Chapter 6
Jon and Loxy woke to the sound of someone bursting into the room.
“Wait they might be…” came Reese’s voice from the hall.
“Sleeping!” Mentos said. “OMG, do you know what time it is? There are Pokémon to be caught, training to do, a gym to tackle!”
“Good morning, Mentos,” Loxy said, leaning up just enough that the blanket didn’t slide off her breasts.
Jon thought about getting up but remembered he was naked under the covers. Reese came in, feigning apologies, but was truly seeking confirmation. “Oh, so sorry about this,” Reese said.
“It’s okay,” Loxy said, getting out of bed. “Your brother is right, it’s time to get up.”
Mentos turned away. “Hey, there are kids in the room.”
“You have seen naked women before,” Reese said.
“You don’t count,” Mentos said.
“Well, I am sorry we interrupted you,” Reese said.
“Interrupted what?” Mentos said.
“Training,” Reese answered.
“Interrupted?” Loxy asked, and looked to Jon, and noticed the bulge under the sheet.
“Oh, no, that’s just an REM induced erection.”
“Oh,” Reese said. “And what were you dreaming about?”
“Um, I don’t remember,” Jon said.
“Safe answer,” Reese said.
“I dreamt about Pokémon,” Mentos said.
“Jon, your clothes from yesterday are done, pressed and folded. You want to just wear them again?” Loxy asked.
“Yeah, why not,” Jon said.
“You look different somehow,” Reese said. “Younger and more mature at the same time.”
“You say that to all the guys,” Mentos said.
“I do not,” Reese snapped at her brother.
“She likes you,” Mentos said, as if revealing a secret.
Jon blushed. “She does?”
“OMG, Jon, like that’s a secret?” Loxy said, tossing him his clothes. “Reese, Jon likes you, too.”
“He does?” Reese asked.
“Why?” Mentos asked.
“Can we discuss this after I am dressed?” Jon asked.
“What’s taking you so long?!” Mentos asked.
“I am waiting for privacy,” Jon said.
“We’re both men,” Mentos said.
“Turn around,” Jon directed.
Mentos grunted and turned to face away. Jon waited for Reese to turn around, too. She did and Jon got up, unaware that she was spying him in the mirror. By the time he found his underwear in the stack of clothing Loxy had tossed at him, he discovered Reese had peeked.
“Wow,” Reese said.
“Right?” Loxy agreed, returning to the room in a bright golf outfit, a mini dress, with gold highlights. Jon was listening to the conversation, but also trying to sort just how fast she had dressed,
“He’s definitely not from this planet,” Reese said.
“I am really uncomfortable with this conversation,” Jon said.
“Why, what’s different?” Mentos asked, but turned too late.
Jon secured his pants and belt, pulled his shirt on, and then slipped into his jacket. His three companions froze, their mouths fell open. Mentos jumped up on the bed and came closer, examining the badge on the jacket.
“What? When did you get this?” Mentos asked.
“Where did you get this?” Loxy asked.
“You leveled him up good!” Reese said. “How much training did you both do last night?”
“Can I train with you tomorrow night?” Mentos asked.
“No!” Jon, Reese, and Loxy all said.
“Why?” Mentos said.
“It was the special, adult training,” Loxy said.
“How many levels did you advance him?” Reese asked.
“Wait! Look at the ring,” Mentos said. “I am confused. Gold, red, and blue! What Team are you playing for?”
“He’s playing for them all!” Reese said.
“That’s impossible! You have to choose one,” Mentos said.
“Unless they all choose you,” Jon offered an alternative.
Loxy retrieved her Pokédex to see if there had been updates to his file. She seemed perplexed.
“He didn’t just advance, he evolved,” Loxy said.
Mentos looked at her. “But he looks exactly the same!”
Loxy came closer to the bed so Mentos and Reese could see the Pokédex. Jon didn’t try to push into their power meeting. “Oh!” Reese said, eyeing Jon and looking back to the stats. There was a trainer total experience level, and under that bar graphs for seven other specialized training, three of which they recognized as Team Valor, Instinct, and Mystic. There was one long graph that seemed to indicate a continuum from shadow to light.
