"We're trying to battle here, Leo", Cassie sighs, holding up her head.

  "That can wait", Leo breathes out in choppy parts. The guy should definitely take up running. "Fletchling, now", he manages, "must catch, while they feed".

  "We're here tomorrow as well", Cassie says calmly, "you can catch a Fletchling then". I'm impressed that she can translate Leo's panting this quickly.

  "No... uh, rain... tomorrow", Leo's slowly learning to breathe again, "the weather report... says so".

  "I dunno", Cassie says, looking up dismissively, "the sky looks nice to me".

  "He said it will rain tomorrow", I note shortly.

  "Uh, whatever, why are you in such a hurry", Cassie shrugs.

  "I watched the edge of the forest the whole day yesterday", Leo can finally talk like a normal person again, "the Fletcling like to scour it for food, but only during lunch, and I can't be sure they'll come out if it rains tomorrow, so I have to catch one right now, and I mean right now, since their lunch hours will be over shortly".

  "Well, go and catch it then", Cassie waves him off, "what you need us for anyways?".

  "I've tried Cas", Leo wails, "but the damn birds are too agile and too smart, I've tried baiting them, but they escape, I've tried facing them head on but they just fly away and taunt me from the branches".

  "There's no way I'm coming along", Cassie crosses her arms, "you'll just try wagering me again".

  "Don't be silly Cassie, those were Donphans, Fletchling don't like gambling", Leo sighs, "these birds don't even want to battle, Piplup tried setting up a match, but they just don't care".

  "Well, what do you need us for then?", Cassie says.

  "I need more hands", Leo explains, "we'll set the trap, then jump it, I'm not exactly great at ambushes, but with three of us, we might have a chance".

  I'm kind of weary about following Leo. Last time we did that, Cassie ended up being a human version of a casino chip, and Leo made his way into a tire-elephant ritualistic fight club.

  "Fine", Cassie affirms it against my better judgement, "we'll help you out, but we need you to referee a practice battle for us as soon as we're done, deal?".

  "Deal", Leo's already shifting in his place. "Now let's go, before they are done with lunch".

  He leads the way, still managing to half-run somehow, while I half expect him to drop dead mid-step.

  It would be fun, I think, if Leo were to die and reincarnate back in my base.

  I quickly push that thought back.

  We're quick to make it to the edge of the forest, with the first line of tall standing trees I don't recognise greeting us with swaying branches. There are no pokemon around that I can spot, but Leo is swift to slam a bunch of pokemon food on the ground near one of the trees.

  Pulling us behind some bush, the three of us end up in a crouch. To me, all of this seems like one of the practice runs we did back in the base, but with lighter clothing and less guns. I had no idea what a Fletcling was, a bird, I assumed from everything that had been said, but I was clueless on what kind of a bird.

  It could be like that small and plain looking swallow I saw when I appeared above Verdanturf. It could be something capable of killing us.

  Still, this all comes naturally to me, and I almost mistake Cassie and Leo for one of my unit-mates. Almost.

  It's not long before a small flock of tiny robin birds appear, and start circling the air above where Leo had placed the bait. Their wings look weak to me, and I can't help thinking that a stronger wind current would send them away. By the way Leo tenses up beside me I conclude these are Fletchlings.

  Not to be a sceptic, but I find it laughable that he couldn't deal with these birds on his own. That he even wanted to catch one of these and use it in battles. They looked rather weak.

  The robin birds keep circling around, landing on branches occasionally, and chirping carelessly. They've seen the food Leo had laid out for them, but they seem to be smart enough to realise it's a trap.

  "These birds are so stubborn", Leo whispers out, leaning back, still keeping his eyes forward.

  I glance over to him, instantly noticing one of the birds had made a nest out of the boy's messy ginger curls. None of us noticed it, which isn't surprising for Leo and Cassie. However, the fact that I, a trained soldier, didn't notice it sneak up on us, meant that this thing had some serioud stealth.

  "Hey, Leo", I try to get his attention as quietly as possibe, gesturing to him that there's a Fletchling on the top of his head.

  "What, I have something in my hair?", Leo instantly reaches for his curl, causing the bird to fly away. "Oh, you baatard", the boy says as soon as he spots the pokemon, that is now flying low, staying just out of his reach.

  Fletchling makes small circles, keeping its eyes on Leo, and chirping away in a very mocking manner.

  Leo manages to surprise me. Without a warning, he pulls a pokeball and hurls it at the bird. The pokemon, however sees this coming and expertly maneuvers away from the projectile.

  "Piplup, hit him with Bubble", Leo screeches immediately, and I'm left to wonder how they know the gender of the pokemon immediately. They all looked same to me.

  That aside, Fletcling flies out of the reach of Piplup's attack, and circles above us, heading for the tree.

