Pokemon Trainer Vicky
Chapter 46

"Umm… Ivy? You okay?"

"I don't want to talk about it." She informed me bluntly as she poked at the fire with a stick. If she was just grumpy, I would have, but like…

The cave was trashed. Her tent was knocked over, and it had holes in it now, and that didn't even touch on Ivy herself.

Her hair was covered in leaves, like something had stuck them into her hair, matching the color.. It was kinda pretty in a way but… She also had leaves sticking out of her clothes and she looked a little haggard.

I opened my mouth to press, but the cool feel of Gibles pokeball in my hand reminded me.

"Yeah I get that." I answered instead, wandering over and sitting across from her. I sat on the little log that I had been using as a seat and just stretched out my legs.

"Kukuku?"

"Oh? Sure Mimikyu." I agreed, and he nodded. He was pointing outside the cave asking to go.

Not sure what he was doing though.

"Vicky?"

"Huh? Oh the blood? Nothing to worry about." I waved it off. I still had dried blood on my shirt and pants even if I had washed up at the river before coming in. "You look like your day went as well as mine."

"It wasn't… Bad. Exactly." She offered and I just waited, as she seemed to grumble about it before sighing. "I caught a new pokemon. It's… Not what I was expecting."

"Yeah? What is it?"

"Not sure actually. I think it was a… Sewaddle? It was… I thought it was a grass type." She said with a sigh and I blinked.

"Oh! Sewaddle are so cute though! And they are grass types. Well Bug Grass, but-"

"Of course you know what it is." Ivy said with a laugh and then sighed. "It was going pretty well, and the pokemon was very friendly… Just a little too friendly." She admitted and I just cocked my head because… That made no sense. You can't have a pokemon that's too friendly Ivy.

Like saying something is too cute.

"Don't give me that look… Here. Come on out!" She said grabbing a pokeball on her belt and then.

"Oh my Arceus! Look at the little cutie!" I cooed as Sewaddle appeared and looked around, looking a bit confused for a second. Then my voice got its attention.

And it leapt at me. I pushed my head back, but it wasn't going for a kick or a headbut, instead it landed on my knee and instantly raced around my clothes. Tiny needle like teeth going to work and my jeans slowed it only a bit as suddenly little leaves were sewn into my clothes.

I looked up at Ivy whose entire outfit was sort of covered in leaves…

I just threw a thumbs up at Ivy. Good choice!

She rolled her eyes at me and sighed.

"I don't see the issue."

"Just wait until she starts pulling pieces of your sleeping bag apart to sew into other things." She muttered pointing at her tent.

"Huh. Well she is a wild pokemon Ivy." I said, looking in delight as my jeans got a spiraling set of leaves sewn into them. "Hey Sewaddle? Can you look here for a second?" I asked, getting her attention which was a struggle, she gave me a glare at my interruption. "See that?" I said pointing at Ivy's tent. "That's Ivy's shelter. You can't sew it up, or do anything to it. She needs that." Sewaddle looked from me, to the tent then to Ivy and then to the tent.

"Sew!" It cheered and leapt off me, to jump at the tent. I blinked as Ivy just groaned.

"I tried that already Vicky." She grumbled, and I did shoot her an apologetic look.

I guess Sewaddle really was just a sewing fiend. A black hat seamstress? Sewing whatever she set her eyes on? Heh.

"Don't laugh."

"No! Sorry I wasn't laughing at you Ivy. Honest." I assured her. But looking at Sewaddle, Hmmm. That was definitely a problem.

"Sewaddle, return." Ivy called out, and the pokemon jerked up from where it was cutting a fresh hole in the tent, as it disappeared into red light.

"That's gonna be a tough one to train."

"I'll just need to work on it… Preferably as far from my bedroom as I can get." Ivy said with a sigh, and I just giggled at her.

Ivy's room already looked like a forest, I couldn't imagine how it would look covered in actual leaves.

"What about you?"

"Oh! I actually… Well It was good? Mostly? Mostly good?" I confirmed to myself. "I managed to convince the Goomys. I captured tons of them so they will come to Kanto with us."

"Vicky… You really shouldn't do that. The Rangers are going to be mad."

"There was a Kitakami guy that I met. He was hunting them Ivy. Not to eat or something. To exterminate them." I said and Ivy actually gasped.

The idea of exterminating a group of pokemon was pretty crazy in Kanto. Even things like Grimer, and Muk weren't treated like that.

