katiekitten
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I wrote this for christmas, and only just got around to posting it here. XD;; I considered splitting it up to make it easier to read, but decided against it. Hopefully this will have more reviews than my other fic I posted here. XD
XD
It's supposed to be comedy, but it's not funny. DX You should get a couple chuckles, at least. =D
Pumpkin and Pineapple soup. What a combination.
I watched with amusement as Terry grabbed yet another pineapple, skinning it quickly - and inexpertly - with his claws before tossing it to me with a cheery shout. I managed to catch it with my vines and lowered it onto the table in front of me. It just sat there, its mottled brown skin hanging off it in tattered ribbons, juice weeping from its numerous scores. I briefly mourned its untimely demise before my eyes were dragged once more to the wannabe chef, the Totadile’s hands stuck wrist deep in the belly of his next victim: A pumpkin.
“Are you sure this is going to taste good?” I asked sceptically, aiming a couple sharpened leaves at the fruit before me with the intention of slicing it in to nice, bite size pieces. “The idea does sound a little… odd.”
“Of course it will!” he assured me, too engaged with disembowelling the fruit to even look up. “Would I be wasting my time on this if it wasn’t?”
“Yes.” I replied, glancing down at the remains of his last “brilliant” idea: a red pepper and raw onion smoothie. That sure had gone down well. He glanced over his shoulder, removing a hand from the fruit - or was it a vegetable? - before him and waving it dismissively when he realised what I was looking at.
“That? Pff. That was nothing. I just mis-read the instructions a little, that’s all.” Understatement of the year. “Besides, this is different. Way different. I got the recipe right this time, I made sure of it!”
I smiled grimly. That was what he said last time, too.
I shifted my weight onto my right side, attempting to get comfortable as a particularly strong spurt of wind rattled the windows of my small, thatched home. Winter isn’t exactly my favourite time of the year, as you might imagine, as cold weather just makes my bulb itch like no-body’s business, and add that to the reduced sunlight and you have one helluva of a grumpy Bulbasaur. How others can stand it, I have no idea. In my ideal world, there would be no winter. No cold spell. Just the lovely, delicious warmth of summer all year around…
So here I am, a full eleven days before Christmas: bordered up in my small, one pokemon hut with a manic Totodile for company, attempting to amuse ourselves while a blizzard rages on outside, covering the world in the most horrible, vilest, terrible substance ever to have been created: Snow. Rain I can deal with, hell, I need it to survive, but Snow? Not so nice.
I shuddered as the - what had to be - gale force winds tore at the sides of the house, howling with frustration as the thatch I’d practically glued on last summer held despite its protests. I briefly thanked Mew for the creation of super glue. It has saved my life before, and it was as sure as hell saving my life now. I plodded towards my bed, planning to defrost my toes in the dry, warm straw. Unfortunately, with the worsening of the weather, the amount of rescue requests we received had increased by the ten fold. It seemed that every pokemon in the world had gotten themselves stuck, somewhere or the other, and were determined to remain stuck until we got here. Why they couldn’t just stay inside like normal people and enjoy the holiday season there is beyond me. It’s getting to a point that it seems that they just look outside at the raging snow storm and think, hey, what a brilliant time to go hiking in the most isolated, dangerous place I can find! Seriously. It’s getting incredibly annoying. Terry, of course, being a complete and utter nutcase, is fine going out in sleet, rain or snow, but me? Not so much. I don’t really enjoy blinking water out of my eyes every couple of seconds, amazingly enough.
I stifled a yawn as the evening drew on, the storm continuing to pound relentlessly at the sides of my hut. I struggled to keep my eyes open before giving up and retreating to my bed. If I tried hard enough, I could pretend that the sounds of the storm were the happy yips of Poochyena as they frolicked in the spring time sun, clods of fresh new grass prevailing under tireless feet. I smiled a little, falling deeper into the realm of sleep. I could even feel the warm caress of the summer sun’s rays on my back as it drove higher and higher up the sky… I shifted my bulb a little, beginning to feel a little uncomfortable. Was the sunlight always this hot? It kinda felt like -
“Yowch!” I shrieked, jumping up as something burning hot landed on my back, the searing heat seeming to penetrate my very core. “Get it off, get it off!”
I rolled away, eyes wide and panicked as the pain receded, fresh, cool water splashing onto my back. I struggled to my feet, blood boiling as a barking laugh echoed across the room. Terry was dancing around in crazed circles around my bed, a small steaming rock held in his blanket swathed hand. He held it out and waved it at me as my vines reached over my head, pointing accusingly at the object in his hands.
“What are you… What the hell do you think you are playing at?” I exploded, steam practically billowing from my ears.
“April fools!” he cried happily, skipping around. “I got ya good, didn’t I? Didn’t I? Go on, admit it, I did, didn’t I?”
“IT’S NOT APRIL, YOU BLOODY IDIOT!” I roared, my vines whipping about dangerously above my head. “Don’t you even know the bloody date? It’s eleven days before Christmas, for crying out loud!
He waved his hand dismissively, tossing the stone and blankets to the ground and booting it into the far corner. “Of course it is. You believe that.”
He smiled at me encouragingly, head bobbing pleasantly. I couldn’t stop myself.
I charged.
With a strangled scream, I launched myself at him, my vines slicing through the air as I tried to grab him by his scaly throat. He burst out laughing, dodging me and darting to the other side of the room.
“I was only joking!” he called, a delighted smile lighting up his face. “Of course I know the date!”
His words fell on death ears. I tore on relentlessly, still crying my strangled battle cry. A fierce game of tag ensued as I chased the rascal around the house, paws itching to wring his little neck. He was practically choking, he was laughing so much, deftly avoiding my grasping vines by leaping over what little furniture I had. Finally, tiredness clinging to my limbs, I collapsed on my bed, exhausted. Glaring into his eyes, I forced words out between my desperate pants.
“Evil… Conniving…”
“What’s that?” Terry asked, frowning with fake confusion. “I can’t hear you!”
With a growl, I lunged at him, face wrinkled in a snarl-
CRASH!
I landed heavily on the ground, my feet having been too tired to propel myself over the bed and tangling themselves instead in the dry, but strong, straw. Which just sent Terry into another fit of giggles.
“Shut… Up…” I managed when I got my breath back. “It’s not… Funny…”
“Oh, but it is!” He squealed delightedly, clapping his hands together. “You’d agree with me if you weren’t in such a bad mood.” He waggled a finger at me and strutted back to the mess of pumpkin and pineapple that he’d abandoned when he decided to be a prankster. I glared half heartedly at him before crawling back onto my bed and curling in the foetal position. The evil b*stard. No wonder no one else wanted to be in a team with him. I wouldn’t be here either, if I didn’t have no where else to go… I sighed, eyelids feeling like lead. I was so tired… Sleep was so tempting… I tried to fight it for a little while, but gave in, and allowed myself to be dragged into warm darkness once more.
