Roselia and Roserade! A New Companion for Silus!

Silus continued his journey to become a Pokémon Master, leaving Gardenia Town behind after obtaining his very first Hora League badge. He now finds himself on the tree covered road of Hora Route 4, traveling towards Mimosa City; the next destination in his journey.

Meanwhile, down the road from him, among the berry trees, a young girl from the Johto Region, named Lyra, was battling a wild Roselia and Roserade.

"Go Azumarill, Whirlpool!" she commanded loudly.

"Azu!" shouted the oval-shaped water Pokémon, spraying a jet of water which then swirled into a whirlpool around the larger Roserade; knocking it down.

"Rose..." moaned the younger Roselia, who attempted to flee.

"Azumarill, don't let it escape!" Lyra shouted frantically.

The large water Pokémon leaped into the fleeing Roselia's way. At the same time, Lyra was taking out a Pokéball, proceeding to toss it at the fallen Roserade. A red light encompassed the Grass Pokémon and the Pokéball fell to the ground, shaking three times before sparkling to indicate a capture.

"Score!" Lyra shouted in excitement.

"Azu! Azu!" Azumarril bellowed, sharing her master's joy.

In all the excitement, Roselia darted behind Azumarill and dashed into the bushes.

"Oh no, Azumarill! After it!" Lyra called as she and her Pokémon gave chase to Roselia.

Meeting & a Challenge
Up the road a few yards was Silus, who was happily walking along the road, examining his new and shiny badge.

"Man, I just can't wait to get up the road to Lumex Town. I've wanted to see the Pokémon Cemetary since I was nine!" he exclaimed to himself.

Suddenly, a Pokémon dashed out of the bushes and onto the road in front of him.

"Rose! Rose!" it cried, charging directly at him.

"Ahhhhh! What is that?!" Silus screamed, taking out his Pokédex.

"Roselia, the Thorn Pokémon. The more healthy the Roselia, the more pleasant its flowers' aroma. Its scent deeply relaxes people." the mechanical device chimed.

"If its a Grass-type, then I choose Monferno!" Silus declared, releasing the Playful Pokémon from its Pokéball in a bright flash of light.

"Mon! Mon!" the chimpanzee-looking Pokémon cried.

Roselia continued its charge directly at Silus, its flowers glowing signifying an upcoming attack.

"Monferno, Flamethrower!" Silus commanded.

Monferno spewed a jet of molten hot flames from its mouth, slamming into the Thorn Pokémon's torso and knocking it down. Silus then took out a Pokéball, but just as he did, Roselia staggered to its feet and hopped into the bushes. Not willing to give in just yet, Silus tossed the Pokéball after Roselia. There was a brief flash, and then all was silent...for the moment.

When Silus went into the brush to find his Pokéball, he was met by a girl with two pigtails, who had just emerged from the opposite direction.

"Who're you?" the girl asked him, seeming irritated.

"I'm Silus. Sorry if I disturbed you, I just came in here looking for my Pokéball." he replied.

"Funny, that's what I was doing too. I just caught a Roselia...I think." she said.

Silus looked stunned, "No way! I just caught a Roselia! It ran right into these bushes and I threw my Pokéball after it!" he exclaimed.

Now fresh irritation was washing over the girl's face, "That's impossible, because that's what I just did!" she shouted.

Silus darted for a nearby tree, at the base of which was two Pokéballs laying side by side. One lay open, obviously empty, while the other was firmly shut; most likely with the caught Roselia inside of it.

The girl stomped over to his location and looked down at his discovery, "Well, that one is obviously my Pokéball." she insisted, jabbing her pointer finger in the direction of the closed Pokéball.

Silus was starting to become angry, "No way! That's my Pokéball!" he retorted.

"Is not!" she shouted chilishly.

Silus snarled. "Looks like the only way we're going to solve this is by having a battle." he declared.

This stopped the girl in her fit, causing a certain calmness to come to her face. "A battle?" she repeated.

"Yes, a battle." Silus said. "The winner gets the Roselia Pokéball."

