#I caught it first try with a normal Pokéball

[starryrock]

I hope every day that the Frenchman who traded me a Shiny Lvl 100 Dialga for my beloved, freshly caught Xerneas and REFUSED to trade it back to me: I hope every day that he looks at what he’s reaped and grovels for the forgiveness of the man looking back at him in the mirror.

[just-a-re-blog]

ALRIGHT THAT’S IT—I’VE REACHED MY LIMIT! MY PATIENCE HAS RUN OUT!!

I’m sharing my Haikyuu!! Pokémon!AU because I’ve been seeing everyone else’s and now mine demands to break free of the confines of Google Docs!

To start, I’m just gonna post my thoughts on the Karasuno kids, but I have. A Lot Of Other Ideas.

As a universe note, I have done my best to reconcile the passage of time in the PokéAni world, the passage of time for us irl viewers who grew up watching it, and the canon passage of time in Haikyuu!! Why the hell would I do all of that?

✨Because my particular brand of autism demands that I establish those kinds of rules!✨

I also have a ton of quirky calculations I’ve done to figure out how many Pokémon it makes sense for everyone to have and how the evolution rates work because, again, my particular brand of autism demands that I establish those kinds of rules! But I’ll post those at a much later date.

The important info for now is that I’ve included the year everyone starts their journey, their home region (listed first and noted again with their starter/partner), plus other regions they’ve been to. My little imagining ultimately takes place with everyone congregated in Kalos in 2009, so Kalos is included for everyone.

Teams are in dex order within the order of the regions they were caught. So a Johto kid who goes to Hoenn has all their Johto catches listed in dex order before they have all of their Hoenn catches listed in dex order. (This is not a super important detail, but it is one that I would want to know in order to understand why an Applin is listed before a Roggenrola.) Also worth noting that some evolutions are listed earlier or later than their national dex number if an evolutionary stage was first introduced in a different regional dex (i.e., the retroactive addition of a baby Pokémon stage).

Last notation notes:

* — Evolved with Trainer through one previous stage

** — Evolved with Trainer through two previous stages

Without further ado!

Daichi (2006, Kanto, Unova, Kalos)

Trainer: Kanto: Charizard**

Type Preferences: Ground

Team: Charizard**, Raticate*, Fearow*, Sandslash*, Growlithe, Poliwrath**, Victreebel**, Onix, Rhyhorn, Pinsir, Tauros, Hoppip, Cherrim, Palpitoad, Sandile, Crustle*, Diggersby, Litleo

Daichi got a late start as a Trainer because of family matters and the care of his younger siblings, but he has more than made up for it with his disciplined approach; when the third-year guys challenged the Indigo League, he made it the farthest, and his Charmeleon partner was the last standing member of his team, despite the fact that it had not yet reached its final evolution

Suga (2004, Hoenn, Kanto, Unova, Kalos)

Trainer: Hoenn: Swampert**

Type Preferences: None

Team: Swampert**, Dustox**, Ludicolo**, Pelipper*, Skitty, Roserade*, Swalot*, Torkoal, Cacnea, Milotic*, Kecleon, Snorunt, Butterfree**, Gengar**, Exeggutor*, Tauros, Whimsicott, Foongus, Goomy, Carbink

Loves, and I mean LOVES, to catch the first Pokémon in an evolutionary line so that he can try to raise it through every stage—especially if it’s a split line; this is why, despite being the first of the third-years to set out, he doesn’t have that many Pokémon to show he had a head start; feels like someone who prefers to rotate his walking buddies so they don’t spend all their time in Pokéballs if he can help it

Asahi (2005, Johto, Kanto, Unova, Kalos)

Trainer: Johto: Audino, Meganium

Type Preferences: Normal Types

Team: Audino, Meganium, Ampharos*, Ambipom*, Sunflora, Quagsire*, Forretress*, Granbull*, Ursaring*, Piloswine*, Phanpy, Beedrill, Gloom*, Marowak*, Tauros (20), Happiny, Patrat, Minccino, Deerling, Bouffalant, Furfrou, Phantump

Despite being from Johto, his unofficial starting partner is actually an Audino that his older sister caught for him in her own travels; Asahi was really anxious about possibly breaking rules by having a “non-official Starter,” so his sister basically demanded Audino back, made him go get a regular-degular Starter, and then forced him to take Audino back, like “Congrats, now you’ve got two”; one of Asahi’s most notable moments in his journey thus far was when he and his friends went to the Safari Zone where Asahi ended up catching 22 Tauros, giving two to his friends, and getting his picture hung next to one of World Coronation Series Monarch Ash Ketchum in The Safari Zone offices (Ash caught 30 in The Safari Zone when he passed through)

Noya (2005, Johto, Hoenn, Sinnoh, Unova, Kalos)

Trainer: Johto: Jolteon*

Type Preferences: Electric

Team: Jolteon*, Scyther, Gliscor*, Qwilfish, Skarmory, Electabuzz*, Magmar*, Nosepass, Electrike, Plusle, Minun, Dusclops*, Porygon, Luxio*, Bronzor*, Karrablast, Joltik, Galvantula, Binacle, Dedenne

Has a partner Jolteon that his grandfather raised as an Eevee alongside Yuu and then gave to him (yes, Noya does his hair Like That so that they can match); was inspired by Ash Ketchum to try and be the youngest guy to ever traverse the routes of every region—so he is speed-running the Pokémon world and having a great time with it

Tanaka (2006, Hoenn, Sinnoh, Unova, Kalos)

Trainer: Hoenn: Honchkrow* (influenced by @devilcakebunny)

Type Preferences: Fighting

Team: Honchkrow*, Dodrio*, Houndoom*, Mightyena*, Ralts, Vigoroth*, Hariyama*, Carvanha, Relicanth, Mankey*, Cubone, Tyrogue, Snover, Kingler*, Scrafty*, Spritzee

His partner is a Murkrow that used to be part of Saeko’s crew, but he met Ryuu, and they became instant antagonists and also inseparable; please, he 158% has a Scrafty; met the Second Year Squad when Noya came through Hoenn and insisted that Ryuu join him on his trek to the Sinnoh Region; wants to take over Dewford Town’s Fighting-Type Gym one day

Ennoshita (2005, Sinnoh, Kalos)

Breeder: Sinnoh: Prinplup*

Type Preferences: None

Team: Prinplup*, Rapidash*, Hypno*, Dragonair*, Espeon*, Gallade*, Numel, Staraptor**, Glameow, Lucario*, Gible, Lumineon*, Flabébé

Ennoshita has had his heart set on breeding for his whole life—caretaking comes naturally to him, and he loves the challenge of puzzling out the best ways to care for Pokémon as members of their type, species, and as individuals; he’s very strict with the care of his Pokémon, and as such, he prefers to keep a comparatively small roster so he can give them each adequate attention and affection; a few of his Pokémon are definitely rescues; battling is harder for him, but he’s spent enough time with his Pokémon that he can communicate with them VERY effectively, which makes him a more dangerous opponent than people expect

Kinoshita (2005, Sinnoh, Kalos)

Coordinator: Sinnoh: Monferno*

Type Preferences: None

Team: Monferno*, Arbok*, Pikachu, Electrode*, Lickitung, Illumise, Bibarel*, Pachirisu, Shellos (West), Buneary, Chatot, Hippopotas, Skrelp, Bergmite

All of the Karasuno boys love their Pokémon dearly, but I think Kinoshita would have some of the highest friendship ratings out of anyone; this is just a fun assortment of little guys, most of whom you might not immediately picture as contest material, but Kinoshita sees a lot of potential in each of them; he’s gotten a lot of care tips from Ennoshita to help his team be their best, and while he has yet to become anything close to a Top Coordinator, he and his team do VERY well in the Performance Stage and have been steadily improving in the Battle Stage

Narita (2005, Sinnoh, Kalos)

Trainer: Sinnoh: Grotle*

Type Preferences: None

Team: Grotle*, Venomoth, Weavile*, Volbeat, Grumpig, Seviper, Absol, Floatzel, Bastiodon*, Shellos (East), Drifblim*, Mismagius, Clauncher

I cannot think of Narita without remembering that Furudate said, “This kid’s into some weird stuff,” so I literally just gave him a balance of totally normal dudes and funky little guys that feel underrepresented to me (vs., like, MatsuHana, who have, like, exclusively funky little guys)

Kageyama (2007, Galar, Kalos)

Trainer: Galar: Corvisquire*

Type Preferences: Dragon

Team: Corvisquire*, Vulpix, Slowking (Galarian)**, Weezing (Galarian), Zigzagoon (Galarian), Nuzleaf, Gabite*, Sawk, Deino, Drampa, Applin, Runerigus, Snom, Arctovish, Duraludon, Roggenrola, Tynamo, Swirlix, Noibat

@soyochii said Kageyama has Kazuyo’s Corviknight, and they were right, except that I’ve put a bit of a spin on it; picture, if you will, Kazuyo, his Corviknight, and two Corviknight eggs Kazuyo procures a little before Tobio is about to start on his Pokémon journey; Miwa, who was then competing in Kalos as a Performer, gets one, and Tobio gets the other so that the grandkids will always feel connected to home; Tobio hatches his and then takes Rookidee with him, and they train HARD together, though Rookidee is slow to evolve because—like trainer, like partner—he’s got some inner roadblocks to work through; they grieve together when, only a year into Tobio’s journey, they lose both Kazuyo and his Corviknight; just as Tobio is to Shoyo, so too Kags’ Corvisquire is instantly and adamantly frenemies with Shoyo’s Fletchinder, and it reaches its final evolution first just to stick it to them

Hinata (2006, Alola, Kalos)

Trainer: Alola: Fletchinder* (credit to @kimbapisnotsushi’s excellent takes)

Type Preferences: None

Team: Fletchinder*, Vulpix (Alolan), Geodude (Alolan), Marowak (Alolan), Blitzle, Pancham, Klefki, Crabrawler, Jangmo-o, Tangela, Scatterbug, Skiddo, Helioptile

So I did this because I feel like it’s exceptionally funny if Shoyo doesn’t realize that the Alolan variations of Pokémon are Alolan variations and totally thinks ALL Vulpix are Ice Types and ALL Digletts have hair and ALL Geodudes are half-Electric; additionally, the fact that Hinata grew up on the Island Trial system means that traditional Pokémon battles are not his forte, but he excels at creative problem-solving, which makes him a formidable foe on the battlefield; while there is a lot of merit to the idea that Hinata likes to specialize in a certain type like Fire or Flying, I just think about Hinata next to Ash, and I feel like their pure love of all Pokémon would unite them so deeply; Ash is in fact Shoyo’s Little Giant in this AU; Kageyama, King of Strategy, Appalled by Hinata’s Lack-Thereof, stuck around ‘cuz he really likes Shoyo’s Jangmo-o

Tsukishima (2006, Unova, Kalos)

Trainer: Unova: Servine*

Type Preferences: Rock & Poison

Team: Servine*, Nidorina*, Weepinbell*, Starmie*, Lunatone, Solrock, Croagunk, Purrloin, Pansear, Woobat, Maractus, Dwebble, Archen, Swanna*, Klank, Deino, Oddish, Bagon, Roselia

Kei aspired to be an Ace Trainer like his brother for years and years, but when he found out that Akiteru had been lying about beating the Icirrus and Opelucid gyms to earn Ace class status, his love and excitement about Pokemon was replaced by apathy; surprisingly, deep down, he’s a real Gotta-Catch-‘Em-All kid, but he keeps that desire a secret; does desperately want to study Unowns; courtesy of @volleybuoys, this kid DESPISES the Galar fossil system

Yamaguchi (2006, Sinnoh, Unova, Kalos)

Trainer: Sinnoh: Grotle*

Type Preferences: Bug & Flying

Team: Grotle*, Wobuffet, Surskit, Burmy (Trash Cloak), Sudowoodo*, Delibird, Woobat, Swadloon*, Whirlipede*, Emolga, Pawniard, Ponyta, Heracross, Swablu, Skorupi

Tadashi started his journey in Sinnoh, selecting Turtwig as his new partner, and while Tadashi and Turtwig became fast friends, they struggled when it came to catching new Pokémon and battling; Tadashi quickly became the subject of teasing due to his small roster of Pokémon that lacked highly effective movesets; desperate to prove himself to all those who suspected he was not tough enough to be a trainer—including himself—Tadashi decided that he and his team would travel to Unova; a near-disastrous encounter outside Striaton City led to a fateful meeting with Tsukki, who saved him from a strong and aggressive Watchog (because I think it’s so funny that along that route, there’s level 5 Patrat in BW and level 60 Watchog in BW2); after studying alongside Tsukki at the Trainers’ School, the two took turns defeating the Striaton Gym and decided to continue traveling together to defeat the Nacrene Gym and so on and so forth

Kiyoko (2004, Unova, Kalos)

Trainer: Unova: Samurott**

Type Preferences: Ghost & Psychic

Team: Samurott**, Slowking**, Goldeen, Ariados, Shuckle, Kirlia*, Sableye, Mawile, Tropius, Chimecho, Sigilyph, Gothitelle, Duosion, Frillish, Litwick, Mandibuzz, Drowzee, Axew

Everyone in Kiyoko’s hometown assumed she would be a Breeder or a Coordinator or even move to Kalos to be a Performer because “Oh, you’re so beautiful! I’m sure you’ll do great bringing out the beauty of your Pokémon!” but she got sick of that real quick and said “How about I show you the fierceness of our battle strategies instead?”; so she trains primarily Psychic-types because they either look really weird or their beauty belies their awesome power; came SO, so close to beating the Elite Four in Unova

Yachi (2006, Alola, Kalos)

Trainer: Alola: Popplio

Type Preferences: Psychic & Fairy

Team: Popplio, Exeggutor (Alolan), Ledyba, Spinda, Snorunt, Mime Jr., Sigilyph, Garbodor*, Frillish, Elgyem, Flabébé, Doublade, Spritzee, Pumpkaboo (Average)

I’M GIVING YACHI THE ONLY LEGENDARY INTERACTION OF THE GANG BECAUSE SHE DESERVES IT; so she’s interacted with Cosmog because I want that to be true <3; courtesy of the Island Trial system, Yachi is another kid who excels at creative problem-solving but flounders a bit with battling, so she has a touch of imposter syndrome when it comes to calling herself a Trainer; but while she tends to forget all she knows if she is challenged to battle, she has a great mind for understanding the ins and outs of battle, so she’s coaching Shoyo to help him reach his goals of mastery; she’s evaluating her goals along the way, too, trying to figure out if being a Trainer is the right way for her to find herself

[raccoongamejournal]

Pokémon X Chapter 2: Into the Woods

Next stop: Santalune Forest! Where I am joined by Shauna, who offers to heal my Pokémon as needed (that's nice). Time for some encounters!

