ask, 'Could you repeat the question please?', but I guess I started talking before I finished thinking. The whole class started giggling, except for my friend Laura next to me, who was looking quite confused. Miss Catran turned to Alice, and asked very pointedly;
"Alice, would you inform us which of the 1965 England Champions trained by Mary Melan defeated Marlan, the previous team's charizard?"
"Mirelle, the misdreavus." (I knew that!) "Mirelle was Mary's first pokemon, who in that match used the moves Shadow Ball, Astonish, Curse, Hypnosis and Psybeam." (I didn't know that.)
The teacher didn't say anything else to me all lesson, but she kept me behind afterwards. I thought she'd be all 'If something's wrong you can talk to me', the usual thing if a good student slips too badly (though I don't think I did really). But no. She actually told me off!
"Don't think you're doing well enough to neglect your studies, Drew, and don't start acting up when you don't know something! In case you hadn't noticed, you were the only student not paying attention. The class was laughing at you, not with you?"
I actually liked her before that! I know pokemon teachers are used to being strict, it could be dangerous for a student or a pokemon to misbehave in a practical session, but that was way too much! When she let me leave, I had to hurry to the other end of the school for Maths, so I was late again, and I didn't get to talk to Laura until lunch.
"Thanks for not laughing." I sighed as we started our sandwiches.
"Ah, not that I'd have laughed if I'd got it, Drew, but I was actually confused about how Mary's bulbasaur could have beaten the charizard." That got us both laughing, and choking on our food a little. It was the best part of my day (though that sounds quite pathetic).
In Science, we were supposed to have been doing an interesting practical on photosynthesis with lamps and shrubs from the greenhouses. When the class arrived at the lab, though, Mr. Scobern didn't turn up for ten minutes. He eventually arrived with bad news.
"Sorry class, it seems one of the school growlithe is missing, and the greenhouses are all burnt up. No, we can't do a different practical instead, the technicians are busy - no, you can't go home! I photocopied some sheets for you to fill in this lesson," The class groaned. "However, when I talked to the head, he said it might be more productive if all Science classes today received an extra Pokemon practical instead, to study signs of sickness or unrest in case that's what caused the?" By then, he had to stop, almost half the class was cheering. Not me, though. I like science, even sheets, and while I wouldn't have minded another Pokemon lesson most days, this was hardly 'most days'.
I paired with Laura as usual, and we were given an oddish to check for discolouration. I noticed Miss Catran still didn't say anything to me.
"Miss is still ignoring me." I moaned to Laura.
"She's probably forgotten about this morning, don't be silly. No, not you, Oddish, he's fidgeting."
"She keeps frowning at me. She's 'keeping an eye on me', I swear."
"Now you are being silly." Laura replied, a little impatiently, so I dropped the subject.
When Miss checked on us halfway through the lesson, she asked Laura if she'd found anything worrying (she hadn't), then told me;
"Stop acting stressed. You're upsetting Oddish." That was ridiculous! I'm way better than Laura at Pokemon, even if I'm not the best!
"That's probably all the frowns were about." Laura hand signed to me as Miss turned away. When I stared at her (taking the teacher's side!) she said, surprised, "Oh come on, you do look a bit stressed, even if it is her fault. We should get some cakes in town after school or something, relax a bit."
I agreed to that at least, so when school finished after Geography, I started to walk from the school's East site to the main one where Laura's set finished. The rain was getting heavier, and there were the usual crowds along the street, crossing the road between sites in either direction.
I still can't believe what happened next. Just as I was stepping off the kerb, I tripped on my shoelace and fell flat on my face across the road. In the few long seconds I was falling, I saw to one side a gray car I hadn't noticed before that was going so very fast it had to hit me. When my head hit the tarmac, I heard the car trying to brake, but it was far too late, and I couldn't think beyond how bad my head and knees and wrists hurt. Then I was hovering in the air, with the car screeching along the wet road right underneath me.
For a moment I wondered if I was dead. I looked at myself and saw that I was still a bit muddy and bloody from the fall, and covered in thick vines. Then I realized everyone on the street was staring at me. Something turned me around, and I saw that an ivysaur on the pavement was holding me, pulling me in to safety. Standing behind it? I saw Fiona, but it took me a few moments to recognize her.
When I was right in front of the ivysaur, it stopped moving me, and just kept me hanging a foot off the ground. I guess I started to look panicky, because Fiona called out;
"It's all right Drew, she's just checking you for broken bones."
I hadn't realized because I was numb all over. That's not quite true? My head still hurt, and my cheeks were burning. Everyone was crowding around us, staring, whispering, shouting. The driver had stopped and was apologizing frantically to the headteacher, who had come running up, and was trying to calm him down and get Fiona's attention.
At last, I was set down on the pavement. I tried to walk off, but Fiona grabbed my arm, asking me quietly;
"Drew, are you alright?"
