Playing the Hero

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'Well...here goes nothing' was the Buizel's sole thought as he crept slowly and silently through the trees of the Pecha Forest. Ever since his visit to the Grassveil Guild, he had heard rumors that this was where many rookie and newcomers to the Guild trained themselves to be better prepared for their first real journey or mission. Jet had hoped that, just maybe, he could be more beneficial to his teammates if he could just get a little bit stronger. He was currently not very proud of his strength level, nor his courage. Plus, if he was lucky, he could potentially collect items for later use on his team's missions.

Thankfully for him, this place should be mildly tame compared to the other dungeons in the area, but he still could not help but feel somewhat nervous. After all, this was his very first outing since arriving in Grassveil Town. He had lived in a dungeon once upon time with his family, and that was far from the most pleasant experience in his life. So he supposed that it was only natural for him to be like this...and that was what gave him the comfort he needed to keep going.

Besides, he had survived worse in the past. What could happen here, right?

Jet made his way amongst the trees of the forest, although he was constantly looking over his shoulder for any sign of a Pokémon that might cause him harm. Some might call him paranoid...but he called it being cautious. A paranoid Pokémon was probably less likely to be ambushed than a Pokémon who simply marched ahead with a false sense of security in their confidence. He was different than that. He knew his limits and knew them well. He needed to be cautious, lest he risk falling into a very difficult situation.

Jet had been assured that this place was nothing to worry about...but he still couldn't shake the feeling that something was going to happen here. But what it was, be it good or bad, he had no idea. And so, he carefully padded onward, constantly on alert for any signs of other Pokémon or items.

{Remaining Energy: 16}

{Energy: 9 + 1 (new page) = 10}

"Y-yeah, Pecha Berries!" Jet repeated, with a forced smile on his face. "L-let's just keep going, yep!" He then let out an obviously forced, awkward laugh. Ugh...he couldn't believe he was acting like this. He must sound like a complete moron to her right now! Here he was, trying to act all tough for this girl. In reality, he knew that he probably wouldn't be able to protect her if something were to go wrong and they were to meet real threats. Heck, that Hoothoot might have been able to overpower him if it weren't for the fact that it had gotten caught up in a Pineco explosion. He could only hold on to the vague hope that whatever might come their way, if anything at all, would be something that e could deal with....

He cast one more quick glance behind him, looking as Lucerne kept her distance. Looks like she found him just as awkward as he was feeling. Or at least, that was the impression he was starting to receive. He quickly turned his attention forward again, scanning the area looking for something; anything that could help him get his mind off of his increasing heart rate.

Darn it...wh-why did she have to be so darn beautiful and out of his league?

Digizel carried out 10 launched of one Pecha Forest :

, , , , , , , , ,

[New page +1]
[Rolls -12]
[Energy:0/19]
[Reviver seed activated]
[Energy 19/19]

Lucerne poked her head into the bushes, hoping to find something, anything. She sighed and sat down on a stump. Things were not going how she planned. She just wanted to meet up with some explorers, maybe have a good time, but Jet complicated everything. She wished she could just focus, but her feelings on the backburner, but she couldn't help how she felt. She just had to deal with it.

She took a few deep breaths, then tried to stand up, only to find herself with her butt on the ground. There was eerie laughter, like a child's. Where did that stump go? Lucerne got up, looking around nervously.

Suddenly rising from the ground was a black mass, covered with a stump and some sparse vegetation, the mass giggled, it's eyes glowed red. Lucerne was paralyzed with fear, then She screamed.

Loud and terrified, the scream echoed through the forest. She wasn't prepared for this, How was she going to fight a ghost? How was she going to fight? She wanted to call out to jet, but by her own blunder he was too far away.

Lucerne turned back to the ghost, but it was gone, She looked around, but it was nowhere. She let herself calm down, before a purple force ripped through her. unimaginable pain coarsed through her, she couldn't breathe, move, she just watched as she fell down, her ribbon ripped off and floating gently as she fell to the ground. She felt a single drop of rain on her nose before things went black.

