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Jett blinked and watched that little Gastly disappear. His shock seemed to mirror Scarlet's; this trainer seemed really serious and really tough. "U-uh, thanks!" he finally managed, after regaining his composure. Can't believe I won... "You were a great battle!"

River smiled, standing all the way up. That was the perfect thing to wake her up; she was ready to rumble with the big leagues now! She exchanged a quick beam with Jett before he recalled her.

"Say, do you wanna get uh..." What time is it...? Jett checked his watch. "...Lunch. You wanna get lunch in the PokeCenter?" He adjusted his belt and glanced at the far off gym. "We can heal our Pokemon and stuff."

Kasiya continued to watch the adorable little Azurill on Sasha's shoulder, thinking quietly to herself. "Hold up, I've got an idea," she said finally, smoothing the wrinkles out of her skirt. She took her PokeNav out of her pocket and quickly typed out a message before sending it to everyone involved in the Magma mission. "There," she said happily as she hit 'send'. "Now everyone will know to head back to the gym, and we can figure out what our next move is." She felt her heart start to race at the mere thought of what would happen next, and she suddenly couldn't wait for it to all be over. She had a feeling this was going to be a very messy, very chaotic experience.

She linked her arm with Sasha's, deciding they could use all the moral support they could get, and started walking back towards the gym, doing her best to distract her mind from the task at hand. She tried to focus on what she would once they were finished with this mission, and she remembered that she had two young Pokemon (Nova and Alphonse) to train, and two more Kanto badges to win. She smiled to herself then, deciding that when they were done with Team Magma, and once she'd gotten Shocker back from Mai and Team Rocket, she would challenge Blaine to an official gym match, then set her sights on Giovanni's Earth Badge.

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Turtwig stared at Robin's back as she headed back into the Pokemon Center, a little frightened due to the fact that she had left them alone with the rude little Totodile. His various attempts to make friends with Black*Star had been in vain, and the last thing he wanted was to get into a fight with him. Jake, on the other hand, seemed oblivious to Turtwig's feelings and smiled down at the little gator. "Don't worry, I'm not going to ask you to do anything Robin wouldn't," he said, kneeling down so that he was eye-level with Black*Star. "I just want you two to line up and practice your aim on those targets over there," he said, nodding at the posts with the red and white targets painted on them. "Nothing big."

Turtwig huffed and continued to paw the ground. In all honesty, he didn't really want to practice anything. He didn't like fighting and was more than happy to leave that task up to Bidoof, err, Bibarel, though he knew he couldn't get out of every fight. He glanced at Black*Star again before turning to face the target Jake had pointed out to him, deciding it would probably be wisest to try his best. After all, that annoying little gator had to be shown he wasn't as awesome as he thought he was. "Alright Turtwig, show me your Razor Leaf," Jake said, nodding to the little Grass-type. "And you, Black*Star, uh, how about giving your Water Gun a try?" he asked, having consulted his PokeDex to give him an insight as to what moves the Totodile had available.

Pushing aside his initial apprehension, Turtwig jumped forward, growling loudly as he swung his head and unleashed a volley of razor-sharp leaves at the target, the small leaves atop his head glowing a healthy green as he did so. The Razor Leaf soared through the air and sliced into the target, cutting off good-sized chunks and leaving various fine cuts in the remaining wood.

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It was safe to say that Megu's Overheat did not miss its furry target, and Flannery watched with glee as her opponent was swallowed up by the crimson flames. This, of course, came with the cost of draining energy from the little Slugma and he felt a little wiped afterward. Robbie watched in stunned silence as his Zangoose staggered to its feet only to fall to one knee, its once white fur singed all over. It took in a ragged breath and glared across the arena at Megu, flexing its sharp claws. It was severely weakened, but not finished yet and Flannery cursed under her breath. In a flash, the Cat Ferret was on its feet and speeding towards the Slugma, and even though Flannery called for a Flamethrower as fast as she could, the poor little magma slug just wasn't quick enough on the draw. The Zangoose's claws cut into him painfully and he slunk back, whining in pain as the attack proved to be too much for him. "Dammit," Flannery grumbled as she recalled Megu into his Pokeball. "You did well, take a good rest," she said quietly as she selected a second Pokeball from her belt, and let it fly.

The sphere burst open, and a much larger creature than the Slugma appeared, its four heavy hooves slamming down heavily on the ground and causing everything to rumble. Both Robbie and his Zangoose stared in awe as Flannery's impressive Camerupt appeared on the field and loosed a ground-shaking roar. Flannery smiled, as she often got this reaction from sending Camerupt out into battle. "Lava Plume," she said simply, folding her arms across her chest as her Pokemon stomped the ground flat. Scarlet flames erupted from his back and covered the entire battlefield, leaving no room for the Zangoose to run. When it was over, Robbie was already in the process of recalling the fainted Cat Ferret. All tied up at one, Flannery thought smugly.

“Yeah. I’m actually from Cherrygrove. Just south of here,” he answered with a grin.

