Gundam Wing Fan Fiction / Pokemon Fan Fiction / Pokemon Fan Fiction ❯ Pokemon AU ❯ Chapter 1

Duo's stomach growled as he raked his fingers though his thick bangs.

Gods, he was hungry. How long was it since he had last eaten? A day? Two?

His heart fell. What about his Pokemon? He had just fed them the last of their food his morning.

Maybe… Maybe if he could find another trainer- one who was willing to bet some money in a match…

Duo's mouth twitched. Filled with impetuosity, he began his search.

***

"Go! Sandslash!"

/Bingo. That definitely sounds like a trainer/ thought Duo as his ears perked up.

He jogged past a small clump of trees into a small grassy clearing.

Another boy was there- along with his Pokemon. He had a mop of messy dark brown hair and was dressed in a green tank top and a pair of tight, light blue jeans.

His Pokemon, a Sandslash, began to advance towards its quarry, a Pikachu.

Duo looked on with interest.

All of a sudden, the Pikachu took off in a flash, leaving the trainer and his Pokemon in a cloud of dust and abrupt shock.

He looked so funny; Duo couldn't help but laugh.

The other turned to glare at him. "What's so funny?"

"Oh nothing. It's just that I'd think a trainer as old as you are would have already caught a Pikachu," he chuckled. "The name's Duo Maxwell," he continued, not letting the other boy speak and extended his hand towards him. "Wanna battle?"

The blue-eyed trainer raised his eyebrow in contemplation, but shook the hand. "Sure. My name is Heero Yuy."

"Great!" said Duo, jumping excitedly. "Three on three, two wins out of three, no time limit, and… bet P1,000? [1]" he offered to Heero, gesturing with his right hand each limitation.

The other boy nodded curtly and recalled his Sandslash.

"Getting a stronger Pokemon?" taunted Duo- he felt a win coming up.

"No," replied the almost 13 year old [2]. "I figure I should train some of my weaker Pokemon with you."

Duo's jaw worked at the insult as he glared though his deep purple eyes.

"PokeBall, go!" the shouted simultaneously.

Shrugging of the comment, Duo smirked; not only would he be getting P1000, but he'd be able to show off his Pokemon and his skills. He felt his heart beat with excitement.

Houndour, Duo's fire-demon dog, appeared. The blue-eyed boy regarded it with a small shock…

… where as the braided boy ogled at the other's Pokemon.

Ok, so maybe it wasn't as easy as he'd think it'd be…

It… it looked like a metal bird. Quickly flipping out his PokeDex, Duo scanned the metal avian.

"Beep. Skarmory- Flying/Steel type. Other information unknown. Beep."

/Crap./ thought Duo. But then again… did that other guy look just a *little* bit worried?

Wait a second. He had a fire-type… What did the 'dex say? Flying/steel? Steel… and fire.

Duo grinned. He had the type advantage. [3] He'd need all the help he would get.

***

Heero's eyes narrowed.

/Beginner's luck./ he thought.

They stood there, waiting for the right moment to begin the match, adrenaline hanging in the air as if it were a crisp morning mist.

"Houndour, ember!" called Duo, as his Pokemon quickly complied.

Deep blue eyes narrowed even more. "Skarmory, get away- fly!"

His Pokemon took off, nearly evading the other's fiery attack. The metal bird hovered in the air, before diving at a horrendous speed to hit the canine.

Duo growled under his breath as his Pokemon struggled to get up. /Ok, so his Pokemon is a *slightly* higher level than Houndour… but I still have the type advantage/ he thought stubbornly.

Biting his lip, Duo called the next attack. "Houndour, sand attack!"

The bird wheeled back slightly, shaking its head as the attack took effect and its accuracy diminished. Skarmory attacked Houndour, trying to peck at his torso, but missed.

"Houndour, quick attack!"

"Skarmory, match his speed, agility!"

The two Pokemon danced about, each time narrowly missing the other.

Duo balled his fists around his black cut off gloves. /This is going no where./

Obviously, Heero thought so to, because he ordered Skarmory to do another fly attack.

"Houndour, stay where you are!"

Cobalt eyes widened in shock, but quickly recovered and took the advantage. "Skarmory, attack!"

As the bird dove towards Houndour, Duo suddenly shouted, "Houndour! Quick attack! Get behind it, then give it your best flame wheel!"

Before Heero could react to the sudden ambush, his Pokemon had already fainted.