“Who let the pups out? Who? Who? Who who? Who let the pups out?”
I woke with a start, Terry’s horribly off tune singing waking me up from la la land, as he liked to call it. I grumbled silently, a frown creasing my forehead as I turned my back to him and attempted to go back to sleep. I had no such luck. With a piercing shout, Terry bounded towards me, a bowl held firmly in-between his fore paws. Seating himself beside my pillow, he put the bowl carefully on the floor and proceeded to poke me, hard, in the shoulder. My eyes, which had been cracked open as I watched him, snapped open wide as I wriggled backwards in an attempt to escape. Terry, the annoyingly sweet and amiable guy he is, just picked up the bowl again and went to the other side, prodding me again. This happened several times before I gave up any hope of sleep and crawled fully out of bed.
“What?” I snapped, using my vines to rub the sleep from my eyes. “What do you want now?”
Terry blinked happily down at me, obviously ignoring the insult. “Soup’s ready!”
It was my turn to blink. Soup? The memory of the previous night came back to me with a thud. I groaned. Oh. That soup.
“The Pumpkin and Pineapple soup!” he told me cheerfully, confirming my suspicions. Hopping down, he grabbed the bowl and thrust it in my face. “Try some! It’s really good.”
I stared down at the offered food, noting the floating pumpkin seeds and the tastefully arranged Pineapple leaf. “Have you tried it yet?”
“Of course!” he nodded enthusiastically. “First thing this morning, when it finished cooking.”
I nodded slowly, not sure whether I should believe him or not. Well, he’s a truthful guy in general, if not all that bright… And he didn’t look dead, although I could be mistaken. I eyed him up carefully, nodding my approval. Certainly not dead. I glanced down at the soup again.
Well. It couldn’t hurt to try, could it?
I drew the bowl closer with my vines, staring at the thick orange liquid inside. A rich, tasty aroma rose from it - although he might have just put Plusle Bane in it again, like he did with the smoothie… I suppressed a shudder. It’s best not to think about that. Sending a quick prayer to Ho - Oh - just in case - I bent down and took a sip.
A variety of different tastes flooded my mouth, most prominently the sweet tang of the pineapple that, surprisingly, complimented the pumpkin’s spicy flavour rather well. I smiled and nodded, lifting up the bowl with my vines so I could drink it more easily. Yes - this was really good! Surprisingly good, in fact! I finished with a happy slurp, before lowering the bowl and staring at Terry in amazement, speechless. He waved his hand as if to say don’t mention it and skipped away.
“Mail time!”
I groaned.
Yippee.
I trekked outside, joining Terry by the mail box. In the distance I could see the silhouette of the mail-bird growing fainter and fainter - I must have just missed him. What a shame. He was one of the only sane people you could talk to these days. The sound of rustling paper attracted my attention back to Terry. He was sorting through the mail, shoving the rescue missions under his armpit.
“Goodness, Katie! We got a big haul today!” He exclaimed, closing the box with a snap and showing me the amount of mail. I agreed with him, although with less enthusiasm. “Let’s see… We have three for Silent Chasm - the Jumpluff’s got stuck again, with a couple of friends this time… And one for Tiny Woods: Some Poochyena wants a certain berry and wants us to escort it… And another from…”
The list went on and on. I nodded at the correct intervals, sighing inwardly with relief when the reel of missions finally petered to an end.
“…D’ya wanna go to Silent Chasm first, as it has the most missions to accomplish?” Terry finished, smiling happily. “I’m so excited that we are finally getting so many missions! I never want this to end!”
You’re alone there. I nodded to his earlier question, and we picked our way towards the main road, treading carefully to avoid slipping on hidden patches of ice beneath the snow. A common partner in crime is a Farfetched by the name of Clarity, who lives just south of us. She can be a little… Odd sometimes, but don’t we all have funny moments? She gets the job done, in any case, and as she was bred and raised at our destination, what’s better than bringing someone who knows their way around?
So, unsurprisingly, our first stop was her home; a weathered stone castle placed on a small hill, overlooking the wonderful Amorre river. Well, not so wonderful now, unfortunately. We crested a rise in the road, the rolling moors that the Farfetch’d lived in sprawled out before us. The river wound its way through it, its normally sparkling surface now coated in ice. Such a pity. It really is beautiful in the summer months. Sunlight bounced off the snow’s white surface, playing off the castle’s mottled stones as the sun itself peeked over the battlements, greeting the new day with its feeble rays.
…I must admit, I adored her house.
A discreet flapping sound caught my attention, and I looked back to see a brown bird gliding off the tallest tower, feathers rippling as they caught the wind and used it to lower her slowly down. Landing with a soft thud in front of us, the bird nodded a greeting, sweeping a wing back in a bow.
“I bid thee good morning!” The farfetched cried, rising. “What quest might we, pray, accept? Shalt thou vanquish a demon? Save a damsel in distress?”
“We’re rescuing three damsels in distress today, aren’t we Katie!” Answered Terry, rocking backwards and forwards on his tiptoes in an excited jig.
“I’m not sure they’re all damsels, Terry,” I replied, stretching out my legs one at a time. “But yes, we are.”
Clarity’s face lit up.
“Aye? May the lady shine love and hope down upon us, we have struck great fortune!” she cried, attempting to hug Terry and I before turning and running towards a hill. Gathering speed, she launched herself off the top, spreading her wings wide. “Onwards, dear fellows!” she called, circling back towards us. “We have not the time!”
…She can be a little excitable at times, and tends to mix and match her speech style. She picked up her peculiar way of speaking from her father, who was a little eccentric, to say the least. Terry gave me a beaming smile and ran after her, attempting to jump on the birds shadow. I sped up, smiling as I saw Clarity throw Terry a challenge, watching as he accepted and the two of them tore off into the distance. I kept going at a steady pace, albeit a little faster than before. They’d get tired eventually, and I’d either catch up or they’d come back to find me.
They always did.
I winced as a burst of wind blew a flurry of snow into my eyes, struggling through ankle deep mud as the storm sang around me, letting loose the odd bit of rain where it saw fit. I cursed as one such shower fell above me, each bone numbingly cold raindrop practically freezing on my skin.
Why, oh why did I agree to this blasted mission!