“Where did you catch him,” Reese asked. “I want one.”
“You just want a boyfriend,” Mentos said.
“So. One day you’re going to want one,” Reese said, flustered.
“I will never want a boyfriend,” Mentos declared.
“I meant a girlfriend,” Reese said.
“What can a girl do that a Pokémon can’t?!” Mentos asked.
“Ask Jon,” Loxy said.
“Oh!” Reese said again.
“Do you feel different?” Loxy asked.
“I feel happy,” Jon said. “I have never really felt happy before and so, it’s kind of a strange sensation. Wait wait wait. I hope this happiness. I don’t know what I am feeling. What is this, confidence? I feel unbeatable. And, this is going to sound weird, but I think that I know things that I don’t think I should know, not just stuff beyond my age, but stuff beyond my life and world.”
“You’re not making any sense,” Mentos said. “What did he evolve into, insane human?”
“Can you provide an example?” Loxy asked.
Jon thought about it. “No.”
“He still isn’t high enough to take the gym here,” Mentos said.
“Do I have to beat the gym? Can’t you guys go and then ask if Erika will consent to seeing me?” Jon asked.
“Erika is kind of aloof, and you only get to her after going through her entourage,” Reese said. She noticed her friends were looking at her. “It’s what I heard.”
“There is a lot of demand to see her these days,” Mentos said. “It makes sense you need to be a certain level to get through. When I am a master, I am not going to waste time with Newbies.”
“I am a Newbie,” Jon said.
“You’re also weird,” Mentos said. “And old.”
“I like old,” Loxy said.
“Me, too. And Weird,” Reese agreed.
“Well, you’re all weird and old,” Mentos said.
“We are not old,” Loxy and Reese corrected.
“And I am certainly not letting any girls into my gym,” Mentos added.
“We could go try and talk to Erika,” Loxy said. “At least it would tell us what we’re up against in terms of battling strengths and strategies, so we can better prepare Jon for what’s ahead.”
“Yes! We’re going to team battle the gym,” Mentos said, jumping on the bed.
“If Jon’s not going in, we should let him hold all our money, so that way once we scoped out the gym, we’ll know what supplies we need to buy,” Reese said.
“Good idea,” Loxy said, fishing her money purse out of her bag.
Jon took Loxy’s money purse, and then accepted Reese’s purse, and he put them in his bag. He then slung his bag thinking they were done but Reese was giving her brother the eye.
“Hand it over,” Reese said.
“I don’t think so,” Mentos said.
“A gym is not a street hustle. They will empty your pockets,” Reese said. “So, you’re giving it to Jon, or putting it in the bank.”
“If I put it in the bank there is a delay getting it back!” Reese said.
“It’s called savings!” Reese said.
Mentos frowned and pulled out a wad a cash to hand to Jon.
“Wait wait wait,” Jon said. “I thought you said you had no money!”
“I lied,” Mentos said.
“Well, that’s not fair,” Jon snapped.
“How old are you?!” Reese asked.
“Old enough to get your attention,” Jon said.
“Well,” Reese said, flustered. “Well, cheating is part of the game?!”
“How is cheating part of the game?” Jon asked.
Mentos answered: “All is fair in Pokémon love and war. Get used to it.”
Jon looked to Loxy and Reese and they shrugged indifferently. “Really?” Jon asked.
“You want to argue with a ten year old?” Loxy asked.
“Yeah!” Jon said. “And how do you even know Earth phrases if you don’t know anything about Earth.”
“I know about Earth,” Mentos said.
“Really? Tell me something about Earth,” Jon asked.
“It’s a planet,” Mentos said.
“That’s it?” Jon asked.
“Pretty much,” Mentos said. “Once I discovered Pokémon, astronomy couldn’t hold a candle.”
“Do you know about Earth?” Jon asked Loxy.
“Just what little you told me, that they don’t have Pokémon,” Loxy said.
“How can a planet have absolutely no Pokémon?” Mentos said. “They’re everywhere on our planet. How can you defend a world without Pokémon?”
“We have superheroes for that,” Jon said.
“You have super heroes?” Mentos asked, incredulously.
“OMG, really?!” Jon asked. “How old are you?”