On the second encounter, I catch a kakuna who I name "Parenthesis", followed by a caterpie who I name "Small Harold". Then a panpour, which I was not expecting at all, who I decide to name "Bobathon". I have a feeling he might be useful later.

I see where the other kids are waiting off to the right, so I stay on the left side and try to level up my team while catching more pokémon for a bit...which includes a pansear that I name "Jimothy Jr" after a pansear (and later simisear) who was a key part of my team for most of my Pokémon Black run (until I got reshiram), particularly for the Elite Four.

One quality-of-life improvement I'm noticing in gen vi (as compared to gen v) is that pokémon gain xp even when an encounter ends in a catch. This is a small thing but it's very nice in the early game.

Also, completely unrelated (but I'm just jotting down notes as I walk through the tall grass, so there isn't much of a narrative at the moment anyway)...

...that's an...interesting...ability name that gets even funnier whenever it activates, since it flashes a message saying "Batman's Big Pecks" on the left side of the screen (couldn't get a screenshot). It just makes everything more surreal. It's a useful ability though.

After a bit, I caught a pansage to complete the trio, who I named "Glorfindel" because I named a plant that once and well...plant monkey pokémon. I'm going to add him to my party once I get access to the boxes, since I'll probably want a grass type on my team to deal with any annoying water types since I have a fire-type starter.

Just when I think I've seen all the pokémon in these grass patches, I find and catch a pikachu who I name "Volta" (after the Crane Wives song). And then find another right after, who I decide to catch as well and name "Banana".

Thesaurus then surprised me by evolving into a kakuna. I forgot that happened that early, he's only level 7.

At this point, everyone on the team is at least level 7, so I think I can go actually check out the plot now. This will probably be a recurring pattern.

"The plot" turns out to be just the other 3 kids making their way through the forest too. Shauna gives me a Paralyze Heal, which is quite nice to have. Batman then beats up Youngster Joey's scatterbug and fletchling while some funky battle music (I love guitar-heavy battle tracks) plays in the background.

Making my way further along the forest path, Calem gives me another Pokéball. Basil then tries to take out Lass Anna's pikachu, but its Static ability is a bit of a problem, so I use Browser to finish things off, since throwing Embers at it doesn't set off Static.

Is now a bad time to mention I found two of them earlier?

Lass Lise is the next trainer battle, but her caterpie and bunnelby are no match for my team (more specifically, Basil).

At the end of the path, Calem shows up, along with the other two. As a group, we then head to Route 3. Calem wants to go on ahead to Santalune City's Gym, but I think I'll stay on Route 3 for a bit with the others (I want to find more pokémon). He gives everyone some useful tips before he leaves, though.

Preschooler Oliver (why are preschoolers just out wandering around? this feels unsafe?) is the first trainer I see on Route 3. Basil takes out his caterpie and I switch to Agent Jones for his azurill. I then catch an azurill of my own, who I name "Rubber Duck". This is the first fairy type I've caught in the game, which feels significant enough to point out since this game introduced fairy types. I then catch a bidoof who I name "Fromage".

No thoughts. Head empty.

Speaking of friendly normal types, the next pokémon I see is a dunsparce who I name "George".

Since it's again after 1am at this point (sleep is important. but also pokémon), I think I'll end this entry here and pick up with the rest of Route 3 (and beyond) next time.

Stay safe everyone, and see you next time.

[worksinprogress1]

N’s hands trembled from shock as he sipped from the water bottle they’d handed him. He waited in the passenger seat of one of their trucks, a blanket draped over his shoulders, taking shelter from the rain as the rangers searched the area for any stray embers to extinguish.

After some time- maybe half an hour- the thickset woman returned to the truck, got into the driver’s seat, revved up the engine, and started off down the highway, the other trucks following along behind her.

“So, what’s your name, son?” the woman asked. “And where can I drop you off?”

“My name is N,” N replied. “You can drop me off…” N wracked his brain for the nearest town or city. He’d been staying in the wild for a week straight, and it was hard to think while he was still weak from the smoke.

“It’s nice to meet you, N. Sorry you’re feeling a little shy. My name’s Evelyn, by the way,” the woman replied, saving N from having to do so himself. Something about the woman was very disarming- maybe the way she held herself, like she had everything under control. But then, N remembered feeling the same way about Ghetsis when he’d first met him. “Maybe I should drop you off at the hospital. You must have inhaled a lot of smoke. You over eighteen? Should I call your parents or something?”

N shook his head.

“Okay. I’ll respect that.”

There were a few moments of silence as the truck passed over the bumpy, unpaved forest road.

“I know you probably wouldn’t say yes if you were, but I gotta ask,” the woman said, her peppy voice taking on a more concerned tone, “Are you some sort of runaway? I mean, we found your camp. Your Pokémon led us to it. It looked like you’d been there quite a while for just a kid on a Pokémon journey.”

N stayed silent, trying to figure out the safest answer.

“I just want what’s best for you, okay? I don’t have to go to the police if you don’t want me to. I know that most runaways don’t become runaways for no reason. You could even stay with me for a while once the hospital is done with you- for as long or as short as you’d like.”

N considered this. “If you can give me my Pokémon, then sure,” N replied. He didn’t see what harm could become of him if he had reshiram on his side.

“I have your zoroark and the big feathery guy’s pokéballs in my bag. I’ll give em’ to you as soon as we’re not driving.”

“Thank you,” N replied.

It wasn’t long before the truck passed into one of the most unique cities N had ever seen. There were a few traditional buildings, but easily nine in ten of the buildings N saw were big, sturdy treehouses built on big, sturdy trees, all attached by wooden bridges and accessible by ladders. A grovyle caught N’s eye as it whipped through the trees, swinging from branch to branch and causing bugs and birds to scatter into the streetlight-illuminated night sky.

“Haven’t been to Fortree before?” Evelyn asked.

“No, I haven’t,” N replied. “I…” he wanted to say that he would like it here. But he’d thought that too many times already on his journey.

Evelyn pulled up her truck in front of a large tree surrounded by a raised garden. “Well, I gotta get back to the station. Here’s your Pokémon,” Evelyn said, handing N the two pokéballs. “One of the guys has your stuff. I’ll get it back to you in the morning. If you need to lie down, you can take the first door on the left. And call 911 if you’re feeling faint or anything.”

N thanked her, took his Pokémon, and left.

Everything about this is too good to be true, N thought as he climbed up to the treehouse. The first thing he did was to listen to the voices of the Pokémon. The first sliver of doubt he’d had in Team Plasma came when he saw how happy most Pokémon were with their trainers compared to the scared, hurt ones he’d lived with in his room and those controlled by Plasma grunts. But the Pokémon in Fortree seemed as happy as any other. Cautiously, and with his Zoroark out, in case of danger, N went inside.

At first glance, Evelyn’s treehouse seemed like a pretty normal home. There were pictures of what were presumably her four kids hung in the living room, and a couch decorated with an vigroth pelt. N wrinkled his nose. Not great, but not out of the ordinary for a human. The room Evelyn suggested he lie down in was just a bedroom, with howling mightyena painted on the walls and nothing suspicious under the bed except old magazines.The “basement,” located in the trunk of the tree, contained nothing but a washer, a drier and a cellar full of canned goods, jars of jam, and pickled foods. The attic contained nothing but boxes. After checking a few more rooms, N heard the front door open. He scrambled to the bedroom and laid down.

This place seems pretty innocuous, N thought as he listened to someone, presumably Evelyn, taking their shoes off. And if something does go wrong, I have Reshiram. And he was tired, the smoke and stress having sapped him. He decided it would be safe to stay and drifted off quickly.

N woke up to the smell of cooking eggs. He padded to the kitchen, where Evelyn was making breakfast.

“Morning, N,” Evelyn said, turning her head to face him as she scrapped the pan with her spatula. “Feeling better?”

N nodded, trying not to look like a nervous deerling.

“Good. Sit down.”

N awkwardly sat down. Evelyn came over to the table with two plates of eggs and toast, put one down in front of N, sat down, and started eating her own.

“So, I gotta ask- how did you manage to put out that fire by yourself? Those politoed ran off right after you landed, and it would be weird if you kept that many.”

“Well, I have this ability where I can talk to Pokémon,” N explained.

Evelyn nodded. N looked at her and didn’t see any trace of malice. She’d spoken to him so warmly, and as much as he didn’t trust it, it had been nice to meet someone on his journey who seemed to genuinely care about him.

For whatever reason, words began to spill out of N’s mouth at record speed. “I don’t know if you’ve looked me up by now, but yes, I’m N of Team Plasma. Please don’t send me back. They weren’t what I thought they were. I don’t know what state they’re in, but if they’re in any state to have me, I- I don’t want to be seen by them, and if they aren’t, I still don’t want to go to Unova because I wouldn’t have anywhere to go and the police might be after me.” By the end of his ramble, N’s breath was uneven. He looked away awkwardly as the silence stretched on for a few seconds.

N felt a warm hand on his shoulder.

“I’m not taking you to Unova,” Evelyn promised. “You can stay here as long as you want. I’ll teach you to be independent. And when you have the money to and feel ready, you can move out. Sound good?”

“Yeah,” N said. “That sounds really good.”

“Great. It’ll be nice havin’ someone here again after my youngest son moved out. If you want, you could even try working as a ranger. That’s all about using wild Pokémon as helpers just like you did on the night of the fire, so I think you’d be good at it.”

“That does sound like something I could do,” N admitted.

“Then it’s settled. You’ll start tomorrow.” Evelyn said.

N was apprehensive at first about becoming a ranger, but it turned out that he was a natural at it. On their first mission- locating a man who had gotten lost in the woods- the other rangers needed Capture Stylers to get wild Pokémon to help them out. N had just asked Zoroark to gather his pack and see if they could sniff someone out. They found the lost man before the rangers had even found a flock of bird Pokémon to use their stylers on. While he wasn’t as much of a superstar in their next missions, N could ask the wild Pokémon for advice on solving problems in the woods, and that let him somewhat keep up with his ecologically knowledgeable coworkers- somewhat, at least. They were teaching N about the natural world in ways he hadn’t been taught from the mouths of Pokémon. If this was all that it seemed, it was his place, using his knowledge to help people and Pokémon.

One day, as the rangers were on their way to a mission site, N heard the cry of a Pokémon.

Help me! Help me! I’m over here! Came the voice.

N turned to it. It was an absol, its paw trapped in a snare. It lifted its head to look at N with pleading eyes as it dangled above the ground.

“Let me get that,” N said, turning towards the Pokémon. It looked up at him, hopeful and expectant.

“What? No, N, that’s there legally,” said Evelyn.

“What do you mean, ‘legally’?” N asked, anger beginning to flare up in him.

“I mean, the trapper here follows all the laws. His snares usually kill instantly, he checks the snares twice a day so that the Pokémon aren’t in pain for too long if they don’t, he stays away from places with endangered species, and so on. He’s an ethical hunter.”

N was still staring at the absol as it whined stared back at him with pleading eyes. “He’ll kill him. How is that ethical?”

“Pokémon kill each other to survive all the time. And anyhow, it doesn’t matter what we think. Using our position to release a hunter’s quarry would be an abuse of our position.”

“You’re the one in charge, aren’t you? If the rules are wrong, change the rules!” N snapped.

“If I did that, I’d be sued and the government would fire me.” Evelyn put a hand on N’s shoulder and guided him down the path. “Now come on, let’s catch up with the others.”

N took one last look at the trapped creature before turning back down the path.

It wasn’t the only moment like that. Being a ranger, as N found out, meant cooperating with the way human society treated Pokémon- including farming them or hunting them for food. And yet, it was a job that N had held for a solid month and a half- one that let him help people and Pokémon. There might not be other opportunities like that. And he did appreciate Evelyn, and how she taught him to be human. So he stayed.

-

“And, that’s it. That’s how you pay your electric bill. Once you’ve saved up a little more, you could get your own place if you wanted.”

“Wow. Thank you,” N said. “I was starting to think I’d never learn to live like a human, but here I am!”

Evelyn clapped him on the back. “You just hadn’t been taught,” she said. “Well, I’ll be in the garden if you need me.”

“Got it.”

N took to the couch and turned on the TV, his zoroark joining him and snuggling his head in his lap.

This is what it is to be human, N thought. I really can do it. Maybe not as well as others could- he didn’t have a single human friend, and he still wouldn’t know how to function outside of this little bubble where he could use his skills and have his mom guide him through any new challenge that came along- but he was doing it.

N started flipping through channels- catching up on shows he wasn’t allowed as a kid wasn’t as exciting as reading the books that were forbidden to him, but it was still nice. The first channel was a drama N wasn’t fond of. He switched it over to home improvement show. A talk show with Diantha and her costars for a new movie. The news. A cooking show.

N flipped back to the news. He thought he’d saw- but it couldn’t be. It was the plasma emblem. Yes, it was- the screen showed five Team Plasma members, all in new, military-looking uniforms, blocking a path N thought he recognized as route 3.

“It seems that Team Plasma has made a resurgence,” the blonde news anchor explained. “Five members were seen today creating a blockade on a commonly used road. The police were able to break up the blockade before any real harm was done. Investigators are working to see if these are radicals working independently or if they are part of an organized group.”

N prayed that it was the latter. If not… Could he justify staying here? Or was it his duty to return to Unova and try to put a stop to it?

Unfortunately, in the coming weeks, news stories of Team Plasma kept cropping up. After he encountered the second, N began to keep track of them. One night, N watched on the news as a female Team Plasma grunt ripping a woobat from a little girl’s arms and kicking her down. He wasn’t able to sleep that night, so he went out to the trapper’s trail, found a snared seviper that was still alive, and untied it.

Thankssss… the snake said as it slithered away.

N watched as the creature disappeared, his heart pounding. Would he be caught for this? Would he be fired? What would Evelyn say? Maybe it would be for the best if he was fired. That way he’d have no reason not to go back to Unova.

