009

[a_gentle_boy]

[Today is Train Your Pokémon to Battle Day! And having finally recovered slightly from his ordeal, Lucas is using the last few days of his requested vacation from work to get some of this move groove going. He's never been one to push his Pokémon to train until they drop or anything, but in light of the fact that new and unusual threats seem to be cropping up quickly, it's worth taking a few hours every week to do his part.]

[action 1]
[Early in the morning, Lucas is sitting on a bench in the city holding what looks to be a disc in one hand and a Castform in the other. Anyone who has borrowed a TM from the Rangers will recognize what Lucas is holding... and probably what he's unsuccessfully doing, too.]

Um.

[He scratches at the back of his head a little before gingerly placing the disc on Castform's forehead and staring at it expectantly for a few moments.]

Or...

[Now he rotates Castform every which direction and scrutinizes it carefully.]

Maybe...

[Castform's mouth is slowly eased open as Lucas peers inside.]

...I don't think it's going to fit.

[action 2]
[Having sorted out that TM business (why didn't anyone tell him it would play a video on his Warp Band???), Lucas is in the forest outside Union with a Mareep after lunch. He swings a stick energetically like a conductor while the Mareep disinterestedly wanders around eating every piece of vegetation in sight.]

Thundershock!

[Mareep calmly annihilates a pretty blue flower.]

Thundershock!

[One petal at a time.]

...OK, pretend I'm a bad guy and I'm going to hit you. You've got to get me away however you can! Like a real fight, OK? Count of three.

One. Two. Three --

[And as Lucas runs towards the Mareep with the stick held high, the formerly cloudless sky instantly materializes a bank of dark clouds and launches a massive thunderbolt that jolts right through the boy.]

eeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!

[Down he goes. Mareep quietly meanders over and noses at his awkwardly twitching and spasming trainer on the ground. Was that a little too much?]

aaaaaaaaaaah........

Comments

Action 1

[niepokonany]

[On his way out of the city in the morning, Feliks happens to pass by Lucas's bench. He wanders over, blinking in ever-increasing confusion.]

...Um... What are you doing?

[a_gentle_boy]

[Lucas blushes slightly as he realizes he's attracted attention.]

Ah - I'm teaching my Castform a new move!

[and that move is apparently Calm Mind or possibly Patience of a Saint]

...I'm not sure it's working quite right, though...

[niepokonany]

[Feliks blinks. Maybe... Maybe he's trying to teach it to use Bite better?? Can Castforms even use that?]

...What'd you just put in its mouth?

[a_gentle_boy]

Oh, nothing - it was much too large to fit.

[The disc is indeed intact in Lucas's hands still.]

It's supposed to be Secret Power... but I'm not very sure what this has to do with secrets. Maybe the secret is figuring out how to use the move.

[niepokonany]

[Feliks frowns thoughtfully, looking at the disk.]

I've totally never used one of those... Ok, so like, what if you put it on here?

[Feliks points at the Castform's little sticking-up point on its head.]

2:

[realmenknitplushies]

[...Okay, that wasn't what he'd expected to see on a day out training. Kanji might be electric-proof, but he swears, he could feel that...

So here, looking worried, running over to get a better look at what he'd only seen in the distance. Ow.]

...Damn. Y-you okay, man? Just breathe, alright, I'll see if I've got somethin' here for that...

[a_gentle_boy]

F-F-F-...

[Trying to say 'fine' is a chore when every muscle in your body has seized up. Mareep manages to bother itself to look slightly more concerned as Lucas wheezes for breath.]

Fine.

[realmenknitplushies]

That doesn't sound like any sorta 'fine' to me. C'mon.

[He sits down, starts hunting through his training supplies for a Paralysis Heal, frowning. Got to be one here somewhere.]

How'd ya manage that? [Glancing at the Mareep-] You do this?

[a_gentle_boy]

[Mareep manages not to betray any guilt it may feel as it licks Lucas's face. It had learned Thunder yesterday when Lucas was in school and hadn't thought it worth mentioning earlier.

On the ground, Lucas emits a sudden, perhaps slightly alarming gasp as his eyes fly open.]

Wait. I...

[They glow a vivid cyan. ...Probably a good sign of some sort, right.]