The buizel lay still on the ground, then a soft glow emanated from her bag. a few more drops of rain fell on her. The glow filled her, every scrape, bruise and blemish started to disappear. With it's work done the Ghost headed for the other pokemon, and from the path they had come from, a Hoothoot was making it's way towards them. Rain started falling full force as soon as a fuchsia ribbon hit the ground. It was soaked in seconds.

Lucerne woke up, as if nothing had happened, even better, she did not feel any pain. She opened her eyes and it was raining. What had happened? She caught a faint glow as it finally escaped her. Strange. She got up, staring blankly at the torn ribbon on the ground, then looked to jet.

Oh no...

{Energy: 10 + 5 (trap) - a bunch (everything else) = 0}Jet continued making his way forward, completely unaware that Lucerne had broken away from him further to look off the path slightly. His attention had been grabbed by trees up ahead, moving to the next one whenever he passed it so as to keep his red face pointed forward so that the other Buizel couldn't see it. But he quickly came to regret his decision. His eyes widened as a loud, shrill scream pierced through the forest air. The sound came from out of nowhere and for a moment, caused him to reach his paws up and cover his ears in a vain attempt to block out the sound as best he could. But then, he realized what that scream most likely was.

Jet's eyes widened in fear, quickly spinning around and losing the harsh blush that had appeared on his ace. "LUCERNE!" he cried out as loudly as he could, realizing that the female Buizel was no longer in step behind him. He got down onto all fours and began to bound forward, retracing his steps in the hopes of finding wherever Lucerne had been ambushed from. eventually, however, he found his path blocked. Before him was what appeared to be a floating stump of some sort, with a black incorporeal mass floating around it. He quickly identified the Pokémon.

"A-A Phantump? Here!?" he exclaimed, suddenly feeling chills run down his spine. He...he had never actually had to fight a Ghost-type Pokémon before. The sheer idea of fighting a ghost stopped him in his tracks. He took a hesitant step backward, nearly giving into his temptation to flee. But no...he couldn't run away! Lucerne was out there somewhere and he needed to help her! He had been acting tough all day...and now it was time for him to put it into practice.

"Wh-wh-what did you do to Lucerne!?" Jet questioned in a shaky tone that dripped with his fear. "G-g-get out of my way...! P-please...." He added that last word under his breath thanks to the intimidation he was feeling. This wasn't good...he didn't have many ways of fighting a Grass and Ghost Pokémon.... He was in trouble and he knew it.

