Chap 5

"No, it's a full restore that will completely heal your injured Pokémon" Samantha said to another girl in the class.

We had been learning the difference between Full heal and Full restore for the last hour. My patience with the other people in the room grew thinner each time one of them confused the two. I had been feeling irritable since I woke up that morning. The guys in our dorm picked up on it and left me alone. Zane started to say something insulting to me, but I gave him a look that shut him up. Only Samantha dared to speak to me after that moment. Her strange humor was the only thing keeping me from having a psychotic break.

"Then shouldn't it be called a full heal and the other a full restore?" the girl responded.

I couldn't take anymore. I stood up to go outside and get some air. That's when the door at the rear of the class burst open. My worst fear became a reality in a matter of seconds. Three of the shadiest looking scientists I have ever seen and a Machamp walked into the classroom. A male with short orange hair and a female short pink hair blocked the door. The way they wore their coats completely closed stood out to me. The more obvious red flag was the charcoal-colored caps they both wore. That and the long grey boots with the orange sole. looking at them closely I realized, the only part of the uniform that didn't seem right were the lab coats.

A bald male and the Machamp walked to the front of the class. He wore the same uniform they did without the cap. I dropped back into my seat as the Machamp's footfalls dominated the room. Each fleshy thud of his powder blue feet increased my heart rate. Without realizing it, I began gripping the edges of my desk so hard my fingers started to numb. It wasn't until I felt Samantha's hand on mine that I loosened my grip. I wanted desperately to crawl under my desk and wait for this moment to end the way I had in the lab.

"Hel..." was all Mr. Tagg could say before the Machamp picked him up with two arms and covered his mouth with the other two.

"Hello future trainers of Kanto. This message is extremely important, so I need everyone to remain silent until I tell you it's okay to speak." The man said to us. His voice was the same reptilian one I remembered from the lab.

The air in the room seemed to thicken and made breathing more difficult. I had to force myself to take the deepest breaths I could and fight the weight in my chest.

"Recently there was a break in at a chemical lab here in Kanto. I'm not at liberty to say where, as of now. What I can tell you is that we found some small Pokémon footprints in an experimental mutagen that was spilled. We don't know exactly what Pokémon stepped in it or what it will do to them. We are certain though, that it will undergo some severe changes to its anatomy. If you have seen any strange Pokémon, I need you to speak up immediately." the man said.

The room was silent while the man waited someone to come forward. After a few seconds he cleared his throat and started walking back up the aisle. The Machamp let Mr. Tagg go and followed him and the others. Samantha let my hand go when they were finally gone.

"You okay now?" she whispered to me.

"I was fine the entire time" I lied.

"You can't lie to me Reef; I know your heart too well. I can sense your anxiety."

"You go out of your way to be creepy sometimes don't you" I asked and gave a weak chuckle.

The rest of that school day crept along as slowly as it could. I felt like I had Mt. Moon resting on my back. By the end of the day, I could barely lift my head off the desk.

"Hey, come train with me today" Samantha said with a soft smile.

"Okay, that would be great" I said and felt a bolt of energy rush through me.

After class ended for the day Samantha and I went into Viridian Forest. I was immediately amazed at how dark and loud it was beneath the massive roof of green. There were patches of tall grass everywhere, separated by rows of trees and clearings we could walk in. The noise was a blend of bug and bird noises that combined to form a chaotic medley.

"So those people definitely weren't scientists today" Samantha said as we approached the first patch of tall grass.

"I figured that much, but I wish I knew who they really were." I said as we sat in a clearing.

"That's Team Rocket. I know that uniform anywhere" she said. Her eyes had gone cold as she stared at nothing in particular.

"How do you know about them?"

Samantha started fiddling with a blade of grass.

"If I tell you something about me, it has to stay between us. If I hear it from anyone else our friendship dies. You understand?" she said and glanced up at me.

"I promise" I said.

"My father was killed by Team Rocket. He worked for search and rescue. One day his team discovered a Tyranitar lair while searching for a missing hiker. He took one of its eggs and gave it to me as a birthday present. He got fired once his bosses found out. We would've recovered from that, but the news about him stealing the egg spread. Out of the blue one day a group of Team Rocket members showed up at our house demanding the egg. My father hid me and went to confront them. That was the last time I ever saw him. They killed him and burned our house down with me inside it." She said as a tear rolled down her face.

"How'd you make it out of the house?" I asked astounded.

"I'm not sure. I remember I started choking and feeling really tired. I guess I passed out because the next thing I knew I was at my mother's house."

"So that's what that look was the other day. It was your father you missed." I asked.

"Yes, and its why I train so hard with Larvitar. I won't let his sacrifice be in vain. Larvitar will honor his memory with each victory." She said clenching her fists.

I felt a strong urge to hug her at that moment, but I knew I could do something better. Something that let her know we had as much in common as she said we did. I unzipped my book bag and shared my biggest secret we her.

"Since we're being honest, I have something to show you. This is really what those guys were after." I said and pulled out the egg.

Samantha's hands shot up to her mouth and muffled a squeaking sound. She was surprised that I was holding an egg. I was startled by the long crack going down the center of it.