Life of a trainer

This fanfiction is about the adventures of a fourteen-year-old Pokémon trainer who goes by the name Andy Bansing and who lives on Rhando Island. Here I will tell you about the adventures of the most awesome trainer of the world...if we believe him on his word that is. You can say a lot about Andy, but not that he is modest in any way. His adventure starts on Rhando Island, and continues in the Kanto Region, followed by the Johto Region. In his travels he will visit all the known regions of the Pokémon world and I will share with you the most noteworthy events that took place during the journey. This is a fanfiction that I started on the old PF forum, but I'm currently rewriting bits and pieces and every time I finish a chapter, I will upload it here. Feedback is appreciated, English is not my native language, so I assume there will be grammatical errors here and there. List of chapters Chapter 1 - The first Pokémon Chapter 2 - Encounter in Lilan Town Chapter 3 - The first battle Chapter 4 - Evolution Chapter 5 - Metapod's Might Chapter 6 - Vespiqueen's Attack Chapter 7 - Departure Chapter 8 - Gym battle in Saffron City Chapter 9 - Encounter with a Mankey Chapter 10 - The dojo Chapter 11 - A stubborn Mankey Chapter 12 - The things that happen (recap-summary) Chapter 13 - The day-care Chapter 14 - Working in the day-care Chapter 15 - The Furret Chapter 16 - The storm Chapter 17 - Back on the road Chapter 18 - Inside the dark forest Chapter 19 - Seriously? Chapter 20 - Furret's first fight (and Hoothoot's too) Chapter 21 - Azalea town and other noteworthy events Chapter 22 - Caught in a blizzard Chapter 23 - Meet the brother Chapter 24 - Back in Mesperit City Chapter 25 - Settling down

Chapter 1: The first Pokémon The sun send her warms rays of light to the earth below her, caressing the leaves of the tree, the grass, the rocks. she shone done on a picnic blanket where two boys, aged thirteen and fourteen were sitting and enjoying this fine summer day. "Ah what a great day!" the fourteen-year-old Andy exclaimed, turning his face to the sun for a moment, before he looked at his friend and winked. "You're free to say 'Wow Andy, this was a great idea of you! Fantastic! You rock!' at any time now.” Henri rolled his eyes and shook his head, but he grinned and turned to Andy. "Wow Andy, this was a great idea of you! Fantastic! You rock!" he repeated the words Andy had given him. The two boys looked at each other for a moment and then laughed together. After he shook his head once more, Henri took a large, yellow berry from the bag lying on the blanket and fed it to his pink Nidoran, while Andy was watching. The Nidoran seemed to enjoy the food and happily munched it away. "I heard you got third place in the Pokémon trainer competition in Mesperit City," Andy said as he looked at Henri. Henri nodded and fondly scratched Nidoran’s head, who gave a short, pleased cry before he turned his attention back at the remains of the berry. "Yes,” Henri said. “This little Nidoran did great." "I'd like to be a trainer." Andy folded his hands under his head and was lying on the grass, watching some clouds drift by. "But I'll need a Pokémon first. And those that professor Maple offered for beginning trainers just don't appeal to me." "Then you'll have to find a wild one." "Hm. Oh! I know! I'll catch myself an Articuno. That shouldn't be to hard, right?" Henry was rolling in the grass from laughter and Andy himself was laughing as well. Henry's Nidoran looked from the one to the other, but then turned his attention to the bag where the first berry had come from and checked to see if there were some more. "If you catch a legendary Pokémon just like that..." Henry began, but he was interrupted by Andy "No, not just like that. With a plain Pokéball!” Andy made a throwing motion. “In one throw." Still laughing, Henry continued: "Right, if you catch a legendary Pokémon just like that, you can skip being a trainer and call yourself Pokémon master from the start." "Pokémon master Andy...I like that." Andy knew very well that what he said would be impossible, but he liked to exaggerate and joking like this was one of his favourite past-times, although it sometimes annoy people that he was so rarely serious. That made it all the more fun really. But Henri seemed to be able to handle it quite well and it was probably why their friendship had survived so far. "You know," Henry said suddenly. "If Articuno fails, you can always go for Entei." Andy burst out in laughter, as did Henry. Henry often went along in his jokes and that was what Andy liked so much about him. But not only could they joke together, Andy knew Henry was a friend he could turn to when he needed help, as he would be there for Henry. Remembering he had sandwich with honey lying there, Andy got back up and reached for it, but his hand stopped half-way through. A Caterpie was munching on his sandwich. "What is this?" "That's a Caterpie," Henry told him. "You know, it may be shocking, but I know some Pokémon by name. I meant: what is that Caterpie doing here?" "Eating," Henry replied, very helpful. "You're no help at all." Andy leaned over to watch the Caterpie, who had stopped eating and looked at him with it’s big, black eyes. "You like that sandwich, little one?" The Caterpie still looked at him and nodded. "You can have it." Andy shoved the sandwich a bit in his direction. "There's plenty more for me." Taking another sandwich from the basket, without really checking what he had grabbed, Andy looked at Henry. "It's not an Articuno, but I like it. You think I should catch it?" "Do you have a Pokéball?" Andy shook his head, while swallowing a mouthful of his chicken-curry-salad sandwich. Henry reached into his backpack and threw a Pokéball to Andy, who plucked it from the air with one hand. "You can try to catch it," Henry said to his friend, scratching the head of his Nidoran, who enjoyed the treatment, "and I’ll even lend