Searching Far and Wide - 8 (Patreon)

Pewter City II

Pierce had excused himself after retrieving Beedrill’s pokeball. Chatting with Lily was all well and good, but there was something he’d pushed off for a while already and it was time to finally address it with his pokemon. Well, several things, really, but that just made it more important to get it over with… Or at least start dealing with that.

“Hey there, girl,” he greeted once the pokeball’s beam finished letting out his bug type partner. “Was the Pokemon Center ok? You didn’t cause any trouble, did you?” he asked then, smiling as she seemed to stretch her limbs and wings a bit. His questions were answered with what he’d come to think of as beedrill’s way of huffing as she turned away from him. “I’ll take that as a yes and a no,” he decided, drawing what was most likely a glare towards him.

Probably getting tired of his antics, she stabbed sharply in his direction with her stinger. Pierce decided to take that as a “get on with it, idiot”.

“So, we pushed off giving you a name before, didn’t we?” he asked, deciding to do just as she said and not beat around the bush. It seemed to be a good decision, considering that the beedrill was suddenly very much paying attention to him. Even batting her wings a bit to take off the ground before stopping and lowering herself back down. It was quite the sight, really, to see what was probably a very excited bug type. “So, um, my idea was to name you after a color. It sounds like a nice theme for names, honestly. So, we’d have several names to choose from, considering your yellow, black and white colors. Does that make sense?”

Pierce was suddenly feeling very nervous about his idea. Sure, it sounded nice to him, but maybe it wasn’t to other people. Maybe it could be considered unimaginative or something. Would Beedrill be insulted? Would she get angry? He didn’t want her to decide that she was better off just calling herself Beedrill. That’d be awkward and… kind of impersonal, he felt.

He blinked then, as the bug type shifted and moved one of her stingers in a strange way. It became evident what she was trying to do after the moment it took her to actually get the motion right. Beedrill was, after all, pointing towards one of the yellow stripes on her abdomen.

“So, we are naming you after yellow, huh?” Pierce asked, looking down at the names he’d looked up and smiling slightly. “Not gonna lie, I thought you wouldn’t like the idea for a bit there. So, um, I guess I’ll get on with the list, huh? Just tell me if you like something,” he mumbled, his nervousness coming back. What if she didn’t like the names he’d picked?

Which was a worry that proved to be more justified than his previous one, that was for sure. Apparently, his pokemon misunderstood what he’d told her and instead took great care to very clearly tell him which names she didn’t like. To be fair though, most of those were names that were a little too… cheerful for her, really. Like Honey, or Marigold, or Daisy, or Primrose. There were also names that she didn’t so outwardly react to, like Chrome, Amber, Aurelia, Kiara or Clare. However, Pierce was reluctant to go with one of those. He wanted something that his partner liked, not just something that she tolerated.

So, after going through most of the list and getting duds for every single idea. He decided to put the notebook down and look at his partner. Sure, some of those fit her more than others. However, could he think of something that fit her more? She was a battle maniac, but he didn’t know if there was something he could do with that. However… Well, that opened a conversation that he wanted to get to anyway, so…

“Why do you want to battle so much?” he asked, making the pokemon pause. “Do you just like battling like that or is it something else?” Pierce continued, before stopping himself and running his fingers through his hair. “Right, simple answered questions. Is it just because you like battling?” he repeated, leaving the question at that.

To that, the pokemon replied negatively, which was already a surprise. Why would she want to participate in battles like she did then? Pierce knew that he didn’t really have the mindset to truly understand, but he prided himself on trying to look at things from different perspectives. He’d usually try to reason why people did what they did. More often than not it felt like overthinking, but he felt like it’d be rude to just assume it was the easy and usually worst answer.

“Do you want to be stronger then? Is battling just a way to get stronger?” Pierce asked and he frowned at the positive answer followed by a negative one. ‘So she wants to be stronger, but battling isn’t just a means to that… Oh…’ “Is battling a way to prove that you are stronger?” he asked, receiving a nod in response.

So, she liked to prove she was stronger than the opponent. That didn’t sit well with him. She didn’t need to prove that kind of thing to anyone. He’d seen her kick ass already in a few battles they’d participated in. Granted, that was mostly because of the advantage she held but it was still a show of strength. She shouldn’t be so insecure, it didn’t suit her. Unless…

“Is it because you are a bug type? A weak type? Or because you are a beedrill, maybe?” he asked, receiving unsure responses to the first two questions but a decisively positive one to the last. It made Pierce frown, honestly, because there had to be a reason for that. Had she had a bad experience regarding that? Had a human, or maybe another pokemon, mocked her for being a beedrill or something? “I think I have a name for you.”

That got him an interested tilt of his partner’s head as she leaned forward.

