Forever Loved (Volo x FemReader)

Chapter 28: New Teammate

"So that's two Abomasnows, three Bergmites, three Piloswines, and one Riolu," You conclude, reading off your Pokédex. "If I keep Riolu on my team and I get close to it, maybe it'll evolve?" You turn to Volo, who was scanning the cliffs in Icebound Falls.

He grips his backpack tighter and narrows his eyes to the top of the icy ledges. You follow his gaze up the ice wall to see the red eyes belonging to an Alpha Pokémon. An Alpha Lucario. It was forming a blue ball in its arms. Volo's eyes widen as the Pokémon shoots the blue ball down toward both of you.

The blond shoves your head down to make you duck as he ducks. The blue sphere whizzes right past you both and slams into the ground behind, kicking up snow. You both recover to see the alpha retreating.

"Hey! Come back here!" You yell, rushing to the bottom of the cliff. You try grabbing rocks to help pull you up. But he grabs your waist and pries you away from the wall.

You land on your butt and he keeps his arms out, blocking your way to the wall. "What're you doing?" He asks as if you're pulling some crazy stunt. "You can't go after it!"

"If I catch that Lucario, it might prove useful in my future battles." You get to your feet and brush off snow on your butt. "I need to find a way to get up there."

Volo stops for a moment before blocking your path for the wall, "Nope, not gonna happen."

"Why? You said it yourself: I need more training!" You argue.

"With an alpha?"

"Yes. They're strong so if I catch it defeat them, boom, my Pokémon and I get stronger."

He chuckles. You cross your arms and frown. "It's not as easy as you think," He states as if obvious.

"Have you tried it?" You ask, not believing him.

"Let me show you," He says, walking off. Confused, you look between him and the cliff. Ultimately, you follow the blond merchant.

You leave Icebound Falls and make your way across the snow to the Avalanche Slopes. Cautiously avoiding agreesive Glalies and lazy Lickitungs, you move along the path. A deep, low growl comes from up ahead. You glance at Volo but he keeps moving, unphased by the noise.

Feeling uneasy, you reach the end of the path where a pile of snow is. The ground jumps under your feet, almost making it seem like there was an earthquake happening. Volo presses a finger to his lips, signaling you to keep quiet. A deafening, spine-chilling roar causes Volo to crouch with you following his action and sliding over to him.

He glances over the pile to the unknown Pokémon. You try to control your hastily-beating heart due to adrenaline. Quickly, the blond swings his head around and rolls his eyes to the side to look at you. Slowly, he raises his finger to his lips again.

You clutch a handful of snow to keep calm despite the cold. The Pokémon emitting the growls steps closer to your hiding spot. You squeeze your eyes shut, unsure of what might happen. Did Volo lead you here to get killed? Surely he could too unless he ran as fast as Electrode can attack.

But you hear the Pokémon retreat to its original spot. You open your eyes and glance over at Volo, who was looking over the snow again. He peers back at you before motioning you to look. Biting your lip, you reluctantly peek at the unknown Pokémon.

The size could only mean an alpha. And the shark-like tail and fins could only belong to one Pokémon.

Garchomp.

Your (e/c) eyes dilate before rolling to focus on Volo. You open your mouth to whisper to him but he clasps his hand over your mouth before a word is said. He drags you back down to the ground, behind the pile of snow so you're both hidden before he whispers instead.