you my Nidoran for it, but you can also see if he wants to come with you. There have been Pokémon willing to go with humans before and this one doesn't seem to be afraid." Andy nodded, looking at the Caterpie while rolling the Pokéball from one hand to the next. Then he pushed the button to enlarge it. The Caterpie, who was done eating, watched him curiously. "I'm Andy," he said to the small bug-Pokémon. "And I want to be a Pokémon trainer. But for that I need a Pokémon, like yourself. Why don't you come with me? We can explore the world together, go on adventures, save the world and retire when we're thirty!" Henry sighed and Andy grinned. "Or, you know, participate in battles, get stronger and generally just have a good time together." The Pokémon looked at him with his head slightly tilted to the right. "If you're wondering what I can offer you,” Andy continued, “except of course for my awesome personality and stunning good looks, I can help you get stronger and I can offer shelter, food and friends." "Prieee?" "Not quite convinced? Hm, let me see." Andy watched the Pokémon as he was watching him and he reached out to it, to pet it on the head. "I'll take care of you, little one. You won't have to do anything you don't want to." A grin appeared, as Andy never stayed serious for a long time. "Or I can bribe you with honey!" Henry laughed when he heard the last remark, but stopped when he noticed the Caterpie crawl closer to Andy. "Don't say the honey bit did the job," Andy said, as surprised as Henry was. "No, I'd say he just likes you. Pokémon aren't stupid. Well, of course he likes honey, but I think you earned his trust with everything you said to him." Andy offered the Caterpie his hand and the Caterpie crawled on it and moved over the arm, straight to the shoulder. "If you want to come with me, you'll need a name." There was a serious look on Andy’s face, as he nodded to his own words. "I've got it! I'm going to name you Benny. What do you think?" The Caterpie nodded and a broad smile appeared on Andy's face. "Benny it is then. Welcome to my team...which consists of just you." Henry chuckled as he handed Andy a berry to feed his new found Pokémon.

Chapter 2 – Encounter in Lilan Town With Benny sitting on his shoulder and his hands tucked in the pockets of his trousers, Andy was walking through Lilan Town, one of the two large cities on Rhando Island. They have had their first practices on still targets and practiced both the string shot and the tackle, but the small Caterpie seemed eager to test his strength against a real opponent. A few feet away Andy noticed what seemed to be a Pokémon battle that just had started and he stopped to watch. A Quilava and a Fearow were standing on the opposite sites, their determined trainers right behind them. "Let's not challenge those trainers,” Andy said to his Caterpie. “Those Pokémon wouldn't stand a chance against you.” He grinned and winked to his Caterpie. “Gotta give them a fair chance to win." The Caterpie on Andy’s shoulder seemed amused by the remark and nodded to show his approval of the decision. A boy, a few years younger then Andy, gave him a sceptical look. "Are you serious?" he asked. "That Caterpie doesn't stand a chance against either of them." "I'm shocked that you say that!" Andy took Benny from his shoulder and held it under the boy’s nose in a swift movement. "Just look at how muscular he is!" The boy did look at Benny, who was sitting innocently and comfortably in Andy’s extended hands. "You really think that Caterpie would stand a chance against a Fearow or a Quilava?" the boy asked, disbelief dripping from his voice. "Of course!” Andy exclaimed. “About the same chance I have to catch an Articuno with a single Pokéball!" The boy looked at him very sceptically and Andy burst out in laughter as Benny crawled back to his shoulder. Of course Benny didn't stand a chance, he was both of a lower level and in a type disadvantage, but there was nothing wrong with some misplaced boasting. Andy shook his head as he walked away. Some people really didn't know sarcasm. They wouldn't recognize it if it would hit them in the face. And some were just to serious. But that didn't matter, it was all the more fun for him. "Let's find an opponent of your level," Andy said to Benny. "Or I'll give Henry a call, he wouldn't mind training with us." "Prie?" "Even though his Nidoran is stronger then you, he wouldn't battle to win, so it would be a good practice. But first I want to see how we do against a real opponent." Benny nodded in agreement and Andy nodded as well, also in agreement of his own remark. The walked on, well, Andy walked, Benny was sitting comfortably on his shoulder. "So, look who we have here," a voice behind them said. "Young Andy with a Pokémon." "I found him in the forest," Andy said, turning around. "And he wanted the come along." The man behind him smiled, giving his face a friendly appearance. A Houndoom was standing next to him, with his head held high, quietly observing what was going on. "Thomas, how have you been, old man?" Thomas shook Andy's hand, smiling friendly. "You've sure grown a lot since I last saw you, it won't be long and you'll be taller then me." "My goal in life," Andy said, grinning. "Are you keeping him out?" Thomas asked, pointing to the Caterpie on his shoulder. Andy shrugged, which resulted in Benny almost falling of his shoulder, but Benny managed to stay on. "It depends, I keep him in his Pokéball as well, but we're looking for an opponent today. Of course he has his say in the matter, it's going to be our first battle." Thomas nodded as he looked at the Caterpie. "If you want, you can visit me this weekend, he offered. “I can teach you a thing or two about Pokémon." "Great! We'll come bug you next weekend then. Right now we have to epically win a battle, see you!" Andy turned around and waved to Thomas while walking away, keeping his other hand in the pocket of his trousers.

