Pokemon Fan Fiction / Pokemon Fan Fiction ❯ Legends of the Fiery Pokemon ❯ Fitting in ( Chapter 2 )

Disclaimer : You have seen the disclaimer in the first chapter. If not, I'll remind you again that I do not own any Pokemon... aside from some stickers and plushies.

Now, the Cyndaquil found himself in Vixie's house. The construction of his own house will take place the next day and will be finished in a few days. The main room has white-ivory painted walls with red curtains draped around the window and lush purple carpet covered the floor. The door is made of solid wood and smells like oak (because it is) with a small round window pane in the middle. A short Japanese coffee table stood in the middle of the room with cushions around it. A bartender's table seperates the main room and the kitchen.

Cyndy sat on the cushion while Vixie brought some food from the kitchen. Cyndy ate the food without a moment's hestitation, while Vixie stood there sweatdropping.

Vixie : Um.... Cyndy.... when was the last time you ate a good meal?

Cyndy : *mouth stuffed with berry pie* *tries to push it all down and gasps for air* Whoo.... about one week?

Vixie : *Patting Cyndy on the back* I feel sorry for you.... so defenceless.... Cyndy.... I want you to learn how to defend yourself. I'll let Lancet know that you need help in battling. You can start tomorrow. Nobody pushes my Cyndy and gets away with it...

Cyndy : Lancet must be one heck of a strong Pokemon, now that you mention him....

Vixie : The best...... He won three consecutive Stadium Petit Titles and ten Prime Cup Titles before that.

Cyndy : Whoa! What chances does a Charmander have against all of them?

Vixie : Really good chances... he was a Charizard.

Cyndy : A-a-a Charizard? Why is he a Charmander now?

Vixie : I don't know.... his life is shrouded in mystery.... he says that most things are best kept unknown. Oh. Cyndy, one more thing.... after you're done.....

Cyndy : Yes yes?

Vixie : Can you give me a perm?

Cyndy : *contented sigh* Sure....

Cyndy finished munching one piece and cleaned his paws. He followed Vixie to the dressing room where he was greeted by an array of fine combs and stuff.... (Hey, I'm not a barber or hair specialist, ya know!)

Vixie brought Cyndy to a guided tour around the Village. Vixie started the tour right outside the village... in front of the stone arch with a large inscription which reads : Welcome to Auburn Village. Cyndy estimated the height to be about five metres and roughly three metres wide. All the houses are brick laid (unpainted for that natural feel) with ceramic tiled roofs and chimneys. Their average dimensions are roughly seven metres length and five metres breadth. Just about all the houses are two storeys high.... Each house has its own wall and are all placed in rows and arrays.

The centre of the village was about two hundred metres away from the entrance arch and was marked by a large fountain about five metres in diameter. Just metres away from it (20 metres) There is a Pokemon centre, predominantly run by Pokemon. the tiles are shades of white and pink, with a sign with big words "Pokemon Centre" and a picture of various pokemon in a group. (Don't expect to see a Pokeball as a symbol.... Pokemon, especially untamed and wild ones, fear it)

Just beside the Pokemon Centre is a really large gym, the Auburn Gym. It is about seven metres by twenty metres in site area but is as tall as the other houses, even if it has one storey (the roof is flat like the buildings in the city, with three skylights placed in linear array. Vixie took Cyndy into the gym. The first thing Cyndy noticed is that the walls are cushioned with some sort of rubber paddings, which looks flame-proof. LCD screens hung on the three sides of the wall, not including the entrance where Cyndy entered. Lancet the Charmander was doing battle with a Growlithe.

Vixie : Hey, Lancet! Cyndy needs to know how to defend himself! Can you teach him some of them?

Lancet : *To the Growlithe* Take a short break, Blaze. I'll be back shortly. *To Vixie* Sure, Vixie. C'mon here, Cyndy. Let's see how good you def.....

