Pokémon Version Orange

[MarcusDeGabriel]

I needed to look for Mew.

Click to shrink...

Eurgh, i've just never liked Goh ever since i first learnt of him and his "goal", even having him appear in fics just makes him more annoying.

 

[iceknight90]

I'm really enjoying this.

I wonder what Travis' future adventures are like, as he tries (presumably futilely) to escape the misadventure orbit that Ash exudes.

 

[IcurasFallen]

Pokémon Version Orange

Arc 2 - The Summer


Chapter 16
​

---

For several seconds after the roar, nobody moved.

The Nidoking stood partially concealed beneath the trees, enormous shoulders rising and falling with every breath as its furious red eyes remained fixed on the four children who had wandered into its territory. Moonlight barely penetrated the canopy above, leaving most of its body swallowed by darkness outside the thin flashlight beams pointed shakily in its direction.

Then it took a step forward.

In reality, the movement was slow. One massive foot lifted before coming down against the forest floor with a heavy crunch, followed several seconds later by another.

To the four nine-year-olds standing in front of it, it might as well have been an avalanche.

Serena stumbled backward first, nearly colliding with Chloe as both girls instinctively crowded closer together. Chloe herself had gone pale, one hand locking around Serena's arm while the other clutched her flashlight tightly enough for her knuckles to turn white. Yamper was trembling just as badly, but the little Electric-type still planted himself firmly in front of both girls. Its legs were spread, and ears flattened against his head as a weak crackle of electricity sparked across his body in an astonishing display of courage from something that was smaller than the Nidoking's foot.

Goh wasn't doing much better. His flashlight shook badly enough that the beam bounced from the Nidoking to the ground and back again, while every breath came faster and shallower than the last. He looked seconds away from hyperventilating outright.

Ash, meanwhile, did what Ash apparently always did when presented with something vastly outside his weight class.

Whether from courage or sheer foolhardiness, his shaking hand dropped toward Poliwag's Poké Ball.

The Nidoking stepped closer…then paused as a sharp whistle cut through the air.

A small glass bottle spun end over end through the darkness before smashing against an exposed root several feet in front of Nidoking. Glass scattered across the earth, followed almost immediately by a sharp burst of acrid scent that spread through the clearing.

Nidoking blinked as its nostrils flared, and its entire face twisted into something resembling revulsion.

"GRAAAAGH!"

The roar turned ragged as the massive Pokémon recoiled and threw one clawed hand over its snout. It shook its head violently, taking an awkward step backward as it tried to escape whatever had just assaulted its sense of smell.

Even half a clearing away, Yamper began whining. The poor dog's bravery evaporated as he sneezed hard enough to stumble sideways, pawing frantically at his nose while Chloe stared between him and the shattered bottle in confusion.

"What the...?"

"MOVE!"

Four heads snapped toward the treeline.

I crashed through the brush before any of them could process my arrival, while Pichu clung to my shoulder with his fur puffed out in every direction and an expression that was some strange mixture of serious and panic.

I didn't give anyone time to ask questions as one arm hooked around Chloe while my other caught Serena, and I immediately started dragging both of them back the way I'd come. "Goh! Ash! Come on!"

"Travis?!" Goh sputtered.

"What are you doing here?!" Ash asked in shock.

"Saving your asses! Move!"

Chloe recovered first and grabbed Serena properly as I released them, allowing me to turn back toward the other two idiots. Goh was already stumbling after us, but Ash remained frozen for another second as he stared toward the still-stumbling Nidoking.

I grabbed his shirt. "Now, Ketchum!"

That finally got him moving.

For several precious seconds, it actually looked like my improvised plan might work. The Max Repel had bought exactly what I'd hoped for: enough time for us to put some distance between ourselves and the very pissed-off Poison-type.

Then a furious roar tore through the forest behind us.

Every one of us jerked around.

Nidoking stood at the edge of the trees we'd just escaped from, one hand still rubbing furiously across its snout. Whatever discomfort remained from the Repel clearly hadn't overridden its anger, because those red eyes locked directly onto us before one massive foot slammed into the ground.

A thick wave of poisonous liquid rolled across the clearing, swallowing grass and underbrush beneath a bubbling mass that surged directly toward us.

I could only click my tongue. I'd really hoped we could do this without a fight.