And of course, to make things worse, the Hoothoot was apparently coming his way soon as well. What was he supposed to do now!?

~~~

Meanwhile, as Lucerne got back to her feet after waking, the rain had begun. But as the female Buizel would rise, she would notice something peculiar. Beside her, a tree would begin to shake...moving slightly as the rain grew worse. And then suddenly, out of nowhere, the tree shifted...and suddenly, a foot came thrashing outward, aiming to slam hard against Lucerne's legs in an attempt to trip her to the ground.

This movement revealed the tree for what it truly was. The Sudowoodo had just thrown a Low Kick at the female Buizel as soon as it realized that she was getting back up. Hey, if that Phantump wasn't going to finish the job, he was more than willing to steal a victory.

[Energy:19/19]
Lucerne thought that the rain certainly set the mood, but It did more than that. It made her feel stronger, like whenever she was in the water. Not that it mattered. She didn't know how to fight. She hadn't even stopped to consider it when coming here. She wasn't strong or smart, at least she was pretty, all the good that would do her now.

Turning her head around she tried to figure out what to do next, but there didn't seem to be anything she could do. At least she might be safer closer to jet, so she started that way, only to be tripped by a root.

She cursed her luck, then did a double take and cursed the tree shaped pokemon that was attacking her. she tried to get away, but the Sudowoodo had her pinned. Ok, ok. she can do this, just gotta use a move, she was a water type so she can do water stuff right?

"um.. Aqua punch!" She exclaimed "OW!"

So that was not a move. Lucerne rubbed her paw, thankful nothing was broken. She was able to move out of the way of the fake tree before it attacked again. She needed a way to fight, or get to jet, or run away. She didn't know what to do, so she just backed away from the pokemon carefully.

The Sudowoodo looked down at Lucerne, allowing an amused smile to appear on his face. This grin only grew wider when the foolish little Buizel actually tried to simply punch him. Apparently, this little runt wasn't aware of her own attacks. He almost scoffed; this was going to be one easy fight.

With that thought, the Sudowoodo brought his arm upward, pointing it into the air. A moment later, a stone began to materialize in its raised branch-like palm and brought it down, intending to smash it into the Buizel's body using Rock Throw while she rubbed her paw in pain. However, by the time he got the attack readied, she had already moved away. The Sudowoodo glanced down the path where Jet had walked. The other Buizel was some distance away by now, with his path blocked by that Phantump. It would be difficult for the two to get back together at this moment. He turned back toward Lucerne...and thrust his arm downward, chucking the giant stone in his hand. He utilized his Rock Throw, trying to smash it against the female Buizel into a tree with it.

~~~

Jet growled once more at the Phantump, crouching. If he didn't do something to get out of this quickly, Lucerne was going to be in danger! On top of that, a Hoothoot was on its way toward him as well, which would make things even harder for him. Thankfully, though, the Hoothoot wouldn't be as difficult to get around. If he could find some way to take out or get around this Grass and Ghost Pokémon, he could help his companion. Unfortunately, he was already met with a difficult obstacle...his ability to fight this Pokémon. Not only did he have very little confidence in his fighting abilities, but he was at a drastic disadvantage. Sonic Boom, his usual go-to move since it didn't require use of his pathetic physical strength, would not affect a Ghost Pokémon at all. On top of THAT, the only other damge-dealing move that he possessed was Aqua Tail...which was not only resisted Type-wise, but it also required him to put muscle behind the attack, something he rather lacked.

He gulped once again. "I-I-I'm warning you!" Jet stammered nervously. "G-g-get out of my way! I-I have t-to help L-Lucerne...!"

Lucerne was crying now. She Needed to do something. anything to help. Jet wasn't going to be her hero, not like this. Lucerne wasn't a fairytale princess. She couldn't sit by and wait to be rescued this time.

She ran towards jet, still not knowing what she would do. She looked behind just in time to see a rock being hurled at her. Panicking, she dove into the bushes, the rock exploded on a tree. The fake tree was splashing in puddles as it walked towards her.

She looked around, maybe she could use a large branch as a club or-. There was a pretty blue orb right in front of her. deciding to take her chances, lucerne picked it up and faced the menacing tree pokemon.

"I-" Lucerne stuttered, "I Am an explorer. Lucerne of team Sweet tails! I have a badge, If I'm good enough for the beautiful Faye, I am more than good enough to take down the likes. of. YOU!"

Lucerne heaved the orb above her head, as she prepared to smash it against the Sudowoodo, she felt something in it. Soon a bright light filled the forest. all the pokemon flinched, and with a jolt of yellow electricity, stopped dead in their tracks.

The orb was gone, and for second it was silent, before the sound of rainfall became audible again to ears accustomed to conflict. The orb was gone, but lucerne wasn't going to question it, she ran to jet, shaking.

"Jet, what do I do? what do we do? are they going to stay like this? Please help me!" Lucerne begged as she ran up to the other buizel.

The Sudowoodo's grin widened further as he saw the pathetic Buizel trying to scamper away from him as quickly as she could. Sure, his Rock Throw had ended up missing, but in so doing, he had also managed to corner the little sea rat. She had foolishly dove into a bush, right where she would no longer be able to return to the path. He stepped forward, ready to stomp down on the Buizel and pin her to the ground where she would no longer be able to escape him. This pathetic excuse for a fight was as good as over.