Chapter 3 – The first battle As Andy continued his walk with his Caterpie on his shoulder, he noticed another Pokémon battle and he stopped to watch. One of the trainers had a Rattata, the other had a Weedle and so far it seemed like the Rattata was winning. Andy watched silently as the Rattata did a quick-attack and with that knock out the opponent. “I told you bugs suck,” the Rattata’s trainer taunted as the other trainer called his Weedle back and ran off. The taunting trainer smirked and complemented his Rattata on a battle well fought. “I think we’ve found our opponent,” Andy said in a light-hearted and cheerful tone, but the dark look on his face didn’t match that. The Caterpie on his shoulder nodded and Andy walked up to him. “I bet you can’t defeat my Caterpie,” Andy stated. “Didn’t you hear me?” the trainer said. Andy guessed the trainer was two or three years younger them he was. “I said bugs suck. Are you another loser that needs to learn that he hard way?” “Oh, I heard you fine the first time.” Andy shrugged lightly with his hands in the pockets of his trousers. “I just disagree. Rats like you suck.” He turned to the Rattata. “No offense meant.” “Hey! I never said you could speak to my Pokémon!” “Whatever,” Andy sighed. “Are you up for a battle? I’ll prove to you that bugs aren’t as weak as you seem to think.” He grabbed Benny from his shoulder so he could show him to his opponent. “See? Don’t you see the fierce look in his eyes? The confident attitude he has?” Benny, sitting comfortably in Andy’s hands, tilted his head a bit to look at their opponent with his big, black eyes, making him look more cute then fierce and the boy didn’t know if he should laugh or get angry. “If you’re not afraid, we can have a battle, you and I,” Andy continued. “What do you think?” “Alright! I’ll show you that bugs are useless, just like that other trainer with his stupid little Weedle.” “Don’t say that! You’ll hurt his feelings.” “So what? Feelings don’t matter in battles.” Andy frowned a bit, looking at his opponent. The boy was maybe eleven years old, somewhere around that, and already thought he knew everything. Of course Andy was just a beginning trainer, but he already felt he was a far better trainer then this boy was. Sure, he was just fourteen himself, but it seemed to make a world of difference. “You may start,” Andy said, smiling broadly as Benny crawled forward to face his opponent. “And Benny, let’s show them just how awesome you really are! Give him that fierce look of yours!” Benny blinked and showed the Rattata his big, black eyes and Andy grinned as he noticed the boy grab his head in that oh to familiar tired expression people got when they were sighing. “Use your tackle, Rattata!” The boy ordered his Pokémon and the Rattata took of and charged towards Benny. “String shot!” Andy ordered and the white substance left the Caterpie’s mouth, hitting the Rattata in the face, who slowed down, shaking his head with closed eyes. “Nicely done,” Andy said. “Now, tackle!” With a well placed tackle, Benny knocked the Rattata on his side, but the Rattata got up again and with his paw he cleared his face of the sticky substance. “Quick attack!” the boy ordered and the Rattata run fast to Benny, knocking him down. Benny rolled over the ground, but he got up again, focussing on his opponent. “That’s the spirit Benny! Show him what you’re made of!” The Caterpie got on his tail and nodded. “Alright, use your tackle!” Andy commanded and Benny started his attack. Their opponent ordered a tail whip and as Benny hit the Rattata, the Rattata hit Benny lightly with his tail. Benny shook his head and watched the Rattata get on his feet again. “String shot!” Andy said and Benny shot the sticky white substance from his mouth again, covering the Rattata, who shook his head and used his paws to try and get rid of it. “Fantastic! Now use that awesome tackle of yours again!” Benny hit the rattata with his head in the side and the Rattata fell on the ground. With some effort he got back on his legs, still partly covered by the string shot, but his legs trembled en he fell down on the ground again. “That looks like win!” Andy said and he looked at his Caterpie. “Well done Benny!” he exclaimed, applauding his Pokémon. “You’re the best! A star! Fantastic Benny, you rock!” “Don’t get all that excited,” the boy grumbled as he aimed his Pokéball to his Rattata and called him back.” “Why shouldn’t I get excited? This bug rules!” The happy smile made quickly way for a serious frown. “Really, don’t ditch a type that easily. Winning or losing doesn’t just depend on the type, but on the skills a Pokémon and it’s trainer has.” Andy being Andy, the serious mood quickly faded. With a broad grin he picked up his Caterpie. “So, ready to take on an Articuno? Or Entei! What do you think?” Benny shook his head and the boy blinked, as if he didn’t believe what he just heard. “No? Alright then. How about a rest in your Pokéball?” Now Benny nodded and Andy dug in his pocket to find Benny’s Pokéball. “Let’s see…it should be here somewhere…no, that’s gum, that’s a marble…don’t even know why I have that in my pocket…ah, here it is.” Between two fingers Andy lifted the small Pokéball from his pocket, pushed the button to enlarge it and aimed it at his Pokémon. “You did great, take your rest now. I’ll make sure that you’ll get a fantastic dinner to celebrate this victory.” After Andy had called his Pokémon back to the Pokéball, he looked at the other trainer. Slowly an amused smile appeared on his face. “Is there something wrong?” “Articuno or Entei?” the boy asked. “There is absolutely nothing wrong with dreaming big!” Andy started walking away, waving to the boy as he left. “Maybe we’ll battle again sometime. See you around.” Since Benny was resting now, Andy decided they might as well go home. Maybe Henri would want to come over and train with them, he’d make sure to give his friend a call when he returned home.

