Deviation Actions
Literature Text
The summer was often considered the best moments of any child's young life. The days of vacation were just around the corner, yet already there were many young Pokemon out and about in the streets playing and laughing together. As fresh and lovely everything in Tabira had smelled, for someone with such thick fur; a jet-coloured cape; and hard leather armour that did not breath, Reef found it particularly hard to find anything to enjoy about today.
It was often days like these that made him contemplate cutting his fur short, before he'd often remind himself of WHY he kept it so thick. It was not an option to him. Leaving him with either a bag of ice from a vendor somewhere in Tabira (which he did not know where they would be), or looking for something else to cool him off.
Laying flat on a nearby bench, Reef held a big paw to his face as he tried to keep the sun's rays from blinding him. With a groan, he followed up with a sigh. There was little work today, and what was being dealt out by the guilds didn't really interest him.
"Maybe I should finally read that newspaper Addy puts out," Reef grumbled. Thinking for a good honest moment, he wondered if he still had that issue that was given to him for free back in his home.
Meanwhile, other young Guild apprentices were also trying to find something to do to cool down. Horace groaned as the sun beat down relentlessly, wiping sweat off his forehead.
Gary nodded, focused more on finding a shady place to relax than he was on the "It's a good thing we don't have any jobs today," He remarked to Gary. "Otherwise, I think we'd be too worn out to complete them.
conversation. Unfortunately, there was little to be found in the way of protection, and many of the shops would not open until later in the day, so there was nowhere for them to go.
Horace, looking around for somewhere to get a cool glass of water, spotted Reef standing on the street corner and nudged Gary. "Hey, let's go ask him if he's got any idea of how to get out of the heat."
Sighing, the young Riolu reached into his satchel and started to rummage around inside of it. Feeling a slight itch on his cheek, he scratched it idly as he tried to find any sort of canteen he might have taken with him. Figures, he thought to himself, the one day where he needs a cold drink and he might have forgotten to freeze his container.
Out the corner of his eye, the Riolu noticed a couple of Pokemon coming towards him. With an inquisitive look, the boy went on guard out of instinct, yet he remained his usual approachable self.
"Uh, hey there," he said to the two Pokemon. They both looked like they might have been part of the guilds. Though if they were, he didn't remember seeing them.
"Something I can help you with?"
Horace nodded. "We were wondering if you had any plan to get out of this heat. We're not too sure on what to do for today ourselves." He cocked his head slightly. "Hey, you're in the Guilds, right?" He searched his memory for a moment but came up empty. "Sorry, but I don't think we've spoken much. What was your name again?"
"I had the same feeling," the pup leapt off of the bench, standing before the two of them as straight as he could. Placing a paw onto the centre of his chest and positioning one foot behind the other, he offered the two of them a rather formal and rehearsed looking bow.
"My name's Reef. It's a pleasure to meet you," he smiled.
"As for my plan," he stood back up from his introduction, placing a paw into his hip as he continued to speak, "Best plan I got is to find the nearest Ice-type and ask them to freeze me. Other than that, I got nothing unfortunately," he shrugged, honestly sorry that he couldn't help the two of them.
"If you're really hurting for some shade, there's probably a spot or two in the trees somewhere. There's not that many clearings around here, so maybe that's your best bet."
Horace, not to be outdone, decided to give a grand introduction of his own. "'Tis a pleasure to make your acquaintance. I am Horace, musician extraordinaire!"
Gary waved sheepishly. "And, um, I-I'm Gary."
"As for the shade, we tried that before," Horace continued. "But due to the lack of cool breezes today, it's not much help. Perhaps we'll join you in seeking an Ice type to relieve us from the heat. Assuming you don't mind, of course."
"Uh...," Reef scratched at his cheek again, though this time out of slight nervousness. He didn't hate the offer, but still it was weird to get that sort of request. He'd usually be the one asking to tag along with others.
"Don't see why not," he shrugged with a pearly white grin, "It'd probably make things less boring at least, so sure!"
