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TEEN: Towards Green Pastures

GastlyGibus

World's worst critic
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Because clearly I needed a third story to distract me from my other two.

Rated T just in case. Violence and mild language may follow. Comments and criticism welcome!

Chapter One: Comfort in familiarity

"What solace lies in the arms of fate? The ill embrace of uncertainty? When did I leave this in other hands to be pulled down at chance?"​
- Meshuggah, Straws Pulled at Random

The sun began to set, illuminating the city in it’s familiar orange glow, the reflection casting a brilliant line across the surface of the ocean. A gentle breeze carried the scent of the sea across the city of Castelia, the cawing of Wingull’s audible throughout.

In the city itself, the evening was when it became more lively, as citizens began to clock off and enjoy the rest of their night. Some chose to go straight home to their loved ones, to spend the night relaxing before the next work day. Others instead sought enjoyment elsewhere, and with Castelia being the populated city that it was there were many options to choose from. Numerous clubs, bars, and restaurants to pique the interest of both the residents and visitors, and tonight was just as active as any other. For Castelia, every night was an active one.

However, it was not all leisure and merriment for Castelia. For some it was another day to drudge through. Not just people, but Pokémon too. In the alleyways, on the side of a small diner, sat a lone Scrafty huddled against the wall near the dumpster. Here was where he made his home, complete with a large cardboard box he had found for himself as shelter as well as scraps of cloth he’d found lying about, for those particularly cold days. It was a meager existence, but the stray Scrafty had gotten used to it. He had spent many days here in this very spot, picking from the scraps of the food the humans threw away.

He sat beside the dumpster, hiding behind it so as not to scare away anyone. It always confused the Scrafty why humans would recoil in shock at the sight of a stray. Then again, he had developed somewhat of a reputation among the locals. “That stray,” they called him, the one that hung out near the back of the diner. At first the owners had tried to get rid of him; stray pokémon scrounging out of the dumpsters was never good for publicity, not to mention what might happen if he attacked the patrons. However, the Scrafty soon earned his place, particularly for chasing away the much bigger problem of the Trubbish and Grimer that loved to frequent the trashy areas of Castelia. He had made it clear that this was his spot, and nobody, not human nor pokémon, was going to take it from him.

The employees were uncomfortable at first with the Scrafty’s arrival. He would always eye them menacingly when performing trash runs, analyzing the contents of their garbage for any food that could be found. When the Scrafty began to chase away the more unsanitary pokémon, though, the employees began to welcome his presence. Sometimes even, if there was spare food, they would leave it by the dumpster for the stray. Surely some of the humans had contemplated taking him home, but despite their generosity, the Scrafty’s temperament made him an unfit addition to any home. Even with their gifts of food, the stray often reacted violently to anyone who got too close. So, the workers of the diner and the Scrafty had reached an unspoken compromise: the Scrafty would be allowed to stay and rummage through the trash, and in return, the Scrafty chased away would-be pests. They had co-existed like this for several weeks now, and it didn’t look as if things would change anytime soon.

*SHONK*

A heavy paper bag landed in the dumpster from a customer passing by, and immediately, the Scrafty leapt into action. With a kick of his foot he hopped off the ground, deftly grabbing hold of the edge of the container, dragging himself up and diving in. In moments, he had retrieved the bag, tearing it open to see if there was anything left.

“Humans are so wasteful,” the Scrafty muttered to himself. Inside he had found a half-eaten burger. Why anybody would throw away perfectly good food was beyond him, but he wasn’t going to complain. “Heh, more for me.”

He returned to his box near the side of the dumpster, quickly dusting the trash off his body before sitting down and hastily biting into his meal. He had already managed to snag some burnt bread the workers had thrown away, and a nearly untouched box of fries earlier still; not a bad day at all. Probably not the healthiest food, but it wasn’t as if the Scrafty gave it much mind. Any food was good food as far as he was concerned.