  "Get him, don't let him escape", Leo picks up Piplup, holding him above his head and jumping out of our hiding spot.

  "Bubble, shoot, shoot any of them", Leo screeches, as the birds spot him. All of them dance around in the air, dodging bubbles, as if it's some sort of game.

  Cassie stands up beside me, gripping her fist, and I'm swift to grab her. "There's a forest, better think twice before letting Fennekin use Ember", I remind her.

  "Right", she seems to only now remember her fox is a fire hazard, "but we have to help Leo".

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  "I'll catch one of them", I exclaim jumping up, "like those bats back in the cave, I'll grab one and slam it into the tree".

  "That's not...", Cassie tries saying something behind me, but I'm already on my way.

  The birds are flying low, they definitely want to taunt us, which is a giant mistake. However, they are also tiny and rather good at changing directions in mid air, so catching them proves to be too tricky. I swipe my hands through the air, just hoping one of them comes my way, but that never happens.

  Two of the birds are flying just out of my reach, while I swing for them. A smller flock of about 7 is keeping Leo and Piplup busy. The ginger boy has his pokemon raised up and is using him as sort of a bubble gun. Cassie, on the other hand is trying to bargain with one Fletchling that is sat on a branch. I can't exactly hear her, but I would assume she's offering pets and food. The bird doesn't seem interested in striking a deal.

  "If you give me a stick, I can get you one of these real quick", I offer loudly, reaching for one of the birds, only for it to slip away from my grasp last second.

  "I told you they are dickheads who like to taunt me", cursing seems foreign to Leo's voice.

  "I see it now", I agree, as I notice the birds had started inching closer and closer to the trees. "They are trying to escape", I warn Leo.

  Without warning, the flock of birds gains altitude, retreating away from us.

  "Don't let them get away", Leo yells, out of breath, and proceeds to run after them into the forest.

  Noting how clumsily he runs, I quickly follow along, wrestling Piplup out of his hands. "I'll take that, I'm faster", I say flatly.

  Good. This feels good, moving, chasing a target.

  As we rush after them, I feel blood pumping through my body. Leo is trying to yell something to my left, but I can't hear him. I focus on keeping my momentum instead. Expertly dodging the trees in my way, I hold Piplup up, allowing him to shoot at the birds. They effortlessly maneuver around trunks and through the branches, and the penguin definitely lacks target practice.

  I've already left both Leo and Cassie far behind me when I find myself in clearing of sorts. There, in the middle of the woods, the trees part to make space for a steep slope, still covered in mud, curtsey of that storm two days ago.

  Fletcling flock soars up as soon as they reach the edge, and I have to stop myself inches away from the edge, so I don't start rolling down.

  I can't take my eyes off of the birds. From the air, they close their wings, free falling towards the ground. Moments away, they spread their wings, catch the wind and glide down.

  I watch as they leisurely fly, parallel to the slope.

  I want to be dissapointed by the fact that they'll get away.

  But it seems so much fun, how they keep close to the ground, letting the air currents carry them along.

  Back when I was a kid, 7, or maybe 8,I pretended I could do that.

  I realise there's no air in my lungs once the Fletchlings reach the end of the slope. They tilt their tiny bodies, making a curve, then soar again, only to reach the place where I'm standing few seconds later.

  I don't even reach my hand to catch one.

  They close their wings, starting their stunt again.

  Maybe they want me to follow them, but I can't. It's as if my legs are glued to the ground.

  "Did they escape", I hear Leo's heavy voice behind me.

  "No, no they are still there", I say absentmindedly, "I think they are playing".

  Piplup jumps out of my arms and I only then realise he's been watching the Fletchling show this whole time as well.

  "Let's get them", Leo pants, stepping forward, but I stretch my arm to stop him.

  "No", I say calmly, "the slope is too steep, if you run down you'll end up seriously injured". That's one part of the story. I also don't want Leo to ruin my view here.

  But moments later Cassie is there as well, and the two of them don't find this Fletchling game nearly as fascinating as I do.

  "No trees now", Cassie says immediately, "Ember, Fennekin".

  Her partner cautiosly fires off a block of cinders. The birds are still playing, flying low, and the fire never reaches them.

  "What do we do", Leo sighs in desperation.

  Piplup jumps up suddenly and starts flapping his wings. Not at Leo or Cassie. At Fennekin.

  The small fox tries backing down, but Piplup adamantly keeps chirping. The small penguin seems rather enthusiastic about whatever he had came up with.

  The fox bows her head reluctantly, and Piplup immediately waves over at Leo, as if to inform him he'll be taking charge.

  The boy doesn't have time to give his approval, as Piplup has already made it to the start of the slope. Filling his chest, he shoots a Bubble at the ground, and I can't help being confused.