Not to say certain groups wouldn't be killed if needed, but it was still a big deal.

"Yeah. I saved them, and convinced them to let me take them home. It'll take a lot of effort to make sure they fit into Kanto, but I think it'll be okay. They are herbivores, and very friendly."

"If you say so." Ivy said with a shrug. We both knew it would be up to the Rangers anyways. "Well congrats on getting the Goomy you were looking for… Is that how you got hurt? The Kitakami hunter?"

"Nope. Afterwards I searched through the cave the Goomy had been using and it went on and on and on. I popped out on the northern side of the mountain. But I knew there was another pokemon that I wanted to capture so I went further up the mountain to replace them." I shrugged. "They were pretty aggressive, and I got bit while trying to connect to Gible."

"He bit you?"

"She, and yeah. They are predators, and their instincts are strong." I nodded, as I grabbed the blood covered pokeball. "Come out Gible!"

The splash of light and then she appeared blinked as her eyes adjusted to the light inside the cave, I could see the way her eyes dilated as her instincts kicked in. Which is why I jumped to my feet and caught her just as she leapt at Ivy.

Grabbing her under her arms I hefted her up and around bleeding off the momentum of her leap. Although she reacted to my grab by going after me. I wiggled her around keeping her mouth from snagging me.

Ivy had leapt to her feet as well, nearly falling backwards as the pokemon attacked her.

"Vicky!"

"Sorry sorry. She's pretty wild still." I said and then I shifted my hands grabbing her top fin, and her tail and sending her into a funny little forward roll away from Ivy and I.

Ivy looked utterly confused as Gible came out of her roll and teetered a bit before shaking off the dizziness.

"Hey Gible. No bite." I said and my voice had her focus on me once more. This time. Her eyes didn't quite dilate and she seemed to calm down.

"Gib?"

"Yeah. You're pretty quick to bite things huh? That's okay. We'll work on that. Make sure you feel safe. You hungry?" I offered and instantly Gible jerked a bit at the words.

"Gible."

I smiled and slowly moved over to my log. "Why don't you come sit with me? I'll make some yummy food for you?" I offered and then did just that before she could respond. Turned my back and settled onto the log. I looked over at her, noticing she had instinctively moved after me and then stalled as my eyes met her. I held her gaze unwavering.

"Gible, come sit." I demanded, and that seemed to jolt her. She slowly took a step, and then another and then reached the log and climbed up onto it, almost curiously and then copied me, sitting on the log facing the fire.

I smiled and got to work. Watching out of the corner of my eye as Ivy gave me a glare and then settled back on her log, Gible locking onto her and staring.

"That's Ivy. She's a pokemon trainer too, and she is very strong. If you bite her, her pokemon will get angry." I said, speaking slowly, and calmly as I took out a pot to get some water going.

"Gib." She muttered, tearing her eyes off Ivy to focus on me, at my hands moving around. She looked almost entranced as she watched me work, slowly pulling things out and getting them ready.

"Gible?" I asked and she focused on me hard. "Let's replace out what your favorite flavor is okay?"

She didn't quite tilt her head, because Gible were all mouth and necks but she did look confused.

So I started pulling out berries, and instantly got her absolute attention with food.

"I'm going to give you each of these. I said as I pulled out the berries. Then you are going to tell me which one you like the most, okay?"

"Gib." She responded, mouth opening wide and literally salivating at the sight of so much food. So I placed the first berry out of her reach and she quickly scooped it up and it disappeared into her mouth, chewed up and swallowed.

Then the next, and the next.

"Which one did you like the most?" I asked, and Gible just looked at me.

"Gib."

I blinked.

She didn't.

"Ah."

"Were any of the berries better than the others?" I asked, and again just received a blank look. "I pulled out more berry chunks and placed them on a plate and offered them to Gible, but those were just instantly grabbed and stuffed into her mouth.

"She probably doesn't have a preference Vicky. Some pokemon are like that. My Dad's Venusaur will eat anything." Ivy offered and I nodded.

There were a few natures that didn't give benefits and negatives to stats, and meant Pokemon didn't have a flavor preference.

Does that make my Gible Quirky, or… Hardy? I don't think she fits as Docile or Serious.

I shrugged it didn't really matter. I would learn more about her personality as time went on, so instead I focused on the advantage this would give me.

If she didn't care what it tasted like I could pack her full of extra vitamins to help build her up. Right now she was small and scrawny.

The runt of the pack.