Grimly, he recalled Skarmory, who had fallen limply to the ground.

"Guess your Pokemon are still a tad slow, ne?" smiled Duo.

Heero brushed off the remark, and choose his next Pokemon.

"Ivysaur…" it murmured.

/Ivysaur? Is he crazy? Fire's super strong against grass!/ thought Duo. /Oh well. His loss. Add another tally to the "win" column!/

"Is it just me, or are you insane?" he asked.

Heero smirked. "It's just you. Ivysaur! Leech seed!"

The attack came faster than Duo expected, as the seed planted itself onto Houndour's head and thick, strong vines entwined and enveloped the dog's legs, making him immobile. Another vine came down to circle Houndour's muzzle, so that the dog could not use any fire blasts. Then, as if on cue, the vines drained the Pokemon of over half of its already depleted hit points [4].

"Whose Pokemon is slow now?" asked Heero calmly, but not tauntingly. "Ivysaur, power up for a solar beam!"

/Oh, crap! Solar beam… holy Ho-oh [5]! That's the strongest attack a grass Pokemon can have!/ Duo thought hurriedly. /I can't recall Houndour because of all those stupid vines… so. The only choice I have is to see if he can tough it out. Hang in there, boy…/

Ivysaur's petals swayed as it finally gathered enough energy and its leech seed attack recoiled.

Weak from the attack, Houndour fell.

"Houndour! Try-" cried Duo worriedly, "try to get up…!"

The demon dog shakily got to its feet but whimpered as he did it.

"Ivysaur. Finish it off. Solarbeam!"

Duo's heart went out to his Pokemon as the beam hit it straight on- Houndour was too weak to even have the chance to get away- and he gritted his teeth.

/Damn. He *is* better than I am…/ thought Duo. /Tied wins, but still need every advantage I can get./

His fist coiled around the next PokeBall.

"PokeBall, go!"

A flurry of feathers and a throaty call, "Farfetch'd!" rang though the air.

"Farfetch'd, leer!" The large reptilian shook as its defenses were lowered.

"Ivysaur… vinewhip!"

Duo clenched his teeth together. "Get away! Fly out of its range!" The bird got away just in time to miss a lashing vibrant green vine.

/Ok. Enough defense… time to get offensive!/

"Farfetch'd, use wing attack!"

The bird listened and obeyed, diving and attacking furiously at the Ivysaur, dodging the emerald snakes lashing out at it.

Eventually, the large beast began to tire, its attacks becoming less frequent and powerful, and Duo grinned.

"Ivysaur, synthesis," called out Heero's calm, nasal voice.

The braided trainer's eyes widened. "Synthe- damn!" he cried as Ivysaur regained most of its HP. Duo growled. /That other guy's really enjoying this… {But then again, so are you…} Humph. / "Farfetch'd, keep using wing attack! You can win this!"

"Ivysaur! Solar beam!"

As the reptile stood stationary and gathered golden beams of sunlight again, Farfetch'd relentlessly attacked it, jabbing and beating it.

With a crushing blow, the bird knocked Ivysaur off of its feet and the reptilian lost it's hold of the energy it was collecting.

"Yes!" cried Duo. "Finish it off!"

As Ivysaur struggled to get back on its feet, the bird dove down and rammed its body into the flower-lizard. The Ivysaur moaned in pain and faltered.

Heero growled and recalled the fainted Pokemon. "Good job," he whispered to Ivysaur when it was safely in its PokeBall. To himself, he murmured, "That weakened his Farfetch'd so much that he'll *have* to use his last Pokemon… Regardless… he *is* pretty good…"

Just as Heero suspected, the other trainer recalled his tired, panting Pokemon.

The two young men glared at each other, sweat running down their faces, the adrenaline pumping though their veins.

"PokeBall, go!"

Both trainers gasped as their opponent's Pokemon came out of its PokeBall.

"He has an Eevee, too!" cried Heero and Duo simultaneously.

/Wonder if it's on the same level,/ thought Heero anxiously, gritting his teeth.

"Mary, quick attack!" he called.

"Oh no you don't," muttered Duo. "Solo, counter that quick attack with your own!"

The two Pokemon seemed to bounce off each other as they broke away.

And then, the two Eevees just… stopped.

"What's wrong Solo?!" demanded Duo. "What are you just standing there for?"

