David slowed as he spotted the Oran berry bush.

He looked down at the Pokemon in his arms, but she made no sound. After her outburst of chirps earlier, Pidgey had grown quiet. She seemed to be amusing herself rubbing the ash on her feathers into his sleeves.

David would have put her down to hop, but he hadn’t put enough distance between himself and the Growlithe pack to be comfortable. Not that a comfortable distance existed between yourself and a giant living flamethrower.

“Pidgey,” David whispered, drawing her attention. “Are there any Pokemon nearby?”

Pidgey pulled her head away from his sleeve and tried to tilt her head up to look at him.

David exhaled and held her out towards the berry bush.

Pidgey let out a low squawk at the movement, but did turn to face forward. It didn't take her long to see the berries. She began to squirm.

He looked around again hesitantly before setting Pidgey down. His stomach grumbled. He needed a break. There was a tremor in his arms. His legs were aching from all the running, and he hadn’t eaten breakfast yet. The one Aspear berry he’d eaten yesterday wouldn’t tide him over for long.

They hadn’t seen or heard any signs of Pokemon since leaving the Growlithe’s firestorm behind. Maybe this was close enough to the pack's territory that other Pokemon stayed away.

Pidgey hopped forward slowly, head swiveling side to side as she examined the Oran bush and surrounding trees. Her wings flexed out after each hop, preparing for anything. It wasn't the most graceful movement. Her right wing was still shifting noticeably slower.

David followed behind her. He inspected the area too, but his focus was mostly on Pidgey. If she gave off any warning signs he would grab her and run. The food wasn't worth a fight right now.

David’s heart caught in his chest as Pidgey shot forward in a burst. Her hops grew faster as she sprung into the clearing.

He sped up. She was getting too far away. He wouldn't be able to scoop her up in time.

Pidgey flapped her wings as she got closer and a large hop threw her into the air at the bush. Her head darted forward, and she plucked a berry off the bush with a snap. She hopped away again as soon as she landed. The Oran berry in her beak shook side to side as she surveyed her surroundings.

Her pokeball was cold under his hand. He wasn’t close enough to pick her up anymore. It took only a flick of his fingers to pull the metal sphere loose from the string sling.

A beat passed. Then another.

Pidgey’s wings relaxed, and she settled down and began to dig into her berry.

David’s arm relaxed, and he slipped her ball back into the sling. He shook his head at Pidgey who was happily tearing into her Oran. Was there really a need for her rushing? There were another 2 ripe berries still on the bush. It wasn’t like she wasn’t going to get any.

-.-

David packed away his cutlery and looked around the woods again. They hadn’t been disturbed as they ate, not even by any Pokemon calls. This seemed to be a sheltered spot. If it wasn’t so early in the day, and they weren’t so close to the Growlithe pack, it would be a great area to camp. He looked over at Pidgey who had settled in her roosting position. Heading through the ash had bought them some time if Team Rocket was following them. Time that they didn't need to dedicate to running.

He stood up and grabbed two branches, one thick and one thin, before walking over to Pidgey. She tilted her head to watch him as he set the thick branch in front of her and the thin by him.

“Feel up to some practice?”

Pidgey let out some quick chirps and stood up. She began to flex her wings and spread them out.

“Woah woah woah,” He called and held his hands up to her. “No flying. You need to rest your wing.”

Pidgey eye’s sharpened at him and David felt that familiar chill. He couldn’t hold back a gulp, but refused to back down.

“You need to rest it if you want it to get better. We can start with Peck if you’d like. That uses Flying type energy too.”

Pidgey moved her wings up and down or tried to. They moved at different speeds, and she wobbled a bit as the difference in air resistance unbalanced her. After a short fight to stabilize herself, she let out a miserable squawk and settled down.

David retrieved his notebook and sat down opposite her.

“We haven’t trained in four days but last time you were able to Peck after 15 seconds. Your Tackle was ready in 11 seconds.”

Pidgey shimmied a little closer to the branch and held her beak up.

-.-

“More Peck practice?” David asked.

Pidgey had moved on to Tackle after exhausting her Flying type energy. It had happened sooner than he had expected. She was showing speed improvements across the board. Her energy capacity or stamina was not increasing at the same rate unfortunately.

Ten seconds to execute a Peck. Eight before he needed to pop her Tackle haze. It left him confused. How had she improved so much without training? Her Tackle took a third of her original time to prepare. Was it the time spent resting? Or part of getting older? Pidgey was still young and seemed to be growing quickly. Or could it be what she was eating? A steady diet of high quality food sachets and berries might aid her growth and leave her full of energy.

Maybe it was some form of ‘experience’ from the games. They had gone through a lot in the last few days. Did Pokemon grow from events outside of their normal life?

Adding to this confusion was the fact she had performed Moves a lot faster during the battle with Fred’s Machop. The difference wasn't due to a lack of effort. Pidgey was really trying during the training. It showed in her progress, but it didn’t match her speed during battle.

David rubbed his head. All he could do for now was write his thoughts down and keep track of her progress. While he wanted to know, he wasn’t about to experiment by withholding food or training from Pidgey.

Pidgey buried her head under her wing in response to his question. Then she froze and extended her wings out and moved them up and down slowly.

