“How’s it going, Maeve?” Maeve’s dad said as he dropped his briefcase on the kitchen counter. Near the stovetop, Maeve’s mother was cooking dinner.
“Great, Dad,” Maeve grinned. “Meet Lizzie. She’s my new companion-for-life!”
Lizzie hissed.
“My new companion that’s not for life,” Maeve corrected.
Logan Kaede squinted extra hard at the Salandit dining from a small bowl filled with store-bought crickets. “Is that a Salandit? Aren’t they from Alola?”
Maeve stared at Lizzie before shrugging. “Well, Lizzie’s from the forest.”
Logan forced a smile, aware of most Salandits’ toxic nature. “Well, just be careful, alright, Maeve?”
“Of course! Especially with Blue and Lizzie with me, I’m sure nothing on my Pokémon journey could kill me,” Maeve said cheerfully, completely misinterpreting her father’s words. Logan just sighed, well aware of his daughter’s nature.
“Of course,” he sighed, before inhaling deeply. “Sarah, are those burger patties that I smell?”
“They sure are!” Sarah Kaede replied with the same cheerfulness as her daughter. “It’s burger night! And your meat is spicy, just the way you like it.”
Maeve hid a smile as her father had to consciously stop himself from drooling.
The rest of the night was a blur of laughter, voices, and the flashing lights of a movie.
“To my beautiful daughter, about to go on her very own Pokémon journey!” Maeve’s mother sniffled, wiping a tear away. “May Arceus keep her safe.”
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The next day, Maeve slept in until 10:30 AM, when her father almost broke down the door. “Rise and shine, lazy!” Logan cheered with some of the leftover joy from the night before. “It’s time to shop for your journey!”
Her father sent her to the city Pokémart with an extra thousand credits to her account. Maeve grinned as she opened up her Pokégear to her bank account.
It hurts to look at you, Blue sighed. It’s like staring at the sun.
Why, thank you! Maeve replied.
Maeve Kaede
Balance: 3,028 credits
Allowance: 200 credits per month
Maeve beamed, seeing that her parents had raised her allowance by one hundred credits, as well as gifted her 1,000 credits. Probably for her journey.
Stepping into the Oreburgh Pokémart, the first things she saw were three Pokéballs on display. A regular red-and-white Pokéball, a blue, red, and white great ball, and a black, gold, and white ultra ball. The first was listed at 100 credits, the second at 2,500, and the third at a whopping 10,000 credits.
Using up four hundred credits, Maeve dropped four regular Pokéballs into her shopping cart. Then, almost one hundred and fifty credits were sacrificed to buy food for herself and her Pokémon. Finally, Maeve bought herself a much larger pack to hold her sleeping bag and her food, as well as a belt to hold her Pokéballs. When Maeve checked her account again, she almost wilted physically on the spot.
Maeve Kaede
Balance: 2,315 credits
Allowance: 200 credits per month
Almost a thousand credits…used up…in one shopping trip….
Maeve Kaede almost died that day. But then Froakie blew her a Frubble as she drunkenly stepped out of the Pokémart, and everything was alright again.
Sitting down on a sidewalk bench, Maeve released Lizzie from her ball and scanned her Salandit with her Pokédex. Maeve’s eyebrows arched as she read Lizzie’s moves.
“Poison Gas, Scratch, Smog, Ember, Poison Fang, and...Sweet Scent?” Maeve read, staring at Salandit’s moves. “You’re closer to evolution than I thought, Lizzie. Though not as close as Blue is to his Frogadier stage.”
Lizzie preened under Maeve’s praise, tail wagging furiously like a Rockruff puppy’s. Blue shot her an exasperated look and let out a croak. Choosing to respect her Pokémon’s privacy, Maeve closed the loving thread that was Blue out of her mind.
“So, what do you think we should do next?” Maeve asked her Pokémon.
Lizzie hissed eagerly, and Blue let out a croak. The lizard paused, then let out another hiss.
Lizzie’s first idea was to go and kill things, but I said that wasn’t going to happen, Blue said dryly. Lizzie’s second idea was to go and fight things.
Maeve let out an unladylike snort, nearly choking at her Pokémon’s simple-minded goals. Then she collected herself and said, “That’s doable. There’s always a concentration of Pokémon trainers in the park. We can go there and find some other trainers to battle.”
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
Lizzie impatiently slapped her tail against the ground twice, practically saying, What are you waiting for, then? Even Blue perked up, a glimmer of eagerness in his eyes. He blew Maeve a couple of Frubbles and started to form more bubbles to protect his body.
A few minutes later, Maeve had entered the Oreburgh park. Lizzie was preparing in her Pokéball and Blue was perched on her shoulder. There were various trainers up and about, battling and taking care of their Pokémon. Now that she was looking, Maeve saw two vaguely defined areas of the park. One area was where senior trainers chatted, and the other area was where younger trainers battled. Evolved Pokémon were more common in the senior area, whereas basic, or non-evolved, and barely evolved Pokémon battled in droves in the young trainer section.
Heading over to a quiet area of the park, Maeve found her eyes wandering to a battle occurring between a Shinx and a Swablu. Though the Swablu was fighting with a type disadvantage, the Shinx and its trainer were newer to the game.
“Swablu! Disarming Voice!” Swablu’s trainer shouted, eyes narrowed.
The cloudlike bird Pokémon opened its beak, letting out a beautiful trill that had Maeve’s eyes going dreamy. The Shinx seemed to feel the same way, relaxing and mewling happily.