“Narcissa,” he said, holding back a wry smile as to where that name had come from, at least in his mind. “It’s derived from a flower’s name, also known as daffodil. It’s also derived from Narcissus… It’s a long story, but the name is synonymous with narcissism, you know, vanity and elitism. I don’t mean any of those as an insult to you though,” he was quick to make clear, even though his pokemon seemed to mostly just be hearing him attentively. “I just think it fits you, on certain levels, and it also fits the color theme I wanted to go with.”

Pierce remained silent after that. He wanted to give his partner time to consider the name, since she seemed to be doing just that. However, he was also thinking if there was anything he was forgetting about the name that he could add for his pokemon’s benefit. Ultimately, his efforts were in vain, since the beedrill gave a firm nod after a while.

“You like it?” he asked, grinning widely. It felt like quite the victory for him, if he was quite honest. Although, maybe it was because it was the most personal, complete victory he’d had so far since waking up. Training Beedrill – now named Narcissa – had been mostly her own doing and some of Lily’s. The swarm incident had Lily and the ranger added into the mix. Everything else in between had also had other factors to take into account.

This though, it felt more like his own doing, which was nice.

“I’m glad,” he told her truthfully. “Can I call you Cissa though? Narcissa is a bit of a mouthful,” he asked, half-joking. He was pretty sure the beedrill wouldn’t like that. It was a good thing he really didn’t mind calling her Narcissa if it came to it, otherwise he probably would have been more-

Pierce blinked, as Narcissa nodded stiffly, chittering something. He was reasonably certain that she was telling him something along the lines of “I’ll allow it”. That only made him smile wider, the expression threatening to split his face in two.

“You are amazing, have I told you that?” he asked, receiving a preening that was very befitting of her new name in response. “Ok, so that’s out of the way. I hope we can go far, Narcissa,” he told her, using her full name, if only to make things more official as it were. In response, his partner gave him a very resolute chitter. “Guess we are shooting for the Conference, at the very least.”

And wasn’t that a concerning thought. He’d wanted to be one more of a normie, if he was honest. That suited him just fine and being a casual trainer would give him more than enough excitement, really. It also would mean that he’d avoid all the dangers that being a proper trainer brought. Especially after he read up on some things at the Center’s computers.

Turns out, there was a lot to be concerned about in regards to the trainer life.

For one, trainers were expected to help in case of emergencies such as natural disasters and pokemon related problems, especially when they were in a public setting such as near a city. Sort of like with the beedrill swarm situation but much worse. If a trainer was capable of helping and didn’t, the punishment could go from a serious mark on their record at best to jail time at worst.

On top of that whole thing, there was the fact that Pierce was in Kanto. More precisely, he was in Kanto during Rocket Team times. Some people could say that it wasn’t that much of a problem. They weren’t very competent, after all. They were downright laughably bad in the anime. This wasn’t the anime world though, because some of the news reports he’d seen… They were very, very concerning.

It was no surprise that Pierce had seen some other reports saying that many trainers had decided to leave and go on their journey in another region.

‘First order of business, stay away from Mt. Moon until after whatever mess happens there,’ Pierce decided then and there. He didn’t remember the specifics of what went down there, his knowledge getting mixed up with fanon that he’d read. However, he did know that the mountain was almost surely going to be trouble. That wasn’t the hard part of that “plan” though. No, that was going to be trying to keep Lily from going. The girl was a friend now, so he’d rather her not having to meet and battle terrorists in her journey, that was for sure.

“For now though, I guess we can focus on training,” Pierce decided, grinning slightly at the way Narcissa perked up at the words. “I have a better idea of what to do in regards to your training, but we were more or less on the right track with what we were doing. So I want you to focus on everything we’ve been working on. We can add more things to your list of moves once you’ve got a solid grasp on everything else. How does that sound?”

Maybe he couldn’t call himself a proper trainer just yet, far from it. However, he’d done his best with the time he had at the Center, looking through all the information that he could access regarding Beedrill. It was hard to comb through all the internet bullshit to know what was facts and what was made up, but he thought he had a pretty good idea at the moment. He’d go look up more things the next time he had some free time, but as of that moment, it’d do.

“For now, let me go back and tell Lily, she might want to join us,” he said, getting what looked like an excited beedrill urging him to get on with it.

[}-o-{]

Moving through the city of Pewter was… not depressing, but it was a bit sad, Pierce would admit. Not because of the place itself, that was just fine, as far as he’d seen. However, the let down was that he couldn’t have Narcissa with him while he moved around the city. The only places where he could take his pokemon out was at the Pokemon Center’s training zone which was out the back, or in other training zones that could be rented if one wanted a more private setting.