Which made me trip again. My legs were shaking - I was shivering all over. Laura appeared on my other side and helped catch me. I just wanted to shove her and Fiona away, run off and hide. The whole school had seen me as a clumsy, bleeding, helpless thirteen year old girl hanging in the air, the mud in my hair and uniform streaking in the rain, saved by my little sister.
Don't think I'm all proud and selfish. If I'd been whisked away into a small quiet room, just me and Fiona, I'd have cried, laughed, hugged her non-stop. I love my sister, and I was glad to see her again, after so long, and very glad she was there when I fell, instead of - But I was shocked, and held up on display in front of everyone I knew, and I didn't know how I was ever going to face any of them again.
Plus, Fiona was so different. Obviously, she looked older, but she'd never changed so much in any year at home. Her clothes - a jumper and shorts with a belt holding one pokeball - though not especially fashionable and quite well-worn looking, were clean and smart, very different from the kiddy style of hers I remembered. Then there was how she wore them with? Well, with more grace and confidence than I'd seen in her before. She would be, in part, a new person, who I didn't want to be introduced to again in the condition I was in.
So, when a part of me wanted to run away, and another part of me wanted to stand and chat, and another part of me wanted to run away too, all that happened was my legs folded underneath me. I didn't say a thing as Laura and Fiona helped the headteacher half-carry me into the school's main office building between sites. I think Ivysaur retreated to her pokeball at some point. Wish I had my own little room available like that. The head cleared one of the ground floor rooms and sat me down on a sofa, by a desk which he then took a seat at, sending Laura for a nurse and a glass of water.
"No need for a nurse, Mr. Rethic, I'm first aid trained and there's a kit in this building, isn't there? If you don't mind waiting before we carry on talking. Besides, Terry won't be back for another ten minutes or so, and we'd have to wait for him anyway."
With Mr. Rethic's permission, Fiona left to find the first aid kit. As soon as it was quiet again, the headteacher started to question me.
"Well, Drew, right? That was a nasty fall you took back there. How are you feeling now?"
"Fine. I'm fine." I mumbled. Now the fuss had died down, I was getting more annoyed with myself than anything else.
"Good." Mr. Rethic seemed to relax then, as if everything was over, no harm done in the end. "Don't worry about the scene outside. I'd say most of the students will already have wandered off, talking about the unusual pokemon they saw. The driver has been sent on his way with? well, with my reassurances, he seemed more disturbed than you to tell the truth. I gather you weren't behaving irresponsibly, and a lecture on road safety seems rather redundant now anyway, eh?"
He paused, smiling encouragingly, so I forced out something like a laugh in response.
"You just rest here for the moment, then." He advised. "Your sister will want you to wait for her before you leave; I gather she has news for you and your parents. Ah, Fiona, I see you found the first aid box."
Thankfully, Fiona finished cleaning and dressing the cuts on my head and palms before Laura got back with my drink. I mean, how much more embarrassment could I have dealt with today? Laura sat with me quietly while Fiona and the Headteacher talked. It turned out the school growlithe had run off last night when he'd heard an arcanine, one of Fiona's team, howling from the hills just outside of town where they were camped. The two pokemon had been a couple long ago, but had been separated by a mix of pack movements and bad luck. When Growlithe ran off, a wild caterpie in the greenhouses had tripped him up, then fled with Growlithe flaming after it, having lost his senses a little I suppose. Fiona and the others had woken up this morning to see Growlithe lying next to Arcanine.
"Under the circumstances, I have to agree. Growlithe may begin his training immediately." Mr. Rethic was saying. "Still, if you are at all able to help the Pokemon or Science departments with this sudden loss, it would be much appreciated."
"Well, as I was going to say earlier, Terry should be back from the Center soon - Pokemon Center, yes - where he's asking some growlithe from the New Forest if they still want to train with him after trying it for a few weeks or if they'd like to work for the school. I don't think there's much I can do about the greenhouses though, sorry."
"It's not your fault, Fiona. Finding a replacement so soon would be a great help?"
I was still trying to remember who Terry was. There was a mention, in a letter a few months ago... in a few of them actually? but I hadn't read Fiona's letters very carefully after the first few. She just wasn't writing about stuff we both knew any more, nothing that I could have talked with her about like school or TV.
"Who's Terry?" Laura asked. She wasn't sure who to talk to, not being used to sitting in on teachers' discussions with visitors and not knowing what to make of Fiona now she wasn't just 'my friend's kid sister' any more, so her question was addressed to me.
"He's another trainer." I offered. "A friend of Fiona's." All this was obvious, of course. I turned to Fiona for a proper answer, trying not to get embarrassed.