Taking the lead, he gestured for both Horace and Gary to follow him. "I tend to meet a lot of Pokemon from the Guilds," he mentioned, "Shouldn't be too surprising though I guess.
Seems like a very popular occupation to have in Tabira. Heck, even I got recommended..." Reef scanned the streets in the search of any sort of Ice-type that could help him and his companions. Though currently they did not have much luck.
Horace nodded. "It makes sense. The Guilds are home to lots of famous adventurers, artists, scientists, and a whole bunch of others. There's something to do for everyone, so it's bound to be a popular occupation."
"Th-they even let someone like me in." Gary chimed in. "So it's a-almost impossible to get r-rejected. That's p-probably a plus to anyone who c-can't find another job."
The three continued walking through town, eyes peeled for an Ice type, but had no luck finding one. To break the awkward silence that hung over the three, Horace decided to ask a few questions of his own.
"So, the Guilds have been keeping everyone pretty busy lately. What have you been up to?"
"Nothing too special," Reef replied. "Got involved in that operation to take the water from that Don guy a while back. And...," he averted his gaze for a moment, "We'll let's just say that The Trackers have got their eyes on me after that mission. Which... Well, considering what I ended up doing, I don't blame them." Deciding to try and drop that particular topic, Reef redirected his focus.
"I guess whenever there's some fighting to do, I tend to gravitate towards it. Dunno, guess I just like getting my blood going, you know?" he chuckled, trying his best to let the last thing he mentioned slide on by without being noticed.
"Yeah, that was quite the mission. I heard that some of the raids on his supply got pretty hectic. It's good that you made it out of there without getting too seriously hurt." Horace smiled, noticing the sword on Reef's belt. "I guess you know what you're doing, though."
Horace suddenly remembered something. "That's right! You've been doing some of the Guild's sporting events, haven't you? I saw your match against Ignis. You've gotta be pretty good if you can match him in fencing."
"Oh, you saw that?" Reef's ears pricked up in curiosity, "Yeah, hahaha, he was pretty tough. I don't think I did THAT well, though," he said, resting a hand onto the pommel of his seamitar cutlass.
"Fencing was never really something I liked, but I had someone who forced me to do it. I guess some of it still stuck, so yeah." The pup shrugged.
"He said it was 'good for coordination in a real fight' so it'd help me whenever I was in trouble. I guess I can't deny that it's helped here and there, but still."
"I'm more of a swashbuckler, honestly," he grinned, "I guess I just always felt more at home using something like a cutlass than anything else."
Horace nodded in understanding. "I know what you mean. It's always best to stick to the weapons you know best. Still, it never hurts to practice with others. My Leaf Blade isn't too far from a rapier, so it wasn't much trouble to try to switch."
His eyes gleamed as an idea came to him. "Say, how would you like to duel? It's not often I get to practice swordplay against other opponents, since so few use blades. And it's even rarer that I find any who are really skilled. What do you say?"
Before Reef could respond, Gary spoke up. "H-how about you two fight a-after we get to somewhere c-cooler?"
The group agreed, heading off to the forest to find some shade in which to duel.
"Yeah, your mate's got the right idea. Let's cool down first then we'll talk about it," Reef answered, following them as they continued forward on their journey for some way to defeat the hot summer day.
Walking alongside Gary, Reef leaned in and nudged him. "Say, is your friend uh, the competitive type?" he asked in a whisper. "It's just after how he introduced himself and now he's challenging me to a duel, I can't help but wonder..."
"Sorry," he sighed, "I know I shouldn't be talking behind someone's back, but still. Just sort of curious."
Gary nodded. "H-he can be s-sometimes. I th-think he's just looking for s-something to do. He doesn't l-like to sit around and d-do nothing, and w-we don't have any jobs today. This m-might just be his way of st-staying active."
The group came to a nice clear space, big enough to practice in, but still shaded by the trees around them. Horace tapped his foot on the soil experimentally. "This should be a good spot."
A green glow surrounded his right hand, elongating and taking shape before solidifying into a sword. Though it was made entirely of leaves, it was rather sturdy, and razor sharp.