He took a bite of his food, turning to look down the other end of the alley, opening out into more city, with more people. How long had he been in this spot, anyways? Weeks? Months? He stopped counting a long time ago, and at this point, he didn’t care anymore. While certainly not the best living a stray could ask for, it was definitely a step up from the more destitute pokémon he had seen wandering around. He had chased away his fair share of beggars looking to mooch on his spot. He may have been homeless, but he was far from helpless.

As his gaze was fixed on the outside, he didn’t notice the small form that slowly approached from the other side. He felt a slight tug on his shed skin, jumping in surprise and turning to see a smaller pokémon. A Scraggy, same as he used to be some years ago.

“Excuse me, mister?” the Scraggy squeaked in a higher-pitched voice. The child looked young; no more than twelve, the Scrafty thought. “Do you have anything to share?” Rather than looking hopeless like the other beggars he had come across, this Scraggy almost seemed… happy? Her face bore a small smile, looking at the Scrafty expectantly.

“Buzz off, kid,” the Scrafty snapped back. Child or no, he wasn’t about to share with anybody. He was lucky enough to have found this spot on his own, and he wasn’t too keen on the idea of someone else taking his scant meals. “Go find your own.”

The Scraggy’s smile turned into a frown, clearly put-off by the Scrafty’s response. “Please?” she asked again, mustering up another smile, though a much smaller one this time.

“I said scram, kid,” the Scrafty replied again.

The child looked dejected, her expression growing sullen and her smile once again fading. “Oh… okay…” she said, turning back down the alley and leaving.

“Yeah, and good riddance,” the Scrafty added as the child left. He would have felt bad for the kid, maybe some time ago. However, he had learned a long time back to fend for himself; perhaps it was harsh, but he figured it better to let this girl learn that lesson early. She wasn’t the first one he had to chase away, and he doubted she would be the last. He looked down the alley, seeing the small Scraggy just as she turned the corner and walked away, her head hung low as she clutched her shed skin tightly. The Scrafty shook his head.

“She’ll be fine,” he assured himself. “Not like she can’t use her cutesy act on someone else.”

***

The following morning, the Scrafty was prowling the alleys, away from his usual spot. Unfortunately for him, the diner only opened later in the afternoon, which meant that his options for breakfast had to be found elsewhere. It was all standard routine for him at this point; he knew quite a few places that made fresh food in the morning. A city as large as Castelia had many choices, even for a stray. He could swipe something from one of them without anybody noticing, holding him off until the diner opened again.

He darted through the alleys. He had a destination in mind, and if he got there in time, he could get some fresh-baked bread…

“AHHHHH!”

Before he could reach his destination, a shrill scream resounded just around the corner. He tried to ignore it, but the voice began to cry out for help. The Scrafty sighed.

“Come on, man, who cares?” he thought to himself. “What’s it matter to you if someone else gets hurt? Better them than you, right?”

Despite his reluctance, the Scrafty couldn’t ignore the panicked yells. He ran down the alley, away from his destination, towards the sound of the screams.

Turning the corner, he saw a group of Meowths, led by a Persian, their backs turned to him. The felines had their attention focused on a small pokémon in the middle… the Scraggy from the day before.

“Help me!” the child cried out, pointing at the Scrafty. The Persian and his posse quickly whipped around, casting a devious glare at the onlooker.

“Well, well, well…” the Persian said with a grin. “Come to save the little girl, hm? How noble of you.”

“Hey man, I ain’t lookin' for trou-”

“Enough,” the Persian interrupted. “Boys, take care of the interloper.”

Before the Scrafty could speak, the Meowths began to pounce. One leapt straight at him, preparing his claws to attack. The Scrafty quickly threw out a punch, sending the cat sprawling away. The Scrafty dropped into a fighting stance, prepared to defend himself, as the smaller felines leapt at him.

“I just had to go investigate, didn’t I?”

The Scrafty fought off the smaller pokémon, one by one diverting their attacks and countering with his own. He was used to defending his own territory, and these normal type attackers were no different from the usual intruders he faced.

