[attr="class","pintag"]#wild

[attr="class","pinscroll"]the route was quiet, as if it had been secluded for a while. ava knew this not to be true, knew that today was just an anomaly. route twenty-nine was the traditional route where trainers started their journey, and while she was not a believer in traditions, she deemed this particular one harmless, and maybe even a bit fun.[break][break]

the road smelled of freshly cut grass, and for whatever reason, that annoyed her. she blamed it on the lack of caffeine in her system, which she knew not to be true because she hardly ever drank coffee. the trees swung back and forth, waving as they cast shadows that cascaded down the long road. her steps were precise, almost calculated, and her eyes never strayed from the path. well, maybe once or twice, only to glance at the bushes that shook. she swore they shook.[break][break]

when she neared the middle of the route, she figured it a good a time as any. she stopped and strayed off to the side of the road, towards the grass. a hand reached to retrieve a pokeball, and with a push of a button, out came its resident. a cacnea. the cactus pokemon squinted, having to blink a few times before acquainting himself with the sunlight. but once he did, he turned to ava, and his face lit up with joy. [break][break]

ava took a step back, as if to separate herself from the cacnea. "calm down, lugh." it was an order, not a request. her words were cold, tone colder, but lugh seemed to be unaffected by them. she remained indifferent to the joy the cactus pokemon showed; she refused to even address it.[break][break]

out of the corner of her eye, she caught a glimpse of movement in the bushes, and this time she knew something was there. a riolu sprung out and held its ground in a stance, as if ready for a challenge. how cliche, she thought. she took more steps back and glared down at the cacnea, only to gesture forward at the riolu. "go on." she gave no further instructions. she wanted to know the cacnea's capabilities, and its intuition.[break][break]

the riolu was the first to attack, lunging forward with its foot engulfed in flames. the sight of scorching hot red was enough to alert lugh that he needed to avoid it; which he did, barely, but still. he stumbled, trying to find his footing and once he did, he hopped forward and swung an arm down for a NEEDLE ARM. it connected against the riolu, spikes digging into its skin as the impact managed to create some distance. lugh knew it was fast, so he used a COTTON SPORE. white dust and powder glowed, spreading around the riolu that coughed and waved its arms in the air.[break][break]

neither lugh, nor did ava, see the next attack coming. the riolu sped forward for a QUICK ATTACK, and immediately followed with a FORCE PALM, delivering a vicious one-two combo that sent lugh packing. the cactus pokemon rolled along the ground, but stopped just before he hit a tree. he let out a soft whimper and looked to ava, as if hoping she'd intervene. she only shook her head. it was enough to motivate him to stand up, planting his feet into the ground as he waited for the next attack. when the riolu ran forward, lugh was ready to counter with a PAYBACK, sweeping the riolu off its feet. with the riolu down on the ground, laying on its back, lugh raised an arm but stopped before he could follow through. his opponent was down, and so, he took a step back, not wanting to do any more harm.[break][break]

there was something about the innocence of the catus that ava could not get upset over. instead, she sighed, and stepped forward with a single pokeball. she dropped it on the riolu, who struggled to get back up with the effects of the cotton spore. a stream of red engulfed the fighting-type. the ball shook thrice, then came to a stop. her first official capture as a trainer was enough to bring a soft smile to her face.[break][break]