Faller, Noun: Someone Experiencing Interesting Times - Chapter 2

“Begin!” The call from the ref snapped everyone’s attention right back towards the battle, the sight of both a Grovyle and Flygon making Neil’s eyebrows tickle his hairline. It wasn’t like they’d pulled a Latias or Shaymin, mind you, but those were still way heavier duty Pokemon than he’d been expecting from a pair of unremarkable schoolgirls. 

“Leer!” “Dragon Dance!” The two schoolgirls from before were gone, replaced by two Pokemon Trainers who knew exactly what they were doing. The commands were barked in the same instant with a familiarity that spoke of a standard opening gambit. A quick glance at the Pokemon only confirmed it, they had either followed the orders near-instantly or had outright anticipated the command.

Neil withheld his judgement on the pros and cons of having such an ingrained (predictable) opener, simply ticking up his personal estimation of the pair. Journeys paid dividends, it seemed.

For a few moments, the pair of schoolgirls were content to sit in a standoff, patient as they waited for the other to commit. A few tense seconds passed, until at some unseen signal the second broke the stillness, “Close in with Dual Chop!”

As the Flygon followed the command, blitzing towards the Grovyle with both claws glowing a familiar purple-blue, the other schoolgirl reacted, “Counter with a Dual Chop of your own, Grovyle!”

The transmigrator allowed a confused noise at the back of his throat, not seeing the logic in the command nor the harm in voicing it, obliquely as it may be. Granted, he didn’t exactly know this Move off the top of his head, so it may have some quirk to it. With that name it had to be Fighting or Dark, and those tended to have a fair bit of trickery.

Returning his attention to the battlefield, Neil watched as the two attacks collided, glowing limbs from both the contestants briefly clashing before each managed to mutually slip a blow through in a picture-perfect cross-counter. Of the two, Flygon definitely came out of the exchange worse, their cry of pain in sharp contrast to the brief grimace of pain on Grovyle’s face.

“You’ve got this Flygon.” The long-haired schoolgirl stated firmly. There was no belief or faith there. Simply the surety that the sun would rise again tomorrow, just as the sun would set tonight. Her eyes briefly scanning the battlefield, the girl begins to call for a move, “Di-” Only to pause, shake her head, and shift her command, “Dragon Dance, once more.”

As Flygon trilled an agreement, the other trainer was not idle. However, they had briefly hesitated, likely predicting a call from their foe as they stuttered over their own command. Neil, having missed the initial aborted call, could only hear a mild note of desperation in the short-haired girl’s voice as she gave her order with a sweep of her right hand, “Quick, close the distance and use Dual Chop again!”

No one could miss the brief flicker of satisfaction that crossed the long-haired schoogirl’s face at the command, not even her opponent, but by then it was already too late, “Evade and finish this with Bug Bite.”

The command was given with the same intonation as earlier. It was easy to see why. Flygon deftly wove between each of Grovyle’s blows, easily maneuvering themselves behind their opponent before, without any fanfare, they sank their teeth into the Grass Type’s shoulder. A brief cry of pain was all the gecko managed before they went down with a thump, the Dragon letting their opponent go without any preamble. Only a brief flicker of lime green light remained on their maw as they trilled in victory, wings buzzing happily as they made their way back to their trainer. As they butted their head against hers, Neil smiled, patting his own partner’s before standing up from his squat.

“Well, that was quick.” The brown haired man mused as he dusted himself off, Mawile making a small, cute chirp of protest as his hand left her head.

“That’s fairly normal for battles between casuals.” The trainer at his side commented easily, humming in appreciation regardless, “Still, both of them fought well, though the girl with the Flygon made the right call, even if it wasn’t for the right reason.”

“Just wanted a decisive finish to make a point, you mean?” The transmigrator asked with an arched eyebrow.

