Masters, A Pokemon RP(CLOSED) Chapter 7: Out of the Woods.

[Sporky111]

A warm ray of sunlight fell through the window of the pokemon center, right onto Sylas' face. For a while it added comfort to his dreams, sending him to a warm beach to escape the cold of winter that they were in. He hummed in comfort and rolled over in the bed, jostling himself from deep sleep in the process. Suddenly, the warm light became uncomfortable and annoying, and he shielded his eyes in a vain attempt to keep sleeping.

After a couple minutes with his face buried in his elbow, he groaned and opened his eyes. It's nice of them to keep rooms open for free, but couldn't they put up curtains? he thought groggily. With a deep breath, he lifted himself from the bed and rolled to his feet. He grabbed his shirt, pants and socks off the ground and put them on, noticing how dirty they had started to feel. It had been a long trip so far, and he was starting to get grimy. I might have to ask Magnus' family if I can borrow their shower.

He left the room and sat down drowsily in the main room, waiting for the others to wake. He left his partners in their capsules, not wanting to disturb their sleep prematurely.

 

[Lost In The Void]

Duncan woke up in his house. He looked at the alarm clock by the side of his bed, "7:00, haven't slept that late in a long time."

It was to be expected though, he had spent much of the night trying to figure out what had happened in the forest. He wanted to call it a divine intervention, but it was just so surreal, so hard to believe that he just was confused all around by it.

His rustling woke up Houndour, who was sleeping by the foot of his bed, warming Duncan's feet under the blankets, "C'mon girl," Duncan said yawning slightly, "Lets go take Ponyta for a run."

He grabbed his clothes, showered and grabbed two apples and a piece of beef jerkey from the fridge. He fed the jerkey to Houndour and took a small slice off of the first apple for Nibbles, who was perched on his shoulder. The final chunk of the apple went to Ponyta who was tied up in the Stable behind the house.

Duncan stroked her flank in a caring manner, "Alright girl lets go for a ride," he saddled her up and put the fire proof halter on her before swinging up onto the back of his Ponyta. He withdrew both Houndour and Nibbles and kicked Ponyta into a canter out of the stable and into the fields outside of the town.

 

[Mookie_Magnus]

After Magnus had made himself decent enough for the morning, Beth, Farrah, and Matt walked out into the living room.

"Good, you're dressed." Matt said to his younger brother. "Hey, call up your friends. They'd probably appreciate some free food, yeah?"

"Yeah, I'll go ahead and call them in a bit." Magnus said in agreement.

"Magnus, I went ahead and did your laundry." Farrah explained the disappearance of all his clothing. "I hope you don't mind..."

"It's fine, Farr. I'll just wait until they're clean and dry, then I'll change." Magnus said to his sister-in-law. "Thank you, by the way."

Magnus sent a text message to each of his traveling companions' phones.

Free food at my bro's place. Get some.

 

[razer17]

Dani received a text from Magnus. Free food, eh? Dani still felt awkward going to someone else's house for food, but decided it would be rude to reject. She got up and headed towards the house.

 

[Sporky111]

After several minutes, Sylas finally remembered to turn his phone on. The text from Magnus immediately rang, and he quickly left the center. That must be where everyone is... he though, momentarily regretting his policy of turning off his phone while sleeping.

After a short walk, and a wrong turn, he found his way to the house. He knocked once and let himself in, saying "Good morning!" to announce his presence. The smell of good food filled his nostrils as he found his way to the living room.

 

[Mookie_Magnus]

"Oh hey!" Magnus said when Sylas walked through the front door. He had already let out his Pokemon, save for Bore, from their pokeballs, and they were yawning and stretching themselves awake. "Matt and Farrah are working on breakfast, so you can go ahead and have a seat."

Magnus heard a slightly loud beeping, which indicated that the laundry was dry.

"Oh good, my clothes." Magnus said, glad that they were done. "I'll be back in a few."

Magnus left the room and rifled through the dryer for some clean clothes. Underwear, socks, jeans, and a shirt. He folded up his outfit for the day, and went into one of the bathrooms to take a shower, locking the door behind him. He placed his clothes on counter, and hung a towel from the linen closet on the hook for himself.

Magnus turned on the hot water, and watched as it fell from the shower head, before stepping in. He had grabbed his razor on the way, and had begun to shave, accidentally nicking his face. He ignored the cut for the moment, and finished shaving his face, looking back to it once he was done. He lathered up the soap and made a thorough scrub-down of himself, before washing his hair.

What am I doing? He thought to himself as the water poured over him. I've got Team Rocket, and an assassin after me. The last thing I should be doing is staying in one place and endangering people, especially not my family.

Magnus turned off the water, stepped out onto the floor-mat, and dried himself off, wiping the fogged mirror so he could see his reflection. His dyed-red hair hung messily over his forehead, he shook the water out of it, then attacked it with a towel.

