Chapter 3 1/2

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon. Any similarities between real people, living or dead, or places, standing or demolished, in this story are just coincidence.

I am an animal lover, but not exactly an expert. Some biology and behavior referenced in the story may not be 100% accurate, or might even be outright pseudoscience.

Please point out mistakes

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All of you have lost your fuckin minds.

The thick book closes with a "whap!" and falls from limp fingers into the table just under it.

Lee groans and reclines back into the now not-very-comfortable library reading chair he's been sitting in for almost four hours. He looks back down at the 600-some page book he had just finished. The title reads Advanced Biology of Mammalian Fire Types. It was an utterly fascinating read, adding a rich depth to his understanding of the inner workings of Pokemon, but it was just as dry a read as every awful McGraw Hill textbook he had to memorize in college.

With a grumble, Lee picks the book back up and gently sets it in his meager "Complete" pile, where Nutrition and Health of Canid Pokemon, World History Abridged, Modern Move Training Guide: Special Edition, Forest Tales: To Live With Wilderness, Berry Tips for Those in a Hurry, and So You Think You Can Battle. Next to the complete pile is a much more intimidating "Unread" pile. The next one on the list is a mammoth text with the title Official Pokemon League Regulations - Complete.

"Wowie, what a fuckin' joy," Lee mutters to himself. "I'm so happy I could burst. Maybe I could use a break?"

In his pocket, Vulpix's pokeball shakes in agreement.

"That's all the encouragement I need," he grins, peeling himself from the chair and standing with a groan. The man stretches his arms over his head, relishing the feeling of his sore muscles loosening. He then shoulders the green backpack by his table and heads towards the front door of Little Root's small library, passing the absent librarian's Solrock on the way. "We'll be back in a bit, chief. Keep my pile there please?"

"Sol." the great hunk of sun-shaped rock grumbles out in a voice like cinder blocks across concrete.

Lee steps out into the balmy mid afternoon sun of Little Root, the harsh sun rays instantly making his burn scars sting. He frowns and digs in his pocket, then pulls Vulpix's ball out. "Alrighty girl, do your thing." He throws the ball and it snaps open mid-air, a burst of white energy materializing into Vulpix by his feet.

Vulpix blinks the stars from her eyes and stretches with a little yawn.

"It's kinda bullshit I have to keep you in your ball when I know that Solrock has a Fire move stashed away somewhere," Lee grumbles, stuffing his hands into his pockets. "Who would be dumb enough to take an uncontrollable Fire type into a library anyway?"

The vixen levels her trainer with a flat look.

He sighs and runs his hand through his hair. "Yeah, I know what you're thinking. Common sense not being all that common and all. But still."

"Vul, vulpix vul, vulpix." Vulpix replies dully. "Not that I would enjoy a library more than my ball anyway," Lee interprets. Vulpix then closes her eyes and lets out a breath, focus overtaking her visage.

Slowly, the sunlight beaming down on Lee began to dim, forming a curious, circular space around him that isn't as brightly lit as his surroundings. The man grins with the stinging of his burns ease. His thoughts turn towards the last three weeks and Vulpix's incredible progress.

Day 2

"Just a few more girl, then we're good."

Vulpix makes a noise that sounds almost exactly like a sigh but dutifully remains still.

Lee glances down at the borrowed notebook in his hand and his pokedex with it's entry on Vulpix open beside his crossed legs. Before him on the guest bed they share, Vulpix stands still and submits herself to her trainer's poking and prodding.

The first thing on Lee's list once employment and shelter were secured was giving Vulpix a full physical. Or at least as full a physical as he could with just his hands and his pokedex to gauge baselines.

'All pretty inline with what I'd expect from a vulpine on the smaller side if I'm being honest.' Lee inwardly muses. 'Muscle density and high temperature notwithstanding. If her paws could get enough traction, I wouldn't be surprised if Vulpix could pull a car behind her!"

Lee finishes looking in her ears with a nod. "Ears clean and clear, though I doubt any bacteria could take hold with your temperature. Turn and face the side wall please," he says, putting a little check mark by 'ears' in his notebook.

Vulpix turns and faces the wall, presenting her side to her trainer with her bored expression still in place.

Reaching a hand under her, Lee carefully runs a hand over her sternum and feels her ribs. He pushes a little harder than normal to feel the bones under the thin layer of dense muscle on the vixen's chest. For a moment, he holds his hand still to gauge her resting breathing and heart rate, counting the breaths and heartbeats in his head. 'Again, all very normal. Ribs can be felt but not seen. Resting heart rate seems a little low for her size, but that can be chalked up to athleticism or genetics. IVs maybe? Breathing is clear and steady."