I stepped forward.

"Travis?!" Chloe's voice jumped an octave as the sludge rapidly closed the distance.

"What are you doing?!" Goh yelled.

Ignoring them, my hand dropped to my belt and closed around the second Poké Ball clipped beside Pichu's. My partner tightened his grip on my shoulder as I pulled it free, and I couldn't help the small smile that spread across my face.

"Round Table Protection, Sandy!"

White light exploded across the clearing before crashing into the ground in front of us, and the moment Sandy took shape, his entire body collapsed outward.

Sand surged in every direction.

Serena yelped as a thick tendril wrapped around her waist, only for another to catch Chloe beside her. Goh and Ash received the same treatment before any of them could react, and even I felt sand curl around my ankles as Sandy dragged all five of us into one tight cluster behind him.

The rest of his body rose into broad walls of sand that folded around us from every angle as pale green energy flashed across their surface. The glow curved overhead at the exact moment the Sludge Wave struck.

Serena screamed while Ash threw both arms over his head. Goh and Chloe clutched at each other as the barrier flashed violently beneath the impact, but it held. Not a single drop made it through.

The wave split around us instead, rushing past either side of Sandy's barrier before gradually losing momentum among the surrounding trees. For several seconds, nobody said anything as poisonous sludge dripped down the outside of the glowing shield, until Ash finally lowered his arms.

"Who's that Pokémon?!"

I laughed.

Four startled faces turned toward me. Even Pichu leaned away from my neck to stare.

I couldn't help it.

Maybe it was the lack of sleep. Maybe it was the adrenaline still buzzing through my veins, or the fact that after several days of camp activities designed for inexperienced children, I was finally standing across from something that could actually be called a challenge.

Whatever the reason, the fear I'd felt while watching those four idiots stand frozen in front of Nidoking had burned away the moment Sandy appeared.

And something considerably more familiar was taking its place.

My grin widened as the Protect barrier faded.

"Well then, guess we've got ourselves a Challenge!"

Sandy's face shifted around to give me a flat look.

I pouted. "What?"

His expression didn't change.

"Oh, come on. This isn't just me wanting a fight." I pointed toward Nidoking. "I hit him in the face with a Max Repel, and he still came after us. You really think he's going to let us turn around and walk away now?"

That finally earned a reaction.

Sandy's eyes shifted back toward the Poison-type.

The Nidoking looked nearly rabid as it scraped one heavy foot through the dirt, shoulders lowering as another growl rolled from its chest.

The humor left me.

"We need everyone out of here safely, bud." I gave Sandy's body a quick pat. "Looks like that means putting him down first."

The Palossand considered Nidoking for another moment before releasing a low, ghostly hum.

Agreement.

The protective walls surrounding us collapsed into flowing streams that rushed back toward Sandy, piling higher and higher as his broad, castle-like body rebuilt itself. Towers rose from the shifting mass, stubby arms formed at either side, and the red shovel atop his head tilted slightly as his proper shape settled into place.

Nidoking watched the transformation for only a moment before attacking.

One massive foot slammed down, and the forest floor erupted with golden light.

"Earth Power!" Goh shouted in recognition.

Cracking golden energy raced through the dirt toward us, glowing brighter by the second as buried energy tore beneath the ground.

I didn't even flinch.

"Cancel it out with a Bulldoze!"

Sandy slapped the ground.

A broad ripple of earth exploded outward from beneath him, not with the wild violence of Nidoking's attack, but with enough controlled force to make the entire clearing in front of us buck.

The two Ground-type attacks collided halfway between them.

For half a heartbeat, glowing fractures spread chaotically through the earth.

Then Nidoking's Earth Power broke apart beneath Sandy's advancing wave, golden light flickering out as the Bulldoze rolled straight through it and continued forward without slowing.

Nidoking's eyes had only a moment to widen before the massive Poison-type was ripped from the ground and thrown backward. It flew through the air before crashing shoulder-first through a cluster of bushes, then slammed into a tree hard enough to shower the clearing with splintered wood.

Behind me, nobody said anything.

My smile grew as Nidoking pulled itself back to its feet.

Its eyes locked onto Sandy before roaring loud enough to shake the very air. It charged.

