(Reboot) Pokemon: Beyond the Tall Grass

His stuff already set aside by a nearby pile of hay, Cerise smiled as he stroked the chins of one of the nearby Mareep that had wandered into the barn. Recording the Pokemon into his Pokedex, he lay down against the hay bale, stretching his arms with a muted yawn. At this point, his trio of Pokemon had all been returned to their respective Pokeballs. "I think we're making good time to Fuschia City, though! Shouldn't be much further."

Wes nodded to himself as he listened to Cerise speak. There was still plenty of daylight left, so he sat there and wondered what to do. 

"Plenty of light left," he said aloud. "and now that we're settled in, now what?"


Yuno held a hand out to Catia and helped her up into the loft. She was fairly strong, and lifted the fighter with ease. With a giggle, she pulled the girl into a tight hug and quick kissed her cheek. Yuno crawled a few feet and covered her face, blushing furiously.

"S-s-sorry! I-I-I..." she stuttered, not being able to finish her sentence.

Catia grinned at Yuno when she was so easily pulled up into the loft of the barn, a rosy blush coming over the bridge of her nose as she was kissed on the cheek.  When the shy girl backed away from her, she slowly crawled over after her.

"That um....that was interesting.  C-can I ask...."

She stopped midway through her sentence and took a deep breath and looked over at Yuno gently.  Best just to get this over with and out of the way....

"Yuno?  Do you....like me?  Not like friend like.  It's okay to be honest.  I promise not to judge you."

She asked her, genuinely curious about her feelings towards her.

Decoda felt welcome as the team settled in amongst the rafters and hay, especially when the Mareep came in to say hello.  He patted their fluffy bodies gently, but didn't really touch them too much, knowing enough that they have electrical abilities.

"Yeah, I agree.  We should be there tomorrow, according to the map," he stated calmly.  "What do you guys want to do?"

He scratched his head under his hat and started walking towards the exit of the barn.  "I'm kinda interested in learning more about the Pokemon on this farm!  Anyone want to come with me?"

"Yeah, sure! I'll go with ya!" Cerise said with a smile as he looked over the Pokedex entry for Mareep. As the Mareep he was stroking left the barn, the egg hatcher rubs his hands together. "Maybe I can get my hands on another egg while I'm here?"

Decoda laughed at Cerise's comment on his way out of the barn, enjoying his enthusiasm.  With no luck finding his special marine friend last night, he was looking forward to seeing if he could find another Pokemon to befriend.

Around them was a wide field bordered with tall wooden fencing, clean cut grass and the odorous smell of farmland stretching several yards.  Berry plots grew in a separate area away to the left of the range, and a windmill to the right.  Straight ahead was the owner's home, and a second barn which was much more used than the one the teenagers used.

"Maybe if they do have eggs, Cerise, you can teach the rest of us how to take care of one?  I've never had an egg Pokemon before!" Decoda asked with a gleam in his eye, walking around and observing all the grazing creatures.  "I know your story and sometimes that being at the Day Care isn't always fun, but what's it like to live with all those different Pokemon for a while?  Do you stay with them at night if they need comforting, or play with them all day if they don't play with other Pokemon?"

"Me? Teach? Ha!!" Cerise laughed as he surveyed the landscape, watching the various Pokemon go about their daily activities. "I was never that great at explaining things to others, but I guess I could try if we find one here? I mean, hatching eggs wasn't something I ever aspired to do, but my mom does it for a living. And, well, most kids pick up some things about their parents jobs. At least, they do where I'm from."

Cerise found himself starting to walk towards the windmill, which was much larger than any Cerise had ever seen before. He scratches the back of his head, trying to think of the best way to answer Decoda's question. "Back at the Day Care... I feel like getting to know Pokemon when I was as young as I was really helped me to understand them? Like... kids are like sponges, just absorbing everything they see, hear, feel... and as a kid, you don't have a care in the world besides having fun. And Pokemon are such amazing, wonderful creatures... A kid really can connect with them, you know? So, I woulda done just about anything for a Pokemon that was in my care. It wasn't always easy... In fact, it could be pretty dangerous at times... but I don't regret any of it! And taking care of Pokemon and seeing them grow and go off on journeys with their trainers for some grand goal is something I've always wanted."