He pats lower on her belly. 'No sagging or hanging skin. Fur is even. One, two, three, four... eight nipples, evenly spaced and uniform in feel. Skin and muscle leading to her hindlegs is pliant, yet taut at rest.'

"So far so good. Not that I expected any problems from you, love," Lee murmurs, jotting down his notes. "Almost done. Turn a little more so you face away."

Vulpix gives him a long look.

Lee rolls his eyes. "Does it help if I say you're pretty and I have trouble not touching you?"

The flattery seems to work, as Vulpix complies, turning away and facing the far wall. Her flat expression remains, however.

"Alrighty, just relax for this one."

The man sets down his notebook and gently lifts her left hind paw with his right hand. His other hand gently presses against her rump as he carefully moves her leg, gauging all the muscles in her leg working in sync. 'Again, the muscle density is incredible. She should be able to leap a whole building with these legs. It violates so much of what I know about biology. And to think she can only get more powerful. Heh. I have no idea if that's frightening or wonderful.' He repeats the action with her other leg, satisfied when both are uniform and healthy. "Alrighty girl. I think I've got a working baseline for you now. I'll quit molesting you."

Vulpix flops down and rolls over onto her back with a happy snuffle, glad to finally be off her paws.

Meanwhile, Lee picks up his notes and scan them over. He looks down to his pokedex and scrolls though it to the voice recorder. Setting the notebook down, the man holds his pokedex up and hits the record button. "Day two of being a trainer. Or is it day one?" He wonders. "We'll call it two. I've finished giving Vulpix as good a physical as I can without tools or monitoring equipment. She is within the acceptable standards of a canid her size without much significant deviation, her internal temperature and muscle density being the only significant outliers. More on that later. I didn't bother with much cognitive or any intelligence testing. Vulpix was alert and aware during the physical even if she was bored to death. Any intelligence test I could have given would have been outright demeaning to her and easily solved. Suffice to say she is smarter than most of the people I know and probably smarter than myself as well."

The vixen smirks a little at hearing that, but the smirk quickly turns into a tongue-lolling smile when Lee reaches over to rub her belly.

"Let it be known that the crafty fox is still susceptible to a well-placed belly rub and her heart of gold taking pity on hopeless humans," Lee says, smirking himself as Vulpix tries not to let her leg kick in pleasure. "Vulpix's muscle density is incredible. She's like a wall when her muscles are tensed and I know for a fact she is much physically stronger than I pound for pound, and probably just outright stronger than myself or anyone of similar size despite the weight difference. I'll need actual equipment and not just hand-n-eyeball estimates to be sure. Her skin temperature seems to be around one-hundred ten Fahrenheit. Utterly feverish for a person, but very comfortable for her. I don't have an accurate gauge for internal temperature, but just from feeling her breath I can estimate somewhere close to..." Lee bites his lip and thinks. "At least one-hundred fifty degrees Fahrenheit. Again, doing this without tools so actual numbers may vary. I'll probably do another physical if Vulpix is feeling up to it in a weeks time to confirm these estimates. Lee, out."

Day 3

"I really need some new duds, love," Lee says with a grimace, looking down at his tattered Zoo uniform. "I can wash these all I like, they're still falling apart."

Vulpix inspects her trainer's clothing, not really seeing the big deal. Pokemon wear nothing and no one bats an eye. Why should humans hide themselves in clothes?

"We're still two weeks out from our first check though, and I can't ask Birch since we're already living off his generosity," Lee frowns.

Knock knock knock!

Both Lee and Vulpix turn to the bedroom door. The knob turns and the door opens just enough for a smiling Brendan to poke his head. "Heya Lee? Guess what came in super early!" He exclaims, holding up a pair of envelopes. "They're from the League and there's one for each of us. I bet they were having a slow day or dad submitted our papers right as the offices opened again for the new league year to get these here so fast. One guess on what they are!"

Lee feels his jaw drop a little. "Are those Trainer IDs?"

Brendan's grin lights up the room. "Heck yeah! Here!" He throws one envelope like a frisbee to Lee, who snatches it out of the air and looks at the envelope with naked curiosity.