Each step shook dirt loose beneath its feet as it barreled across the clearing, one fist drawing backward while harsh brown light gathered around the clenched claws.

"Sandy."

The Palossand hummed.

"Take it."

"What?!" Someone shouted behind me.

Nidoking's fist slammed into Sandy, and the impact blasted sand outward in every direction.

Serena cried out, Chloe threw an arm over her face, and even Ash recoiled as a good portion of Sandy's torso seemed to explode beneath the force of the punch.

Then Nidoking tried to pull its arm back and remained locked in place.

Its eyes widened as it looked down to find sand wrapped from its fist all the way to its elbow, flowing around every scale and locking into place as the rest of Palossand's body slowly reformed around it.

Nidoking pulled harder, and Sandy barely moved an inch.

I chuckled. "Giga Drain, Sandy."

Dark green light flashed inside the sand.

Nidoking screamed.

Thin tendrils of Grass-type energy crawled up its trapped arm before spreading across its torso, glowing brighter as energy poured backward into Sandy. The damage from Nidoking's punch disappeared almost as quickly as it had been inflicted, loose sand lifting from the ground and flowing back into the holes torn through his body.

Nidoking snarled and swung its free fist in a haymaker against Sandy's side. More sand scattered, only for another pulse of green light to race through Nidoking as the damage immediately began repairing itself. It struck again, then again, and Sandy tanked every blow without flinching.

I shook my head. "Don't bother."

Nidoking's furious eyes snapped toward me.

"You wanted this fight." I folded my arms. "Sandy, drain him dry."

The Palossand's eyes brightened.

Nidoking's roar turned into a strangled bellow as multiple streams of energy poured from its body at once. It slammed its free arm downward, clawed at Sandy's sand, kicked hard enough to tear chunks from his lower body, and even tried wrenching itself free with enough force to crater the ground beneath them. Yet nothing it did worked.

Every bit of damage Sandy took gave him more room to shift. Every piece torn away simply rejoined somewhere else. And every pulse of Giga Drain restored whatever little damage Nidoking actually managed to inflict.

The struggle lasted less than thirty seconds.

By the time Sandy finally released its arm, Nidoking barely had the strength to remain standing.

My own pulse was finally beginning to settle. I let out a slow breath and forced my shoulders to relax.

"Alright, Sandy. That's enough."

The Palossand gave a quiet hum.

"Let's make sure he stays down until everyone gets clear." I lifted one hand and pointed. "Hypnosis."

Sandy's eyes glowed.

The change was subtle at first, a faint pulse of psychic light spreading from beneath the shadowed rim of his sandy towers. Nidoking stiffened and tried to look away, but after everything Giga Drain had taken out of it, there wasn't much resistance left.

Its eyelids drooped, and the mighty Nidoking released one last exhausted rumble before toppling sideways into the grass with an impact that shook the clearing.

Silence finally settled.

I let out the breath I'd been holding and scratched Pichu beneath the chin as he finally loosened his death grip on my shoulder. "Well." I turned toward the four children staring at me. "Anybody else want to break curfew tonight?"

Silence followed for a moment, the others seemingly incapable of speaking.

I opened my mouth to continue—

"I would rather like to know the answer to that myself."

Every single one of us froze as a familiar voice drifted out of the darkness behind us.

Very slowly, we turned around.

Professor Oak stood near the edge of the clearing in a pair of slippers and old-fashioned button-up pajamas, his normally neat hair sticking out at several decidedly unprofessional angles. Beside him stood Amber, arms folded tightly across her chest as she stared at the collection of children she was presumably supposed to have safely asleep back at camp.

Nobody spoke.

Professor Oak's eyes traveled from Ash to Goh, then Chloe and Serena, before finally settling on me.

I swallowed.

Suddenly, the Nidoking seemed considerably less terrifying.

---

Professor Oak's laboratory was incredible.

For the first time since arriving at camp, we were actually inside the famous laboratory rather than wandering around the enormous property surrounding it. Computers and diagnostic equipment occupied entire sections of the room, shelves were packed with books and research journals, and several glass doors offered tempting glimpses into adjoining areas filled with even more equipment I desperately wanted to investigate.

Under practically any other circumstances, getting dragged in here after midnight would have been a dream come true.

Unfortunately, properly appreciating any of it was somewhat difficult with an angrily concerned Regional Pokémon Professor lecturing us.