I'm pretty sure i've seen this on the official FanFiction site,I'm not sure if it was yours https://www.fanfiction.net/s/7679094/4/Life-of-a-Trainer

Yes, that's mine. I have a different alias there. I uploaded the original story on both the old PF and fanfiction.net. Currently I'm re-reading it and adding or changing bits and pieces. Like changing the name of Andy's friend, mention his brother earlier in the story and other tweaks I felt were necessary (some bits in the early chapters were written poorly in my opinion >_<) As I work through the chapters, I'm posting the new versions here :) So the story remains the same, I'm planning to change the chapters on fanfiction.net as well, once everything is finished. Edit, and that chapter 4 you linked to is going to be posted here today as well ^_^ New and improved!

Chapter 4 – Evolution Andy had a lot of fun with his Caterpie and he was really happy to have found him in the forest, on that picnic day with Henry and his Nidoran. They were spending a lot of time together, eating, resting, training and battling. The first two of those activities being their favourite past-times. They won several battles as Benny proved to be a strong Caterpie. Strong as in able to compete with and win from the general first stage Pokémon other trainers in the area had or that resided in the nearby forest, he was still no where near the needed level to take on, let’s say...Entei. But, then again, Entei was just the back-up plan if catching Articuno failed, right? And that was going to happen in a single throw, so Benny wouldn’t even need to be at a level to compete with legendary Pokémon...but this is getting besides the point. They also lost a couple of battles, which was only natural since there were trainers around who had been battling for a longer time and thus had stronger Pokémon. Andy didn’t mind the losses, they were part being a trainer and he was always proud at the accomplishments of his Caterpie, whether he won or lost. But...all that changed one day. It happened right after a battle, Benny delivered the final blow in a head-on tackle to the opposing Spinarak, knocking the Pokémon on his back, with his paws twisting in the air, and with that won the match. Just as Andy was ready to call him back, the characteristic white glow surrounded Benny as his shape started to change. Few moments later, a Metapod was sitting in the Caterpie’s place. Andy looked at him in surprise, but then grinned as he held his hands in his side. “Well, well, well, you’ve become handsome, Benny.” The Metapod looked silently at him as Andy got closer and gently lifted him from the ground. “And heavier I might add, what have you been eating?” The happy sparkle in Benny’s eyes showed he appreciated the joke and Andy chuckled. “Thanks for the match”, Andy said to his opponent, who didn’t look as happy as Andy did as he called his Spinarak back. “You’re free to come back for a rematch, but I think I’m going to enlist Benny in a beauty contest first.” Benny seemed amused by the remark and Andy was grinning, as he walked away with the Metapod under his arm. First he walked home, where he showed his new Metapod to his parents, who were only mildly enthusiastic about it. They never cared much for training Pokémon themselves and they weren’t sure why their children wanted to be a part of it that much. Andy would have showed his older brother, but he was studying abroad. Then, with the metapod under his arm he walked over to the telephone and dialled the number of his friend Henry. The grin on his face was a preview of how the conversation would go, as Andy listened patiently to the dialling tone, until Henry picked up on the other side. “Oh hey, Henry! Guess what?” “You finally caught your Articuno?” Andy laughed, he could have known Henri would bring up that inside joke between them. Ever since that picnic they mentioned Articuno or Entei here and there, or nudge each other when someone mentioned it. It was a joke that stuck for some reason and Andy loved it. “No, no,” Andy said, “even better! Benny evolved today!” “That’s great! Congratulations.” “Well, this does bring a problem,” Andy continued, with a sigh. “What kind of problem?” Henry inquired. “How am I supposed to train him? Throw him at someone while shouting ‘tackle!’?” On the other side of the phone, Henry burst out in laughter and a grinning Andy waited patiently for him to catch his breath again. Benny seemed to chuckle as well, although the sturdy Pokémon barely moved. “No, no, patience is the key word here. You can use him in battle, Metapod are known to have a little flexibility in their ‘tail’, but for the most part they’re…” “Useless in battle?” Andy finished his sentence. “Not exactly the words I wanted to use, but yes. The know how to harden and truthfully, that is not the most exciting move ever.” “Come now,” Andy said, grinning broadly, “When a stud like Benny hardens, I’m sure the opponent will faint of admiration.” Henry laughed again. “You’re free to test out that theory against my Nidoran one day.” “That is what I wanted to hear! I’ll come over tomorrow.” “Alright Andy, I’ll see you tomorrow then.” Andy greeted his friend a final time, promised him to be there by noon and hung up. Then he took the Metapod from under his arm and held him at eyes height in front of him, observing him closely. Benny stared back at him as Andy put him on the table. “You really surprised me when you evolved, but I’m glad you did. It makes me wonder when you’ll evolve again.” “Metapod,” Benny replied and Andy patted him gently. “You took the words right from my mouth. Or something, I generally don’t say ‘metapod’, unless I’m calling you…never mind, this is getting confusing.” “Meta.” Andy grinned again, picked Benny up and carried him to his room, where he placed him in a corner.

