An Afternoon Tea Party [Pokemon Short]

[FedoraChar]

Le short explanation: This was an old comedy piece I did for Pe2k's WAR last year--the goal was to write something about a Pokemon you hated. While I don't hate any particular species, I wasn't overly fond of Cynthia's Garchomp. So.... I did the following... >:3






Scylla knew the instant she materialized from her capsule that today was going to be anything but ordinary. She didn’t recognize her surroundings, and she certainly didn’t recognize the little being holding her Poke Ball. The bemused Garchomp blinked down at the tiny human—an infant female with a gap in her baby teeth and strawberry-red pigtails pulled to the side of her head, who stared back at the dragon with big brown eyes filled with wonder.

“Whoa…” the girl breathed, leaning back slightly as she took in Scylla’s impressive build. “You’re not Fluffy!”

Scylla snorted in indignation. Certainly not! And you are definitely not my Master!

The child giggled as the dragon tilted her chin up defiantly, failing to recognize Scylla’s agitation. She continued smiling up at the dragon until her face lit up with a sudden realization. “Unless… Did you evolve, Fluffy?!”

“No!” the Garchomp recoiled, parting her toothy jaws in shock. She was not her Pokémon! Nor was she the evolution of anything remotely ‘fluffly’!

Unfortunately, all the human could understand was a throaty grunt. Even more unfortunate, she took it to mean the opposite of ‘no’.

“Wow!” Pig-tails jumped in place, practically glowing with excitement. “You look so cool now, Fluffy! I bet you could take on Joey’s Herdier now no problem! Hey, you look strong enough to take on the Champion!”

I can do more than that, kid, Scylla sardonically scoffed. Deciding that she had had enough of the girl, Scylla abruptly turned about face and started lumbering away.

“Hey, where you going?” the girl’s annoying, high-pitched voice followed her, followed by the pitter-patter of miniature feet. “You can’t take off now, Fluffy! Momma said you shouldn’t get… Um… What was the word?”

Scylla paused long enough for the girl to wrack her memory.

“Well,” Pig-tails shrugged indifferently, “whatever it was, you can’t go!”

The dragon scowled and continued on with determination. She had to find her REAL Trainer and get away from this nuisance of a child. Scylla didn’t get too far before she felt something latch onto her shark-tail.

“Fllllllluuuuuuffy! Stay here! The tea party starts at two!” The little girl had wrapped her arms around her fins, and was digging her heels into the soil.

As if she wanted to stick around for that. She was a noble, high-class combatant in peak physical condition; she didn’t have time for child’s play.

After being dragged a few yards—and after leaving two impressive furrows in the ground—the child finally let go in defeat. Lower lip pouting, she shouted, “Fine! I’ll just have the tea party by myself! Maybe some nice woodland Pokémon will join me instead!”

Scylla stopped, but not because of Pig-tail’s idle threat. She suddenly became aware of how alone they were. Where were the girl’s parents? Siblings? Was this ‘Fluffy’ the only Pokémon she had with her? If not… then it appeared that it was just the two of them out here in this sun-flooded forest, with no town or village in sight. The dragon heaved a great sigh. With that on her conscious, she knew she couldn’t leave the child here alone. Someone needed to keep an eye on the kid, not knowing what dangers could lurk here.

She was going to have to do the responsible thing, unfortunately. Steeling herself for whatever tortures the child had plan, Scylla turned around.

“Yay!” Pig-tails immediately perked up, delighted to have a victim. “That’s a good Fluffy! Shall we go get the tea ready?”

Scylla curled her lip in disgust, but nodded. Let’s hurry and get this over with, she grumbled to herself.

“Awesome! Let’s hurry! Mr. Chuckles the Teddy Bear and all his friends are waiting for us! Though Peppy the Penguin had to stay home because Momma wanted to put him in the washing machine. Hopper the Bunny said that that was okay, though, because penguins really like water!”

Oh, Arceus! Cynthia, where are you?

*****

“So, Ms. Buttercup, I heard that you’re going to Sinnoh on a cruise this summer,” Pig-tails observed as she nonchalantly raised a teacup to her lips. Pinkie in the air, she made a slurping noise as she sipped some imaginary beverage.

The Pichu doll she addressed stared unblinkingly at the china set before it. The girl must have picked up on something that Scylla utterly missed, for she squealed excitedly, “That sounds so exciting, Ms. Buttercup! I heard that it’s really nice over there this time of year. You should dock at the Resort Area they have over there. Peppy went there last year and he said they had the nicest spa he had ever been to.”