N looked back to the untied snare. N didn’t know how to reset it, nor did he want to. So he just hoped the hunter would think his prey had escaped naturally and returned home.

It was not the last time N did something of the sort. Every time the headlines got worse, he did something in defiance of his policy. It made him feel a little less guilty, and it let him tell himself, If I’m caught, if I’m let go, then I’ll leave. Maybe they’ll catch me this time.

Three weeks later, N saw the headline: Ghetsis had been spotted poking around the Giant Chasm. He didn’t know why, but that was it for him. He had to go back to Unova. Maybe if their king told the Team Plasma members to stop, they’d stop, and whatever Ghetsis was doing could be prevented.

The morning after N saw the headline, he shuffled into the kitchen, doing his best to look tired and out of it. He touched Evelyn on the shoulder as she was making breakfast.

“I don’t want to go in today,” N said. “I’m sick.”

Evelyn put a hand against N’s forehead. “Oh, you’re fine,” she said. “Come on, take some coffee and painkillers and get ready to go.”

“No. I’m sorry. I just can’t do it today.”

“Alright, fine. See you tonight, N,” Evelyn said, sounding mildly disappointed.

N shuffled back to bed and waited for the sound of the front door closing. When it did, he got up and started packing his things. He had some new outfits now, bought with the money he’d earned as a ranger. He packed a few of them, his alarm clock, his books, some basic supplies, and thought about what else he might need. He couldn’t justify taking food from Evelyn when he was able to buy his own, as much as he’d miss some of the foods she’d made or grown fresh in her garden. As much as part of him wanted to take his ranger uniform as a keepsake, somehow that felt wrong, too. “Goodbye,” N said to the house as he descended its ladder.

As risky as it was to go through the woods when his fellow ranger might see him, he had one more stop before he left- the mightyena den where Zoroark now spent most of his nights.

Zoroark was right outside the den, gnawing on a bone as he watched two poochyna tussle. As N appeared through the brush, Zoroark dropped the bone and lopped over.

You seem sad, Zoroark said, sniffing around to try and figure out why. What happened?

“I’m leaving for Unova,” N said, unable to meet Zoroark’s eyes. “You don’t have to come with me if you don’t want to.”

Zoroark’s ears drooped, and it stayed silent for a long time. Y’know, I get it. Why this is hard for you, I mean. I can pretend I’m a fish, but I still need to breathe air. Zoroark turned into a feebas to demonstrate. I can pretend I’m a bird, but I can’t fly. Zoroark turned into a starly. He looked like he was flying, but N knew it was smoke and mirrors, his feet on the ground. He couldn’t pretend to fly higher than his own height. I can turn into a human, Zoroark said, turning into what looked like N, but I can’t speak. The human illusion was mouthing the words, but the animal noises that came out of it couldn’t have been understood by any other person. Finally, Zoroark turned back into himself. All I can be is me. And, since I was abandoned by my pack, I never had that until, well…

N braced himself. So Zoroark really had found his place amongst the mightyena pack, and didn’t want to go back.

…until I met you. I’ll stay with you, N. Always.

N hugged Zoroark. “Thank you,” he said.

N hiked down the trapper’s trail. Zoroark darted left and right, following N’s request that he use his keen eyesight to tear apart every trap he saw and to leave the pieces. N could have had Reshiram incinerate them, but he wouldn’t. He just marched forward, the sound of snapping wood mixing with the sounds of the forest and the occasional thankful cry of a Pokémon. When he reached the end of the path, N took out Reshiram and flew to a pasture of mareep on the other side of town. He ordered Reshiram to burn a hole in the fence, and N shook a mareep awake.

“The people here want to eat you. You need to leave,” N told it.

The mareep didn’t get up. They feed us and keep out the predators, it replied. I’d probably die being eaten out there, too. I’d rather stay where it’s comfortable.

In different circumstances, N might have mulled over what was truly best for the mareep, but he didn’t have that time. He released his zoroark, who chased the mareep out of the pasture and into the woods. He had to make the evidence undeniable, to ensure that he could never come back here. Otherwise, he’d be tempted to. He already was tempted to herd back the mareep, incinerate the traps, and go back home to bed. but if he got on Reshiram now and left, the evidence would be undeniable within hours. He’d fight Team Plasma, not only because it was right but because he would have nowhere else to go.

All the mareep had streamed out the gate and N had tears in his eyes before N shook off his paralysis. He turned back to Reshiram and mounted it. “To Unova,” N requested.

Reshiram lifted off. Sensing N’s sadness, it looked back at him as it soared over the forests and towns.

N… You might feel as though you’ve made no progress at all, like your journey is ending right where you began. But I’ve seen you grow on this journey. You’ve learned so many human skills. I promise, once you are free from Team Plasma again- if you are free from them again- it will be easier. It will be easier each time until we succeed. I promise.

N let his tears fall on Reshiram’s fluffy white pelt and prayed it was right.

“Thank you,” he said.

[pokestiltzkin]

I was taking a walk around Rt.36, and thinking about exploring the Ruins of Alph, when the pokemon in the egg started making it's way free! I guess the proximity to Embers' flames really did help, because that was way faster than I expected. But seeing the little guy... I don't think... I don't think he quite finished hatching...

I named him Butters, for no other reason than that I think the name suits him.

On my way back through Violet City, I visited Sprout Tower. Trunks did most of the work, despite his weakness to the Bellsprout they specialize in, there, and I had Eepy provide him the occasional assist. But battling with her is like trying to herd Meowth. She still won't listen, even after I beat Falkner and got myself a Zephyrbadge.

Anyway, in the tower I encountered another Gastly. Having learned from my last encounter, I was able to catch this one. I named it Naesthes after its ability to knock out other Pokémon and put them to sleep. [A]naesthes[ia], get it?

At the top floor of the tower, I battled through the last group with Trunks and Eepy, and approached the elder only to find that Silver had gotten there before me. I don't know if he won or lost, but the elder was scolding him about being nicer to his Pokémon. I waited, and when the elder was ready again, we battled. I won, and he rewarded me with a copy of the Flash HM. This will make exploring caves a lot easier, if only Eepy would behave.

I got to see my second Pokémon evolution up close with Eepy, but I can't say for sure whether that's a good or a bad thing. On the one hand, she must be getting something out of my training or else she wouldn't have evolved, but on the other, I don't know how I'm supposed to handle her if she keeps getting even more powerful.

I decided not to visit Dark Cave on my way back to New Bark Town, just in case Silver did win his battle, and was in there testing out his Flash HM and blowing off steam from his rough day. Instead, I headed straight to Cherrygrove and on home with no delay.

I encountred even more foreign Pokémon on Rt.29, first with a feral one that Oak's Dex identified as a Poochyena, and then in a wild Zigzagoon. Neither are exactly common around here, but they aren't invasive either. I battled the Zigzagoon, which was good practice for Naesthes and Embers, and I caught the Poochyena. Even with Naesthes having lulled it to sleep, it took me two Pokéballs. I have got to get better with the tools of the trade if I want to be a Pokémon master. Well, I'm just glad I was able to catch it at all. Something tells me the local Ralts population wouldn't appreciate its presence in the wild.

Back at Prof. Elm's lab, he was very excited to meet Butters. He asked a lot of questions, and eventually gave me an Everstone in return for all the fieldwork I've been doing for him. I left the Poochyena with him, in case anyone turns up looking for it.

I finished the day with the short journey back to Cherrygrove. Overall, the training seems to be going well. Naesthes is a great understudy to Embers, and it has really helped Embers to do some teaching alongside his learning. They share a few aptitudes, despite Naesthes' difficulty with Normal types, and penchant for indirect battling.

Always another surprise. Always more to learn on this Pokémon planet. I'll have to travel far and wide across the land if I ever want to see all the mysteries this world has to offer. But for now, a beautiful sunset at Cherrygrove beach with my new friends before we head back to the Center for the night will be enough.

'Til next time - Kris

[legendtraineremily]

So…last TTRPG character is still in the works. But I’ve started a different project (possible ADHD? I dunno, I’m all over the place in any case). I have decided to play one of my Pokémon games as a Nuzlocke Challenge. For the uninitiated, a Nuzlocke is a special Pokémon challenge where you play the game under special rules intended to make the game more challenging and interesting. Typically this involves removing any defeated Pokémon from your party permanently and severely limiting your catching options.

The game I’ll be playing for this is Pokémon Yellow Version. This is the “Y” in the RBY Generation 1 game acronym for international releases. It is also heavily influenced by the anime tv show and thus has Pikachu on the box and the sole starter Pokémon. As Ash in the anime finds out, there are some challenges to having a Pikachu that refuses to evolve as your main. Unlike in the anime, I don’t really get protagonist protection or goofy logic to help me out at all. Anywho, time to set out the rules.

Rules:

1. If any of my Pokémon faint, they are boxed and transferred. For this Nuzlocke “lore”, when Pokémon are defeated, they are honor-bound to never fight again (Gary, you dishonorable monster! This is why Raticate leaves you!).

2. I get one catchable encounter per route/location (towns are included). This will be my first encounter in each location only. If it is a Pokémon I have already caught, too bad. Gift Pokémon are just that—gifts for me to use, so fossils and Lapras are viable and are exceptions to this rule.

3. I must have Pokéballs for an encounter to count. If I can’t catch the first Pokémon I find, why should that count against me? I’m not trying to punish myself for playing Pokémon.

4. In-game trade Pokémon are allowed only if I get the one needed for the trade—I can’t manipulate the encounters to shoot for the Pokémon I want.

5. For a slightly harder challenge, no TM’s. They are all but essential in a safe Gen 1 run, but with the exceptions I’ve made to other rules, I can’t justify them.

6. Healing outside of a Pokémon Center is allowed only once per battle. If another Pokémon needs it, too bad. In-battle boosters like X-Attack are allowed.

7. It is okay to get so frustrated that I restart and try again. Life continues regardless.

With that in mind, let’s finish setting the stage.

Ah…Gen 1. So broken, so fun, so glad I originally started in Gen II when they fixed some of the problems like Psychic types having no effective counter and general stat spreads/special attack and defense being split. However, I’ll be darned if I’m not using the speed=crits to my advantage! (A Pokémon’s critical hit chance in Generation 1 games was heavily affected by that Pokémon’s speed stat. Higher speed meant more critical hits.) Moves just hit different back then.

Moves were just different back then too. Many moves either worked differently or were completely different types from what we’re used to now. And I’m not just talking about how Dark, Steel, and Fairy didn’t exist; some moves just didn’t have the right typing. Gust and Karate Chop were both Normal type for example instead of Flying and Fighting respectively. But the “beauty” comes in when Wrap and Hyper Beam are involved. Wrap (and similar trapping moves) would utterly end the opponent’s movements, and if you got a faint on Hyper Beam, there would be no recharge as it’s supposed to work. You know what? I’ll just link the Smogon article on the subject and let y’all read at your leisure.

Next post will be Day 1 of my adventures! (I already have 2 days of content, so be prepared for the madness.)

[splicedskies]

Caution was never a bad thing, at least in Altra's mind. He often went into a more defensive posture when it came down to anyone that approached him. He never quite could tell someone's intent without at least a few words first.

And as long as they weren't blatantly wearing a Team Galactic uniform.. well.. He at least could relax a little. He doubted they followed him to Paldea, anyway.

He hoped they weren't that insane.

"Ah.. That explains those people standing around at some places. I don't talk to them." A small embarrassed smile spread over him as he rubbed his upper right arm with his left hand.

"Not.. licensed and stuff with the League 'things' so.. No reason to go near those places." Seemed like such a simple thing, but it was the furthest thing from his mind of actually 'doing'. Not like he had any public records to get any of that done though...

Even so, a bit of conversation certainly started to relax him.

"Celeste? I see. I haven't visited Kalos yet, I only arrived earlier today from a plane that came from Unova." He wasn't too used to interacting with people, but he certainly was trying.

"Oh no, not at all! I was just starting to scout out a good place to make camp. I usually try to make sure I'm not disturbing any of the wild Pokémon, after all." Always at the forefront of his mind, a Pokémon's well being before his own comforts. Which he didn't mind.

"You're more than welcome to if you like, Celeste. Once I find a place to set a tent up, I can show you my traveling partners. I never keep them in their Pokéballs when we camp." He'd rather always have them out, but.. that wasn't always feasible.

Especially with how some of them could be.

"Normally I have at least one of them with me when I travel but.." He frowned, looking about mostly as he spoke.

"Albert, uh.. he's my Zorua, kind of got caught in a grass snag earlier and hurt his paw. So he's resting in his Pokéball for now." Well.. after Altra had cleaned and bandaged it that is.

˗ˏˋㅤʚㅤ★ㅤɞㅤ‿︵ㅤ˗ˏˋㅤ𝑴𝒂𝒚𝒃𝒆 𝒔𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒋𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒍𝒚 𝒄𝒂𝒖𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒖𝒔 after her experiences with the Paradox Pokémonㅤ—ㅤor maybe it was just the convenience of having what was essentially a LIVING MOTORCYCLE in one of her Pokeballs. But maybe she should have gone camping more often. It would have saved her some moneyㅤ—ㅤand gotten her better food than sandwiches. But that was something to think about later.

ʚㅤ★ㅤɞㅤ˗ˏˋㅤ❛ㅤReally ? Sorry if I came off as NOSY ! Buuuutㅤ—ㅤI don't think people will bother you too much ! I mean, there's officials from the Pokémon League but they mainly stand around and give out rewards to people for battling sometimes.ㅤ❜

ʚㅤ★ㅤɞㅤ˗ˏˋㅤThe girl smiles; attempting to reassure the other. It was kind of odd though that so many people stopped the older boy. Maybe it was for the same reason as why SHE spoke up ? The concern for his safety ? He didn't really seem like a bad guy after all.

ʚㅤ★ㅤɞㅤ˗ˏˋㅤ❛ㅤIt's nice to meet you, Altra ! My name's CELESTE ! I'm from a little town here called Cabo Pocoㅤ—ㅤbut I was born in Kalos !ㅤ❜

ʚㅤ★ㅤɞㅤ˗ˏˋㅤShe stops and thinks. Geezㅤ—ㅤshe'd gotten used to interacting with the gym leaders and the leaders of Team Star along with her friends. But she was still REALLY bad with new people. It was kind of weird just standing here and probably interrupting this guy's camping time.