I glared grumpily under furrowed brows at the moving blue blob in front of me, Terry still making headway through the blustering blizzard. It was all his fault. He was the one who suggested it, he was the one who thought it’d be a brilliant idea to go to the deepest bloody chasm in the bloody area. I wanted to stay at home, but no, he had to drag me along with him. I sighed, plowing my way through yet another chest high snowdrift. It was all fine with him, he didn’t have to walk on all fours and practically swim through the mud and snow. He just waded through it, him and his little I-walk-on-my-back-two-legs act. B*stard.
I increased the intensity of the glare, growling under my breath as yet another clod of snow flew into my eye. I hated him right now. He always does this, drag me along on his stupid missions to random, far off places. I won’t budge next time, I assure you. He can go on his bloody own. Pausing briefly, I squinted behind me, checking to see if Clarity was still behind me. I could barely see her, her leek, magically appeared from wherever she keeps it, sticking out in front of her like a sword as she used it to hack away at the snow. I watched briefly before turning back to the front, the frown creasing my face once more. How she manages to hold the leek, I’ll never know, but she can wield it with deadly precision. Sighing, I started forward once more.
After another ten minutes of hiking, I saw Terry stop ahead of me, head cocked to the side. Intrigued, I approached, stopping beside him.
“Wha-” I began, but Terry cut me off with an impatient shush. Raising a finger to his lips, he whispered:
“Listen.”
I did so, closing my eyes so I could hear easier. The storm still howled around us, it’s rage bellowing out undisturbed. Nothing else. I frowned and opened my eyes, about to question his motives once again when he suddenly turned his head, gazing to the left of us.
“Do you hear it?” he breathed.
I squinted in that direction, listening again. Soon the sound of voices reached my ears, the sound of someone singing barely audible over the winds anger. Terry’s mouth widened in a smile, and he began to jig excitedly again, turning towards me.
“Is it Santa?” he asked eagerly, eyes alight with hope. I listened a little more, now able to understand the odd word and phrase.
“…time… ….and wine… …time… …believing…”
I frowned, confused. I recognized that voice, somehow…
“I don’t think so, Terry.” I informed him, smiling at Clarity as she came up beside me. “It’s a little early for him to be out, don’t ya think?”
“Don’t be such a spoil sport.” He pouted, turning back to the direction of the haphazard singing. “He could have decided to take a walk, you know. Everybody likes having a walk, don’t they?” He nudged Clarity who nodded distractedly, also gazing in the direction of the singing.
Everybody restricted to you, you mean. I frowned, concentrating on the voice again. More had joined it while Terry was speaking, I could even see dark silhouettes now. I narrowed my eyes, trying to pick out any details. It looked like a group of three black blobs, barely visible through a flurry of snow that had just started to fall, were making their weary way towards us, the last one slightly larger than the others. I immediately buried any hope that it might by the Jumpluff we were trying to find. They were much lower down the mountain, and besides, these people weren’t the right shape. Too big, for one thing.
Were they a rescue team? I took a cautious step forward, struggling to see with stinging eyes. The first shape suspiciously reminded me of…
“Shut it, Bone” A voice travelled down towards me, confirming my suspicions. “I’m not in the mood.”
Asraile?
“Don’t be so mean. His singing isn’t that bad…” Another voice, feminine and cheerier than the other, floated down towards us as the snow receded, revealing the pokemon before us. A Pikachu, a ragged, red bandana tied around her neck, trudged wearily at the front, shortly followed by a Mudkip with a Absol bringing up the rear. The former had her head turned towards the latter, a frown creasing her features as she finished her sentence. “Better than yours, in any case.”
“I have a headache.” The Absol, Asraile, informed her shortly, white fur rippling in the wind in he inched his way forward.
“That’s no excuse. Bone has a headache, yet I don’t hear him complaining.”
The Mudkip, supposedly the one who’d been singing, trotted happily in the center, scanning the slopes ahead of him. Spotting us, his eyes widened in surprise, and he turned back to the Pikachu, prodding her urgently. “Ejjie…?”
“That’s because you can’t - the wind’s too strong, and it’s carried his words away.” Asriel frowned at her, red eyes narrowing. “Believe me, he’s been complaining the whole time…”
“Ejjie?” The Mudkip’s prodding became more urgent, and the Pikachu looked down impatiently.
“What?”
He pointed towards us. The group fell silent as they all realised we were standing just a few meters away. Smiling grimly, I walked towards them, Terry and Clarity close behind.
“Team Dynamo!” I called, pulling up beside them. “How’s business?”
The Pikachu, Ejjie, shrugged wearily and gave me a tired smile. “Team Dynamite, but yeah, same old, same old.”
Oops. I smiled sheepishly, the leaves of my bulb flapping as the wind blew past. There was an uncomfortable silence, before-
“Another Skitty stuck in a tree?” It was Terry, speaking up with a beaming grin. I smiled gratefully at him. Team Dynamo were a rival team of ours, and while we were friendly to each other, well, we are rivals, after all. Getting their Team name wrong couldn’t have helped…
“Yep.” The Pikachu replied, bowing her head as a flurry of snow was blown up by the wind. Terry nodded understandingly. Clarity saw the chance and leapt upon it.
“How many floors?”
I leaned forward a little, eager to hear the answer.
…A little bit of friendly competition never hurt anybody, did it?
“A hundred.”
We all winced appreciatively. Each dungeon/mountain has a series of floors, and the better the rescue team were, the higher - or lower - they were allowed to go in missions. Needless to say, they were a higher level than we were. Which sucked. Still, being new at the game did have its perks…
We stood there for a little longer, the only sound the whistling howl of the storm, before Ejjie broke the silence by shouldering her pack higher up her back. The others took her cue and began preparing to march again, Bone stretching briefly and Asraile flexing his claws.
“Well. We’d better be off.” Ejjie informed us regretfully, flashing us a farewell smile. “We have a long way more to go, you know.”
I nodded. “See you later, then?”
“Sure.”
We watched as team Dynamo wearily trudged away, a small shower of snow soon covering their tracks.
“I guess we’d better be on our way then too.” Commented Terry. I nodded.
Stretching out briefly, I watched as Terry beamed me a huge grin and bounded forwards. With a barely concealed sigh, I followed, Clarity close behind.
My only console was, that with the weather about as good as Terry‘s smoothie endeavours, it was nigh on impossible that it was going to get any worse…
…I seem to have this curse of always jinxing myself. I muffled a strangled scream as we clung to the mountain’s face, trying to hold on while gale force winds shouldered past. My day just seemed to be getting better and better. I squinted forwards, eyes stinging. Why, oh why does this always happen to me? I screamed silently again, wishing I had hair that I could tear out as we scurried through the latest floor in this never ending maze.
Or at least hands to do it with.