Interesting story so far, can you make Chapter 5? Its such an exciting story :)

Thank you ^_^ Now moving on to the most epic battle of all time! Chapter 5 – Metapod’s Might After a quick breakfast, Andy was standing in his parents garden and watched his Metapod. “Alright, let’s see that fabulous move of yours. Use harden.” A few seconds passed and Andy scratched his head. “Henry was right, not the most exciting move I’ve ever seen.” “Meta,” the Metapod sighed and Andy grinned. “It must be because I’m awesome myself that is doesn’t affect me, I’m sure opposing Pokémon will be impressed.” Benny sighed again as Andy dropped down in the grass so he could sit right in front of Benny. He felt on the shell and nodded to himself. “It does feel sturdier. Use harden again.” He examined the shell again and concluded that even though visibly there wasn’t much going on, the move was effective. “Come on Benny, let’s see where your limit is. Harden.” They continued until Andy was satisfied and he picked his Pokémon up from the grass to carry him indoors. “You think that if I throw you now, you’ll break someone’s skull?” Andy got the impression that if Benny could grin in this state, he probably was doing so now. Still holding Benny under his arm, he went into the house and dropped down on the sofa to watch some television before heading over to Henry’s, but got up again when his mother started to nag about his Pokémon sitting on the sofa. “Fine, we’ll go make Henry’s sofa dirty then,” Andy sighed, wondering why his mother gave Benny such a hard time. Probably not a bug-lover, he thought, shrugging it of. He walked all the way over to his friends house, casually carrying Benny under his arm and the other hand in the pocket of his pants. When he finally arrived at Henry’s place, he was greeted by Henry’s older sister Bethy and directed to the garden where Henry and his Nidoran were. “Andy, you’re early.” “I figured you would be impatient to see me again, so I left a bit early.” Andy said with a wink and Henry started nodding. “That’s mighty friendly of you, to honour me this early with your presence.” “I live to serve.” By now both boys couldn’t keep a straight face and started laughing. Andy sat down on the grass and placed Benny next to him. Henry sat down in front of him and observed the Metapod. “Nice,” Henri said and he nodded to himself, before looking back at Andy. “So you want to train him?” “Of course.” “I’ll see what I can do to help, but training Metapod takes some dedication as he’s not easy to use in battle.” “I’ve got plenty of dedication,” Andy reassured his friend with a wink. Even though they didn’t differ in age that much, Henry had started with Pokémon first, so he came to his friend for advice. “What is your goal actually?” he then asked Henri, as they hadn’t really talked about that before. All Andy knew was that Henri wanted to be a Pokémon Trainer. “The greatest Pokémon master, like so many?” Henri showed a smile and shook his head. “Nah, that is to much effort. First I want to compete in at least one official league. But what I really want is to be a gym leader one day, that would be cool. What about you?” “I don’t know,” Andy said truthfully, being in one of his rare serious moods. “I want to learn as much as I can about them, but I don’t really have a goal yet. I’ll see where I end up, and until I get there, I’ll learn what I can.” “You’re not going to compete in leagues?” Andy shrugged. “I might. I’ll definitely challenge gym leaders though, I’m sure there’s a great deal to learn from those.” He smacked his friend on the shoulder. “So you’d better get one fast, then I can challenge you and humiliate you in a battle.” “Not with a Metapod you won’t,” Henry laughed, “so let’s work on that first.” As they got up, two boys were walking past the backyard, one of them had a familiar face. As the boy with the familiar face looked inside, he and Andy looked at each other for a moment. Then the boy pointed at Andy. “Hey, you’re the one that defeated my Spinarak. I want a rematch!” “How about a double-match?” the