ʚㅤ★ㅤɞㅤ˗ˏˋㅤ❛ㅤAm I getting in the way of your camping ? If not, maybe we can camp together ! I'd love to hear more about Sinnoh ! And I can show you my Pokémon too !ㅤ❜

[kelpiemomma]

Besides Volo, I think it was Laventon who figured out what Akari had become before everyone else. As soon as Kamado had let him go into the field to do survey work with Rei again he went, actually venturing into the Fieldlands besides his aid to look for her. They used a couple pokemon to try and locate Akari but they only found a couple of her items and her satchel, scattered amongst pokemon and across the territory. It wasn't hard to determine she was dead from that.

But Akari, and a couple other survey members (i... may be making OCs for other survey members), had run into Zorua and Zoroarks before. Rei, with his limited team, kept clear of the ice caverns in the Alabaster Icelands but those who were confident enough (or overconfident) would explore cautiously and had run into the fox pokemon a handful of times. Akari had even caught a Zorua, though it had appeared so miserable that she set it free after a couple days. Laventon, therefore, had documentation that Zorua and Zoroarks were less 'mindlessly aggressive' and more 'highly territorial' and incredibly familial. They were staunch protectors of their companions and family. Their markings would differ amongst the eyes, there were slight differences in the shade of red and the size of their mane (believed to be a signifying factor of leadership in some way), and their gems were not a universal development except in that they were always in the same general area- which were arms and legs.

And he knew, having been in Hisui for a few years at this point, that infrequently there would appear a Zoroark that was... different from the rest. Their color scheme would be a far cry from the usual red (or even from the infrequent purple of the shiny coat pattern), they were almost never found in the Alabaster Icelands, they seemed to have a higher hunting instinct, and they had gems in the oddest places. One Zoroark had them on it's ears, another had dozens of tiny ones scattered across its face like freckles. Frequently they would have an odd marking somewhere on their body. The most odd, and concerning, aspect of these Zoroark was that they couldn't be caught. Pokéballs would bounce right off of them, no matter the type, and set their hunting instinct on the person who had tried to catch them. These Zoroark had to be knocked out to get away safely, and frequently needed to be put down for the safety of travelers.

So Laventon had this knowledge. He knows what normal Zoroarks are like, and he's seen the odd ones as well. So when Volo starts talking about a Zoroark frequently found in the Fieldlands that seems to be hunting him... Laventon makes note of it. There hasn't been a sighting of a wandering Zoroark since before Akari's descent from the sky, and he wishes she were around to examine it for him. She took detailed notes that were helpful, even providing little sketches, and he missed her additions to his research. He takes Rei out to the Fieldlands instead and they look for the Zoroark because Laventon still wants to see it, to document it. They don't find it on the first trip, or the second, and Kamado - returned from his attempt to fight the frenzied Sinnoh, injured and unable to walk - orders Laventon to stop using Rei for "walk in the park" survey missions, they need to figure out how to fight what's in the rift and quickly! Laventon reluctantly, having no choice, dismisses Rei from his immediate duties as Laventon's direct assistant. He continues going out into the Fieldlands, examining and exploring with one or two other people around. New survey members, young adults who immigrated recently.

It's while they're descending the mountain towards the spot where they can find Magikarp - someone had just reported a new Magikarp pattern besides the shiny variant that Laventon wanted to see - that Laventon finally spots the new Zoroark anomaly. He stops at first because he's excited- it's been a long time since an anomaly appeared, and even longer since he saw one in person! Oh, the notes he can take as long as they keep quiet! He's got his notebook pulled out, already jotting things down, when he takes a look at what he has written and takes another look at the Zoroark.

Even from where they're standing he can tell it appears young- perhaps freshly evolved? It's a little awkward on it's feet, having stumbled a couple times. He notices it seems to favor one leg, that it's fur color is a dark steel color instead of the usual red, and instead of a ruff of fur around its neck appears to be-

A scarf.

He stops writing and takes a closer look at it. It's walking away from them, at an angle since it's across the shore, and he doesn't like what he sees. The hair is not as voluminous as a standard Zoroark's, and he can see what appears to be singular strands hanging down before it's ears. It walks favoring it's right leg, much like Akari did when she exerted herself too much- the alpha Octillery attack had taken its toll on her. The gems did not sit in an uncommon position, but it was the scarf that made it all click. The red scarf that matched the color of the one Akari had been given as part of her survey corps outfit, that she had taken with her into her exile. He couldn't see it's eyes from where they were, especially when it turned and all they could see was its back, but he now has the sinking suspicion that those anomaly Zoroarks were not simply different types. He had heard the stories of the Pearl and Diamond clans, about how those who died full of malice returned as a Zorua or Zoroark, but it had never clicked before that they might not return as a normal Zoroark. Of course there were those anomalies- now that he thought about it, they matched up with exiled members of Jubilife or people who had gone missing.

And most of them had been ordered to be put down, due to their dangerous habit of hunting humans out of their territory, by Kamado. Kamado who had already ordered Akari's exile once, when she had done nothing but what he asked, ordered, required to stay in Jubilife.

One of the newbies asked if they should try to catch the Zoroark, as they'd never seen one before, but Laventon quickly put a mic on it. He guided them around the Geodude, had them clear away the Buizel, and then set them to work on fishing in the Magikarp so they could check them. And if his notebook fell into the water while he wrestled one to show them how it was done? If a page that he'd started writing went missing inside a Magikarp's mouth? Well, no one else would know.

And the knowledge haunted him. Knowing the truth of the new Zoroark, the one that hunted Volo. That was /hunting Volo./ If he had more proof he would have brought it up, but at the same time- she had been exiled. He would have to prove Volo had killed Akari, and then try to encourage people about why they should care when she had been a sky-falling stranger who destroyed the sky later and was exiled. Instead, he did his best to dismiss Volo's claims. Quietly, saying that Zoroark didn't hunt humans, only protected their territory. Reminding the village of Kamado's injuries and what was more important, a single stray pokemon or their commander? He kept the truth hidden, uncertain of who to tell, because who would believe him? Cyllene was busy, so busy, as she was now essentially in charge with Kamado incapacitated. Zisu had her hands full with the guards. Marie was defiantly holding onto the pokemon that Akari had brought them, insisting that they weren't on orders to attack. Rei was struggling and suffering with the weight of his new duties falling solely onto his shoulders without a little sister figure to share them, to lighten the load.

It wasn't until Volo's death that Laventon figured out who he could tell. When the merchant's body was brought back for the Ginkgo Guild to claim, with Warden Ingo following in not long after for supplies, Laventon knew. Akari had spoken fondly of the amnesiac, had found a kinship with him, and he knew that Ingo had kept an eye out for her since the news of her banishment. Laventon didn't have much time- outsiders were hardly let in now, everyone in high alert between the sky and the attack. He approached Ingo with a random object he'd grabbed.

"Warden Ingo! So glad to see you again! Here, I have a gift for you since it's been so long." Laventon quickly put the item into Ingo's hands, taking advantage of the proximity to lean in just a bit further and lower his voice. "You need to find the Zoroark, Warden, before anyone from Jubilife does. It's not a normal one, it's-"

He couldn't say anything else as an uproar came from Volo's body. People yelling about dangerous pokemon, about the sky causing them to go mad, about Volo warning them, they needed to track this thing and put it out down before it killed someone else! Laventon swallowed in dread. Would the Warden believe him if he said it was Akari?

"Please, capture it if you can. It is not a normal Zoroark." He implored. Ingo nodded, cautious and confused but nodded all the same. Laventon knew that he was an honorable man, that he would catch the pokemon if he could. He worried, though, about what it might mean if she was caught. They hadn't been able to catch what must have been human-souled Zoroarks in the past. Because they were human, still, somehow? Or something else? If Akari could be caught, was it truly going to be Akari, or had Laventon ignored Volo's warnings because he thought he saw a familiar face where there truly wasn't one?

[pokemoncreepypasta]

Forever Mine

[STORY SOURCE]

I live in one of those small towns with a big community. It feels like everyone knows each other, and parents would visit their friends and leave their kids to mess around with each other. Classes in school weren’t very large.

So when there’s news about a kid dying, it travels at god-speed. 

Everyone at school kept talking about the death of this girl who was probably a year behind me.

I didn’t know her personally. I wouldn’t have even been able to tell you her name if everyone wasn’t talking about her.

I didn’t want to pick up gossip about how she died. I decided to attend her funeral myself. Not because we were friends or anything, but I did want to show my respect for this girl and her family.

The local funeral home was within biking range of my house, so I set off.

I sat awkwardly as I noticed her parents. I’m not usually very good at picking up feelings from people, but I could tell that beyond their grief was disappointment and maybe even hostility.

They made me wonder what she was thinking about before she died.

After she was buried, I hung around the cemetery. I’d wished I brought flowers with me, but decided I’d give her some the next time I stopped by.

Around this time, I had been aiming to get a Sky Forme Shaymin, since it was one of my favorite Pokémon back then.

I had caught a wild Shaymin using the "Pokémon Modifier" cheat code. I was terrible at coming up with creative names. But then, I remembered the name of the girl and thought it would suit a Shaymin rather well.

“Skye.”

Little did I know that this would invite strange things to start happening to my game.

I wanted to keep this Shaymin in its Sky Forme whenever possible, so I planned on keeping it in my team 24/7, only playing during daytime, etc. I was a dirty cheater who liked putting illegal moves on my Pokémon, so I taught Skye to use Fly.

At the time, I didn’t know you needed to catch the Shaymin in Flower Paradise to receive the Gracidea Flower, so when I talked to the blonde girl NPC in Floaroma Town, I had no idea why she wouldn’t give it to me.

So I was stuck with a Shaymin that knew Fly. It was weird, and I never really grew all that attached to it. Eventually I boxed it, forgot I had it, and released it without thinking.

The next time I booted up the game, I got this message.

“The save file is corrupted. The previous save file will be loaded.”

My first instinct was panic. I didn’t have any time to think or process the initial message, because all my hours were gone. With nervous anticipation, I started up the save file to see what the damage was.

To my surprise, I found myself on an incomplete Seabreak Path. The south path to Route 224 was cut off, with a featureless Shaymin staring vacantly over the edge.

I checked my party, and found none of my team members.

Only a level 100 Dusknoir with the move Follow Me.

Very useful, I thought. I’d have to boot up my Action Replay to teach this thing Fly in order to get off the island later.

Checking my items, I noticed everything was gone, save for a single PokéBall and an Escape Rope. Neither of which seemed particularly helpful for getting me off this island.

Out of curiosity though, I decided to see if Shaymin would be at Flower Paradise. I started my trek north, lamenting the loss of my bike.

To my surprise, Shaymin was there, despite never having Oak’s Letter or triggering the cutscene with it. Its face was obstructed by flowers, but it seemed like its pink flowers were missing just like the one I saw before.

I spoke to the Shaymin, and a message appeared.

“I remember you.”

“But… You don’t remember me, do you?”

The wild Shaymin attacked, and my heart stopped at its name.

“Skye appeared!”

Featureless, like before.

I felt a knot in my stomach, not even caring about the game. Something was very clearly wrong with it, and I wanted to stop playing. But I decided I was already taking pictures of the weird stuff that was happening, and I wanted to document it in full.

Steeling my resolve, I went about my options.

Dusknoir only knew Follow Me, so it was useless to weaken the Shaymin.

Remembering the PokéBall I had, I tossed it at the Shaymin.

Most people would be ecstatic to catch a Shaymin with full HP in a PokéBall on their first try, but I got the feeling that the game was rigged. There wasn’t any triumphant music playing either, which didn’t help my feelings about it.

I tried checking my newly caught Shaymin, but my game froze upon checking my party.

Upon restarting the system and starting the game up, this message appeared.

“My heart is corrupted. Please save me.”

My save file was gone for real this time. The trainer’s name was “SINNER”.

I live in a pretty religious community, so reading this made me ill at ease.

Starting up the game again, I found myself in the Lost Tower, playing as a featureless Shaymin.

My only Pokémon was the same Shaymin, named SINNER, knowing Fly, Scary Face, Fake Tears, and Spite.

A text box appeared when I tried to leave the tower.

“Today’s the day.”

It pushed me back, preventing my exit. The only option I had was to ascend.

No random encounters happened, and all the trainers wouldn’t interact with me.

It went this way until I went to the top floor. I’m pretty sure there isn’t supposed to be a man and woman NPC standing in this spot.

"There’s nothing left to say.”

Interacting with them just prompted this text.

It was here that I noticed a staircase that wasn’t supposed to be there.

I found myself on the top of the tower. I stepped into a scripted event, and the Shaymin faced the edge without my prompt.

"It's a long way down... Are you ready?"

Hoping for some way out of this, I wanted to say “no”, so I could cheat my way out of the tower and get my game back to normal. However, upon selecting it, this text appeared.

"You've held back for long enough. It's time to go."

“SINNER used the Escape Rope.”

A battle started against the same Dusknoir as before. I was intimidated to go against a level 100 Dusknoir, but then I remembered its only move was Follow Me, so it was harmless.

I realized that if I let SINNER faint, I could go to the last Pokémon Center and escape the tower.

I used Spite, thinking that if I reduced Follow Me’s PP, the Dusknoir would use Struggle and OHKO my Shaymin.

“The wild DUSKNOIR used Follow Me!”

“SINNER used Spite!”

“But there was no target...”

Dang it.

Deciding to experiment, I came to the conclusion that there was no harm in screwing around with SINNER’s attacks until DUSKNOIR ran out of PP. I chose Fly.

“The wild DUSKNOIR used Follow Me!”

“SINNER used Fly!”

“The wild DUSKNOIR used Follow Me!”

“SINNER kept going and crashed!”

Not the KO I was expecting, but I took it nonetheless.

The game, of course, crashed as soon as my Shaymin’s cry played, leaving nothing but pleasantly ear-grating screeching sounds.

I decided to take a break from playing for a moment to process what I just witnessed. I had a lot to digest.

The only conclusion I came to was that ghosts are real and this was the same Skye as the girl who died. Which would sound insane if I didn’t have the pictures to prove it.

I choked back tears. I was afraid. Why did Skye want me to see this?

I wanted to put the game down and be done with it. But if she had a message to give me, then I felt like I had to see it through to the end.

