"Flamethrower!"
Cyndaquil inhaled and released an intense torrent of flame. The temperature rose rapidly as the defending Pokemon was ignited by a pillar of fire.
Maya raised an arm to shield her eyes from the glare. It was growing more uncomfortable by the minute. She loosened her scarf and threw it to the floor. She would have liked to unbutton her jacket, but there was no time for that in the middle of a battle.
The boy seemed mortified by the sight of his Rattata being charred into roadkill.
"Get up Mickey! Counter with a quick attack!"
The purple rodent with the terribly unoriginal name somehow stumbled to its feet and lunged towards Cyndaquil, baring its thick teeth.
Cyndaquil flipped down on its stomach, giving the rat nothing but a mouthful of the burning flames on its back, sending it recoiling in pain.
"We got this, Cyndaquil!" Maya could sense victory at hand. "Finish with a tackle!"
Cyndaquil broke into a run and slammed the Rattata squarely in the side. The two creatures skidded, a mess of paws and frantic scrambling.
When the dust cleared, the K.O.'d Rattata lay twitching in the dirt.
Maya leapt up and cheered. She ran over and swung the black and yellow creature into the air. "Ahaha! We did it! Good job, hun!"
"I lost again? That's not fair!"
"That's too bad, Ethan!" Maya grinned. "Maybe if you'd actually let your Marill out to train, you could have won!"
"But I gave Marill a bath this morning! I don't want him getting dirty so quickly." Frowning, he sent the injured Rattata back into its Pokeball and collapsed backwards into the grass. "You battle too rough anyway."
"Sorry Ethan, but you gotta train seriously if you ever hope to get anywhere." Maya administered a shot of Potion to her starter and gave it a pat. “I want to get somewhere in life. I don’t want to remain locked in this town forever. This is a nowhere town.”
“What are you talking about?” Ethan gestured to the sign posted a couple meters away. “New Bark Town is where the winds of change start blowing! That doesn’t sound like a slogan for a nowhere town.”
“You’re a idiot, Ethan.”
With Cyndaquil back in its pokeball, Maya reached up to the sky and stretched. It wasn't a particularly beautiful day, but there was sunshine.
"You heading home now, Maya? I'm on my way to the Professor's lab to heal my Rattata. Wanna come?"
"Thanks, but it's okay. Mom's outta town, so I have to head to Cherrygrove for groceries. Dinner doesn't cook itself!"
"Okay. I'll call tonight, after my movie with Marill." Ethan adjusted his cap and took off. "See ya!"
Maya waved back, all the while thinking the boy was kinda cute. In an immature sort of way. Ethan Gold.
She picked up her scarf and slung it around her neck. Maybe she would invite Terra over for a movie, too. It had been a while since they'd seen each other. Her longtime friend had gone away to the Sevii Islands for a birthday trip, the last she'd heard. Terra was always on vacation somewhere. Whirl Islands, Tohjo Falls, Safari Zone...
Thinking about it was starting to bum her out. Maybe she wouldn't head for groceries after all. No. She decided it was best to do something else.
Shortly after, a strong gust of wind kicked up leaves in a swirl outside Maya's house, signally the arrive of a guest.
"You got here faster than I thought," she mused, stepping out to greet him.
The sleeves on his jacket were no longer charred. She could only assume he had bought a new one in the short time they hadn't seen each other. That or he had a closet full of leather jackets.
As handsome as she remembered... the Pidgeot, that is.
. . .
"You were right. Reception does really stink up here!"
Terra tossed her pokegear to the boy before her. His pale face was hidden by the shadows of his cap, but Terra could see the way his eyes glowed. Maybe she was seeing things, but they seemed to hold a more reddish tint than brown. A churning fire.
Maya had been right in her guess: Terra was on vacation all right. Just not where anyone would have expected.
"Red, when are you going to come home? Your friends are worried about you."
Pikachu seemed to agree. Perched on Red's shoulder, it tugged at the boy's sleeve. It had no effect.
"Hey... you can't stay in this cave forever..."
No response. When was there ever? Red had always been a quiet boy, but never to this extent. Few words escaped those cold lips. Why he brooded so was a complete mystery to her.
Still, Terra didn't mind coming up to visit. The cave was quiet and peaceful in general, if not eerily so, once the golbats and gravellers got out of the way. It was one of the few places with snow in their region as well. Because of that, she had initially wanted to invite Maya, but remembered how much her friend hated the cold and was probably too much of a talk-aholic to appreciate the calm.
"It's pretty cold up here..."
She pulled her knees up to her chest. Red peered at her from under his hat before sliding over and placing pikachu into her lap.
"T-thanks."
Terra closed her eyes and snuggled the electric mouse. Red draped his vest across her shoulders and leaned against the cave walls, staring off into the darkness.
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