The other trainer was asking his Pokemon similar questions, but the two animals paid them no heed and slowly walked towards each other, sniffing and smelling the other.

"Arg! Solo, this isn't time to play 'Getting to Know You'!" cried Duo falling to his knees. Face in his hands he muttered to himself, "You know, one would think that the Pokemon that you've had since you were *five* would obey you…"

The other trainer's voice broke him from his revere. "Look."

"Hm?" Duo asked looking up.

Solo and Mary were both nuzzling each other and purring.

"!!! Wha---?"

Duo was interrupted by a rustling of leaves from behind the two Pokemon, which erupted into an enraged Smeargle.

"What the heck is that?" "Beep. Smeargle- Normal type. Painter. A special fluid oozes from the tip of it's tail. It uses this fluid to mark its territory. While usually docile towards humans, it has been known to attack other Smeargles invading its territory. Beep."

"Oh, that helps," muttered Duo. The Smeargle snarled. "Is it just me, or does it look really angry?" he asked the other trainer.

"It's angry," the other replied calmly.

"Uh…" said Duo, quickly getting to his feet and running to Heero for the Pokemon was advancing towards him, "… why don't we just call it a draw?"

Heero nodded silently and looked towards their Pokemon. The two seemed to nod at each other before initiating an attack upon the angry Smeargle.

The painter Pokemon roared in frustration as the two quick Eevees zipped around it, attacking it from all sides. In a lucky attempt, the Smeargle was able to hit Mary on her right side so that she couldn't get up for a few moments. In that time, Solo somehow managed to catch the Smeargle off guard and kicked it in the back of its head so that it was knocked out. As soon as the enemy Pokemon had fainted, Heero threw a PokeBall and captured it.

Then, the blue-eyed trainer walked over to his fallen Eevee and picked it up carefully. "Hey girl, you ok?" he said gently. The Pokemon nuzzled him in acknowledgement and Heero took out several berries [6] for her to eat and regain her HP.

"Um… I really hate to intrude on this tender moment…" interrupted Duo, "but by any chance, do you know where is the closest PokeCenter?" picking up his Pokemon in the same fashion.

Heero looked at him, his deep blue eyes making Duo's heart flip flop a bit. /He's got eyes like Hirde… {No, better than Hirde…} Why? Just 'cause he likes Pokemon and she didn't? {Uh-oh… you're defending this guy? You just met him… don't tell me you've fallen for someone you just met…} No! You're getting it all wrong… it's just that he's got nice eyes… that's all---/

"Yeah, but it's quite far away from here. Since I'm headed that way too, we could go together."

"Uh… sure," Duo stammered. /{Oooo… you like him…} Do not. Don't be silly./

***

"Here you go," said Nurse Catherine, handing Duo and Heero their healed Pokemon.

"Thanks. So Heero," started Duo, "what are you going to do next?"

It had taken them most of the day to get to the PokeCenter, and now it was late in the afternoon (Heero had treated them to lunch, since Duo had no money). During the long walk Duo had learned that the other trainer was trying to complete the Neo-PokeDex for Professor Howard.

When Duo had told that Professor Howard was his uncle, Heero's surprise had gotten Duo really embarrassed. In addition to being Duo's uncle, Professor Howard was the leading Pokemon researcher and was renowned though out the world.

"I'm just going to hang around here for a while," replied Heero walking over to a drink machine. He put Mary down so that he could insert money and Solo jumped out of Duo's arms to join her.

"I think they really like each other."

"Mmhm," replied Heero as he took a sip. Then he crouched down and took out a water dish from his pack and poured some lemonade into it for Mary. The Eevee took a few laps, then offered it to Solo. Solo followed tentatively and soon the two Pokemon were taking turns drinking. Duo chucked.

"That's so cute---" he started. The two Eevees had stopped drinking and were now staring into the others eyes. Then, they touched their noses together, and something *happened*.

Heero fell backwards onto his butt and Duo's purple eyes widened.

"They… they're…" began Duo.

"… evolving," the other finished.

"But how can that be? There aren't any stones here!" said a bewildered Duo.

The two Pokemon shook out their new coats, one of pure snow white and the other dark ebony. "What--?"

"It's one of the newly discovered evolutionary process for Eevee," explained Heero, picking up Mary, now changed into a regal looking Epseon. "If they are treated well and trained more often in the day, they turn into this," gesturing to Mary, "and if they are trained more often at night, they turn into an Umbreon, like Solo has."