After beating down a good portion of the Persian’s underlings, the larger cat whistled, calling his posse back to him, seeing as the Scrafty was putting up more of a fight than he’d estimated. He turned back to the young Scraggy, who had taken to curling up in a ball on the ground, whimpering. “This one’s not worth the trouble,” he said sorely, turning back at the Scrafty and eyeing him angrily. “Keep your kid out of trouble, or next time I won’t be so merciful.” With that, the Persian turned to leave, taking his little gang of Meowth with him.

“She’s not my kid!” the Scrafty called back, eyeing the young Scraggy. She lay on the ground, curled up, keeping her eyes shut. When she finally opened her eyes, she found herself in the shadow of the Scrafty, looking down at her, an irritated frown evident on his expression.

“What are you doing wandering these streets all alone?” the Scrafty asked, nearly raising his voice. “Those stupid cats would have killed you!”

“I… I…” the Scraggy said sullenly. Between being attacked by a Persian and scolded by a stranger, the girl was frightened beyond belief. “I’m sorry…” was all she could manage, before breaking down into tears.

“Oh geez…” The Scrafty sighed. Just what he needed; a sobbing child to send him on a guilt trip. “Where are your parents?” the Scrafty asked. “A kid like you shouldn’t be out here all alone.”

The Scraggy tried to stop crying, managing shaky breaths to control herself. Eventually, she mustered the strength to speak again. “I… I don’t have any parents…”

“Fantastic…” the Scrafty thought to himself. He brought his hand to his face, shaking his head in disbelief. Just his luck. He sighed again in annoyance. “Look, kid… even still, you can’t be in the alleys by yourself.”

“But I… I don’t have anywhere else to go,” the Scraggy said, hiding her face behind her hands. She was afraid to say more, fearful of the Scrafty’s reaction.

The Scrafty rolled his eyes… if this kid was trying to fool him, she was certainly doing a very good job, though he could sense that she was being genuine.

“Get a hold of yourself!” the Scrafty thought. “Don’t be such a thin-skinned wuss!”

Try as he might, though, what little conscience he had was nagging him more fiercely than ever. What was he supposed to do? Leave this child all by herself, in these streets? She’d be killed for sure. Of course, strays got hurt all the time in these alleys. They weren’t safe, he knew as much. He looked down at the Scraggy again, her face buried in her palms, fearing a harsh reaction from the Scrafty.

“Get up,” he ordered. The child did as commanded, shakily bringing herself to her feet, clutching at the shed skin around her waist. He just knew he was going to regret this, but he wouldn’t be able to live with himself if he just left her to her own devices. “Follow me.”

“W-where are we going?” the child asked, slowly following behind him as he turned to leave.

“Just follow me,” he answered bluntly.

“O-okay, mister…” the Scraggy said, sniffling once as she walked.

“James,” the Scrafty said. “Just call me James.”

“Okay, James,” the Scraggy repeated. James let out an exhale of resignation, as the two began to head back to his make-shift home.

***

END

Had this idea while chatting with my friend DubiousRex and browsing pokémon pictures online. First chapter of, hopefully more to come soon, time permitting.
 
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I'm a lawyer!
And I'm a janitor!
Together we adopted a cute little kid!
We're Legal Custodians!

Sorry. Don't ask me why this reminded me of that

Technical Accuracy/Style
I think you're nuts for starting another story. I also think it's a waste you never get anywhere with them. You've got a very readable style - perhaps a little predictable when it comes to the descriptions, but very readable nevertheless. One thing I really don't like is the use of dialogue for screaming. It always looks ... what's the word? Melodramatic, and difficult to take seriously

Story
Well it's never quite straightforward with your stories eh? And as usual for a GastlyGibus first chapter, no obvious route the story is going to take. I thought it was fine, interesting enough that it wasn't a drag to read and low on the melodrama, the verbalised scream notwithstanding