He eyed Reef, brandishing his blade. "Are you ready?"
Reef gave a sigh as he shook his head, "seriously, mate. Were you just looking for a good excuse?" Gripping the handle of his own sword, Reef drew the blade from the hilt. Standing ready to duel as he agreed to.
"I'll try my best to not hit you with the edge, alright?" he reassured Horace.
Taking in a deep breath, the boy's red eyes locked onto his opponent. They glowed as he focused solely on the Grass-type before him, his aura flowing around him as he stood ready for the start of their battle.
"Call the start whenever you're ready," he said to Horace
Horace grinned. "I'll do the same. After all, we don't want anyone to get hurt. Now, have at thee!"
Horace charged forward, raising his sword, point first, jabbing in Reef's direction. As he had predicted, the Riolu was an experienced combatant and dodged the thrust easily, swinging his own sword in response.
Noting that the cutlass was a thicker, heavier blade than his own, Horace chose to deflect rather than block, before slashing the air to put Reef on the defensive. He made precise swipes at his opponent, watching his reactions closely as Reef fended off the assault.
Reef quickly stepped back from the barrage of attacks as he kept his legs apart to prevent himself from tripping this time. The tip of Horace's blade just barely missed the bridge of his nose as he readjusted his grip from his retreat. After which, the Riolu charged forward, keeping low to the ground. Putting his weight into the sword in his right paw, he swung the blade in an upwards direction, hoping to land a hit by trying to do something unexpected.
Horace leaned backwards, narrowly avoiding the slash. He rolled backwards, feeling the need to reassess his strategy. Realizing that his opponent was too strong defensively, he decided to use his speed to try to overwhelm Reef.
Dashing forward again, Horace raised his blade for an overhead strike. Instead of completing the attack, however, he rolled between Reef's legs, springing up behind the Riolu and slashing.
Before Reef could react, he twisted his head about and felt a sharp smack! across his back. Crying out in pain, he quickly rolled out of range as he allowed the feeling return to his back. From the sensation, it almost felt like Horace might have hit one of his...
Grunting, Reef cracked his shoulders and cleared his throat. Twirling his cutlass, he changed up his grip on the blade as the Riolu crouched down into a new fighting stance. He held the sword in a backwards grip, almost like he was holding a knife or a dagger. His eyes remained locked onto the Grass-type as he stared him down, almost like he was anticipating the next move.
Dashing forward with blinding speed, Reef took a swing at Horace with his backwards gripped blade, intending to disorient him with a quick strike.
Horace stepped back, shocked at the speed with which Reef was suddenly moving. He was too stunned to raise his blade in time to deflect the strike, and too late to dodge out of the way.
Smack! The flat of the cutlass's blade slammed into the side of Horace's head, knocking him to the ground. Horace rolled to his feet once again, raising his blade to intercept any incoming attack. When there was none, he moved backwards to yet again reassess the battle.
"I've got to hand it to you, you're certainly no slouch with a sword," Horace grinned. "That last move was pretty unexpected. But still, this duel's not over yet!"
Horace pulled out his Grass Whistle, tossing it high in the air. Reef's eyes followed it for just a moment, but it was enough time for Horace to blink away, rebounding off of a tree and launching himself straight at the Riolu.
Raising his blade for a moment, Reef guarded against the oncoming strike, however he soon saw the Grovyle disappear from sight as he zipped himself away. The young Pokemon quickly changed his footing to block the attack. Feeling the weight of the strike behind the sword, Reef grinned at Horace.
"You ain't gonna get me with the same trick twice, mate," he smirked, pushing back against the attack to try and knock Horace off balance. Holding his seamitar by the blade, Reef swung the weapon. Intending to land a strike with the vanguard against Horace's head.
Horace was caught off guard, not only by the unorthodox attack, but also by the speed with which Reef reacted. Fortunately, his Unburden-boosted speed allowed him to duck the attempted bludgeon, having to abandon his own attack in the process.
