Chapter Eleven: To gather a Thunderstone

I run a wrist over my brow, Lavender Town is dredged in humidity due to the constant hanging mist. My hair is tied in a high bun, errant strands stick up and others cling to my neck.

Silver stands across from me, shirt partially unbuttoned against the heat and his sleeves rolled to his wrists.

"Take it easy on me, I need to level up my Charjabug!" I shout from across the lawn.

Silver nods and pops open a ball, revealing a snarling Gyarados.

I send out Charjabug who trembles with intimidation letting out a week, "charrrrj!"

Gyarados rears it's head back and lets out a wicked roar that cracks through the sky. Blue serpentine body moving like liquid in the air.

"Charjabug, Spark let's go!" I take a battle stance as I command my partner and Charjabug lurches forwards, emitting sparks from itself as it barrels towards Gyarados.

"Bulldoze, now!" Silver counters.

My eyes widen with surprise and I command quickly, "Iron Defense!" Charjabug continues forwards, swathed in an electric blanket as Spark builds, it's green body glows with a metallic sound.

Bulldoze hits and Charjabug is tossed into the air, flailing, she hits the ground.

"Shit," I grit my teeth. "Can you keep going?"

"Chaaaarj!" Her tiny body flexes as she releases her cry. She looks battered, I know she can't take another direct hit from bulldoze. I need to make this quick and end it.

"Use Thunderwave!" I shout, I need a different approach. Gyarados is quicker and can move around more easily. Charjabug is slow and unable to dodge very well. She coats herself in electricity and lets out a pulse.

Gyarados attempts to glide out of reach but is unable to dodge.

I cheer as Charjabug hits it's mark and Gyarados crashes to the ground, body flinching as static climbs over it.

"Get up!" Silver commands, waiting for the giant creature to lift itself up into the sky.

I take advantage of the paralysis, "spark one more time!" My body is trembling with anticipation.

"Bulldoze, you can do it!" Silver's fists are clenched as he cheers for Gyarados to recover.

Spark connects first, Charjabug launches it's tiny body into the monstrous Pokémon. A crack sounds and I wait breathlessly for the dust to clear.

Gyarados has risen into the air, glowering and thrashing its great head about.

Charjabug trembles slightly but stiffens her body to meet her attacker head on.

"Stone edge, go!" Silver isn't backing down for an instant and Gyarados shakes itself before releasing an onslaught of stones. They jut up from the surface of the earth, splintering everything in their wake.

"Endure!" I call out right before a massive stone makes contact with the small green body. She glows and is swathed in a protective barrier, which leaves her barely hanging on after the hit.

"This is our last chance, use Spark again!" I point a finger towards our foe and Charjabug rockets forwards, cracking into Gyarados.

"Graaaaarrr!" Gyarados lets out a load roar as it braces for impact.

My heart skips a beat as the scene clears in front of me, a glowing Charjabug swollen with pride aside the collapsed Gyarados.

Silver looks stunned but is smiling as I dash forwards and scoop up my rectangular friend. I spin her in a circle with pride and pull out my Pokédex, Charjabug is now level 39.

"Brilliant effort," Silver beams as he walks towards us, reaching out his hand to pet Charjabug, who snuggles her face into it.

"Thank you," I say breathlessly. "Gyarados is really strong. I can tell you were holding back."

"Yes and it was a struggle," Silver admitted. "Gyarados really hates to lose and always puts his full effort in."

I wander over to Gyarados, who's resting it's head on the ground morosely.

"You did great," I whisper before planting a kiss on his head. "Thank you for taking it easy on us."

Gyarados looks bashful and nuzzles against me as I giggle.

"Let's take a break. I really need to collect some groceries," Silver pulls out a Pokéball and retracts Gyarados.

"Let me come!" I beg, I never got to shop growing up and my desire to do so burned fiercely.

"Fine. That means you can use some of your money," he jokes as we head towards his car. We climb in and make our way to the Pokémart, where you can purchase anything from medicine to groceries.