The girl smiled, "Alright then, you're on. A three-on-three battle is what it'll be." she said.

"Fine with me." Silus smirked.

Silus vs Lyra
Silus and the girl took opposing sides, a few feet of distance between them.

"Ok, miss, choose your first Pokémon." he said.

"Miss? My name's Lyra. Just call me that." she replied.

"Alright, Lyra." Silus said.

Lyra took out a Pokéball on her waist and enlarged it with a push of the button at its center. "Trusting in you, Bayleef!" she shouted.

The Pokémon that appeared had a long, broad neck, with two buldging red eyes and stood on all fours; a leaf stuck out from its head.

"What's that?" Silus murmurred, taking out his Pokédex again.

"Bayleef, the Leaf Pokémon and the evolved form of Chikorita. A spicy aroma emanates from around its neck. The aroma acts as a stimulant to restore health."

Lyra's eyes buldged, "You have a Pokédex?!" she exclaimed.

"Of course I do!" Silus retorted, "Why would you be so surprised?"

Lyra happily pulled out a pink Pokédex from her bag, clearly a different model, but still recognizable as a Pokédex. "I've got one too!" she replied.

Now it was Silus' turn to be amazed, "Are you from Eden Town too? I've never seen you before." he asked.

"Eden Town? No, I'm from Newbark Town in Johto." she replied.

Silus felt a wave of shock overcome him, "Newbark Town?! That's where Ryan is from!" he thought.

"I've come here to collect badges and Pokémon." Lyra concluded her explanation, "Now are you going to pick your Pokémon, or not?"

"Right!" Silus said, snapping out of his daze. "If you've chosen your starter Pokémon, then I'll choose mine! Go, Monferno!"

Lyra gawed at Monferno, "I've never seen a Monferno before! Its so cute!" she squeeled.

Monferno developed a sweat drop on its forehead, signifying its embarrasment. Likewise, Silus was also embarrassed.

"Well then, ladies first; you have the first move, Lyra." Silus said, shaking himself out of it.

"How gentleman-like of you." she replied, winking at him. "Go Leafy! Use Vine Whip!" she commanded.

"Leafy?" Silus muttered, "Oh well, Monferno dodge it!"

"Mon!" Monferno bellowed, leaping out of the way.

"What?" Lyra interjected. "You don't nickname your Pokémon? Then how are you suppose to give them a sense of individuality?"

"Monferno, Flamethrower!" Silus snarled, ignoring Lyra.

"Monnnnn...FERNO!" the chimp Pokémon yelled, expelling a jet of flames which hit Leafy square in the chest.

"Oh no, poor Leafy!" Lyra exclaimed.

"Mon! Monferno!" Monfero celebrated.

Lyra returned her Pokémon to its Pokéball, meaning that Silus won the first round. Silus then returned Monferno to its ball as well.

"Alright, time for round two!" Lyra shouted excitingly. "Go Azu!"

Her Pokéball burst open, revealing her Azumarill from earlier. "Azumarill!" the Pokémon said happily.

"If that's your choice, I'll choose Oshawott!" Silus declared, sending out the tiny otter Pokémon.

"An Oshawott, huh? He's cute too!" Lyra said happily. "Though, you didn't even nickname this one, either."

"So?" Silus retorted, obviously not caring. "My turn to go first! Use Aqua Jet, Oshawott!" he shouted.

Oshawott leaped into the air, surrounded by a veil of water, and dove straight for Azumarill.

"So much for being a gentleman." Lyra scoffed. "Use your weight, Azu! Slam it!"

Azumarill jumped and slammed into the oncoming Oshawott, literally throwing it backwards and into the ground.

"Oshawott!" Silus screamed, running over to the otter Pokémon and cradling it in his arms.

"Azu's ability is called Huge Power. It doubles the attack power of her attacks. Couple that with Azu's weight, and Oshawott didn't stand a chance." Lyra explained. "I win Round Two. Its a draw. Time for a tie breaker."