Scylla fidgeted uncomfortably in her frilly pink apron. Somehow the child had procured it out of nowhere and wouldn’t be satisfied until it was secured around her neck. Getting it over the Garchomp’s horns had been a pain, but Pig-tails was as stubborn as a Tauros in a rodeo match. The stiff piece of fabric was adult-sized, though it was a little too small for the monstrous Pokémon, and the kid had to use a stringy vine to tie the whole thing around the dragon’s thick waist.

It was utterly demoralizing. Here she was, a Champion’s Pokémon, playing tea party with a 6 year-old. Cynthia better appreciate what she was doing here, or else…

The little girl suddenly let out an excited gasp. With one of her stubby fingers, she pointed to the forest line as she squealed, “Fluffy, look! There it is!”

Scylla dully followed her gaze. The forest seemed as serene as ever, with a tender breeze teasing at the sunbathing leaves. Birds were chirping contently in the background, hidden in the trees framing the humble meadow. Nothing unusual popped out to the dragon in this perspective.

Until a little herb shifted—opposite of the breeze’s direction.

“Ha ha!” Pig-tails leapt from her seat, face wrinkling in impish delight. “Today’s gonna be the day, Fluffy! I’m gonna catch that little Petilil!”

Scylla snorted, slightly unsettled. She was not too familiar with the Pokémon of Unova quite yet, and she was not certain if she should be concerned for the girl’s safety. Before she could react, Pigtails dug a Poké Ball from her pocket and shot off like a rocket. A clump of leaves suddenly sprung up, revealing for a brief millisecond a terrified white face before it fled from the child.

“Come back, Ms. Petilil! I wanna catch you!” shouted Pigtails, undeterred.

The two of them disappeared into the forest, leaving behind a rather stunned Garchomp.

Scylla blinked a few times, then glanced between the tea table and the forest awkwardly for a few minutes. Now was as good as any time to escape these tortures, but… Her gosh-danged conscious kept biting at her. Could she really leave a defenseless human child alone in the woods, chasing after a feral Pokémon? Though the Petilil or whatever it was didn’t appear strong, it might still have the capacity to hurt the girl. The Garchomp heaved a sigh, feeling ashamed that she really wasn’t as cold and ruthless as her kind was reputed to be. She was as soft as a Gastrodon’s backside.

The dragon abruptly stood—nearly knocking over the tea table in the process—and followed the girl into the woods.

Scylla wasn’t sure what forest she was in, but the deeper she went in the denser it became. Less light filtered in through the canopy here, though this wasn’t a problem for the Garchomp. Her sharp eyes could easily penetrate the darkness, but keener still was her sense of smell. Mixed in with the earthy scents of decaying forest litter, she caught the sickly-sweet candied scent of Pigtails.

She sure moves quickly for such a tiny creature, Scylla grunted to herself as she shoved aside an offensive branch. The shark-like dragon encountered difficulties navigating the thick undergrowth, her fins and horns frequently getting caught in brambles. Her shark-like armor protected her from the worst of the thorns, but progress was slow.

Farther still she wandered into the forest, and further more concerned she became for the child. Something wasn’t right—she should have found them by now, even with her sluggish advancement. After wresting unsuccessfully with a particularly persistent bush, Scylla paused a moment to listen. The woods had grown uncannily silent.

“Hello?” the Garchomp inquired timidly, letting out a worried bellow.

A screech shattered the peace, draining the woods of its old charm and freezing it with a sinister air. Scylla jerked her streamlined head towards the source of the sound, instantly recognizing it. Pigtails! Forgetting all qualms, the shark-dragon tore herself free from the brambles and bulldozed a path through the undergrowth. A strange new feeling of protectiveness burned inside her, urging her to come to the girl’s rescue. As annoying as she was, Pigtails was just an infant—innocent and harmless. Scylla might not know who she was, but that didn’t matter anymore.

Pigtail’s scent burned in Scylla’s nostrils as it grew stronger. She was close! Scylla just hoped that she wasn’t too late. Growling ferociously, the Garchomp barged into a stand of dead trees. Their sun-bleached skeletons sulkily rose into the air. However, one tree had an unusual patch of color that stood out: the bright yellow apron of Pigtail’s. The girl was hugging the trunk, staring fearfully at something below her. The Petilil sat beside her, quivering.

Scylla stared at them in stupor, wondering what the heck they were doing up in a tree. She let out a questioning bellow, letting them know she was there.

“Fluffy, look out!” Pigtails shrieked when she finally glanced over.