Once inside we grab a shopping trolley and scoot around the store. Putting an array of things in we eventually make our way to the checkout. I pay and we head to the car to load everything inside.

Once we're home and settled I start to boil some rice for dinner.

"Can I get Charjabug to evolve using a Thunderstone?" I ponder aloud as i place a cap over the rice.

"Since there are no magnetic fields in this area, yes." He answers shortly, while drinking tea and looking over the list again. "You can pick one up at the Celadon department store." Scribbling into his notepad he adds idly, "there's somewhat pricey but that's one of the few places you can obtain them in Kanto."

A look of bewilderment clouds my face and Silver continues. "Celadon is just past Saffron city, which is the neighboring town. If it means that much to you we can grab one."

"I want to be a force to be reckoned with," I say quietly. "Which can't happen if my team is incomplete."

"Speaking of which, I haven't even seen the rest of your Pokémon." Curiosity pricks in Silver's voice and I glance out the window.

"I feel bad, there's not a lot of room for them to get out and stretch lately." I admit, fingers running over the balls on my belt.

"You're free to let them out in the lawn." Silver waves at the black iron fence encasing his abode. "If they want inside I have a Pokémon-friendly door."

I'm still not convinced and wrong my hands nervously under his stare.

"There's a reason I chose Lavender Town, you know." Silver goes on, now ignoring my nervousness. "This thick, hanging mist might bother you but it serves as a fantastic aerial cover."

I pull the cap off of the rice and serve us both a mounded portion.

"So do you feel safe to leave your Pokémon out?" Silver prompts.

"Fine," I growl and open the door, releasing my Pokémon into the yard.

"Kaaaa!" Kangaskhan stretches out her arms and her baby lets out a squeak of approval. Ninetails unfurles her tails luxuriously. Charjabug and Goomy immediately dash away to play. Arrow and Nidoking look bewildered at their surroundings.

"You guys play nice. I'll leave your balls on the table inside so you can go in if you'd like. Keep a close watch on the newer two. Help Goomy get some training done if you can." I open a bag of Pokémon food and dump a large portion into a trough in the lawn.

We walk out of the house and towards the car parked off to the side.

Silver kept his Pokéballs on his belt, probably to assure me that we would still be safe. I clamor into the car behind him and we set off towards Celadon City and it's massive department store. Fortunately the Rocket Game Corner had been out of commission for years. It now called Celadon Game Corner and there was nothing nefarious about it.

My nerves still pricked as we drove through Saffron City, I glimpsed the sign reading: Shining Big City. It faded quickly into the distance as we weaved towards our destination.

"There's also someone I want to talk to while we're here," Silver breaks the silence that shrouds us.

"Someone from the list?" I raise an eyebrow.

"Yes and no," Silver answers quietly and I'm left again to my thoughts.

Celadon City materializes in the distance. I read the sign and it says, "Celadon City:" 'The City of Rainbow Dreams.'

"That sounds beautiful," I say while pointing excitedly at the sign.

Silver smiles, "if you defeat the gym leader here you win a Rainbow Badge."

My eyes gleam at the thought of it's potential beauty.

Finally I see the Celadon Department Store towering over all the buildings around it. More excitement flickers in me and I stretch to see better.

Once in the parking lot we hop out of the car and make our way up to the great automatic doors. Once inside Silver leads me to an elevator and punches the 4 on the keypad. We swoosh upwards and my stomach gives a slight lurch.

"Let's make this quick," Silver looks ebbed with nervous energy.

Walking quickly up to the counter I smile at the old man who greets me. "What can I do fer ya hunny?" His voice is deep and gravely.

"Could I please purchase a Thunder Stone?" Smiling again I pull my billfold from my bag and start thumbing through it.

"That'll be 2100 PokéDollars fer ya," the man stoops down and presents something wrapped in cloth.