“No. She was going to call for Flygon to use Dig and aborted when she realized that the move wouldn’t be viewed too kindly in this exact environment.” She replied, shaking her head. “A good call on her part, especially since her Flygon wouldn’t be certified to use that move around civilization outside of an emergency or a designated arena. Wouldn’t want to make a mess of any of the stuff below ground. It’d be a nightmare to clean up.”

“Especially in a coastal city like this, ground water is a bitch.” Neil commiscerated, grimacing at the mere thought of having to sort out broken pipes and diverted sewage channels in that environment.

“Exactly.” With her piece finally stated, the girl turned her attention back to the two trainers; both who appeared to have accepted the resolution of their conflict with some semblance of grace. Looking back towards Neil in disappointment, the girl who’s name he still didn’t have frowned, “Well, that’s all the drama we’re getting out of this pair. Come on, the Pokemon Center is this way.”

“Aye aye, cp’tin.” The sharply dressed man chuckled, following right along - and not for a moment entertaining the notion of shoving Mawile back into the Cherish Ball. That was another lady he needed to get the name of, hopefully the steel dino fairy was literate.

“Jeanne. Call me Jeanne, Mister Neil.” The girl said with a roll of her eyes and an amused huff. A moment later, she narrowed her eyes at him, “When were you going to ask for that information, hmm?”

“When I figured out a polite way to broach the topic without making it sound like you dropped the ball by not returning my introduction with your own.” He replied with a crooked grin and all the grace of a sledgehammer smashing into teeth.

The girl had the grace to briefly blush at that, but rallied near immediately, “Forgive me for not exactly feeling comfortable with a random man in an alleyway coming up to me while I am disabled and reliant on my partner for protection.” She countered dryly, patting her Machoke on the arm as they continued to walk in pace with Neil, allowing her to speak to him while keeping him within her vision, “I was more than a bit wary, especially after my recent… mishap.”

“You are hereby pardoned.” The man replied with his best pompous nobleman voice, splayed fingers brushing against his clavicle and throat as he pulled his shoulders back to really sell the image. “Bask in my magnanimity.”

That earned him a giggle from the girl, and an honest smile for the first time since they’d met. They continued to walk silently for a time, a comfortable silence settling over the two of them. Eventually, however, the silence broke just as the familiar red roof of the building Neil had been seeking came into sight. 

“So, Faller, huh?” Jeanne says, completely out of the blue. Mawile laughed, chirps of delighted amusement ringing out from his starter as the Fairy near outright cackling in amusement. It was a rumbling, distinctly crocodilian sound that didn’t at all match her frame save for the massive jaw hanging from her scalp.

“I did say I took a tumble.” Neil replied with a teasing grin. The only reason he hadn’t jolted was that it had taken him a few moments to parse what Jeanne meant by ‘Faller’. Still, he had lost then and there, in no small thanks to his goblin of a starter.

“A rather interesting way of saying you fell into our world by some mishap, yes?” The girl hummed, tapping a finger against her chin in false consideration, clearly already more the convinced of her hunch, “Well, in the event that my suspicions are right and you are not of this world, or at least have nothing in the same way that those who fall into our world do, you should know that the Pokemon League offers support to people like that. It’s easier to prove soon after the event though, so if you want those benefits…” She trailed off, looking at Neil pointedly. At his side, Mawile tilted her head to the side, observing the conversation with childlike interest.

“What a wonderful place this is.” He replied, keeping the game going a bit longer. It was fun, even if he had already lost the moment her suspicions got strong enough to round up on him. “I do need to catch up on the details of what the Pokemon League does, that should be an interesting enough starting point.” 

“Well, if you want to do that.” The girl was truly a treasure, willing to put up with his nonsense without a singular question, hypotheticals that weren’t pouring forth with an amused sparkle in her eye and unturned lips, “You’ll want to speak to the Nurse on duty in the Pokemon Center. Not sure if it’s a member of the Joy Clan right now or someone else. You can never be sure these days.”