Cerise pauses as he turns to Decoda sheepishly. "That's actually kinda why I think you're so cool, Decoda. I mean, I've been working in a Day Care for a pretty long time, but you're a Gym Trainer! You get to test just how much a Pokemon's bond with its trainer has grown strong just about every day, right? This might come out weird, but to be someone like you is something I've secretly dreamed about for a while... but I wasn't sure of what I wanted for my future, so when Prof. Green called... what better way to figure your life out than by experiencing what life has to offer? And, uh... I know you never got the chance to give your story back at the campfire in Vermilion. If it's alright... could you tell me that story now?"

Yuno hid herself under a pile of hay and blanket and muttered an answer, one that could barely be heard. The pile of sheets trembled and shook in embarrassment. Yeah, she liked Catia, but she wasn't entirely sure on how to say it.

"Well... I... Uh...." the pile stuttered almost incoherently. "M-Maybe....?"




As Cerise and Decoda wandered the farmland, they could see a young boy and girl, chasing a herd of mareep around. A Herdier worked along side them to keep the sheep in a group, but the creatures just didn't seem to want to listen. In fact, several blatantly disobeyed the teens' orders and wandered off. The girl sighed and sat down in the grass, her pixie cut brown hair a mess. 

"Ugh..." she groaned, causing a couple grazing miltank to jump slightly and move away. "We'll never get them to stay together!"

The boy pinched the bridge of his nose and ran a hand through his short rust colored hair. He too sat down, but didn't say anything. He only looked discouraged. Neither of them seem to see Decoda or Cerise.



(I just want to make it clear that just because I use an NPC, doesn't mean you have to help them. Its 100% your choice, and you don't always have to play the hero role. I go off the choices you guys make, and if you want to slaughter a village of orphans, go right ahead.)

"Sounds like you have a natural gift, you know, something that just comes to you," Decoda declared to his friend, very sure of Cerise's talents.  As he followed Cerise to the Windmill, he looked up at its slow pace, a sure sign that this was a relaxed location.  It was so different - just the other day they were rockin' out all night with music and running around Saffron, but here was like it was a whole new world.  He listened to Cerise's story, taking it in and agreeing with him for the most part.  He understood all the absorbing and mimicry of adult actions and how kids like them liked to emulate them, but other than those few instances in his life, Decoda wasn't around too many Pokemon during his childhood.  Pewter City and the few places he traveled only had select few Pokemon to observe, if they wanted to be, and more often than not, they were dangerous, so he was told to stay away.  It's partly why he wanted to regain that lost time now while he still could.

When Cerise confided in Decoda that he secretly dreamed about being in a Gym Trainer like him, the red head jumped back, eyes wide.  Surprised as he was, he blushed brightly and laughed jovially - in his mind, he was excited.  Someone looked up to him?!  That's all he ever wanted - aside from being a rockstar!

"Really?!  Aww, man, I'm not prepared for this kind of compliment!  It's strange, isn't it?  Maybe if we go back to Pewter, I can show you what its like to be a Gym Trainer-!" he beamed, but with some hesitation at the end of his sentence.  "So as long as you help me hatch an egg or help me breed a Pokemon someday!"

He then paused after that, agreeing mentally that it was a good time to explain a little bit more to Cerise about himself.  He turned to him fully and nodded.

"But if you wanna know how I got there, here's the story.  So I've been born and raised in Kanto, and as weird as it is, I've never moved from my house in Pewter.  My dad and mom traveled a lot with their jobs, but we never really got enough to go anywhere else.  Vacations were temporary and didn't cost so much.  Here's the even stranger thing..." he spoke, the closer he got to the end, the lower his voice became.  He quickly cleared his throat out and resumed.

"My mom died when I was a kid.  But I can remember a few things about her, like her big red hair and soft voice, and that Numel of hers!  You know, that slow yellow fire and ground type!  Haha, yeah, that was a cool Pokemon to see for a kid.  Nobody else had anything like it!  But ummm, then one night... she kinda just left.  I couldn't find her at all the next few days, asking my dad every second I could. 'Where's mom?'  'Where's mom and Numel?'  He never had an answer, either, so when he left to go investigate for a few days, I had to be the man of the house and take care of things," he confessed, his voice growing sadder.  A hand went up to what looked like he was wiping a tear off his face, but he muttered under his breath, "just something in my eye..."

"Luckily, Melanie, my dad's best friend and co-worker was there to watch me sometimes, but she had a job and a family too.  So I learned to cook for myself, clean for myself, tuck myself in at night, all the stuff a kid normally doesn't do.  Granted, I was never good at any of it, but when my dad came back, he told me mom was dead.  Murdered, he thinks.  They found her body in another region entirely.  Numel was gone, maybe captured or killed..." Decoda stopped his story to inhale deeply, trying so hard to hide any sadness in his voice.

