The Crazy, Red Cat

Pokémon Idea 2 part 2 - [M(T)PJ: New Beginnings]

"Long line," I blurted, as the door slid open. N, as I had hoped, didn't notice the time so much, much less if he recalled people leaving the Pokémon Center. "Let's see if the vendors are open late, hm?"

We went around the Pokémon Center, and N started to talk to my Pokémon again. I didn't really pay attention. My mind was stuck at what I saw, or what I didn't see, in the Pokémon Center. Venusuar and Serperior noticed, and hung back a bit. "I'm going to return you guys. Something's not right here, and we may need to move fast... I'm sorry." They both nodded at me — Venusuar more annoyed than hurt — and they vanished in a flare of red light. I hung their Pokéballs on my bag and caught up with N, my mind swimming again with my discovery in the Pokémon Center.

Luxray was gone.

Then a vehicle brought me back to the world around me. It was a simple gray car, and it was parked behind the Pokémon Center. One of Nurse Joy's aides was at the window, her expression from what I could tell was worried — her body language and aura, too. I didn't like it. "N, be quite a moment, please. Lucario, two o'clock," I ordered. He looked that way. "What's going on over there?"

Lucario took off, staying quiet. He leaped vertically about ten feet in front of the Pokémon Center, managed to run up a few steps, got a hand-hold on the roof, and pulled himself up. He snuck over to the side of the Pokémon Center the aide and the vehicle were on. I waited a minute, shrugged my PokéBag off, then hissed, "Stay here, everyone," and sprinted to the far side of the Pokémon Center, where N wouldn't see me. I changed to a Purrloin once I saw no one around, used Vine Whip to get myself up to the roof, and stayed low to make my way to Lucario.

"... another way?" the aide was asking.

"No," a female voice snapped. "We take these Pokémon, or we attack Castelia City. Same goes if you get the police involved. Remember that, Amelia."

"But the trainers —"

"Will learn to treat their Pokémon better," the woman interrupted. "Either go in there and get me more Pokémon or forget you saw me."

"I'll forget I saw you," Amelia mumbled, as she turned to leave.

"Good." The woman started up the car, the quiet rumble of an expensive model.

"Go, warn the local Officer Jenny," I said, my voice accented. "Maybe have N translate; convey the message any way you can."

"What about you?" Lucario asked.

I gave him a smile that matched my Purrloin body. "I'm going to hitch a ride." I turned serious again. "It sounded like they were stealing Pokémon, and I'd bet all my Poké that Luxray was one of them. Go."

Without waiting for a response, I threw myself toward the vehicle, which had started moving, and in midair I made myself shift to Liepard. The shock of the landing was unpleasant — one of my paws might have started bleeding, or I hurt any one of my ankles — so I used Aqua Ring. I felt better, but not perfect. I heard people gasp and talk about a "wild Liepard chasing that car," but I kept going. Aqua Ring activated again, my paws and ankles felt better, and I gained speed. The driver noticed me in her rear-view mirror, and she gave a bit more gas to the engine. But I kept up, and I launched myself onto the back of the car.

There were few claw-holds, and I almost slid off. But the woman was surprised, and looked at me when she heard the thud that was me. I noticed the red lights flare, telling me she instinctively hit the brakes, but she quickly sped up again. I wanted to break the window — oh how I wanted to, I could see Pokéballs falling out of a large burlap sack — but it was everything I could do to hang on, I had to use another Vine Whip to try and make myself even remotely stable.