I lean in as he unwraps it to reveal a glittering stone with a lightning bolt emblazoned across it. I hand the man 2100 and gently take the parcel from him, placing it neatly in my bag.

"Thank yer and have a nice day!" The man beams through his silver mustache and I smile back before retreating back to Silver.

He grunts and leads me away, back towards the elevator and down to the bottom floor.

I'm absolutely sparkling with joy as we arrive outside the doors and climb into Silver's car. He pulls away and heads down the street, I don't even care where we're going.

We pull up to a giant hotel and I step out gingerly, still glowing with exhilaration.

I follow Silver, who is walking very quickly into the hotel. He doesn't pause at the counter and makes his way up a frilly flight of stairs and down a hallway. I'm basically running to keep up with his stride and huffing behind him.

We arrive at room 603 and he knocks gently on the door. I hear shuffling inside and a shadow lingers at the bottom of the door while whoever is inside peers out the peephole at us.

A clicking sound as the door unlocks and opens a small amount. "Come in," a voice hisses and Silver hurries in with me on his heels.

A man stands across from us, blue hair stands up in messy spikes around his head and his brown eyes pierce into me.

Admittedly, he's an attractive man. I look away from him and up at Silver, who's stone faced and not showing me anything.

"Sit down," the man waves at a squashed loveseat in the corner.

Silver treads over and sits down, motioning for me to follow.

"Who's this?" The man seems suspicious of me.

"My sister. Jun, this is Masaru he's a friend of mine and he does a lot of important work on my behalf." Masaru seems less leery now and makes his way to a large armchair and plops into it.

"She looks familiar," Masaru muses.

"Do I?" I feel alarm for some reason at hearing this.

"You've probably seen her within the base before. You guys are the same age, Giovanni kept her well under wraps though from what I've grasped." Silver seems irritated for some reason.

"You work for Team Rocket?" My ire was directed at the man who looked annoyed with Silver.

"It's not what you think," he holds his hands up meekly at my glare. "I do undercover work in the base. I've been feeding Silver intel for years now." He casts a hard look at Silver who still looks irritated.

Masaru stands up and attempts to push his spiky hair back, it just bounces back to it's original position.

Why is there so much tension in here? I wonder as panic climbs up my throat. What is happening?

"To what do I owe this pleasure, Silver?" Masaru finally sighs.

"It's starting and I need your help. I need the list you've been making," Silver's voice is pressed and he doesn't seem like he wants to hang around the hotel much longer.

Masaru pinches between his eyes and looks over at me, his gaze lingers for a moment before he begins digging through a drawer. He pulls out a fat envelope and tosses it at Silver.

"Here, free of charge even." Masaru goes and slumps back into the chair.

I wish I knew what was going on, maybe I could help more if Silver stopped dropping me into the dark.

"What are you guys talking about?" I ask bluntly.

"It's a lot to explain," now Silver is pinching the bridge of his nose. "Essentially I've been having him list and count all of the employees in the Kanto Base. Now I just need to sort through and figure out what to do."

Masaru deflates and looks over at me again. "Is she helping?"

"I am," I snap. "You, sir don't need to continue referring to me as if I'm not here. You're welcome to speak with me directly."

Masaru seems taken aback by my harshness but I don't care. This tension is making me want to scream and my desire to evacuate the room is at an intense high.

"What is with the tension in here? I can't take it!" I stand up and make to leave and Silver holds out his hand to stop me. "If you can't answer my question, I don't care!" I glower at him.

"Masaru just thinks what we're doing is dangerous. He's being a complete pansy over the whole thing and yet continues to collect intel. He wants to be a part of this, but only in the shadows." Silver shoots him a poisonous look.

I whirl around to face Masaru, "this true?" I ask.

He just nods and looks down at his clasped hands.

"Don't be such a pussy," I snarl. The tension in the room has now leaked into me and my inner monsters are starting to crawl out.

Masaru looks taken aback by my comment and doesn't respond.

