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Description

Chapter 13: Stamp on the ground

And here is, finally, the long awaited Chapter 13! Sorry for the long wait for this chapter. Lots of different problems, which I'm not speaking of here.

I'm still a bit unsure about this chapter. So, please tell me what you think about it.

---------------------------------

I was awoken the next day by Thumper thumping on the tree I was sleeping in. It was actually really comforting to sleep in the branches and it helped me keeping my dreams and thoughts more peaceful. I still had some episodes of depression, but I think I finally got over the worst after Calem and I had this little "talk".

"Hey! Argon!" called Thumper from below. "Calem said, I should get you for our shopping trip."

"Alright, alright. I'm coming." I called back and stretched with some satisfying pops of my joints before jumping down and landing with ease on my feet. Even after three weeks of being turned into a pokémon, the abilities of this body still surprise me sometimes.

Thumper lead me to the front entrance of the lab where Calem was already waiting with his backpack. Kitsune wasn't there, which means, she was probably in her Pokeball. As Calem turned to us, he smiled upon seeing us. "Good to see you, Argon. We have a lot to do today." said Calem and we made our way out of the lab.

Me and Thumper walked beside Calem on the sidewalk towards what I recognizes as a shopping mall.

I was proven, as we entered and shops lined up the walls. They really had everything: Shops that sell clothes for humans AND pokémon, shops for special items and accessories for pokémon, food-stores, game-shops and stores for camping-equipment. The last was our destination as Calem lead us inside.

"We need some new equipment if you are going to be our cook, Argon. We need pots, a table, cooking tools etc. Then, we can have a look around the mall and maybe find something for you guys." said Calem and we browsed through the store and got everything we needed into a shopping cart. I looked at the load of stuff in the car and wondered, how we would carry all this. I got Calems attention and pointed at the stuff and then to his backpack with a shrug.

"You want to know, how we carry this? Well, I will show you in a moment." with that, Calem finished the shopping and got to the exit to pay for the stuff. I followed him and looked closely as he handed the cashier his Pokedex and after the item was scanned, it just vanished! My look must have been funny, since I heard Calem and Thumper giggling at me.

"The Pokedex also works as a storage system similar to the transportation system for the Pokeballs." explained Calem as the cashier put the last item inside the Pokedex. "The storage is limited thought, so we must carefully think about what we take with us and what we can/should carry in our backpack."

I nodded and thought about that. It actually makes sense that they would have something like that. When I think about all the times in the anime, where they have all this stuff out when they are cooking and such.

We also visited a food store and Calem let me decide what to buy, since I would be the one cooking and know better what I can do. I got us some stuff that could easily be cooked on the road and will last for a longer period of time. Calem also got some pokefood for us, since it was cheaper than normal food and more healthy for us together with some healing potions and a few extra pokeballs from the pokemart. The pokefood, potions and pokeballs got stored in his backpack with a few snacks and bottles with water, while the other food got packed in a crate and transported to the storage.

We got to a bench and sat down. Thumper took one side of Calem and me the other. "Alright. We got everything to continue our journey tomorrow. But today," Calem explained and send Kitsune out of her pokeball and continued with his explanation, "we will just relax and have fun."

Kitsune and Thumper let out happy sounds to show their agreement. I joined a little awkward, not sure what we will do.

We just walked around and did some window shopping. We first visited a shop for Pokemon accessories and clothes. Thumper got a so called "Silk Scarf", which increases the power of his normal type attacks. It looked like a normal, silvery scarf to me. Kitsune was happy to get a cute, white bow for the hair that comes from her ears, as she bound it behind her head, which actually looks quite good on her.

I didn't find anything at first and looked a bit more around, as something caught my interest. I saw a really cool looking hat in the design of Indiana Jones laying there on a table and I grabbed it. I tried it on and it actually fit quite well. As I looked in a nearby mirror, I just know I had to get this hat.

"That looks really cool, Argon." said Thumper as he walked up behind me with the scarf tied around his neck.

"Thanks. Do you think Calem will buy it for me?" I asked as I looked myself over in different poses.

