Richard's body responded before his voice as he bounded ahead of C.J. and Zulu, stumbling roughly onto the grassy banks near a clear river. Zulu tugged at C.J.'s ankle with his tail, and she calmly pushed away the scattered tree branches before stepping out into the crisp sunshine. The clean smells of fresh water and cut timber permeated her nostrils, but the sensory moment of happiness was quickly clouded by the events that unfolded before the young trainer. She watched as Richard tumbled down the hill towards Mike, shouting his familiar warnings. Violet, she noticed, was struggling to get across to the battle as well. As the cloud of mist dissipated, C.J. could now see the cause of obstruction. A young Poliwag seemed to be... protecting Violet and her Pokémon? Zulu began to instinctively move towards it, as if understanding the creature's series of distressful chirps. C.J.'s eyebrows rose in shock as Violet's Eevee tackled the Poliwag off the bridge and into the steady river's current below. A strange sensation of panic and empathy raced through C.J., her skin prickling at the sight of the injured Pokémon still crying out as it bobbed in the river below. It seemed Zulu shared his trainer's thought as he darted for the edge of the river.
Zulu didn't look back at C.J. as he slithered ahead of the Poliwag, his eye focused on a small, sturdy boulder just ahead. The snake hitched just enough of his tail around the boulder to anchor himself and stretched the rest of his scaly body into the brisk water. The steady currents rocked his body up and down, but he squeezed his muscles tightly as the Poliwag drew near. Zulu braced for impact as the Poliwag drifted into his outstretched body. With his head now curled gently around the Poliwag's hypnotic chest, Zulu circled the pair back to the safety of the riverbank. His body still wrapped protectively against the Poliwag, Zulu rested his head against the grass. C.J. placed a hand against her heart as she sharply inhaled in relief. Her long legs began a downwards jog towards her partner, but not before being intercepted by a small ball of brown fur. Unable to avoid tripping, she reached her arms forward towards the ground as her knees met the moist grass. She turned her head to see another trainer's Eevee, but this one with a collar and small scar across his face, shaking his fluffy tuft of fur in the aftermath of the collision. She moved into a crouch and looked to Lance apologetically, who she now realized was sliding down the hill towards his Pokémon.
"I'm so sorry, I wasn't paying attention!" She stood now, brushing the grass from her knees. Her head swiveled to check on Zulu, who nodded to her faintly before resting in the soft grass again. Now closer to the other trainers, C.J. could clearly see the rising distress of the situation with the Pinsir across from where she and Lance had just encountered each other. Mike was clearly in trouble, which explained why Violet had been so desperate to get through Poliwag's barrier before. Poliwag. C.J. knew that Zulu was in no condition to confront a Pinsir, especially one this enraged. She nodded to Lance while briefly introducing herself.
"I'm C.J. and that's Zulu." She pointed to her Pokémon by the riverbank.
"No point in putting anyone else in danger, here come with me." She didn't ask as she closed the distance between the trainers and Zulu. She crouched down and stroked Zulu's head lovingly.
"That was very brave of you, Zulu." Her eyes watered, knowing that Zulu's nature didn't usually lead to situations like this, and she addressed the Poliwag.
"And very brave of you, Poliwag, to protect my friends back there." C.J. didn't have to think twice as she reached for the sole Pokéball at her belt, placing it cautiously on the ground between Zulu and Poliwag. Zulu nodded in understanding as she said,
"We've been saving this for a special Pokémon." Her heart raced as she finally added,
"Poliwag, we'd be honored if you'd join our team. Your courage would be the perfect pair to my Zulu's caution." She smiled sweetly and sat on the back of her heels as she waited for both the Poliwag's response and Lance to join her at the riverbank.
@Masterkeun@pkken I must have been writing at the same time as you! Haha, obviously you've joined the others with the Pinsir... so we'll just say you had a brief run in, and on my next post C.J. will realize you chose to barrel into danger instead of following her to the riverbank :} She can join the group once the Pinsir situation is resolved.