Some pokemon were allowed, for sure, but that was a rather limited list of pokemon that were considered “friendlier”. It included about what one would expect, cute pokemon like eevee or pikachu, and “domestic” pokemon like some canines and felines. Even then, one had to get a special permit to allow that, which could also be acquired for any other pokemon but things got harder and harder the more one moved up the “dangerous” list.

As it was, Pierce was unlikely to get such a permit for the time being, so he’d have to put up with that law, he supposed. He hated it, but it wasn’t like he didn’t hate other laws, even back home. He’d be applying for a permit for Narcissa as soon as possible though. Honestly, his beedrill was harmless, it shouldn’t even be that much trouble.

‘Focus, man,’ he thought to himself. He was out there instead of back at the Center with his pokemon for a reason, after all. After a day of training and just generally perusing the Center’s computer to learn stuff, Pierce had decided to take a trip to the street where most shops were at. The fact that it was close by certainly helped but then again, Pewter wasn't a terribly big city, to be sure. Certainly bigger than where Pierce had grown up, but that wasn’t saying much.

Once there, he looked for a few things he’d noted down for himself. First of which was a pokeblock case. Since he had a small assortment of berries that the beedrill of Viridian Forest had given him, he’d be using them as best he could. That meant one of two things, basically. Either he mixed the berries with Narcissa’s regular kibble and went through them quickly or he prepared something with them.

On that later list there were elaborate dishes that were probably outside of his skill range for the moment, although he’d likely try at some point. Then there were poffins and pokepuffs which were… still a little out of his league, since he was no cook. However, there was the easy option of pokeblocks. The Pokemon Center had a perfectly good berry blender he could use and making those would mean that the fruits would last a little longer, which was pretty neat too.

So, Pierce was out to get a pokeblock case and maybe some containers since that by itself wouldn’t be enough if he used all the berries. From there… Well, he’d have to replenish food and other supplies too. If he happened to find something else he felt like buying, well, that’d be a nice bonus too.

It was nice not to have to worry too much about money. It turned out that the amount he’d “appeared” with was a decent enough amount of cash, apparently. On top of that, the reward he’d gotten for the beedrill swarm was much more generous than he’d expected too, so there was that. It wasn’t a crazy amount, but it'd have him without money related worries unless he bought something crazy expensive or some other unexpected thing happened. Considering how much of a cheapskate he usually was, Pierce wasn’t too worried for the moment.

There was a store that gave him pause though, and had him checking out their merchandise even though it was unlikely that he’d buy anything at the moment. It was a shop that sold things to help better take care of pokemon, brushes, wipes, toys, fire-proof blankets and so on. It was all very interesting to see, that was for sure.

Ultimately,  Pierce surprised himself by buying a wipe that was said to be good for bug types. There were more generic ones, but he didn’t want to risk buying something bad when it was meant for Narcissa. At least the brand seemed to be a good one, if the rest of the store was anything to go by. That or it was a brand that sponsored the place, either or. He’d risk it and if it backfired… Well, live and learn, as it were. He wouldn’t have gotten anything at all otherwise, so if it wasn’t good, he could just not use it.

That would suck though, but it hadn’t been expensive enough to annoy him if it ended up being a waste.

Another unexpected purchase was a second Storage Box, as the blue cubes/crates were called. That one though, he should have seen coming. After checking the price and seeing that he could afford it – even if it made quite the dent in his wallet –, he decided to go for it. It wasn’t like he didn’t need it. With all the potions and such that the beedrill had given him, the one he already had was a little too full for his liking. It’d be better to have some extra space just in case he needed it.

Last thing he wanted was to be put in a similar situation and not have space to save something. There was some extra room in his backpack, for sure, but it was better to err on the side of caution. Not that Pierce expected to get into such a situation, but what could happen once, could happen twice.

So, that was about all the shopping he needed to do for the moment, at least. He didn’t think he lacked something, at least. Pierce was sure that if there was anything else he needed, it’d have come up at some point during his time traveling through the forest. There was Mt. Moon to consider though, which was likely to need some more specific things, but that was something to consider later. He’d probably have to check on the internet and ask Lily to make sure he didn’t miss anything anyway.

As far as generally getting everything in order, he’d managed that, Pierce thought as he walked back towards the Pokemon Center. He wouldn’t be seeing his new friend for a bit, since Lily had decided to go looking for people to battle, but he would see Narcissa and they likely would get some more training done. That was fine in his opinion, really. Although, he and his pokemon partner would probably need to participate in a few matches themselves. It wouldn’t do, after all, to just train and never battle. That would probably do more harm than good at some point.

With that in mind and a grimace on his face, Pierce started thinking up ways to approach actual battling. Things had gone well so far, but that was more due to Narcissa being far ahead of everything else they battled than it actually being any trainer skill of his. He needed to think up ways to help more. It wouldn’t do to leave all the work to his partner.