Before Lancet could finish, the Growlithe tackled him to the ground. Lancet coughed out dirt and turned towards Blaze.

Lancet : Blaze, what did you do that for? I said have a short break!

Blaze : Sorry, but I just couldn't resist winning over you. Besides... Rule #016 states that there will be no time outs or breaks in battle.

Lancet : Okay.... one point for you for studying the rules in the Gym... but the next time you do it again, You'll be answering to Rule #001.

Blaze : Not Rule #001! Anything but that!

Cyndy : Ummm, Lancet.... what is Rule #001?

Vixie : Oh, Rule #009 states that anybody who fights dishonourably will be subject to a big beating. Rule #001 may be even worse.... I don't know what rule #001 is, though, because nobody ever wanted to know... and because nobody even tried. Whatever it is, don't get on his bad side.

Lancet : Okay, Cyndy. You do battle with Blaze for now. Don't worry.... he's a beginner like you. Vixie, I'll be gone for a while. Tell me who wins after I get back, okay?

Vixie : You can count on me.

Lancet : Good girl.

Lancet ran off to his house, which is behind the Auburn Gym. This house is almost similar in colour and structure but its dimensions are slightly bigger. Unlike other houses, Lancet's house was specially made to include a well hidden basement. His house also has a ladder from the upper floor, leading to the balcony on the rooftop, giving an excellent view of the village because of its elevation compared to other houses. The upper floor also has pathway, supported by pillars, which connects to the backside of the Gym, where a heavy wooden door connects the pathway to the upper balcony of the Gym, above the LCD, where Lancet can sit "Giovanni style" on his cushioned chair and wait for a challenger.

Lancet went into his study, which links to the secret basement. Well, instead of going to the basement, Lancet took out a document from a box filled with empty documents. He sat on his desk and pulled out a pen from the drawer and filled in the following information, making some guesses in some fields:

Lancet folded the form, placed it in an envelope, stamped it and have it sent to the Pokemon Board of Tournaments by Dodrio Mail. Lancet returned to his gym to see how Cyndy is going. He found Vixie sitting down, looking bored. Lancet stood next to her.

Lancet : What's wrong?

Vixie : Look over there. *pointing towards the battle scene*

Cyndy and Blaze are still fighting... or what appears to be fighting. Blaze was using tackle over and over again and Cyndy kept dodging and dodging. Both appeared very exhausted.

Lancet : Vixie, you said Cyndy needs to learn self defence, but I see nothing wrong with Cyndy's defence and speed ratings.

Vixie : Well, I was wondering if you could teach him a few attacks. He doesn't seem to be attacking back.

Lancet : Sure. I'll teach him some attacks tomorrow morning. But Cyndy must learn the rest by himself, just like all the other Pokemon in Auburn Village. Do you agree by the terms, Cyndy?

Cyndy looked at Lancet... and Vixie nudged him, prompting him to nod. Lancet nodded as well and exited the scene, via the balcony. Cyndy stares up as Vixie dragged him out of the Auburn Gym. The next point of interest in the village is a small shopping section. Stalls are set up every day on an empty plot of land and sells a good variety of items. Some items they sold are curatives, collector's items, fabrics (not necessarily for clothes), foodstuff and amusement items. Some shops even provide entertaining games like target practice, rides, puzzles and challenges.

By the time Vixie got home, Cyndy was following her with a lot of boxes piled to a point higher than his muzzle could reach. Cyndy slumped on the chair, wondering what they are all used for. That, and also the many mysteries surrounding Lancet. How powerful Lancet actually is and why he chose to be a Charmander, what's rule #001, and how did Lancet acquire enough funding for the Gym? Cyndy raked his brain to hopefully get to an answer, but his mind is fogged out with what he should be doing next. It was way past midnight, and Cyndy was still pondering upon the answers. Cyndy decided to drop this off and tucked in for the night.