"Sure! He said we could each choose an item for ourselves." reminded me Thumper and we made our way over to our trainer.

As Calem saw us, he smiled at me and my new hat. "Hey, Argon. That looks really good on you. Do you want me to buy it?"

I smiled and nodded with a "Yes.". Calem took the head to pay for it, but stopped for a moment to talk to one of the workers, who took the hat and got to one of the back room. I wondered what that was about, but didn't ask. Maybe this was just a show model for customers and the worker got a new hat from the back.

Calem smiled at me and patted my head while saying: "It's a little surprise for you."

After a few minutes of waiting, the worker came back with the hat. Calem thanked her and gave her a bit money, before going to pay for the other items. As we stepped out the shop, he knelt down to my level and showed me what he was doing with the hat.

There was some kind of grey stone worked into the front of it. I tilted my head and wondered what that was. Calem giggled at my cluelessness and explained: "This is an Everstone. As long as you carry this with you, you will not evolve. I thought, since you don't want to evolve, this would be perfect for you."

I actually didn't know what to say. I took the hat and looked it over before placing it on my hat, sliding it a bit down to cover my eyes. Calem got a bit worried as I didn't move and asked: "Argon? Are you alright? Sorry if the surprise wasn't..." before he could finish that sentence, I jumped up and gave him a hug. Letting him know, I really liked the gift.

He hugged me back and patted me on the head. "Well, that's one problem less on my mind." I thought as I let go of Calem and we walked to the cashier.

Calem paid for our new items and we were again on our way through the mall. I then spotted a shop I just had to visit. I grabbed Calem's pants to get his attention.

Calem looked down at me and asked: "What's up, buddy? Found something interesting?"

I nodded and pointed to the shop of my interest: An gaming arcade with many different videogames! The perfect place for a nerd like me!

Calem looked a bit skeptical at me, properly wondering if this really was something for a Pokemon. I just smiled encouragingly up at him and hoped he would allow it. After a few moments of thinking, he smiled and said: "Alright, Argon. Let's check out the gaming arcade."

I jumped up in joy and yelled "YAY!" before running straight to the arcade. "Wait for us, Argon! You need money to play there!"

As we entered the arcade, Calem looked to me and asked: "Do you know what an game arcade is, Argon?" I nodded and mimicked to push buttons with one hand, while using a controller stick with the other. "That's pretty much it, yes. Alright! Let's see if we can find something for you to play."

Thumper came to me and asked: "You really sure you know how this stuff works?"

"As I already explained to you, I used to be human. I had my own computer and spend hours playing games and stuff on my gaming stations." I explained in a matter of fact.

"Of course. How could I forget." He said sarcastically. I didn't even bother to try and convince him. I just didn't care anymore if he, or anyone, believes me or not.

We came to the first arcade machine. A simple machine with two buttons and a stick. "Space Intruders!" said the title on the screen. I was on the machine, half hanging, to reach the stick and buttons. I somehow made it work and Calem put a coin in the slot of the machine.

The game started and I was right in my element. Calem was praising me for my skill and watched me beat one level after the other. Kitsune and Thumper, who was currently hanging on Kitsunes shoulder to see what I did, watched with interest seeing me playing a human game like that.

I eventually lost my last life, but ranked 2nd place. "Not bad, Argon. Want to play again or try something else?" asked Calem. I shook my head "no" and looked around for another game.

There was some commotion around a stage with multiple monitors. I walked over to see what was going on and squeezed myself through the crowd before Calem could stop me and I saw a young man standing kinda arrogant in front of one of these dancing games with the controller being a little stage with blinking signs on the ground to step on.

"Well, there goes another loser. Is here really no one who can beat me?" he said arrogantly. And just like that, I didn't like him. "Anyone else dares to challenge me?" He asked and looked around the crowd. everyone seemed to have suddenly found something interesting on the ground or the ceiling to look at and murmuring things like "No way. This guy is crazy" and "no chance that anyone could beat him".