"I met him just before I won my first badge." Fiona filled in. "We were practicing together at Basingstoke Gym, best of three matches, and his team won overall. We watched each other challenge the Gym Leader, and my team, we won, but his were unlucky and only just lost. He's a few years older than me, but he trains a lot of pokemon, anyone who wants a mix of training and down time at the Centers, so his team wasn't as strong as you might expect. We decided to travel together to help our teams train, as they were so well matched, and compared to my last traveling companion? I'd mainly been training with another girl who'd just started called Amy before then, but when she lost another gym challenge, she decided to go home. One of her team went to live with her, one started to train with Terry instead, the others stayed at the Center until they found a new trainer who suited them."
Fiona didn't seem at all awkward about how everyone was listening to her. I guess headteachers don't seem so much more important than you when you've started on your career too, however young you are.
Mr. Rethic looked up then, and following his gaze, I saw a boy about my age leaning against the doorframe, waiting to be noticed. He seemed slightly amused by Fiona's story. As introductions were made, I tried to slip out. Didn't think I'd make a great first impression just then. I tapped Fiona on the shoulder and told her;
"I'll be going home now. Might walk back through town with Laura. Catch up with you later."
"Oh, no, we won't be too long, and Terry really wants to meet my family now we're back in my home town. Won't you stay?" Fiona asked, loudly and sweetly. Already my little sister was annoying me. I nodded rather than making excuses to the entire room, while Terry started talking to me.
"So you're Drew? Heard a lot about you." I nodded again, wondering how he could be interested in the student when he had the trainer to talk to every day. She's younger than both of us, and she's the one he knows and respects. Still, he seemed sincere, which helped my mood a little. He looked kinda cute sincere, his black hair falling in front of his thin face as he shook hands 'cause it's the longest style that looks good on most guys. What kind of thirteen-year-old shakes hands, though?
Of course, then he had to notice my muddy hair, and the huge square plaster on my forehead. He asked what had happened, and Laura filled him in. The way she stared at Terry as she told him of my near fatal accident, she totally has a crush on him. And her hair looked brushed. Not that I'm jealous.
"I was walking over to the East site to meet Drew, we were gonna go into town, and when I was almost at the road I saw her trip up, well, down? For a moment, when she just lay there and that car- there was a car- was rushing up, I was so scared she was gonna die, but in an instant she was hanging in the air like an angel. It was such a shock, too, seeing an ivysaur behind me! When Drew was safe, I was so relieved, and everyone out there was agreeing what a hero Fiona is, plus the ivysaur of course, and how Drew was so lucky!"
Talk about a twisted version of events. Lucky, to fall in front of a car! Terry soon started talking to Fiona and Mr. Rethic about business, and while they talked my mood went right back down into rocky blackness. That was when it really started to sink in that I'd almost died. If anything had stopped Fiona being there at that exact moment, like if Mr. Rethic had had a few more words to say wherever they'd been first, or if Fiona had tripped too? I would've been gone. For real. Buried in a coffin, friends and family grieving, driver sued. Too creepy to think about. So the only option this left me was to be wonderfully happy about this miracle, thankful for the amazing hero who saved me. Joyous about my hands stinging, grateful for the awkward looks I was receiving as I sat there looking bleak and muddy. Obliged to be amazed at my little sister's incredibleness and competence like the years I've spent my way as a student, a kid, since I was her age, were useless in comparison. That'd be even worse than the way kids who dream of following in an older hero's footsteps dismiss any unique hopes and plans of their own. I hated being there, but the thought of not being there made me feel oh, so sickeningly scared.
Eventually, Terry brought out a group of five growlithe, who started discussing the school with Mr. Rethic as they all left to look around. Fire pokemon have the oddest way of using sign language, shaping little clouds of smoke so rapidly... Well, then Laura went home, and Fiona called our parents to pick us up, as it was getting so late they'd be home from work. She hung up grinning and really looking like she couldn't wait to chat, so I decided to try speaking again.
"Mr. Rethic said you had news."
"Yes. It's pretty big, but I decided not to phone when it happened as I'd be home so soon anyway." She was looking excited, eyes sparkling. We were chatting like we used to, a whole year ago? "On Wednesday, me and Terry were in Oxford, and you know the Gym there's pretty big, right? Well, when my team won this one match, the other trainer, David, said he thought we should try challenging the Gym Leader. I said no way, everyone knows Mandine is really tough and I've lost smaller challenges, but he told me Mandine had left for a few days and put her daughter Maynie in charge. So, as soon as my team had healed, we challenged her. Her first few, Golduck and Noctowl, were really tough, but when we beat them, thinking we couldn't keep this up, the next three were just pushovers, and she didn't even send out the last one against us, said there was no point, he wouldn't last long enough to make any progress! Turns out she only heard she'd be covering the night before and she had to rush out to find four more pokemon she could train at the last minute! So, you know what this means?"
"You have another badge?" I hope that came out congratulatory. It might have been tinted by a bit of bitterness, exasperation that this still wasn't the little sister I remembered. Any other day?