This only enrages me more. I stomp towards him, I can feel my face growing hot. "You're either in or out. I don't trust people enough to let you creep around the shadows and watch. I'm not Silver, whatever notion you have about me can be dispelled, now. You're either going to help us from the front or you can scurry back to whatever fucking hole you came from."

Masaru looked over at Silver in a silent plea for help. Silver, seeing this busies himself with opening the envelope and leafing through it's contents.

"I'll ask once, and only once." Holding Masaru's gaze firmly i take another step towards him. "Are you in or are you out?"

My blazing green eyes meet his brown ones and for a moment I see something strange flicker across his.

"I-I'm in. I-I've always been in!" He looks over to an actively ignoring Silver. "I-I just don't wanna get hurt. That's all."

I slap him, hard across the face.

Silver abruptly stands up, eyes bouncing between Masaru and myself. With bated breath he stood perfectly still, so did I. Hand still poised in the position I had slapped him with.

"There, you've been hurt. Now that we're over your worst fears for this we can take our leave." My voice is poisonous and I'm not sure what's gotten into me.

"Wait," Masaru flinches as I look at him again. "Silver I-I can't keep helping from here. This hotel it's not safe any longer."

"So what do you request?" Silver asks, placing a hand on my shoulder in an attempt to make me relax.

"C-can I come stay with you? Just for now. I-I'll feel safer and I can help more from your house!" Masaru looks both terrified and miserable.

"Fine, but you two had better get along." Silver exchanges a glance with both of us. "She's staying at my house already, so if you can't deal with it then you better just stay here."

"I'll be fine!" Masaru squeaks. "Just let me collect my things and I can check out."

Silver rolls his eyes and sits down, waiting for the man to collect his few belongings. Once he had a single ragged suitcase packed we headed down to the lobby.

Silver and I stood at a distance while Masaru checked out.

"Did you need to be such an asshole?" Silver complains.

"As if you were any nicer to me during our first encounter," I snap heatedly. Silver drops it after I say that and busies himself with pulling the car keys from within his pocket.

We all make our way to the car and pile in, Masaru in the back and Silver and myself sitting up front.

It's a quiet ride back to Lavender Town.

"Are you going to use the stone when we get back or will you wait?" Silver asks, finally breaking the silence.

"As long as Charjabug is ready, so am I." Pulling the Thunder Stone from my bag I admire it, I've only ever seen a Fire Stone before.

Our trip home seemed to take less time than the trip to the store and before I know it we're pulling up to Silver's place.

We all exit the vehicle and make our way inside. My Pokémon are asleep in the bedroom I've been using and I let them be for now. Pulling out my Pokédex to do a quick scan.

Goomy is level 38, I plan on helping him to evolve tomorrow. Arrow and Nidoking did well while I was away.

"Chrrrrrr," comes a tiny voice.

"Oh are you awake?" I open my arms as Charjabug wiggles towards me. "Come on then, I've got a gift for you." I scoop her up and make my way into the kitchen.

Masaru is sitting at the table while Silver places a kettle on the stove.

"Pokémon doing alright?" He asks, wiping his hands after putting the kettle down.

"Asleep," I say. "All but her." I stroke Charjabug, who lets out an electric purr.

I pull my bag out and reveal the stone to her. She looks up and her eyes sparkle with realization.

"This is a Thunder Stone. If you choose to use it you'll become a Vikavolt, which means you'll be completely different. You'll be able to fly and be much more powerful."

Without a blink of hesitation she lunges forwards, knocking her square face against the stone with glee.

The house pulses with blinding white light, Charjabug's form becomes more oblong. Wings begin to jut out from her back, stumpy legs grow longer. As quickly as it started the evolution ended, revealing a brand new Pokémon.

"Vikav!" The small house crackles with energy as Vikavolt whizzes around, enjoying her new found wings.

"Fantastic!" I shout, letting her hover in front of me so I can nuzzle her with my face.

"Viiii!" She seems as excited as i do, flexing her powerful wings.