No good deed goes unnoticed

«Let us summarize your situation, shall we? » Her voice rang low, but carried far enough, her facial traits obscured by the light behind her. It reminded me of that unfortunate incident in which I was kept in a police station for interrogation. Of course, I was the victim back then, not the criminal, so there was this difference now too.

Yeah, frankly, it made me uneasy enough to squirm, just to concentrate less on Nirvana's voice. This kind of feeling, from being in the company of a Nurse Joy to boot, had to be in a whole new order of surreal.

«You came here, in the middle of the night, after going outside for a walk, urging my chansey to alert me and start treating a badly injured baby pokémon. » She crossed her arm, giving me the impression she was staring flatly. «And this is all because you happened to find him, in that state, after it was attacked by a bunch of pichus. »

Hum… maybe I should start practicing my story-telling abilities a bit more.

Then again, it had been a very frantic moment, what's with me rushing through the glass doors, nearly running right into them before they could slide out of the way. Afterward, it was me trying desperately to find Nurse Joy, who seemed to have gone to sleep. It did not help that this place's chansey seemed a bit more clueless than the norm.

Point is, after rapidly retelling the events of the night, I had let her take the elekid's pokéball and followed her into the emergency room… until she kicked me out.

After that, I had slumped down into a chair, just trying to sort the events of the night in a rational order.

For what seemed like hours (while it actually was an hour), I had stayed there, fighting the sleepiness that was slowly crawling back under my skin. As time passed, it became harder to focus on rational thoughts, leading me to blink and doze off.

Until I heard a very misplaced cheerful bell ring and the door to the operation room opened.

«Good news, » Nurse Joy had started with a smile. «The elekid will be fine. I treated all his wounds for infection and placed him under surveillance for malnourishment. If everything goes well, he will be perfectly healthy in a few days at most. »

Hearing that made me smile a genuine, hopeful and – dare I think it? – prideful smile.

I helped. For once, my actions did not lead to a disaster, far from it.

«Now, to take care of the other Donfan in the room… » she added with a thoughtful expression.

I saw her lose her gentle disposition, her whole body language starting to become rigid. «Will you please follow me? I'd like to ask you a few questions and you'd be more comfortable there. »

Truth to be told, that last part had turned out to be a total and utter lie. I was not comfortable in the slightest right now.

Who would be, in my situation? Seriously, I was sitting in a tiny chair, on the end of a gray table, in a gray room, with a lamp shining too much light in my face so I could barely make the shape of my interlocutor, who seemed Reverse World bent on reenacting a bad cop movie.

«Where are you going with this? » I asked, frowning.

«It strikes me that tonight's events are not only highly unlikely, but they remind me of some scenarios I have seen before. » Her tone was wary now and I found myself wondering what kind of scenarios she was referring to. The way she sighed next tipped me off. It was heavy, as if she did not want to do that, which started to scare me. «Such a young pokémon should not be bearing wounds that severe. I have met new trainers that made the mistake, and thought nothing of it, of pushing their pokémon too hard. »

Did… did she just imply what I thought she did?

I was rendered speechless.

«I have to know. Did you really find that elekid injured like that? Or was he wounded when you were training and you did not dare show up immediately afterward when you realized how bad it was? »

It was like I had been sucker punched. Right in the guts. Real hard.

«H-how c-c-could you think tha-?»

«I have seen it before, » she replied evenly, never faltering or hesitating. «Sometimes, new trainers don't understand quite well the limits of a new pokémon, especially if it's young. Sometimes they think of training programs that are too harsh and can't see it as wrong. »

I lost my voice completely, feeling all colors drained out of my face.

«For example, my cousin told me of a trainer with a chimchar that held interest toward its ability Blaze. In order to learn how to control it, he had taken to having the rest of his team attack that chimchar until it went berserk. »

I was going to throw up. Seriously. And this room did not look like it contained any wastebasket. However, something else was starting to pierce through my illness.

Indignation. Anger. Fury.

«How dare you?! » I spat venomously. «HOW DARE YOU?!»

I stood up, slamming both my hands into the table HARD.

It boomed, visibly startling Nurse Joy. In the otherwise silent room, the noise had literally exploded and it seemed to me like her ears were ringing.

