Unova Wedgie Tales

Iris' Birthday (with Wedgies)

An alarm rang throughout Iris's bedroom. A smile crept onto her face as she snapped awake. Today was her twenty-fourth birthday and she was ready to party. She jumped from her bed, turned off the alarm clock, and stretched her arms. She let out a yawn as she scratched her backside. She took out a Poké Ball from her pocket and gave an underhanded toss, sending the item flying into the air. The Poké Ball broke apart, releasing a yellow-green beast. "Haxorus!" the Pokémon exclaimed.

"Hey, buddy!" Iris greeted as she wrapped her arms around the giant. "Guess what day it is?"

"Hax?" the creature questioned, taking a guess.

"You got it!" Iris said giddily. "I'm turning twenty-four today! Can you believe it?" The Pokémon nodded as she hugged her trainer back. "I remember when you were just a little Axew," Iris reminisced. Iris remembered her first Pokémon battle using Axew. Their opponent had been a wild Pidove, which proved to be a hard fought victory for Axew due to her inexperience. Axew's lack of speed was compensated by her high attack power and her constant use of the move Scratch.

"Haxorus," the creature stated, making Iris smile even more.

"You remember that too?" she asked in disbelief. "You remember beating that Pidove?"

The Pokémon nodded. "Haxorus." She mimicked its original attack by swiping in the air. Although she no longer knew the move, traces of it still remained in her memory. "Hax?'

Iris's eyes widened in realization, pulling out her other Poké Balls from her pocket. "You're right," she agreed. "I should probably get them out, too." She tossed them all using her previous method and watched as her companions all popped out. "Hey guys!" she greeted, observing her other five Pokémon: Hydreigon, Salamence, Archeops, Aggron, and Lapras. Her affinity for Dragons led to half of her team having that type.

Hydreigon's three mouths sang out in cheers as she hugged Iris. The other Pokémon followed suit, coming closer to Iris. The violet-haired woman gently patted Aggron on the head, tossed Archeops a Poké Puff, gave Salamence a high five, and let Lapras rub her head against Iris's. "Thanks you guys," she told her companions. "You've always been here for me." While she had caught many Pokémon over the years, these six were the ones she had grown closest to. She looked at her alarm clock and realized what time it was. "Oh right," she murmured. "It's ten o'clock." She pulled out her daily planner, a purple notebook with rainbow-themed stars printed all over it, and opened it up. "Let's see what I've got planned," she whispered, reading her handwriting. Her Pokémon stared at her notebook, wondering what was in store. "Oh yeah," she remembered.

She read the notebook and smiled. "First thing on the list: visit Shauntal and Caitlin." She knew that Marshal and Grimsley would be out for the day, busy doing errands. On the other hand, Shauntal and Caitlin, whom she viewed as older sisters, would be around for sure. She had only known them for a couple of weeks, but she cherished her time with them. Since Iris had become the champion, it had become her job to defend her title and she did not intend to give up her position any time soon. Her Pokémon had saved her so many times in battle that they had practically become family. The closest she had to family outside of her Pokémon was Drayden, the man who had adopted her from the Village of Dragons she grew up in. Due to how old he was, and his snow white hair, Iris had taken to calling him 'Grandpa.'