As he moved through the city, he stopped at a particular corner. Off to one side, Pierce could see the Pewter Gym standing tall and proud in all its rocky and simplistic glory. It was an imposing sight by itself, even though it left some things to be desired in the looks department. It was especially awe-inspiring after what he’d read about basically every Gym in the circuit. These weren’t the jokes that were around in the anime. No, these places and the trainers that headed them were strong.

Back home, the things stopping great wars from breaking out were the nuclear weapons and the like. In the world Pierce was now in, those were the Gym Leaders, the Elites and the Champions. Granted, they weren’t quite on the level of a nuke… At least most of them weren’t, but the strongest trainers in a region were that ahead of the curve, basically. Only things more scary than one of those were the legendaries and those were literally beings of myth come to life, forces of nature given a body and a will. There wasn’t much on those latter ones to be found on the internet, but people knew they were real, that was for sure.

Sightings happened here and there. They’d sometimes come out of wherever they hid away from society and do something to remind the world that yes, they were still around. For the most part though, the public was happy to just leave them alone. With good reason, if anyone asked Pierce. No reason to go around poking at a literal force of nature, especially when it was sapient and probably smarter than one was.

Back on topic though, Gyms were that impressive apparently. They were the peak of the region they were located at. They were as much a show of power to others as they were a way for trainers to test themselves before the Conference. It was also why battles between all the top trainers were held at the end of the season break that happened after the Conference. It allowed them to actually go all out instead of the slight show that were Gym battles.

‘Definitely not going there now,’ Pierce thought wryly as he continued moving. Narcissa was great and all, but he didn’t think they stood too much of a chance to do anything at the moment. Especially against a rock type Gym. Even Cerulean’s water types would likely be a challenge, really. Although, those would probably be manageable if Narcissa got good enough and Pierce could add someone with, if not an advantage, no disadvantages against those.

All those were plans for an uncertain future though. At the moment, he needed to focus on training his beedrill and making the most out of his time in Pewter. Who knew, maybe he’d be more than ready for Cerulean or not at all. Time would tell, so it was better to focus on the now, which he could actually do something about.

Waving a greeting at the woman behind the counter of the Pokemon Center, he made his way towards the backdoor of the place that led to the training grounds. It had been a mild surprise and a slightly amusing event when they walked through the doors and Pierce saw a very not Nurse Joy woman behind the counter. It was one of those things that while it made sense for it to be that way, it was still surprising. Like watching a movie remake and realizing that the main character didn’t have the same actor, or something of the sort.

‘I gotta get used to that kind of thing. Police officers aren’t Jenny and trainers aren’t all super dumb,’ Pierce thought wryly.

“So, I’m back and I got a little something we can try out after training,” he said as Narcissa appeared out of her pokeball. To her curious tilt of head, Pierce pulled out the wipe he’d got. “Supposedly this is pretty nice when used on bug types. We’ll see. If not, well, we’ll just have to keep looking until we find one good enough.”

The beedrill buzzed in what he guessed was some sort of eagerness. It was sort of adorable, watching her zooming around and looking at the wipe. ‘Man, maybe I’m weird, but I don’t get why people react like they do to beedrill. Sure they are intimidating, but are also pretty cool,’ Pierce thought to himself before sighing.

“So, we are getting started then. Moving Harden and Iron Defense training,” he told his partner who gave a nod and then waved her stingers at him. “Yeah, I know, I know,” he grumbled, starting to run around the training grounds. ‘Getting her in on this was a really bad idea, damnit,’ he complained to himself.

At least it was a bonding experience of sorts, he supposed.

Even if it was, he’d much rather use the new wipe on Narcissa, it was far easier on his out of shape body.

And the beedrill seemed to enjoy it a lot too, once they got around to it.

[} Chapter End {]

Hey guys! How’s it going?

Well, Beedrill finally got a name. Even at this point, with all the backlog chapters I’ve written and all, I’m unsure about it. However, I think I’ll keep it like it is unless I get like, quite the backlash from it or something. So, feel free to tell me your opinion. If many people don’t like it, I’ll see about changing it.

I’m also unsure about how I’ve described Gym Leaders and the like, but I feel like that’s what they should be. In a world were Pokemon are basically the greater source of strength and a society that has grown around them, literally and metaphorically, I think it makes sense that things would be like that… Not sure what you think about it.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the chapter.

Discord Link: discord.gg/UTDransjJZ

Random Question: Being honest if you were in Pierce’s situation, what would you do? I’d probably do about the same thing as he is doing… Probably being more wary of wild pokemon though, I guess.

See you.