But then he paused. Lucerne had decided to show her face once again. His eyes widened slightly, not expecting the cowardly Buizel to actually turn to face him. On top of that, she began to talk...but he couldn't care less what she was saying. He just needed to end this, right here, right now. He raised his arm, which began to glow a bright green color. He was preparing to smash his Wood Hammer into the Water-type's body, no doubt rendering her unconscious. But just as he was about to swing it down....

CRASH!

The Buizel suddenly pulled out and thrust a bright blue orb forward, smashing it up against his body. He grunted from the impact...and suddenly, his body was frozen, as if in fear. No matter how much he struggled or his brain demanded otherwise...he couldn't move a muscle!

~~~

Jet glared at the Phantump, which still hadn't said a word or made any move at him either. He had no choice. He had to be the one to initiate the battle. He couldn't leave Lucerne alone for so-

Suddenly, a loud crash sounded throughout the area, and the Pokémon looming overhead suddenly stopped moving, an expression of fear suddenly plain on its face.

"H-huh...?" Jet questioned. But before he could think any further, Lucerne showed herself once again. His eyes widened slightly as she approached. "L-Luce-?" he started, only to get interrupted by her frantic begging. He shook his head, clearing away his confusion. Lucerne was okay. That was all that mattered. "Y-yeah. I-I don't know what happened, but this is our chance! I-I can't fight all of these Pokémon together by myself. W-we have to get out of here before they return to normal!"

Besides, this was the perfect chance, while the rain was still in place. His Swift Swim would allow him to move twice as fast as he normally would. Hopefully, Lucerne would have that ability as well instead of the Water Veil that some Buizel possessed....

Wasting no more time, he quickly reached out and mindlessly grabbed hold of Lucerne's arm with his paw, turning in place. "C-come on, let's get out of here!" With that, he began to run, trying to pull Lucerne with him. He could only hope that she didn't think him a coward for running away from this fight...but he couldn't help it. He couldn't pretend to be strong enough to fight a Phantump!

[Energy:19/19]

While rain doesn't hurt, it does get annoying after a while. like an annoying younger sibling that keeps poking you just to get your gogoat. once both Lucerne and Jet were far enough away not to worry about the pokemon they left paralyzed, the had found respite from the relentless prodding of the rain under an outcropping.

Now that things were back to a semblance of normal, lucerne was back to being awkward. She could still feel Jet's paw holding hers. he had lost a bit of luster, after all some freak luck had saved them, not jet. He didn't seem much more capable than lucerne herself.

"I forgot my bow." Lucerne said, suddenly remembering "Aw, and it was so cute too! matched my bracelet and everything! Probably ruined anyway, I think I saw it ripped on the ground."

Lucerne could feel bad about what happened, but what was there to feel bad about? Sure she didn't know how to fight, but it isn't her fault she can't remember. Besides, it wasn't just her having problems. She'll just have to try again later.

After their lengthy run, Jet had found the two of them some good shelter. Personally, he enjoyed the rain but apparently that was not the case for Lucerne. A strange thought, to be sure. He'd never known a Buizel to dislike the rain. But he supposed that that was beside the point right now. He needed to make sure that they had gotten far enough away.

Jet peered out and back onto the path, looking for any sign of the wild Pokémon that had attacked them. Thankfully, nobody seemed to be following them. He let out a sigh of relief before turning back to his female companion. He was breathing heavily, clearly tired from the run and bringing her with him. He was, however, still grabbing hold of her paw. He hadn't yet realized that he hadn't actually released his grip yet.

"Y-your bow...?" Jet asked until he suddenly realized that she was right. That bow that she'd been wearing had been lost in the rain and in the attack at some point. He felt a small surge of guilt pour through him, but he shook it off. This wasn't the time to be worrying about pointless accessories, was it? "H-honestly, I-I think we should be thankful to even be conscious right now. I-I don't have a move to fight a Phantump with. I-I might have been able to handle that Hoothoot and that Sudowoodo, b-but...the Phantump is immune to my Sonic Boom and resists my Aqua Tail attacks.... I-I wouldn't have stood a chance.... Let alone against all three at the same time."