«I SAVED THAT ELEKID'S LIFE! HOW DARE YOU ACCUSE ME OF ABUSE?! »

It took so much control not to lunge at her. I could see the images of that battered, bruised, injured elekid in my mind, replaying over and over again. His cries of pain and desperation echoed endlessly and fed my fury.

She thought I had inflicted that on a baby pokémon?!

«I can't believe you, » I muttered, low and as quietly as possible. I had no idea on whether she had heard me or not. It did not matter either way.

I just walked up to the door, not trusting myself to stay here any longer and not become violent. It would be really stupid of me to prove her point.

«I'm traveling with Martin, you know? You think he'd let me get away with that? » I knew he wouldn't. Just imagining him discovering that sort of behavior from me…

He'd look sad, not even all that angry. It would probably be a very quiet reaction, to contrast with his usual, over the top, antics.

You're not my little brother.

…Arceus… That stung so much worse than I thought it would. For a moment, my chest constricted painfully at the words, even when I knew they weren't real. Did his opinion of me mattered that much?

«Do not leave yet, please. » Nirvana interrupted my thoughts, closing her eyes with a pained expression on her face, no longer hidden by the light.

Still dazed by my treacherous imagination, I had half a mind to ignore her request completely and she must have sensed it, because she immediately added this.

«Your elekid was traumatized. He needs a trainer that will care. I-I just had to be sure.»

I stopped dead in my track, frozen where I stood.

«Hum… he's not my pokémon. » I squirmed, uncomfortable with this misunderstanding.

Because, no, it had not crossed my mind that I had indeed caught yet another pokémon and that Anna was going to kill me dead, deader than dead and then bring me back just for the added kick of killing me deader than deader than dead.

Yup, that sounded like her kind of thorough.

«What? » She blinked, comically might I add.

Not that I felt like laughing, except perhaps a nervous laugh.

«I told you. I just found that elekid and wanted you to heal him. » I pointed out, an uneasy grimace on my lips.

«You captured it. » She frowned, staring at me intensively now.

«Yes, because I could not touch it without getting shocked. » I waved a hand that I pretended had gone numb.

«And you did not intend to train him at all? » Okay, that was either sarcasm or skepticism. For some reason, Nirvana really made it hard to tell those two apart at this point.

«No. I planned to release him as soon as he was better. »

I was not getting trapped like this. I had a promise to keep!

«You can't do that. » Her eyes betrayed distress and something gripped my guts in a cold embrace.

«W-what? »

«He's too young. Your elekid…» No… she had to stop calling him that. If I started getting attached to him now… «… put mildly, will die if you release it. »

Oh crap. I was doomed. And how the heck was that «put mildly»?!

«Certain species of pokémon have their young become independent very early in their lives. » Nurse Jot was using a softer tone now, perhaps to prevent me from leaving. «It is the case, among others, of the elekid evolutionary line. The parents will let their baby to fend for itself after but a few seasons. This was the case for the elekid you have brought here. »

I swallowed the little saliva I had left. Why did she bother beating around the bushes like that? Why couldn't she just say the words and doom me already?!

«During that period, the baby pokémon will form its personality. It is crucial for its development that it lives by itself, without interference from its parents... or any outsiders at all, really. »

I closed my eyes, now resigned to my fate. It did not, however, prevent me from contemplating the sweet, sweet idea of knocking myself unconscious by bashing my head into the wall.

«If one were to help it, the baby pokémon will latch onto that being as a parental figure and will lose its capacity toward independence. In short, by saving that elekid, you made him see you as its new parent. »

Arceus, why do you torture me so?

Wait a minute…

I suddenly turned to Nirvana, my new hope filtering through my every feature.

«Hey! If it latches onto anyone that helps, wouldn't it consider you its mom as well? »

She looked away and I prepared myself for another mental blow.

«Yes. That elekid will remember that I healed him and would likely latch onto me just as it would with you. » At that part, she bit her lips. Really, this whole delicacy about softening blows and slowly revealing the information was just another way to torment me. I hadto find what I had done in another life to be treated like this. Did I blow up an amusement park? «The only problem is that I no longer have the funds to raise a pokémon in here. There have been too many cuts in our budget recently. »

Again with those cuts?! Why did the training government keep doing that?!