"Wow…," Duo breathed, cautiously stroking Solo's golden ringed ear. "I've gotta tell my Mom about this," he grinned.

***

"Hey, Mom," Duo said cheerfully into the telephone screen.

"Duo!" replied Helen Maxwell. "Where are you? Are you hurt? How are your Pokemon?"

The braided trainer grinned. /Same old Mom./ "I'm fine; and so are my Pokemon. Right now I'm in the Fuchsia City PokeCenter. Guess what?"

"What, dear?"

"Solo evolved!"

"Really? But how could you afford one of those rock evolution things?"

"I didn't!"

"… you *stole* one?"

"Nooo…," Duo moaned. "Look," he said, lifting up Solo so that his mother could see.

"… Wow."

"Yeah, isn't it great? Oh yeah, and I also met this guy- his name is Heero, and we had a battle. He's also got-- well, had-- and Eevee but it's a girl and it evolved into something else."

"Oh my. That's amazing."

"And you know what? I think that Solo and Mary- that's the name of Heero's Eevee- er… Epseon- like each other a whole lot."

Mrs. Maxwell blinked. "Really?"

"Yup."

"And… how long have you known this Heero?" Helen Maxwell asked, suppressing a grin.

"I just met him today… why?"

Duo's mother giggled. "You mean you don't know that old wives' tale about Pokemon that fall in love and their masters [7]?"

"No…"

Helen Maxwell smiled. "Well. Um… can I see this… Heero?"

"Uh, sure…"

Duo grabbed his new friend's arm and pulled him to the screen. As Mrs. Maxwell smiled at Heero, the blue-eyed trainer could feel his cheeks burn.

"Hello, Heero. It's nice to meet you. I'm Duo's Mom."

"Hi," he replied timidly.

As Helen Maxwell's smile grew, so did the redness to Heero's cheeks.

Finally, she laughed and said, "Get Duo back, dear."

Relieved, Heero stepped away from the telephone and gestured for Duo to go towards it.

"He seems to be a very nice boy…"

"Yeah," agreed her son.

"… not too bad looking either."

Duo blushed. "Uh… yeah, Mom. Oh. And there was something else I wanted to ask you."

"Mmhm?"

"… Can I have some more money?"

Mrs. Maxwell rolled her eyes. "How much?" she asked questioningly.

"Um… P5000?"

"Are you sure that'll be enough?"

Duo blushed again. "You know what, Mom? You know me too well."

Helen Maxwell nodded knowingly. "That's part of my job. I'm sending over P10,000. Put your money card in. [8]"

*ding* *transaction ended*

"Thanks, Mom."

"No problem, dear. Now you take care of yourself, ok?"

Duo nodded and hung up. Then he turned to Heero.

"Where are you going?" he asked.

"Nowhere in particular. I suggest you should go and look for a hotel room. It's going to be dark soon," Heero said. "I'll catch you around."

"Bye," Duo murmured. Then he looked down at Solo, whose black ears were now drooping.

"What's wrong with you?"

The coal black Pokemon looked up at Duo with its gleaming yellow eyes and cooed.

Duo snorted. "You miss her? Already?"

Solo cocked his head as if to say "So what's it to you?"

The braided trainer sighed and picked him up. "Come on, let's go find a room."

***

Everywhere it was the same. "No vacancy."

Duo had eaten dinner quite a while ago, so he wasn't hungry- but now he was very tired. /If it's not one thing, it's the other…/

It was getting dark as he and Solo were making their way back to the PokeCenter and Solo's ears perked up.

"What is it, boy?"

Solo barked and took off. He had obviously gotten the scent of something and was following it.

"Solo~!" Duo groaned as he raced after him.

After a few minutes, they reached a large hotel.

"Solo, didn't we already check this one?" Duo started to ask, but the Umbreon just walked in. "Hey--!"

Duo followed him into the elevator and the doors slid shut. "Now what?"

<Lift me up,> barked Solo.

"You know, you're pretty bossy for a Pokemon…," Duo said, but complied.

<To the elevator buttons.>

Duo nodded and let Solo smell each one. When the Umbreon's nose got to the "16th Floor" button, Solo pushed it in.

"What *are* you doing?" asked Duo.

<You'll like it.>

Duo sighed.