“Well, that would explain the size,” Reese said.
“That, or they have no Pokémon and so there isn’t anything else to do but develop that,” Loxy offered.
“Oh!” Reese said. “That make sense, too.”
“What are you guys talking about?” Mentos asked.
“Uh, nothing, not important,” Reese said.
“Come on,” Loxy said. “We can grab a quick breakfast and maybe get to the gym before the crowd.”
Jon followed them towards the door, paused, and headed straight for the bedside night table, emptied the bowl of condoms into his bag. He turned to find his friends looking at him.
“What? We can’t defend the world without Pokémon protection!” Jon said.
“Oh, good for you!” Loxy said. “Want to take some soap, too?”
Jon considered and went right to the batthoom and collected all the dispenser, tossing them into his bag.
“Got everything?” Loxy asked.
“I think so,” Jon said.
“Floss?” Loxy asked.
“Yep,” Jon said.
“Toothpaste?” Reese asked.
“Yes, for Loxy!” Jon said, committedly.
“Your balls?” Mentos said.
Jon stared at Mentos, sorting if he was picking on him, then saw the poke balls clipped to his belt, and remembered. Jon pointed to his bag.
“Where’s your Pokédex?” Loxy asked.
Jon looked around. “Siri?”
“You named Dexter Siri?” Mentos asked.
“I am under here!” came a muffled voice under a blanket.
Jon dug through the covers to find Siri. He pulled out a device that was wrist band that locked in place over his arm. The screen was towards the arm, controls towards the hand, recessed lighting, and seven diodes that flashed or were steadily illuminated under certain situations. He secured it to his wrist as if he had done this a million times before.
“Got it,” Jon said.
“Where did you get it?” Loxy asked.
“His tech evolved with him?” Reese asked.
“It’s time to consult Erika,” Loxy said.
“I hate lines,” Mentos muttered, his arms crossed.
The line went around the gym and down the street.
“All of this just to battle?” Jon asked.
“Ever since Ash became a master Pokémon trainer, everyone has wanted to get a badge from Erika,” Mentos said. “If only we had a Pikachu!”
“You need to learn to deal with the Pokémon you have and stop dreaming about what you don’t have,” Reese said.
“Maybe you should use your own advice,” Mentos snapped back.
“Hey,” Jon corrected Mentos. “Not practicing the advice doesn’t make the advice less valid.”
“You’re not my dad,” Mentos said.
“It’s okay,” Reese said, touching Jon’s arm. “Thank you for defending me.”
“OMG,” Mentos said. “He belongs to Loxy!”
“I can share,” Loxy said.
“Really?” Mentos and Reese said, different tones and different meanings.
“Why sure,” Loxy said. “I may own him, but I don’t own him…”
“You sure don’t,” Mentos said, laughing.
Jon was staring down the street, clearly in a daze. Loxy and Reese followed his gaze, as if lasers were coming from his eyes and sorted what appeared to be a nurse’s convention.
“Oh, Joy must have the whole family in town,” Loxy said.
“Clones?” Jon asked.
“Sisters,” Reese said.
“What are clones?” Mentos asked.
“So, Loxy, it doesn’t bother you that Jon obviously notices other women?” Reese said.
“And that Joy is clearly a distraction.”
“Oh, who doesn’t love Joy!” Loxy said. “Even I love Joy.”
“That’s not right,” Mentos said with a sneer.
“It is perfectly acceptable to like the same gender,” Loxy corrected.
“That’s right,” Reese said. “It’s okay to be gay.”
“I am not gay!” Mentos said.
“Wait wait wait,” Jon said. “I tried correcting him about cheating and got no backup, but he expresses his opinion about orientation and you guys gang up on him?”
“We don’t pick on people for orientation,” Loxy said.
“I am not in disagreement, I am just saying…” Jon tried.
“I am just saying, it’s okay to like the same gender,” Loxy said.
“Yeah, Ash kisser,” Reese said.
“And if you’re going to stick with me, you can’t pick on him for idolizing Ash,” Loxy said. “Idolizing is not evidence of orientation. It just means he wants to be the very best, like no one ever was, and Ash represents his targeted goal.”
