It looked like some sort of tanuki. Or a maybe a large ferret. A very large one. Ranma really couldn't see it very clearly. Most of its body was covered by the shadows beneath the trees and the lush undergrowth. But there was no mistaking the shiny thing in its mouth. One of the missing energy bar wrappers.
"Hey! You! Stop that! That's not something you eat!"
A pair of large brown eyes stared right back at the young man's own pair of blue. Then the Pokemon turned around and ran off deeper into the woods. Cries of "Stop!" and "Wait!" were not heeded.
"Come back here, you!" Ranma shouted as he plunged into the trees. He pushed through the veil of vines and branches. Spotting the fleeing Pokemon, he ran after it. It was quick, he'd grant it that. It was already quite some distance away. Its low-lying form made it easy to traverse the heavy undergrowth that littered the forest floor.
The thing was fast on its feet. And tricky, too. It zigged this way and zagged that way as it made its escape. It would also appear to have fled into the safety of one clump of undergrowth but would then reappear elsewhere as it ran out of another clump. Many a times Ranma thought he had cornered the thing in one location when it would suddenly bolt out of its hiding place elsewhere.
"Slippery thing, aintcha?" muttered Ranma as he continued to chase after it.
Finally, thirty minutes into the chase, the fleeing Pokemon dropped the wrapper in its mouth as it plunged into another large clump of vines and saplings. The young man came to a halt beside the fallen wrapper. He watched as that Pokemon continued to run off deeper into the forest.
At the sound of some harsh breathing coming up to him, the new Trainer remarked, "What was that about the trees earlier, Ukyou?" He smirked as he took in the sight of the Ponyta jumping over a clump of undergrowth and coming to a halt beside him.
"[You be quiet, sugar,"] answered Ukyou drily. "[You didn't catch up to that other Pokemon either. And I have twice as many legs as you to get tangled up in these vines.]" She snorted annoyedly as she shook off some of the green growth that had tangled around a hoof. "[Annoying things.]"
"Excuses, excuses," said Ranma with a grin. He smiled even wider when the Ponyta gave him an unamused look. Chuckling, he bent down to pick up the wrapper. He was still chuckling when he was suddenly pushed into mass of vines and shrubbery.
"Blah!" the young man spluttered as he spat out some leaves from his mouth. He glared up at the Pokemon in front of him. "What's the big idea?"
"[Hmmm?]" the Ponyta inquired in an innocent tone. "[What's the matter, sugar? Did you fall over?]" She peered closer at him, as if concerned. "[You really ought to be careful. You only have two legs to stand on, after all. I just don't know how you could keep your balance that way]"
Ranma's cocked eyebrow just twitched as he listened to the Pokemon. His hand surreptitiously reached behind him, fingers questing on the ground. His sense of touch telling him he found an appropriate object, his fist tightened around it. A smirk forming on his face was the only warning the Ponyta had as to what was about to happen to her.
"[What are you smiling about- Erk!]"
Whipping his arm forward, a length of vine reached out and wrapped itself around the forelegs of the Ponyta. With a flick of his wrist and a tug, Ranma expertly bound the front half of the Pokemon. And with a twist of his hand, he lashed out with the other end of the vine towards the back legs. Soon enough, those two were tied up as well. It didn't take long for the Ponyta to tip over afterwards.
"Hmm," Ranma remarked, "you're right. It is easy to lose your balance with just two legs." Then he burst into laughter. The Ponyta just stared at him. Surprised at first. Then angry. Then confused. Then amused. She joined him in laughing at their situation.
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(Posted Thu, 29 Jan 2004 22:32)
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