boy next to him proposed. “The two of you against us.” “Sure,” Henry said. “I’m up for that. How about you, Andy?” “I don’t know,” Andy said thoughtfully, tapping his chin with a finger. “Won’t it be humiliating to be defeated twice by the same trainer?” “You stand no chance against us!” the owner of the Spinarak shouted. Andy and Henry looked at each other and grinned. This wouldn’t be a difficult match, Henry’s Nidoran was strong and they would greatly underestimate Benny. “Feel free to prove that.” Henry and Andy both made a few steps back, leaving Benny on the field and the purple Nidoran calmly walked towards Benny, sitting down on the grass next to him. “Why don’t you start?” Henry offered as the boys took their place in front of them. The first called out his Spinarak, there was no surprise there, and the second called an Ekans to the field. And right after that they both ordered a poison sting attack. “Focus energy,” Henry ordered calmly and looked at Andy. Andy grinned and pointed enthusiastically at his Metapod. “Use harden, Benny!” he shouted, as if he ordered the most impressive attack ever. Both Pokémon did was they were told as the needles of the poison sting hit them. They barely moved. “Nidoran, fury attack!” As Henry had finished his order, the purple Nidoran run toward Ekans, his head facing slightly down so the horn was aimed right at his opponent and he repeatedly hit it with his horn. After an order the Spinarak used another poison sting at the Nidoran, who withdrew to his side of the field now. “Use harden again,” Andy said with an eye on Henry, who nodded and brought his attention back to his Nidoran. “Bite!” the owner of Ekans shouted and the snake Pokémon came towards the Nidoran and sank his fangs in his back. “Double kick!” Henri ordered. One well placed kick knocked the Ekans from Nidoran, the other knocked him further away. “Are you alright?” Henry asked and Nidoran nodded. When he heard the owner of the Spinarak order another poison sting, Henry ordered his Nidoran to take place in front of Metapod and ordered a poison sting as well. Both the attacks hit and even though Nidoran barely moved, the Spinarak was hid hard by the Nidorans attack. “Let’s be original and use harden again,” Andy said to Benny, before turning to Henry. “You know, he can survive a poison sting.” “Oh, I know. But he needs his strength, right?” A big grin appeared on Andy’s face. “Right.” “Double kick!” Henry ordered and Nidoran ran to his opponents, kicking Ekans first and Spinirak second. “Ekans, glare!” “Hide behind Benny!” Henry ordered and Nidoran jumped behind the Metapod. “And focus energy.” “Harden,” Andy ordered for the forth time, “and take that glare like a man! I mean Metapod!” Benny watched the Ekans glare at him, not moving an inch. It was not certain if the paralyzing effect of the glare really had taken place or not, as Benny was highly immobile anyway. “Let’s finish this,” Henry said. “After that double kick they’re both weakened enough. One final blow should do it.” Andy nodded. “Ready yourself, Benny. Another harden might be a good idea.” “Nidoran, get ready to use your double kick, make sure to aim well.” The nidoran looked at Henry and nodded, turning around so his back was to Benny. “Double kick!” Henry's order was followed by a cheerful ‘tackle!’ from Andy. The trained legs of the Nidoran hit the hardened Metapod and launched him to the other side of the field, where he hit both the Ekans and Spinarak, who were standing next to each other. Benny rolled in the grass and the Spinarak and Ekans were knocked unconscious by the hit of the hard Metapod. Andy gave Henry a high five and congratulated him with a battle well fought, a compliment Henry immediately returned. The disappointed boys called back their Pokémon and promised they would win in a rematch. “Of course,” Henry said. “You’re free to challenge us anytime.” Andy walked over to Benny to pick him up. “Nicely done, I’d say it’s a pretty effective move.” The glimmering in Benny’s eyes showed how happy he was with the battle.