But to do that, I needed expert advice.

"Come on out Chansey!" I called as I released her and she looked around and waved a greeting.

Her appearance instantly had Gible jumping up into attack mode. Her leap for a bite was stalled completely as Chansey simply grabbed her mid air.

"Chansey." She said scolding and that was all that needed to be done. Gible froze.

Chansey looked down at the Gible in her fins, and Gible stared up at her, and slowly that mouth closed more and more until it shut completely.

Oh my Arceus!

Gible had a very cute overbite! A single tooth sticking out over her bottom jaw. It was so cute! Wait… Was this the first time I had seen Gible with her mouth fully closed? I snorted at the fact my Gible was just always ready for bites.

Properly disciplined. Chansey settled her back on the log and Gible was quiet as Chansey looked to me.

"Help me figure out her diet?" I begged and Chansey giggled and nodded.

"Is Gible going to keep doing that? The biting thing?" Ivy asked a little warily.

"It's instinct for them I think." I replied as I started gathering things out of the bag for Chansey. "They eat anything that lands in their creche on the mountain. I think it's how the Gible survive. Eat whatever they can right away or their siblings will eat it instead. Very cutthroat. It's why she is so scratched up. She was the runt."

"Wait… Those are scratches and scars!?" Ivy demanded, sounding outraged.

"Yeah? They are pretty rough with each other, and she was the smallest Gible out of them all."

Ivy looked fierce for a moment as she rose up and slowly approached Gible who locked eyes on her. Ivy approached slowly and then knelt down.

"My name is Ivy, don't worry. We're going to be friends. I hope we can get along." She offered Gible and I smiled in delight at the confused look on Gibles face.

"Kukukuk!" The voice from the entrance of the cave called out quietly as Mimikyu returned and to my delight, I now understood what he had gone out to do. He came back and offered what he had found to Ivy.

The flower looked a little wilted, a wild flower. Held out by a hand of shadow. "Kukuku?"

What!? Mimikyu got a flower for Ivy?

Ivy blinked in shock looking down at Mimikyu and the flower and she slowly took it.

"Thank you."

"Kukuku!" He cheered and then scurried over to me, sliding around my leg for a second before climbing up my back and landing on my shoulder.

"That was very nice of you Mimikyu. Good job!" I faux whispered, and Ivy I noticed had a smile on her face.

Heh! Mimikyu was such a sweetheart! Did Milotic have competition for most Chad pokemon!?

—---

Gible devoured her meal and to my amusement immediately rolled onto her back and just fell asleep right there on the ground. I let her sleep and even settled in for the night as well.

Ivy grumbled for about an hour about her tent being full of holes but eventually she fell asleep and I did as well. Drifting off into a nice restful sleep. Dreams of fluffy pokemon filled my brain until something suddenly changed.

I awoke suddenly as I felt it. Something stepped on me. I opened my eyes and came face to face with Gible.

She stared into my eyes.

I stared into hers.

Mimikyu kept snoring under my hat curled up by my pillow, and I realized my pokeballs were beside me outside of my sleeping bag, and out of reach.

I kept calm despite my heart hammering in my chest.

Gible wasn't looking at me like I was friend shaped.

She was looking at me like I was food shaped. It was in the way her eyes were locked onto me. The way she moved.

I worked a hand free of my bag slowly, something she noted and was eyeing, and then calmly I reached out a hand.

She tensed. A hunger in her eyes. But I didn't angle for her head. I aimed for her red belly. She stilled as my hand touched her scales, and then I stroked, even scratching a bit.

Her eyelids lowered a bit, and even in the dull dark of the almost burned out fire, I could see her eyes dilate back to a normal size as she seemed to relax.

"Gib." She muttered her head slowly arching up to the ceiling as I stroked her belly gently.

I guess it had worked. I remember old nature videos about how sharks actually liked belly rubs, so half asleep as I was I tried it.

"That was dangerous for both of us." I whispered. If Gible had attacked me, I likely would have been okay after with Chansey here, even if I likely would have been in a lot of pain, but if I had cried out?

No chance my Pokemon wouldn't have noticed.

"We'll need to work on our relationship more." I muttered as I stroked her into a catatonia. "You must be hungry again huh? That's good. A really good sign. Let's fill up your belly." I continued to whisper soothingly, more for myself than Gible.

That had really shocked me

Was that a Dragons nature, Gibles trauma of being mistreated as a runt, or just a quirk of hers?