“We’re nearly there!” Terry called cheerily from in front of me, glancing back with a slightly strained smile. Good. I smiled with weary satisfaction at his expression. He’s sane enough to not be overjoyed by this new turn of the weather. I glanced back, checking on how Clarity was coping. She bore a grave expression, straining against the wind as it grabbed at her feathers.
“Nearly there!” I promised, worry crinkling my forehead. Strong winds and light bird Pokémon do not mix. She nodded grimly, claws gripping the rocky floor for dear life and leek held firmly in her beak. We shuffled onwards, almost deafened by the storm’s angry roar.
Next time I’m not budging an inch. Mark my words.
We crept down a final flight of stairs, emerging into a dark granite cavern near the base of the gorge. I stumbled in surprise when the resistance of the storm disappeared. I straightened cautiously, unnerved by the eerie silence. What was going on with the weather? One minute it was a full blown snowstorm, the next-
“I spy with my little eye, something beginning with… T!”
A cheery, light hearted voice floated towards us from behind a cliff of rock, shortly followed by a small sigh.
“For the last time, Lucifer, there are no darned trees down here!”
“Aw, how d’ya guess? Anyways, there is a tree down here-” There was a small rustle as the speaker presumably pointed at something. “See?”
“Wow. A rock.”
“It’s not a rock! It’s a tree, I tell you! A tree!”
“Then where are the branches?”
There was a brief spate of silence. I glanced at my team mates as we neared the end of the shelf of rock that separated us from the stranded Pokémon. Terry was reaching for the badge that was clipped securely to the blue yellow-and-pink spotted bandana around his neck - don’t ask - while Clarity had her leek in her hands. I nodded.
“Ready?” Terry whispered with a beaming smile. I nodded again, Clarity following suit. He gave us a cheery wink, before slipping around the corner. I crept after him, taking in the sight before me. The three Jumpluffs were each individually jammed in between three close-together rocks, the two who’d been speaking closest to us. The final remaining fuzz ball was nearer the corner, a book open on the ground before it. It looked up when we came in, fear clear in its eyes, and shrunk further into crack. I stared at him in dismay.
He’s sure going to be fun to talk to.
“Who are you?” Asked the middle one, the first voice, red eyes narrowed suspiciously. Terry stepped forward, grinning.
“We’re here to rescue you.” he informed them with a smile. The one to the left grunted, while the middle one smiled, relieved, an almost identical grin splitting his face. I smothered a groan.
“Took ya long enough. We’ve been here for ages.” The left one grumbled, shifting its pompom-like hands uncomfortably. “What took ya?”
“My apologies, kind sirs. The mountain’s might is great, and our start was late.” Clarity piped up, smoothing her feathers.
“I’m female.”
That stumped her.
“And besides, thanks to your late start, our friend found this book up here which has made him go completely nuts.”
I glanced at the remaining Jumpluff, shaking my head a little when I saw him. The poor thing rocked slowly backwards and forwards in its little prison, squeaking in terror when it saw the attention it was receiving. I approached carefully, frowning down at the book before it and reading a couple of the words under my breath.
“…fear… …darkness swallowing you slowly…”
My eyes widened and I reached down with a vine, ignoring the readers high pitched protests and closed the book to see the front cover. ‘Paranoia - How to Know Your Friends Are Stalking You.’
I raised my eyebrows and retreated carefully. No wonder the poor thing had gone nuts. Who’d left such a book up here, anyway? Seeing the other Jumpluff arguing amongst themselves again, I sighed and stepped between them.
“If you’d be kind enough to stop babbling at us for a second, we’d like to free you.” I informed them, crossing my arms. They shut up immediately and I smiled, looking back to Clarity.
“Clarity, if you could.”
She nodded, turning and waddling behind the three stuck Pokémon. Taking a deep breath, she raised her wings and began to carefully flap, each wing cocked at a different angle. A small whirlwind grew before her, growing steadily larger with her every movement. She smiled grimly, muscles straining. Once she was satisfied that it was large enough, she backed away and let it loose with a final flap. The miniature twister tore towards the stranded Jumpluffs, tearing them free of the rocks and sending them flying across the room. The paranoid Jumpluff in the corner’s eyes widened when it saw the twirling pillar of wind, and it clung desperately to the rocks around it before being catapulted out and away. The freed Pokémon floated down, pompoms waving happily.
“Would you like to be transported out of here?” Terry asked, showing them the badge in his hand. Two of them nodded gratefully, the third still straining to reach the book below it, eyes wild in its desperation. I watched as Terry pointed the badge towards them and whispered ‘transport’, sending a white beam on the Jumpluffs and transporting them away. Lowering his hand, he turned towards us and whooped loudly.
“Score!”
I smiled in return, Clarity, having retrieved her leek, tossing it up in the air jubilantly.
“Another mission completeth!”
I walked towards Terry as he raised the badge once more in a silent question. Clarity joined us, and I closed my eyes as I was enveloped in a brilliant white light…
I sat heavily on my bed, leaves dropping in exhaustion. A small fire flickered merrily in the grate, sending blessed waves of warmth over my half frozen skin. How I couldn’t wait to sleep… I looked up tiredly as Terry skipped happily into the room, dragging something behind him. I groaned. Does that Totadile ever rest?
“What is it now?” I asked wearily. He grinned at me, giving me a wink.
“You’ll like it!” he promised, stepping away. I stared in dumbfoundment. A small yellow kangaroo stood behind him, black striped ears switching to and fro as it looked up at me, flashing me a broad grin. I frowned, squinting at it. An Ampharos? But those were gigantic, not this small-
fizzle
I started as a burst of electricity crackled from one of its ears to the other, shortly followed by a torrent more. I watched with fascination as the crossing electricity beams joined together to make a flickering screen, an image of Castform floating in the center.
“What is this, a Teletubby?” I asked Terry dubiously. He laughed and shook his head, skipping towards me.
“’Tis the weather teller.” he informed me, hopping onto my bed. I raised my eyebrows but turned towards the miniature Ampharos, who’d approached and sat, twiddling its thumbs. The image above its head moved, the Castform rippling over to an image of the village.
“The weather today…”
Something triggered in my mind and I nodded, understanding. Weather tellers were sent out whenever the local Castform predicted bad weather…My brief burst of excitement shuddered and crawled away to die a slow and painful death as I looked once more towards the makeshift screen. This didn’t sound so good.
“…Another large blizzard is making its way up the Amorre river and is expected to hit the village and its surrounding areas at noon tomorrow. All Pokémon are recommended to stay inside…”
My heart sank, falling past my stomach and hitting the floor. No. This can’t be… I groaned, hiding my face with my vines.