Solo literally jumped out of the elevator and began sniffing again, and Duo followed close behind. Eventually, Solo stopped in front of one of the hotel doors.

<Knock on it.>

"But you don't even know who--"

<Please?>

Muttering several curses under his breath, he knocked. As soon as the door was opened, Solo raced in and joined the elated Pokemon sitting on the bed.

"Wha--" started Duo, and then looked up at the person who had opened the door.

Surprised cobalt blue eyes met purple, and Duo felt his cheeks turn red. "Um… hi, Heero…"

"Hello," replied the other, smiling un-surely.

Duo felt his heart melt a bit. "Um… my Pokemon followed you home?"

Heero nodded. "Well, since you're here, why don't you come in?"

"Uh, sure," Duo said hesitantly, and joined Heero inside.

"Did you find a place to stay?"

"No, I didn't," Duo said distantly, looking towards Solo, who seemed to smile at him. /Did he know that I li-- no… I mean, I just met the guy… I couldn't possibly… {Uh-hu. Sure.} Aw, shut up./ "This is a pretty big room for just one person… or-- are you traveling with someone else?" Duo asked, surveying the hotel room.

"No, I'm by myself," replied the other sitting down on the bed with the Pokemon. "It's just that this was the last room here."

"Oh," said Duo, sitting in one of the chairs. Looking at their two Pokemon, he said absently, "They sure do like each other… I'd hate to break up their newfound 'love'…

"I mean…" breaking out of his reverie, "Well, that really can't be helped… that is… well, unless we…"

"What?" urged Heero.

Duo shrugged. "Well, we could travel together… that way our Pokemon won't be separated…"

Solo barked excitedly.

Heero looked to Solo, "You like that idea?" and Solo nodded. "How about you, Mary?" The other Pokemon nuzzled her love and purred.

"I don't see why not…"

"But, um… what about… that?" Duo asked pointing at the large Queen sized bed- the only bed in the room.

"Oh that's right, you don't have a room," murmured Heero. "It's a pretty big bed, so we could share," he said plainly.

Duo was taken aback at the idea, but then smiled warmly. "Ok, it's settled then: We're traveling together!"

(To be continued…)

~ ~ ~

Notes:

[1]: P1,000; in the Pokemon Universe their money is this symbol that looks like an uppercase "P" with two small horizontal lines through the bottom of it. Since I don't have that symbol, I'm using a "P" to represent it. So, P1,000 would be 1,000 "Pokemon dollars"… which really isn't all that *that* much. (a "Fresh water" is like P200)

[2]: Heero is 12 3/4 (^-^` accurate, ne?) and Duo is 12 1/2, but they have been trainers for about the same amount of time.

[3]: There are two main things to consider in Pokemon Battles- level and type. Level is how much the Pokemon has trained and how much experience it has; the more experience the better. Type is what "element" the Pokemon is, usually those with a stronger element than the other- in this case fire is strong against metal (because fire melts metal)- can beat or at least have the advantage in a battle. However, if the Pokemon is a high enough level, then they can beat one that has the type advantage. (ex: A level 50 rock type can whip a level 3 water type's butt.) Most of the type advantage/disadvantage is logical (ie: water is strong against fire, electric is weak against ground), but some are harder to figure out. (ie: grass is strong against rock, and fighting is weak against physic).

[4]: hit points; aka health ^. ~

[5]: I don't know if "Holy Ho-oh" is a real expletive, but Ho-oh is a legendary Pokemon. If you saw the first episode of Pokemon when Satoshi (Ash) looks up in the sky to see a flying bird, that's Ho-oh.

[6]: berries… there are many types of berries, each one with their own special properties. Regular berries restore 10 HP each, where as Gold berries restore 20 HP, Poisoncure berries cure poison, ice berries cure burns, and so on.

[7]: If you watch Pokemon, you might know what I'm talking about (the Episode where Satoshi releases Butterfree); and will probably think that 1) Duo's mom is a hentai or 2) Duo's mom is extremely open-minded. ^-^`

[8]: money card: I don't know if this concept is in the Pokemon Universe, but it's sort of like a credit card, and you can "refill" the money though a telephone account, at the bank, at an ATM, etc… (do they have ATM's in the Poke Universe…?)

[End Note:

Mousie: Wow. I haven't written… much less finished a fic in a while… (feeling guilty) If any parts you don't really get… um… I'm sorry? ^-^` You can always email me at: darkmus@yahoo.com]