I knew the answer to that question and some pictures of young trainers floated in my head, making me shiver.

«At this point, I have no choice but to ask you to take care of that pokémon. In other circumstances, it would be probably for the best to just send him to a breeder, but I'm afraid he would not overcome the mental scars from the attack. »

Oh to the Reverse World with it. I knew the second that idiot shoved the ultra-ball in my hands that I was going to get another pokémon. It was just a matter of where and how, really.

«Where is he? » I asked in a whisper, losing all will to fight the inevitable.

«Man, I had the weirdest night, yesterday. You would not believe it. »

Ah yes, everyday had to start with Martin saying something absolutely cringe worthy, which is precisely why I winced in supreme annoyance.

It did not help it that Martin had dragged me in the cafeteria and shoved a bowl of cereals in my hand before carrying me to a random table.

I was too tired for this stuff, not to mention that I wanted toasts!

I glared weakly, but Martin probably interpreted it as morning grumpiness, which, to be fair, was in grand part just that.

«Is that so? » I grumbled, picking up a spoon without conviction.

«Oh yeah, » he said with an alarmed expression (totally fake, everyone could tell). «I dreamt that I was eating this giant fluffy marshmallow and when I woke up, my pillow was gone. » He held his hands in front of him, as if denying any part he may have played in this incredible drama.

«Liar, I saw your pillow this morning, » I said.

«I'm not lying. » He gave me the growlithe eyes, his lips almost quivering for added effect.

My answer was to give him a flat look and not give up the staring contest.

«Well, there were parts missing, » Martin amended.

I kept staring.

«I munched it a little… » his voice trailed off.

Still staring.

«Alright, alright, I drooled all over it! » Martin pouted. I nodded smugly and chose to rub salt all over the wound.

«And what is today's lesson? » I asked, with a childish glee that exists only in educational toddlers' programs.

«That telling the truth is good! » Martin stood up, arms high and a grin on his face.

I might have giggled, sincerely, at that. Might. Do not misinterpret this.

There might have been a few trainers and other pokémon-related professionals staring our way with incredulity and/or amusement, but to my surprise I did not care (lack of sleep and prolonged exposure to Martin tended to do that to me).

Content with himself, he sat back, relaxed and leaning his cheek on one hand. His eyes shone with curiosity and mockery.

«Speaking of truth, you were not there when I woke up. In fact, you did not spend much of the night in our room. So… could you please share up your whacky adventure with me? I want to start the day on a good note! » He grinned and ruffled my hair.

I only shot him a death glare.

«What makes you think the adventure I had was whacky?! » I mumbled, indignant.

«Because it's you, my lil' teddybro. But since you did not deny you had an adventure last night… » He leaned closer, but left his voice die out by itself. Not that he was fooling anyone. I was pretty certain even the random electrode that had rolled next to us knew exactly what Martin was trying to get at.

I grimaced, because there was no way to hide it when I would be traveling with him anyway. So… like a Band-Aid? A painful and short moment.

Go!

«Iwokeup'causeofanightmareanddecidedt otalkawalkoutsideandfoundane lekidthatIcan'tgetridoforhe'lldieandthat'sthat.»

Martin blinked. I blushed.

«Huh? »

Crap, too fast, missed the Band-Aid and pulled a bit of skin. It hurt and I had to start over again… Man, at this point, I ought to bang my head against a nearby wall and pass out. It had been that stupid.

«I said that I went out to talk a walk and stumbled upon this. » I started again, dropping my elekid's pokéball on the floor.

There was a pale flash of light, erupting from the item and taking a small roundish shape, before the form of my new pokémon was defined.

I probably could have just whipped out my Ultra Ball in front of him and be done with it. I bet he would have understood in the second anyway. He was the «Bright Fool», as they had called him. A fitting name. He was smart and stupid at the same time.

Kind of like me now that I thi-

NO!

«Kid? » The baby pokémon on the ground said with confusion, until his eyes fell on Martin.

Just then, he froze, body tense and eyes widening.

My traveling companion noticed it too, slowly distancing himself from the small pokémon, possibly to help it calm down.

A very often ignored corner of my mind was kind of touched by that simple gesture, telling me that he really was as cool as Damian made him to be.