I guess I vainly hoped she’d pass on and find peace if I listened to what she was trying to say.

Another message when I started the game up again.

“I can’t fly. I tried to.”

I found myself at Spear Pillar. The staircase to the Hall of Origin was in front of me.

My exit was gone, so I just went straight to Arceus.

A level 100 Arceus stood before me.  

Instead of sending out my Shaymin, it stayed in the field. It was now bleeding. Its status said it was fainted, but it was still able to battle somehow.

I felt cornered. There was no way a level 14 Shaymin could take on something like this. I tried to use Fly, hoping it would give me the same result as before.

“Can’t use that here.”

It wouldn’t let me use the move. Instead, I just outright try to flee.

“Can’t escape!”

“ARCEUS used Judgment!”

I braced for impact...

“The wild ARCEUS’s attack missed!”

...But was pleasantly surprised to see it miss.

“I’m not ready yet.”

The game made me flee automatically.

The screen faded to black.

“I’m not ready. I’m not ready.”

“I’m scared.”

When the screen faded back to the overworld, I found myself in the Distortion World. The portal that takes you back to the main world was gone, so the only thing I could do was explore.

I found another Escape Rope while looking around.

It was the only thing noteworthy I could find, so I started trying to think of ways to get out of here.

I tried using Fly, since SINNER still knew it.

“There’s nowhere to fly to.”

Figures.

Trying to test my other options, I went to my bag and tried using the Escape Rope.

Of course, the “There’s a time and place for everything” message still appeared.

Deciding to mess around until I got results, I went to give the Escape Rope to SINNER.

“Don’t suppose you know what to do with this?” I muttered.

The game crashed again, and it assaulted my eardrums once more. I sharply inhaled, wondering if I touched a nerve.

I took a deep breath and started the game again.

My character’s name was now Skye.

I started in Floaroma Town. The first thing I did was rush to the Pokémon Center to check on my Pokémon in the PC. Of course, they were all gone.

I’d grieve for them later, though. Maybe Skye would be nice to me and give them back.

While I was in the center, I figured it might’ve been good to heal the faint status off of the Shaymin.

Sure it is. Glad you can tell when something is suffering, nurse.

Heading outside, I talked to the blonde NPC.

“You should always give flowers to someone who has passed away.”

“It’s rude not to.”

“You got the Gracidea!”

I was suddenly feeling very guilty for not leaving flowers before.

Wondering if I could fix the poor Shaymin in my party if I used the flower on her, I went to try it.

“It won’t have any effect.” 

Of course not.

The blonde NPC turned into my Shaymin. I spoke to her.

“That won’t help me.” 

Yeah, I thought not.

At a loss of ideas on what to do next, I absentmindedly made my way to Valley Windworks and walked around in the grass.

A wild Sky Forme Shaymin appeared.

I sent out Skye, of course.

I chose the fight option, and the battle continued without me selecting a move.

“The wild SHAYMIN used Reflect!”

“Skye’s rage is building!”

“Skye used Cut!”

“She hurt herself in her confusion!”

The Sky Form Shaymin was knocked out in one hit, despite the game telling me Skye had hurt herself.

Back on the overworld, I found the mangled parts of the Sky Forme Shaymin lying in the grass. I inspected them.

“Please put me back together.”

It gave me another prompt, and I chose yes.

The screen faded to black.

And then Skye appeared again in a black abyss, with Skymin ears and flower. My trainer was nowhere to be seen.

I checked my party to see that Skye had changed again. Her cry sounded like a distorted mix of Shaymin’s two forms.

I went back to the overworld and was unable to move. Instead, a dialogue box appeared.

“Can you hear me?”

"Thank you for caring about me.”

"I can fly now.”

“Because...”

“I love you.”

My heart skipped a beat. My hands began to shake.

“You must care about me too, right?”

“So... I’m going to stay with you.”

“I won’t leave, not without someone who loves me.”

“Will you fly away with me?”

My shaky hands went to say no. I didn’t want to be like her.

"...”

“I’ll wait for you.”

“I’ll change your mind.”

“You’re mine now.”

“You’re mine forever.”

With that last line, the game froze.

The first thing I did was take the game out of the system. I decided to drop off all my Pokémon games at the nearest GameStop. I didn’t want her talking to me anymore.

So why do I feel like she’s still here?

[krisiverse]

Hello, I heard you were a dragon expert, and I need help! So, I specialise in Fairy Types, but recently a wild Noibat crawled into my vent, they were apparently hurt, and In oder to not hurt them further, I panicked and threw a Pokéball at them, afterwards I immediately took them to a Pokémon center, but now they're technically my Pokémon, and doesn't seem to get along with my Ribombee, my Sylveon, who is ver affectionate, also tries to hug them but they grow restless after a bit, and I've grown attached to the little guy as well. Is there a way this arrangement can work out, with the proper care for Noibat and whatnot, while keeping my other Pokémon comfortable as well, or should I do what's best for all of them and drop Noibat off at a shelter?

it's great to hear that you're trying your best to take care of that noibat, despite it being out of your normal comfort zone! noibat, particularly wild-caught ones, are a very skittish Pokemon and it can take them a while to calm down and warm up to others. wild sylveon in particular are opportunistic and have been known to prey on noibat when they get the chance, so that's probably contributing to your buddy's stress!

I would recommend separating your pokemon, giving your noibat its own safe space such as a room in your house. then you can reintroduce them slowly, one at a time. the standard process for introducing pokemon to each other is to first let them get used to each other's scent, then let them see each other without touching, then to have them together, with supervision, in a neutral space that they can escape from if necessary. you want to take it slowly and not rush it, since if you force a pokemon into a situation it's scared of it will make their fear much worse.

fairy types have a reputation for being very empathetic, so you can likely train your sylveon to back off and give noibat space if it starts to get uncomfortable. if not, you can always train them to do that on command, but you'll have to be especially wary; it's probably best at the start to make sure contact isn't initiated by your sylveon until you're familiar with noibat's nonverbal cues, since dragon pokemon tend to express their discomfort very differently from other types.

as for your ribombee, a good reintroduction step could be to have them together in the same room at mealtimes. that way they can get accustomed to each other's presence in the same space without interacting directly, and they'll associate each other with good things rather than stress and conflict.

i hope this helps! good luck with your training

[shinyacademy]

Shiny Hunting In Let’s Go

Hello trainers! I’m feeling a bit better today so I’m going to teach you how to shiny hunt in Let’s Go. Shiny hunting in Let’s Go is surprisingly easy. The biggest drawbacks are that after a while it feels a bit boring and that you can only reliably catch most of the original 150 Pokémon this way.

I don’t know about you but some of my favorite Pokémon are in the original 150 so these aren’t huge deterrents for me.

Step 1: Determine Your Target

If this is your first Let’s Go Hunt, try to go after a Pokémon with a higher spawn rate before you go after something like Lapras or Charmander. I’m going to go after Ekans because they’re relatively easy to catch and their shinies are cool and distinctive. It’s worth noting here that you will see your shiny in the Overworld at the end so you need to know what your shiny looks like ahead of time.

Step 2: Buy Lots of Pokeballs and Lures

You want to mitigate your risk for failure as much as possible so try to buy at least 60 balls of whatever would make your target Pokémon’s ring green without any berries or added effects. For Ekans, that’s a Great Ball. You’re also going to want Max Lures. I buy 30 at a time. If for some reason you run out of supplies you can return to the store without messing up your hunt but it’s just a lot easier to be prepared ahead of time.

Now is also a good time to decide what Pokeball you want your target in. If you’re going to aim for a more difficult ball, like a premiere ball, make sure you have berries on hand to help negate your risk.

Step 3: Catch Combo

Go to where your Pokémon spawns (Serebii is a great tool if you don’t know offhand) and use your lure spray. From here you’re going to want to catch 31 of your Pokémon consecutively. If you run in to the wrong Pokémon quickly run away and you will preserve your catch combo. Every time you catch the correct Pokémon it will display your catch combo number. Do not catch any Pokémon other than the Pokémon you’re hunting. You will be tempted. Catch combos will make other rare Pokémon of different species appear but if you want the shiny you must hold fast to your objective and not give in to temptation! I’d say the only time this is appropriate is if you see another shiny, in which case grab it (this scenario, however, is unlikely).

If a Pokémon runs away it will also end your catch combo. Hopefully your chance of this is low because you bought Pokéballs powerful enough to catch your targets but the general rule of thumb here is to run away if you miss two throws. If in any doubt, run away because running away will not harm your catch combo, even if you run from your target Pokémon.

Step 4: Wait for Your Shiny

Once you hit a catch combo of 31 your odds are maxed out and you no longer have to catch more Pokémon (but you can if you want to). At this point, if you have a flying Pokémon you might find it more useful to hop on their back and monitor things from the sky. You can also alternate patches of grass with this method.

If you can’t fly or you prefer to stay on the ground, you can continue to combo your Pokémon or just encounter, then run away to maintain your catch combo. I couldn’t fly for the majority of my Ekans hunt so I continued to catch a few to clear out the spawns. This is the time for patience. Eventually your shiny will appear. Quickly encounter it. If you accidentally encounter another Pokémon, run away - you’re not necessarily hosed. Your shiny should act like a normal spawn but be its shiny color with little sparkles around it. Be fast because all spawns eventually despawn.

Step 5: Catch Your Shiny

Get out the ball you want to catch your shiny in and give it a berry to get its capture ring as green as possible. Then aim and catch your shiny! Try to be quick as shinies can run away like any other Pokémon in Let’s Go. If you miss your first throw berry up some more and consider using a stronger ball.

Congrats on Your New Shiny!

While a lot of shinies caught in Pokémon Let’s Go can be ported to Sword/Shield be aware that the value of a shiny that can be traded to Let’s Go is sometimes higher because they are so limited (once they’re traded up they can’t go back). Walk around with your shiny for a bit, or if it’s an option, ride them! I promise it’s super cool.

Any part of this process can be repeated for rarer spawns but it won’t work on legendaries (like the birbs or Mew). Also, once you’ve caught your shiny there’s nothing stopping you from continuing to chain and catching multiples of you wish!

Now go out and get your shinies! Happy hunting! ✨

[saywha413]

More bad writing by me :D 

I imagined a proposal scenario for our favorite gays

I included the entire past fic, so you can skip it if you’ve already read it.

Also posted on archive of our own, so you can read it there too

20-year-old Goh was sitting at his desk, working hard (or was he hardly working 😏). He was writing a bunch of notes from his research on eevee and their evolutions. While he was proofreading it, the memory of his boyfriend, Ash Ketchum, asking him on their first date popped into his head…

It was a gorgeous day in Kanto. The sun was shining, the pidgey and spearow chirping, and the aerodactyl in Cerise Park sleeping. Professor Cerise let all the researchers have the day off, so they were all in Cerise Park. Chloe and Chrysa were watching an improvised game of soccer by the Pokémon and talking about the latest Pokémon Food Contest, Ren and Professor Cerise were hanging out with Goh’s other Pokémon. Suicune even appeared, it sensed something special was going to happen today and wanted to see it. Goh and Ash were sitting (closer than just friends would be) above all the others and talking. Eventually they fell silent and just watched the others. “Hey Goh?” Ash asked out of the blue. “Yeah?” Goh turned his head from the scene below. “I know we’ve done lots of things together, and even done date-like things, but never really gone on a date, so will you go on a date with me?” Ash gushed. He noticed the huge blush on his and Goh’s faces when Goh responded, “Of course I will!” He tackled Ash with a hug. The two research fellows were completely unaware that all the people and Pokémon in Cerise Park had witnessed what just happened. “I should go get cleaned up,” Ash stated. “Ok, I’ll pack a lunch or something…” Goh walked to the kitchen while Ash dashed to their shared room. Chloe, seeing an opportunity to tease them, followed them inside. She walked into the kitchen and greeted Goh who was making sandwiches for him and Ash. He got some donuts and drinks, as well as Poké Food for all their Pokémon. “You excited for your date?” Chloe teased, a huge smirk on her face. “What?!” Goh’s face turned bright red. “No I’m not.” He stated. They had been friends long enough to know he was lying instantly. “Stop teasing me!” He shot a glare at Chloe. She just laughed it off, teasing Goh was both easy and fun.

As Chloe walked up the stairs to Ash and Goh’s shared room, she wondered how she could tease Ash. His dense brain probably wouldn’t understand any of it. She knocked on the door and was answered with a “Come in!” She plopped on the bottom bunk and calmly stated “You and Goh make a cute couple.” Ash blushed a little and responded with “Thanks.” “Where are you taking him on your date?” Chloe innocently asked. “Oh. I don’t know.” Ash shrugged. “You don’t know?!” Chloe deadpanned. “I figured Goh would know what to do and where to go…” Ash packed up the last things he would need and said bye to Chloe. Chloe rushed out to Cerise Park and asked all the Pokémon and researchers, “Who wants to follow Ash and Goh on their date?” She was met with a various amount of grunts, roars, and other Pokémon noises. Chrysa agreed, she wanted to see the date for herself, but the Professor and Ren politely declined. Soon Ash and Goh left with the lunch and their main Pokémon (Pikachu, cinderace, lucario, sobble/drizzile/inteleon). They didn’t notice the two girls following them and the dragon or the ghost or all the various other Pokémon. The research fellows walked to the Cerise park and set out all the food, even the food for the Pokémon, and they let the Pokémon go free and walk around. They didn’t notice that Professor Cerise and Ren had left earlier or that suicune was still there, just watching from a different spot. Ash, being Ash, was shoveling food into his mouth while Goh was eating at a normal pace. Ash was so focused on food and Goh was so focused on Ash that they didn’t notice Chloe peeking at them from behind a tree, or that lucario and the others had come back to see the date from behind a bush. Soon there were only a couple donuts left and all the sandwiches were eaten. Ash took one and turned towards Goh. “Do you want some?” He held the donut close to Goh’s mouth. In response, Goh blushed and stuttered out, “A-are you sure?” Ash just smiled, so Goh took a bite while still blushing. They (again) were so focused on each other they didn’t notice Chloe or Chrysa squealing because of how cute it was. “Where do you want to go next?” Ash asked Goh. “I don’t know, just walking around is fine.” Goh commented and Ash agreed, so they left the Pokémon in Cerise Park unaware of the big group following them now.

