(1,600 words)
Chapter 5
Bad Pokemon


Compass stands over Thorn's bed, gently shaking them awake. "Come on, Thorn, wake up!"

"ugh, what is it?"

"It's morning. C'mon, let's get up and get moving, you've slept in long enough!"

Thorn groans and sits up, tired. "What time is it?"

"7:30."

"What? You said I slept in!"

"You did. Also you slept with your helmet on again. Now let's go, we're wasting daylight! I've got breakfast here and everything."

Thorn looks the small table of their team base, where two plates of pancakes sit. "Good for you." Thorn takes an apple from inside their helmet and starts eating.

"You'll eat bruised apples off the ground, but you don't like pancakes?"

"Sorry, I don't accept food from people who wake me up at 7am for no reason. Oh also, I tested out this new Power Band last night, and it's pretty useful. I figured we should get another of those scarves, and I saw one at the shop."

"Maybe, but we don't have enough money to afford another yet."

"Oh that's no problem, I already got it." Thorn takes a white Defense Scarf from their helmet and puts it on the table.

"What? Thorn, where did you get the money for this?"

"Money?"

"Yeah, the money to pay for..." A frown crosses Compass's face. A look of betrayal. "You... paid for this, right?"

"Um... Okay, promise you won't be mad-"

Compass snatches the scarf and dashes out of the base.

"Wha- Compass, wait!" Thorn runs after Compass, but loses track of them. Shit shit shit! That little snitch! Thorn does NOT want to find out what jail is like in this town! They run through the town, looking for any sign of Compass, until they turn a corner and find themself at the shop... with Compass talking to the shopkeeper.

"Ah, you must be Thorn!" The kecleon says... with a smile? "Compass was just returning that scarf you forgot to pay for."

Forgot? "Uh, yeah, sorry. I uh... I'm not really used to shopping."

Compass turns to the kecleon. "I'm so sorry about this Kecleon, they're new in town and-"

"Don't worry, no harm no foul. I'll be happy to sell you the scarf properly once you've saved up enough!"

"Thank you for understanding, and sorry again." Compass waves goodbye and walks away, dragging Thorn by the hand back to base. The walk back is silent, until they're finally inside. "Thorn what were you thinking!"

"I was thinking that those scarves are really useful? And that I wouldn't get caught?"

"Thorn, you're not a bad pokemon! You can't go around stealing! That's what bad pokemon do!"

Thorn sighs. "Fine. I guess it's a bad idea, taking a risk and dragging down our team's reputation like that."

"That's not..." Compass sighs. Can't Thorn tell it's just wrong? "Close enough. What were you even planning do with with it? I told you that you can only use one scarf at a time."

"Oh, it wasn't for me."

"... What?"

"I got it for you. A Defense Scarf feels more like your kinda thing."

"You stole it... for me?" Compass's brain short-circuits. Is Thorn greedy or generous? What's going on?!

"Whatever, it doesn't matter now. We're 'wasting daylight', right? Let's grab a job from the bulletin board."



Compass scans over the board. Fortunately, there aren't many jobs; not many pokemon in trouble. They spot a nice, E-rank job to-

"Move it!" A gengar shoves Compass out of the way, knocking them to the ground. "Let's see here... Slim pickings today."

"Too bad," an ekans says, slithering up next to the gengar. "Guess we'll just have to take all of them!"

"H-hey, wait!" Compass gets up. "We want to do jobs too!"

"Kekeh!" Gengar cackles. "It doesn't matter who does them as long as they get done!"

"That's right!" A medicham says, rounding out the group. "Best just leave this to the pros, okay~? We've got our eyes set on world domination, so we need all the cash we can get."

"Wha- World domination?!"

"Yup!" Ekans says. "It's amazing how much you can get away with just for being a rescue team!"

A villainous rescue team? What in the world?! "No, you... you can't just do whatever you want!"

"Kekeh! Oh yeah?" Gengar steps forward and looks down at Compass. "And who's gonna stop us?"

*BONK*

Gengar stands stunned for a moment, before stumbling forward and clutching his head. "OW!!!" He turns around to find Thorn resting their club on their shoulder. "Hey buddy, what do you think you're doing?!"

"Assaulting you."

"T-that's a crime! You better apologize real good or I'll-"

"What? Call the cops on me? Try it bitch, I'm sure they'd love to hear about how you knocked over an innocent cyndaquil."

"Hey!" Medicham says. "That's no way to talk to your superiors!"