This chapter will contain some mild strong language and violence. Chapter 6 - Vespiqueens attack Sitting in his backyard, Andy was feeding his Metapod when a boy showed up at the gate. He didn’t know him, he seemed to be about his age, maybe a little older with short blond hair, neatly cut and combed. Unlike his own hair, which already reached over his ears and was a bit messy, much to his mother’s disdain. “Hey you,” the boy said. “How about a battle?” “I’m not you,” Andy replied absentminded. “I’m Andy. And no, I’m not interested in battle. Come back some other time.” “I’m Gregory.” “How nice,” Andy sighed, wondering why this boy, who was apparently called Gregory, wouldn’t leave. “Are you afraid you’ll lose?” Gregory asked. Andy looked up again, one eyebrow rose and he slowly shook his head. “I’m not afraid to lose, I just don’t want to battle.” He looked at his Metapod. “And neither does Benny, so come back later. We’re enjoying some quiet time and you’re not contributing to that.” Andy was getting annoyed by this Gregory, there had been visitors the entire day and his younger cousins all wanted to play with Benny, who he had to safe from them at one point. “We will battle,” Gregory insisted and Andy sent him an annoyed glare. “I said no, it will stay no. It’s really not that hard to understand.” Gregory smirked as he took a Pokéball from his belt. “Go Vespiqueen!” Andy looked at the bee-queen hovering in the air next to her trainer. “Look, I told you…” “Use gust!” The Vespiqueen started beating with her wings and a gust of wind picked Benny up and dropped him on the ground a bit further, where he rolled a couple of more times before coming to a halt. “Benny!” Andy jumped up and turned around to Gregory, looking at him angrily. “What were you thinking?! You can’t just launch an attack to any random Pokémon! We don’t want to battle!” “You’ll better defend yourself, I’m not going to stop.” Andy grabbed his Pokéball to call his Pokémon back, but Gregory ordered a power gem attack. The Vespiqueen held her hands together and a glowing orange ball formed between them, which she threw at Andy, knocking the Pokéball out of his hand. “Benny, use harden!” Andy shouted as the Vespiqueen launched the same attack at the Metapod. As Benny used harden, the orange ball hit him, rolling him a bit further down the grass. “Now, use poison sting!” Gregory ordered. “Harden!” Andy said, while looking around for Benny’s Pokéball, as the white needles of the poison sting were hurling towards the Metapod and they hit him while he was still lying in the grass from the other attacks. “Meta…pod,” Benny said with some effort and Andy looked concerned towards his Pokémon. “Damn it, stop the attacks already!” Andy quickly said. “I give up, you win.” He didn’t mind to accept a loss, especially if it meant Benny would be left alone. “But I’m not done yet,” Gregory said, grinning evilly. “There’s no fun in stopping before the fight is really over and your Metapod is not yet defeated.” He turned to his Vespiqueen and pointed to Benny. “Vespiqueen, use poison sting!” As the white needles were shot at Benny again, Andy placed himself in front of Benny. The poison sting hit him in the chest and with a groan of pain, Andy sank on his knees. One hand was placed on the ground for support, the other clawing in his shirt. “Metapod! Meta!” Benny said, moving back and forth and his eyes fixed on Andy,. “Damn you,” Andy groaned, sending an angry look at the smirking boy, while crawling back up his feet. “What are you trying to prove here anyway?” “That I can defeat anyone,” Gregory calmly explained. “Power Gem!” The moment Andy had been able to get on his feet again, he was knocked over by the power gem attack, landing on his back in the grass. Hitting the ground pushed the air out of his lungs and he groaned softlywith closed eyes, rubbing the place where the power gem attack had hit with a hand. He turned on his side and placed a hand on the ground in order to get up again. Benny was moving more violently. “Meta! Meta! Metaaaa!” A white glow surrounded him as his shape started to change and Andy looked at it with his mouth open, surprised to see this happen all of the sudden. When the light disappeared, a Butterfree flew up and flew straight to the Vespiqueen, tackling her. After that Benny took some distance again for another tackle. And another. Andy watched as Benny was landing tackle after tackle at the Vespiqueen, pushing her back in the air. “Poison sting!” Gregory ordered and Benny was hit by the white needles shooting from the Vespiqueen. With his eyes closed Benny got pushed back in the air, but flapping with his wings he soon halted and he looked at his opponent. His eyes started glowing light blue and a similar light was seen around the Vespiqueen, who couldn’t move. “Confusion?” Andy muttered as he watched the Vespiqueen suddenly crash in the ground. Shaking her head, the Vespiqueen got up again, started beating with her wings and flew up. “Power gem!” Gregory shouted. Moments later the orange ball hurled towards Benny, who couldn’t evade it and it landed right in his chest. Andy ran forward to catch his Butterfree before he would fall on the ground. “One final attack should do it,” Gregory exclaimed. “Fury Swipes!” The Vespiqueen flew straight towards Andy and Benny, ready to use the ordered move. Andy’s held Benny in his arms and turned his back towards the Vespiqueen, in order to protect Benny. “Flamethrower.” A calm voice suddenly said and hot flames hit the Vespiqueen, who fell down and lay on her back in the grass. Andy looked up to see where the voice had come from, just like Gregory did, and he noticed Thomas walking towards them, his Houndoom walking besides him, silently observing the situation. The eyes of Thomas were fixed on Gregory and an unusual strict expression wasoin his otherwise friendly face. “I just got here,” Themas began, “about when Benny started to use his confusion, but those two young children over there had seen everything that had