Reese seemed deflated, almost pouting. “You’re right,” Reese said. “I am sorry for picking on you for liking Ash.”
Mentos shrugged.
“But I am still struggling, Loxy. I don’t even own Jon, and I am feeling jealous about how he looks at Nurse Joy!” Reese said.
“Please! It means he’s alive and aware of his surroundings and present in the now,” Loxy said. “Think of it this way. If he was a sculpturer, would you be jealous of his statues? If he were an artist, people, men and women would be lining up for his graphic novels, and you know one of those girls is going to flirt past the boundary. If he were a poet or a writer, even if his grammar sucked, you might assume his words were for you but they are for everyone. So, it turns out, he’s not a writer, or an artist, or a sculptor, but there is no doubt in mind that he is a Pokémon trainer and that he will be successful because of this thing in him, to notice people, to care about people, and that, often, means he see thing in them and bring things out of them that no one else can. That skill set is frequently more intimate than physical intimacy, but it almost always leads to physical intimacy. That’s why you shiver every time he looks at you. When he sees you, it’s tangible. The Physical, is just icing on the cake. He goes much deeper, but you have to go through before you go in.”
“You make everything sound simple,” Reese said.
“That was simple?” Mentos asked.
“It really is that simple,” Loxy said, snapping her fingers in front of Jon’s eyes. “Give it a break, Jon.”
“Uh?” Jon asked, coming back to the present. He brought his attention back to the line, the people around him, and then devoted his eyes to his companions. They stood a while longer in line and then Reese announced she should have peed after breakfast. Loxy suggested that the two of them break line to go use the facilities at the Pokémon center, while Jon and Mentos held their place in the cue. They departed, with a warning from Reese not to leave till they get back.
“Finally, some men time,” Mentos said.
“Men time?” Jon asked.
“How can you stand being around my sister?” Mentos said. “She is a bit a crazy. Probably hormones.”
“I don’t understand,” Jon said.
“You know why she dresses like a Pokémon, don’t you?” Mentos asked, but not waiting for him to respond. “She thought she could catch a boyfriend if she looked like a Pokémon.”
“Don’t ever say that again,” Jon said.
“But it’s true,” Mentos said.
“Especially if it’s true,” Jon insisted.
“I don’t get you,” Mentos said.
“Assume it’s a weakness, or a character flaw, then that means she deserve to be protected, and valued even more than she believes she is. Assume it’s a strength and just something she wants to do because that is just something she wants to do, then you honor that and value it because, that quality is unique and there is no one else like that…” People walked by, all dressed as Pokémon. “Even if it’s not unique, you still embrace your sister, your friends, because that’s what we do.”
“You are definitely not Team Valor,” Mentos said. “The nail must be beaten down!”
“Wow, what a great analogy,” Jon said considering it. “However, I find that most humans are not nails.”
The kids in line in front of him were laughing obnoxiously loud, almost snickering contemptuously. One of them addressed Mentos.
“Still traveling with your dad, kid?” the black haired kid asked.
“He’s not my dad!” Mentos said.
“You’re right. He’s more like your grandfather,” the black haired kid said.
“I think it’s kind of sweet,” the girl hugging the Jumpluff said. “I wish my dad had an interest in my training.”
“He’s my friend and a fellow trainer,” Mentos said.
That statement caused some serious laughter.
“He’s too old to be training,” the black haired kid said.
“Really?” Jon asked. “Being a Pokémon trainer is like being a Jedi? There is an entry level age cut off?”
“What’s a Jedi?” the Jumpluff girl asked.
“Seriously, kid. Take your old man and go home,” the black haired kid said. “There’s no way either of you are good enough to go up against Erika.”
“You want a bet?!” Mentos said, stepping forward.
“Hey, you both play for team Valor, shouldn’t you be like supporting each other?” Jon asked.
“What world do you come from?” the black haired kid asked. “This is support. If he’s competing before he’s ready, it makes our team look bad.”
“How does losing make your team look bad?” Jon asked.
“OMG, how old are you?” the black haired kid asked.
“You will learn more from your losses than you ever will from your wins,” Jon said.
“Says the losers,” the black haired kid.