Well, it’s to be expected. I thought grimly after a couple seconds of moaning. This is my life, after all.
Yippee.
XD
It's supposed to be comedy, but it's not funny. DX You should get a couple chuckles, at least. =D
Pumpkin and Pineapple soup. What a combination.
I watched with amusement as Terry grabbed yet another pineapple, skinning it quickly - and inexpertly - with his claws before tossing it to me with a cheery shout. I managed to catch it with my vines and lowered it onto the table in front of me. It just sat there, its mottled brown skin hanging off it in tattered ribbons, juice weeping from its numerous scores. I briefly mourned its untimely demise before my eyes were dragged once more to the wannabe chef, the Totadile’s hands stuck wrist deep in the belly of his next victim: A pumpkin.
“Are you sure this is going to taste good?” I asked sceptically, aiming a couple sharpened leaves at the fruit before me with the intention of slicing it in to nice, bite size pieces. “The idea does sound a little… odd.”
“Of course it will!” he assured me, too engaged with disembowelling the fruit to even look up. “Would I be wasting my time on this if it wasn’t?”
“Yes.” I replied, glancing down at the remains of his last “brilliant” idea: a red pepper and raw onion smoothie. That sure had gone down well. He glanced over his shoulder, removing a hand from the fruit - or was it a vegetable? - before him and waving it dismissively when he realised what I was looking at.
“That? Pff. That was nothing. I just mis-read the instructions a little, that’s all.” Understatement of the year. “Besides, this is different. Way different. I got the recipe right this time, I made sure of it!”
I smiled grimly. That was what he said last time, too.
I shifted my weight onto my right side, attempting to get comfortable as a particularly strong spurt of wind rattled the windows of my small, thatched home. Winter isn’t exactly my favourite time of the year, as you might imagine, as cold weather just makes my bulb itch like no-body’s business, and add that to the reduced sunlight and you have one helluva of a grumpy Bulbasaur. How others can stand it, I have no idea. In my ideal world, there would be no winter. No cold spell. Just the lovely, delicious warmth of summer all year around…
So here I am, a full eleven days before Christmas: bordered up in my small, one pokemon hut with a manic Totodile for company, attempting to amuse ourselves while a blizzard rages on outside, covering the world in the most horrible, vilest, terrible substance ever to have been created: Snow. Rain I can deal with, hell, I need it to survive, but Snow? Not so nice.
I shuddered as the - what had to be - gale force winds tore at the sides of the house, howling with frustration as the thatch I’d practically glued on last summer held despite its protests. I briefly thanked Mew for the creation of super glue. It has saved my life before, and it was as sure as hell saving my life now. I plodded towards my bed, planning to defrost my toes in the dry, warm straw. Unfortunately, with the worsening of the weather, the amount of rescue requests we received had increased by the ten fold. It seemed that every pokemon in the world had gotten themselves stuck, somewhere or the other, and were determined to remain stuck until we got here. Why they couldn’t just stay inside like normal people and enjoy the holiday season there is beyond me. It’s getting to a point that it seems that they just look outside at the raging snow storm and think, hey, what a brilliant time to go hiking in the most isolated, dangerous place I can find! Seriously. It’s getting incredibly annoying. Terry, of course, being a complete and utter nutcase, is fine going out in sleet, rain or snow, but me? Not so much. I don’t really enjoy blinking water out of my eyes every couple of seconds, amazingly enough.
I stifled a yawn as the evening drew on, the storm continuing to pound relentlessly at the sides of my hut. I struggled to keep my eyes open before giving up and retreating to my bed. If I tried hard enough, I could pretend that the sounds of the storm were the happy yips of Poochyena as they frolicked in the spring time sun, clods of fresh new grass prevailing under tireless feet. I smiled a little, falling deeper into the realm of sleep. I could even feel the warm caress of the summer sun’s rays on my back as it drove higher and higher up the sky… I shifted my bulb a little, beginning to feel a little uncomfortable. Was the sunlight always this hot? It kinda felt like -
“Yowch!” I shrieked, jumping up as something burning hot landed on my back, the searing heat seeming to penetrate my very core. “Get it off, get it off!”
I rolled away, eyes wide and panicked as the pain receded, fresh, cool water splashing onto my back. I struggled to my feet, blood boiling as a barking laugh echoed across the room. Terry was dancing around in crazed circles around my bed, a small steaming rock held in his blanket swathed hand. He held it out and waved it at me as my vines reached over my head, pointing accusingly at the object in his hands.
“What are you… What the hell do you think you are playing at?” I exploded, steam practically billowing from my ears.
“April fools!” he cried happily, skipping around. “I got ya good, didn’t I? Didn’t I? Go on, admit it, I did, didn’t I?”
“IT’S NOT APRIL, YOU BLOODY IDIOT!” I roared, my vines whipping about dangerously above my head. “Don’t you even know the bloody date? It’s eleven days before Christmas, for crying out loud!
He waved his hand dismissively, tossing the stone and blankets to the ground and booting it into the far corner. “Of course it is. You believe that.”
He smiled at me encouragingly, head bobbing pleasantly. I couldn’t stop myself.
I charged.
With a strangled scream, I launched myself at him, my vines slicing through the air as I tried to grab him by his scaly throat. He burst out laughing, dodging me and darting to the other side of the room.
“I was only joking!” he called, a delighted smile lighting up his face. “Of course I know the date!”
His words fell on death ears. I tore on relentlessly, still crying my strangled battle cry. A fierce game of tag ensued as I chased the rascal around the house, paws itching to wring his little neck. He was practically choking, he was laughing so much, deftly avoiding my grasping vines by leaping over what little furniture I had. Finally, tiredness clinging to my limbs, I collapsed on my bed, exhausted. Glaring into his eyes, I forced words out between my desperate pants.
“Evil… Conniving…”
“What’s that?” Terry asked, frowning with fake confusion. “I can’t hear you!”
With a growl, I lunged at him, face wrinkled in a snarl-
CRASH!
I landed heavily on the ground, my feet having been too tired to propel myself over the bed and tangling themselves instead in the dry, but strong, straw. Which just sent Terry into another fit of giggles.
“Shut… Up…” I managed when I got my breath back. “It’s not… Funny…”
“Oh, but it is!” He squealed delightedly, clapping his hands together. “You’d agree with me if you weren’t in such a bad mood.” He waggled a finger at me and strutted back to the mess of pumpkin and pineapple that he’d abandoned when he decided to be a prankster. I glared half heartedly at him before crawling back onto my bed and curling in the foetal position. The evil b*stard. No wonder no one else wanted to be in a team with him. I wouldn’t be here either, if I didn’t have no where else to go… I sighed, eyelids feeling like lead. I was so tired… Sleep was so tempting… I tried to fight it for a little while, but gave in, and allowed myself to be dragged into warm darkness once more.