"There you are, Argon. Why did you run away?" came the voice of Calem from behind me, before I felt myself being lifted and hold to his chest. I pointed to the dancing game.

The kid at the machine noticed me pointing and smirked. "What's this? Does your Pokemon want to challenge me to a dance battle?" he asked sarcastically.

"Ehm... well... the thing is..." Calem was surprised to be put on the spot like that. I decided to help him out and tapped his arms to get his attention. He looked down at me and asked: "What is it, Argon?"

I pointed back at the dance machine and said with a nod: "I want to give it a try."

He looked at me and asked: "Do you think you can beat him?" I looked at him and shrugged with a smile. Calem understood I didn't really care if I won or lose and smiled before setting me on the stage. "Give your best, Argon."

"Hey! What is your lizard doing up here?" asked the kid and looked annoyingly at me.

"First of, his name is Argon. Secondly: He just wants to give this a try." explained Calem.

"Tch. Whatever. My names Johnny Twitch. Since there is no actual challenger, I can entertain myself with a bit slow dancing." said Johnny and prepared the machine for another round.

The machine was ready and he started the countdown right away, without even bothering to explain the rules or how the machine works. "Alright, let's see what your Lizard can do."

Calem was shocked it started so fast and said: "Wait a minute. Don't you at least explain him how this works?"

"For what? He is just a Pokemon. Not like he understands any of this electronic stuff anyway." said Johnny. "Don't worry. It's actually an easy song to not overwhelm him."

"Jepp. Don't like him at all." I thought to myself as the game started and got in a ready position. The song he choose was actually "Ooh Child" from the "Five Stairsteps".

I was suddenly reminded of Guardians of the Galaxy...

The song started and we begun to step on the plates on the floor like the screen showed us. It begun slowly, but got up in speed at some points. I was actually having some problems at the beginning, since my new body was a great deal smaller then my old one, and I had trouble reaching the buttons.

But as I got used to the size different, it was surprisingly easy to play the game. The crowd around us had murmured at the beginning, but was now completely focused on the dance off between a Human and a Pokemon.

Description

Chapter 13: Stamp on the ground

And here is, finally, the long awaited Chapter 13! Sorry for the long wait for this chapter. Lots of different problems, which I'm not speaking of here.

I'm still a bit unsure about this chapter. So, please tell me what you think about it.

---------------------------------

I was awoken the next day by Thumper thumping on the tree I was sleeping in. It was actually really comforting to sleep in the branches and it helped me keeping my dreams and thoughts more peaceful. I still had some episodes of depression, but I think I finally got over the worst after Calem and I had this little "talk".

"Hey! Argon!" called Thumper from below. "Calem said, I should get you for our shopping trip."

"Alright, alright. I'm coming." I called back and stretched with some satisfying pops of my joints before jumping down and landing with ease on my feet. Even after three weeks of being turned into a pokémon, the abilities of this body still surprise me sometimes.

Thumper lead me to the front entrance of the lab where Calem was already waiting with his backpack. Kitsune wasn't there, which means, she was probably in her Pokeball. As Calem turned to us, he smiled upon seeing us. "Good to see you, Argon. We have a lot to do today." said Calem and we made our way out of the lab.

Me and Thumper walked beside Calem on the sidewalk towards what I recognizes as a shopping mall.

I was proven, as we entered and shops lined up the walls. They really had everything: Shops that sell clothes for humans AND pokémon, shops for special items and accessories for pokémon, food-stores, game-shops and stores for camping-equipment. The last was our destination as Calem lead us inside.

"We need some new equipment if you are going to be our cook, Argon. We need pots, a table, cooking tools etc. Then, we can have a look around the mall and maybe find something for you guys." said Calem and we browsed through the store and got everything we needed into a shopping cart. I looked at the load of stuff in the car and wondered, how we would carry all this. I got Calems attention and pointed at the stuff and then to his backpack with a shrug.

"You want to know, how we carry this? Well, I will show you in a moment." with that, Calem finished the shopping and got to the exit to pay for the stuff. I followed him and looked closely as he handed the cashier his Pokedex and after the item was scanned, it just vanished! My look must have been funny, since I heard Calem and Thumper giggling at me.