Characters
Urban pokémon, yes! Nobody ever deals with urban pokémon. I don't quite know whether I buy the idea that he's a stray - I mean a lot of urban animals do well enough that it might as well be considered their natural habitat, but I suppose we don't really know whether James had an owner or not. The whole "Nyah, buzz off kid, these are mean streets" persona I suppose is a bit predictable for a Scrafty, but so long as it doesn't veer over into film noir it should be ok

Final Thoughts
I have no idea how much of this you have planned. Might be an idea to have more of a plan this time round, if only to guilt yourself into getting past three chapters this time
 
Okay I know you showed a lot of people this ahead of time and I'm the only one that didn't give their opinion of it early on, but hey better late than never right?

But anyways I actualy laughed at this because...it kind of felt like a Disney movie xD just the general premise behind it sounds like something that'll go great in a Disney movie and you certainly got the feeling down of it. I like the fact that you expor the idea of the Urban Pokemon as (like Beth said) they aren't explored that much in fics either, plus if you're gonna go with an urban Pokemn then ho better than the proliferal gangster Scrafty :p

I'm probably sounding too sily in tis review but I guess I just had fun reading it. It was nostalgic precisely cause it felt like those types of movies and maybe your writing style is one that's seen a lot but I like it, it has a good flow to it that makes it easy to follow through and a good hang of description.

Anyways I hope you can actually keep up this story and the other two :p you certainly are biting more than you can chew.
 
Tropes are fun. Especially adorable tropes.

Chapter two: Thems the ropes.

James crouched behind a trash can, his eyes staring unblinking at the bakery across the street. Behind him, the Scraggy child from earlier poked her head out beside him, hiding near James’ leg. She looked up at James, the Scrafty keeping his attention fixated on the bakery, before directing her eyes there as well. She couldn’t tell what he was looking at; nothing interesting appeared to be happening, at least not to her uninformed mind.

She stood silent, as if waiting for James to say something. The stray kept silent, and the more time that passed the more the Scraggy became confused. “What are we doing?” she asked quietly, hoping not to elicit a scolding from the Scrafty.

“Waiting,” James replied bluntly. His eyes didn’t move, apparently focused on the side of the building, where the alley was.

The Scraggy was not satisfied with the answer, but kept quiet for James’ sake. She bit her bottom lip, trying to contain her curiosity. After another minute of silence, the Scraggy piped up again. “Waiting for what?”

James sighed. This girl was already annoying him, and she had only been with him for half an hour. “Listen, kid…” he paused, remembering that he didn’t know her name. “You got a name?”

The Scraggy thought for a moment; it had been a while since she had last used her name. “B-Brianna,” she finally answered.

“Listen, Brianna,” James continued. “We’re waiting for a truck.”

“Why?” Brianna asked. James grit his teeth. It was so much easier to wait when you didn’t have a child pestering you with questions.

“Do you want to eat?” James asked angrily.

“Y-yes…” Brianna answered quietly.

“Then be quiet,” James said with a wave of his hand. He continued staring at the bakery. Nothing had happened yet, as James narrowed his eyes in confusion. The truck must have been late for it’s schedule.

Brianna’s posture fell low. Truthfully, she was afraid of James, seeing as he wasn’t very kind. However, at least he was helping her, albeit begrudgingly, which was much more preferable to being jumped by thugs. She held her tongue, turning again to the bakery, trying her best to wait patiently for this truck James was looking out for. After a few more minutes, she lightly tapped at the Scrafty’s arm, as if asking for permission to speak again. “J-James?” she whispered.

“What?”
“I-is the t-truck going to give us food?” she asked.

“No,” James answered. “They put food on the truck. We’re going to take some for ourselves before they do that.”

“We’re going to st-steal it?” Brianna asked in shock. She was hungry, but she knew stealing was wrong…

“Would you rather starve?” James asked rhetorically.

Brianna kept silent, frowning as her gaze fell to the ground.