"He wouldn't tell me any more.  'I'll tell you when you're older, son.'  Of course, right?  What parent tells their kid exactly how the other one was killed, am I right?  So, anyway, horrible event aside, in my depression, I learned a few things.  How to play guitar to help calm myself down at night, how to do laundry, how to call the police in case my equally depressed dad decided to overwork himself into the hospital... fun stuff.  But to be honest, that's why I never had time for Pokemon.  We took those vacations to escape from the bad memories, and watching Brock and those trainers battle him in the Gym was like watching TV for me - it never got old.  That's when I really got into Pokemon, though.  Brock and those other trainers inspired me to want to be like them," he said now gripping his fists and exhaling normally again.

"And when I was a little older, I got my first Pokemon during a battle at the Pewter City Construction Plant in the mountains.  I was trying to help my dad and his crew get out of there, but I was like, 10ish.  It obviously didn't go well.  So when I was told to get out before I was crushed, I was ambushed until Brock saved us all that night with the biggest Onix I'd ever seen!  I didnt see too much else, but I woke up to my dad giving me my first Pokemon.  It was a Geodude I punched trying to escape the area.  Broke my hand a bit, but, I can still use it to play!" he claimed, shaking that hand about and flexing its knuckles with no problems.  "He's a Golem now, a really big and strong one too, and it was all thanks to Brock giving me that position, calling me brave for trying to help everybody.  That guy just gave me opportunity after opportunity after that.  It was something of a fairy tale, and I couldn't be more thankful."

"But you know, there's obviously a lot of questions that I want answered..." he added, smiling again.  "So when you ask questions, or anyone really, it gets me thinking again.  It reminds me I still have my own to look out for.  Especially about Pokemon - I missed out a lot on that!" Decoda finished, feeling much better after spilling his heart out to his friend.  He felt Cerise was that kinda guy that would be cool hearing all that.  He felt he could trust him enough.

Catia watched Yuno carefully as she hid herself underneath the pile of hay and blankets, the blush over the bridge of her nose intensifying when she heard Yuno's answer to her question.  She shifted a bit as she tried her best not to look in Yuno's direction, her head swarming with thoughts about the two of them together.

"O-oh....that's....wow...."

She says haphazardly, not really trying to sound like she was judging Yuno's feelings but more like she didn't really know how to respond.  It took her a moment to collect herself from Yuno's answer but eventually she took a deep breath and carefully approached Yuno's hiding place underneath the hay and blankets.  She doesn't touch her just yet, instead, a smaller amount of blush comes over her nose once again as she finally responds.

"Can....Can you come out of there?  Please?"

She asks her anxiously, wanting very much to not just talk to Yuno about her feelings, but maybe see where they lead?  This was a new experience for her and while it was scary to go down such a road, at the very least it would be something that could probably give her a bigger goal to look forward to.  A kind of future to protect maybe....

"Sounds like you had to grow up pretty quickly... and even though you had to go through a lot, even as a kid, those struggles have made you who you are today. At least, that's what I think. My condolences for your loss, but I'm not sure that too many people could have made it out of all of that like you have. If you really want, I'd be more then happy to show you what I picked up about egg hatching if you can teach me a bit more about being a Gym Trainer and Pokemon battles if we get to Pewter. But you know, I'm really glad I met you, Decoda!" Cerise said with a bashful smile.

He looked up again at the windmill, staring at its long blades slowly cut through the windy skies. This conversation had gotten him pretty excited about showing off a few of the things he knew about Pokemon breeding and egg hatching, but he wasn't sure if it was possible to show Decoda any of it right now. It wasn't like he had any eggs with him, much less any way to check for egg groups... Or did he?

He whipped out his Pokedex, vaguely recalling seeing a few brief tidbits about breeding. Initially, Cerise has grazed over it because he hadn't been expecting to breed Pokemon at all, but... There it was! Egg group listings of the Pokemon he had caught and seen. "So, I can give you a brief introduction to the breeding portion right now. Just like every Pokemon has a type, they each have an egg group that categorizes them all. The total is fifteen, and a Pokemon can be in more than one. So to breed, you need two Pokemon in the same egg group... Like, your Mudkip is in the Monster egg Group and the Water 1 egg group. Chimecho is in the Amorphous group... Actually, the Mareep on this farm are also in the Monster egg group, so your Mudkip is able to breed with one, as long as its of the opposite gender. And some Pokemon don't even have a gender, but there are ways around that."

