『 A Yellow Gem and Lots of Fluff. 』
Citrine is a girl that can't feel pain, and has survived thus far with the help of the Pokemon around her and her surrogate guardian Wallene and Riley in Rustboro. Being the younger sister of a world-famous Berry...
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Bat bat bat bat bat.
After a little shoving and scrounging around, Citrine was directed to a cave at the edge of town. Right by the sea, Citrine realized that this was the Sea Route 118.
A little past this, through the oceans-- and she'll be in route 123...
"The Berry Master," she breathed, suddenly realizing, "I could get his help in my work."
Her original plan included a final stop there-- she didn't know the man personally, but she knew he would help. Her brother referred him to her, after all-- surely, she'd be welcomed.
Maybe the Berry Researcher's got a Berry data log of his own. Maybe it means my book won't be necessary-- she slapped herself. He would've published it already if he had a more complete book than Quartz did!
Citrine couldn't lose her motivation now! She was this far in!
"Anyways," she turned to her Pokemon, "let's go get our data back..."
ー
The cave was desolate-- or at least, it looked to be from outside. Deep and dark and an end not to be found, Citrine could name this nothing but a bat cave.
"A Zubat den," she cringed, "this is gonna be really freaky, ain't it...?"
Lombre yawned, shrugging. Wurmple, on her shoulder, was already spinning up a lot of string around the girl's face, probably some kinda anti-bat protection neither really understood. Whismur trottled around restlessly.
"What's with you?" Citrine reached down when the little plushie seemed ready to Uproar out of sheer excitement.
Whismur flapped his arms around flamboyantly--
"Oh, right-- you're a cave Pokemon," Citrine remembered absent-mindedly, "got an old score to settle with them or something?"
Whismur nodded almost too eagerly.
"Well, we'll have to keep that for later," Citrine put a finger at her lips, "they have us outnumbered and our types aren't advantageous either, so let's try sneaking in first without fighting, okay?"
A breeze trickled past her sleeve-- Citrine looked over her shoulder.
From inside the cave, countless glinting eyes beamed an unnatural shine of gold.
She froze.
The horde of Zubat have noticed suspicious individuals at their entrance!
The horde of Zubat used Supersonic!
"They found us! RUN!!" Citrine shrieked.
ー
"This is bad..." Citrine sighed, leaning against the rocks, sitting down.
Her breath was ragged from the sudden run, but that wasn't the issue. There had been a lot more of those than she'd first expected.
"Looks like we'll need an actual plan this time before we go for it again," Citrine mumbled to herself, "what is it?"
Lombre had been desperately tugging on her sleeve. Whismur struggled frantically toward her left, and Wurmple was stringing out a wrapping for her upper arm.
Citrine lifted her shoulder, and promptly freaked out, "I'm bleeding!"
"Wait," she pushed down Whismur's face when it desperately smothering her in worry, "I didn't see a Wing Attack..."
Wing Attack was when their wings gleamed and they charged at you. All of the Zubat attacked from a distance-- none could've physically touched Citrine at any point of time.
"Air Cutter?" she remembered, "or Slash... maybe there's a Golbat in there somewhere."
An evolved Pokemon in a wild cave... with only the three Pokemon she had on hand, it was unlike she could defeat them fairly.
In the corner of her vision, she caught something yellow gleam in the sunset. But when she turned toward it-- it flickered away before she could tell what it was supposed to be.
She shrugged, dismissing it as a trick of the eye.
The sea blew in with ripples-- perhaps it was calling a storm like the one she'd encountered on the first day-- she sighed.
"Let's go by the book, then."
She thanked Wurmple for the gauze, and leaned over to whisper their plan.
"So, since I'm bleeding now, I can't do the sneaking in."
ー
"Ready, Whismy?" she stepped out boldly in the front of the cave-- then stuffed Jigglypuff ear buds into her ears, "alright, then--"
A moment of complete silence overtook the whole area.
Whismur took a breath.
Screeching the loudest and most infamous Whismur-shriek ever, Whismy Uproared with all its might, sending even Citrine shrinking back in surprise. (yes, despite the ear plugs. Whismur must've been excited to hear he could go all out.)
The Zubat came out screaming in agony, their sharp ears working against them as they were blinded. A whole fury of Wing Attack came charging out of there, Growl calling in others from deep within.
Blind bats as they were, they either missed or fell straight down from the impact of the Uproar. Some attacks did get through, but Whismy was a little stronger.
Citrine watched from the side, and waited-- she eyed Lombre by the sea as it dived down-- and sent Wurmple to sneak in by the corner. Just then, a Golbat fluttered out, as angered as the rest of its pack.
Citrine staggered, alerted.
Wind picked up unnaturally around the Golbat's wings-- and with a nasty screech, the Golbat sliced with its wing, a sharp Air Cutter bursting through the airline.
Citrine ran forward before the move was unleashed-- but charging through the Zubat was a little tougher. Scooping Whismur right off the ground, she rolled out just in time to narrowly dodge the deadly strike.
Her clothes didn't survive, though-- a large back portion of the vest was shredded by the attack, though she escaped unharmed.
"Whismy, Oran Berry!" she called, though she couldn't hear herself, leading a handful of blue berries into the Pokemon's mouth to munch on.
Whismur breathed heavily, but gobbled them up quickly and turned back to the Zubat.
There were still plenty of them, and only one of them.
Wing Attack was charging up on their end, and Poison Sting was really to dive in.
