Broadway
Find your wings.
- 197
- Posts
- 15
- Years
- Montreal, Quebec, Canada
- Seen Aug 12, 2010
"Okay, okay, now you try!" Carol hung down by her knees from a sturdy branch and craned her neck so she could look at the Teddiursa upside down. The little bear was sucking her paw again, and studied the tree for a few seconds. Then she went to the trunk and latched on, her sturdy little claws digging into the bark. Carol pulled herself upright so she didn't get dizzy, and sat on the branch while the Teddiursa climbed up. Unlike Carol, she didn't need handholds or anything, she just planted her feet on the trunk, and grabbed on with her claws, and hitched herself up easily.
"Teddi!" she announced, when she'd reached the first fork in the main branches, raising both arms over her head in a move Carol had done herself just a few seconds ago upon reaching her own branch.
"Yeah!!" Carol did it again, and laughed. She looked around at the tall, swaying grasses that spread out all around. There were a few rare trees like this one, and some fuzzier looking spots where shrubs and bushes made thickets in the grass, but mostly it was just a giant, overgrown meadow. "And, uh, hey, look," Carol leaned pointed. "There's the trail!"
She grinned a little nervously. She hadn't been scared or anything, not really, but they were so far into the grass that the strip of trail became invisible in the sea of swaying strands. But from this vantage point, it was easy to spot, and Carol made sure to pick out another tree that was on the other side of it. If she just kept heading for that, even when she got down, she'd know she was in the right direction.
"Too bad about that Rattata," she told the Teddiursa sympathetically, who tilted her head to one side and then the other, kind of like a shrug, but she still looked a little disgruntled at the mention of it. She'd bolted off into the grass after the fast-moving purple streak and Carol had been forced to charge after both of them. But the Rattata had eluded the Teddiursa, and then the road had eluded them both. "Anyway, I guess we should get back to the road..." she sighed. It wasn't too hard to tromp around the meadowy parts, but she kind of did want to stay not lost. "But wait, stay there, okay?" Carol clambered back down to the lowest branch, then swung down to hang by her hands, and let herself drop to the ground again. She dug around in her backpack and pulled out her tablet computer. "I save up for this thing, and I'm gonna use it." She flipped it on, and tapped at the touchscreen until she turned on the camera. She held the tablet up towards the Teddiursa, who leaned forward curiously. "That's a good one," Carol remarked, when the still photo appeared on the screen. "You're not even blurry." She turned it around and held the screen up it to the Teddiursa.
"Ted?" she asked, leaning farther, and then just turned around and came down again to come over and see it properly. She poked at the screen, without quite touching it, thank goodness. "Teddi?" she asked again.
"That's you," Carol said. "Gonna send it to Mom and everyone, since they didn't get to meet you." She sat down below the tree and opened a blank email, putting everyone in the To field. She was about to attach the picture when she saw the filename. TPC0007. "That's... bleh," Carol muttered. "Hey, do you want a name?" She looked over at the Teddiursa. "I don't really want to call you Teddiursa all the time. I mean, you're special, you're not just any one."
The Teddiursa tilted her head back and forth again. Maybe she didn't understand. Carol didn't really know if she could, but still.... "See, look," she showed her the screen again, minimizing the email program to bring up the pictures folder where the first pictures she'd taken while trying out the function still were. There was one of everyone in her family together. "That's Mom, and Dad," she pointed at them, "and that's Lowry, and that's Andy. Different names. Want one?"
"Teddi!" she said, throwing her paws up in the cheering motion again, before starting to suck on one of them, and smile.
"Well okay then," Carol said. "How do you feel about... hm," she hesitated a bit, because it was kind of silly, but... "Chant?"
The Teddiursa tilted her head again, but only to one side, like she was thinking about it. Carol elaborated. "Well, it's because my name is Carol, and that's a kind of song. And a chant is sort related... but it's more something you just say, I guess, it's shorter... like how you talk, really. And people chant when they watch battles and sports, too." She raised her fists and made a few punching motions. "Go, team, go!"
"Ted, ted, ted!" the Teddiursa replied, swiping her paws out at some invisible enemy.
"Yeah! Just like that. So... Chant?" she asked, and the Teddiursa—Chant—looked at her and smiled. Carol nodded, and brought up the email program again, changing the filename before she attached it, and dashed off a few words. "Meet Chant!" said the subject.
The tablet was safely stowed, and they were heading back to the road, Carol keeping her eyes fixed firmly on that distant tree so she didn't veer anymore (and carrying Chant in her arms, to keep Chant from causing her to veer again), when frenzied barking from off to one side startled her.