"Yeah." She was still smiling, but was it just me or was her tone a little cooler? "That's three we've earned now, and three medals each for most of my team. Mum and Dad will be proud, won't they?"
"They really will!" I could agree wholeheartedly with that.
After such a long day, it was a real relief for Mum and Dad to come pick us up, even if the car's going to be a little hard to look at for a few days. Everything got sorted out first, with a couple of growlithe deciding to stay for the rest of the term and see how things went from there. Terry's staying at the Pokemon Center tonight to give Fiona a chance to 'catch up with the family'. We're meeting him for lunch tomorrow.
I pretended I was asleep in the car, and when we got back, walked straight to my room. Didn't feel like talking or running. Either might trip me up again. It's taken a few hours to get this down, with almost as much scribbled out as there is left now, but it's worth it. To read this, it might show I wasn't as idiotic as I seemed today. Not that I'm letting anyone see this. Ever.
Should be time for tea soon, and that's pretty safe. Fiona will be telling us everything that's been happening this past year. I'm sure I couldn't say a word if I wanted to.
Fiona's Diary.
Friday 24th October, 2008
Not so much time to write. Everything's always so rushed in towns and cities. I'm going to help make tea soon.
Back in Newbury, and it's all so cramped and dull. School is still small and pointless, from what I've seen of it today. It's great to see my family again, but I never did miss my parents as much as I thought I would. Meggie's staying in the garden tonight. I wish there was room for the others. We're already missing them. I do envy Terry, staying with his lot like usual. It won't be too bad here, just for tonight.
Drew is still just like I remembered her. She seems pretty miserable today, so Terry seems right about taking it slow. I'll talk to her tomorrow, give her some time to herself tonight, however dumb that concept is when she should be? She'll be in a better mood tomorrow, and it's like Terry said, we're being 'ambassadors'. He doesn't see the potential yet, but I know Drew's so intelligent and kind hearted, she'll fit right in once she knows it's what she wants.
Got to go help out. More later.
So, I implore you, if you have the time and the inclination, please let me know what's wrong with Sibling Jealousy.
Many thanks.
Granite Fish.
Impossible Integration's Diverse Implications: Sibling Jealousy
Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon or anything else I mention that's copyrighted.
Drew's Notebook.
Friday 24th October, 2008
I have to get this down somewhere. It's been an awful day.
Today is my little sister Fiona's eleventh birthday. When she was ten, she got her Trainer's License and left Newbury to travel all over England. We didn't expect her back today. She always wanted to be a pokemon trainer, ever since she was little. Or an actress. Or just a millionaire. And now - well, at least she's still not a rich film star.
Why couldn't she be more like most kids? All those brats who get their license and a starter pokemon, have a nice camping holiday for a day or two, but come back home when they're out of food and money, all their clothes are dirty, and they can't win a battle. It's not like coming home would have been embarrassing. That three day holiday is there for a reason. I remember, when I was little, (I'm thirteen now, that can't count as little - can it?), I thought the break on my tenth birthday would just be for the double-digits landmark. She could have gone back to school, we could have had another pet... I've heard that some pokemon, ones who are really set on getting trained, leave and go back to the League instead. I'm sure that wouldn't have happened to her, though. Or if it did, she'd get over it.
If she wasn't going to be a faliure or a brat, why couldn't she just be more like me? On my tenth birthday, I had a party. It was great fun, but that's not the point. I wanted to be an author when I grew up, or a scientist, or a millionaire if I ever got the chance, though I didn't think it very likely. Still, like everyone else, I enjoyed fussing over the pokemon new trainers in my year brought into school. When everyone was ten, about two thirds of the class had a pokemon each, and most of those kids went everywhere with their pokemon, more to show off than for protection. Some people had one of a rare species to boast about, but even those with an everyday creature had their pokeballs. They really make a difference, make you cool, and it's not just because you need a trainer's license to buy them for ten pounds each, a huge sum of money for kids. Anyone can have a pet, but being able to call a pokemon to a little sphere so you could stay close at all times, that's the difference, even if it doesn't really mean anything?
For a while after that, I remember, the boys and their pokemon used to hold little battles in the corners of the playground, even though it was against the rules. Not that anyone minded much, as long as they stopped when the excitement wore off. A lot of the girls became trainers without ever trying to leave or fight. I've never been very into fashion, and I didn't see how bonding with a bug or a little bird would give me any real protection. I was always happy just playing with Toby, the family meouth. Some of the girls did try to leave and train, but they don't like talking about it. One girl, Alice, went straight to Reading by train (the nearest town with a gym, I think), battled a few other kids who'd just started and won against all of them. Afterwards, she got her mum to pick her up and drive her home. She wants to be a trainer and says she'll leave at sixteen. Everyone says she's really talented, and she's teacher's pet in Pokemon, Art and Sports. I'm best at Science, pretty good at Pokemon, French, Sign Language and Maths, but rubbish at Sports. Alice has always been more popular than me, of course.