"I'm going to go open mine and talk to dad. The new batch of starters should be here soon as well!" Brendan practically dances in place. "Mudkip, here I come!" Then as fast as he came, Brendan is gone, his rapid footsteps racing down the hall.

Lee shakes his head. "That boy ain't right. Anyway..." He seats himself back on the bed and opens the envelope with Vulpix watching. The first thing to come out is a short letter.

To: Lee Henson

The Pokemon League is proud to induct you into our ranks as an official Pokemon Trainer. You now have the privilege of entering all Pokemon League sanctioned events (upon meeting prerequisites) in all Pokemon League recognized regions.

'No Alola then,' Lee thinks.

The enclosed identification card will be your primary ID for Pokemon League sanctioned events and functions as a valid form of government ID. If lost, damaged, or stolen, please see your nearest Pokemon Center for a replacement. The replacement fee will depend on the Pokemon Center in question.

As a Trainer sponsored by Prof Birch - Hoenn you are entitled to several special benefits. You will receive:

One (1) Biweekly stipend totaling $2,170.57 (post tax) per payment

One (1) Stipend advance of $1,981.23 (post tax)

Discounted use of non-medical Pokemon Center services

Upon deposit of the enclosed stipend advance voucher, the Pokemon League will issue biweekly payments to the account that received the voucher for the above listed amount. Please contact the Pokemon League billing department if this information needs to be updated and/or changed.

Lee blinks and looks a little closer at the paper to make sure his eyes weren't playing tricks on him. "What the fuck? I make more just existing here than I did busting my ass in the zoo?" He slumps. "And they give kids this kind of money? Holy hell this is all sorts of fucked up."

We at the Pokemon League wish you the best in this new and wonderful chapter in yours and your Pokemon's lives Mr Henson. Adventure and new friendships await you.

Signed,

Steven Stone, Hoenn Champion.

Lee shakes his head as he looks at the smudges the stamp used to make "Steven's" signature left. "Adventure and friendships huh? Corny, but I kinda like it in an ironic kind of way. What say you, love?"

Vulpix just snorts and cocks an eyebrow.

"Yeah, me too," the now official trainer agrees. "If this isn't some good timing then I don't know what is. Maybe this is why Birch was so frantic to get the paperwork submitted so quickly?" He shakes his head. "Either way, I think we have some shopping to do. Care to come with?"

Vulpix rolls back to her belly and visibly mulls the thought, her little brows furrowing. She then hops from the bed to Lee's shoulders, her choice made.

The trip to the bank is a short and uneventful one. One flash of Lee's trainer ID and the teller behind the counter whisked him off to make an account. Fifteen minutes later, he was the owner of an account with a new debit card in his wallet.

"They didn't even bat an eye when I said my place of residence was the lab," Lee muses, walking down to Little Root's modest shopping district with a relaxed gait. "Much less strict than Chase, who wanted my... everything really, sans the soul of my firstborn."

The vixon resting across his shoulders gives him a queer look, as if she's debating the validity of his absurd statement.

Lee glances over to her and snorts. "Not actually, love. But if they did, I really would not be surprised," he says, twisting a little to let a boy and his Lombre walk past. "Trusting a bank is a good way to end up dead and penniless back home. Like the hero Andrew Jackson once said, fuck banks... Or at least I think he said that."

The pair continue on. Even with Lee's sedate pace, the Little Root shopping district comes into view quickly. It's little more than a series of modest strip malls along the a side road to the west of town, but all the essentials are there.

Lee glances to his left toward the first store they pass, which happens to be the same clothing shop he noticed upon entering town the first time, where a girl left her Poochyena to hold his own leash as she went inside. It's easy to recall because the same Poochyena is there again, holding his own leash with an expression of pure boredom.

"Vulpix. Pix vulpix?" Vulpix ask down to Poochyena, who perks up and turns to face Lee and Vulpix.

Poochyena yaps and growls something past the leash in his mouth, to which Vulpix simply shakes her head.

"Little Root Outfitters, eh?" Lee reads the sign on the door. Right below the sign is a No non-trainer pokemon please sign. "As good as any I guess. Good luck, little guy," he tells Poochyena.

He and Vulpix step inside, finding a run of the mill small town store. The woman at the check-out counter looks at Vulpix, then to Lee, not commenting on the pokemon not being in a ball.

