[Finley Morrow]

It was day four, and Finley had failed to get lost. He had prepared for this fact, churned through the feeling on the second night of his little adventure, but his map had simply been too clear and his luck too poor. However, now that he was here, heading back down a small trail in the forest, he found he didn’t care. His mind was occupied by his sketchbook. He’d spent the past hour or so sketching Brian as he flipped through the trees, asking him occasionally to use one of his punching moves on a trunk or a rock, and then trying to quickly jot down that.

But it wasn’t the same as it was in battle. Brian didn’t move the same - he was stiff when he punched a tree, and too loose when he was just swinging through them. In battle, he balanced the two and it worked. But if he didn’t know exactly how it worked, they couldn’t improve it.

Reaching his conclusion, Finley stopped suddenly in the path. “Brain, we need to battle something.” The mankey dropped onto the path and looked at his trainer quizzically, as if to say, “It’s not that simple”. Ah, but it was! Taking a deep breath, Finley shouted at the top of his lungs, “Hey you wild pokemon! We’ve fought half a dozen of you already today, and not once have we faced any sort of challenge, and I’ve got to say this is a serious let down. When I came to this forest I thought I could at least train my mankey, but it seems you’re all too weak for even an unevolved pokemon to learn anything from!” And so he waited.

Something shiny?

[Kitten4u]

Behold!



Species: Teddiursa
Gender: Female
Ability: Quick Feet
~Moves~
Baby-Doll Eyes
Play Nice
Feint Attack
Snore

[Finley Morrow]

What would have been appropriate is if an ursaring appeared from the forest. Instead, the only response to his challenge Finley got was a glaring and growling teddiursa climbing out from one of the nearby bushes. He shrugged. That would do.

“Alright Brian, let’s do this!” Finley shouted. Brian took a readied stance. “Use ice punch! But, slowly, perhaps?” Brian gave Finley a look as if to say, “and how exactly do I punch something slowly?”. The teddiursa, meanwhile, was not taking this challenge lightly. No, no one came into the forest, calling her brethren weak and got away with it. Not without a black eye and some bruises.

This was not the expression on her face as she waddled up to the confused mankey. Then, once she was innocently close, her fist moved with alarming speed at the other pokemon’s face as all of her distaste for the other swam onto hers. Brian took the faint attack and staggered a couple steps back.

Finley, on the other hand, had moved perpendicular to the two and had gotten the entire windup, swing, and impact sketched down in her little notepad, recorded in stick figure form. Brian was not happy. He was mildly annoyed with Finley for not paying attention to what he should’ve been, but Brian was used to that by this point. No, Brian felt anger welling up within him at this little bear thing in particular, with her little cute eyes and little paws and giant moon on her forehead. She’d punched him not only suddenly, but hard. In the face. To the mankey, who had kept his calm for the past number of who knows how many days, this was quite upsetting.

And so Brian swung back. He hit the teddiursa square in the face - a moment later, his fist exploding with ice. Finley sketched. The teddiursa, now feeling more angry herself, punched back. “Duck!” Finley yelped. Brian almost moved fast enough - but a punch to the forehead was lost to the angered mankey, who attacked as Finley shouted, “Thunder punch!” It was a left swing, exploding with electricity a moment after impact. The teddiursa fell.

Finley had gotten it all down in his sketchbook and was feeling quite proud of himself. With a satisfying thwap, he swung the book closed. Lastly, from his bag he pulled out a pokeball, and continuing the trend of his last battle, threw. The ball shook, clicked, and that was that.

Now that the battle was over, Brian took several deep breaths. “Ready to head back?” Finley asked. The mankey nodded. Both he and Finley were in desperate need of a shower.

Teddiursa caught!