“You take that back,” Mentos snapped.
“Or what? You’ll make me? Looser kid with a looser old man,” the black haired kid said.
“If you want free badges, you should return to looser-ville. I hear you get badges just for showing up.”
“That’s it, let’s battle,” Mentos said, going for a Pokémon ball.
“Hold up,” Jon said. “You need to save your strength for the gym.”
“Too late, old man! Prepare to have your pocket emptied, kid,” the black hair kid said, releasing a Pokémon ball. “Bulbasaur, I chose you!”
A Bulbasaur arrived on the scene and the whole crowd in line, and even some passerby’s gathering, said, all at once: “Wow! Who’s that Pokémon!”
Jon scratched his head and asked Mentos “Didn’t he just say it was a Bulbasaur?”
Mentos frowned at Jon. “It’s just a saying, stop trying to make sense of everything,” he said.
“Okay, baby. Compete or go home,” the black haired kid said.
“You’re on,” Mentos said, releasing Pidgey.
The battle was over so quickly, Jon didn’t even understand what had happened. Mentos knelt by Pidgey’s side, stroking the feathers. Bulbasaur snickered.
“You just got schooled,” the black haired kid sang. “Now, pay up.”
“I don’t have any money on me,” Mentos said, picking Pidgey up. Tears ran down his face.
“Oh, you made him cry,” the girl said.
“I am not crying!” Mentos cried.
“Your old man is right, you do learn more from losing, like you’re a baby and sore a looser,” the black haired kid said.
Mentos ran away from the laughing crowd.
“Not cool, Sir,” Jon told the man.
“Aren’t you going to run after your baby?” the black haired kid said.
Jon sighed. “I don’t run,” Jon said. “Chase something, it will elude you; flee from something, and it will pursue you even more aggressively.”
“That’s rather profound,” the girl said.
“Just great, another Mystic. Run a long before I have Bulbasaur school you, as well,” the black haired kid said.
Jon knelt down and faced the Bulbasaur, Namaste hands. “Thank you for the lesson, Bulbasaur.”
The Bulbasaur approached, touching him kindly with a vine.
“What the heck?” the black haired kid asked.
Jon stood, bowed to the trainer, and walked away.
“Wow,” the girl said. “I don’t think I have ever seen that before.”
“Back in the ball, Bulbasaur,” the kid said, angrily.
Jon found Mentos by instinct, going to the place right outside of town where he had hid in the bushes to ambush people. Jon didn’t go directly to the bushes, but sat down near the water’s edge, close enough that Mentos and he could speak if they chose. A Magikarp looked up through the water at him, blew a heart shaped bubble. More Magikarp began together, looking up at Jon. They looked as if they were gossiping. A human that a saved a fish.
“Go away,” Mentos called from the bush.
“I think we should stay together,” Jon said, looking out at the water, not towards the bush. Jon fished the ‘revive’ potion that Loxy had used on him the night before from his bag and set it on the ground next to him. There was more than enough remaining to help Pidgey.
“They laughed at me,” Mentos said.
“Yeah,” Jon said. “I gather it’s part of the game.”
“And you did nothing,” Mentos said.
Jon puzzled over that, wondering if he should have done something.
“If my sister had been there, she would have KO all of them!” Mentos said.
Jon considered that likely, and nodded. “Your sister loves you.”
“What do you know about love?!” Mentos said.
Jon didn’t respond. In truth, he didn’t have an answer.
Mentos came out, wiping his face. He used the revive potion on Pidgey. “The only true love is what a Pokémon holds for his trainer. And I failed.”
“How do you figure that?’ Jon asked.
Pidgey came, too, staggered, and then came directly to Mentos, wings outstretched, indicating it wanted to be picked up. Jon’s heart felt a pain of emotions, as if somewhere in the Universe he remembered being a parent and a child had come to him saying, “Pappa, K There was a montage of a kid he didn’t seem to know, but knew too well, joyful embraces, and crying embraces where the child simply needed comforting after discovery the world isn’t always pleasant. This kid’s world, though, was a whole lot kinder than the world Jon remembered growing up in, which took effort to understand how the worlds related, and then he remembered, it wasn’t about him, but about Mentos, and brought himself back from what he assumed to be a mere daydream. One of the Magikarp blew a bubble at him.
