Weedle, which Virah has now rightfully named Nitro, had passed everything she threw at the little guy and then some.

By all means, this specific Weedle- Nitro- is the starter she had been waiting for most of her career and he came just 3 months before her journey which is thankfully enough time to put him up to speed and turn him into a Weedle that could barely keep up with Virah when sprinting into a Beedrill that'll shred opposing pokemon with powerful Twin Needles.

And Virah thought that it is worth noting that despite not being able to keep up with her, the little guy at least tried- and damn well almost succeeded!

Right now she was nursing him after he exerted himself till exhaustion, she didn't know what had overcome the tiny creature- and by tiny she meant the length of her arm, - to push itself to its limit but it did.

Which is as good a sign as any that Nitro is meant to be a professional Pokemon; he has the work ethic for it after all and who knows? Maybe it would even be Virah who would have to keep up with him in the future?

“Hopefully you're strong enough to actually put martial artists to shame, huh, little guy?” She grinned when Nitro rubbed his head on her palm, softly purring, “hehe~”

She took out an Oran Berry from her pocket and fed it to what would be her first Pokemon.

As it searched for the berry, her hand lightly grazed against the soft surface of the shrunken pokeball she had kept there for a split second and Virah worried that Nitro would refuse to be her starter but quickly felt hopeful at the prospect of turning the Weedle she was nurturing into her first starter.

But his acquisition would have to wait because for now, he needed his rest and as Nitro nibbled on the healthy Oran Berry on Virah's palm, she considered what kind of diet would be needed to not just get him up to snuff but also fight against the best of the best- or maybe Virah is rushing?

No, of course not- preparation is never a bad thing, has never been a bad thing and ambition is natural right as long as one is willing to put in the work to achieve it.

Virah nodded and eyed Nitro, who had finished the Oran Berry and was now sleeping curled up in her lap.

She waited for a while but eventually, Nitro woke up, his mood chipper and expression eager. The tiny ball of energy had even gone ahead and leaped off her to start running around the outside of the ranch, and Virah watched him while contemplating when she needed to offer him her pokeball and ask him to be her starter.

It… would probably be better if she waited for the rest of the brood. Yep.

Her Beedrills would want permission to take one of their spawn and Virah wasn't risking angering them even if the chances of it were low. Beedrills were Beedrills and they'd protect their young even from the people who had raised them.

And since it'll probably be a while before they come back, Virah called Nitro over and did a miniature checkup, she took out her notes on Beedrill biology and compared them to Nitro's features.

His skin was a darker shade of orange than normal, a good sign, his tiny little nose had multiple pores on it, enough that Virah's skin grew goosebumps from looking at it, also a good sign since that part is where the move String Shot is released.

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More and more results came back positive and Virah was happy that Nitro wasn't just a Weedle meant for competition, it was also something of an outlier among its peers on account that its ability was Compound Eyes; a hidden ability on the Weedle Line that allows them to face things like Spore head on and without consequence.

Later down the evolution line, when it becomes a Beedrill, this type of ability would turn into Sniper, making her Beedrill all the more deadlier because of it.

Virah stopped inspecting the light refracting from Nitro's eyes and looked up, she had heard the buzzing for a while now but decided that she might as well finish her checkup on Nitro before heading over to the rest of the brood.

When she neared, the Beedrills naturally came and Virah shook her head at them, “no food for you guys today, sorry,” the reaction was a simple shrug, the Beedrills uncaring about the lack of treats, they were already full, “but I do have something to ask from you,”

They all turned to each other and then all at once, they faced the strongest member of their brood, a Beedrill that was larger than the rest and with wings that beat stronger and louder than all of them. So much so that Virah could differentiate the sound that he made from the swarm.

“Hey,” she waved at what she theorized must be Nitro's father, and the Beedrill imitated the gesture in such a human manner that it made Virah feel uncomfortable.

She showed little Nitro to his supposed father and the Beedrill stared, then it moved near and pushed its sharp head towards his son until their eyes were only inches away from each other, “Beedrill.”

The leader's voice was rough, like a smoker's, but the Weedle in Virah's hands didn't even care about the sound, happily chiming with, “Weedle!” In a high pitched voice.

The Beedrill nodded and flew away, it then bowed, at her and Virah took the pokeball from her pocket, pressed the button at the center to expand it, and offered it to Nitro who bumped his head against the ball and turned into a ray of light that got sucked into the Pokeball.

No resistance came and the capture had been instantaneous. Virah was glad- a feeling that disappeared when the leader of the swarm faced her, an unbidden question brewing in its stare, “Beedrill?”

“No, I don't think so, not right now at least,” Virah said with a sigh, “but…” she regretted saying this- well, more like it hurt to say it, but she had to, “... your stay here- it's not going to last forever, you know that. You knew.” Her voice cracked.

“Beedrill.”

“Ah, I know what you mean,” she leaned against the fence and the newly released Nitro stalked up her arm to coil around her neck, he slept there, “but you guys will have to leave soon you know?” She met the Beedrill's eyes and saw something akin to pain flash in there but it disappeared when the giant Bug Type nodded, “sorry, but I can't take care of you all forever,”

The Beedrill nodded, went near and when Virah thought he was going to attack, he instead placed his drill-like hands on top of his son, “Beedrill.”

“I will,” Virah smiled happily, “I'll take care of him so well that when we visit you guys- wherever you live in the future, we'll be the Champion.”

The Bug Type let out something of a scoff and flew away, Virah watched him go, a tight feeling on her chest.

She had taken care of them like they were her children, has seen generations of them come and pass, and now… it all will have to end- 3 more months, she swears, she'll reach ten years old, and then she'll quit working for the Breeding Centre and- and let all of her Beedrills go.

She'll have to put it up to a ranger station, and there's definitely going to be a lot of work but if it means her little guys and gals are safe from being taken down or out by the other humans, then she's more than willing to go through all of it.

Virah rubbed Nitro's smooth head, “well, see you guys,”

With one last wave- which some of the Beedrills returned, - Virah left the little ranch she had turned into their home.

Now it was time to go back to hers.

Goldenrod city was large, with uncountable streets filled with towering buildings, pokemon and trainers from all walks of life came and went, with the latter's preferred method of travel often being that of riding their Pokemons or simply walking.

That didn't mean that cars were nonexistent though, and for those who could afford it, vehicles, although slower than something like an Arcanine or Pidgeot, know that going around the city in a convertible is nice.

Not that Virah would know, of course, she was just some orphan living under the generous month-to-month support of the Pokemon League.

But Virah knew that her circumstances also weren't unique as orphans were oddly common in this wide world full of wonders; that last part is something that Virah knew for certain was fact so is it really a surprise for parents to leave their children to go and explore the world with their Pokemon?

Probably- again, Virah wasn't sure, she's just a kid. Nothing more, nothing less.

And a kid carrying around a Weedle didn't get attention- from adults at least, boys her age still gawked at her and called her weird for being a girl who liked bugs, and all of that on the first hour of being outside with Nitro, - but an adult?

An adult would be insulted. It was why she needed to be strong enough to not be mocked when she becomes one, make sure that everyone looking at her and Nitro would say; oh, she's dangerous, and her Beedrill can sting, be careful!

But that's still a far off goal, for now, she needed to go home and eat.