And, with a familiar tone from the machine in the back… “Thank you for waiting! We’ve restored your pokemon to full health.” Nurse Joy said cheerfully as placed Scarlet’s team of two on the desk for him. “Please, come back anytime!”

“Thanks, I’ll do that!” Scarlet picked up the two pokeballs, standing back so Jett could heal his team. Without even thinking about it, he released Cindy, who scowled a bit. She really didn’t enjoy losing. Scarlet picked up the Volcano Pokemon, lightly hugging her, and thankfully calming her down a little. “Don’t worry. We’ll totally win the next one.”

Scarlet placed his best friend back on the ground. She cautiously wandered over to Jett, sniffing him before returning to Scarlet’s feet.

“This is my Cynda- … Quilava. Her name is Cindy. Cindy, we’re gonna have lunch with Jett.”

Unlike Scarlet, she wasn’t particularly thrilled with the idea, so she sort of just pouted, snorting out a tiny whisp of flame.

“Sorry. Sheeee’s not used to losing.”

"Uhm--" Train started to say, but was cut off by Maz suddenly putting his arm around her and pulling her to him. Before he could complete this, however, she was already half-ducking, half-twisting out of his grip, and stepped down firmly as she stood up and looked at him with her nose wrinkled. This look quickly passed to one of surprise as he swiped the key from her, and with barely any time to say anything else she called out after him, "We are not sleeping in the same bed!" If anything, shouldn't the boys sleep together, and the girl get her own bed?

Train sighed and shook her head, annoyed, before turning to Carlos and saying, "I think I am gonna grab a bite to eat before going to bed. You're welcome to come, if you want." She began walking towards the Pokémon Center's cafeteria after that, also realising that she would need to feed her Pokémon again before they all went to bed.


"Leon," The teenager replied, already reaching for his first PokéBall. He pressed the button once, and then twice to release Ghos, who floated around happily, eager to battle again. And win, of course. He was having so much fun battling (and winning) as opposed to being stuck in that little ball! And that grumpy Misdreavus hadn't been out for a while, either, so she wasn't bothering him like normal.

Leon was merely focused on winning this match and obtaining his first gym badge. "Ladies first," He said boredly. Even he didn't want to be rude to a gym leader.

It is said Pokemon Trainer's should always stay on the path. This is said to illuminate a path to become a Pokemon Master. With this said, we pan our attention to Laichi and her Zangoose, "Zii".

"Zii, are you ready to get your pokeblock eating self beat again!" Zii says as she adjusts her running shoes. She stretches and breaths getting ready for a long enduring race with her best friend Zii.

Zii, a tall masculine Zangoose stands next to her with his arms crossed and eyes as if irritated with her taunts, but a purpose in his eyes. He's going to beat Laichi today. Zii has found Laichi's small frame is better for forest races.

"Okay! I'll take that as a, 'Oh yes my young and beautiful goddess of a trainer, I am ready for my butt to be kicked by someone half my height.' Hahaha! You know the rules, there are none. You have to beat me to the other side of Petalburg Woods before I do." Laichi sniggers as she stands properly as if acting like a stewardess. "Please keep your hands and feet inside the forest at all times. We do not want any fair play. If there is no blood we will see disqualification to all teams."

Laichi lets out an obnoxious laugh as she points to where Zii WAS standing. Instead, a small dust cloud remains where his outline should be. Laichi screams, "You are good! I'm gonna getcha!" Laichi runs after the speeding zangoose.

Zii is only five seconds in front of Laichi. He is about to hit the wood line. Laichi smiles as the crisp cool breeze glides across her face and through her orange tint hair. She smiles when Zii jumps into a tree to take the high road. But, unlike Zii, Laichi can not jump to such heights. She hops over a sleeping wurmple with a quick sprint to a nearby tree which has seen better days.

The tree leans as if something large was using it as a back scratcher. So Laichi abuses this terrain function. She manages to speed up the tree and leap at the tip with an uncanny precision. With her gymnastic and acrobatic ability she lands on a mossy hill which slides her down and shoots her over a small pond. She tumbles into a roll and continues her track.

Zii jumps from tree to tree as if he was a primape in his past life. He thought his attempts were amazing feats until he finds Laichi speeding under him through the forest like a seviper running from a clan of zangoose. Zii jumps from the tree and lands with a thud and a deep print. Zii sprints forward hoping to catch up with Laichi.

Laichi laughs as she notices Zii behind her. "Oh you look good from where I am! We need to try this angle more often! I want to warn you Zii-Bee that I farted so you're mouth better not be open!"

Laichi finds ahead of her a large group of taillow perched on a large branch. In her crazy head she feels she has to be deviant. So with no hesitation she dives right over the branch, kicking the branch to do a flip as she lands perfectly on her feet to continue her running. But, this only caused more problems for Zii.

Zii watches as Laichi jumps, but does not understand why, due to the nature of the branch and how short Laichi was. He speeds up, knowing she is about to do something deviant. She kicks the branch and Zii understands, and he is ready.