“Then we take the food,” James said, answering his own question. Right as he finished, he heard the familiar sound of a diesel engine, as the delivery truck roared to its destination before slowly rolling to a halt in front of the bakery. As it stopped, the back door to the store swung open, with several carts of bread and rolls being carted towards the back of the vehicle for transportation.

“Is that the truck?” Brianna asked, pointing to the vehicle.

“Yes,” James answered bluntly. Brianna started to walk from their hiding spot towards the workers as they loaded the truck, until James held out his hand and grabbed her by the arm. He forcibly dragged her behind him, casting her an angry glare. “Don’t move!” he ordered. Brianna went stiff, holding completely still as James had told her.

James scanned the employees movements, following their gaze and waiting for an opening. As the first cart was emptied, the workers began to head back to the bakery for the next cart. With an ample opening provided, James moved from his hiding spot, darting towards the truck quietly.

The Scrafty peered into the back of the vehicle, seeing a lone human packing away several bags of freshly-baked goods, their back turned to the pokémon. James seized his opportunity, speedily hopping up into the vehicle and grabbing one single pack of bread before dashing away just as quickly.

As he ran, the crinkling of the plastic wrap alerted the human loading the food. “Hey!” he cried out, dropping his task and darting after the stray pokemon. “Get back here, you little thief!”

James, however, was already too far gone. He quickly dashed back to the alley he came from, speeding right past Brianna. He ran a few more steps, turning behind him to see that Brianna had not moved, with the human gaining on them both.

The Scrafty growled in anger, heading back as fast as his legs would go, violently grabbing Brianna by the arm and dragging her away.

“Let’s go!” he ordered, though the Scraggy had no say in the matter as James gripped her arm and ran off with her in tow. The human chased after them for only a few steps, realizing that this stray was too fast for him. It wasn’t worth it for one bag of bread regardless. He let out a sigh of defeat, before heading back to the truck.

***​

A few moments passed, James and Brianna slowly walking back to the former’s makeshift home by the diner. Brianna was panting heavily, tuckered out from the chase. Truthfully, James was a bit weary himself, though he was used to running from humans at this point. He gripped his prize in his hand: a small plastic bag containing two full loaves of bread. One for now, one for later, he thought.

He looked down at Brianna, the Scraggy falling to her rear and resting, still trying to catch her breath.

“Why didn’t you run?” James snapped at her. Brianna shrunk slightly at the scolding, afraid to look James in the eyes.

“Y-you told me not to move…” she feebly replied.

James brought his palm to his face, sighing in irritation. This was going to be harder than he thought. He shook his head, deciding to ignore it for now. He’d teach this girl the ropes, whether she liked it or not; she’d have to learn if she wanted to stick with him.

The bag was torn easily under James’ strength, ripping away and filling the air with the scent of freshly baked bread. He grabbed a loaf and broke it in half, giving one half to Brianna and the other for himself. The Scraggy beamed, smiling for the first time since she’d been with him as she happily bit into her food.

She looked up at the bag, seeing only one loaf left. “Why did you only take one bag?” she asked curiously.

“They won’t miss one,” James replied. “You saw that human, how they stopped chasing us? They’ve got a lot of bread, so they aren’t going to waste their time going after one or two missing loaves.” He held up the other loaf, spinning the bag and twisting the wrap, making a seal. “Take too much and they’ll go after you. That’s lesson number one: take only what you need.”

“Ohhh,” Brianna replied, before biting into her food again. A few seconds passed in silence, before she spoke again. “So… what do we do now?”

“Wait here,” James ordered, motioning for her to stay in his little cardboard box. “I’ll be back.” Brianna raised a hand, about to ask where he was going, but James had already left before she could speak. She slowly huddled up in the box as she was told, munching away at her breakfast as she waited for James to come back.

***​

A few hours passed, and just as James promised, he had returned, placing a similarly-sized cardboard box on the ground directly across from his, along with an old, discarded jacket he found lying around.