As I said, it was a very, very often ignored part of my brain.

«Elekid! »

That cry of panic brought me out of my reverie. Oh, and the instantaneous shock and numbing of my right leg helped too.

My elekid had ran behind me to hide, grabbing said leg and his body charged with static electricity had done the job of bringing a tear or twelve to my eyes.

I was shocked, but not surprised. Nirvana had predicted it.

The pokéball opened, guided by the hand of the nurse. Instantly, the baby pokémon had leapt out, but was absolutely lost. He had let out a few startled whimpers, before sniffing the air once or twice.

The panic seemed to dissolve and it rushed for Nirvana's legs to get a hold of them (I was not jealous!). She flinched, but other than that, she simply leaned down and picked him up with a pair of rubber gloves.

The little pokémon seemed to glower with happiness and it melted my heart once more. As if the little thing had not succeeded a hundred times that night already.

She smiled back at the elekid, but there was a lingering sadness to her voice.

«Hello, little one. Are you well? »

«Kiiiid! » He exclaimed, throwing his arms up and smiling back.

«I am glad, » she whispered. «Do you recognize him? »

The electric type turned to me, squirming uncomfortably when reminded of the presence of another being in the room (but the Chansey did not disturb him, why?).

For a second, I dreaded he would fear me. That he would try to get away from me. What would happen to him then? Nurse Joy said that he could not be kept in the center. They no longer had the means for that.

However, when he saw me tentatively offering a nervous grin, he let out an enthusiastic «Kiiiiiid».

I was not aware that I had let out a sigh of relief right away. Even if I had been, it would have been blown away by Nurse Joy's next words.

«This is going to be your new dad, » she said.

It was my turn to utterly panic, sweat and shake in my boots, then widen my eyes and restrain from throwing up.

I was too young and too cute to be the ten-years-old daddy of an electric type pokémon!

Nirvana was not convinced, neither was the elekid.

Oh Arceus, why hath thou forsaken me?!

So, indeed, it had not been a surprisethat he had recognized Martin as a dangerous foe and hid accordingly. I supposed I ought to be proud of him for that. Good boy.

«Hum… » The delivery man was at a loss for words.

I couldn't tell why, but this struck me as odd. I would have expected him to be either hyperactive or super worried.

«Well? » I asked, impatient. His silence was killing me.

Oh for the love of… What have I thought?!

Martin only looked puzzled though. «Forgive me if I'm wrong, but wasn't there a promise you made to a certain young lady about not catching pokémon on your journey? »

Ah yes, there was also this part of the ordeal that would no doubt prove hazardous.

A cold shiver went down my spine.

No, I did not spend five minutes imagining Anna doing horrible, horrible things to a poor little handsome guy like me. I did however fight the urge to immigrate to Unova. Funny how things go sometimes.

«I see…» Martin grinned slyly. «Need a bodyguard for the next time you meet her? »

YES!

«No, I don't think so… » I replied easily, shrugging nonchalantly.

Mew, why did I have the feeling he could see through my lies? He was just staring knowingly, with a light of something in his eyes and he was obviously restraining himself from saying some nonsense.

Put like this though…it was not a bad thing.

«Alright, alright, I'll let you face your «girl friend», alone, without support, just like you ask. »

I grimaced.

«Onto other things, » Martin continued with ease, «what's his – or is it her? – name? »

I… hadn't thought of that yet.

I shot a look at the very timid elekid attached to my leg (which was still very numb, thank you for asking). Said pokémon looked up, visibly unsure of how to react so close to a stranger, human nonetheless.

«I honestly don't know… » I sighed half-heartedly and decided to sit down before I fell down in a humiliating fashion.

Selfish as it was, I was tired and I could not exactly think straight long enough to find a good name for him. I mean, it's not like I could just choose something and be done with it. It was his name, something he would have to respond to all his life... and the fact that he seemed to consider me as a parental-figure made me that much more anxious about it.

«Can I offer a suggestion? » He leaned forward, making my elekid jolt.

«Will you stop that?! You're scaring my youngest pokémon! » I pushed him backward and he stumbled backward into his seat.

«Huh… » He stared after this sudden outburst. «That was grumpier than your usual, lil' teddy. »

I was tired! Sue me.