While they were walking Goh spotted a vulpix, which he didn’t have, and ran up ahead and tripped. Just before he landed on his face, someone caught him. Goh looked up and it was Ash. “Are you ok?” Ash was holding him bridal-style. “I’m fine. Thank you for catching me.” Goh was blushing very hard now and Ash (behind dense) didn’t understand. He put Goh down and they kept walking. Soon they passed a clothing store. “Come on,” Goh insisted. “Let’s check it out.” “But we look fine!” Ash protested, but it was too late. Goh dragged Ash in by the hand. The store was empty at this time, and the cashier was playing something on his rotom phone. (Note: I know nothing about clothes and wear pjs all day so this part will sound a little weird) Ash was looking through the Pokémon clothing section, maybe he could find something pikachu or the rest of his Pokémon would like, then Goh called him over to the changing rooms. “Try this outfit on,” he insisted. Ash went in and soon called out “Are you sure this will look good?” “Just show me!” Goh pushed. When Ash came out again, he was wearing a simple black t-shirt and some blue jeans with a belt that had a small lightning-bolt shaped buckle. “So, uh what do you think? How do I look?” Ash glanced very nervously at Goh. “You look handsome.” Goh immediately responded. This caused Ash to blush even harder than he was before. “Now you pick me an outfit!” Goh jumped up and down a little. “Ok! Give me a couple minutes.” While Goh waited he was staring out the window and swore he saw a dragonite and a girl with magenta-colored hair on his back. “Is that Chloe and Ash’s dragonite?” Goh thought to himself. “Nah it can’t be.” he dismissed the earlier thought, not knowing that it was right. “Ok I’m back!” Ash handed a small pile of clothes to Goh. While Goh was changing, it was his turn to ask “Are you sure this will look good?” Ash replied, “I’m sure it’ll look great!” When Goh came out he was wearing a dress with a pikachu and scorbunny pattern. (But the pattern is pretty small if you want to draw it) “How do I look?” Goh asked, more flustered and nervous than Ash. “Beautiful.” Ash simply replied. They stared at each other for a while and had their fingers laced together. Right when they were about to kiss, a voice from outside the changing rooms yelled “You better not be smoochin’ in there lovebirds!” This made the lovebirds research fellows even more bright scarlet than they already were and Chloe, Chrysa, and the Pokémon laugh outside.

Ash and Goh left the clothing store wearing their new outfits and walking back to the Cerise Lab. They were (again) holding hands and chatting about random things. “Do you remember that time we were on that slowpoke island?” “I’d rather not think about that.” When they made it back it was almost night and the sun was setting. “Do you want to watch the sunset with me?” Ash asked, though it was kind of unnecessary because they were already walking towards a bench. When they sat down, the research fellows spent more time losing themselves in each other’s eyes than actually watching the sun set. Their fingers still laced together, they brought their faces closer. “Are you thinking what I’m thinking?” Ash gently asked, almost whispered. “I think we’re thinking the same thing…” Goh whispered back. When their lips met it it invoked a new feeling into both of their hearts: love. They held that position for a minute, but that minute drifted into two, then three, until they broke it to breathe. “I love you Goh.” Ash kissed his cheek. “I love you too Ash.” Goh kissed him on the lips again. Both the research fellows knew that this was only the beginning as the journey continues… 

(The people and Pokémon in the lab saw the kiss, Chloe and Chrysa were fang irking and Ren and the Professor both were a lil surprised but not a lot. The Pokémon all had different reactions)

He blushed remembering that day, but his thoughts were interrupted by a small sound. “Meww!” He jumped up and woke his sleeping Pokémon, cinderace, inteleon, and thwackey. “C’mon guys!! Mew is in the area!!” Goh ran through his lab and grabbed a single Pokéball. When he checked himself in the mirror, he remembered when Chloe insisted on braiding his now very long hair (she had cut hers recently and missed braiding hair) and he wasn’t sure if he liked the braid. Ash had come in and commented that it looked good on him, and now Goh has Chloe braid it every day. He looked at his fingernails, which were painted the same shade of blue as his eyes today, and remembered something similar had happened with those too. Chloe had cut her nails too short and insisted on painting his instead. He, again, wasn’t sure if he liked it, but Ash did, so he kept repainting his nails. The last spot his eyes fell on was his earrings. He had a small red stud and a keystone earring the same shade of blue as his eyes that Ash had given him(I tell you I really like “Hiding in Public” by Negira1239… The earring bit is my favorite :D). He shook himself a little, what was he doing? He had to find mew! He and his 3 Pokémon ran towards the entrance. “What are you doing?” His lab assistants Chloe and Horace looked at him with confusion, they weren’t used to seeing him run around like this. That was more of an Ash thing. “I heard mew and I’m going to catch it!” “With that?” Chloe pointed to the single Pokéball in his hand. “Yup. Okbye!!” He sped out the door before they could ask any more questions. 

When he reached the forest behind Cerise Lab (It’s actually in Galar, they named it after professor Cerise) mew stopped and looked at him, as if to challenge “Come on! Throw that Pokéball!” He simply stated, “Look mew. I don’t want you to stay in a place you’re unhappy. So,” He held the Pokéball out to mew. “If you want to join me, you can. You don’t have to if you don’t want to.” Mew, who was touched by the speech, placed its paw on the Pokéball and then 1, 2, 3, “Mew was registered to your Pokédex!” Goh jumped up and cheered with cinderace, while he received high-fives from inteleon and thwackey. Too bad Ash couldn’t be here to see this, he had to battle someone….This gave him an idea! “Come out mew!” Mew popped out and Goh asked it, “Can you teleport me and my Pokémon to Wyndon Stadium?” Mew obliged and in a flash, they teleported what would have taken about an hour or two to walk. He put mew back in its Pokéball and entered. (Note: In my universe Ash swaps all his Pokémon, except pikachu, around to better combat your team. He also switches between singles and doubles. This makes him the hardest champion and, some people even say, the hardest trainer to beat in the world. Also, all his old Pokémon evolved, like bayleef to meganium and bulbasaur to venasaur, etc. For instance, you have a charizard and flareon, he uses samurott and blastoise. He also uses megas, z-moves, AND g-max, but only one per battle.) This time, Ash was in a double battle with dracovish and samurott against a centiskortch and mudsdale. “Use fishious rend on centiskortch!” Ash commanded. “Dodge it!” The challenger tried to combat it, but centiskortch was too slow and got knocked out. Then, Ash commanded samurott to use its signature move on mudsdale and quickly finished it. The challenger was upset, tears forming in their eyes, but those tears quickly faded when the champion held his hand out. “Thank you for the battle,” he commented while shaking their hand. “You have impressive talent and great Pokémon, I’m sure we’ll face off again soon.” The challenger shook his hand with a new, confident, expression. “I’m sure we will!” Goh ran over to his boyfriend and shouted “ASH! I CAUGHT MEW!” Ash hugged him around his waist and spun him around. “I knew you could do it!”Ash congratulated. Then Ash kissed him. (on the lips) The crowd and announcers and people watching from their homes gasped. They knew that the champion was dating someone, but he was very private about it. People had predicted that he was dating the performer Serena or gym leader Misty. Some people guessed he was dating the Island Kahuna Kiawe or Gladion, who people weren’t sure what he did, or maybe even Professor Gary. No one had ever thought of the regional professor of Galar.

“Come on! I have something to show you!” The champion dragged the professor away, by the hand, leaving all the Pokémon behind. “Can you watch our Pokémon? Thanks!” Goh called to the bewildered challenger still on the pitch. Ash took Goh to a secluded part of the park nearby, where no Pokémon or people other than the 2 of them were in sight. “Goh.” Ash stopped walking and turned to face him. “We have been friends and boyfriends for a long time. You are the most important thing to me, and the love of my life.” Ash got down on one knee. “Goh, will you marry me?” Goh, who was blushing madly and had happy tears in his eyes, enthusiastically tackled his fiance with a hug and responded with, “Of course!!” Little did they know, all the legends and myths were watching over them, and Dialga knew they would have long and happy lives. Together.

[kreactionsentertainment]

Pokemon x Exo pt. 2: Beginning of the Journey

Admin Note: I would like to reiterate that both main characters are over 20 in this story.

Disclaimer: I don’t own pokemon, exo, nct’s Haechan, or the boys in general. This is for fictional and creative fun.

Tags: Pokemon, Exo, Reader insert

Placing a gentle hand on the right-hand side. The ball seemed to shiver at your touch as if frightened by the sudden pressure. Carefully picking up the ball in your hands, you looked up at the Professor with a smile. The Professor nodded without saying a word, whereas Donghyuck picked up the most energetic ball in his hands. His grin rivaled a thousand suns as he called for Scorbunny to leave it’s pokéball. Scorbunny leapt from the ball and hopped over to Donghyuck. You looked down at the ball in your hands and sat down on the ground.

“You don’t have to rush; I know this is happening so suddenly. You can take your time; I know we will be great friends in the future,” You spoke softly to the Sobble inside it’s pokéball.

“Y/N ah, why won’t your Sobble come out,” Donghyuck complained as he can his Scorbunny chased each other around the room.

“This is a big change for the little guy, Sobble needs time to adjust to this change. After all, he didn’t ask for this. I will not force him if he is not ready to meet me,” You explained as you held the ball in your hands.

“Y/N hurry and become friends with Sobble, Scorbunny and I want to battle,” Donghyuck sighed as him and Scorbunny settled down.

“Battling is not always a priority. Anyone can see that you and Scorbunny have an instant connection. However, some partnerships need time to develop to their fullest potential,” You explained as you put your pokéball gently in your bag.

“Do you two know where you want your journey to go?” The Professor leaned against her desk as Grookey hopped up on to her shoulder.

“I’m not sure where this journey will take me,” You answered after a moment.

“I want to challenge the nine brothers!” Donghyuck jumped up and posed for the security camera in the corner of the room.

“Ah yes Donghyuck, you’re very ambitious. The nine brothers are all very talented in their art,” The Professor nodded with a smile.

“Can you tell us more about the nine brothers?” Donghyuck asked excitedly.

“I suppose I can, you will need some information about the Nine before you run into them on your journey,” The Professor and Grookey walked behind her desk to a black bookshelf and picked up a small, framed photo.

“I’ve known those kids since they were young and ambitious, Donghyuck reminds me of the younger brothers while you remind me of the older brothers,” The Professor chuckled as she handed you the framed photo. Twelve people smiled in a field surrounded by different types of pokémon.

“The three adults in the photo are me and their adoptive parents. The three of us were friends in school, quite close. We were all very interested in the scientific side of pokémon. Unfortunately, their parents passed after an accident involving the research of the Dynamax evolutions of the Galar region. Since then, I worked hard to give those boys every opportunity I could, eventually I was given the professor title alongside Aciano. Just when I thought things were coming together, Aciano was caught doing horrible experiments to innocent people and pokémon,” The professor looked away from the small, framed photo to look at the Grookey on her shoulder.

“That’s so sad,” You mumbled as Donghyuck came over to look at the photo with you.

“Indeed it is, yet the boys proved to push through their difficult beginning. Look at them now, they have no doubt made their parents proud,” The Professor smiled again.

“The Photo is foreshadowing who they have become in the future. Starting off on the left side Sehun, Chanyeol, and Junmyeon will be the first gyms in your journey. Sehun has an infinite connection to Grass type pokémon. The only pokémon I know that will be on his team for sure is Leafeon,” The Professor explains as Grookey climbs down to inspect the photo.

“Right! The Nine as considered to be the best of the best, rumor has it that each of them has their own eevee. Although from what you have said I’m assuming this isn’t a rumor?” Donghyuck asked as he looked up to the professor.

“You are correct, Donghyuck. It’s not a rumor, each of the nine has an eevee that they had since they were young. Each of them has a different connection to the special type pokémon, their eevee’s have evolved according to their connection with their trainer,” Something about this statement doesn’t make sense. If this were true, why would Baekhyun be the leader of a dragon type gym rather than a normal type gym?

“So therefore, Junmyeon will have a vaporeon and Chanyeol will have a flareon,” The Professor stopped talking as something about your atmosphere interrupted her.

“Your explanation doesn’t make sense with the Champion,” You looked up from Baekhyun’s smiling face to face the professor. She smiled and nodded, thinking for a moment.

“Baekhyun has always had a special connection to the sky. His connection to dragon type pokémon is something I’ve never seen before. The only connections more important to him than his dragon type pokémon is to his partner pokémon and to his brothers. He’s always known that his eevee would never naturally be a dragon type, until the emergence of the Star Stone. Although it never stopped him from being a great trainer to his eevee,” The Professor defended the Champion.

“How about I take you two to the pokémart down the road? You’ll need some items for your journey from now on,” The Professor stood up and the Grookey quickly climbed up to her shoulder again. You and Donghyuck stood up, you gently placed the photo on the professor’s desk and followed her out of the Research Center.

“Professor, the Nine are older than us, right? Yet, you are older than them? You don’t look as old as what you’re saying,” Donghyuck rambled slightly as the three of your walked down the street to the pokémart.

“I’ll take that as a compliment, Donghyuck. I am quite old, although I still feel young,” The Professor chuckled softly. The doors of the pokémart opened up quickly.

“Now go gather some items for yourselves, I will take care of the bill this time,” The Professor pointed to the three different areas of the pokémart. You knew from stories that the woman straight ahead can heal a team of pokémon no matter their state after a battle. The blue area to your right is where you can buy potions of different types and some pokéballs to add to your bag. You weren’t quite sure what the area to your left is, but you figured you would find out sooner than later. You walked over to the blue area and picked out two dozen pokéballs and two dozen potions.

“Thank you for shopping with us, the bill has already been taken care of!” The two men behind the counter nodded their thanks and began speaking with the next customer as you took your items and put them in your bag. A small pressure on your shoulder grabbed your attention. Sobble snuck out of his ball and he crawled up to your shoulder.

“Ah hello! I’m so happy to see you’ve come out. Do you want to meet Donghyuck and Scorbunny?” You asked the little Sobble. The Sobble seemed to shake a little bit, but it made its way to your bag and made a little home for itself outside of its pokéball. You smiled and made your way to meet up with the others outside of the pokémart.

“If you continue on this path, you will reach Route 1 and 2. The first city you will reach is Zinnia City. The tall grass is where most wild pokémon will hide, try and make a small team before you challenge Sehun’s gym,” The Professor advises you both.