"What were you thinking?!"

Professor Oak was still dressed exactly as he'd been when he found us. Button-up pajamas, slippers, disheveled hair, and an expression that made the five of us feel considerably smaller than we already were.

"You were told repeatedly that the forest was off-limits after lights-out," he continued, pacing in front of us. "Those rules are not there because we enjoy keeping you confined to camp. Visibility is poor at night, many wild Pokémon become more territorial, and most of you do not know the property well enough to recognize when you've wandered somewhere dangerous!"

Goh shrank slightly beside me.

Professor Oak's eyes immediately found him. "You and Ash were the first to leave camp. Would either of you care to explain what possessed you to wander into the forest after midnight?"

Goh hesitated before muttering, "I just wanted to look around."

The Professor raised an unimpressed brow. "At midnight?"

"I wasn't planning to go that far!"

"You went far enough to enter a Nidoking's territory."

That shut him up.

Ash rubbed awkwardly at the back of his head. "I only went because I saw Goh leaving?"

Professor Oak slowly turned toward him. "Which means you should have alerted a counselor, not gone with him into the forest!"

Ash puffed himself up. "I wanted to know what he was doing!"

"That is not a valid reason, Ashton Red Ketchum, and I know you are smart enough to know that."

Ash winced at the use of his full name and went silent.

"And then," Oak continued, looking toward an apologetic-looking Chloe and Serena, "rather than alerting an adult yourselves, you two followed them."

Chloe immediately frowned toward Goh. "Because I knew they were doing something stupid."

"Hey!"

"You walked into a Nidoking's territory!"

"I didn't know it was there!"

"And that," Professor Oak cut in before the argument could gather momentum, "is precisely the reason why we don't want you kids wandering around at night."

Both of them went quiet.

Serena shifted nervously beside Chloe, her answer coming out more like a question. "I only went because Chloe was going alone, so I thought it would be safer if we went together?"

Professor Oak's expression softened slightly. "Wanting to make sure your friend was safe was kind of you, Serena; however, just like Ash, following her into the woods without getting help was not."

Serena looked down with a whispered, "Sorry."

Chloe sighed. "We thought we could catch them and bring them back before anything happened."

Professor Oak raised a hand to rub his temples. "And instead, all four of you ended up within striking distance of a territorial Nidoking."

Nobody had an answer for that.

Then Professor Oak looked at me. "And you, Travis."

I straightened. "Professor."

"You saw them leave."

"Yes."

"You knew they were breaking curfew."

"Yes, sir."

"You even had enough presence of mind to retrieve your mother's Palossand and bring a Max Repel before following them."

I could already tell where this was going. "That's correct."

Professor Oak folded his arms. "Yet somehow, during all of that preparation, it never occurred to you to alert one of the counselors."

I had to fight down a frown. "I didn't want to lose track of them."

"That is not a good reason, and we both know it."

Professor Oak gestured toward the direction of the campsite. "You should have awoken everyone if you had to. I would much rather deal with an entire camp full of tired children than discover five of them missing come morning."

That was… unfortunately fair.

I rubbed the back of my neck. "Okay, that's a good point."

"It is a very good point." The Professor shook his head with a sigh. "You are considerably more experienced than most children your age, Travis, which means I expect you to recognize when experience is not a substitute for proper authority."

I didn't bother hiding my wince. Back home, I was used to being one of the people everyone expected to handle problems. Unfortunately, I'd let that habit override the rather important fact that, at camp, I was supposed to go get an adult.

"And while I understand why you battled Nidoking once it pursued you and attacked, you should never have been forced to make that decision alone in the first place."

"I did try getting everyone away before fighting," I at least attempted to argue.

He pursed his lips. "I am aware."

Amber, leaning against one of the nearby counters, took that moment to speak up. "It was pretty impressive."

Professor Oak slowly looked at her.

She raised her hands in mock surrender. "I'm not saying it wasn't stupid, but you have to admit that he did pretty well with what he had."

He simply grunted at the point before turning back to us. Some of the anger had finally faded from his face, leaving the worry beneath it much easier to see.

"Do all of you at least understand why I am upset?"

"Yes, Professor," we chorused instantly like the not-munchkins we were.