«But yes, you can. » I mumbled, hand posed to stroke my elekid's back. I stopped when I remembered the static electricity he was covered in.

«Wattson, » he declared.

«Wattson? » I repeated, dumbfounded.

He nodded with a smile.

«Like… the son of watt? And how did you know he's a boy anyway? » I tilted my head sideward, trying to remember if I had somehow mentioned it.

Distantly, I was rolling the word over and over in my head, discovering that I liked the sound of it. It was kind of catchy and it seemed appropriate.

«I didn't until now. Also, it's more like Wattson, the bumbling chubby sidekick of the great detective Sherla Helmet. That was my favorite TV show when I was a little cub like you. » He laughed sincerely, without mockery.

He received a flat look for his trouble.

«I'll stick with my first interpretation of the name, thank you very much. » I turned to my elekid – Wattson, I told myself – who was looking up to me with the cutest pair of growlithe eyes ever.

My heart melted into gooey goo and I smiled.

Wattson smiled back and the rest of my vital organs followed suit in their liquefaction.

It took all my willpower not to start cooing. Martin was watching after all.

«I will call you Wattson. Do you like it? » I said, restraining myself from sounding anything but cool, aloof and nice.

It was a weird mix, but it did not matter. Wattson just jumped a few times on his feet, enthusiastic from the looks of things.

«Looks like Dora will have competition on your team as for the title of the cutest pokémon ever. » Martin snickered, a good natured grin on his face, and he ruffled my hair.

Dumbfounded, I contemplated his words. The cutest? But they were both the cutest in their own ways! Just like Levys was by far the most awesome magikarp ever, Dora was the princess quagsire and a cute bully. How would Wattson enter that equation, I had no idea.

«I suppose they haven't met yet, champ? » He raised his mug of coffee, finally able to drink without coughing it up.

«No, » I said simply.

Wattson, seemingly realizing the changes in my voice, let out a worried «Kiiiiid?» and scooted closer to me.

The sharp pain in my leg was promptly ignored in the face of a much more pressing predicament. Wattson's eyes were watering dangerously.

I blinked.

Crap! What do I do?! What do I do?

It was the first time one of my pokémon would cry! Levys was just that cool and Dora would sooner die a horrible death than cry, especially in front of me. H-how do you comfort a little kid that wants to cry because you're not all sunshine and rainbows?!

«Cub, » Martin said, without looking up from a list of some sorts. «Give him that. And smile. A lot. »

I picked up the bowl of pokeblocks subconsciously, my brain running too fast to register any of the mundane stuff.

Put down the bowl. Say it's for him. Smile. Smile. Smile.

«Here you go! » I declared loudly, very loudly (and cheerfully, at least).

Wattson froze, Martin looked up from his list, a dozen trainers turned toward me and the resident chansey stared.

«I bet you're hungry, it's good. Yum yum. » I blurted out quickly, before sinking back into my seat with an epic blush across my cheeks.

I put my head into my palms, groaning. I really had to learn how to underreact to some forms of stress. If any of them knew about Martin (which I had learned was very likely), then my own reputation would only be cemented as his eccentric little brother.

The coolest champion… no one would ever call me that…

«Elekid! »

I looked down, where my new pokémon was holding a pokeblock toward me, seething happiness.

There was a second when my chest heated up, warmth spreading over at this simple gesture.

I grabbed the pokémon treat and, under his eager gaze, ate it, making a show of enjoying it thoroughly. While it tasted absolutely horrible, it was worth it seeing Wattson throwing his arms up in the air, adorable in every way.

I couldn't stop a tender smile to show up on my lips, just as my self-preservation instinct did not stop me from petting and stroking Wattson's fur.

«Hum… cub, pokéblocks are going to make you throw up. » Martin broke the magic (of course he would).

It was apparently very true, because my stomach protested and I felt myself pale.

But even as I bolted for a bathroom, I told myself it was worth it for my pokémon. It would always be.

«Now that your typical lack of luck has acted, we can safely assume you will not be crushed by a snorlax until two in the afternoon. » Martin grinned, taking in the morning sunlight in stride.

I punched his ribs for that.

«Ouch, violence, lil' teddy. That's bad. » He snorted, massaging his hurting sides.