“Alright, but before we go anywhere, I challenge you Y/N!” Donghyuck is going to get his challenge before the two of you begin your journey.

[bennett-kalos]

“A pleasure to make your acquaintance.”

This is a multiverse Pokémon RP blog starring Bennett, a psychic type trainer.

Rules:

I won't write NSFW.

Normal RP etiquette applies.

No means no.

If I don't reply, I probably have a reason.

Don't try to force anything, you will be blocked.

This is OC friendly, of course.

Now on to Bennett.

Name: Bennett Archer

Age: 28, April 30th

Personality: Bennett is often described as having a looming presence, and most people assume he's a ghost type trainer. He isn't truly quiet, he’s just picky with his words, preferring to be to the point, rather than fluttering around. He's the type of person you notice when they walk into the room, though Bennett usually won't say or do anything. He gets overwhelmed easily if there's too many people, which usually leads to him sitting in a corner with his head covered. Luckily, that's an extreme example, and hasn't happened in a while. He has very sensitive hearing, which is the cause of such situations. He prefers Pokémon to people most the time.

Appearance: Bennett has pale purple hair that can never decide if it's straight or not, pale skin, and sage green eyes. He typically wears simple clothing, such as jeans and a white undershirt. 

History: Bennett is of Kalosian descent, born to a successful businessman. He never truly got along with his parents, mostly because of their lack of enthusiasm towards any of his actual interests. When he was around thirteen, he got overwhelmed much more often, and his parents simply put less and less time and effort into him. He woke up one night, stole a few Pokéballs, and ran into the tall grass. Since then, he hasn't been in contact with his parents.

Pokémon:

All of Bennett’s Pokémon are rather well trained, though most of the time he avoids battles without cause.

Mushroom, the Gardevoir. She is his first Pokémon, and they are definitely close.

Whisper, the male Meowstic. Bennett caught Whisper after seeing a group of children's trying to peel back its ears. A thorough scolding later, he had a new Pokémon.

Sage, the shiny Espeon. He found Sage abandoned on the side on the road, and nursed him back to life.

Squish, the Reuniclus. Squish accidentally blew into his arms during a storm and didn't want to leave.

Belle, the Chimecho. Belle started following him sometime before he caught her, he doesn't really know when.

[lunarnoona5342]

So I had a second attempt at a Pokémon X nuzlocke and beat it this time

For those who don't know, a nuzlocke is a self-enforced game mode of Pokémon where you can only catch the first Pokémon you encounter on a route, you must nickname them to encourage closeness, and if the Pokémon faint in battle, they are dead: you can no longer use them. I added an extra rule onto the route rule: I can catch the first Pokémon that comes from a rock smash on a route, since that's something that can rarely be done on routes anyway, and also I'm prone to killing Pokémon so I needed a fighting chance at this. With the rules sorted, we can move onto my second attempt at a nuzlocke (with my best friend Mar (@serpentine-fxrtune) beside me to help name my Pokémon and mock my dead ones with bonus friends Bread and Ariel (@catboy5000))

I played as a male named Takehiko because me, Mar, and a couple other friends have a Pokémon fan project thing going on between us and Takehiko is one of my characters who is Kalosian. When I was offered to be nicknamed Big T at the beginning of the game, I could not refuse. I picked Froakie to be my starter and already had naming issues, so I consulted Mar for a nickname. She suggested the French word for frog, and I just went with it because, yanno, Kalos is based on France. And so, I gained my first Pokémon, Grenouille. I go to route 2 and encounter the obligatory Pidgey (which doesn't count as my first encounter, I don't have any Pokéballs at this point) and sit through Serena teaching me to catch Pokémon (who btw I forgot existed in this game) by talking to Mar about something I remembered.

Me: I just wanna talk about SKZ's English names, specifically Changbin's name. Like it's normal, it's just Lewis, but CHAN TRIED TO CONVINCE HIM TO BE CALLED BARTHOLOMEW, THAT'S LIKE IF I TRIED TO GIVE BREAD AN ARABIC NAME AND CHOSE TO NAME HIM ABDUL RAHMAN, THAT'S NOT EASY TO SAY.

Me: Should I name my first Pokémon Bartholomew, for what Changbin could have been?

Mar, ever the enabler: Sure, I can't really stop you.

So I named the Weedle I caught Bartholomew, and proceeded into Santalune forest.

So we move on (and I'm just ignoring rival battles because they're just not it) and out to route 3, where I caught a Fletchling. Following on from my SKZ English names talk from earlier, I named the bird Sky, because Seungmin's English name is cute goddammit. So when I got to Santalune, I ran into a problem: I had no Pokémon that could be super effective against Viola. I head over to route 22 nearby after grabbing the roller skates to try and get Riolu for a first encounter. Instead of that, I got a Bunnelby.

Me: You are not Riolu... so you shall be named Not Riolu.

So instead of fretting over the type advantage Viola had on me, I chose to grind for higher levels to beat her Pokémon up with power instead; this is when the first casualty came in.  Sky, the poor child, got killed by a Riolu using counter because peck didn't do the job of making it faint. Sky was the first to join the graveyaed (yes this is how I spelled it in game). Sky, though you were technically not Seungmin since you were female, you will be missed.

Also forgot to mention: Batholomew is a female too. Moving on-

So after spending a long time grinding, being a bit more careful this time, I finally felt like I was ready for Viola, and I was. I swept the floor with her, Grenouille carrying the team as he was a higher level than the rest. Upon reaching Viola's sister, Alexa, before route 4, I got an exp share, and then she reminded me of what happened in my first attempt at the nuzlocke.

Me: *says a thing about something being sad*

Me and Mar, at the same time: Alexa, play Despacito.

Mar: Name the Pokémon you catch on this route Despacito.

Me: Okay *gets a Flabébé*

Future me: *pockets memory for future Flabébé*

On route 4, I encounter a Skitty, but as I mentioned earlier, I am prone to killing Pokémon and end up killing the Skitty before I could catch it, so I just make my way over to Lumiose to get a Kanto starter after beating up all the trainers on the route.

So this was my conversation with Mar about which Kanto starter to pick (I have a grudge against Ch*rmander okay), and through this I chose its name too: Zekrom 💙

So on route 5 I catch a Furfrou that I nicknamed Floof because it floof and made my way to Camphier, where I went off with Shauna to get the Poké flute to get rid of the Snorlax blocking route 7. I collect the item, and on the way back I catch an Oddish that Mar named Pea for me. I got rid of the Snorlax by running the moment I interact with it - there was no way I'd fight that thing. Onto route 7, where I go into the purple flowers in hopes I get a blue Flabébé, but instead I got an orange one. Regardless of the colour, it was gonna be called Despacito.

In the connecting cave, I catch a Zubat that I named Ciel because I wanted to honour Sky by naming a bat the same thing, just Italian. I move on to route 8, where I get Shelly the Bagon, Shinju the Cubone from the Glistening Cave, and Itzy the Amaura from the fossil I got. It was on the other side of route 8 where the first of 2 rock smash Pokémon emerge, and I'm not sorry for killing the Binacle, it was Dwebble or nothing. In the Twitter thread I forgot to mention that I also caught a Helioptile that I nicknamed Frilly on route 9, but enough of that, now to Grant, the gym that killed my first Pokémon X nuzlocke...

Grant scared me a lot because of how I've always struggled to beat him even when I played normally: he's way too strong to just be a second gym leader. However, thanks to way too much grinding, I was able to beat Grant without any casualties.

So I can't remember how it happened, but at some point in route 10, Shinju died, I can't remember what caused it but it happened and ig I wasn't sad enough about it to remember. On route 10 though, I did get a Snubbull that I named Berri (Mar wanted to name it Ugli but I said No.)

So skip over Geosenge and off to route 11 and Reflective Cave, where I got Zappy the Dedenne and I then killed a Roggenrola by accident because, despite its sturdy ability, it still got hurt by Despacito's rocky helmet and fainted. Unfortunately this is where I lost 2 Pokémon. Kumi died to a Wobuffet that, idk what it did since I wasn't looking at the screen, but I'm assuming Kumi just couldn't take the counter, and fell to the same fate Sky did. Then, Itzy died too, by means I can't remember, but tbh it's me I probably did a dumb type matchup.

Either way I started making Itzy jokes to ease the pain of losing 2 Pokémon consecutively, like "maybe she just wasn't Icy, just on fire all along", and Ariel goes "perhaps she was just a wannabe... 💔".

By this point, my team consisted of Grenouille the Greninja, Zekrom the Charmeleon, Frilly the Helioptile, Despacito the Floette, Pea the Gloom, and Not Lucario the Diggersby (I renamed him from Not Riolu since it evolved).

Eventually, I get to Shalour and get the Lucario from Korrina, who I appropriately named Not DiggersB (Not Diggersby didn't fit so I improvised), and replace Not Lucario. I beat her in battle (without trying either I hadn't noticed I won until I was talking to Korrina again).

I gave up my route 12 encounter to get the Lapras the Pokémon breeder gifts you at the beginning of the route if you speak to him, and Mar named him Lettuce (because iceberg lettuce), and quickly grab myself a Tentacool from Azure Bay that I named Booze because it's water poison. It's when I'm grinding on route 12 for Ramos where I get my biggest casualty so far: Zekrom. Zekrom, the fully evolved Charizard, ready to take on the world, got killed by a Miltank that survived 2 hits from Zekrom and was able to land a bide on him.

Mar asked about Zekrom earlier because I got mocked for his death, and idc about it now but like, it hurt when it happened (yes I did threaten murder but my threats are empty, I'm not edgy I just swear a lot).

So I went and got rid of the Pokémon population of route 12 before *almost* going to Ramos. I noticed that I could go to route 13 before battling him, and it was there I could get a Slugma from the second (and final) use of the rock smash rule I had in place.

*over call*

Me: I'm gonna go take a risk and hope that I can get a Slugma on route 13 using rock smash.

Mar: Slipknot?

Me: *laughing* No, SLUGMA.

Mar: Oh, well you're naming it Slipknot now.

Needless to say, I got very lucky and got a Slugma on first encounter, and named it Slipknot. Unfortunately for me, however, catching Slipknot meant even more grinding for levels. Luckily, Courmarine is where you can get a lucky egg, which gives the holder more exp from battles, and with the use of Pokémon Amie, Slipknot caught up in no time (and evolved into Magcargo). Tbh the thing that took more time was bringing up Slipknot's affection on Pokémon Amie since you literally can't pet Slugma, which eliminates the main way to gain affection. The amount of times I played Tile Puzzle and Head It was quite a lot (never liked Berry Picker, stressful).

So I beat Ramos after pulling a risky move to protect Slipknot from Gogoat's ground move by bringing out Lapras and using ice beam to beat it. I bring the lights back to Lumiose city and go to beat Clemont, where the next big casualty happens - Not DiggersB. I had overestimated Not DiggersB's defense and lost him to an Ampharos that used thunder punch a bit too hard. This was a really bad death since I had a whole ground type in my box just sitting, waiting to be used, but nooooo, I had to used the fighting steel type with bone rush.

Not Lucario, in revenge for his counterpart, destroys Clemont's team, and we're off to Laverre. On route 14 I immediately catch a better ground type (Not a Fish the Stunfisk) and Not Lucario is relegated to the box again, the dirty HM slave. This means more grinding, passing the lucky egg over to Not a Fish, more PokéAmie, and more destruction of the Pokémon population (while also tryna level up both Pea and Despacito enough to get giga drain and moonblast respectively before evolving them into Florges and Bellossom).

To explain Pea and Despacito quickly (and Zappy too), they only evolve into their final forms when they are met with a sun stone (for Bellossom specifically and Heliolisk) and shiny stone (for Florges). I did have a sun stone but used it to evolve Helioptile int Heliolisk so I had to wait until I got to Anistar to get another sun stone, and I only got a shiny stone at the end of route 13, so I saved it until Despacito reached the right level for moonblast, then evolved it (thank you Mar for being the one who knew this info, I'm actual shit at Pokémon).

Anyway, I make it to Laverre, beat Valerie (and almost lose Pea that battle gave me a heart attack), beat up team flare in the factory, get master ball and big nugget, blah blah blah, get better clothes for Big T (which isn't much better male clothes in Pokémon is shit). I get a Foongus on route 15, consult Mar on a name because, once again, naming issues, and she names it Amanita for reasons I've honestly forgotten, and go over to Dendemille, where I redeem heart scales for better moves for Grenouille and Slipknot, and beat up more team flare.

Before I make my way over to Anistar though, I quickly go to route 16 to collect an obligatory Pumpkaboo (that I called Jack). I did (or tried to do in some cases) Pokémon Sword runs for my part of the fan project's E4 and on every file, I've caught a Pumpkaboo so it's tradition.

On route 17 I failed miserably at trying to catch a Delibird, which I wasn't upset about. I use the place to grind a bit more before I make it to Anistar. I grab the sun stone there to finally evolve Pea and just completely destroy Olympia with Grenouille.

So the game's plot "thickens" (aka Lysandre outright says he's the one in charge of team flare) so I do my protag thing, saving the world, when I have to deal with the most heartbreaking and stupid death ever.

Xerneas: *appears*

Me: Okay just master ball it.

Me: *accidentally picks quick ball*

Me: it might be okay it's the first turn anyway-

Xerneas, not expecting to battle so had moonblast ready for fun:👁👄👁  *kills Grenouille*

Me: NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO.

This genuinely hurt me so much I wanted to cry, I was so close to getting Grenouille through it all and he dies to a misclick?! Luckily I got Xerneas in a master ball immediately afterwards. Since it counted as it was the only Pokémon I got in Geosenge, I aptly named it "YOU KILLER".

So I grind a bit more for Xerneas and make my way over to Snowbelle. On route 18 I got a Durant that I named Ditant because I couldn't spell, then got a Sliggoo on route 19 while grabbing sludge bomb for Pea so that she, along with Despacito, can be called the fairy killer.

Despacito the Dragon killer and Pea the Fairy killer honestly sounds so intimidating until you find out they're just a big flower patch and a weed, but they are scary, and can and will kill you without hesitation. I make it to Snowbelle and have to make my way to the Pokémon Village to grab Wulfric to be swept by a heavy metal band, and get myself a Trevenant I named Tree on route 20, and a Zoruark, that immediately replaced YOU KILLER in my party, from the village, and I named him Nuh. Nuh is basically the Muslim name for Noah, as in Noah's Ark Noah, so I did a grammatical joke based on that.