The others deserve a break, though... He continued his inner monologue. So do I... We just went through all that mess with the Sprout Tower. It's only going to get harder, though... I mean, if we're just going through Johto, going along the path for the Gym Badges, then it's going to be a rough trip. Sylas and Duncan seem more than capable of handling themselves, I can trust that they'll stick with me. It might be best for Brandon to go back to Saffron, take care of things there. Eric and Rhiss, though... They're just kids. I don't know if I should keep taking them along. Dani's a capable girl, but she's oblivious to who we are... We'll need to explain it to her soon.

Magnus sighed heavily and finished drying off, before changing into his clothes and stepping out of the bathroom, back into the living room. Dani had arrived during his shower, and he said hello to her again, then sat down on the couch.

"So, did you guys sleep alright?" Magnus asked Sylas and Dani.

 

[razer17]

"Well, it was pretty good. Didn't appreciate waking up at half seven, but after a bit more sleep, it's all good, thanks" Dani said chirpily. Once she was out of bed she was fine. Just that getting out of bed was a pain at the best of times.

 

[Sporky111]

"Not bad; short, but good. Do we have plans for today?"

Sylas noticed Magnus seemed a bit less cheerful than usual. It might have been the early morning, or it might have been something on his mind, but Sylas didn't want to press on it. Not in public, anyway.

"Oh, by the way Magnus, would your family mind if I took a shower after breakfast? I look like a hobo."

 

[Mookie_Magnus]

"They won't mind." Magnus answered Sylas. "In fact, I'm pretty sure they'll insist on it. Pretty sure my sister-in-law doesn't want a bunch of smelly unwashed teenagers in her house."

Magnus got up and got his Pokemon's food from his backpack, and made sure that they were adequately fed. Beth's Oddish wandered over to Salad's food bowl, and proceeded to eat out of it.

"Addy must be hungry." Beth said apologetically to Magnus. "Uncle Magny, I can't tell if it's a boy or a girl Oddish. Can you?"

"Let's see... Bring it over here." Magnus asked his niece, who picked up the Grass-Type and walked it over to her uncle. Magnus brought out his Pokedex and held it in front of the Pokemon, scanning it. "Let's see... scanning... There. It's a boy Oddish, Beth. It's moves are Absorb and Sweet Scent."

"A boy... I'll call you Adam, then. Addy is more of a girl's name." Beth said to the Oddish. It smiled happily, and jumped into her arms. "Thanks Uncle Magny."

"Anytime, kiddo." Magnus said to his niece. Magnus saw that there was a fresh bandage where the wound had been. Beth must have bandaged it up this morning... She had potential, that's for sure. In a few years, she would be a great Trainer.

"Where are Duncan and the others?" Magnus asked Sylas and Dani rhetorically. "They had better hurry up..."

 

[Lost In The Void]

Duncan was halfway through Ilex forest when he got the message for Magnus, "Free food," he said to himself, "Can't turn that down. He whipped through the forest on Ponyta, letting her stretch her legs properly. It was exhilorating and he was having the time of his life. Soon he was back at Magnus's relative's house and he knocked on the door, letting himself in, "You better not have started without me..."

 

[Mookie_Magnus]

"Don't worry, Duncan." Magnus said as his cousin-in-law entered the house. "We couldn't start without family."

"Uncle Duncan!" Beth cried out as he walked through the door, going over to hug him. "Look! Adam's leaf is gonna be all better!"

Beth showed Duncan the bandage-work she did on the green Oddish, and smiled proudly.

"Your hair is all messed up. Did you go on a run with Ponyta this morning?" Beth asked curiously.

 

[Sporky111]

"Good morning, Duncan." Sylas said, looking over his shoulder from his chair. Magnus was right, he looked all windswept and red from the cold air.

"Can we start now?" he asked, somewhat impatiently but still smiling.

 

[Lost In The Void]

Duncan smiled at Beth, "Ya we went for a run today, thought I'd let her stretch her legs. One day me and you are going to have to take Ponyta for a run, think you'd enjoy that?"

He spun to face Sylas, "And morning to you, I can tell that you're eager to start so I won't delay us anymore."

 

[Mookie_Magnus]

After the others had all shown up at Magnus' brother's house for free breakfast, Farrah called the Trainers into the dining room. They sat down at the dining-room table, where plates of pancakes, bacon, and other breakfast foods had been placed for the hungry teenagers.

"Alright, guys. Enjoy." Farrah said to the group. "There's coffee in the pot, orange juice and milk in the fridge."

The Trainers, like most teenagers, started eating furiously. Magnus made sure that Beth had a plate before the ravenous gaggle ate everything in sight.