However, he looked up at her again. "...B-by the way, m-maybe...maybe it would be good if you were taught something about fighting.... Y-you know, in case something like that happens again...?"

[Energy:19/19]
[OOC: that is not amnesia misspelled. she just can't remember. trying to give her some more ditzy moments]
Lucerne knew that Jet had a point. She couldn't rely on others to save her all the time. She looked down on the badge attached to her bag. She was an explorer now, she needed to make her savior proud. Learning to fight didn't exactly sound very fun, but she made a promise.

"Uh right. How do I fight?" Lucerne asked. "I kinda have amness, I think It's called. I don't know what moves I can do."

She looked down. She was embarrassed, looking so stupid in front of jet. She must seem like some kid. She didn't really care all that much for thinking too hard about anything, but not remembering her moves? She should be better than that.

Lucerne put a paw to her head. Trying to think about her moves and admitting to have forgotten her past had given her another headache. She rubbed her temple and sighed.

Jet looked at Lucerne for a moment with a bewildered expression at her words. He couldn't believe what he had just heard. Her mistake on pronouncing the word aloud aside, he had never met somebody who possessed legitimate selective amnesia before. She clearly knew who she was and all of that...but she couldn't remember her moves? And of all things to forget, it was something like that. Something that was more or less the most essential part of exploring? Defending yourself? For a moment, he wondered if he even should believe it. After all...it was such a weird coincidence....

However, he had no reason to doubt her. Besides, she had shown that she couldn't use any of her moves before. Otherwise, she likely would have at least tried something on that Sudowoodo before.

"...O-Okay," Jet murmured somewhat uneasily. "Um...w-well, first I suppose I should tell you that you don't have to necessary utilize your moves in order to fight. S-sometimes, using regular, improvised attacks like throws, kicks, tail smacks, and so on can work too. E-especially if you find your moves inadequate."

'O-or at least, that's what my teammate told me...' he murmured in his thoughts.

"A-anyway as for your moves...w-well...s-since you haven't gone through much training, I-I suppose it would be a safe bet to assume you only have basic Buizel moves. L-like Sonic Boom and Growl. I-I'm not very good at growling myself, b-but I-I can at least show you how to use Sonic Boom. I-if you want, I-I mean. A-as for your other moves, you might not yet know Water Sport...b-but you might also have a move you inherited from birth. I-I have Aqua Tail myself...b-but you probably have something different."

[Energy=19/19]

"Growl? I do not growl. That sounds... ugh" Lucerne said, disgusted by the idea. "But sonic boom sounds cool. Also I tried punching that tree thing, It's like it was made out of rock!"

Lucerne still felt that punch, too. She didn't know too much about moves, but Sonic boom sounded neat. Still, she didn't actually know how to do any of it. Lucerne was hearing a lot of stuff she didn't understand, but she was pretty sure Jet wasn't actually teaching her anything.

She decided the best course of action was to just try it. She stood up, imitated a fighting pose and punched the air.

"Sooooonic BOOM!" nothing, she tried holding her paws together and tried to throw some invisible energy

"SONIC BOOOOOOOOM!" She yelled, thinking it might be related to her voice. Maybe it was a running type of move.

"Sonic boom!" Lucerne yelled as she ran out into the rain, tripping and unceremoniously face planting in the mud.

She stood up, back turned to jet, and tried to let the rain wash away the mud. She would at least like to be presentable. once she had removed most of it she turned around and sat down on a rock, frustrated.

Jet couldn't help but smile slightly when Lucerne said that she doesn't want to Growl. He couldn't blame her. He was always too nervous to growl at his opponents himself. He knew the tactical advantages that such a strategy could give, but...he just couldn't bring himself to do it, no matter how much he tried.