Her warning came too late; while Scylla gaped distractedly up at the girl, something barreled through the woods and tackled the Garchomp to the ground. The wind knocked out of her, Scylla only got a vague glimpse of something round rolling past her peripheral vision.

The shock only lasted a second before anger flooded in. Growling lividly, Scylla rose to her feet and faced her attacker. She had never encountered a creature like this before. It resembled the wheels found in human-made machines, yet it was protected by a thick carapace and prickly spikes. Yellow eyes glared from the middle of the creature, behind two twitching antennae.

Well, she wasn’t sure what it was, but that wasn’t going to stop her from beating it with every inch of its life. Tightening her stance, the Garchomp released a challenging roar. The attacking creature faltered for a moment, intimidated, but once disturbed it would not back down from a fight. Leaping into the air, it spun in circles rapidly before racing forward in another assault.

Scylla was prepared this time. She held her ground as the tire-like Pokémon sped towards her, grinning toothily. At the last second, she brought her head down and charged forward. Her wedged-shape head was a perfect ramp, allowing her to scoop up the opponent and fling it into the air without taking the brunt force of the attack.

The bug-type screeched in surprise as it lost control of its movements. It was helpless as it fell back to the earth—right into Scylla’s next attack. Crossing her arms across her chest, she slashed at him with her razor sharp fins. Deep scratches were left in the creature’s thick armor—not enough to draw blood, but enough to throw it off balance. When it finally crashed-landed, the creature wobbled back and forth before falling on its side. Its antennae twitched, but the Pokémon didn’t get back up.

Scylla snorted in satisfaction, though she went up and gave the thing a sharp kick for good measure. She hoped it learned its lesson: don’t mess with a Champion Pokémon.

“And stay down,” she growled at it before turning back to Pigtails’ tree.

The child was glowing with admiration, saying, “Wow, Fluffy! That was amazing! You got really strong when you evolved! But you better watch out for the—”

She was rudely interrupted by a glass-shattering shriek. Scylla cringed as the harsh sound, wondering what unearthly force could pack such a cry. Bracing herself for the worst, she turned around. Standing at the edge of the stand was the largest Bug Pokémon she had ever seen—and certainly, the most furious. It looked like a Wurmple that had crossed over to the dark side and had been exposed to too much radioactivity. The insect stomped its feet and tossed its head, flashing its fearsome horns.

Scylla sighed, unimpressed. Great… another nuisance. The Garchomp rotated her arms in her sockets, loosening up for another spat. With a toothy grin, she growled over her shoulder, “Sit tight, Pigtails. This won’t take too long.”

The human probably didn’t understand her, but she felt confident saying it anyway. Letting out a war cry, the Garchomp charged towards her new opponent.

*****

Cynthia kept up a brisk pace as she left the village, head held high in determination. Her usually fair features were currently creased with worry. An unusual mix-up had occurred at the Pokémon Center today, and apparently someone else had ended up with one of her best team members. That someone else was the daughter of a nervous little man following her. He had difficulty matching her long strides, and had to jog in order to keep up with her as they headed towards the forest. Cynthia would have been more considerate if she wasn’t so anxious.

She hoped that Scylla was all right, wherever she was.

“Miss Cynthia!” the short fellow called, abruptly coming to a stop. With a finger, he pointed into the distance. “Look!”

Cynthia narrowed her eyes as she followed her gaze. Something was coming was coming towards them on the opposite side of the road. It seemed too large for a person. Was it carrying something on its shoulders? The closer it got, the more she could discern its features: it appeared to be wearing something… pink…

“Scylla?” Cynthia blinked, not sure if she could believe what she saw.

There was her Garchomp, strutting down the road like a warrior, with a small child and Pokémon sitting on her shoulders.

“Hi Daddy!” the little girl called out as she recognized the man standing beside Cynthia.

“Meredith! Where on earth have you been?” he called back, exasperated. “We’ve been looking all over for you!”

The little girl giggled in return, “We had a tea party in the forest, of course!”

The girl’s father seemed perplexed with that reply, but Cynthia chuckled in relief. She crossed her arms and smiled crookedly as she waited for Garchomp to catch up. That was what her Pokémon was doing, eh? Having a tea-party with a 6 year old… Who knew?

“There you are, Scylla,” Cynthia greeted the trio stopped before them. The Garchomp grinned from ear to ear, looking just as relieved as she was to be reunited.

“Shlylla?” Meredith scrunched up her nose from atop the Garchomp’s head. “Who’s Shlylla? You must be confused, lady. This is Fluffy!”