Rebounding off of several trees, Horace attempted to confound Reef with his speed. Due to his own rapid movements, he could not tell whether it was effective, but he decided to try another rush. Instead of attacking with his blade, however, he went for a flying tackle, hoping to knock the Riolu off his feet.
Keeping still, the young swordsman kept his eyes focused onto his blade. Even though he could sense the Grass-type zipping around him, he continued to steady his breathing. Closing his eyes, he took a gamble. There was absolutely no guarantee this would work, but if Horace was going to try this again, then this could work.
Focusing his aura, Reef tried his hardest to keep his aura senses steady. The world around him turned black as he saw the smoke and fire-like manifestations that comprised all living things that surrounded him. But the vision was unstable at best and fading at worst. He only needed to focus on one aura though...
Keeping an eye on the life force in question, Reef kept his breathing stable. Waiting for the moment to strike when it was most appropriate. There was a chance Horace could see this coming, but he had to at least try.
Sensing the aura pounce towards him, Reef quickly spun towards the direction of the tackle, making sure the flat side of his seamitar would meet with his opponent's face if it landed. He had a feeling if this didn't work, this was going to hurt.
Fortunately for Horace, his opponent had aimed just a fraction too high. The blade swung over his head, grazing his hat as it sliced through the air. Horace stretched out his arms, ready to catch Reef if he tried to escape the tackle.
"Agh!" Reef felt the wind get knocked out of him as his opponent tackled him. The sudden impact forced the boy to let go of his sword for a brief moment. In the mere seconds that he had to retrieve it before it was out of his reach, the pup ended up turning the weapon around. Holding it once more with a backwards grip.
Seeing his last chance to try and win this duel, Reef once again tried to strike Horace while in his grasp. Using the hand guard this time as an impromptu Knuckle duster as he tried to use it to punch Horace!
Horace ducked low, dodging the punch. He swung his sword upward, locking it with Reef's blade, and twisted it in an attempt to disarm his opponent. The sound of clashing blades filled the clearing as both struggled against each other.
Reef pushed against Horace's sword in a desperate struggle to gain some sort of footing back. His eyes were wide and erratic, like those of a mad hound staring down its prey. With a grin, he quickly pulled back. Breaking the struggle by giving up any resistance in the hopes that the sudden lack of push back could cause the Grovyle to fumble.
Horace's eyes widened in surprise as he pitched forward, the force he was using to push against Reef suddenly meeting no resistance and converting into momentum. He stumbled just slightly, lowering his blade awkwardly as he tried to figure out what had happened. In that moment, Reef was given a good opportunity to strike.
Reef gripped Horace's blade with a vice like grip, not intending for him to raise it ever again, even if the edge cut into his paw pads. Yanking it towards himself to pull the Grovyle inward, the pup swung at him once more with all his might, intending for this hit to land this time.
Though as much as his blood was pumping and he could feel his adrenaline flowing, he made sure that he'd use the side of his sword. Horace didn't deserve to be hurt over something like this, after all.
Whap! The blade slammed into Horace, knocking him to the ground, his blade flying from his grasp. Though both Reef and Gary were concerned that perhaps he had been hit too hard, the Grovyle quickly rose again, calming their fears. Instead of picking up his sword again, however, he held up his hands in surrender.
"I yield to you, Reef. You're a better swordsmon than I am." He smiled, holding out his hand to shake, before remembering the cut on Reef's paw and switching hands. Looking up at the sky, Horace judged that it was now a little past noon, when most shops in Tabira opened. "Now, why don't we all go and get some ice cream?"
"I wouldn't say I'm better," he said, honestly kinda embarassed at Horace saying that as he shook hands with the worthy opponent of a Grass-type
"I just got lucky. It was just one match after all, so it's not like I'm guarantee to win if we go again, you know."
Reef looked at the cut in his paw, giving a shrug. It wasn't too bad. His ears pricked up at the mention of ice cream, a big friendly smile coming to his face at the idea.
"I'll pay for it," Reef insisted, "It's the least I could do. Thanks for that, mate. It was seriously quite exciting!"