The taillow, in panic, fly in all directions, creating a small sand storm. Zii, closes his eyes and slides right under the branch and continues. But, as he slid under the branch he found something. A smile shines on his face and he continues chase.

Laichi laughs at her defensive maneuver, and continues over a few more downed trunks of trees and accidentally steps on a slakoth's hand in the process. Lucky for her the slakoth is too slow to react. A laugh is let loose from Laichi's lips and her running continues.

Zii finds to his amazement both himself and Laichi are almost out of the woods. So he has to think of something fast. Luck has given him an idea.

Laichi hastens her run as she is almost near the exit. "Zii what are you doing back there? Has my faersome Zii been faced with laziness? Haha!" Laichi taunts as she turns around to glance for Zii, only to find a flying slakoth right in front of her face!

Laichi screams as the slakoth grips around her body causing her to fall into a roll. She rolls for about ten feet until her face smacks directly into a poochyena, knocking it out too.

Zii runs by with one finger pulling an eye lid down, and his tongue sticking out at Laichi. Zii bursts through the other side of the woods victorious.

"Stupid slithering ekans grimer stench!" She cusses as she punches the slakoth through a few bushes to get it off her.

Zii settles down by a small stone and waits for Laichi to arrive last. As Laichi comes out holding her bleeding head, she laughs. Laichi finds Zii's tactic brilliant, so she does not hate him one bit for her injury. Plus, she knows her wounds will heal.

Zii smiles as if this race wasn't for nothing, he holds up a Parlyz Heal, and tosses it to Laichi as if saying, 'Don't feel bad. Here.'

"Haha so I still win! Whoever said to stay on the paths are idiots. It's so much fun going the alternate route, right? Well you know what this means Zii? Since you beat me through the woods, we can start our journey. We have a train ticket, where should we go?" Laichi says while laying on the grass next to her best friend.

“Butterfly…?” Scarlet scratched his head, wondering if maybe Butterfree could contract rabies, or if there was some terrible monster of a bug pokemon in Hoenn that he didn’t know about. Probably the latter. Then Jett released the Feeling pokemon. “Hrm. Shocking something so tiny’s so awesome.”

In the meantime, Cindy nodded to River, managing a polite grin, since she was apparently over the fight. “Quil!” Yeah, nice to meet you too! River seemed nice enough, and Cindy did need a friend now that Flora was gone, so, with a few barks, she tried continuing the conversation. So, you can shoot wavy energy at stuff. That’s um… Cool.

Scarlet blinked at River and Cindy, raising an eyebrow. It was sort of weird watching her hang out with another pokemon, especially one who just beat her. Maybe she was growing up? … Duh, she just evolved. Of course she’s growing up.

“… Oh. Right. Food. C’mon, Jett!” He spared himself a palm to his forehead, instead heading off toward the cafeteria, where hopefully there was something hot and delicious and not vegetarian left, Cindy not far off behind him.

Keegan paid little attention to the Gardevoir's huffy exit and finished his cigarette, dropping it to the ground so that he could grind it into the pavement with his shoe. Without even really thinking about it he lit another one, barely paying attention to what anyone was saying around him. More than anything he just wanted to get this whole ordeal over with so that he could get back to his training and badge quest, though he figured that if by chance his Pokemon were needed, taking out a couple of Magma thugs' Pokemon could be some decent experience at the very least.

He gazed at the Breloom before him, idly wondering how different his party would be now if he'd caught that Shroomish instead of the then-Taillow, though he knew he'd never forget the sight of the tiny, red and blue bird dive-bombing the Mushroom Pokemon out of nowhere and for seemingly no reason. He smiled to himself and reached for his PokeNav as it had started to vibrate in his pocket. Kasiya, he thought, frowning slightly. I wonder how she's doing this morning, especially after last night... He quickly read over her message and closed the device, slipping it back into his pocket as he pushed himself away from the wall. "Time to go," was all he said as he stuffed both hands deep into the coats of his pockets and started making his way towards the gym.
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Aska shifted slightly as Sam climbed up onto her back. It didn't really hurt when her feathers were tugged, but it wasn't exactly comfortable, either. Miharu gratefully accepted Sam's help as she too climbed onto the Pidgeot's back, gently smoothing Aska's ruffled feathers as she prepared for the flight. She knew Sam still wasn't too thrilled about the idea of flying, but she loved it. Aska felt strong and sturdy underneath her, and for a moment she felt giddy as Aska fanned her tail and flapped her wings. "Let's go," she told the bird fondly. "We're off to Violet City!"

Aska gave a nod and with a single flap of her powerful wings she was up in the air, quickly flying in the direction that Miharu had indicated. The small girl sighed happily as the wind rushed through her hair, and as she looked down she could see the Slowpoke Well, complete with a few pink dots that must have been Slowpoke lounging nearby. She idly made a mental note to check the place out sometime and closed her eyes, enjoying the feeling of weightlessness. Aska seemed to be loving the flight as well, and she let out a loud cry as she increased her speed slightly. Miharu opened her eyes again, knowing this flight wouldn't take very long at all.