Apparently, quite a lot of people in Fiona's class had wanted to be trainers, so Pokemon was even more 'in' there. While I always got pretty high grades in most subjects, Fiona was usually only just above average, except in Pokemon, where she was near top of the class. Overall we were both good for our age, and as I'm a couple of years older than her, she was always the little sister whatever age she was. That stopped people seeing she was good. But... why was it such a surprise to me? We got along so well. She always seemed to look up to me.
Last year, when she was about to turn ten, Mum sent off a form to the Pokemon League, and on her birthday we got a call to say her trainer's license was at the Newbury pokemon center. She just needed to show up with some ID to collect it and find a starter pokemon. We all went, the whole family, to watch as a nurse called April gave Fiona her license, and see the pokemon she ended up with out of the six or so she talked with, a bulbasaur that she was very excited about. They are quite uncommon around here, but it seemed to be more than that.
As soon as we got home, Bulbasaur started talking to Toby in the garden, and Fiona started packing, wanting to leave the next morning. It was really fun, we went through everything in both our rooms, packing and unpacking everything we thought she might want or need. She was sure she'd be a great success. Plenty of people are even at her age, but I only thought she had a chance in the way everyone's chance is mathematically above zero. While we were packing, Mum and Dad kept checking on us, smiling those little smiles that adults think we don't notice, but which show they think we're being cute. I got annoyed, but when we finally announced that we were finished, they showed us a load of equipment they'd bought that Fiona would need for camping, and in packing that we had to put back everything else except for a few clothes. Then when I talked to my parents afterwards, I found out that they were feeling worried about Fiona, since neither of them had been trainers, but they were trying not to let it show.
It started raining the next morning, but Fiona still insisted on leaving. We drove her and Bulbasaur to the edge of town, and got out her bags as quickly as we could, not wanting to get wet. They were so bulky and heavy, Bulbasaur had to help carry them. As Fiona strode off into the mud, I couldn't help showing one last bit of big-sisterly concern:
"You sure about leaving in this weather?"
"It's okay. Bulbasaur doesn't mind."
ooooooooooooooooooooooo
Well, since then, she's written letters, but aside from telling me she's doing well they don't mean much to me. Too much trainer talk. I got used to life without a little sister around, answering questions about her at school and spending more time out with my friends. I knew today was her birthday because Mum and Dad had sent a card to be forwarded to her, but I was in a rush this morning and didn't think about it. I overslept 'cause Toby pulled out my alarm clock's plug again. When I was late for school, I thought that would be the worst part of my day.
First lesson was Pokemon, and I was so tired from running the last half of the way to school that (very unusually) I found myself gazing out of the window at the start of today's rain when the teacher asked me a question.
"Well, Drew? Which pokemon?"
"Bulbasaur rep-"
I'd meant to ask, 'Could you repeat the question please?', but I guess I started talking before I finished thinking. The whole class started giggling, except for my friend Laura next to me, who was looking quite confused. Miss Catran turned to Alice, and asked very pointedly;
"Alice, would you inform us which of the 1965 England Champions trained by Mary Melan defeated Marlan, the previous team's charizard?"
"Mirelle, the misdreavus." (I knew that!) "Mirelle was Mary's first pokemon, who in that match used the moves Shadow Ball, Astonish, Curse, Hypnosis and Psybeam." (I didn't know that.)
The teacher didn't say anything else to me all lesson, but she kept me behind afterwards. I thought she'd be all 'If something's wrong you can talk to me', the usual thing if a good student slips too badly (though I don't think I did really). But no. She actually told me off!
"Don't think you're doing well enough to neglect your studies, Drew, and don't start acting up when you don't know something! In case you hadn't noticed, you were the only student not paying attention. The class was laughing at you, not with you?"
I actually liked her before that! I know pokemon teachers are used to being strict, it could be dangerous for a student or a pokemon to misbehave in a practical session, but that was way too much! When she let me leave, I had to hurry to the other end of the school for Maths, so I was late again, and I didn't get to talk to Laura until lunch.
"Thanks for not laughing." I sighed as we started our sandwiches.
"Ah, not that I'd have laughed if I'd got it, Drew, but I was actually confused about how Mary's bulbasaur could have beaten the charizard." That got us both laughing, and choking on our food a little. It was the best part of my day (though that sounds quite pathetic).
In Science, we were supposed to have been doing an interesting practical on photosynthesis with lamps and shrubs from the greenhouses. When the class arrived at the lab, though, Mr. Scobern didn't turn up for ten minutes. He eventually arrived with bad news.