Silus and Lyra returned their Pokémon and prepared to use their last.

"I just caught this one, but it should be good in battle. Go, Rosey!" Lyra declared.

Suddenly, a Roserade stood between Silus and Lyra. "Roserade!" it chimed.

"Rose...rade?" Silus sounded out, confused. He then took out his Pokédex and scanned it.

"Roserade, the Bouquet Pokémon and the evolved form of Roselia. Its sweet aroma attracts prey. Then it spews poison. The more toxic it is, the sweeter its aroma."

"So Roserade evolves from Roselia? Then why did you want to catch this Roselia if you had already caught this?" Silus asked.

"Well, you see, I'm very fond of the Roselia evolution line, but in Johto, there aren't many Roselia around so I wanted to take the chance to capture them while I was in Hora." Lyra explained.

"I guess that makes sense. My last Pokémon will be...Pikachu!" Silus declared, throwing the Pokéball to send out the Electric Mouse Pokémon.

"Pika." it said upon appearing.

"Wow, a Pikachu! I love those Pokémon!" Lyra shouted with excitement.

"Your move!" Silus said.

"Alright, Rosey, use Poison Jab!" Lyra commanded.

Roserade's flowers glowed purple as it leaped up to jab them at Pikachu.

"Pikachu, counter with Iron Tail!" Silus shouted.

Pikachu's tail glowed white and it leaped up after Roserade, swinging around and hitting its bouquet of flowers with its tail, canceling out both attacks. However, Roserade was suddenly enveloped in yellow sparks.

"Roooose!" it cried out in pain.

"Rosey!" Lyra cried.

"This is Pikachu's ability, Static. Whenever a Pokémon makes physical contact with Pikachu, it becomes paralyzed." Silus explained.

"Oh no! Rosey, try to use Magical Leaf!" Lyra persisted.

Roserade attempted to attack, but simply could not.

"Pikachu, let's end this! Volt Tackle!" Silus commanded.

Pikachu was enveloped in electric energy as it sped up and collided with Roserade, knocking the Pokémon down and out.

"That's Round Three, and I win." Silus declared, happily picking up the Roselia Pokéball.

Team Rocket returns!
Lyra returned Roserade to its Pokéball and sighed, "I suppose you won that Pokémon fair and square." she admited.

Silus released Roselia from the Pokéball and smiled at it, "Hi there! I'm your new partner, Silus!" he said to the tiny Pokémon.

Roselia looked at him blankly for a moment before smiling back, "Rose, Rose!" it said happily.

Lyra found herself smiling upon seeing Roselia's happiness, "I guess it was all for the best." she silently admitted to herself.

Meanwhile, in the trees nearby, three shady figures had watched the entire event.

"Roselia..." said the male.

"And Roserade too...!" chimed a feline voice.

"Its not often that you can get the two of them together!" came a feminine voice. "I bet the boss would be pleased with those two Pokémon!"

"Yeah, and maybe we'll get a promotion if he likes it enough!" the feline voice said eagarly.

"I'd be happy with a well prepared lunch..." the male voice replied.

A smacking noise erupted from the tree, scaring a nearby Starly.

"Do you only think about your stomach?!" the female voice snarled angrily, "We're on the verge of a promotion here!"

"I'm sorry, but we haven't eaten all day..." the male replied, obviously in pain.

Suddenly, the sound of three growling stomachs filled the air.

"You have a point." said the feline.

"Fine, we'll catch the Pokémon and then lunch!" the female declared.

"Now, you're talking!" the male said, suddenly as eagar as his teammates.

Prepare for Trouble...!
In the meantime, Lyra and Silus had sat down and let all of their Pokémon out of their Pokéballs for lunch. Roselia and Roserade seemed very happy to be together once more, and froliced in the grass while the others ate.

"So, Lyra, where are you headed?" Silus asked.

"Mimosa City. I'm competing in the Hora League, so I'm going to train there." she replied.

"I'm heading there as well, to see the Pokémon Cemetary." Silus continued.