Like with the bank, the pair are in and out in only a few minutes. The khaki safari uniform was replaced by a set of generic brand jeans, a belt with several pokeball clips, a plain black undershirt, and a dark green camo-patterned zip-up jacket made from some special breathable material called flo-fabric. "It's a staple for outerwear in hot places like Hoenn," the woman at the checkout counter commented. Lee's ankle-high hiking boots and his worn but durable black gloves didn't need replaced. He left with the new outfit on and with a bag containing several other outfits of slight variation.

"Alrighty, now the part I'm definitely more eager for," Lee grins, looking towards the Pokemart. Vulpix just rolls her eyes.

The Pokemart is one of the larger stores in the town, standing separate from the strip with it's distinct white outer walls and blue roof. It doesn't look terribly special, but...

'All the things inside are,' Lee thinks to himself with a barely hidden grin. 'Just think of it! I'll actually get to look at all the crazy, impossible stuff that makes modern life with pokemon possible.'

As he and Vulpix walk up, he sees a trio of kids pointing into one of the windows of the mart, where several glittering gold things on display stands sit. "When I become a trainer these are all I wanna use!"

Curious, he and the vixen on his shoulders looks the kids's heads.

In the window are a trio of balls on a velvet pillow. A normal Pokeball, a Great Ball, and an Ultra Ball. Simple sprites on a screen can't do them justice, as the little devices sparkle in the sunlight almost beg to be picked up. Each one has beautiful engravings of various Pokemon on the lids done in silver, but the little label at the foot of the pillow makes him blanch.

Vanity Balls

Starting at $749.99

See inside for details.

'Jesus fuck thats a lot of money for a pokeball,' He thinks, almost reeling. Then another thought strikes him. 'Hold on. How expensive are pokeballs anyway? A normal ball is two hundred or so poke funbucks, but I always thought that the game money has an exchange rate similar to Yen. I'm about to get fucked, aren't I?'

Vulpix seems to sense his mood and noses his cheek, even if she doesn't fully understand why her trainer suddenly slumped.

Lee grumbles but strokes Vulpix along her neck, making her purr. 'A curious sound for a fox to make,' Lee idly thinks, mentally filing it away as another oddity of Pokemon as he walks into the mart.

The inside of the Pokemart is like a petstore on steroids. Shelves and aisles filled to bursting with everything pokemon related, some of which Lee has no name for. He wanders in with naked wonder on his face, almost overwhelmed by the sheer amount of new and alien things around him. It's only a last minute thought that makes him grab a cart. There are standard things like toys, treats, grooming kits, and different blends of food. Then there are things you'd only find in a pokemart like fire retardant, hydrophobic, or slash/puncture resistant pet beds. A bookshelf on the far wall is filled with books about pokemon rearing and breeding. At the front behind the check out is a wide glass case with the really familiar things, like pokeballs, potions, and disks that can only be TMs. The various aisles are divided by Pokemon type, with Fire being one of the first, so Lee heads down that one.

"Man, look at all this stuff," he murmurs, taking in all the different things around. Vulpix likewise cranes her head around to peer at all the strange sights with a critical eye. "Well, we've got plenty to spend, so why not?"

Lee grabs a number of things that catch both his and Vulpix's eyes. A deluxe grooming kit is the first, much to Vulpix's delight. Then a pair of fire retardant gloves, a small fire extinguisher, a large stick of 'edible' charcoal, a thermometer rated for 1000°F, and a few other things that seem like they would aid in the raising of Vulpix's more supernatural side. Lee glances over the 'League recommended' Fire type omnivore pokemon food blend with a measure of distaste, however.

"This ingredient list is a little vague," he mutters, looking at the back of a smaller bag. "The fuck is an optimum blend of meats, veggies, and berries suppose to mean to me? Is there not an actual ingredient list?" He shakes his head and looks back to his placid Vulpix. "Nah. I'll just make your food myself, love. I'll trust the stuff Birch provided, but after that I'm taking over." And with that, a food pellet baller goes in the cart.

Vulpix's six tails wag slowly, making Lee stifle a giggle when they tickle his neck.

The last stop is the bookshelf on the far wall, where a copy of Nutrition and Health of Canid Pokemon gets picked up before the checkout becomes the final stop.

The teen girl in a blue pokeball-marked apron manning the counter glances up and quickly puts her phone away when Lee and Vulpix approach. She plasters a wide smile to her face. "Find everything okay?"

"Just fine, thanks," Lee smiles back. He glances back at the glass case where all the Pokeballs are held and suddenly understands why they're kept separate. The things are a whopping $179.99 a pop, just for a standard Pokeball. The Ultras are an unearthly $1,199.99 for a single ball. Nearly the game price.