"Sorry class, it seems one of the school growlithe is missing, and the greenhouses are all burnt up. No, we can't do a different practical instead, the technicians are busy - no, you can't go home! I photocopied some sheets for you to fill in this lesson," The class groaned. "However, when I talked to the head, he said it might be more productive if all Science classes today received an extra Pokemon practical instead, to study signs of sickness or unrest in case that's what caused the?" By then, he had to stop, almost half the class was cheering. Not me, though. I like science, even sheets, and while I wouldn't have minded another Pokemon lesson most days, this was hardly 'most days'.
I paired with Laura as usual, and we were given an oddish to check for discolouration. I noticed Miss Catran still didn't say anything to me.
"Miss is still ignoring me." I moaned to Laura.
"She's probably forgotten about this morning, don't be silly. No, not you, Oddish, he's fidgeting."
"She keeps frowning at me. She's 'keeping an eye on me', I swear."
"Now you are being silly." Laura replied, a little impatiently, so I dropped the subject.
When Miss checked on us halfway through the lesson, she asked Laura if she'd found anything worrying (she hadn't), then told me;
"Stop acting stressed. You're upsetting Oddish." That was ridiculous! I'm way better than Laura at Pokemon, even if I'm not the best!
"That's probably all the frowns were about." Laura hand signed to me as Miss turned away. When I stared at her (taking the teacher's side!) she said, surprised, "Oh come on, you do look a bit stressed, even if it is her fault. We should get some cakes in town after school or something, relax a bit."
I agreed to that at least, so when school finished after Geography, I started to walk from the school's East site to the main one where Laura's set finished. The rain was getting heavier, and there were the usual crowds along the street, crossing the road between sites in either direction.
I still can't believe what happened next. Just as I was stepping off the kerb, I tripped on my shoelace and fell flat on my face across the road. In the few long seconds I was falling, I saw to one side a gray car I hadn't noticed before that was going so very fast it had to hit me. When my head hit the tarmac, I heard the car trying to brake, but it was far too late, and I couldn't think beyond how bad my head and knees and wrists hurt. Then I was hovering in the air, with the car screeching along the wet road right underneath me.
For a moment I wondered if I was dead. I looked at myself and saw that I was still a bit muddy and bloody from the fall, and covered in thick vines. Then I realized everyone on the street was staring at me. Something turned me around, and I saw that an ivysaur on the pavement was holding me, pulling me in to safety. Standing behind it? I saw Fiona, but it took me a few moments to recognize her.
When I was right in front of the ivysaur, it stopped moving me, and just kept me hanging a foot off the ground. I guess I started to look panicky, because Fiona called out;
"It's all right Drew, she's just checking you for broken bones."
I hadn't realized because I was numb all over. That's not quite true? My head still hurt, and my cheeks were burning. Everyone was crowding around us, staring, whispering, shouting. The driver had stopped and was apologizing frantically to the headteacher, who had come running up, and was trying to calm him down and get Fiona's attention.
At last, I was set down on the pavement. I tried to walk off, but Fiona grabbed my arm, asking me quietly;
"Drew, are you alright?"
Which made me trip again. My legs were shaking - I was shivering all over. Laura appeared on my other side and helped catch me. I just wanted to shove her and Fiona away, run off and hide. The whole school had seen me as a clumsy, bleeding, helpless thirteen year old girl hanging in the air, the mud in my hair and uniform streaking in the rain, saved by my little sister.
Don't think I'm all proud and selfish. If I'd been whisked away into a small quiet room, just me and Fiona, I'd have cried, laughed, hugged her non-stop. I love my sister, and I was glad to see her again, after so long, and very glad she was there when I fell, instead of - But I was shocked, and held up on display in front of everyone I knew, and I didn't know how I was ever going to face any of them again.
Plus, Fiona was so different. Obviously, she looked older, but she'd never changed so much in any year at home. Her clothes - a jumper and shorts with a belt holding one pokeball - though not especially fashionable and quite well-worn looking, were clean and smart, very different from the kiddy style of hers I remembered. Then there was how she wore them with? Well, with more grace and confidence than I'd seen in her before. She would be, in part, a new person, who I didn't want to be introduced to again in the condition I was in.
So, when a part of me wanted to run away, and another part of me wanted to stand and chat, and another part of me wanted to run away too, all that happened was my legs folded underneath me. I didn't say a thing as Laura and Fiona helped the headteacher half-carry me into the school's main office building between sites. I think Ivysaur retreated to her pokeball at some point. Wish I had my own little room available like that. The head cleared one of the ground floor rooms and sat me down on a sofa, by a desk which he then took a seat at, sending Laura for a nurse and a glass of water.
"No need for a nurse, Mr. Rethic, I'm first aid trained and there's a kit in this building, isn't there? If you don't mind waiting before we carry on talking. Besides, Terry won't be back for another ten minutes or so, and we'd have to wait for him anyway."
With Mr. Rethic's permission, Fiona left to find the first aid kit. As soon as it was quiet again, the headteacher started to question me.
"Well, Drew, right? That was a nasty fall you took back there. How are you feeling now?"