Lyra smiled, "Then why don't we travel together?" she suggested.

Silus put down his rice cake, "You sure?" he asked.

"Of course! Since we're both in the Hora League, and are into Pokémon Contests, we're heading in the same direction anyways. Plus, our Pokémon seem to like each other and would probably like some other playmates." she explained.

Silus nodded as he thought it over, "Okay, I'm alright with it." he replied.

"Awesome!" Lyra said joyously.

Their joy was suddenly interupted, however, when two large mechanical arms reached out from the bushes and snatched up Roselia and Roserade; both Pokémon crying out in fear and pain.

"Rosey!" Lyra shouted in surprise.

"Roselia, no!" Silus yelled.

"Hahahaahhaha!" laughed a female voice in the shadows.

"Who's there?!" Silus barked.

A feline Pokémon stepped out of the shadows, holding a remote control.

"A Meowth?!" Lyra exclaimed.

"HA!" Meowth laughed, pressing a red button on his controller. A third arm reached out and bagged up all of the food, retracting towards the shady group.

"That's our lunch!" Lyra shouted angrily.

"Prepare for trouble and a nice surprise!" sung the female.

"Make it double with an order of fries!" replied the male.

"To protect our tummies from rumbling too much!"

"To enjoy our meals with a gourmet touch!"

"To denounce the evils of hunger and thirst!"

"To consume so much food, you’d think you burst!"

"Jessie!"

"James!"

"Team Rocket blasts off in search of wonderful treats!"

"Surrender now or prepare to fork over your sweets!"

"Meowth, yeah, let’s eat!" the Meowth finished.

"Team Rocket...." Silus snarled.

"You know them?!" Lyra questioned, shocked.

"Yeah, they're a gang of no-good theifs that tried to steal my Pokémon in Gardenia Town." Silus explained.

"Who're you calling no-good?!" Jessie retorted angrily.

"Give back Roselia and Roserade!" Lyra demanded.

"And what if we don't?" the Meowth sneered.

"Then I'll have to battle you!" Lyra replied, "Let's go, Azu!"

"Azu...Azumarril!" the water Pokémon replied angrily.

Jessie tossed a Pokéball, "Teach them a lesson, Snivy!" she barked.

The Grass Pokémon appeared and immediately began spinning, "Use Grass Mixer!" Jessie commanded.

Snivy produced hundreds of leaves which it then threw, in tornado form, at Azumarill.

"C'mon Monty, use Flamethrower!" Silus suddenly commanded.

"M-Monty?" Lyra said, looking at Silus in confusion.

Silus winked at her, "I took your advice from our battle." he replied smiling.

"Monferno!" Monty replied eagarly, shooting a jet of flames at Snivy's Grass Mixer, burning it up.

"Now's your chance, Azu! Use Hydro Pump!" Lyra commanded, smiling back at Silus.

Azumarill shot a powerful jet of water directly at the now defenseless Snivy, hitting in head on, causing a watery explosion that hit all of Team Rocket. Meowth's controler malfunctioned from the water, releasing Roselia and Roserade.

"Now then..." Silus began. "Roselia!"

"Roserade!" Lyra chimed in, anticipating Silus' move.

"Weather ball!" they shouted in unison.

Roselia and Roserade each created a ball of intense water, drawn from the water that was raining down from Azumarill's attack, and fired both at Team Rocket, causing a second explosion.

Team Rocket was now airborne.

"So much for lunch..." James complained.

"If you had caught some Pokémon earlier, you could've fought too, you know?!" Jessie snarled at him.

"It doesn't mater now because...." Meowth began.

"We're blasting off again...!" the said in unison, disappearing in the twinkling in the sky.

Departing
The sun was now setting over Route 4 and both Lyra and Silus had returned to the main road.

"To Mimosa City then?" Silus asked, motioning to the outline of the city in the distance.

"To Mimosa City." Lyra affirmed, smiling.

And so, our heros set out for their next adventure in the Hora Region...not knowing that an evil is awakening in a far off place in the Hora region...