Cerise puts away his Pokedex as he turns around to look at the barn where the others were. "I can't really get into too much more detail without an actual egg, or else it would be kinda confusing. But yeah, that's pretty much the foundation of breeding... Did you wanna head back yet, or keep exploring a bit?"

"I would love to, Cerise!  And thank you... You really helped me let go of a lot of pressure... I'm glad I met you too, man!"  Decoda inhaled deeply, his light smile expanding as Cerise sealed that deal that they would teach each other about the ways that which they grew up. It was a pretty good trade off, he thought; if Cerise wanted help as a battler, Decoda could always aid him, but when it came to knowing egg groups and caring methods about any kind of Pokemon the red head would have to ask the brunet for tips!

From what he followed, Decoda seemed to understand what his friend was trying to say, as it was much easier when he broke it down rather than reading it in a scientific report by Professor Elm, but agreed with a nod that he would need a physical example of an egg to provide further information.

"I guess we should probably find one," he began, pulling his posture back up after peering over at the Pokedex.  "But unless a Pokemon is willing to give one away like Zoe's Bisharp, I don't know if I should take any! All of it is really cool, though - Pokemon science can get really interesting when you pay attention!  Hahaha!"

He then circled about, wondering if there really was anything else to look at on the pasture.  He felt better after that mass of exposition, even more so that his teammate thought fondly of him after everything he'd said, so he was refreshed and ready for anything. After laying eyes on two other figures next to a pack of Pokemon a short distance away, he finally responded to Cerise's most recent question.

"Hm... let's investigate what's going on over there before we head back to the others," he remarked, pointing to the two other teens on the field.

Yuno slowly crawled out from under the pile, not looking at Catia. She stared at the floorboards intently, as if they were the most interesting thing in the world. Her face was scarlet and she felt like her heart was going to jump right out of her chest.

"W-what is i-it...?" she finally stuttered, almost too embarrassed to speak.



SPECIAL DERPING EVENT ~ At that exact time a Zoroark who had been hiding as a nearby shrubbery popped out and handed them cookies, the fresh scent of oatmeal raisin wafting off of them. Zoroark Hue'd happily, knowing that no one likes that flavor, and was immediately swooped up by Rayquaza who was passing overhead looking for a strong, independent baker who didn't need no oven. Suddenly they broke out into song, singing 'A Whole New World'.

(Special Thanks to Zalthook for doing... that.)

Catia shifted a little bit, debating what she should do next. She wanted to just hug Yuno and kiss her back but....where? It took her a moment before she finally took a deep breath to calm herself and quickly grabbed Yuno, pulling her into a gentle hug. She was silent for a bit before she finally squeezed the girl a little bit and closed her eyes.

"Yuno....you should never be afraid to talk to me or tell me anything. And....I like you too. Y'know...."

Her face turns completely red as she whispers into Yuno's ear now.

"Like....more than just friends...."

She told her gently, giving her a kiss onto her cheek as she kept the girl in a hug, hoping that it would comfort her into not being quite so nervous.

Cerise looked over in the direction that Decoda pointed, having not noticed the pair off in the distance trying to herd their Mareep with a nearby Herdier. One of them, a girl judging by the shape of the body, had sat on the ground, seeming a bit dejected. Cerise watched the other pair for a moment with a look of worry as he followed Decoda over. "I hope nothing bad happened..."

Yuno felt her heart pounding as Catia held her close. Her body temperature rose, as she finally felt accepted. She gave a small sigh and closed her eyes, snuggling into the hug.

"Thank you..." she whispered. 



The two teens in the field were talking, trying to figure out different ways to round up these mareep when Decoda and Cerise approached. The girl stayed on the ground, but looked up at the two males. The boy held out a hand.

"Hey there! You must be the travellers our uncle lent the barn to!" he started, smiling brightly. "You guys settle in alright?"


The girl finally stood up and brushed some grass off her jeans before bowing slightly to Cerise and Decoda. She rubbed her eyes and gave a sneeze before introducing the two of them.

"I'm Nikki and this is my cousin, Lucas." she said.

"Gesundheit!" Decoda greeted with a smile, shaking Lucas' hand.  "Nice to meet you!  I'm Decoda and this is Cerise, and we're just two of the five that are staying in the barn tonight.  I didn't realize your uncle had company over!  You two sure look busy though, its no wonder we didn't see you until now!"