David pursed his lips and shook his head. “No gliding practice either. We’re resting your wings.”

After a moment of staring at him, she settled down again and began lightly biting at the remains of the thick branch.

David reached for his bag and rummaged through. There had to be another exercise they could try. He pulled out ‘How to wing it!’ and flicked to the Training section.

A beginner claw exercise is Gripping. Direct your Pokemon to close their talons around a branch or perch and bend both knee and ankle joints. The Pokemon should keep maximum force for a count before relaxing for a count. Repeat and inc-

David grimaced as he read over the paragraph. He’d been avoiding this one. Pidgey’s talons were powerful and sharp enough as is. He was near to them too often to be comfortable strengthening them further. That said, after the last few days and all the Pokemon he’d seen, Pidgey’s talons didn’t seem so bad anymore. If he was going to be stuck around all these deadly creatures anyway, he might as well try to make Pidgey the deadliest one.

At this point, Team Rocket or a wild Pokemon would kill him well before Pidgey did.

A quick search around the nearby trees revealed an old branch. It was a meter and a bit long and as thick as his forearms which wasn’t a fun comparison. David set it out in front of Pidgey.

Pidgey tilted her head at him before ducking it under her wing. She already had a Peck branch. What did she need of this new stick?

“It’s not for Peck,” David explained. “Can you try to crush it with your talons?”

Pidgey stood up and looked at David for a second. She raised one leg up and swiped at the branch.

He breathed deeply as Pidgey’s casual swipe cut furrows into the tough wood. He made an effort to relax his tense muscles.

“No, like this,” He said, grabbing the branch with both hands. His fingers couldn't quite encircle it. He checked to make sure Pidgey was watching before tightening his grip. The branch was unchanged as his muscles tensed, but the wood creaked as he twisted slightly.

Pidgey pecked forward slightly and David set the branch down.

Pidgey hopped forward and shook slightly as she settled on the branch. When secure she squatted down a bit. An echoing crack cut through the quiet day.

David exhaled slowly.

“Right. Right. Good job.”

Pidgey shuffled to the side and David could see a deep imprint in the wood from where she previously stood. A jagged line split the wood between the deep furrows in the branch left by her talons.

”Now this time, try and hold the grip as I count.”

-.-

They camped for the night at the base of a small dirt cliff. It wouldn’t be a comfortable spot with the number of stones littering the bare dirt, but it felt safe.

The tent could only be approached from one direction. The cliff would shelter him from any weather. The bare dirt wouldn’t interest any Pokemon.

Pidgey ate half an Oran berry for dinner. The day of training and walking made him hungry too, and he included the other half of the Oran with some mushrooms he had picked up earlier. To his surprise, the manual had a very limited number of mushrooms listed as poisonous. Most of those poisonous mushrooms were also accompanied by a preparation method that would make them edible for humans or could be eaten by certain Pokemon raw.

He was still leery of the mushrooms even with the foraging manual’s identification but ultimately tried a few. He ended up eating one boiled mushroom and waiting ten minutes before cooking more. Just in case.

As the sun fell, Pidgey settled down beside him. David pulled out ‘Beleaf in them’ and flicked through to the Training section. Celadon city was the home of the Grass type gym, and he needed to be ready. Know your enemy and all that. He found an interesting paragraph and began reading aloud.

Training young Grass and Bug types requires a greater focus on their natural tendencies and features than any other type. These young Pokemon are quite rooted in their abilities. It can be difficult if not impossible to teach them alternative Moves until they are older or have passed their first evolution. Many will show little to no ability to manipulate Type energy other than their ingrained type.

Caterpie have instinctive knowledge of how to use their silk for String Shot, a Move that can be used to slow and hinder foes as well as other practical applications. Similarly, Weedle will know how to release venom from the stinger located in their tail. However, this instinctive knowledge does not translate to experience or stamina. Direct your Pokemon to strike specific targets. Increase the distance to the target and the number of targets as you train.

Caterpie and Oddish can emit a stench from their antennae and gills respectively. While the Sour Scent Move is unpopular with trainers, its effectiveness is not in question. Many Pokemon lines with an increased sense of smell can be quickly incapacitated with this move. Clothes peg or mask recommended. The Oddish line can also release a gentler odor from their gills for the Sweet Scent Move.

Bellsprout uses its roots and stalk for the Vine Whip Move. As with the above examples, this move can be strengthened and improved with training. Direct your Pokemon to practice hitting targets and different surfaces. Demonstrations of whip motions with rope can be an effective learning aid.

Warning: Excessive use of this Move by inexperienced Pokemon can result in recoil damage. Keep a close eye on your Pokemon’s condition.

Bellsprout and Oddish naturally harvest natural type energy from the environment to boost their own abilities. This can be developed into the Growth move with practice. Begin by training your Pokemon in natural wild areas with large amounts of plant life. The Pokemon may not immediately start gathering energy but over repeated sessions you may notice an accumulation of energy. When spotted, direct your Pokemon to focus on the sensation. Be patient! All humans are capable of whistling, but it takes practice to be able to do so. For future development, the Oddish line are known for their ability to quickly twist Growth into the Absorb attack.

To his surprise, Pidgey seemed to follow along as he read.