“Attack with Peck while Shinx is weakened!” Swablu’s trainer yelled. Swablu swiftly swooped down, jabbing Shinx sharply in the side with its beak.
“Quick, Tackle!” Shinx’s trainer cried, recovering from his momentary focus lapse.
“Swablu, fly!” Swablu’s trainer ordered, eyes widening.
As Shinx shone with a white aura and lunged forward, Swablu flapped frantically to get out of the Electric-type Pokémon’s range. The bird Pokémon partially succeeded.
Growling as it missed Swablu, the Shinx kicked itself off the ground and latched onto the Swablu’s leg. A jolt of electricity hit Swablu in the back, and both Pokémon came tumbling down to the ground.
Onlookers cheered as the two Pokémon faced off against each other with Swablu still recovering from the Shinx’s frustrated Thunder Shock.
Swablu’s trainer made the first move. “Disarming Voice, then Fury Attack!”
“No! Shinx, Charge and Tackle! Stop Swablu!” Shinx’s trainer panicked.
“In the air!” Swablu’s trainer shouted.
Maeve held her breath.
Both Pokémon blurred into action. Shinx charged forward, sparking with electricity, as Swablu rose into the air, letting out a shrill cry.
Still in the middle of Charge, Shinx flung off the Swablu’s Disarming Voice with a ferocious growl as Maeve’s eyes widened. The Electric-type Pokémon halted his charge and whirled around, panting heavily, as Swablu dove down with Fury Attack. Maeve watched, entranced, as Shinx burst forward with Tackle to meet it. The battle dissolved into a straight-out brawl. A mixture of growls and furious trills could be heard as a thick mist surrounded the battlefield.
When the mist cleared, Maeve gasped. “Whoah,” she breathed.
Swablu rose into the air, trilling with victory, as Shinx lay defeated on the ground. The spectators cheered, applauding the match.
Looking dazed, Shinx’s trainer gathered up his Pokémon and walked over to shake his opponent’s hand, cradling his Pokéball close to his chest.
His opponent, a stone-eyed teenage girl who looked to be around fourteen or fifteen years old, shook his hand with a genuine smile. “Shinx put up a great fight, and I’m reasonably sure we’ve been at this longer than you have,” Swablu’s trainer said. “Your Pokémon has a lot of fighting spirit in her. I can tell.”
“Thanks,” Shinx’s trainer said, grinning. He unconsciously put his hands around Shinx’s Pokéball, caressing it like a child.
“Well,” the girl grumbled, stretching. “You got your battle, Swablu. A few more, and we’ll be done for the day.”
Maeve tore her eyes away, taking a deep breath. She had watched someone else’s battle. Now, it was time for her to find one for her own Pokémon.
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Less than a minute later, Maeve stood on one side of a small dirt ‘arena’. She was having a mental pep talk with her coach, Blue.
Steady breaths, her Pokémon ordered. Don’t be afraid to give orders. Don’t panic, and don’t give yourself a heart attack.
All in all, not a very inspiring speech, but it was enough for Maeve, since pep talks weren’t Blue’s thing. If Blue could give her a pep talk, she could win this battle.
“Ready?” the boy across from her, Ralph, stuttered, not looking ready at all.
“Yeah,” Maeve replied, wiping her sweaty hands on her thighs.
“You got this, Squirtle!” Ralph squeaked nervously, throwing his Pokéball onto the field. The red-and-white ball rolled to a stop and clicked open, revealing an adorable little blue Squirtle.
Considering her options, Maeve eventually patted Blue on her shoulder as he jumped down onto the field. Lizzie would be at a type disadvantage, so Maeve would get Lizzie her battle after this one.
Maeve mentally reviewed Blue’s moveset. Pound, Growl, Water Gun, Quick Attack, Lick, Water Pulse...He was so close to evolution, Maeve was 101% sure this battle would get him to Frogadier.
From the quiet excitement he radiated through their bond, Blue felt the same.
Ralph’s friend shouted the countdown. “Three, two, one…”
“Go!”
“Quick Attack!” Maeve shouted. Blue blurred, glowing with a white aura, and appeared at Squirtle’s side before lashing out with a swift kick.
The turtle Pokémon was pushed back several feet. However, Squirtle’s shell absorbed most of the damage, and the water Pokémon scrambled to its feet, looking no worse for the wear.
“W-Water Gun!” Ralph stammered.
“Meet it!” Maeve said, slowly gaining some confidence. Then Quick Attack afterwards, she sent him mentally.
To Blue’s credit, he didn’t show any sign of distraction from her message. Instead, he let loose a Water Gun to meet Squirtle, his more concentrated blast cutting through Squirtle’s and hitting the Squirtle in the chest, flinging the turtle away.
“Pound next!” Maeve yelled.
In a white blur from Quick Attack, Blue appeared next to the fallen Pokémon and hit the water Pokémon with Pound.
Squirtle did not get up, knocked unconscious.
Crouched over the fallen Pokémon, Blue began to glow. Maeve gasped as she felt the sheer power radiating from their bond, and she mentally cheered her Froakie—no, her Frogadier on.
The light reached its zenith, and Maeve had to close off her bond with Blue as the power rolling off him reached its zenith as well.
Ralph gaped, his hand frozen over his Pokéball, as Blue raised his head and looked around with lidded golden eyes.
This feels...different, Blue said.