Cyndy woke up the next morning... all sogged up from the water that was being thrown out of Vixie's glass. Cyndy jumped off his resting area and shook himself dry.

Cyndy : It's cold! What did you do that for?!

Vixie : Well, in case you forgot... Lancet is waiting for you in the woods for your training! It's 6.00am!

Cyndy fell from the bunk bed and left in a hurry.

Vixie : Wait! I need my hair permed! Darn.... oh well....

The forest... Auburn Village is surrounded by its trees, making this Pokemon village hidden from the trainers. The interior of the forest is quite dim, but not dark, as the sun's first rays shone through the thick tall tree trunks. Cyndy have no idea where Lancet was waiting for him. Vixie kept on reminding him that Lancet would be waiting for new battlers in the forest.

Cyndy : How can I find him? The forest is so huge!

Voice : I'm up here!

Cyndy : Wha?

A figure jumped down from the trees, the tail flame is all that Cyndy can see that makes him recognise the Pokemon.

Cyndy : Oh.... Lancet.... It's only you.

Lancet : Who would you expect? A Pokemon Trainer? Follow me....

Lancet lead Cyndy through the forest pathway to a little dirt battle arena encircled with hard evergreen trees. Unlike the gym, this dirtpath doesn't have an LCD screen. Potions and First Aid kits lay outside the arena ring. The arena is a little brighter now, although it's only 7.00 in the morning. Lancet stood on one side of the arena, with Cyndy facing him at the other side.

Lancet : Cyndy, I am going to teach you some basic attacking moves. After all that, you are on your own to teach yourself some new moves which suits you best. Are you ready, Cyndy?

Cyndy : I guess so.....

Lancet : The first move I am going to show you is Dig. You dig underground, estimate where the target is using your sense of smell or hearing or even little vibrations from the ground, then pound them from underneath. Okay, Cyndy. Let's see you dig a hole first.

Cyndy : Okay.

Cyndy dug the ground like a hapless baby, scraping the dirt with his tiny paws. Lancet coughed a little before going towards Cyndy. By then, Cyndy had reached only ankle height. Lancet tapped Cyndy on the shoulder. The fiery quilled hedgehog stopped and looked up at the grinning Charmander. The grin faded into a serious look.

Lancet : That was cute, but no... You don't throw dirt behind you. It's all in the body movement. Pivot your body and let your arms follow through, throwing the dirt away sideways. And do it a little quicker.... like this.

The Charmander dug his paws into the dirt and took it out by the handfuls, throwing the dirt by his side as quick as Cyndy's eye could see. Before Cyndy knows it, Lancet was out of sight. A voice called out to Cyndy. Cyndy looked down into the hole, but could not see any tail flame or Lancet. A paw tapped on Cyndy's shoulder. Cyndy looked back and saw Lancet smiling at him.

Lancet : Now you try.

Cyndy : Uh, Okay....

Cyndy followed Lancet's actions, with Lancet telling him to go a little faster. When Cyndy is deep enough, Lancet called out to Cyndy, telling him to stop. The digging noise stopped and Cyndy listened attentively.

Lancet : That's good, Cyndy... dig sideways and listen to the thumping of my tail and try to reach it. Just give me a few seconds to position myself.

Walking several metres off the digging site, Lancet slammed his tail to the ground, before thumping on it repeatedly. He could hear some digging noises from Cyndy as he waited patiently for Cyndy to surface underneath his thundering tail. Lancet looked back. Nothing. Lancet scratched his head and wondered where Cyndy had gone to. His answers were answered when a tree shook and Cyndaquil came out with a bruise on his head. The Charmander sweatdropped and rubbed the back of his head.