***
“Who let the pups out? Who? Who? Who who? Who let the pups out?”
I woke with a start, Terry’s horribly off tune singing waking me up from la la land, as he liked to call it. I grumbled silently, a frown creasing my forehead as I turned my back to him and attempted to go back to sleep. I had no such luck. With a piercing shout, Terry bounded towards me, a bowl held firmly in-between his fore paws. Seating himself beside my pillow, he put the bowl carefully on the floor and proceeded to poke me, hard, in the shoulder. My eyes, which had been cracked open as I watched him, snapped open wide as I wriggled backwards in an attempt to escape. Terry, the annoyingly sweet and amiable guy he is, just picked up the bowl again and went to the other side, prodding me again. This happened several times before I gave up any hope of sleep and crawled fully out of bed.
“What?” I snapped, using my vines to rub the sleep from my eyes. “What do you want now?”
Terry blinked happily down at me, obviously ignoring the insult. “Soup’s ready!”
It was my turn to blink. Soup? The memory of the previous night came back to me with a thud. I groaned. Oh. That soup.
“The Pumpkin and Pineapple soup!” he told me cheerfully, confirming my suspicions. Hopping down, he grabbed the bowl and thrust it in my face. “Try some! It’s really good.”
I stared down at the offered food, noting the floating pumpkin seeds and the tastefully arranged Pineapple leaf. “Have you tried it yet?”
“Of course!” he nodded enthusiastically. “First thing this morning, when it finished cooking.”
I nodded slowly, not sure whether I should believe him or not. Well, he’s a truthful guy in general, if not all that bright… And he didn’t look dead, although I could be mistaken. I eyed him up carefully, nodding my approval. Certainly not dead. I glanced down at the soup again.
Well. It couldn’t hurt to try, could it?
I drew the bowl closer with my vines, staring at the thick orange liquid inside. A rich, tasty aroma rose from it - although he might have just put Plusle Bane in it again, like he did with the smoothie… I suppressed a shudder. It’s best not to think about that. Sending a quick prayer to Ho - Oh - just in case - I bent down and took a sip.
A variety of different tastes flooded my mouth, most prominently the sweet tang of the pineapple that, surprisingly, complimented the pumpkin’s spicy flavour rather well. I smiled and nodded, lifting up the bowl with my vines so I could drink it more easily. Yes - this was really good! Surprisingly good, in fact! I finished with a happy slurp, before lowering the bowl and staring at Terry in amazement, speechless. He waved his hand as if to say don’t mention it and skipped away.
“Mail time!”
I groaned.
Yippee.
I trekked outside, joining Terry by the mail box. In the distance I could see the silhouette of the mail-bird growing fainter and fainter - I must have just missed him. What a shame. He was one of the only sane people you could talk to these days. The sound of rustling paper attracted my attention back to Terry. He was sorting through the mail, shoving the rescue missions under his armpit.
“Goodness, Katie! We got a big haul today!” He exclaimed, closing the box with a snap and showing me the amount of mail. I agreed with him, although with less enthusiasm. “Let’s see… We have three for Silent Chasm - the Jumpluff’s got stuck again, with a couple of friends this time… And one for Tiny Woods: Some Poochyena wants a certain berry and wants us to escort it… And another from…”
The list went on and on. I nodded at the correct intervals, sighing inwardly with relief when the reel of missions finally petered to an end.
“…D’ya wanna go to Silent Chasm first, as it has the most missions to accomplish?” Terry finished, smiling happily. “I’m so excited that we are finally getting so many missions! I never want this to end!”
You’re alone there. I nodded to his earlier question, and we picked our way towards the main road, treading carefully to avoid slipping on hidden patches of ice beneath the snow. A common partner in crime is a Farfetched by the name of Clarity, who lives just south of us. She can be a little… Odd sometimes, but don’t we all have funny moments? She gets the job done, in any case, and as she was bred and raised at our destination, what’s better than bringing someone who knows their way around?
So, unsurprisingly, our first stop was her home; a weathered stone castle placed on a small hill, overlooking the wonderful Amorre river. Well, not so wonderful now, unfortunately. We crested a rise in the road, the rolling moors that the Farfetch’d lived in sprawled out before us. The river wound its way through it, its normally sparkling surface now coated in ice. Such a pity. It really is beautiful in the summer months. Sunlight bounced off the snow’s white surface, playing off the castle’s mottled stones as the sun itself peeked over the battlements, greeting the new day with its feeble rays.
…I must admit, I adored her house.
A discreet flapping sound caught my attention, and I looked back to see a brown bird gliding off the tallest tower, feathers rippling as they caught the wind and used it to lower her slowly down. Landing with a soft thud in front of us, the bird nodded a greeting, sweeping a wing back in a bow.
“I bid thee good morning!” The farfetched cried, rising. “What quest might we, pray, accept? Shalt thou vanquish a demon? Save a damsel in distress?”
“We’re rescuing three damsels in distress today, aren’t we Katie!” Answered Terry, rocking backwards and forwards on his tiptoes in an excited jig.
“I’m not sure they’re all damsels, Terry,” I replied, stretching out my legs one at a time. “But yes, we are.”
Clarity’s face lit up.
“Aye? May the lady shine love and hope down upon us, we have struck great fortune!” she cried, attempting to hug Terry and I before turning and running towards a hill. Gathering speed, she launched herself off the top, spreading her wings wide. “Onwards, dear fellows!” she called, circling back towards us. “We have not the time!”
…She can be a little excitable at times, and tends to mix and match her speech style. She picked up her peculiar way of speaking from her father, who was a little eccentric, to say the least. Terry gave me a beaming smile and ran after her, attempting to jump on the birds shadow. I sped up, smiling as I saw Clarity throw Terry a challenge, watching as he accepted and the two of them tore off into the distance. I kept going at a steady pace, albeit a little faster than before. They’d get tired eventually, and I’d either catch up or they’d come back to find me.
They always did.
***
I winced as a burst of wind blew a flurry of snow into my eyes, struggling through ankle deep mud as the storm sang around me, letting loose the odd bit of rain where it saw fit. I cursed as one such shower fell above me, each bone numbingly cold raindrop practically freezing on my skin.
Why, oh why did I agree to this blasted mission!