Professor Oak studied us for several seconds. Then he shrugged.

"Well, okay then. "

We stared at him. He stared back with a smile.

Ash was the first to break. "That's it?!"

Oak chuckled. "Yes, Ash. That's it."

"But you were really mad!"

"Believe me, I still am."

Ash blinked.

Professor Oak's smile widened slightly. "This camp exists to prepare you for the situations you'll eventually encounter as Trainers. Sometimes lessons come from instruction. Sometimes they come from practice. And sometimes they come from making a mistake frightening enough that nobody involved is likely to repeat it."

That was fair. Harsh, but fair.

"Encountering dangerous wild Pokemon is simply part of the Journey," he continued. "Despite every precaution we take, we usually have at least one or two serious encounters somewhere on the property each year. That is precisely why we spend so much time teaching you how to recognize danger and when to seek help."

I glanced along our little lineup.

Goh's shoulders finally loosened. Serena released the breath she had no doubt been holding in, while Chloe looked openly relieved.

Even I could admit that I felt a sliver of tension fade. I had honestly expected some kind of—

"Of course," Professor Oak added pleasantly, "learning your lesson doesn't mean you're avoiding punishment."

The relief vanished.

Our faces fell. "Punishment?"

Professor Oak chuckled. "Oh yes, you did break several camp rules after all." He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "I suppose I could remove all five of you from the tournament at the end of camp."

"NO!"

Ash's horrified shout echoed through the Lab.

I can admit I also went a little rigid at his words. That tournament had been just about the only thing I had been looking forward to since arriving at camp!

His lips twitched before he continued. "Perhaps something less severe, then. One of the Tauros stables is overdue for a proper cleaning."

Both girls immediately looked appalled.

Goh frowned. "How many Tauros?"

"Oh, just a few dozen."

His expression joined theirs.

Professor Oak chuckled before turning toward Amber. "You'll be supervising them for the rest of camp. Any ideas?"

Amber blinked, looked over the five of us thoughtfully.

Her smile slowly widened.

"Actually," she said, sweetness almost dripping from her voice, "I think I've got an idea."

---

"Pancakes or waffles?"

The boy didn't immediately answer. Presumably because he was too busy snickering as he stared at the white hairnet stretched across my head.

I narrowed my eyes. "Choose."

"P-Pancakes."

I slapped two onto his plate, and he barely managed a "Thank you" before hurrying away with a laugh.

"I hope you drop your syrup," I muttered after him.

"Travis," Amber warned from farther down the serving line.

"I didn't say I hoped he got hurt."

"That doesn't make it better."

I grumbled something considerably less charitable under my breath and reached for the next plate.

This was our punishment.

Not getting kicked out of camp. Not losing our chance to compete in the tournament. Not even spending several deeply unpleasant hours discovering exactly how much waste fifty Tauros could produce.

No, Amber had apparently decided on something far more insidious.

For the remainder of camp, the five of us would help prepare, serve, and clean up after every single meal. Normally, the counselors and camp staff handled most of that work unless it had been turned into a lesson about cooking, campsite etiquette, or properly feeding Pokémon. They also spent roughly an hour after each meal cleaning everything while the campers were released to enjoy those precious stretches of free time between scheduled activities.

We no longer possessed such luxuries.

If everyone finished breakfast and had forty minutes before the morning lesson, we spent those forty minutes scrubbing pans. If lunch ended early enough for everyone else to wander around camp, we were wiping tables, putting away supplies, and dealing with whatever culinary crime twenty children had somehow committed with access to condiments.

The work itself wasn't even particularly difficult. I'd done more complicated kitchen prep back at the Grand, and anyone who spent enough time around a hotel understood that cleaning up after other people came with the territory.

The uniform, however, had been completely unnecessary.

Amber disagreed. The fact that said disagreement came with a series of snickers had me seriously reconsidering whether I should finally let Pichu indulge his gremlin instincts and shock someone.

And now, all five of us stood in the breakfast line with hairnets and aprons. Chloe's was covered in cheerful little Sunflora, while Serena had received one patterned with Dunsparce and bows, which she had actually seemed to think was cute until realizing that enjoying the punishment probably violated some unspoken social rule. Goh's had, rather ironically, cartoon Caterpies crawling across it, while Ash's proudly declared KISS THE COOK! beneath an enormous smiling Magikarp.