2

[incousinswithyou]

[well then. That was quite a show. A little kitten of a Shinx thinks so too, and scrambles on over to Lucas and the Mareep and meeps at them. That was cool! And sparkly!]

Ah. Are you alright?

[a_gentle_boy]

[Good. Perfect. Excellent. Lucas tries to give a thumbs-up but his twitching restricts him from doing so in a convincing manner. Mareep seems proud of himself as he acknowledges Shinx's admiration.]

I-I'll... be OK...

[incousinswithyou]

[spurred on by that dazzling display, kitty concentrates super hard and...produces a spark! Kitty squeaks in surprise, and then tries to pretend she totally did that on purpose.

Michiru reaches out to grab Shinx though. Let's not spark near the electrified child.]

That was quite a bolt. [and that twitching is a cause for concern. Probably.]

[a_gentle_boy]

[Aries nods solemnly at Kitty's attempt, abandoning his stricken trainer to focus on Shinx. All you have to do... is think about rubbing your wool together!

...Wait where is her wool?]

I'm really proud of him...

[It seems to be dying down a little now as Lucas groans slightly.]

He always ignores me when I try to train him, but...

2

[faithfulflame]

[Rei just happens to be riding by on her Arcanine when the lightning crackling sounds draw her attention. So, she rides up just in time to see poor Lucas get zapped.]

Oh! Savior, Lucas-kun! Are you okay?!

[a_gentle_boy]

[There might be an impressive outline of a flickering skeleton for a few moments as Lucas randomly sparks for a few moments after the lightning strike.]

Aaaaah....

[He's probably fine. Aaaah is the first syllable in 'fine'.]

[faithfulflame]

[Well she's running over to his side, and definitely calling out her Gardevoir...]

Deimos, Heal Pulse!

[Skeletal Electroboy Needs Heals Badly, Skeletal Electroboy Is About To Die!]

[a_gentle_boy]

[Well, maybe he'd stop a little short of dying, but without any of his incredible array of shields, taking a Thunder head-on hadn't really been a terribly entertaining experience. As the Heal Pulse relaxes his seized limbs slightly, Lucas gives a long and slow exhale.]

Thanks...

I should have been more careful...

2.

[worldmother]

[ Taking a breather for a few busy days was nice, and while winter continued to grip the forest, there were a few tell-tale signs that the end was near. Pidgeys sang in the trees, and the snow was beginning to melt in the sun. It was only a matter of time now.

Still, the snow was kind of nice, in a way. Elly was a bit sad to see it go, even if she wouldn't outwardly admit it.

Hearing a very familiar, young voice, the redhead followed it, finding Lucas in time to see the final bolt hit. ]

LUCAS!

[ Eyes wide, she ran toward him, heart pounding in her ears. ]

[a_gentle_boy]

((Account out; ignore icons!))

[It would be a comical sort of scene under less serious circumstances - Lucas seems slightly charred and crispy on the outside as he lies on the ground and coughs, trying to rid his mouth of the metallic taste.]

I'm OK!

[Is what he instinctively tries to say, but it comes out in a rather garbled sort of tone.]

[worldmother]

[ Nope, sorry, you lost all right to make light of this as soon as you croaked that out, Lucas. Mama Elly's concerned! You're getting the world's biggest bandaid.

Or, in this case, some burn heal. ]

What was that? What happened?

[a_gentle_boy]

[When Lucas has managed to stop garbling his words incoherently, he sits up and rubs at the back of his head, both embarrassed and... still slightly light-headed.]

I, um...

We were trying to train, but it got a little... out of hand...

1.

[ladyofluminosity]

Lucas?

[ Approaching the other blond, Camille the Dragonite following behind, both human and pokemon looked confused. ]

What... what are you doing?

[a_gentle_boy]

Oh -- Hi, Miss Lux.

[His fellow tortured prisoner in the Training that Never Ended. Lucas waves a little bashfully.]

I'm teaching Castform a new move! I saw Miss Melaka use it a few days ago to do something really neat...

[ladyofluminosity]

By feeding it to him?

[a_gentle_boy]

Aha...

[He pulls the disc away sheepishly.]

It wouldn't have fit, anyway.

I'm... not sure how this is supposed to work. Wisp doesn't seem like she feels any different, either...