I wasn't sure, but it had certainly scared the crap out of me. I was absolutely sure, if I had reacted too fast, or done something to show myself as prey she would have attacked me.

Gible, unlike the rest of my team, was going to be an interesting problem to solve. I had captured her because I liked Dragon types. Because Garchomp were cute and strong.

I had done it without really considering what that meant.

"Dragon types are difficult to train huh?" I whispered to myself. Although Dragon types were rare in Kanto, there were still trainers from other regions with them. And that was a line of thought that ran throughout.

I guess I had been lucky with Dragonite and Dratini. Both of them had been happy campers.

Gible I now knew would take a bit more of my effort to bridge the connection.

Slowly I rose up, keeping Gible content with belly rubs, which was definitely cute all on its own. As I rubbed my eyes with one hand and decided to get up for the day.

Too much adrenaline to go back to sleep now.

I picked up Gible which only slightly brought her back to awareness, but my continued scritching soothed her and I settled in front of the fire and started stoking it up.

I'd get a big meal in her and hopefully showing her she didn't have to go hungry would help forge our relationship.

—--

"Vicky? You're up early." Ivy muttered sleepily as she tucked her head out of her tent. It had been about twenty minutes and the smell of food cooking had probably woken her up.

"Had a bit of an interesting wake up call. Hungry?"

"I could eat." She agreed after a moment of blurily staring at me. She disappeared back inside and came out a bit later in her pajamas.

The movement caught Gibles eyes and she stilled, but she didn't move to attack.

She was way too stuffed for that.

So happily she just returned to her previous position, eyes half closed as she just luxuriated in her full belly.

Mimikyu was happily eating his own spicy meal.

The fact I didn't have to cook massive pots full of food right now made the whole process pretty quick.

I still needed to feed Dragonite and Arcanine and Chansey though. Pokeball stasis was great, but food was food.

But that could happen later. I parceled out a hefty serving of breakfast for Ivy as she settled in, and then rose up.

"I'm going to wash up a bit."

She blinked at me for a few seconds before nodding slowly. "Okay."

Aww Ivy was all sleepy.

I moved over to Gible and slowly crouched down so she could see what I was doing. "Gible. We are going to wash up a bit. Come with me to the river?" I asked her and she just blinked at me. "How about you give me your claw?" I offered to hold her hand, and she didn't seem to understand that one either, but she reached out to me.

Probably thinking I was offering more food. I gently grabbed her claw and she jerked back so I let her go, but then when I didn't do anything else just continue to offer my hand she reached back.

I grabbed her hand and helped her up onto her feet and then I rose up and started walking not tugging, but showing her I was going to move, and in a few moments she followed. Waddling after me.

"Kukuku!" Mimikyu called out and a moment later I had a shoulder pokemon as well.

"Heh, glad you decided to come." I greeted him which earned me a happy shiver and I guided Gible out of the cave which she seemed to go along with purely out of bemusement.

I took her to the river, and although she didn't want to go into the water, I showed her how to wash her hands up. Which she did with a bit of hesitation. Taking a drink of the water as well, but otherwise quickly hurrying away from the edge.

Cleaned up I got up and offered my hand again.

She blinked up at me. Her mouth closed and snaggletooth on full display before she reached out and took my hand.

I smiled, and led her back to the cave.

—---

"I'm going to do some training today." Ivy informed me as I got back. "I still want to look for more pokemon, but I need to spend some time on my team, and work with my new pokemon to see who wants to battle." She explained stretching out.

"Hmm. I still have a few more pokemon I want to look for, but some training could be nice. Want to have Chansey help?"

"Oh! That would be a big help actually. Is that okay?"

"Sure, I wouldn't mind some training too. Want to train together?" Ivy didn't immediately respond as she frowned a bit. Then whatever was on her mind was decided and she nodded.

"I do. I don't want to show you everything in case I see you in the league, but facing each other will give our new pokemon some experience."

"Exactly!" I nodded along as I rose up.

This was actually going to be interesting, and I could tell Ivy thought the same.

Both of us would be using new pokemon. Pokemon we hadn't trained yet. We had never had that chance before.

"Ivy… You know what they say right?" I suddenly asked, eyes locked onto her own.

"Umm, what?"

"When two trainers' eyes meet they have to battle!" I declared and pointed at her. "Ivy! I challenge you!"

There was a quiet pause in the cave and then Ivy just scoffed. "Vicky, you are so lame."