«Tch, so is your very being. You don't hear me complaining, » I retorted moodily.

«Awww, I love you too. » He lifted me up in yet another bear hug, from which I desperately struggled to escape. Key word being «struggled».

Curse my soft and defenseless pre-teen body!

«Where do you see the love?! » I protested and proceeded to viciously bite his thick jacket-covered shoulder.

«Totodiles babies express their love by trying to bite off the limbs of their parents with their cute little jaws full of sharp teeth. Kind of just like you, right now. » He cheerfully lifted me higher, throwing me off balance and dropping me on the attacked shoulder like a bag of potatoes.

…I hated being compared to veggies…

Giving up all will to fight, I relaxed into his (this is me shivering, just so you know) embrace and just sighed.

«Let me gooooo, » I whined without energy (Sleep! I needed SLEEP!).

«What's the magic words, champ? » He smiled again, carrying three boxes under one arm, me on his left shoulder and deciding that the best course of action was to start moving.

We, surprisingly, did not fall on the ground in the first few steps.

«Shazam, » I said flatly.

«True, but not the ones I'm looking for. » He went past a very traditional looking theater which seemed to be holding some sort of spectacle.

For some reason, it caught my eyes. I had the feeling that place was… mystical? I couldn't quite tell, it was very vague and, as far as impressions go, that was not the best I had in a long time.

«Oh, the dancing kimono ladies? » Martin chipped in, noticing my interest (At the angle he was? One word: freaky.). «They're pretty sweet. I think we might get a chance to see them later. Interested? »

«…Yeah, it could be fun. » I nodded, though my heart skipped a beat at the idea of owing Martin another favor. «Oh, and I'm no-»

«Cool, I already bought tickets for that yesterday. » He cut me off.

ARCEUS! I was never going to win against him, was I?

A big brother's privilege, my mind told me.

After I proceeded to mentally kick my mind in the nuts and say «screw you!», I broke free from Martin's Elite Four level grasp.

«Hey! I never heard the magic words! » The delivery man pouted.

«Not my problem! » I stood up, feeling rejuvenated by my actions of greatness. He eyed me with a smile, for some obscure reason only known to him.

«Right, champ. » He rearranged his boxes in his arms. «Are you going to challenge Morgana today? »

I glared.

«No? Lots of training then? »

I rolled my eyes. «I want Levys to evolve before challenging Morgana. He won't be able to touch her at all otherwise. »

«That sounds like a surprisingly sensible choice as a trainer. » He smiled.

Oh, he did NOT imply what I just thought he did.

I frowned, crossed my arms and grunted.

«Well, it does not matter what YOU think, » I yelled, stomping away from him.

Me? Not sensible as a trainer? Why? Because I ONCE let out an inexperienced pokémon against a gym leader for her first battle? Or because I ran headfirst into a forest and pissed a swarm of beedrill for no reason? Or when I…

Urgh, now I was making my mood worse myself.

I stopped moving.I was probably overreacting. Really, he had not said that. Perhaps, he hit the tauros' eye when he called me a drama queen.

Okay, maturity class 101: realize when you're blowing things out of pro-

I stumbled forward, hit on the back of my head by something spherical. Letting out a yelp of pain, I blinked the tears away and looked down.

A pokéball.

«Sorry, champ! », came the distressed voice of my idiotic big brother. «I didn't think you were going to stop so brutally! »

Zen, karma, calm riverside, flowers and pretty pidgeys singing in chorus with lollipops and rainbows, a peaceful soul in the stream…

«That's Orion's pokéball. Take it with you, just in case! » He shouted, still a good distance away.

To the Reverse World with the stream!

«I don't want your stinking pokémon, Martin! » I threw it back, seething with fury.

I ignored his face full of hurt, because the back of my head was equally hurting and I was going to apologize for overreacting when he threw a pokéball at me!

I stomped off, for real this time. I did not care that we had not decided on anything like a rendezvous point for the end of the day, nor that I would not have any ways of contacting him without one of his two psychics.

I really just wanted to get some sleep and some respect, but since one was unavailable and unproductive at the moment, I would settle for the other.

I yawned.

This was harder than I thought.

My eyes were threatening to close already and the sun was still high in the sky.

Not good.

«Kiid?» Wattson tugged on my leg questioningly.