Cynthia cocked an eyebrow at Scylla inquiringly, glancing down at the battle-torn apron the Garchomp wore. “Fluffy, huh?” she grinned mischievously.

Scylla snorted and rolled her eyes, her blue cheeks coloring in embarrassment.

Ignoring the problem at hand, the little girl excitedly squealed, “Daddy, Daddy! Guess what, guess what! Fluffy helped me catch my first Pokémon today!”

“Um, Meredith? Sweetie?” the girl’s father interjected, timidly coming forward. “That’s not Fluffy…”

“Of course it is,” the child stuck her hands on her hips defiantly. “She looks different because she evolved!”

“No, that’s Cynthia’s Pokémon. Fluffy is right here.”

The man took a Poké Ball from his pocket and shakily released it. After a bright flash, a pig-rabbit hybrid materialized onto the road, fidgeting with its unusually long earlobes. Cynthia had seen its kind before—an Audino—but unlike others, this one had a blue-ish purple coat. It gasped at Scylla’s intimidating appearance, and quickly hid behind its owner.

“Oh! That is Fluffy!” The little girl frowned. She glanced down at Scylla with a puzzled expression. “Then who are you?”

“That’s Scylla,” Cynthia corrected, clearly amused.

“I guess you really are,” Meredith patted the shark-dragon’s head affectionately. “Sorry I mistook you for Fluffy, Shlylla. And sorry I took your Pokémon, pretty lady. I didn’t know she was yours.”

“That’s all right,” the blonde-haired woman kindly responded, reaching out to pat her Pokémon’s arm. “Sounds like you two had quite the adventure.”

Scylla grunted, ruffling the ex-Champion’s hair with her breath. Cynthia’s impish grin only widened, however. She certainly wasn’t going to live this down; she only wished she had a camera to capture the moment.

“Okay, sweetie,” the girl’s anxious father cleared his throat. “I think you’d better come down now, and let Miss Cynthia and Scylla get on their way.”

“Awwwww,” the pigtailed girl pouted. “Do we have to?”

Scylla gently reached up and pulled the girl from her shoulders, being extra cautious with the sharp claws on the end of her fins. The Petilil simply leapt off, landing softly beside the girl.

“Ooooh-kay,” the girl relented, turning to face her newfound friend. “We’ll let ya go.”

She sounded awfully disappointed, but she patiently sat by while Cynthia removed the apron from around her Pokémon’s neck. As soon as it was clear, the little girl surged forward and wrapped her little arms around the Garchomp’s leg.

“Thank you so much for playing with me today!” she squeezed tightly. “I had so much fun!”

Scylla considered the child for a moment. For all the trouble it was worth, the kid had grown on her. She had to admit, she was pretty alright—for being an annoying little snot. Scylla’s features softened as she patted Pigtails on the head affectionately.

“Sorry again for the mix-up, Miss Cynthia,” Meredith’s father apologized for the umpteenth time.

The elegant young woman smiled graciously at him, quickly dismissing any harm, “Don’t worry about it, Hugh. I’m just glad things turned out well in the end. And it looks like Scylla here made a new friend.”

“Be sure to come back and visit!” Meredith instructed, bending forward at the hip expectantly.

“We’ll be certain to,” assured Cynthia, turning to her Pokémon. “Right, Scylla?”

Scylla wasn’t sure why, but… she kind of liked that idea. She agreed with a jerk of her wedge-shaped head.

*****

After parting words, the ex-Sinnoh Champions set out to continue their journey across Unova. Meredith and her father watched them leave, waving at them until they disappeared into the distance. After they were gone, Meredith’s father bent over and inspected the tiny Petilil.

“Is this the Pokémon Fluffy—I mean, Scylla—helped you catch?”

“Oh, no,” Meredith laughed. “Petilil’s just a friend. She wanted to make sure I got home safe.”

Her father was taken aback for a moment, but quickly recovered as he asked, “Really? So then, where’s your new Pokémon?”

“Here, I’ll show you!” The girl dug into her pockets and pulled out the Poké Ball she had been saving for this occasion. Tossing it into the air, she invited her new Pokémon:

“Come on out, Grumpy!”

The color faded from her father’s face as Meredith’s newest friend materialized. He fainted as he was brought face-to-face with a very disgruntled Scolipede.

~FIN~

[TheProtobabe]

This was adorable and a very fun read! I love your style :D I like the element of surprise at the end, when we found out what the little girl caught with Scylla, and I love the imagery of a Garchomp in a pink apron XD

[Pokemon Trainer Sarah]

That was really cute, Char! Funny twist at the end too. :D Is there a reason you don't like Cynthia's Garchomp specifically?

