Chapter 40: Back to Pallet Town! Training for the League!
James and Meowth asked Jessie if she was alright.
But of course, Jessie was bad-tempered because she had lost.
"Hey Jessie," Lyra said, "I won, so I would like the Earth Badge, please."
Jessie refused to give it to her.
Just then, Tomo pulled out the remote control. He had Growlithe steal it from Meowth. Tomo pressed a red button. Meowth then revealed that the button Tomo pressed would make the red platform explode—and it did.
Team Rocket blasted away with Arbok and Weezing.
Machamp, Kingler, and Rhydon ran away into a back room of the Gym.
Jessie dropped the Earth Badge, and Lyra caught it.
"Finally, my eighth badge," Lyra smiled happily. Pichu jumped onto her shoulder, rubbing her cheek in affection.
Lyra and the gang left Viridian Gym.
"I wonder why Team Rocket owns a Gym," she said.
"I don't know," Misty said, "but knowing crooks like them, my guess is it's for something bad."
Lyra, Tomo, and Brock agreed.
"Hey, I wonder if we will ever see that mysterious Pokémon that Gary saw," Brock said.
"To be honest with you," Lyra said, "I have a feeling inside me telling me that we will see that Pokémon one day."
"Where's the Indigo League going to be held, big sister?" Tomo asked.
"Well," Lyra answered, "I do know that it will be held at a place called Indigo Plateau, but I don't know where that is. I will have to ask Professor Oak for that."
"Then I suggest we go to Pallet Town," said Brock.
Lyra smiled. "I agree with that," she said, "besides, it would be nice to be home again and see my mum and the Pokémon too."
So the gang headed for Pallet Town.
When Lyra arrived at Pallet Town, her mum was outside the house waiting for her. Before leaving Viridian City, Lyra had phoned Julia to let her know that she was coming home.
Julia pulled Lyra into a great big hug, same as Pichu, Pikachu, and Infernape, who she let out to see her mum again. "I'm so glad you're home, Lyra," she said happily. "Pikachu, Pichu, and Infernape, it's good to see you again."
"Pichu!" "Pika!" "Infernape!" they exclaimed happily, seeing Julia again.
"It's nice to be home," Lyra said, returning her mum's hug.
Lyra introduced Misty and Brock to her.
"I'm glad to finally meet you two," Julia said, "and I thank you for taking care of Mew for me."
"My pleasure," Brock said with a smile.
"We had a fun time traveling with Lu," Misty said.
When Julia saw Tomo, she gave him a hug too. "Nice to finally meet you, Tomo," she said with a warm smile.
After all the cheerful greetings, Julia and the gang went into the house. Lyra saw Persian, Skitty, and Chimecho inside the house and greeted them. "I'm glad to see that you three have been doing well," she said.
Persian and Skitty purred, and Chimecho sang.
Lyra walked into the garden at the backyard with the gang. The garden looked beautiful and bigger than before.
"Oh wow, it's so pretty," Misty said.
Tomo and Brock agreed—it was beautiful, with flower trees, berry trees, fruits, and vegetables growing, and a medium-sized lake. It almost looked like a forest.
"Hey, look," Tomo said, pointing.
They saw Victreebel, Butterfree, Beedrill, and Bellossom tending the garden. Starmie and Staryu were watering the plants. They also saw another Pokémon—a small, light green, bipedal Pokémon...
"Who's that Pokémon?" Brock asked.
"It's a Roselia," Lyra answered.
Roselia, the Thorn Pokémon.
The evolved form of Budew. Roselia's aroma can bring serenity, but the thorns on its head contain a vicious poison.
"Wait, did it just say the evolved form of Budew?" Misty said. "That means the Budew Lu caught evolved."
"Yeah," Lyra said. "Hey everyone, it's good to see you again." She greeted them, and they all responded with a wave or bow. "The garden sure got bigger than I remembered."
"Yes, it did. The neighborhood helped me make the garden bigger—it's like a forest now," Julia said happily. "Oh, Mew, thank you for giving them to me. I love them, and they are a great help to me with the garden."
Just then, a bipedal, humanoid Pokémon appeared.
"Oh, and this is my newest addition, Mr. Mime, who I like to call Mimey."
Mr. Mime, the Barrier Pokémon.
The evolved form of Mime Jr. By rapidly moving its fingers, Mr. Mime can stop air molecules to create an invisible wall.
"Wow, Mum," Lyra said, "when did you get Mr. Mime?"
"I got Mimey a couple of days ago," Julia said. "I was coming home from shopping when I noticed a hurt wild Mr. Mime lying on the path. I took it home and helped it recover. Once it was fit enough to leave, it didn't want to leave, so I kept it as my 11th Pokémon."
"I see. That's great, Mr. Mime—I mean, Mimey—welcome to the family," Lyra said with a smile, and Mr. Mime smiled back.
Later that evening, Julia made a huge meal for the gang.
"I figured you four might be hungry, so dig in," she said.
Julia also made some Pokémon food for Togepi, Pichu, Pikachu, Infernape, and Growlithe.
"I've been looking forward to your cooking for a long time," Lyra said. She had always loved her mum's cooking.
Tomo, Misty, and Brock were enjoying the meal too.
"So Lyra, what are you planning to do now?" Julia asked.
"Well, I need to ask Professor Oak where Indigo Plateau is," Lyra said, "and since I have a few more months until the Indigo League, I'll use the time left to train."
"What are you going to do for training?" Brock asked curiously.
"Well, I've decided to train my Pokémon in different habitats," Lyra said, "you know, like train my Water Pokémon in the ocean and my Bug Pokémon in the forest and all that."
"Yeah, I like that idea," Misty said.
That night, Lyra was tucked up in bed with Tomo beside her. Pichu, Pikachu, Infernape, and Growlithe were in a Pokémon bed.
"We are going to be very busy for the next few months," she said, "so we are going to need all the rest we can get tonight."
"I can't wait to see you fighting in the Indigo League, big sister," Tomo said.
"And I can't wait to participate in it," Lyra said.
And soon they were all asleep.
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Thank you for reading!
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