“This is yours,” James said to the Scraggy. He pointed to her new shelter, then to his own. “That’s mine, this is yours. Got it?”

“I get one?” Brianna asked with a surprised smile, running over and nearly throwing herself inside her new place. “Thank you, James!”

“Now listen up,” James continued, ignoring the girl’s gratitude. “From now on, if you’re going to stay with me, you do as I say, understand?”

Brianna nodded, sitting up in her new box. “I understand.”

“I mean it,” James added. “If I tell you to stay here, you do not move until I tell you to. If I tell you to follow me, you follow me until your legs can’t walk anymore.” He crossed his arms, puffing out his chest in a vain display of authority. “I’m in charge. No ifs, ands, or buts.”

“O-okay,” Brianna replied, huddling up in her shelter and clutching at the jacket she’d been given. “I’ll be good,” she said.

“Good,” James replied, taking a seat in his own space. “Just do what I say and you’ll be fine.” He looked up at the sky, seeing the sun just beginning to fall, dark clouds rolling in. Looked like a storm was coming.

***​

That night, rain began to pour harshly, causing the citizens of Castelia to dash to their homes for cover. Thunder boomed in the distance, rumbling the very earth with it’s intensity. Brianna huddled up in her little box, safe from the rain, but shivering in fear. She hated thunder… and being outside during a storm was the last thing she needed.

The Scraggy jumped in shock as another resounding crash of lightning struck the earth. She clutched tightly at the old jacket she had, peering over to where James lay. The Scrafty, unlike her, was used to the storms, eyes closed and breathing normally as he slept.

“James?” she squeaked, her voice barely audible over the violent downpour. The Scrafty made no movement, sleeping soundly despite the weather. Another lightning strike caused Brianna to nearly cry out, hiding underneath the large coat.

She poked her head out slightly, looking over towards James again. “J-James…” she said again, much louder this time. The Scrafty stirred a bit, as Brianna called his name once more.

“What?” he asked groggily.

“I’m scared…” Brianna whimpered.

“Get over it,” James replied, clearly indifferent to her plight. “Go back to sleep.”

Brianna frowned. How could she go back to sleep if she couldn’t go to sleep in the first place? “I can’t sleep… c-can I come sleep with you?”

“No,” James replied again, groaning. “It’s just thunder. Go to sleep.” The Scrafty silently cursed his luck in getting saddled with this child.

Brianna sat still, curling up in the corner of her box and clutching tightly at her coat. She shut her eyes fast, hoping the weather would settle down just long enough for her to sleep. For a moment, the rain appeared to let up slightly, and Brianna began to calm down.

The crash of thunder again dashed any hopes of a restful sleep. Brianna felt too scared by herself. She looked over at James again; he’d probably snap at her again, but she couldn’t sleep on her own, try as she might.

She slowly, quietly rose to her feet, holding her jacket over her head as she prepared to dash through the rain to James’ box. She held her breath, quickly sprinting out across the alley into the shelter of James’ abode. The Scrafty opened his eyes, seeing the Scraggy huddled near his feet.

“What part of ‘no’ did you not understand?” he asked angrily.

“Please…” Brianna asked, making sure to give the Scrafty plenty of room. “It’s scary alone…”

James sighed to himself, knowing that she was only going to keep bothering him if he protested. With a groan, he rolled over and closed his eyes again. “Fine…” he muttered. “Don’t wake me up again.”

Brianna only nodded, trying her best to keep from bothering James. Though James wasn’t exactly the nicest person around, she felt safer having someone next to her, at least. As the rain continued to pour across the streets, and the thunder rumbled in the skies, Brianna slowly - finally - began to drift to sleep.

***

END​

Kind of short-ish. I planned for a lot more in this chapter, but it's been a long time since I've posted anything, really, so I'll just shove it back to the next one. Next chapter will hopefully be longer, and will definitely have some more character development (yay!).

Working on next chapter for this as well as for the others, so look forward to that. Or don't. I don't care either way.
 
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