He did, however, nod knowingly when she mentioned that she had tried to punch that Sudowoodo. "W-well in truth, Sudowoodo is-" he started to say, but cut himself off when he saw that the female Buizel had suddenly started standing up. He looked at her with a confused expression for a moment, but quickly realized what she was about to do.

While he did find her antics somewhat amusing, he should probably stop her. He reached his paw up toward her. "U-um, th-that's not," he started, but was stopped again when Lucerne yelled the name of the attack aloud. But before he could finish his statement, once again he was interrupted by Lucerne's self-help. The female Buizel dashed off into the rain without even listening to a word he said. He let out a small sigh of defeat at that point.

This was going to be a LOT harder than he had thought it'd be.

When Lucerne had tripped and fallen into the mud, Jet was tempted to go out and check on her...but he decided against it just as he was starting to step forward, thinking that she might just find it embarrassing. So instead, he waited where he was for her to come back. She sat down on a rock not far from him and he let out another small sigh.

"L-Listen, Lucerne..." Jet said at last, walking over to her and putting a paw down onto her shoulder. "M-maybe it will be easier for you if I demonstrate it. I-I do still have that move and it's my favorite to use in a battle. S-so...do you...do you want to see how I do it...?"

Lucerne looked at her paws. She wondered if she even knew how to use moves before she lost her memory. She really didn't care, or she wouldn't care, but she needed to make her savoir proud. They believed in her.

"No, Just give me some time. I have to try" Lucerne said.

She closed her eyes and focused. She didn't need to think. she remembered all the times her savior had fought for her, those moves were second nature to them. If that's how it was for them, then the same logic had to apply to her right?

She relaxed, dropped her pose, and just stood there in the rain. Minutes passed. She let the rain wash over her. Lucerne had wondered why she always felt better in the water, or even when it rained. that feeling, it had to mean something. so she held onto it, and used it.

Water from puddles surrounding her started to float, soon rotating around her. She felt the water give her strength like it always had. The water formed into three rings, spinning around her, glowing softly.

"I DID IT! I did it? I did something." Lucerne said, looking at the rings "these are pretty."

Jet seemed slightly disappointed that Lucerne had said that she should try it for herself. He supposed that that had its benefits, but he somehow had his doubts that she would manage to utilize a Sonic Boom attack without his help. It was a bit difficult to think of. But, he certainly didn't want to say that. He didn't want his female companion to think that he didn't believe in her or her own abilities. So, he instead remained quiet and nodded, deciding to merely watch.

He watched as Lucerne closed her eyes and began to focus. He had to admit, he was somewhat impressed by how quickly she had relaxed herself. He wasn't entirely sure what she was trying to do right now. He continued to merely sit there and watch as the minutes passed ever so slowly. Lucerne seemed to merely stand out there in the rain.

After a few minutes, Jet began to consider going out there and saying that nothing was happening and that she'd probably have better luck next time. Just as he stepped out into the falling water, however, he paused, eyes widening at the sight.

Lucerne stood, water beginning to rotate around her from the ground. Jet could hardly believe his eyes. The water shifted shape, separating and soon become three distinct hoop shapes, giving off a distinct glow. He smiled slightly at the sight. He knew that move; he knew it very well. It had always given him comfort every time he saw it. A very small amount of comfort in a world of pain and submission.

"W-wow...th-that's amazing, Lucerne...!" Jet exclaimed, stepping closer to her. "That's Aqua Ring! That's a move my mother had been hoping I would learn but I never could get the hang of. That...that must be the move that you inherited from your parents." He smiled. It had been a very long time since he last saw that move utilized....