"Wait a sec," Gengar says. "You... You're not like all the other losers in this town. You ain't some goody-two-shoes playing hero. You're special."

"Special? Really? Is that what your mom called you when the other kids made fun of you for saying 'kekeh' all the time?"

"Kekeke! I like your style, Cubone! You're no ordinary pokemon! But you're wasting your strength with this baby. Why don't you join us? Become a member of Team Meanies, the rescue team of evil!"

"... Ha, haha, ahahahahaha!" Thorn laughs so hard, they barely manage to stay standing. "Compass, do you hear this shit? Here I was, young and foolish, thinking Team Bullies was the worst possible name, and then here comes Team- Ahahaha! 'Don't worry, Team Meanies, the rescue team of evil will surely help us!' Oh my god, that's just... phew!.. Yeah sure I'll join."

"Wha- Thorn!" Compass gasps. "Are you serious?!"

"Totally, why not? I mean, they seem like such great people to hang out with. Sure they're a little greedy, but sharing resources can't be that important for a team, right? If there's anyone I can trust to not stab me in the back and ditch me in a dangerous cave, it's definitely Team Meanies, the resc- *snerk* Holy shit I can't even say it!"

Gengar's smile is long gone. "So that's a no then?"

"Yeah, no, you're as trustworthy as the sun is cold."

"Keh! Oh well, can't say I didn't try." Gengar snaps his fingers, and Thorn is struck by a sharp pain in their neck as Medicham karate chops them from behind. They freeze in shock, then fall to the ground.

"Here's your lesson," Medicham says, "don't mess with Team Meanies~"

"Or do!" Ekans says, slithering away. "You seem to like the taste of dirt!"

Team Meanies walks away, leaving a shocked Compass, a downed Thorn, and an empty bulletin board.

"Thorn!" Compass rushes over and helps Thorn to their feet. "Are you okay?"

"Physically? I'm alright. Emotionally? I just got my ass handed to me by a group unironically calling themselves 'Team Meanies'. I will never recover from this."

"Alright, that's it! We need to do something about Team Meanies..."

"Oh?" Thorn readies their club. "What did you have in mind~?"



Thorn sighs, standing before Beacon's house. "Yeah, I should've known you'd just go tell mom."

Compass opens the door, and Beacon spots them from her desk.

"Compass! Back for more pancakes?"

"Sorry Leader Beacon, but I'm here on business."

"I see. What can I help you with, Team Rose?"

"We're here to submit a complaint about Team Meanies."

Beacon sighs. "Not again... Alright, what happened this time?"

"They took all the jobs from the board, and refused to share any with us!"

"That sounds about right... I'm sorry Compass, but there's nothing I can do."

"W-what?! Don't tell me they really CAN get away with anything just by being a rescue team!"

"They're not just a rescue team, they're... When Team Meanies did their registration mission, they weren't satisfied by the rewards for any of the E-rank jobs. So they broke the rules and took a C-rank job instead. They passed with 4 stars; a flawless rescue from a dangerous situation, with one point deducted for 'insufferable rudeness'. That's Team Meanies in a nutshell; they break the rules and push people around, but they get the job done. They clear so many jobs that they reached Bronze Rank in record time, and they're well on their way to Silver."

"So they're allowed to do whatever they want?"

"Well, what would I do? If I suspend their team or penalize their rewards, they'll stop doing jobs. They'll stop helping people. They do more good than harm, it's not worth it to punish them."

"But... that's not right! It's not fair!"

"I know. But it's times like these that we need to think about the greater good. We need to keep calm and think rationally about-"

"Also they knocked Compass over," Thorn says.

The pencil in Beacon's hand snaps. "... I'll have a chat with them. In the meantime, don't worry about them taking all the jobs. Unfortunately, it doesn't take long for the board to fill up these days."



True to Beacon's word, by the time Team Rose returns to the board, a pelipper is already pinning up a few new jobs. Compass runs over and grabs the easiest one.

"A bellossom is stuck in Sinister Woods. It's a D-rank job, a little harder than we're used to. Want to wait for a different one?"

"Nah, I'm sure we can handle it. Besides, with these guns-" Thorn flexes their arm with the Power Band "-we're packing some heat now!"

"What's a gun?"

"I don't remember."

Compass sighs. Everything today has been so weird and confusing. But there's one thing that's always simple: Helping pokemon in need. "Alright, let's go rescue Bellossom!"




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