"Fine. I'm fine." I mumbled. Now the fuss had died down, I was getting more annoyed with myself than anything else.
"Good." Mr. Rethic seemed to relax then, as if everything was over, no harm done in the end. "Don't worry about the scene outside. I'd say most of the students will already have wandered off, talking about the unusual pokemon they saw. The driver has been sent on his way with? well, with my reassurances, he seemed more disturbed than you to tell the truth. I gather you weren't behaving irresponsibly, and a lecture on road safety seems rather redundant now anyway, eh?"
He paused, smiling encouragingly, so I forced out something like a laugh in response.
"You just rest here for the moment, then." He advised. "Your sister will want you to wait for her before you leave; I gather she has news for you and your parents. Ah, Fiona, I see you found the first aid box."
Thankfully, Fiona finished cleaning and dressing the cuts on my head and palms before Laura got back with my drink. I mean, how much more embarrassment could I have dealt with today? Laura sat with me quietly while Fiona and the Headteacher talked. It turned out the school growlithe had run off last night when he'd heard an arcanine, one of Fiona's team, howling from the hills just outside of town where they were camped. The two pokemon had been a couple long ago, but had been separated by a mix of pack movements and bad luck. When Growlithe ran off, a wild caterpie in the greenhouses had tripped him up, then fled with Growlithe flaming after it, having lost his senses a little I suppose. Fiona and the others had woken up this morning to see Growlithe lying next to Arcanine.
"Under the circumstances, I have to agree. Growlithe may begin his training immediately." Mr. Rethic was saying. "Still, if you are at all able to help the Pokemon or Science departments with this sudden loss, it would be much appreciated."
"Well, as I was going to say earlier, Terry should be back from the Center soon - Pokemon Center, yes - where he's asking some growlithe from the New Forest if they still want to train with him after trying it for a few weeks or if they'd like to work for the school. I don't think there's much I can do about the greenhouses though, sorry."
"It's not your fault, Fiona. Finding a replacement so soon would be a great help?"
I was still trying to remember who Terry was. There was a mention, in a letter a few months ago... in a few of them actually? but I hadn't read Fiona's letters very carefully after the first few. She just wasn't writing about stuff we both knew any more, nothing that I could have talked with her about like school or TV.
"Who's Terry?" Laura asked. She wasn't sure who to talk to, not being used to sitting in on teachers' discussions with visitors and not knowing what to make of Fiona now she wasn't just 'my friend's kid sister' any more, so her question was addressed to me.
"He's another trainer." I offered. "A friend of Fiona's." All this was obvious, of course. I turned to Fiona for a proper answer, trying not to get embarrassed.
"I met him just before I won my first badge." Fiona filled in. "We were practicing together at Basingstoke Gym, best of three matches, and his team won overall. We watched each other challenge the Gym Leader, and my team, we won, but his were unlucky and only just lost. He's a few years older than me, but he trains a lot of pokemon, anyone who wants a mix of training and down time at the Centers, so his team wasn't as strong as you might expect. We decided to travel together to help our teams train, as they were so well matched, and compared to my last traveling companion? I'd mainly been training with another girl who'd just started called Amy before then, but when she lost another gym challenge, she decided to go home. One of her team went to live with her, one started to train with Terry instead, the others stayed at the Center until they found a new trainer who suited them."
Fiona didn't seem at all awkward about how everyone was listening to her. I guess headteachers don't seem so much more important than you when you've started on your career too, however young you are.
Mr. Rethic looked up then, and following his gaze, I saw a boy about my age leaning against the doorframe, waiting to be noticed. He seemed slightly amused by Fiona's story. As introductions were made, I tried to slip out. Didn't think I'd make a great first impression just then. I tapped Fiona on the shoulder and told her;
"I'll be going home now. Might walk back through town with Laura. Catch up with you later."
"Oh, no, we won't be too long, and Terry really wants to meet my family now we're back in my home town. Won't you stay?" Fiona asked, loudly and sweetly. Already my little sister was annoying me. I nodded rather than making excuses to the entire room, while Terry started talking to me.
"So you're Drew? Heard a lot about you." I nodded again, wondering how he could be interested in the student when he had the trainer to talk to every day. She's younger than both of us, and she's the one he knows and respects. Still, he seemed sincere, which helped my mood a little. He looked kinda cute sincere, his black hair falling in front of his thin face as he shook hands 'cause it's the longest style that looks good on most guys. What kind of thirteen-year-old shakes hands, though?
Of course, then he had to notice my muddy hair, and the huge square plaster on my forehead. He asked what had happened, and Laura filled him in. The way she stared at Terry as she told him of my near fatal accident, she totally has a crush on him. And her hair looked brushed. Not that I'm jealous.
