Chapter 121

The call with Hilda didn't last all that much longer. Beyond her asking for an update on what I'd gotten up too fully since we parted ways, and being tight lipped about what it was she was actually getting involved with…she was quick to end the call when Rosa appeared and tried to talk to me when she saw I was on the phone.

I shook my head in amusement, "…Really Hilda?" I snorted. If she was going to gatekeep like that, she should have just made a claim for me.

Though I suppose it's really more of a thing better done in person.

"Pidgoosh!" I looked away from the phone in my hand when Pidgeot made an odd sound.

Pidgeot grinned at me through his beak and whipped his wing out, "Pidgooosh!" he outright drawled, mockingly.

…What?

Was…was he calling me whipped?

"How do you even know what that means dipshit?" I stuck the finger up at him.

Pidgeot barked out a sniggering mocking laugh and saluted me with one huge wing.

I am being sassed by a bird right now.

"You wanna go buddy?" I retorted, curling my fist and holding it out to the massive bird pokemon, "Don't think cuz' you've got a long flowing and girly hair style that I won't smack you around like I did when we first met."

Pidgeot's eye twitched and the huge bird pokemon stood up and gestured at me with one of his wings to bring it on, "Pidgeot!"

Before I could retort though, Milotic made her way between the pair of us and trilled softly, giving us pleading looks.

Pidgeot rolled his eyes, but sat back down, but not before somehow managing to flip me the bird with his wing.

"…You're lucky I don't want to make Milotic sad or I'd whip your ass mate." I said, very maturely.

I had a bad habit of needing to get the last word in.

Pidgeot rolled his eyes and scoffed, but there was no hiding the grin on his beak.

Bellossom giggled daintily.

And that was the trigger for the rest of my pokemon to erupt into peels of laughter and amusement.

Even Blastoise and Gyarados joined in.

All of them that is, except Dragonite.

While I'd been on the phone to Hilda, he'd taken his bowl of food and relocated away from the group, sitting at the farthest edge of the clearing we were in.

"What are you doing over there?" I called over to him, "You aren't still sulking are you?"

Hands placed on his knees, Dragonite looked over his shoulder at me and huffed.

I couldn't help but laugh though. The way he was sitting, made him look like a stereotypical delinquent.

"Come on, it wasn't that bad," I pointed out, "There's no shame in losing to that Aerodactyl, it was pretty damn strong, I'm sure you'll get it next time."

Dragonite's eye twitched, anger blossoming in his face, forehead scrunching up so intensely it looked like writhing worms of agitation had formed on his brow.

"…That's a pretty look." I snorted.

"Dro!" he swished his hand through the air at me in annoyance.

"Oh get over it you wimp," I rolled my eyes, trying to placate him wouldn't work, he was too prideful for that, "It was one loss, are you really going to sulk about it when you could better spend your time getting stronger so it doesn't happen again."

Huffing again, Dragonite turned and looked away, ignoring him again.

"Suit yourself," I shrugged and stood up, stretching out, "Alright, let's get down to business." since they were finished eating now, it was about time.

I got curious looks from my assembled pokemon, while I reached for my belt where the two new additions to my party rested, "I'm gonna send out Kabutops and Aerodactyl," I explained to them, "Be ready in case they attack and Chansey, I want you to heal them once they're amendable."

At my words, they rose to attention, getting ready just in case, while Chansey chirped happily and nodded. That taken care of, I grabbed a few things from my bag and then got to it.

I decided to deal with the easier one first, so grabbed Kabutops' pokeball from my belt and released it from the confines of the ball.

Kabutops appeared with a burst of bright light, the bipedal rock and water type stumbling briefly and shaking his head sluggishly.

Then froze as it caught sight of both me and my pokemon, backing up wearily, "Kabu…tops!" he hissed threateningly, raising his bladed arms up to ward anyone that approached off.

"Don't worry," I spoke up, drawing Kabutops' eyes to me, I wasn't even sure if he could understand my words, but I got his attention at least, "We're not going to hurt you, just the opposite actually." I held my hands up, letting him see them in full view and know that I wasn't planning on attacking him or anything.

The ancient pokemon eyed me warily, and I took the time to slowly lower one of my hands to my pocket and pull out one of the items I'd taken from my bag.

A juicy yellow berry.

A sitrus berry.

"Here, you must be hungry right?" I asked, holding it up slowly, letting Kabutops get a look at it.

I gave it a few seconds, before gently tossing it over, the berry landing at Kabutops' feet.

"Kabu…" Kabutops tilted his head to the side, looking confused, but probably involuntarily, I saw the slits at the tip of his head flare. Nostrils?

The pokemon's head was drawn down almost by instinct and Kabutops took a bite out of the berry and blinked, "…Kabu…Kabutops!" then his eyes widened and completely forgetting about me and my gathered pokemon around him, Kabutops began to happily chomp down on the sitrus berry.

I stared, a bit taken aback.

It looked like he'd never tasted anything so good before. I mean, he lived underground in a cave all his life apparently and I've no idea what he ate, but apparently it didn't come close to what sitrus berries tasted like.

Kabutops the berry quickly and looked simultaneously happy and disappointed.

Ah…I knew that feeling. The feeling of chowing down on an amazing meal, only to finish the entire thing before you had gotten your fill.

That was the freaking worst.

Luckily for Kabutops, I'd stocked up on a lot of berries, sitrus included. Reaching into my pocket, I then pulled it out to show multiple of the yellow berries in my grasp.

Kabutops eye slit up and he rushed over to me, practically dashing, butting his head into my hand as he began devouring the berries. A tingle ran up my arm as I felt a slimy, yet rough textured tongue lick my palm as he ate.

Taking the chance, I gently placed my hand on his head and stroked him, noting how rigid and hard his exoskeleton felt, "Good right?" I asked softly, even as I took studied him.

Kabutops honestly was kind of a marvel. Just from a light feel, I can tell how durable his chitinous armoured body was, yet it didn't seem to slow him down. Kabutops was practically build to move rapidly and take a hit and keep on going.

I wonder how his endurance measures up?

"Ka-kabutops!" Kabutops nodded his head into my palm as he ate, happily agreeing with my words.

I frowned, 'How does he understand my words?' I couldn't help but wonder. By my reckoning, Kabutops had never been exposed to humans people, so how could he understand my spoken language?

Honestly now that I thought about it, how did most wild pokemon, born in the wild and never having even interacted with a human before, understand the language?

Did pokemon have some inborn ability to understand others no matter their language?

If so, how? That didn't seen scientifically possible, it seemed more mystically inclined.

'Not that pokemon in general seem all that scientifically possible.' I snorted inwardly.

I suppose there's no real use in worrying over it. I can just be satisfied with it making my life easier.