"I'm looking forward to today's Gym Battle, Duncan." Magnus commented on his cousin-in-law's upcoming match.

"Yeah! You and Uncle Bugsy are gonna battle today. You and Houndour are gonna do great, I'm sure of it!" Beth said cheerfully. "Adam and I will be cheering for you."

 

[Sporky111]

"She's right," Sylas said between mouthfuls of food, "You guys'll do great today."

There was a sudden shake in one of his pokeballs and he curiously tapped the button. Baron appeared nearby, scratching his head. He sniffed the air and looked up at Sylas with want in his eyes.

"Wow, really?" Sylas asked, surprised that Baron would go to all that trouble just to beg for food. He smiled and pushed his chair back a bit so the cubone could jump onto his lap. Baron eagerly reached onto his plate and grabbed strip of bacon, then sat down and started munching on it.

 

[Mookie_Magnus]

"Huh..." Magnus said, watching the Cubone eat the bacon. "That's pretty neat how he eats with his helmet on. Sy, you've had him for a while, right? Have you ever seen him without his helmet on?"

Magnus was curious about this. Very few people had seen a Cubone without their 'helmet' on, and many people believed that what they wore on their heads was actually a part of their own skull. For some reason, most Cubone got very defensive when people tried to remove the helmets.

"Does he let you touch his head?" Magnus asked Sylas. "Or does he get defensive?"

 

[Sporky111]

"I've never seen him take it off, but I've seen inside from the bottom of it on occasion. He doesn't mind when I touch his head."

To prove his point, he hooked a finger under the edge of Baron's helmet and scratched where his cheek might have been. Baron closed his eyes in contentment and tilted his head to one side to give Sylas easier access.

"I've actually never tried to take it off him." he continued, "but if he doesn't seem nearly as grim as other cubone. Maybe someday he'll show me."

 

[Mookie_Magnus]

"That'd be interesting to see... even more interesting if he were to evolve while not wearing the helmet." Magnus commented. "What's weird though, is some of the theories that people come up with sometimes... Especially on the Internet. Heh, there are seriously some people out there who think that a Cubone is really a baby Kangaskhan wearing a skull helmet. I mean, yeah, they're similar in body-shape and appearance, but that's really kind of silly... and actually impossible, really. Considering that Cubone can be male or female, but Kangaskhan are female-only."

"Wow, you're smart Uncle Magny." Beth complimented her uncle. "Where'd you learn so much?"

"School, kiddo. I stayed in school until last year, and was able to graduate already..." Magnus explained to his niece. "Not like lots of kids who leave at age 10 for Pokemon Adventures and have to start back where they left off when they finish. Not that that's a bad thing, I mean, Uncle Maddox left when he was 12, and he's doing fine."

"Yeah! I remember when he visited us on his way through here a few years ago. He couldn't beat Bugsy either, though..." Beth remembered. "Hmm... I'll be able to leave for a Pokemon Journey on my own next year."

"Yeah, if you decide to, I'm sure you'll do fine." Magnus tousled the girl's hair.

"Hey, Uncle Magnus, guess what." Beth smiled maliciously.

"What?" Magnus asked curiously.

"I stole your bacon!" Beth held up a couple strips of bacon and ate them quickly, when Magnus noticed that his were gone. "Nyeeh!"

"You're so mean to me, Beth. I think I might cry." Magnus feigned heartbreak before grabbing more bacon. "But yeah... You'll do fine as a Trainer, kiddo."

After the group had eaten their fill, most of them set off to get ready for the day. Some went back to the Pokemon Center to wait, while others stayed here.

"Oh, Sy." Magnus reminded his friend. "Shower's all yours, man."

 

[Lost In The Void]

Duncan welcomed the support as he tucked into his breakfast, not eating much due to the nervousness he felt before all of his battles. He was glad that others would be around him. He finished off his meal and decided to go outside into the fresh air again. He rereleased Ponyta from her Pokeball and began to brush her down, relieving some of his stress with manual labour.

 

[Sporky111]

"Oh, yeah. Thanks." Sylas said to Magnus, going into the bathroom. He locked the door behind him and quickly stripped off his clothes, hanging them up so they might air out a bit. I'm going to miss this place when we're on the road again. he though as he stepped into the running water.

It felt good for him to have a supporting "family" around. They were welcoming and generous and seemed to want what was best for him. Not so say that his blood-family wasn't like that, but it just wasn't the same. He wanted to be around these people, he liked their company. And even after this short time with them, he knew he'd regret leaving in a way he hadn't regretted leaving his parents.

After several minutes of contemplation under the water and lather, he turned off the faucet and dried himself and got dressed. He looked in the mirror finally, noticing he had gotten a decent amount of scruff on his chin and jaw. For a second he considered borrowing a razor to shave, but then decided that he liked it and left the bathroom to join the others.