'Suddenly the high stipend payments make sense,' Lee thinks as he unloads his cart for the cashier to scan. 'I can only imagine what sort of hell it must be to be low-income and wanting to e a trainer. I should thank Birch again.'

Luckily Potions and whatnot are more reasonable, with Potions only being $50.00 for a large spray bottle's worth. Super Potions are pricer at $149.99, and Hyper Potions can go fuck themselves at $700.00. Lee doesn't even bother looking at the Max Potion or the TMs.

"Can I get a basic Potion as well?"

The cashier nods and fishes some keys out of her apron pocket, then turns, opens the glass case, and takes out a Potion in one practiced movement. "Anything else today? You got quite a bit, so maybe a Sliph Co bag?"

Lee blinks. "A Sliph Co bag?"

The cashier hums as she scans and bags another item. "MmmHmm."

"I'm afraid I don't follow. I take it a Sliph bag is special or something?"

He girl raises an eyebrow at Lee.

"I already know what you're thinking, and yes, I'm from way out in the boonies," Lee sighs.

"A Sliph bag uses the same stuff as pokeballs. You know? With the whole matter to energy and space expanding... thing?" She tries to explain, give her hand a vague wave. "I don't really understand it, but it's bigger on the inside than outside. Somehow."

'I can hear physics weep hideously in the distance,' Lee silently muses. 'It does neatly explain how the main character in the games carries all his junk and how everyone in the anime can carry full camping gear in a backpack though. Sounds useful too' "Sure. How much?"

She turns back to the glass case and reaches into the back, pulling out a rather standard looking backpack seemingly made from green canvas with leather straps. "These base models are all $1,360 before tax. Green okay?"

Lee tries hard to not let the pain on his face show. "Ech. Yeah. Better I get this sooner rather than later."

The cashier nods and scans the Sliph backpack. "Your total is $1,598.67. Is that with cash or card?"

Lee reluctantly hands his debit card over.

Day 7

A burst of Embers crash into an already burnt and battered log and detonate one by one with loud, jarring pops. Bits of smoldering wood are thrown across the dusty ground as new knotholes are blown into the hapless log. Nearby pokemon in the Little Root corral watch the proceedings with interest.

"Thats good!"

Vulpix cuts her Ember attack and lets the last few Embers hit their mark before turning to Lee.

Lee looks down at the notebook in his hands, where a rough sketch of Vulpix faces an upright cylinder marked "log". A label line between the two is marked "35 feet". The man steps closer to the log, noting that at this range Vulpix's Ember has spread to almost the edge. "Log is about a foot and a quarter wide, and the Ember marks are hitting the edge from thirty five feet, so..." Lee bites the end of his pen and jots some numbers down, trying to remember the formula he wants. "That means from Vulpix's mouth, Ember is spreading at about a twenty degree angle give or take some..." He looks at the log again. "The speed looked to be a good hundred or so feet per second, and her accuracy was dead on for a static target. If we can tighten that spread, then Ember could be a force to be reckoned with."

"Vul?" Vulpix asks with a tilt of her head.

Lee blinks and glances back with a sheepish smile. "Uh, sorry girl. Just crunching numbers. Let's give that another go, but this time..." He spins the log to its unblemished back and pulls a little piece of bark in the middle away, exposing bare wood. "Try to focus on this little point as hard as you can. The more Embers hit the very middle, the better. I'll watch and give the signal."

The man retreats back to Vulpix's side and crouches to watch her, notebook and pen ready. "Alrighty girl, Ember on the log."

Vulpix takes a deep breath, her chest swelling as orange flames glow in her mouth and lick at her lips. "Vul..." She draws her head back then thrusts it forward with a cry of "Pix!"

Small orange fireballs shoot from her mouth with a sound not unlike a submachine gun rattling through it's whole magazine. The Embers scream towards the log and explode against it's bark with a staccato of Pop pop pop!, stripping a circle of charred bark around the original.

Lee watches the entire process from start to finish, ignoring the flare of unease the open flames invoke inside him. 'It's Vulpix. She would never hurt you.' He watches it all, from Vulpix's deep breath and flourish, to the first Ember loosed, to the first impact against the bark.

'Does she even need the breath and flourish? Once the attack began, she didn't empty her lungs to maintain it, and I have no idea what part thrusting her head out did.' He wonders. "Alright love, that's good."