«Magikarp kaaarp, » Levys chipped in, his tone gentle.

All in all, their introduction had been exactly that.

Levys had been floating in his tank, on the floor, while I released Wattson. My youngest pokémon immediately hid behind my leg, shocking me and eying Levys fearfully.

However, I only needed to say «Levys, this is the newest member of our team, Wattson. » to my starter and he instantly started chatting. What Levys told Wattson, I have no idea, never will, most likely.

After all, it was not very diversified.

«Kiid?»

«Karp, karp magikarp karp. »

«Elekid!»

«Magikarp.»

«Elelelekid?»

«Magi magikarp!»

«Elekid kiiiiiiid! »

…Yeah. And after that, Wattson had warmed up enough to Levys to hang out outside his pokéball in the same vicinity. Of course, if any wild pokémon was to appear, Levys had to be the one to start fighting. Wattson was thoroughly terrified of ANYTHING bigger than a joltik.

Considering that species is among the smallest (if not being outright THE smallest) species of pokémon…

…Yeah.

Seeing that he apparently was in danger of cardiac arrest by the simple proximity of wild pokémon, I decided to wisely wait until I had him meet Dora.

Instead, what happened was one long day of training my magikarp and getting my elekid to break out of his shell.

I should have been happy to see his progresses. Levys could smack down the common pokémon in the area with a few well-placed Tackles or Tail Slaps. Even if the "stats" published scientifically described a magikarp's power as lower than that, he managed.

There was a knot in my guts, heavy and growing with each passing hour.

I-I could not tell what it ought to mean, but…

«Kid! » Wattson exclaimed in awe, just as he took a few steps closer to Levys' battle.

What if Levys or his opponent (another goldeen) misfired and hit him by mistake!

«Wattson!» I said and rushed to pull him back (which, in itself, was hard as heck without touching him).

Obviously, Wattson did not see it like that and fought back, even sending a few shocks through my arms.

«Elekid kiiiid kid! » He struggled.

One of his hit got me right in the shin and I stumbled backward, mostly because my leg was now rigid as heck.

To make matters worse, Dora's pokéball fell off my belt when I hit the ground.

«Sire?» She said, materializing right in front of a hysterical elekid.

«KIIIIIIIIID! » Wattson cried and jumped behind my body, only to poke his head shyly over me hips.

«Quagsire?» Dora tilted her head to the side, confused as to this new intruder.

I grimaced and massaged the back of my head, all the while ignoring the shocks Wattson was unknowingly sending through my body. «Dora, that's your new teammate, Wattson. He's very young and timid so be nice. »

Yes, I knew that giving her such a direct order outside of battle could only lead to disaster, but my instinct was dulled by a very persistent desire to go to bed early.

«Kid? » Wattson muttered tentatively.

I eyed my little princess with caution. She seemed in one of her better mood, which in itself was great, but more importantly she was a bit intrigued.

She took a few steps toward him, slowly, almost kindly. She even seemed a bit… motherly?

…That couldn't be right.

Under the assault of a suspicious kindness, Wattson seemed to warm up and let his guard down a little.

«Quagsire?» She asked.

«E-elekid… » My poor little electric type replied very timidly.

I swore, if he did not have fur, his cheeks would have been luminescent.

«Sire?» She pressed further, moving a bit more into his personal space.

…I had a bad feeling about this.

«Kiiiiiid.» He nodded.

I'd like to blame the paralysis on my leg for what happened next or the fact that I was too stunned by the unusual change of attitude from Dora's part. (Both were flimsy excuses, the numbing in my legs was already gone and I was tensed and ready for action.)

However, the true reason would be that I hoped…

«Sire! » She spat out a Mud Bomb in his face.

I watched with horror as my newest pokémon was sent flying right into the river.

«WATTSON!» I screamed and scrambled to my feet.

Oh Mew! Levys and that goldeen had stopped fighting and were being shocked by Wattson's static electricity.

«Kaaaaaaarp! » My starter convulsed in pain and started struggling in the water.

«KIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIID! » My little baby boy shouted in fear.

I was given wings.

My shoes were lost in seconds and my socks followed suit right afterward. Some pidgey whistle in indignation but, amazingly, I couldn't care less!