Nuh's Ark = the ark that belongs to Nuh

Nuh's Ark = Nuh is (Zoro)Ark

So I spend my time on route 21 accidentally killing the Ursaring I could've had and then ridding the waters of Lombré and Floatzel for Nuh using Pea. If someone had told me at the beginning of my nuzlocke that my star Pokémon would be a Bellossom, I would've laughed. After a while though, I felt ready. Pea, Despacito, Lettuce, Not a Fish, Slipknot, and Nuh (who I got a heart scale for to learn foul play) were all ready to go down Victory Road and beat the Pokémon League. On the way, I caught a Lickitung, my final Pokémon, that I named Balloon.

(I did have to leave victory road a few times because there's bits where you need to use strength, so I had to fetch Not Lucario because there was no way I was teaching any of my party a HM move this late in the game other than Lettuce learning surf and waterfall).

Going up Victory Road was a breeze (minus the multiple encounters in the caves), and I quickly made my way over to the Pokémon League. I went in, after healing my Pokémon, with an abundant amount of full restores to use freely (I had like P300k the money wasn't going anywhere).

I took on Siebold first, since he's the poetic guy and I wanted to show off Takehiko's abysmal fashion to him first. Needless to say, Pea beat him to a pulp (with Lettuce coming in clutch for his Gyrados by using thunderbolt). Siebold was by far the easiest E4 member.

Next was Wikstrom, whose Probopass had always worried me. It had sturdy, so every time Not a Fish tried to beat it, it'd just survive. Eventually, Wikstrom ran out of full restores, leading to it's untimely demise. Slipknot and Not a Fish cleared out the rest of his team easily.

I took on Malva next, who I legit didn't care about, and just had Lettuce spam surf until I beat her. It worked, of course, so that meant I only had one more battle to go: Drasna the dragon lady who, fun fact, is related to Iris, and is also therefore related to Leon and Hop!

I already knew Drasna would start with Dragalge, a danger to my dragon killer, so I sent out Not a Fish first just to get rid of it. I then sent Despacito out for her Altaria and Noivern, of which Noivern was actually able to land hits on Despacito, getting her in the yellow. Luckily for me, I had Pea learn Dazzling Gleam just in case I needed it, so I switched out Despacito for Pea when Druddigon came out, just to protect my big flower. Pea quickly handed Druddigon its ass as she beat it up without a hitch, and with that, I had finished the E4.

When I was checking if I needed to use my not so abundant amount of ethers and elixirs on my Pokémon, I was glad to find that I really only had to use it for Not a Fish's earthquake: I didn't have to use many moves against the E4, and earthquake was only down because of Wikstrom.

With my Pokémon healed up and ready, Despacito leading the party, I was ready to take on Champion Diantha. Her Hawlucha was up first, of which Despacito beat using moonblast in one fell swoop. She then went to beat up her Tyrantrum, who also fainted to a moonblast. She brought out Amourous next, aka what Itzy could've been, and Despacito used petal blizzard to beat it. The Amourous survived but didn't cause problems. I went to use petal blizzard but Diantha switched out for her Goodra, whose attack got boosted thanks to the grass type move.

Unfortunately for Diantha though, Goodra was a dragon type, so that thing fainted immediately afterwards thanks, once again, to moonblast. She brings back Amourous, who finally faints after a second bout of petal blizzard, and next up is her Gourgeist. It's at this point I finally let Despacito rest, bringing out my newly acquired Nuh, who comes out disguised as Slipknot. Nuh beats the Gourgeist in one move, meaning that Nuh's illusion is still up. Diantha brings out her final Pokémon, Gardevoir, and the battle is almost over.

I think the funniest part of the entire game for me was messing around with Nuh, because when Gardevoir used a psychic move: "It doesn't affect Slipknot..." Which is very funny considering it SHOULD affect Slipknot, it just doesn't affect Nuh, who's pretending to be Slipknot. Nuh takes the opportunity and uses foul play (as Slipknot, which also looks very peculiar) to take down Diantha's Gardevoir, and with that, I had beaten the champion. The nuzlocke was over...

Or was it?

Me: *getting fussy because the other 4 Sycamore pupils were getting credit for me single-handedly beating team flare*

Mar: NOONA THERE'S STILL A BATTLE LEFT, YOU NEED TO BATTLE AZ!

Me: oH

So the nuzlocke was *almost* over.

AZ was very very easy, the only issue I had was Lettuce not being up first to beat his Torkoal. His Sigilyph and Golurk were both very easy to beat, and nothing else really happened in the battle. With that battle over I had truly beaten my second attempt at a Pokémon X nuzlocke.

If you read this far, congratulations! You have read the equivalent of 75 tweets in (possibly) one sitting! Twitter kept capping me off every 25 tweets, so now I understand why Twitter au writers don't post abundantly. This was honestly so much fun, even though I did grieve over my dead Pokémon.

I wanna thank Mar for sticking with me the whole way, even though I was such a nuisance for asking every single time, without fail, what beats poison type Pokémon whenever I encountered one. When I said I'm shit at Pokémon, I wasn't lying: I'm Very Bad™ at the game.

I also wanna thank Bread and Ariel for just popping in during my run every now and again, even if all you wanted to do was mock me for Zekrom's death (which btw I don't get why you're still holding that to me? I'm more shocked you're not talking bout Grenouille lmao).

Would also like to thank my team, Pea the Bellossom, Despacito the Florges, Not a Fish the Stunfisk, Slipknot the Magcargo, Lettuce the Lapras, and Nuh the Zoroark (who, despite being a super new addition, pulled his weight very well). I wouldn't've won of not for y'all  (Idc that they're fictional and can't read my thanks, I love them okay???).

Anywho, thank you for reading this if you chose to!

[dorminchu]

WIPs [James Bond, Pokémon Lost Silver]

Wahey! Here are two mostly brand new scenes below the cut, just to prove I'm not dead! Note: Please view the post on the main page for correct formatting.

INSULT TO INJURY CHAPTER I: A THOUSAND DETAILS [REVISED]

Graduation from Oxford was a quick, unemotional affair. Madeleine had no extended family to invite—no one else of import, besides her short-term friends. The matter of her attendance was something to be addressed and then forgotten about. It was a little tragic. She tried not to let this show on her face when she had to make her commencement speech.

The ceremony went along as expected. Things were not as interesting when she could pretend her life was just as safe and boring as anyone else’s. As she was wrapping up an individual figure in the stands, no more remarkable than any other, caught her attention. It was an older man, perhaps in his early fifties, hidden partially behind sunglasses and a smart dress-hat. With a nauseating thrill she recognized his hat as well as his smile, the angles in his face a little more pronounced. To Madeleine it was like he was sneering. She did not let this discovery rattle her. If she hesitated it was on account of the crowd and her nerves and nothing else.

But when she was done, succeeded at the podium, she could only think: How long has he been standing there? Why didn’t I notice? They did not speak to one another, as it would surely draw unwanted attention. Not that it mattered. His presence was enough of an affront; why give him further opportunity to wound her pride by acknowledging him outright?

“I’m sorry,” she’d said to her roommate, “I’m really not feeling well. Just take me home.”

Even then, when she was perfectly alone, the memory of him took up residence where physical space would not permit. She tried to dredge up some residual emotions for the man who less so resembled a father and more an anonymous pen pal in recent years. Perhaps it was best for his pride if she continued to avoid him, rather than put him in a situation that would force him to admit his own daughter's indifference.

Her cotenants would be out for a while, glad to be around other normal people who didn’t skirt around crowded rooms, casing the doors and windows. Most of them, by now, thought Madeleine to be frigid, or else exceedingly studious. They’d given up a long time ago trying to invite her along on group dates—it was a losing proposition. She did not drink anything. She didn’t talk unless someone initiated and then she was perfectly reasonable. She would quietly, scrupulously vet what was offered. The other women were under the delusion that she was trying to compete with them, and the men were usually uncomfortable being scrutinised without a lick of pretence. Madeleine found it a little funny, but she was the only one.

So she didn’t mind being left behind. Most of the time. She looked around the room. It had served its purpose during her enrolment. Now it seemed intolerably small, like a holding cell. She had never thought about it this way before. Suddenly she wanted to be anywhere else.

At times such as these, she almost wished she hadn’t decided to go straight-edge—then, maybe, they would keep some alcohol in the flat. She had no friends she could call on without inviting scrutiny. The only other comparable colleague was Arnaud, a fellow Sociology major in her year. She found him tolerable enough to engage in polite conversation, though she did not want to give him or anyone else the wrong idea.

Or, hell, why not? She could use a drink.

⁂

Three years to that day, they were still talking. Well, her colleagues at Oxford would have likely referred to them as friends-with-benefits with a healthy measure of condescension—but this was misleading. It would imply some level of emotional investment. For Madeleine, he was a means of insurance. Whenever he turned up dead or missing, she’d know it was time to move on. Now, Madeleine was not completely heartless. She had taken Arnaud’s advice and transferred over to the 8th arrondissement, with the understanding that they would be rooming together. And Arnaud was easy to get along with and she could afford him the same courtesy. She had someone to come home to and he knew enough about her work ethic from their college years, and her demeanour, to not ask where she had been. She knew enough surface-level information about him that she could still keep up appearances with his friends, as well as her own colleagues at the office—to be discarded, once he outlived his purpose. The clinic was within walking distance from the flat. Open to the general public, rather than more exclusive clientele, but that suited her fine. Each day bled into the next and the seasons changed in rote, predictable manner. She’d go to bed and wake up thinking: Maybe today will be it. They’ll come to collect me. But it had been three years. The lack of apparent danger soon directed her thoughts towards various methods of escape. Usually, Madeleine found solace in identifying the root of other peoples' troubles; a faulty marriage brought on by substance abuse, or more permanent debts that could not be repaid so easily. Most were less extreme and involved simple conversations that were, in Madeleine’s view, no more impactful than the change in weather. She kept no photographs. She had a work computer that stayed in the office. She stuck to using burner phones. She did not discuss her life before Oxford or the Sorbonne with anyone. The only décor was a pot of faux flowers from an elder client; for her falsified birthday, of course. There was even a little hand-written note. The longer the pot stayed on her desk, the more disingenuous Madeleine felt. She'd investigated it a few times when she was alone, looking for wires, but never could prove her suspicions. She got rid of it anyway, just to be safe. The client never brought this up again but Madeleine could souse the hurt in her eyes the next time they met.

LOST SILVER: HIDDEN

Part of the wall had a give to it like rotting flesh. It caught on his fingers, porous and thin. Momentarily freed from the push of the unown Gold threw his body into the weak spot.

It didn’t stick to his skin but tore as like wet paper. Clean break.

Falling forwards into an empty void. Crashing on all-fours. The unown were gone. Ground had no texture but simply existed beneath him, impossibly smooth and cold. There was no light from the tunnel behind him. All the sound fell away from his ears. He felt himself screaming just to hear something but could only feel the physical strain in his lungs and throat. Unown frequency reached him through tinny speakers—overridden by static. He put his hands to his ears. It did not stop. He could feel the blood pounding in his head. Suddenly the tiny screen lit up. His hands caught on plastic. He clutched it desperately, staring into the harsh, inexplicable light of the LCD screen. A voice broke through static:

“Where do you think you are?”

Gold froze. He—

—falling forward again. Jerked out of time and space as though by an ally’s Teleport—familiar loss of footing followed by an abrupt solidity beneath his knees. Shock giving way to nausea. The last time he’d teleported anywhere was at the behest of the old guy who wouldn’t take no for an answer, and his abra, back at Indigo Plateau. He doubled over. His chest felt tight. He began dry-heaving, desperate for air—the serrated, raw feeling in his throat and chest told him he’d been screaming.

Dry, dusty earth beneath his fingers was baked over. The fresh air he drew into his lungs tasted warm. It was dusk. A thin layer of perspiration on his face and his palms. His stomach settled gradually into queasiness. He didn’t remember teleporting or what he had been doing before his arrival. He couldn’t recall why he was here, either.

“Hey, kid. Finally awake?”

Gold blinked. He straightened himself out and tried not to look as shaken up as he felt. The man in a lab coat and glasses looked down at him impatiently.

“We’ve been waiting for the last hour.”

Gold had no idea how to respond. His legs were shaky. He held up a hand to wave off any attempts at sympathy. “Teleport,” he got out hoarsely.

The man scoffed. “I don’t need an apology. I’ve got all the notes on my desk about what to expect down there. Nothing a tough guy like you can’t handle. We’ll be inside whenever you’re ready.”

The aide was nicer. “Gold, right? Prof. Oak’s told me about you.” She looked around his age, maybe a couple years younger. Her hair was dyed an intense shade of blue and pulled into twin ponytails. She was dressed for the season—just a pair of bright yellow athletic shorts and sleeveless red shirt, white jacket. Her body was toned—Gold had the fleeting thought that she could have been his twin, but her accent struck him as native to Kanto. She had her own POKéGEAR, too; clipped neatly on her bag, rather than on her wrist.

“Oh, uh—has he?”

“Only good stuff, don’t worry.” She extended a hand. “You can call me Kris. That other guy is Mr. Ito.”

They shook. Her gloveless hand was warm and soft, which surprised him. Gold noticed her belt—two standard pokéballs, a moon ball and a lure ball respectively. “You’re a trainer, too?”

“I’m more of a researcher. Lately I’ve been working on the Unown Mode feature of the POKéDEX. We’ll have to set yours up first, before you go down there.” She reached out towards the ‘DEX at his hip, suddenly very businesslike. Gold hesitated. She smirked. “What? I’m not gonna screw it up, I’ve done this enough times by now.”

“I never said—”

Kris inclined her head without waiting for an excuse. With a sigh, Gold handed over the POKéDEX. Kris walked over to the nearby desk. She clicked on a lamp and studied the screen for a few seconds. She whistled. “Wow! They weren’t kidding. Two-hundred and fifty on—” Mr. Ito clicked his tongue and she scowled “—yeah, okay.” She toggled through the settings with an air of aggression that suggested this was not the first time she’d been reprimanded. Gold’s amusement was undercut by the hope she didn’t break any of the buttons. Then again, he knew from firsthand experience that it could take a lot of punishment. “You’re pretty handy with that.”