  The pokemon jumps up merrily, showing for Fennekin to come closer. The fox obliges.

  As one of the Fletchling soars up near us again and starts his descent towards the ground, I watch in disbelief as Piplup jumps, closely followed by Fennekin.

  Piplup darts forward, sliding across the mud on his belly, and Fennekin somehow manages to keep balance on his back. Piplup's using Bubble, shooting it at the muddy path in front of him, and as soon as I spot Fennekin taking aim at the Fletchling, I figure it out.

  I dash forward yelling at Leo: "get ready", while trying to keep my balance.

  I'm just in time.

  The two pokemon slide down the slope, keeping up with the Fletchling, when Fennekin shoots a cloud of cinders, blocking the bird's path. The attack doesn't hit, but it's enough to force the bird to change its trajectory.

  And when Fletchling soars up to avoid the flames, I'm there.

  I reach my hand for it. Last moment I decide not to grab it. I don't want to break its wings.

  Instead, I use my palm to slap it, sending the tiny bird somewhere behind me, where Leo hopefully is.

  I can't look behind me, as I have to focus on not falling over and reaching the bottom of the slope via rolling. But I can hear Leo yell out, and it sounds to me that he's victorious.

  Managing to stop myslef before I reach the bottom, I watch as Piplup and Fennekin end their little escapade. The fox seems to be in disbelief that she had actually done this, and the penguin seems willing to do it again. I conclude that Piplup might be a little daredevil and definitely a terrible influence. I like him.

  When I turn around, I see Leo, gripping a pokeball in his hands, a sense of relief plastered across his face.

  "Finally", the boy sighs as I pass by him. Piplup energetically runs up to him, grabbing at his leg, and chirping.

  Fennekin slowly climbs up back the slope to reach Cassie, and basically pleads the girl to return her to her pokeball. Cassie obliges, giving me a sharp look as soon as she's done.

  "You know, I'm starting to think you might be a pokemon, a fighting type, that was a pretty good Force Palm back there", Cassie swipes her hand at me, "if you ever do that again, I'm putting you in a pokeball".

  "Yeah, and no more Mach Punches either, like back in the tunnel", Leo has a smile plastered across his face when he reaches us, with Piplup following close by, and pointing to the slope. I'm certain he wants to go sliding some more.

  "I have no idea what the two of you are talking about", I scratch my head.

  "Don't mind it", Cassie waves me off, "just don't die the second time".

  "What do you mean the second time", Leo gives us a confused stare.

  "An inside joke, pay it no mind", I slap his back, "hey, you just caught a new teammate for yourself, let's go and celebrate or something, we should get lunch".

  "Eh, chasing after this thing did make me hungry", Leo inspects Fletchling's pokeball under the sky, "but I can't really eat, I have to figure out what's the next pokemon I need to catch".

  "Slow down there", Cassie raises her voice at him, "you'll fill out the whole pokedex with how you've started".

  "Cmon Cassie, let the man do his thing", I feel slightly bad for Leo. He clearly enjoys his way of doing things. "Don't be a prick".

  "Oh, a prick", Leo bumps his fist in moment of realisation.

  "Alright, no need for both of you to insult me", Cassie puffs her cheeks.

  "That's not what I meant Cas", Leo says absentmindedly, "let's go back to the center". Without a warning, he darts back into the woods.

  "Hey, what's with all of this", Cassie follows along.

  "Cacnea, I realised I want Cacnea as my next pokemon", Leo swipes his pokedex out of his pocket, "but I need to reasearch where I can find it".

  "My God, Leo, you just caught Fletchling, slow down a bit", Cassie sighs.

  "Yes, yes, but Fletcling gains the fire typing, which means I still have no way to deal with water types", Leo murmurs under his breath, "so a grass type like Cacnea is perfect, especially if I can get one with Water Absorb".

  I have no clue what Water Absorb is, but so be it.

  "Leo, stop it", Cassie wrestles the pokedex out of the boy's hands.

  "Give that back", Leo reaches for it, but Cassie swipes it away.

  "No", the girl say firmly, "no more reasearch and catching, focus on what's in front of you, train the pokemon you caugh, bond with them, enjoy the journey".

  "I find enjoyment through my research", Leo sighs, as he manages to grab his pokedex.

  I don't really want to stop them. It's not my place.

  In my pocket, I grip Charmander's pokeball. We didn't get to have that practice battle today, and Fennekin's probably a bit too distresed to do it now.

  It's not the worst thing. At least Charmander won't get hurt or discouraged.

  Still, I'm discouraged.

  I never planned on engaging in battling, for real or for fun. It's just a childish hobby practiced in this world. But just one time, I wanted to give it a try.