Pokemon: The Yellow Guardian

| Penny POV |

The awkward silence that followed our introductions lasted about ten seconds.

Which, to be fair, was a record for me.

I sat there with my arms wrapped around my knees, hoodie sleeves tugged halfway over my hands, trying not to make eye contact with the Lucario who apparently wasn't under an illusion, was somehow sapient to a 4th wall level, and would have traumatized a Pikachu for fun of given the chance. Kirlia hovered nearby, glowing faintly with the judgment of a thousand stars.

Flareon curled up beside me like a warm pillow made of anxiety. Umbreon paced once, then settled, but her eyes never left the others.

Especially not the shadowed wolf thing slinking under a palm tree. It seems someone has a crush...

"Okay," Rio said, flopping backward into the sand with a sigh. "That wasn't the worst introduction I've ever had."

"Glad I could raise your standards," I muttered.

He snorted. "Want to battle?"

I blinked at him. "What?"

"You and me. Well—your team and mine. Just for fun."

"Fun?"

"Yeah," he said, eyes closed like he was asking if I wanted a smoothie instead of open conflict. "Let me be the trainer for once. Give the orders. You know, the whole 'I choose you' experience."

"...Are you serious?"

He cracked one eye open. "Deadly."

''And you won't fight personally?

''None of yours would stand a chance if I stepped forward.'' Oh how much I want to wipe that smirk off his face...

I looked at Flareon. She looked back with an expression that screamed do we have to? Umbreon tilted her head.

"…Fine," I said. "Three on three. But if your Charmander explodes again, I'm calling Nurse Joy."

"She's a Trishout."

I thought she was just a regional variant or something... Guess that makes more sense.

---

It began with bickering.

Kirlia floated over to him and crossed her arms.

"You're not qualified."

"I am deeply qualified," Rio said.

"You once threw a Poké Ball at a rock."

"That rock looked suspicious."

"Still a rock."

''It had three geodudes inside.''

''Still a rock.''

Trishout bounded in, nearly tripping over herself in the sand. "Ooh! Are we fighting?? Can I use Fire Blast?"

"No!" Kirlia snapped.

"Yes!" Rio said at the same time.

Grovyle, silent as ever, just landed on a rock nearby and stared. Probably wondering if it was too late to defect to a different team.

---

We lined up.

I sent out Jolteon, Vaporeon, and Sylveon—my go-tos when I needed consistency and chaos in equal measure.

Rio waved dramatically at his team. "Go, Team Disaster!"

Kirlia: "That's not our name."

Trishout: "It is now!"

---

The battle was, in a word, chaos.

Rio shouted move names like he was auditioning for a children's anime. "Grovyle, use Shadow Sneak into Dragonbreath—flank left! Kirlia, wall them off with Light Screen! Trishout, fire literally anywhere that's not at us!"

It should have gone terribly.

And yet… somehow, it worked.

Trishout spun and launched a flamethrower that scorched the sand into glassy shards, forcing Vaporeon to relocate, even with a times two resistance that looked like it would have hurt.

Kirlia's screens blocked Jolteon's Thunderbolt with surgical precision.

Grovyle vanished and reappeared behind Sylveon, leaving a burst of phantom leaves that knocked her back just enough for Trishout to come in with a leaping tail-swipe.

The whole time, Rio bounced on his feet, calling commands like an actual trainer. Maybe not a good one, but…

An enthusiastic one.

"You're not bad," I admitted, sidestepping a stray psychic pulse.

"Thanks," he said. "I watched like six whole league matches once."

"Ah yes. A true professional."

---

Eventually, we called it a draw.

Sylveon was down. So was Trishout. The rest were tired, but standing.

I sank into the sand, wiping sweat from my forehead. "You're a menace."

Rio dropped beside me with a grin. "I told you I have flair."

Kirlia hovered behind him and flicked his ear with psychic energy. "You tripped over your own command."

"Flair," he said again, rubbing his ear.

I glanced over at my team—tired, a little scorched, but unhurt and… oddly content.

Umbreon lay next to Grovyle under the palm tree. Not friends, exactly. But not enemies either.

Trishout had dragged Flare on to the water, and they started competing over who can shoot a flamethrower the longest.

Jolteon was poking at the silent canine still sitting in the shade of a tree, trying to get it to do anything other than sleeping.

It was… peaceful.

Weird. But peaceful.

"Not bad," I said quietly.

Rio looked over. "For a first date?"

I whipped my head toward him.

He laughed, holding his paws up. "Kidding. Kidding! Mostly."

"Say something like that again and I'm dunking you in the ocean."

He smirked. "Worth it."

I didn't realize I was smiling until it was already there.

And that—more than anything—was what scared me.

Those two idiots at the academy will not let me hear the end of it if they found out...

(To be continued)

Caffeine crash is not a pleasant experience.

MC: How many hours have you been awake.

Yes.