Mine was covered in Luvdisc. And hearts. So many hearts.

"Next!"

Another camper approached, visibly fighting a smile.

I glared hard enough that I could swear I felt a vein throbbing on my forehead.

He immediately looked down at his plate.

Smart kid.

By the time the last camper wandered away with breakfast, I had served enough food to feed a Snorlax. Unfortunately, breakfast ending only meant we'd reached the second half of our punishment.

Amber appeared from behind the preparation tables carrying a plastic tub filled with cleaning supplies, looking entirely too cheerful for someone awake this early. "Alright, troublemakers! Breakfast service complete!"

Ash immediately sagged against the table. "Finally!"

Amber dropped the tub directly in front of him. "Now we clean!"

The whine Ash released wouldn't have sounded out of place coming from a Growlithe puppy.

Goh stared at the cleaning supplies. "We already helped make everything. And serve everything. Now we have to clean everything too?!"

"Yep!" She even popped the 'p'.

Goh's face twisted into something unpleasant.

Within several minutes, breakfast had been transformed into an organized cleanup operation. Chloe and Serena wiped down the tables and benches while Yamper followed behind them, occasionally sniffing anything that smelled vaguely edible. Ash and Goh had been assigned the stack of trays and serving utensils, while I found myself at the washing station dealing with the larger cookware.

Pichu sat comfortably on an overturned crate beside me. He wasn't being punished, and the smug little bastard was milking it.

I scrubbed at a pan while he happily worked through the last piece of breakfast I'd saved for him, tiny feet kicking against the side of the crate. "Enjoying yourself?"

"Pi Chua Chu." I hear that smug undertone, you little shit.

"I'm going to double this evening's training."

Pichu immediately started choking on his breakfast.

Behind me, something clattered.

"Goh!"

"I didn't do anything!"

"You dropped it!"

"Ash bumped me!"

"You were standing in the way!"

"I was putting it away!"

"You were putting it in the wrong place!"

Chloe pointedly glanced toward me from the tables and gave a helpless little shrug, so apparently this had become my problem.

I planted both hands against the edge of the washing station. "ASH! GOH!"

Both boys jumped, along with several nearby campers who had apparently decided free breakfast entertainment was included with the meal.

I pointed toward the remaining mountain of dishes. "The faster we finish, the faster we get whatever's left of our free time."

Goh frowned. "But he keeps getting in the way!"

Ash immediately pointed at him. "You're the one who keeps stopping to complain!"

"And you're both currently doing nothing," I pointed out. "Work first. Argue later!"

Ash and Goh exchanged annoyed looks before returning to the dishes with considerably more effort than before.

Amber shot me a thumbs-up that I pointedly ignored.

Breakfast cleanup still took the better part of an hour. By the time everything was packed away and cleaned until it practically sparkled, the rest of the Pikachu Group had already moved on to make the most of their break.

Amber inspected our work with her hands planted on her hips while the five of us watched her expectantly. She checked one table, then another, ran a finger along the edge of the serving station in a completely unnecessary manner, and examined the completely clean fingertip while Ash visibly struggled not to complain about how long she was taking.

Finally, she turned to us with a smile. "Looks good! You've got about fifteen minutes before the morning activity."

Ash groaned while Goh immediately dropped onto the nearest bench. Serena sat beside him, and Chloe removed her hairnet with enough force to suggest she'd developed deeply personal feelings about the thing.

I pulled mine off considerably more carefully before ripping the apron away with significantly less restraint. Hearts were not my look.

Amber passed behind me. "Make sure you keep track of that, Travis. You'll need it again for lunch~."

She would be lucky if I didn't set it on fire.

"Hold still, Poliwag!"

I glanced over just in time to see Ash tugging a considerably larger hairnet from around Poliwag's upper body.

The Water-type had decided sometime during breakfast that being the only member of our little group without one was unacceptable. Amber, because she was Amber, had immediately found an extra and helped him into it.

Poliwag had spent the rest of the morning proudly assisting us.

And by assisting, I meant knocking over a stack of cups, splashing dishwater across half the washing station, somehow getting syrup on Goh's back, and nearly sending an entire tray of clean plates crashing to the ground.