"Ted!!" exclaimed Chant, enthusiastically, and struggled against Carol's grip. Not for long, though, because the yapping got louder and a Poochyena darted out in front of them.
"Whoa, yes, okay, go!! Watch the claws!" Carol almost dropped Chant, in Chant's eagerness to get down. Teddiursa claws didn't retract like some pokemon's did.
The Poochyena was looking slightly taken aback at Chant's gung-ho attitude, but it charge forward gamely, going headlong for a good Tackle. "Show me how you can Scratch, Chant!" Carol told her.
She didn't quite expect what happened next. Instead of meeting to exchange blows and separating again, like she'd seen in the battles people in town sometimes had, or from the Battle Frontier or Stadium broadcasts. Chant caught the Poochyena and.. held on. A ball of reddish-brown and black-and-grey fur rolled over and over for long seconds.
"Chant!!" Carol cried in dismay, but then they separated, the Poochyena looking bedraggled and angry, and Chant looking bedraggled and challenging, as if daring it to try again. "Uh, uh, Leer!" Carol told her, and Chant obliged, coming forward slow and steady, and from this angle, Carol couldn't see her expression, but it seemed to work on the Poochyena. The little dog backed up a few steps before growling and charging again. "Scratch again, Chant," Carol said, almost needlessly, she was sure, as Chant once again didn't even try to dodge, just met the Poochyena with one arm out, swiping claws and then latching on again.
"Ted! Teddi!" Chant's muffled voice emerged from the scrambling ball of fighting pokemon, sounding distinctly like teasing taunts. The Poochyena struggled free, legs wobbling, and Chant stood up to her full, diminutive height, and ran for it, arm ready for another scratch. And it was the last one. The blow made the Poochyena stagger and lie down, breathing hard, and Chant stood next to it, turning back to face Carol, and she raised both arms, grinning hugely.
Carol was wide-eyed. This pokemon really did love battles, didn't she? "Go team!" Carol raised her own arms belatedly, and laughed as she spoke. Maybe they were really a team now. Chant nodded firmly and ran to her, lifting her arms this time in a clear "carry me" gesture. "Well, I certainly will, you deserve it," Carol lifted her again, noting the Poochyena slinking away into the grass in the corner of her eye.
In Carol's arms, Chant's warm furry body relaxed, and she snuggled against Carol, yawning tiredly. On reflection, given the vigor with which she'd wrestled that Poochyena, Carol wasn't surprised. Chant was a fighter, but she was just starting out, same as Carol.
"Take a breather," Carol murmured, and kept an ear out for any more barking as she kept on towards the trail.
"Teddi!" she announced, when she'd reached the first fork in the main branches, raising both arms over her head in a move Carol had done herself just a few seconds ago upon reaching her own branch.
"Yeah!!" Carol did it again, and laughed. She looked around at the tall, swaying grasses that spread out all around. There were a few rare trees like this one, and some fuzzier looking spots where shrubs and bushes made thickets in the grass, but mostly it was just a giant, overgrown meadow. "And, uh, hey, look," Carol leaned pointed. "There's the trail!"
She grinned a little nervously. She hadn't been scared or anything, not really, but they were so far into the grass that the strip of trail became invisible in the sea of swaying strands. But from this vantage point, it was easy to spot, and Carol made sure to pick out another tree that was on the other side of it. If she just kept heading for that, even when she got down, she'd know she was in the right direction.
"Too bad about that Rattata," she told the Teddiursa sympathetically, who tilted her head to one side and then the other, kind of like a shrug, but she still looked a little disgruntled at the mention of it. She'd bolted off into the grass after the fast-moving purple streak and Carol had been forced to charge after both of them. But the Rattata had eluded the Teddiursa, and then the road had eluded them both. "Anyway, I guess we should get back to the road..." she sighed. It wasn't too hard to tromp around the meadowy parts, but she kind of did want to stay not lost. "But wait, stay there, okay?" Carol clambered back down to the lowest branch, then swung down to hang by her hands, and let herself drop to the ground again. She dug around in her backpack and pulled out her tablet computer. "I save up for this thing, and I'm gonna use it." She flipped it on, and tapped at the touchscreen until she turned on the camera. She held the tablet up towards the Teddiursa, who leaned forward curiously. "That's a good one," Carol remarked, when the still photo appeared on the screen. "You're not even blurry." She turned it around and held the screen up it to the Teddiursa.
"Ted?" she asked, leaning farther, and then just turned around and came down again to come over and see it properly. She poked at the screen, without quite touching it, thank goodness. "Teddi?" she asked again.
