A/N: Sorry for the late chapter! Please comment what you think Fuecoco's name should be.
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Surprisingly, our sleep was undisturbed. I woke up to Nautilus snoring in my face and Fuecoco drooling all over my feet. It was disgusting, but I didn't freak out. That wouldn't be a great way to start the day. Instead, I slowly shifted my feet out from under her. Luckily, she seemed to be a heavy sleeper. I took off my clothes and used some travel wipes to clean myself.
Once I got dressed, I unzipped the tent and started breakfast. The sun beamed its heat over everything. I'd only been up for ten minutes, but I already felt sticky and gross. The stove was fully charged and ready for use. Once I had the pot warming, I started prepping breakfast. I decided oatmeal would do me some good.
After adding water to the pot, I chopped some of the sweeter Berries and a couple of handfuls of nuts. I took out the oatmeal, Gogoat milk powder, cinnamon, and sugar, stirring them in one at a time. Despite how hot it was, it was a pleasant morning. The forest was bright and cheery, completely different from the chaotic and violent vibe of yesterday. The sweetness of the Berries and sugar, combined with the grounding scent of oats and cinnamon, left me relaxed and content. I felt content with how things were going.
"Co!"
"Kay?!"
"CO!"
"Ferro!"
I hung my head back. My morning peace disappeared like my memories. I heard them scuffling inside the tent. "Oi, shut the fuck up and come get your breakfast!"
They paused for a moment before the scrambling intensified for several seconds. Right before I yelled again, Nautilus and Fuecoco pushed each other out. They glared at each other and puffed out their nearly nonexistent chests.
Tetsu rolled out and jumped between them with abandon, completely oblivious to their dominance struggle. "Ferro, Ferro!" she exclaimed and bounded over.
"Well, good morning, nena," I said, the word rolling out before I realized it. "Huh, is that Paldean?" I looked at Tetsu, who vibrated expectantly. I grabbed another clay bowl and set her oatmeal down. "Look at you, getting me to speak in another language without thinking about it."
Her eyes closed in a smile as she stuck a spike into the bowl and absorbed it, food and all. Nautilus and Fuecoco were still engaged in their measuring contest, so I had Tetsu use Gravity when she finished eating.
Fuecoco slammed onto the ground, bewildered by the sudden change. Nautilus dipped down, but he caught himself before he touched the ground. I stood just fine, since I was expecting the move. I looked over at Nautilus. "Stop messing around. Breakfast is ready, and we need to train."
My eyes landed on Fuecoco, who glared at me. "You stayed last night. I take that to mean you accepted my offer of making you stronger?"
She struggled, but she nodded.
"Good. I will train you. But I won't hold back. There won't be any handouts for training. The first thing you need to do is get used to this Gravity. Once you can move around in it just fine, we'll focus on your battles skills."
Tetsu stopped the move, and Fuecoco stood up shakily. She panted, but she didn't seem hurt. "Training starts after breakfast. I've topped your bowls with extra Berries so that we don't have to stop to eat while we travel."
While we were eating, I went through my phone. The Rangers confirmed my report and planned to send someone to this section and talk to the Florges that saved us. Which reminded me…
"Nautilus, what did the Florges want?"
"Inkay?" he said mid-bite. His face scrunched with concentration, and I felt a weird sensation in my head. It slowly crept around my brain before moving inward. There was no pain, just the feeling of someone touching your hair softly. It cycled through my brain, and I got the vague sensation of something calling out to me.
It was like when you couldn't remember the name or word for something but had the image of what you were talking about in your mind. Then, the sensation disappeared. Nautilus gasped and slumped onto the floor. I rushed over and picked him up. He didn't look or act hurt.
"Are you okay?"
"Kay," he chirped weakly. I grabbed a Leppa Berry from my bag and fed it to him. He looked better right away and started floating again.
"Man, that must've exhausted you. Were you trying to talk to me in my head?" I asked. When he nodded, I sat and thought for a moment. "That will be an amazing ability in the future. But don't strain yourself trying to make it happen. Right now, we need to focus on power and efficiency. Strong hits for as long as possible. Sound good?"
Fuecoco stared the entire time. When I met her eyes, she looked away and huffed a small fiery breath. The empty bowl of oatmeal in front of her gleamed. "Do you want some more oatmeal, Fuecoco?"
She opened an eye at me and just barely nodded. The rest of our morning went quietly. I completed my workout. Nautilus meditated and manipulated Psychic energy. Tetsu spent the better part of an hour learning how to fluctuate the strength of her Gravity for each of us at the same time. Fuecoco watched all of us as we completed our training.
Well, she tried to. Tetsu's Gravity was too much for her despite it only being three times stronger than normal. But I had to give her some praise. It took Nautilus almost a week to get off the floor. Fuecoco managed that in the hour. I wasn't sure how the game's base stats translated to reality, but I knew from Mitchel that regional starters were popular because they were a fantastic mix of power and docility. Compared to strong Pokémon like Garchomp and Tyranitar, regional starters were easy to take care of and perfect for beginning Trainers.
Once we finished our training, we set off once again. I asked Fuecoco to lead us back to the route, which she did after some convincing. Fuecoco walked in front while I followed behind with Tetsu in my arms. Nautilus floated just behind my head. I felt like a proper Trainer out in the forest with my team.
I pulled out my phone and looked at the Map. "Cool, the map says we need to go left. It also says to travel quickly because the Vespiquen and Ledian colonies are still fighting."
Fuecoco stared at my phone. "Fue?"
"Are you asking if I could check the map the whole time?"
She nodded, and I smirked. "Yes, ma'am. Now, let's go."
As we walked, I had Tetsu practice Metal Claw. I watched as she focused on gathering Steel-type energy and shaping it into a claw. It took about twelve seconds for the entire process, which was way too long for a battle. However, seeing the silver claw coming from her side, an idea popped into my head for Tetsu.
"Tetsu, can you check how durable the Metal Claw is?" I asked. She looked at me; her eyes narrowed slightly in confusion. "I want to see if it can hold you up. Can you use two at the same time and move around?"
Tetsu's eyes widened, and she nodded. The first Metal Claw disappeared. Tetsu vibrated as she concentrated. After about thirty seconds, she had two Metal Claws gleaming in the light. She moved them around to get used to them. Once she was satisfied, she lifted herself up using the two claws. "Ferro!" she exclaimed giddily, only for the Metal Claws to disappear. She crashed onto the ground. Fuecoco and Nautilus both snickered, but Nautilus immediately stopped and growled out a warning to Fuecoco.
I laughed, not bothering to hide my amusement. "That was great, Tetsu. All you need is time and practice, and you'll be chasing us down in no time. Next time we train, I'll have you practice using Metal Claw, okay?"
"Seed!"
We continued walking, except I was leading us now. I turned to look at Fuecoco, who seemed more comfortable than I was expecting. I hoped her shiny status wouldn't be a big deal, but I'd need to look that up later. Right now, I wanted a name for Fuecoco.
"Yo, Fuecoco. I gave Nautilus and Tetsu here their names to help me differentiate them from other Trainers with the same Pokémon. It also makes me feel like we're more of a family than just a team. Would you like a nickname?"
Fuecoco stared at me for several seconds. I couldn't tell if she hadn't heard me or if she thought it was a stupid idea that didn't merit a response. To my surprise, however, she closed her eyes and answered with a curious tone. "Coco?"
"I can give some suggestions, and you can pick whichever one sounds better, alright?"
"Co."
"Alright, I've got Fuji, Amber, Nova, Ember, Coco, and Skelly."