Thankfully, we'd established early on that anything Poliwag messed up became Ash's responsibility to fix.

The strained smile Ash had given his partner while cleaning syrup from the walls of one of the nearby tents had been the sole highlight of my morning.

"There!" Ash finally freed him, causing Poliwag to bounce happily in place. "You did great!"

We stared at him.

Ash's smile didn't budge.

"Poli!"

"Don't encourage him," Goh muttered from where he'd collapsed across the bench.

Poliwag puffed himself up indignantly before hopping toward him, which caused Goh to sit upright remarkably quickly.

"Keep him away from me! I already had to change my shirt once!"

Ash laughed and scooped Poliwag up before he could exact whatever happy vengeance he'd been planning. Chloe shook her head from beside Serena, though the smile tugging at her mouth ruined whatever disapproval she was trying to project.

For all the complaining, nobody seemed particularly miserable anymore.

Tired, definitely. Irritated about losing most of our break, absolutely. But somewhere between the ridiculous aprons, Goh and Ash trying to blame each other for dropped dishes, and Poliwag's determined efforts to unintentionally make our punishment worse, the whole thing had stopped feeling quite so awful.

Maybe shared suffering really did build character.

Ash dropped onto the bench beside me with Poliwag settling comfortably in his lap. For several seconds, he said nothing, which, coming from Ash, was enough of a rarity that I immediately glanced toward him.

"Hey, Travis?" There it was.

I sighed. "Yes Ash?"

He hesitated, fingers idly rubbing across Poliwag's head. "How were you able to move?"

That caught me off guard. "Pardon?"

"Last night." His expression tightened slightly. "When Nidoking showed up. We were all just standing there, but you came running out like it was nothing. How'd you do that?"

I blinked at the question. It was far more…serious than I had expected from Ash.

"Practice mostly." I leaned back against the bench, shifting slightly when Pichu climbed into my lap. "I've been working around a Gym for years. You spend enough time watching people battle in person that eventually seeing a giant Pokémon angry enough to flatten a building stops being a big deal."

Ash frowned. "But Nidoking was really angry!"

"So is Momo, Mom's Machamp, whenever somebody touches her food."

Chloe snorted from across from us, while Goh looked vaguely interested despite the fact that he was still slumped against the table.

Ash wasn't laughing.

"I mean it," I continued, realizing he was actually bothered by this. "I've been around dangerous Pokémon for years. I've helped referee Gym battles, trained with Mom's team, and watched Trainers throw attacks around that could probably level the campsite if they missed badly enough. You get used to keeping your head."

"But that's not what I'm asking!"

The sudden frustration in his voice made everyone look toward him.

Ash gripped Poliwag a little tighter, though the Water-type didn't seem bothered. "I want to know how you weren't scared!"

I stared at him for a second before letting out a quiet breath.

"Ash, I was terrified."

He blinked. "What?"

A chuckle escaped me. "Ash, I was scared out of my mind."

That earned his full attention.

I rubbed one hand through Pichu's fur as I thought back to the night before. "I was scared when I saw the four of you standing there with Nidoking stalking toward you. I was scared when the Max Repel didn't send it running like I'd hoped. I was definitely scared when it chased us down and threw a Sludge Wave at five kids."

I paused before adding, "And if we're being completely honest, Professor Oak finding us afterward might've been even scarier."

That finally got a few laughs.

Even Ash smiled, but the confusion didn't leave his face. "Then how'd you still do all that?"

I leaned over enough to meet his eyes. "Because I had something more important to worry about: all of you."

That quieted the others.

I glanced between them before shrugging. "Being afraid of Nidoking wasn't going to make it disappear. Standing there thinking about everything that could go wrong wasn't going to get any of you away from it either. So I focused on what mattered."

"Getting us away," Serena said softly.

"Exactly." I nodded toward her. "Get everyone moving. Put some distance between us and the threat. If that didn't work, I knew I had Sandy to protect everyone. After that, I'd just deal with whatever came next."

Ash looked almost lost at the explanation. "So you just…ignored being scared?"

"Not really." I scratched my cheek. "You can't exactly turn fear off because it's inconvenient. Believe me, I've tried."

Goh raised an eyebrow. "That doesn't sound healthy."

"Believe me, my psychologist tells me that all the time."

Quite a few eyebrows shot up in surprise.