I jumped headfirst, closing my eyes just before the impact.

It was cold, like every river in Johto anywhere at any given time, it seems. I was more concerned by the discharge that painfully went through my whole body!

Crap!

I opened my eyes with the shock and could indistinctively make the shape of my elekid sinking into the darker water.

My heart jumped in my chest. No way! NO FREAKING WAY!

I would have screamed, had I not been underwater. Instead, I put all my energy into reaching him. Levys could survive underwater if he wasn't being constantly shocked. Wattson… oh Mew, I couldn't imagine his fear!

My arms moved forward, almost being flailed at that point, just to reach him. I couldn't…

I had to…

I'd like to say I was submerged with relief when I touched him, but I was shocked so badly I let out a pained gasp.

The bubbles escaped my mouth, eerily making their way upward, leaving us both down into the cold water...

I pulled Wattson closer and fought the blurring of my senses, the growing vertigo and the fire in my lungs.

I kicked. I pushed. The surface still seemed so far.

Man, what I wouldn't give for a little help here…

…Gee, Cosmos, you really are a master of subtlety. Are you trying to make me love Martin's every attempt to help me and become his fanboy?

The worst part was that it was working. I really wished I had accepted Orion's pokéball this morning.

Just then, as I struggled, I saw a shadow. Not a big looming one, a small one. It was at most half my size.

It swam gracefully, unaffected by the electric current like every other pokémon in the river.

«D-Dora? » I muttered, dumbly.

I deserved the hit in the stomach that followed. Both because I had been stupid and because the continued pressure pushed me out of the water.

The late afternoon's air greeted us, warm and dry.

I gasped and so did Wattson. It should have felt good to breath. It was just mildly painful.

Dora snorted with disdain and pushed us further closer to the shore with a powerful Water Gun.

I let the smaller current drive us to the shore, too focused on not letting my numb arms drop Wattson, the latter of which was shaking like a leaf in the wind.

I climbed the muddy shore painfully slowly, taking good care not to hurt my youngest pokémon, under Dora's intense scrutiny.

After much trouble, I managed to place him softly on solid ground.

«You okay, Wattson?» I asked, panting heavily.

My eyes were just threatening to close by themselves at this point. I was SO tired.

Wattson jumped on my head and hugged it tightly. Miraculously, he seemed to have emptied any static electricity he could have produced at the moment.

I did my best to smile as I stroke his back blindly.

«Shhhh, it's fine. You're fine, okay? » I said soothingly (I hope).

Then, the mud under me gave in, making me slip slightly. Half my body was back into the river. I stayed still, too tired to fight my way out again.

«Sire? » Dora asked, now swimming a few meters away from us. Something about her body language wasn't just right. It lacked a lot of arrogance and aloofness.

She couldn't be worried, could she?

I smiled warmly her way, hoping my disheveled look would not be subject to her mockery right now. «T-thanks Dora. You're really my precious princess. »

Shocked, her mouth fell and hung in the air, with that very distinct lack of dignity she usually had.

«It was not on purpose. » I patted her head (squishy, mushy, slimy!) gently. «You help repair your mistake. It's fine. J-just apologize to Wattson later, okay? »

She blinked.

For a moment, I was afraid I broke her, the poor girl. Fortunately, she just shook her head and regained her composure. She turned her head away, all dignity again.

«Quagsire, » she said.

«Thanks. » I grinned.

Have I mentioned that this day was one I would remember for most of my journey? No? Well, it's not quite what happened before that got carved in my memory, but rather what was about to unravel itself.

It would have been fine. I got Wattson, he met both my other pokémon. It was a rocky start, but it seemed possible to move it in the right direction.

Perhaps I was too simple-minded, too straight forward, but for a while, that issue was pushed to the back of my mind.

By Levys.

We were all startled when we heard his cry of rage. We were surprised to see him in mid-air. I was shocked to see him, glowing a faint red light, spinning at high-speed.

Dora dove underwater, guessing his trajectory.

She guessed right and it was wise of her to dodge.

Levys hit the surface with his body, not all that far from us.

It was like a snorlax had jumped in.

The shock lifted a frightening amount of water and a small wave threw me on the shore.

I stared with wide eyes, as did Wattson.

What the Giratina was THAT?!