"That's you," Carol said. "Gonna send it to Mom and everyone, since they didn't get to meet you." She sat down below the tree and opened a blank email, putting everyone in the To field. She was about to attach the picture when she saw the filename. TPC0007. "That's... bleh," Carol muttered. "Hey, do you want a name?" She looked over at the Teddiursa. "I don't really want to call you Teddiursa all the time. I mean, you're special, you're not just any one."
The Teddiursa tilted her head back and forth again. Maybe she didn't understand. Carol didn't really know if she could, but still.... "See, look," she showed her the screen again, minimizing the email program to bring up the pictures folder where the first pictures she'd taken while trying out the function still were. There was one of everyone in her family together. "That's Mom, and Dad," she pointed at them, "and that's Lowry, and that's Andy. Different names. Want one?"
"Teddi!" she said, throwing her paws up in the cheering motion again, before starting to suck on one of them, and smile.
"Well okay then," Carol said. "How do you feel about... hm," she hesitated a bit, because it was kind of silly, but... "Chant?"
The Teddiursa tilted her head again, but only to one side, like she was thinking about it. Carol elaborated. "Well, it's because my name is Carol, and that's a kind of song. And a chant is sort related... but it's more something you just say, I guess, it's shorter... like how you talk, really. And people chant when they watch battles and sports, too." She raised her fists and made a few punching motions. "Go, team, go!"
"Ted, ted, ted!" the Teddiursa replied, swiping her paws out at some invisible enemy.
"Yeah! Just like that. So... Chant?" she asked, and the Teddiursa—Chant—looked at her and smiled. Carol nodded, and brought up the email program again, changing the filename before she attached it, and dashed off a few words. "Meet Chant!" said the subject.
The tablet was safely stowed, and they were heading back to the road, Carol keeping her eyes fixed firmly on that distant tree so she didn't veer anymore (and carrying Chant in her arms, to keep Chant from causing her to veer again), when frenzied barking from off to one side startled her.
"Ted!!" exclaimed Chant, enthusiastically, and struggled against Carol's grip. Not for long, though, because the yapping got louder and a Poochyena darted out in front of them.
"Whoa, yes, okay, go!! Watch the claws!" Carol almost dropped Chant, in Chant's eagerness to get down. Teddiursa claws didn't retract like some pokemon's did.
The Poochyena was looking slightly taken aback at Chant's gung-ho attitude, but it charge forward gamely, going headlong for a good Tackle. "Show me how you can Scratch, Chant!" Carol told her.
She didn't quite expect what happened next. Instead of meeting to exchange blows and separating again, like she'd seen in the battles people in town sometimes had, or from the Battle Frontier or Stadium broadcasts. Chant caught the Poochyena and.. held on. A ball of reddish-brown and black-and-grey fur rolled over and over for long seconds.
"Chant!!" Carol cried in dismay, but then they separated, the Poochyena looking bedraggled and angry, and Chant looking bedraggled and challenging, as if daring it to try again. "Uh, uh, Leer!" Carol told her, and Chant obliged, coming forward slow and steady, and from this angle, Carol couldn't see her expression, but it seemed to work on the Poochyena. The little dog backed up a few steps before growling and charging again. "Scratch again, Chant," Carol said, almost needlessly, she was sure, as Chant once again didn't even try to dodge, just met the Poochyena with one arm out, swiping claws and then latching on again.
"Ted! Teddi!" Chant's muffled voice emerged from the scrambling ball of fighting pokemon, sounding distinctly like teasing taunts. The Poochyena struggled free, legs wobbling, and Chant stood up to her full, diminutive height, and ran for it, arm ready for another scratch. And it was the last one. The blow made the Poochyena stagger and lie down, breathing hard, and Chant stood next to it, turning back to face Carol, and she raised both arms, grinning hugely.
Carol was wide-eyed. This pokemon really did love battles, didn't she? "Go team!" Carol raised her own arms belatedly, and laughed as she spoke. Maybe they were really a team now. Chant nodded firmly and ran to her, lifting her arms this time in a clear "carry me" gesture. "Well, I certainly will, you deserve it," Carol lifted her again, noting the Poochyena slinking away into the grass in the corner of her eye.
In Carol's arms, Chant's warm furry body relaxed, and she snuggled against Carol, yawning tiredly. On reflection, given the vigor with which she'd wrestled that Poochyena, Carol wasn't surprised. Chant was a fighter, but she was just starting out, same as Carol.
"Take a breather," Carol murmured, and kept an ear out for any more barking as she kept on towards the trail.