Cyndaquil : Owww...... @_@

Lancet : Looks like it'll take longer than I thought.... n_n;;;

After about an hour.... and a few potions and bandages, Cyndy finally perfected his digging techniques and snagged Lancet's tail. Lancet gave a sigh of relief and moved on to the next basic Fire Type Technique... Flamethrower. Lancet gave a little demonstration by throwing a stick and shooting his own flamethrower to blow the stick up into pieces. He then motioned Cyndy to try it. Cyndy took the stick, threw it as far as he can and used flamethrower on it. The flame missed, of course, as the stick disappeared into the forest. Lancet shook his head in disbelief. This will take a long time.

It took 4 hours before Cyndy could master his accuracy, minus a few hours to extinguish the forest fire, caused by the flamethrower missing its target and igniting a shrub. Lancet sighed and looked at the sky. The sun was at its peak, Lancet figured it is roughly high noon. Lancet turned to Cyndy, who lay on the ground extremely exhausted. He nudged Cyndy, the "Sleeping Beauty"....

Poke Actor : Alright.... What is it this time?

Cyndy : First, you humiliated me in front of the readers out there by naming me Cyndy, you made me all weak and defenseless and make lots of mistakes in training.... and now, you have that nerve to call me "Sleeping Beauty" ?!!

Poke Actor : It sounds original, doesn't it? To match the cute (girlish) name? Besides... I don't think anybody would've thought of this term yet... at least not on a male Pokemon.

Cyndy : Can't you choose another word like "Sleeping Pokemon" or Slumbering Hedgehog"? I'll even accept "Quilldozing", but please don't call me a "Sleeping Beauty"!

Poke Actor : Sorry, my mind's set up. Besides... the story's about to end. I'll just stick to "Sleeping Beauty".

Cyndy : *growling* Don't you dare...

Poke Actor : I dared. Now, on with the show... YIPES! *dodges flamethrower* CYNDY! Do this again, and you'll be added to my hitlist!

Cyndy : Humppph....

Poke Actor : Ignore him... let's continue.

... but the Pokemon didn't respond. Lancet sighed... He can't just leave Cyndy here... so he gave the hedgehog a piggy back ride back to the village.

Poke Actor : Quit interrupting my story Cynd.... Oh, hi Lancet. What brings you here?

Lancet : You know perfectly well. You made me give him a piggy back ride?!! Back to the Village?!!!

Poke Actor : Well, How else would Cyndy get back to the village?

Lancet : He can walk back, can't he? What do you think legs are used for?

Poke Actor : This is Cyndy's first time in the village. I would not expect him to know the whole place inside out in only one chapter. Besides, Nobody's watching. (almost)

Lancet : I hope not... *shoots a little flame as warning*

Poke Actor : Trust me.

Lancet : That's what I'm afraid of.

Poke Actor : *rollseyes* Back to the show...

Lancet reached Vixie's doorstep, and looked around to make sure nobody saw him in such a ridiculous situation. But before he could set Cyndy down, the door opened and the fox's head popped out. Both Lancet and Vixie sweatdropped and remained silent for a few moments. Finally, Vixie started...

Vixie : Uh... how did Cyndy go?

Lancet : Pleased to tell you that he has mastered the two moves... now the rest of the new moves is up to him to think of.

Vixie : That's great. Here... put him on that couch over there.

Lancet sets the Cyndaquil on the soft cushions of the couch and was about to leave when Vixie called.

Lancet : Yes?

Vixie : Thanks, Lancet... for everything.

Lancet : Any time.... any time....

To that, the Charmander turned his back and leaves, signalling a goodbye (looks like a very loose salute while walking away). With the Wild Pokemon League closing in in a few weeks, Cyndy needs all the training he could get. Far from THE END

Next Chapter coming will be the Wild Pokemon League. Will Cyndy be prepared for this eventful battle? Only time will tell... as soon as you get to see the next chapter.

Other than that, don't flame me. I got bugged enough by Cyndy trying to fry me... luckily for me, his aiming still stinks. Well... on with the next Chapter. Until Then... Goodnight. JAN COOLEEN }}AKA{{ POKE ACTOR