Ignoring their reactions, I looked back toward Ash. "Don't get me wrong, fear's useful. It tells you when something is dangerous. It keeps you from doing something stupid just because you think it'll make you look brave."

Chloe slowly turned toward Goh.

He noticed immediately. "Why are you looking at me?"

"No reason."

"Then why did you look at me!?"

I ignored them. "The problem is when you let being afraid decide everything for you. Sometimes you've got to move anyway."

Ash was quiet for a moment. "Even if you're really scared?"

"Especially then."

His eyes dropped toward Poliwag, and I had a pretty good idea what he was remembering.

"You reached for Poliwag last night," I pointed out. "You were scared enough that I could see your hand shaking from the trees, but you still tried to do something."

"It wasn't a particularly good something," Ash grumbled.

"No, it wasn't," I agreed, causing Ash to look at me in frustration. Frustration that fell as I continued, "But you still moved. You moved in the face of your fear. At the end of the day, that's the part that matters."

Ash's face scrunched up as he absorbed my words. I swear I could almost see the gears trying to work behind his eyes.

"So…being scared is okay?"

"Of course it is." I leaned over to shake him a little. "Everyone gets scared. You just can't let it control you. Figure out what's more important than the fear, and focus on that instead."

Ash seemed to think about it before glancing toward the others. "For you, that was us?"

"At the moment, yes," I answered easily.

The others smiled, although I found Chloe's softening expression suspicious, while Goh became extremely interested in anything that wasn't the rest of us.

I frowned. "Don't make this weird."

"We're not," Chloe said while smiling and clearly making it weird.

"You're all making faces."

"I'm not making a face," Goh protested.

"You're deliberately not making a face. That's worse."

Ash laughed and bumped his shoulder against mine. "Thanks, Travis."

I huffed before bumping him back. "Just don't make me demonstrate the lesson again tonight."

"No promises!"

"That is literally the opposite of what I just asked!"

Ash just laughed harder.

---

Author's Note:

Sooo, we had the fight. We had an angry Professor Oak (arguably worse), and we had frilly aprons…oh, and some wholesomeness, but the aprons were the big thing there.

More seriously, hope y'all enjoyed the chapter, and I'll see ya next time…

Or, as you probably know at this point, I've got a Patreon up and running! If you want to read 5 chapters ahead or just support me in general, feel free to visit my p.a.t.r.e.o.n.c.o.m / IcurasFallen

 

[Lillie Jones]

Absolute Cinema
The Journey continues
10/10
Continue on
Cheers!

 

[iceknight90]

I pray to Arceus (Hail the mighty thousand handed llama) that Travis does not adventure with the likes of Ash or Goh in the future.

Because holy shit they would be some stressful idiots to follow around, blundering into one misadventure after the other through stubborn idiocy.

 

[IndraP]

Why Amber not getting punished? Isnt she is the one that suppose to keep an eye out for the kids?

 

[IcurasFallen]

Why Amber not getting punished? Isnt she is the one that suppose to keep an eye out for the kids?

Click to shrink...

Eh, it's kinda different there. The idiot from before outright lost a kid for an hour when said kid was his immediate responsibility. Amber is one of several counselors in this situation, and she is even the one who alerted the Professor in the first place, proving that she had thought to check on them in the first place, when they should have all been asleep, aka the one time the counselors shouldn't have to pay as close attention.

 

[IcurasFallen]

I pray to Arceus (Hail the mighty thousand handed llama) that Travis does not adventure with the likes of Ash or Goh in the future.

Because holy shit they would be some stressful idiots to follow around, blundering into one misadventure after the other through stubborn idiocy.

Click to shrink...

Lol, I've had quite a few people voice this, and I can confidently state that Travis's Journey will be his Journey...whether he himself blunders into a few misadventures however...

 

[Aura_Guardian]

I wouldn't be against Travis showing up to help with some of Ash's bigger adventures or even dealing with the periphery.

Like Mewtwo's storm, I'm sure it might have messed up the Sevii Islamds a bit (depending on where New Island is. Or Lugia's movie. Or even just one of the flavour of the day adventures, maybe one of the MANY times they deal with poachers, absolutely stomping them into the ground

Anyway, thanks for the chapter and I can't wait for more! (Though I am forced to)