[FedoraChar]

This was adorable and a very fun read! I love your style :D I like the element of surprise at the end, when we found out what the little girl caught with Scylla, and I love the imagery of a Garchomp in a pink apron XD

Aw, thank you! :D LoL, I had waaaaaay too much fun writing this thing. I couldn't think of a better way to torture that Garchomp than to put it in a frilly pink apron, mwhahahaha! And I absolutely loved throwing in that surprise ending--it was just begging to be written, haha.

That was really cute, Char! Funny twist at the end too. :D Is there a reason you don't like Cynthia's Garchomp specifically?

Thanks, Sarah! :D Haha, the only reason why I don't like Cynthia's Garchomp is because I had the hardest time taking it down in my first playthrough of Pearl--she beat me several times, and when I couldn't take it any longer I went through the arduous process of raising a level 1 Eevee up to level 55 and evolving it into a Glaceon.

Oh, gosh, I loved that moment when I took out that sand-dragon with a single Ice Beam. <3

[Suicune's Fire]

Steeling herself for whatever tortures the child had plan, Scylla turned around.

Should be "planned" instead of "plan."

Scylla jerked her streamlined head towards the source of the sound, instantly recognizing it. Pigtails! Forgetting all qualms, the shark-dragon tore herself free from the brambles and bulldozed a path through the undergrowth. A strange new feeling of protectiveness burned inside her, urging her to come to the girl’s rescue. As annoying as she was, Pigtails was just an infant—innocent and harmless.

This is being nit-picky, but I found it slightly inconsistent that you began writing the girl's name as "Pig-tails," and now it's switched to "Pigtails" with no hypen. x) I just thought you might wanna change it. xD

Pigtail’s scent burned in Scylla’s nostrils as it grew stronger. She was close! Scylla just hoped that she wasn’t too late. Growling ferociously, the Garchomp barged into a stand of dead trees. Their sun-bleached skeletons sulkily rose into the air. However, one tree had an unusual patch of color that stood out: the bright yellow apron of Pigtail’s.

Should be Pigtails' or, if you're keeping the hyphen, Pig-tails'.

OTHER THAN THAT IT WAS FUNNY. XD I loved the ending! How amusing. Poor scolipede though. xDD Wonder what'll happen next!

Overall, rather enjoyable. I can totally see where Scylla was coming from with the moral dilemma. XDD Also, nice name, Scylla. I also like the fact that Scylla called Meredith "Pig-tails." XD Very cute.

~SF.

[FedoraChar]

Hey, thanks for pointing those out! When I went back and read through it again, I also noticed another error I made--a repetition somewhere near the end. BUT THANKS. How did you get so good at spotting errors like that? xD

Anyway, glad you enjoyed! :D I imagine that poor Grumpy will be shanghaied into future tea party adventures, whether he likes it or not xD Oh, now there's an image: a Scolipede with a top hat. GOOD JOVE, THIS MUST HAPPEN.

I had lots of fun with Scylla's personality--very prideful and cocky, but gets a dose of humble pie with a pink apron xD But hey, thanks so much for the comments! :D

[Death's Spook]

Actually, Suicune, given that "Pigtails" is being used as a proper name, not a plural, the most proper way to make it possessive is "Pigtails's."

[Suicune's Fire]

Hey, thanks for pointing those out! When I went back and read through it again, I also noticed another error I made--a repetition somewhere near the end. BUT THANKS. How did you get so good at spotting errors like that? xD

Anyway, glad you enjoyed! :D I imagine that poor Grumpy will be shanghaied into future tea party adventures, whether he likes it or not xD Oh, now there's an image: a Scolipede with a top hat. GOOD JOVE, THIS MUST HAPPEN.

I had lots of fun with Scylla's personality--very prideful and cocky, but gets a dose of humble pie with a pink apron xD But hey, thanks so much for the comments! :D

No worries! 8D Ahaha, I don't know. I'm hopeless at spotting my own errors, but I can see them in other people's stories plain as day. XD

I did! 8D YES LOOOOOOOOOOL. HAHAHA YES! That is an awesome image.

Bahaha, it seemed like fun. x) No worries! 8D It was a good read.

Actually, Suicune, given that "Pigtails" is being used as a proper name, not a plural, the most proper way to make it possessive is "Pigtails's."

Adding the extra "s" onto the end of possessive proper nouns already ending in "s" is a personal choice. I've seen it both ways. My personal choice is not to add the extra s, as that was the way I've been taught.

~SF.