"I was walking over to the East site to meet Drew, we were gonna go into town, and when I was almost at the road I saw her trip up, well, down? For a moment, when she just lay there and that car- there was a car- was rushing up, I was so scared she was gonna die, but in an instant she was hanging in the air like an angel. It was such a shock, too, seeing an ivysaur behind me! When Drew was safe, I was so relieved, and everyone out there was agreeing what a hero Fiona is, plus the ivysaur of course, and how Drew was so lucky!"
Talk about a twisted version of events. Lucky, to fall in front of a car! Terry soon started talking to Fiona and Mr. Rethic about business, and while they talked my mood went right back down into rocky blackness. That was when it really started to sink in that I'd almost died. If anything had stopped Fiona being there at that exact moment, like if Mr. Rethic had had a few more words to say wherever they'd been first, or if Fiona had tripped too? I would've been gone. For real. Buried in a coffin, friends and family grieving, driver sued. Too creepy to think about. So the only option this left me was to be wonderfully happy about this miracle, thankful for the amazing hero who saved me. Joyous about my hands stinging, grateful for the awkward looks I was receiving as I sat there looking bleak and muddy. Obliged to be amazed at my little sister's incredibleness and competence like the years I've spent my way as a student, a kid, since I was her age, were useless in comparison. That'd be even worse than the way kids who dream of following in an older hero's footsteps dismiss any unique hopes and plans of their own. I hated being there, but the thought of not being there made me feel oh, so sickeningly scared.
Eventually, Terry brought out a group of five growlithe, who started discussing the school with Mr. Rethic as they all left to look around. Fire pokemon have the oddest way of using sign language, shaping little clouds of smoke so rapidly... Well, then Laura went home, and Fiona called our parents to pick us up, as it was getting so late they'd be home from work. She hung up grinning and really looking like she couldn't wait to chat, so I decided to try speaking again.
"Mr. Rethic said you had news."
"Yes. It's pretty big, but I decided not to phone when it happened as I'd be home so soon anyway." She was looking excited, eyes sparkling. We were chatting like we used to, a whole year ago? "On Wednesday, me and Terry were in Oxford, and you know the Gym there's pretty big, right? Well, when my team won this one match, the other trainer, David, said he thought we should try challenging the Gym Leader. I said no way, everyone knows Mandine is really tough and I've lost smaller challenges, but he told me Mandine had left for a few days and put her daughter Maynie in charge. So, as soon as my team had healed, we challenged her. Her first few, Golduck and Noctowl, were really tough, but when we beat them, thinking we couldn't keep this up, the next three were just pushovers, and she didn't even send out the last one against us, said there was no point, he wouldn't last long enough to make any progress! Turns out she only heard she'd be covering the night before and she had to rush out to find four more pokemon she could train at the last minute! So, you know what this means?"
"You have another badge?" I hope that came out congratulatory. It might have been tinted by a bit of bitterness, exasperation that this still wasn't the little sister I remembered. Any other day?
"Yeah." She was still smiling, but was it just me or was her tone a little cooler? "That's three we've earned now, and three medals each for most of my team. Mum and Dad will be proud, won't they?"
"They really will!" I could agree wholeheartedly with that.
ooooooooooooooooooooooo
After such a long day, it was a real relief for Mum and Dad to come pick us up, even if the car's going to be a little hard to look at for a few days. Everything got sorted out first, with a couple of growlithe deciding to stay for the rest of the term and see how things went from there. Terry's staying at the Pokemon Center tonight to give Fiona a chance to 'catch up with the family'. We're meeting him for lunch tomorrow.
I pretended I was asleep in the car, and when we got back, walked straight to my room. Didn't feel like talking or running. Either might trip me up again. It's taken a few hours to get this down, with almost as much scribbled out as there is left now, but it's worth it. To read this, it might show I wasn't as idiotic as I seemed today. Not that I'm letting anyone see this. Ever.
Should be time for tea soon, and that's pretty safe. Fiona will be telling us everything that's been happening this past year. I'm sure I couldn't say a word if I wanted to.
ooooooooooooooooooooooo
Fiona's Diary.
Friday 24th October, 2008
Not so much time to write. Everything's always so rushed in towns and cities. I'm going to help make tea soon.
Back in Newbury, and it's all so cramped and dull. School is still small and pointless, from what I've seen of it today. It's great to see my family again, but I never did miss my parents as much as I thought I would. Meggie's staying in the garden tonight. I wish there was room for the others. We're already missing them. I do envy Terry, staying with his lot like usual. It won't be too bad here, just for tonight.
Drew is still just like I remembered her. She seems pretty miserable today, so Terry seems right about taking it slow. I'll talk to her tomorrow, give her some time to herself tonight, however dumb that concept is when she should be? She'll be in a better mood tomorrow, and it's like Terry said, we're being 'ambassadors'. He doesn't see the potential yet, but I know Drew's so intelligent and kind hearted, she'll fit right in once she knows it's what she wants.
Got to go help out. More later.