Chapter 37: Ivy and Shaymin

Author's Note: Fuck this. Wifi is acting up again today but promised three chapters so ya'll getting phone typed chapters.

With the capture of Ivy, Cynthia had pretty much won the Great Crusade. There were not many Pokemon that the Pokemon League could release in the wild that were stronger since they were too valuable or dangerous for a competition such as this. Starter Pokemon could be called the best common Pokemon. 

They were bred so widely and given to trainers as starter Pokemon because they were not only strong but also because most had calm or submissive personalities where even the worst trainers would have a partner that they could train with ease at first. 

Starters did come with a downside, though. Whenever one evolved, they would become more difficult to train. The order of difficulty was Grass, Water, and Fire. 

Using the anime as an example, Ash was able to get along well with his Charmander in its starter form but when it evolved into Charmeleon and Charizard, he could barely control the Pokemon due to his abilities lacking as a trainer.

Cynthia actually got very lucky because of all the Starter Pokemon from every region, all of Bulbasaur's evolutions were relatively passive.

So once the trio caught Ivy, they no longer cared about trying to find new Pokemon so the trio left the Field of Flowers and unpacked their picnic supplies right next to it. The trio had gotten lunch from one of the local restaurants which consisted of a large number of sandwiches.

Cynthia summoned Ivy from her ball and passed her one of the sandwiches which the Pokemon picked up with two vines that extended from its bulb. 

'Thanks,' Ivy thanked Cynthia before digging into her fruit sandwich. The others also ate their sandwiches but Cynthia smirked when she saw Xander taking large bites out of his, nearly choking at one point.

"Jealous that I got Ivy?" Cynthia teased

"Yes!" Xander did not deny it. "Ivy is such a great Pokemon. Of course, I would want her on my team."

"Hehe. Aren't you interested in those mysterious Pokemon you had a dream about?" Cynthia continued to tease him. She didn't outright say that he has a psychic vision because it was Xander's secret and not hers to publicize. 

"My sins are greed and pride. Of course, I would want all three if I could get them," Xander said arrogantly and without a hint of shame. Cynthia threw one of her strawberries at Xander as punishment for his shamelessness but he caught it in his mouth. 

"Hehe," Marley couldn't help but laugh at their interaction. She could tell that the pair were very close by how honest they were with each other. Most people wouldn't admit to being jealous but Xander was able to say it honestly with Cynthia without her holding it against him. 

The trio and Ivy finished their lunch before getting up and walking around the Field of Flowers, enjoying the view. When they got to a certain portion of it, they saw something unbelievable. At first, they all thought it was simply a bush that had flowers. It was only after taking a closer look that the trio saw it was a small, white Pokemon that looked to have green grass on its back with pink flowers blooming on it. 

'Shaymin!' Marley and Xander thought at the same time. Xander knew the Pokemon from the movie he had seen about it before while Marley had been fascinated with the Pokemon because of its gentle nature and ability to feel emotions. 

The trio then noticed that the Pokemon was looking around anxiously as if looking for something. While it was looking around, it noticed them and immediately put its head down on the ground before covering it with its front paws.

"Aww" Cynthia gushed at the cute display but Marley quickly backed away. She knew that the Pokemon in front of them got nervous easily around new people. Xander saw Marley back away so he followed suit while gently pulling Cynthia as well. Though Cynthia looked confused at first, she followed along and retreated with the pair. 

"Don't worry, Shaymin. We won't hurt you," Marley called out, her voice steadier than Xander or Cynthia had heard since meeting her. The pair shared a surprised look while looking at the gentle smile on Marley's face. 

Shaming pulled its face from under its paws and looked at the trio warily. When it saw that they truly were not approaching it, it turned its back to them and walked over to a pink flower.

Shaming touched the flower with its nose before it's body began glowing in a white light. When the light faded, Shaymin had completely transformed physically and in personality.

It had a slender, canine-like appearance. The fur on its back became a mohawk, and it had a red flower petal on the left side of its neck, resembling a scarf or cape. It also had flat, white ears resembling wings, a small tuft of fur on the front of its neck, and a stumpy tail.

This was Shaymin's Skye Form that it could only take when it touched the Gracidea Flower.

Shaymin turned to the trio and smiled at them.

'Thanks for not getting too close! I'm the only one here today since the rest didn't want to come with so many people around. Was feeling pretty nervous but nice to know there are nice people like you guys,' Shaymin spoke directly into their minds using telepathy. It didn't sound anything like the shy creature that hid it's face from them before.

"Thank you for letting us see such a beautiful scene," Marley enjoyed being able to see Shaymin change so much, wishing that she was like them. She was also a very shy creature so she felt a connection with Shaymin ever since she learned about them.

"Just remember that not everybody is so gentle. You don't wanna end up in the hands of poachers or abusive trainers," Cynthia warned the Pokemon

'Don't worry. We can tell who are good and bad people. You guys are obviously very nice,' Shaymin wasn't worried since their species had this special ability. 'Anyways, I'll be off. I need to get as much distance as I can since I can't walk very fast in my other form. I hope we see each other again!'

And with that, Shaymin's ears extended like wings before taking to the sky and flying toward the northwest. It was hard to tell exactly where it was going but Xander had a few ideas of other beautiful flower fields.

Marley began to softly cry with a sad smile on her face as she saw the Pokemon leave so Cynthia quickly wrapped the girl in her arms.

"It's alright. I'm sure we'll see him again," Cynthia tried to sooth her new friend.

"She's right," Xander added on. "It's heading toward the northwest which means it'll probably be at Floaroma Town or the Eterna Forest. We have a good chance of seeing it at either of those places."

"Really?" Marley asked, unsure if they were lying to just comfort her. "Don't we have to finish the Gyms in 3 months?"

"Don't worry about that," Cynthia wasn't worried about the Gyms but cared more about her new friend. "We will still have some time after our month away. Anything we don't finish before we leave, we can finish after."

Marley nodded before lowering her head and blushing.

'I can't believe I cried like that in front of them. They must think I'm a crybaby,' she silently reprimanded herself but the girl was glad that she had found two reliable friends like Xander and Cynthia.

With a Pokemon capture and a new goal in mind, the trio returned to the train station so they could head back to the entrance and report Cynthia's new partner