"The Pokedex also works as a storage system similar to the transportation system for the Pokeballs." explained Calem as the cashier put the last item inside the Pokedex. "The storage is limited thought, so we must carefully think about what we take with us and what we can/should carry in our backpack."

I nodded and thought about that. It actually makes sense that they would have something like that. When I think about all the times in the anime, where they have all this stuff out when they are cooking and such.

We also visited a food store and Calem let me decide what to buy, since I would be the one cooking and know better what I can do. I got us some stuff that could easily be cooked on the road and will last for a longer period of time. Calem also got some pokefood for us, since it was cheaper than normal food and more healthy for us together with some healing potions and a few extra pokeballs from the pokemart. The pokefood, potions and pokeballs got stored in his backpack with a few snacks and bottles with water, while the other food got packed in a crate and transported to the storage.

We got to a bench and sat down. Thumper took one side of Calem and me the other. "Alright. We got everything to continue our journey tomorrow. But today," Calem explained and send Kitsune out of her pokeball and continued with his explanation, "we will just relax and have fun."

Kitsune and Thumper let out happy sounds to show their agreement. I joined a little awkward, not sure what we will do.

We just walked around and did some window shopping. We first visited a shop for Pokemon accessories and clothes. Thumper got a so called "Silk Scarf", which increases the power of his normal type attacks. It looked like a normal, silvery scarf to me. Kitsune was happy to get a cute, white bow for the hair that comes from her ears, as she bound it behind her head, which actually looks quite good on her.

I didn't find anything at first and looked a bit more around, as something caught my interest. I saw a really cool looking hat in the design of Indiana Jones laying there on a table and I grabbed it. I tried it on and it actually fit quite well. As I looked in a nearby mirror, I just know I had to get this hat.

"That looks really cool, Argon." said Thumper as he walked up behind me with the scarf tied around his neck.

"Thanks. Do you think Calem will buy it for me?" I asked as I looked myself over in different poses.

"Sure! He said we could each choose an item for ourselves." reminded me Thumper and we made our way over to our trainer.

As Calem saw us, he smiled at me and my new hat. "Hey, Argon. That looks really good on you. Do you want me to buy it?"

I smiled and nodded with a "Yes.". Calem took the head to pay for it, but stopped for a moment to talk to one of the workers, who took the hat and got to one of the back room. I wondered what that was about, but didn't ask. Maybe this was just a show model for customers and the worker got a new hat from the back.

Calem smiled at me and patted my head while saying: "It's a little surprise for you."

After a few minutes of waiting, the worker came back with the hat. Calem thanked her and gave her a bit money, before going to pay for the other items. As we stepped out the shop, he knelt down to my level and showed me what he was doing with the hat.

There was some kind of grey stone worked into the front of it. I tilted my head and wondered what that was. Calem giggled at my cluelessness and explained: "This is an Everstone. As long as you carry this with you, you will not evolve. I thought, since you don't want to evolve, this would be perfect for you."

I actually didn't know what to say. I took the hat and looked it over before placing it on my hat, sliding it a bit down to cover my eyes. Calem got a bit worried as I didn't move and asked: "Argon? Are you alright? Sorry if the surprise wasn't..." before he could finish that sentence, I jumped up and gave him a hug. Letting him know, I really liked the gift.

He hugged me back and patted me on the head. "Well, that's one problem less on my mind." I thought as I let go of Calem and we walked to the cashier.

Calem paid for our new items and we were again on our way through the mall. I then spotted a shop I just had to visit. I grabbed Calem's pants to get his attention.

Calem looked down at me and asked: "What's up, buddy? Found something interesting?"

I nodded and pointed to the shop of my interest: An gaming arcade with many different videogames! The perfect place for a nerd like me!

Calem looked a bit skeptical at me, properly wondering if this really was something for a Pokemon. I just smiled encouragingly up at him and hoped he would allow it. After a few moments of thinking, he smiled and said: "Alright, Argon. Let's check out the gaming arcade."