He pulled away and put his hands on his hips, looking around at all the fluffy Pokemon.  "What are you up to, exactly?"

Catia smiled when Yuno thanked her, squeezing the girl gently once more before starting to rub her back a bit. She looked into her eyes.

"So....now what do we do?"

She asked her, her face a bit red with embarrassment. She honestly didn't know what to do with this moment. It was her first time encountering something like this and she didn't quite know how to go any further.

"Our uncle asked us to herd the mareep, but we can't do it... Herdier was raised in the city, not on the farm. The mareep don't want to listen either!" Lucas explained. He sighed and looked at the other pokemon that were neatly corralled like the mareep were supposed to be. "It's only these guys..." he gestured to the doduo, tauros, bouffalant, and miltank. "That don't cooperate. Any ideas?"

"We don't have the time to teach Herdier how to, well, herd!" Nikki interjected.



Yuno looked around the loft and sighed. It still needed to be set up for sleeping tonight. She turned her gaze to Catia and took her hand gently.

"I want to keep you safe, even if you wish to do so for others." She said firmly. "But... I have a serious question for you, Cat."

The ascended looked at their held hands for a long while before looking back up at Catia's ember eyes.

"Do you follow your truth? Or your Ideals?"

Catia thinks for a little while about Yuno's question, a little unsure of how to answer such a question. She took a deep breath and looked into Yuno's eyes with confidence.

"I follow the path that I believe in. I want to live with no regrets, blazing a trail that I create with my own two hands. I do that in honor of my father, someone that's very important to me."

She smiles up at Yuno.

"I don't know if that answers your question but it's the best I can do for you."

She tells her, squeezing Yuno's hand a little bit.

Decoda blinked a few times, surprised that the fluffy Pokemon didn't really want to be herded about, let alone get their 'Herd'ier to do any of the work.  No wonder they were exhausted!

"Really?  Wow, that's pretty tough luck.  Actually, we have a friend who used to do some Ranger work, but she's out of town now.  Too bad we couldn't learn anything from her before she left...  I guess we'll have to help you the hard way!" he said with excitement, adjusting his hat on his head.

"I don't have any Pokemon to help combat electric types... so I'll just have to go with another plan!" he announced, pausing to think for a moment.  Then he turned to Lucas and Nikki.  "Do the Mareep like music at all?" he asked with a smile.

Yuno frowned just a bit as she heard Catia's answer. Perhaps she didn't understand the question? She thought for a moment, smiling when Catia squeezed her hand before asking again. 

"No, no... Do you follow your truths; the property of being in accord with fact or reality... or your ideals; relating to or constituting mental images, ideas, or conceptions." She looked up as she gave almost dictionary definitions of the words. She sighed at the blank look on Catia's face. "In other words... Do you follow facts and reality, or the visions you see in your mind?"



"Music?" Nikki looked at one of the Mareep, who bleated quite loudly and obnoxiously, almost on purpose. "We never thought to try that..."

"Maybe because neither of us have a musical bone in our body?"

Catia blinked at Yuno blankly when she described what she meant directly but laughed when she made it easier for her to understand.

"Oh! Well when you put it like that I have to say that I believe in ideals rather than facts. There's much more to explore in idea's rather than facts you know?"

She answers her, feeling better about having given a better answer to Yuno's question than before now that she understood what she was asking.

Yuno gave an undetectable fake smile and giggled with Catia, feeling a small twinge in her heart. She was to be one of few to eventually help Reshiram forge a world of Truths. Her brother, Nomogria, was selected by Zekrom to forge a world of ideals. She felt something special with Catia. Something that made her feel strong about herself. With an internal nod, she made her decision; whether Catia followed Ideals or not, she would protect her and what she believes. Granted she knew this way of thinking could possibly get her into trouble with Reshiram, but Yuno felt that her truth lied within Catia.

"I see," Yuno started. "In that case... I have reached a verdict." she paused, took a deep breath, then Kissed Catia on the lips. 


"I love you."

"Haha, can't say I'm very skilled in musical feats, either! But Decoda here is! I'm sure he can herd 'em up for you!" Cerise says with a smile, catching on to what Decoda was thinking. He adjusted his glasses before looking out at the herd of Mareep roaming around. "I mean, it's worth a try, right? I'll help to keep them all here while you get ready, Decoda."