happened and were kind enough to inform me what had happened.” Thomas pointed over his shoulder to a little boy and girl, neighbours of Andy, standing on the sidewalk. Two police-officers e=were standing next to them. Strict eyes settled on Gregory. “You may have a strong Vespiqueen, well, at least stronger then Benny was, but that doesn’t give you the right to abuse your power like that. Battles may only take place if both parties agree. What you did now was bullying. No, it was abuse. That is a punishable offense.” “Who do you think you are, meddling in our battle like that?!” Gregory asked, his chin raised in a cocky manner. “Like I just said,” Thomas calmly explained. “That was not a Pokémon battle. That was abuse, you were beating up a Pokémon and it’s trainer when they clearly stated not wanting to battle. Officer Jenny?” “I’ll handle it from here, Thomas.” The in blue uniform dressed woman walked forward and grabbed the Gregory by the collar, while her assistant picked up the fainted Vespiqueen. While the Vespiqueen was strong, it had been no match from the powerful flames produced by the faithful companion of Thomas. “You’re coming with me,” Officer Jenny said to Gregory, her voice filled with authority. “I’ve received multiple complaints about you and how you were attacking people’s Pokémon at random. You’ve got a lot of explaining to do.” Thomas and Andy watched officer Jenny walk away with Gregory and the Vespiqueen and then Thomas turned to Andy. “What happened?” he asked, with his usual kind and calm voice. “Benny evolved,” Andy said, looking at the Butterfree in his arms, as if all the other events didn’t matter. The Butterfree had his eyes closed and was breathing laboriously. “I’d better go to the Pokémon Centre. Thanks for your help.” He already started to walk when he heard the voice of old Thomas. “Mind if I join you?” the old man asked and Andy shrugged. “That’s fine,” he said, not really caring either way as long as Benny would receive the care he needed. Thomas nodded and with a simple gesture he invited his Houndoom to walk with them, a request that was silently accepted. “Will you tell me what happened on the way?” Thomas asked with a friendly smile on his face. Andy laughed a bit as he looked at Thomas. “You’re not giving up, are you? Well, it’s fine with me. I’ll tell you all about the heroic acts of Benny and the fantastic Pokémon he is.” On the way to the Pokémon Centre, Andy told Thomas what happened, the whole story. How Gregory had started battling with them after he had refused, how the battle had gone, the attacks he had taken to protect Benny. “Are you alright?” Thomas asked with a hint of worry in his voice. “I’m fine,” Andy said, waving the words away with his hand, like they didn’t matter. “Benny is in far worse shape. But he was brave though.” “He evolved for you. That is rare.” Andy shrugged. “We have trained, he was probably close to evolution anyway.” “But you in trouble was the last motivation he needed. Trust me on this one, like you stood up for him, he stood up for you, but he needed to evolve to do so.” Andy nodded as he watched the Butterfree in his arms, his eyes were still closed and the breathing still deeply and laborious. It wasn’t long before they reached the Pokémon Centre and Andy walked up to the counter. “Oh my, what happened?” the pink-haired nurse asked when she looked at the Butterfree in Andy’s arms, so Andy told once again what happened, emphasizing on the fact that he didn’t choose to battle and that if he had the chance, he would have returned his Pokémon to his Pokéball. “Don’t worry,” nurse Joy reassured him, “we’ll get him back to health. Wait here please.” Nurse Joy left with Benny and Andy, who started to feel real tired all of the sudden, sat down on a chair, with Thomas taking place next to him. Andy was glad to have the older man with him, so he wouldn’t have to wait here alone. The Houndoom sat down next to Thomas and just watched the room silently, as he always did. Thomas petted him on the head and reassured Andy it would all work out fine. But for Andy every minute felt like an hour and he was relieved when the door finally opened and a now healthy Benny came flying to him. Andy quickly got up and caught his Pokémon, giving him a quick hug. “You should be careful flying like that, you could knock me over just like that!” “Freee?” “Don’t give me that, I’ve seen you tackling that Vespiqueen.” “Free!” the happy reply from Benny came. “Alright, let’s go home.” Andy looked at the nurse. “Nurse Joy, thanks for your help.” “That’s alright. Take good care of him.” “I promise.” Andy said as he turned around, but wavered and Thomas quickly grabbed his arm. “Are you alright?” nurse Joy inquired and also Benny was looking up worried. “I’m fine,” Andy muttered. “Don’t worry about me.” “I’ll walk him home,” Thomas said to nurse Joy. “Thank you for your care, as always you’ve done a fantastic job.” “Alright Thomas, take care of him.” Thomas left the Centre with Andy, holding his arm. “Make sure you rest when you get home, you’ve endured both a poison sting and a power gem.” “I will,” Andy promised, who was just relieved to see Benny was alright again. Back at home he did as he promised, but not before he searched for the Pokéball that had to be somewhere in the grass of the backyard. It was Benny who found it, after having flown around in the garden, and he picked it up for Andy, who held out his hand for it. Then Benny sat down on Andy’s shoulder and they went indoors, to Andy’s room, where he dropped down on the bed with a sigh of relief. The attacks had hurt more then he wanted to admit, but he was glad Benny evolved. “You were great today.” “Free,” Benny sighed as he landed on a chair. “True, we were beaten up, but when you evolved, you showed that Vespiqueen what you were made of! Remind me to give Henry a call later today or tomorrow. I’m sure he’d love to hear this.” Benny nodded and Andy grinned. This had been some adventure and he knew this had only made them closer.