I jumped up in joy and yelled "YAY!" before running straight to the arcade. "Wait for us, Argon! You need money to play there!"

As we entered the arcade, Calem looked to me and asked: "Do you know what an game arcade is, Argon?" I nodded and mimicked to push buttons with one hand, while using a controller stick with the other. "That's pretty much it, yes. Alright! Let's see if we can find something for you to play."

Thumper came to me and asked: "You really sure you know how this stuff works?"

"As I already explained to you, I used to be human. I had my own computer and spend hours playing games and stuff on my gaming stations." I explained in a matter of fact.

"Of course. How could I forget." He said sarcastically. I didn't even bother to try and convince him. I just didn't care anymore if he, or anyone, believes me or not.

We came to the first arcade machine. A simple machine with two buttons and a stick. "Space Intruders!" said the title on the screen. I was on the machine, half hanging, to reach the stick and buttons. I somehow made it work and Calem put a coin in the slot of the machine.

The game started and I was right in my element. Calem was praising me for my skill and watched me beat one level after the other. Kitsune and Thumper, who was currently hanging on Kitsunes shoulder to see what I did, watched with interest seeing me playing a human game like that.

I eventually lost my last life, but ranked 2nd place. "Not bad, Argon. Want to play again or try something else?" asked Calem. I shook my head "no" and looked around for another game.

There was some commotion around a stage with multiple monitors. I walked over to see what was going on and squeezed myself through the crowd before Calem could stop me and I saw a young man standing kinda arrogant in front of one of these dancing games with the controller being a little stage with blinking signs on the ground to step on.

"Well, there goes another loser. Is here really no one who can beat me?" he said arrogantly. And just like that, I didn't like him. "Anyone else dares to challenge me?" He asked and looked around the crowd. everyone seemed to have suddenly found something interesting on the ground or the ceiling to look at and murmuring things like "No way. This guy is crazy" and "no chance that anyone could beat him".

"There you are, Argon. Why did you run away?" came the voice of Calem from behind me, before I felt myself being lifted and hold to his chest. I pointed to the dancing game.

The kid at the machine noticed me pointing and smirked. "What's this? Does your Pokemon want to challenge me to a dance battle?" he asked sarcastically.

"Ehm... well... the thing is..." Calem was surprised to be put on the spot like that. I decided to help him out and tapped his arms to get his attention. He looked down at me and asked: "What is it, Argon?"

I pointed back at the dance machine and said with a nod: "I want to give it a try."

He looked at me and asked: "Do you think you can beat him?" I looked at him and shrugged with a smile. Calem understood I didn't really care if I won or lose and smiled before setting me on the stage. "Give your best, Argon."

"Hey! What is your lizard doing up here?" asked the kid and looked annoyingly at me.

"First of, his name is Argon. Secondly: He just wants to give this a try." explained Calem.

"Tch. Whatever. My names Johnny Twitch. Since there is no actual challenger, I can entertain myself with a bit slow dancing." said Johnny and prepared the machine for another round.

The machine was ready and he started the countdown right away, without even bothering to explain the rules or how the machine works. "Alright, let's see what your Lizard can do."

Calem was shocked it started so fast and said: "Wait a minute. Don't you at least explain him how this works?"

"For what? He is just a Pokemon. Not like he understands any of this electronic stuff anyway." said Johnny. "Don't worry. It's actually an easy song to not overwhelm him."

"Jepp. Don't like him at all." I thought to myself as the game started and got in a ready position. The song he choose was actually "Ooh Child" from the "Five Stairsteps".

I was suddenly reminded of Guardians of the Galaxy...

The song started and we begun to step on the plates on the floor like the screen showed us. It begun slowly, but got up in speed at some points. I was actually having some problems at the beginning, since my new body was a great deal smaller then my old one, and I had trouble reaching the buttons.

But as I got used to the size different, it was surprisingly easy to play the game. The crowd around us had murmured at the beginning, but was now completely focused on the dance off between a Human and a Pokemon.