Pokémon: Leah's Journey {Rewrite}

Chapter 38: The Mystery House

Adeline should've gone back to Team Flare and report to Malva, but her next mission happened to be in Laverre City where Leah, Zayn and Mildred were headed so she told Malva that she'd tag along with the trio. Malva saw no issues with that, Adeline would still be on schedule. She was quite pleased to hear that Leah had acquired the Voltage Badge. She was one step closer to being able to defeat Lysandre. What Adeline didn't report was the trio of flame-coloured eggs Leah had woken up to. It seems that Omen and Mrs. Cuddletails got busy when Leah wasn't looking.

The Laverre Nature Trail was a route of swamps. Its lush trees were so big that the sun's light could barely reach beneath them. The area was dark and quite frankly disgusting. And if Mildred started on how eerie the broken swing set was, they'd all feel their souls leave their bodies somehow. Leah and Mildred had to withdraw their partners in their Pokeballs because neither of them wanted to get their fur dirty. Mrs. Cuddletails was also a canine and as such has a very sensitive sense of smell and the same could be said for Freki.

The only Pokemon in the group that seemed to feel quite at home in the swamps was Níðhöggr and Actias Luna. The Vivillon had placed herself on Leah's head, making it look like the trainer was wearing a Vivillon-shaped bow. Níðhöggr was hunting for smaller bug types to consume, which in this area, he'd get the exquisite cuisine of mollusk as a starter dish in the form of Shelmets and the crunchy meat as the main course in the form of Karrablasts. That Scolipede is getting a full course meal, but at least one of them is content with the conditions of the environment.

A few drops of rain started to fall on their heads. Those droplets quickly turned into pouring rain. Thunder boomed loudly. There was a storm coming and they couldn't stay under the trees. Zayn scoured the area for some form of shelter. He knew how to survive outdoors and in the case of a thunderstorm, he hoped to find shelter as soon as he could while Leah, Mildred and Adeline huddled up together for any form of heat. Leah was more comfortable with the cold, she just seemed to dislike the rain.

Zayn returned to the girls with news of a shelter and led them to it. The place seemed broken down and it had an eerie vibe, but Leah wasn't going to refuse shelter from the rain and neither would Adeline and Mildred who were freezing. So they all walked in the empty house to wait out the storm. It was quite dark in the house, but they could see that the furniture was covered in white blankets, as though the inhabitants had intended to move away, but didn't for some reason.

Leah, Mildred and Adeline sent out their partners. Freki stayed close to Lady Lemeow and Mrs. Cuddletails. The Electrike was shaking and whining in fear. Mrs. Cuddletails looked around herself, fur bristling and fangs bared. They weren't the only ones in this house. They were approached by two people. Mrs. Cuddletails growled a warning. She couldn't see well in the poor lighting. She could see a Leafeon, and only the feet of the people it was with. One of the people spoke up, "Hey! your Vulpix and Skitty evolved!" It was a rather feminine voice.

Leah turned on her phone's flashlight, "Serena?"

"And Calem. I'm here too, you know."

Mildred approached Serena, "What are you doing here?"

"Seeking shelter from the storm. What else would I be doing in a broken down house?" Serena deadpanned.

"Fair enough." Mildred laughed.

Leah wasn't really paying attention to what Mildred and Serena were saying, she was looking at Mrs. Cuddletails. From the moment they walked into that house, the Ninetales seemed rather agitated, like there was something there that she could see, but they couldn't. Even Adeline was observing Mrs. Cuddletails with concern. Suddenly, a door slammed shut somewhere in the house. Everyone's attention turned to where the noise was. It didn't take long for Mrs. Cuddletails to bolt towards the noise. Leah and Adeline followed after her and the others immediately followed after the two girls.

Mrs. Cuddletails was snarling at what appeared to be air. Leah gently placed her hand around the Ninetales' neck. She pet the fur on her partner's neck and spoke softly, "There's nothing there, come on."

Mrs. Cuddletails didn't budge and continued to snarl at nothing. There was a chill in the area. Even Leah, who barely gets cold, felt it. Mrs. Cuddletails turned around and pounced. Leah had to bend down to not get tackled by her partner. There was certainly something in that house. The Ninetales barked at Freki. The Electrike's body was engulfed in crackling electricity and released a bolt of lightning towards the air. It revealed a Ghastly.

The Ghastly evolution line lived in the Laverre Nature Trail, it was not a surprise to find one in this house. Unfortunately for them, these Pokémon were extremely mischievous. Zayn and Calem looked at the Ghastly, an idea popping in their heads. Both boys took out an empty vial and approached the ghost asking it for a bit of its gas which it hesitantly provided.

Suddenly the long since burnt out lights of the kitchen flickered. Mrs. Cuddletails' ears perked up and gave chase. She climbed on the counter, knocking anything that laid about on the surface, and pounced. On Zayn's command, Níðhöggr's tails glowed a poisonous hue and hit the "air" with his tails. A Haunter revealed itself. Zayn and Calem grabbed another vial, Serena sighed and looked at Mildred, who was making gagging sounds. Leah was just watching in mild amusement as Zayn and Calem collected the saliva.

The final member of the Ghastly evolution line likes to hide in the shadows. Gengar is going to be a tricky Pokémon to locate as a result of its ability to lurk in shadows. A figure appeared from Freki's shadow, it released a loud screech and laughed when the little Electrike ran into Adeline's arms. He trembled and whined. Mrs. Cuddletails kept her guard up and when Gengar appeared again, it was met with a blazing tackle. With the Ghost type dazed, both Zayn and Calem grabbed a Pokeball from their bags, but Calem was faster. The Pokeball vibrated once, twice, then clicked. Gengar was caught. Zayn looked a little disappointed as Leah approached him, "You'll get a cooler Pokemon next time."

"Heh, you're right." Zayn turned to Calem, "Next time we meet, I'll have the coolest team you've ever seen."

Calem nodded and shook Zayn's hand, "It's a promise then."

The pouring outside stopped almost immediately after Calem caught Gengar. Calem and Serena left before Leah and her friends did. The group made their way to Laverre City which seemed to be bustling with people, more so than Lumiose City. There was an event soon, the group could tell. What it was, they didn't know. They made their way to the Pokemon Center and simply spent their afternoon relaxing until Leah and Mildred decided to go shopping.