Vulpix closes her mouth and cuts off the attack. Once the last Ember impacts and the resulting smoke clears, it reveals a smaller area of effect on the smoldering log. Not by much, as only a few inches of intact bark remain at the edge of the log, but the improvement is still noticeable.

Lee grins and strokes Vulpix gently down her back, making the vulpine smile slightly and purr under his hand. "Great work, love. Memorize the feeling of narrowing down your attacks like that. I can already imagine the faces of some flyer when they think they're safely out of range only for a rail of Embers and shoot them down. And yes I meant 'rail' and not 'hail'."

Vulpix preens under the praise and turns her nose up, a small smile on her face. Her trainer shakes his head, but he wears a smile as well.

"Heeeey Leeeee!"

Both Lee and Vulpix look up to see Brendan racing towards them from the lab with a blinding grin on his face, but he's not alone. Scampering at his heels is a large Mudkip that follows him closely.

'The starters must have come in, and Brendan got the pick of the litter. That Mudkip must be a good six inches taller than normal,' Lee thinks to himself. "Morning Brendan. I take it the starters are in?"

Brendan and Mudkip stop just short of Lee, both youngsters needing to skid to bleed off momentum. Brendan's megawatt grin is almost dazzling in its intensity. "You know it! Just look at this guy! Isn't he fantastic?" He asks, bending down to pick up and cradle the mudfish pokemon, who accepts the attention with a happy "Mudkip!"

Lee can't help but smile fondly at the scene. The sheer joy and wonder on Brendan's face reminds him of himself when he began his career in animals. "He's certainly a biggun. You two will go far together, I can already tell."

Both boy and pokemon flush under the praise, but Brendan bounces back quickly. "So dad said you and Vulpix where out here training? Pokemon grow fastest in battle, soooo how about we battle, huh?"

The question makes Lee freeze. 'I've spent the last few nights gazing up at the ceiling, dreaming up battle strats now that the game rules aren't a concern, but the prospect of actually battling... Can I actually order a pokemon to be harmed?'

'Can I stand to see Vulpix get hurt?'

The very thought makes his gut twist into chilled knot. All he can imagine is cries of agony, cries of accusation. Why didn't you do anything Lee. Who said I wanted to fight?

"Vulpix!"

Vulpix steps up with narrowed eyes and a flick of her heart-marked ear, slicing against Lee's left as she steps forward and plants herself infront of her trainer, facing Brendan.

"She's eager," Brendan grins, looking back up to Lee. "So how about it?"

Lee gulps and does his best to keep his voice from trembling. "Y-Yeah, if Vulpix wants to, then I'm game."

The boy pumps a fist and retreats back about seventy feet before putting his Mudkip down, who steps forward with confidence.

Vulpix stand back to four legs and assumes a ready stance, her head low and tails fanned out. She glaces back to Lee, her normally placid eyes filled with burning energy and such eagerness that the man is almost taken aback.

'They're much hardier than people and made for combat,' a little voice in the back of Lee's head says, condensation dripping from every word. 'A battle with a fresh starter won't hurt her. Man up and live your dream.'

Lee gulps again, his tension slowly draining in favor of a nervous energy that threatens to make his limbs shake. He quickly pulls out his Pokedex and points it at Vulpix after hitting the mute button. The Dex lights up with a picture of Vulpix, then quickly lists Vulpix's attributes. Lee skips all that and goes directly down to the movelist.

Ember, Tail Whip, Roar, Baby-Doll Eyes, Quick Attack, Confuse Ray, Fire Spin, Payback, Will-O-Wisp.

The list is still the same as it was the first time he scanned Vulpix, and he quickly dedicates it to memory before stashing away his Dex.

"So how are we doing this?" Brendan calls from across the way. "Forfeit or knockout good?"

Lee steels himself and nods. "That's fine. If either side calls a timeout or gives up then it stops immediately, okay? And are you sure Brendan? Even with a type advantage on your side, Vulpix isn't a pushover."

A small part of Lee hopes Brendan reconsiders, but he just grins and dashes those hopes. "No way. That's the whole reason we want to battle."

The older trainer sighs. "Vulpix, ready?" He asks despite knowing the answer.

The fox growls, her hackles raised and tails lashing as she and Mudkip locked eyes.

Brendan looks at his feet and picks up a rock. "When this rock hits the ground, the battle begins," and without waiting for a reply, he tosses the rock into the middle of the impromptu arena.

Time seems to slow as Lee both watches the stone and takes in the entire field from his peripherals.