"Hey, Ranma? Whatcha up to?" asked Hiroshi, strolling into the barracks.
Ranma looked over at the other hired hand as he relaxed on the bed. It was Wednesday, his day off in the week. "Just studying my Pokedex a bit is all."
"Jeez, for the amount you study that thing, you'd think you'd know it backwards and forwards by now. You must have been some hot shot trainer or something before you came here."
Ranma chuckled. "I'm still just learning. D'ya need me for anything or somethin'?"
Hiroshi blinked for a moment, trying to get his head around that peculiar piece of language. "Er, no. Just thought I'd tell you lun..." Hiroshi blinked again as a soft *pop* denoted air filling the now empty Ranma-shaped area on the bed. "...ch is served. Hey! Wait up!"
[Pallet Town: Near Sea Route 21]
Lunch was a hurried affair, with Ranma going through things at his normal speed, and Hiroshi and Daikuse hurrying to make sure they got a share. But after, Ranma walked down towards the beach as he considered what the Pokedex had told him. Nabiki would have a lot of trouble against rock and fighting type Pokemon, while Ukyou would also have trouble with rock, and also water types. He sympathized with Ukyou. Still, one of the best ways to train was to go against your weaknesses.
He just needed to find the right spot. The beach was crowded, low tide revealing a wide swatch of beach where trainers worked with assorted water pokemon. Ranma scratched his head for a moment, before going to the Pokedex and pulling up the map.
There. To the north about a mile, there was a spot where the cliffs came right up to the water's edge. That'd be perfect. Packing up his pokedex, he began to jog towards his chosen spot as the waves crashed, the tide beginning to turn.
The cove was better than perfect, Ranma realized. Isolated, the cliffs reached up a good twenty-five feet, maybe thirty, but had lots of juts and handholds. An easy climb for him, but should be a bit of a challenge for a beginner. The beach, on the other hand, was short and fairly steep, the surf charging up the low slope, creating short, choppy waves.
Ranma pulled out the Pokeballs, feeling up to trying to test himself. Pressing the buttons, he threw the balls outwards, making sure to get them to spin vertically. Much to his delight, Nabiki and Ukyou appeared on the sand, the balls falling lighty into the sand, still spinning, causing them to roll back towards him. Not all the way to his feet like they were supposed to, mind, but it was a start.
Ukyou and Nabiki looked a bit confused at the locale, looking about...then they saw each other. With a hmmph, the Ponyta tossed her head, looking away, while Nabiki rolled her eyes, shaking her head a little. "[So, I take it you've been fired already?]" Nabiki asked archly.
"[Have you ever said anything supportive in your life?]" Ukyou shot back, jumping verbally to Ranma's defense.
Ranma grinned at the fighting. "Y'know, ya might want to save you energy, given the training I've got planned for today," he said lightly. That got their attention.
"[Training?]" Ukyou asked curiously.
"Yep. Let's start with you, Nabiki..."
"[What? I signed up to be the brains of this operation, which you two so obviously needed. I'm supposed to climb up on your pack and make sure you don't look like an idiot while I ride like the queen I so obviously am... What are you rolling your eyes at, carrot-breath?]"
Ranma grinned a little wider. "I did notice how slow you were to get up on my pack back in the woods, so I thought you could use the practice climbing." He gestured at the cliff.
"[Surely, you can't be serious,]" Nabiki asked hesistantly, looking up at the cliff, and up and up. Ukyou, on the other hand, was fighting to keep a straight face and losing the battle as she watched the horror on the Rattata's face. "[I mean, these claws are made for peticures, not sinking into rock.]"
Ranma smirked, and headed for the cliff. A jump and few quick hand holds, and he was halfway up, before he let go, dropping down. "Well, I don't think I could make the climb any easier without cutting steps into it..." His eyes turned to the sniggering Ukyou. "...but if you need some motivation, I suppose we could make a contest out of it."
The snickering quickly stopped, as Nabiki looked a bit more intrigued. "[Oh? What does she have to do?]"
"Well, ya see that flat rock stickin' out of the sand down there?" Ranma pointed as a wave crashed in, just getting the top of the rock wet.
"[Yeah...]" said Ukyou, suspiciously, as Nabiki's grin got wider.
"Ya just need to keep your feet dry by jumpin' over the waves a few times."
Ukyou grinned. "[Oh, that's not so bad, sugar. How many is a few?]"
Ranma grinned. "Well..." he drawled, "Nabiki's pretty small, so I figure it should take about five minutes for her get to the top, maybe longer if she's slips. So, there's a wave every five or six seconds...fifty sound fair, Nabiki?"
Nabiki grinned. "[Considering the tide's coming in? I'll take that. What's the stakes?]"
Ranma pretended to consider this. "I figured that whoever won would be in charge, be number one Pokemon, so to speak. Though if you want more, I suppose that if Nabs wins, she can ride on Ukyou, to help toughen her up, and if Ukyou wins, Nabiki can walk. For a week."
Ukyou and Nabiki grinned at each other with smiles that were not at all friendly. "[Deal!]" came the stereo reply.
"Of course, if I can jump fifty waves on that rock," Ranma pointed to a second rock, already half-submerged, below the flat one he had proposed for Ukyou, "and get to the top of the cliff before either of you finish, well, status quo, except you'll both have to stop this petty fighting you two get up to anytime I letcha out. If I lose, I'll take you out for a nice supper tonight."
Ukyou and Nabiki looked at each other with a grin that was certainly more friendly, if somewhat knowing. "[A good dinner and I get a heated cushion to ride on for a week?]" Nabiki smirked. "[Sounds like a deal to me...]"
Ranma grinned as he did a lazy backflip over the latest wave. "Thirty-nine...you're still two behind, Ukyou."
Ukyou huffed a little, her hooves sizzling on the wet rock. "[This isn't- *huff* -easy, you know, for me to jump...]"
Ranma landed lightly, turning to look at the cliff. "Lotsa time, though. Nabs has climbed into a corner. Well, unless you miss a couple more." Ranma leapt, not even looking this time as the wave surged underneath him, watching Ukyou clear this one by the width of a fingernail. "Forty, close one for you, though."
"[Hmmph.]" Ukyou shook her mane in the spray. This was not fun. Still, Nabiki walking, and supper tonight...
He checked out Nabiki's progress on the rocky wall. She didn't look all that happy either, really. She'd chose the wrong line, and was looking at a nasty overhang. "Better back up, Nabs, and choose the left line! You're trapped as it is!"
Nabiki took one look at the pair down below. Ranma didn't even look winded, and Ukyou was getting close to finishing... retreating would cost too much time. She eyeballed a ledge, two feet up, with a bit of an overhang. If she could grab that and scrabble up...
"No!" Ranma saw the leap, Nabiki scrabbling to get on a ledge with a twenty-five foot drop beneath her...he took a step forward, getting ready to run up and catch her...when he got the next wave in the back.
*GLUB!* Ranma swore as he knew his curse was activating, but could at least see Nabiki safely scrabble up onto the ledge...
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See other episodes by Will McDuff
(Posted Sun, 08 Feb 2004 23:30)
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