“I am sorry, Pidgey,” Mentos said.
“Could you help me understand something?” Jon asked.
“You’re trying to trick me,” Mentos said.
“No, I really want to understand, and I think you know more about Ash than anyone I know,” Jon said.
“I do know a lot about Ash,” Mentos agreed.
“How often does he loose?” Jon asked.
Mentos chuckled. “All the time,” he said. “Wait. You are trying to trick me! You don’t get anywhere by losing! You only advance with wins. You only get badges for wins.” “Well, maybe that’s true, in terms of training recognition points, but that does not reflect your wisdom earned points. You have to loose in order to improve. Maybe the only reason old people are wise is because they have had their share of losses. Maybe sometimes we have to learn the same lesson over and over again, but when you do get it and wisdom levels up, that’s when you demonstrate it for a more public victory. I suspect, though, there are more private winners, full of wisdom, not displaying their secret badges, than there are people going around with public badges.”
“You just say that because you favor Team Mystic,” Mentos said.
“Maybe,” Jon said. “But then, Team Valor is about courage, right? Doesn’t that mean we have to return?”
Mentos looked at the water. “I am embarrassed.” He tossed a pebble into the water to erase his image. The Magikarp all fled but one.
“Why?”
“I cried! In front of everyone,” Mentos said.
“So? I cry all the time,” Jon said.
“That’s because you’re a big baby,” Mentos said.
“Yep. Sometimes,” Jon said. “I cry when I am sad. I cry when I am angry. And, surprisingly, apparently sometimes I even cry when I am happy.”
“No one cries when they’re happy,” Mentos corrected.
“I do,” Jon said. “I did just last night. And I was really happy. May I share my theory as to why?”
Mentos sorted, looking for the trap. When he didn’t protest, Jon continued.
“Imagine a cup, full to the brim with water,” Jon said.
“Oh, I know this one. You have to empty your cup before the master can impart more wisdom,” Mentos said.
“Um, yeah, I guess that is an anecdote, too,” Jon said. “Forget the cup. The cup is a bad analogy. It’s a bucket. A bucket you have to carry daily. And it’s full of water.”
“Why would I carry a bucket full of water?” Mentos asked.
“It’s what people do,” Jon said. “Let me finish. It’s full to the brim of water. It’s so full, that if you drop even one more drop of water in it, the bucket will overflow, and you will get wet, and you spill water into the world. Got it?”
“I still don’t understand why I am carrying this bucket,” Mentos said.
“That isn’t the point,” Jon said.
“What’s the point?!” Mentos said.
“The water isn’t water. The water is emotion. When the bucket is full, you can’t add any more emotions. Even one drop of emotion, whether it’s fear, or anger, or sadness, or even happiness! The bucket will overflow,” Jon said. “An overflowing bucket can spill inwards or outwards. Outwards, that’s usually evidenced by a behavior. Inwards is evidenced by a thought attached to a belief. Humans are vessels, but we’re not supposed to be buckets. It’s our job to monitor the water level, and hold just the right amount to function at our optimum proficiency level, and if its gets too low, we need to add, and if gets too much, we have to channel that into appropriate releases.”
“Like what?” Mentos asked, petting his Pidgey.
“Petting Pokémon seems like a good release. So is talking to people, kind of like what we’re doing. Crying is also okay. So is laughing,” Jon said.
“Laughter is a release?”
“Sure, sometimes laughter happens spontaneously, and sometimes we laugh inappropriately, but it’s just a release,” Jon said.
“Well, I would prefer to call someone names and then bash them with a Pokémon,” Mentos said.
Jon nodded, sorting it. “Yeah, I guess that is a release, too, but, I find the name calling just keeps the bucket full. Competing, though, can be healthy, and can be harmful,” Jon said.
“How can competing be harmful?!” Mentos said.
“When you’re so focused on the win that you forget about the lesson, or the other player, or your Pokémon, or theirs, then you’re leaning outside of healthy,” Jon said.
“How do I know what’s healthy or not?” Mentos asked.
“Great question,” Jon said. “That is proba