I glared grumpily under furrowed brows at the moving blue blob in front of me, Terry still making headway through the blustering blizzard. It was all his fault. He was the one who suggested it, he was the one who thought it’d be a brilliant idea to go to the deepest bloody chasm in the bloody area. I wanted to stay at home, but no, he had to drag me along with him. I sighed, plowing my way through yet another chest high snowdrift. It was all fine with him, he didn’t have to walk on all fours and practically swim through the mud and snow. He just waded through it, him and his little I-walk-on-my-back-two-legs act. B*stard.
I increased the intensity of the glare, growling under my breath as yet another clod of snow flew into my eye. I hated him right now. He always does this, drag me along on his stupid missions to random, far off places. I won’t budge next time, I assure you. He can go on his bloody own. Pausing briefly, I squinted behind me, checking to see if Clarity was still behind me. I could barely see her, her leek, magically appeared from wherever she keeps it, sticking out in front of her like a sword as she used it to hack away at the snow. I watched briefly before turning back to the front, the frown creasing my face once more. How she manages to hold the leek, I’ll never know, but she can wield it with deadly precision. Sighing, I started forward once more.
After another ten minutes of hiking, I saw Terry stop ahead of me, head cocked to the side. Intrigued, I approached, stopping beside him.
“Wha-” I began, but Terry cut me off with an impatient shush. Raising a finger to his lips, he whispered:
“Listen.”
I did so, closing my eyes so I could hear easier. The storm still howled around us, it’s rage bellowing out undisturbed. Nothing else. I frowned and opened my eyes, about to question his motives once again when he suddenly turned his head, gazing to the left of us.
“Do you hear it?” he breathed.
I squinted in that direction, listening again. Soon the sound of voices reached my ears, the sound of someone singing barely audible over the winds anger. Terry’s mouth widened in a smile, and he began to jig excitedly again, turning towards me.
“Is it Santa?” he asked eagerly, eyes alight with hope. I listened a little more, now able to understand the odd word and phrase.
“…time… ….and wine… …time… …believing…”
I frowned, confused. I recognized that voice, somehow…
“I don’t think so, Terry.” I informed him, smiling at Clarity as she came up beside me. “It’s a little early for him to be out, don’t ya think?”
“Don’t be such a spoil sport.” He pouted, turning back to the direction of the haphazard singing. “He could have decided to take a walk, you know. Everybody likes having a walk, don’t they?” He nudged Clarity who nodded distractedly, also gazing in the direction of the singing.
Everybody restricted to you, you mean. I frowned, concentrating on the voice again. More had joined it while Terry was speaking, I could even see dark silhouettes now. I narrowed my eyes, trying to pick out any details. It looked like a group of three black blobs, barely visible through a flurry of snow that had just started to fall, were making their weary way towards us, the last one slightly larger than the others. I immediately buried any hope that it might by the Jumpluff we were trying to find. They were much lower down the mountain, and besides, these people weren’t the right shape. Too big, for one thing.
Were they a rescue team? I took a cautious step forward, struggling to see with stinging eyes. The first shape suspiciously reminded me of…
“Shut it, Bone” A voice travelled down towards me, confirming my suspicions. “I’m not in the mood.”
Asraile?
“Don’t be so mean. His singing isn’t that bad…” Another voice, feminine and cheerier than the other, floated down towards us as the snow receded, revealing the pokemon before us. A Pikachu, a ragged, red bandana tied around her neck, trudged wearily at the front, shortly followed by a Mudkip with a Absol bringing up the rear. The former had her head turned towards the latter, a frown creasing her features as she finished her sentence. “Better than yours, in any case.”
“I have a headache.” The Absol, Asraile, informed her shortly, white fur rippling in the wind in he inched his way forward.
“That’s no excuse. Bone has a headache, yet I don’t hear him complaining.”
The Mudkip, supposedly the one who’d been singing, trotted happily in the center, scanning the slopes ahead of him. Spotting us, his eyes widened in surprise, and he turned back to the Pikachu, prodding her urgently. “Ejjie…?”
“That’s because you can’t - the wind’s too strong, and it’s carried his words away.” Asriel frowned at her, red eyes narrowing. “Believe me, he’s been complaining the whole time…”
“Ejjie?” The Mudkip’s prodding became more urgent, and the Pikachu looked down impatiently.
“What?”
He pointed towards us. The group fell silent as they all realised we were standing just a few meters away. Smiling grimly, I walked towards them, Terry and Clarity close behind.
“Team Dynamo!” I called, pulling up beside them. “How’s business?”
The Pikachu, Ejjie, shrugged wearily and gave me a tired smile. “Team Dynamite, but yeah, same old, same old.”
Oops. I smiled sheepishly, the leaves of my bulb flapping as the wind blew past. There was an uncomfortable silence, before-
“Another Skitty stuck in a tree?” It was Terry, speaking up with a beaming grin. I smiled gratefully at him. Team Dynamo were a rival team of ours, and while we were friendly to each other, well, we are rivals, after all. Getting their Team name wrong couldn’t have helped…
“Yep.” The Pikachu replied, bowing her head as a flurry of snow was blown up by the wind. Terry nodded understandingly. Clarity saw the chance and leapt upon it.
“How many floors?”
I leaned forward a little, eager to hear the answer.
…A little bit of friendly competition never hurt anybody, did it?
“A hundred.”
We all winced appreciatively. Each dungeon/mountain has a series of floors, and the better the rescue team were, the higher - or lower - they were allowed to go in missions. Needless to say, they were a higher level than we were. Which sucked. Still, being new at the game did have its perks…
We stood there for a little longer, the only sound the whistling howl of the storm, before Ejjie broke the silence by shouldering her pack higher up her back. The others took her cue and began preparing to march again, Bone stretching briefly and Asraile flexing his claws.
“Well. We’d better be off.” Ejjie informed us regretfully, flashing us a farewell smile. “We have a long way more to go, you know.”
I nodded. “See you later, then?”
“Sure.”
We watched as team Dynamo wearily trudged away, a small shower of snow soon covering their tracks.
“I guess we’d better be on our way then too.” Commented Terry. I nodded.
Stretching out briefly, I watched as Terry beamed me a huge grin and bounded forwards. With a barely concealed sigh, I followed, Clarity close behind.
My only console was, that with the weather about as good as Terry‘s smoothie endeavours, it was nigh on impossible that it was going to get any worse…
***
…I seem to have this curse of always jinxing myself. I muffled a strangled scream as we clung to the mountain’s face, trying to hold on while gale force winds shouldered past. My day just seemed to be getting better and better. I squinted forwards, eyes stinging. Why, oh why does this always happen to me? I screamed silently again, wishing I had hair that I could tear out as we scurried through the latest floor in this never ending maze.
Or at least hands to do it with.
“We’re nearly there!” Terry called cheerily from in front of me, glancing back with a slightly strained smile. Good. I smiled with weary satisfaction at his expression. He’s sane enough to not be overjoyed by this new turn of the weather. I glanced back, checking on how Clarity was coping. She bore a grave expression, straining against the wind as it grabbed at her feathers.
“Nearly there!” I promised, worry crinkling my forehead. Strong winds and light bird Pokémon do not mix. She nodded grimly, claws gripping the rocky floor for dear life and leek held firmly in her beak. We shuffled onwards, almost deafened by the storm’s angry roar.
Next time I’m not budging an inch. Mark my words.
We crept down a final flight of stairs, emerging into a dark granite cavern near the base of the gorge. I stumbled in surprise when the resistance of the storm disappeared. I straightened cautiously, unnerved by the eerie silence. What was going on with the weather? One minute it was a full blown snowstorm, the next-
“I spy with my little eye, something beginning with… T!”
A cheery, light hearted voice floated towards us from behind a cliff of rock, shortly followed by a small sigh.
“For the last time, Lucifer, there are no darned trees down here!”
“Aw, how d’ya guess? Anyways, there is a tree down here-” There was a small rustle as the speaker presumably pointed at something. “See?”
“Wow. A rock.”
“It’s not a rock! It’s a tree, I tell you! A tree!”
“Then where are the branches?”
There was a brief spate of silence. I glanced at my team mates as we neared the end of the shelf of rock that separated us from the stranded Pokémon. Terry was reaching for the badge that was clipped securely to the blue yellow-and-pink spotted bandana around his neck - don’t ask - while Clarity had her leek in her hands. I nodded.
“Ready?” Terry whispered with a beaming smile. I nodded again, Clarity following suit. He gave us a cheery wink, before slipping around the corner. I crept after him, taking in the sight before me. The three Jumpluffs were each individually jammed in between three close-together rocks, the two who’d been speaking closest to us. The final remaining fuzz ball was nearer the corner, a book open on the ground before it. It looked up when we came in, fear clear in its eyes, and shrunk further into crack. I stared at him in dismay.
He’s sure going to be fun to talk to.
“Who are you?” Asked the middle one, the first voice, red eyes narrowed suspiciously. Terry stepped forward, grinning.
“We’re here to rescue you.” he informed them with a smile. The one to the left grunted, while the middle one smiled, relieved, an almost identical grin splitting his face. I smothered a groan.
“Took ya long enough. We’ve been here for ages.” The left one grumbled, shifting its pompom-like hands uncomfortably. “What took ya?”
“My apologies, kind sirs. The mountain’s might is great, and our start was late.” Clarity piped up, smoothing her feathers.
“I’m female.”
That stumped her.
“And besides, thanks to your late start, our friend found this book up here which has made him go completely nuts.”
I glanced at the remaining Jumpluff, shaking my head a little when I saw him. The poor thing rocked slowly backwards and forwards in its little prison, squeaking in terror when it saw the attention it was receiving. I approached carefully, frowning down at the book before it and reading a couple of the words under my breath.
“…fear… …darkness swallowing you slowly…”
My eyes widened and I reached down with a vine, ignoring the readers high pitched protests and closed the book to see the front cover. ‘Paranoia - How to Know Your Friends Are Stalking You.’
I raised my eyebrows and retreated carefully. No wonder the poor thing had gone nuts. Who’d left such a book up here, anyway? Seeing the other Jumpluff arguing amongst themselves again, I sighed and stepped between them.
“If you’d be kind enough to stop babbling at us for a second, we’d like to free you.” I informed them, crossing my arms. They shut up immediately and I smiled, looking back to Clarity.
“Clarity, if you could.”
She nodded, turning and waddling behind the three stuck Pokémon. Taking a deep breath, she raised her wings and began to carefully flap, each wing cocked at a different angle. A small whirlwind grew before her, growing steadily larger with her every movement. She smiled grimly, muscles straining. Once she was satisfied that it was large enough, she backed away and let it loose with a final flap. The miniature twister tore towards the stranded Jumpluffs, tearing them free of the rocks and sending them flying across the room. The paranoid Jumpluff in the corner’s eyes widened when it saw the twirling pillar of wind, and it clung desperately to the rocks around it before being catapulted out and away. The freed Pokémon floated down, pompoms waving happily.
“Would you like to be transported out of here?” Terry asked, showing them the badge in his hand. Two of them nodded gratefully, the third still straining to reach the book below it, eyes wild in its desperation. I watched as Terry pointed the badge towards them and whispered ‘transport’, sending a white beam on the Jumpluffs and transporting them away. Lowering his hand, he turned towards us and whooped loudly.
“Score!”
I smiled in return, Clarity, having retrieved her leek, tossing it up in the air jubilantly.
“Another mission completeth!”
I walked towards Terry as he raised the badge once more in a silent question. Clarity joined us, and I closed my eyes as I was enveloped in a brilliant white light…
***
I sat heavily on my bed, leaves dropping in exhaustion. A small fire flickered merrily in the grate, sending blessed waves of warmth over my half frozen skin. How I couldn’t wait to sleep… I looked up tiredly as Terry skipped happily into the room, dragging something behind him. I groaned. Does that Totadile ever rest?
“What is it now?” I asked wearily. He grinned at me, giving me a wink.
“You’ll like it!” he promised, stepping away. I stared in dumbfoundment. A small yellow kangaroo stood behind him, black striped ears switching to and fro as it looked up at me, flashing me a broad grin. I frowned, squinting at it. An Ampharos? But those were gigantic, not this small-
fizzle
I started as a burst of electricity crackled from one of its ears to the other, shortly followed by a torrent more. I watched with fascination as the crossing electricity beams joined together to make a flickering screen, an image of Castform floating in the center.
“What is this, a Teletubby?” I asked Terry dubiously. He laughed and shook his head, skipping towards me.
“’Tis the weather teller.” he informed me, hopping onto my bed. I raised my eyebrows but turned towards the miniature Ampharos, who’d approached and sat, twiddling its thumbs. The image above its head moved, the Castform rippling over to an image of the village.
“The weather today…”
Something triggered in my mind and I nodded, understanding. Weather tellers were sent out whenever the local Castform predicted bad weather…My brief burst of excitement shuddered and crawled away to die a slow and painful death as I looked once more towards the makeshift screen. This didn’t sound so good.
“…Another large blizzard is making its way up the Amorre river and is expected to hit the village and its surrounding areas at noon tomorrow. All Pokémon are recommended to stay inside…”
My heart sank, falling past my stomach and hitting the floor. No. This can’t be… I groaned, hiding my face with my vines.
Well, it’s to be expected. I thought grimly after a couple seconds of moaning. This is my life, after all.
Yippee.