Chapter 59: Food and Accommodation Included
That night, Ryū and Little Flare slept in the bedroom with Liz. The two Gyarados, however, were too large and heavy to stay inside; a casual roll in their sleep could bring the house down. They happily stayed in the shallow coastal waters instead.
On a winter night in Cherrygrove City, the sea breeze was fierce.
CRACK!
Ryū was sleeping soundly when a loud noise startled him awake. He instantly opened his eyes and looked to the side. The bedroom window had shattered, and on the ground amidst the broken glass was a purple, tongue-lolling Pokémon.
"Gligar?!"
Ryū stared as the Gligar stood up, rubbing its head. This one was quite large, a full 2 meters long, nearly twice the size listed in the Pokédex. Its level must be high. Even so, a Gligar of this size felt strange to Ryū. The ones he remembered were small, not even half the height of Ash.
"Gligar?!"
The Gligar was startled when it saw the huge Dragonair. It quickly clasped its pincers together in a gesture of apology, thinking it had intruded on Ryū's territory and was about to be eaten.
"..."
Ryū looked down, quietly staring at the Gligar without a word. Sweat beaded on the Gligar's forehead, but it didn't dare move.
In truth, Ryū was considering whether to help Liz catch this Gligar. Gligar are uncommon Pokémon, typically living on high cliffs that are difficult for humans to reach. Catching one was not an easy feat. Moreover, its evolution, Gliscor, was quite strong, not just for its 510 base stats, but for its unique Ground/Flying typing, which made it immune to two common types.
'But... where would I find a Razor Fang?'
The main reason for Ryū's hesitation was the evolution item. Where in this era could he possibly find a Razor Fang?
"You'll have to pay for the window," Ryū finally said, deciding to keep the Gligar for now. Even without evolving, a Gligar's type advantage was still useful. Besides, there was plenty of time. He could always search the Royal Palace warehouse later.
"Gligar!" The Gligar was stunned for a moment, then nodded vigorously.
"Alan~?" Liz's voice came from under the covers. The noise had woken her. Little Flare, however, was still sleeping like a log, the flame on his tail burning brightly.
"I want you to become her subordinate," Ryū said, gesturing towards Liz, who was rubbing her eyes and sitting up groggily.
"Gli? Gligar! (Her? No! I am a Gligar with immense pride! I will never be subservient to others!)" The Gligar looked at Liz, frowned at her apparent weakness, and resolutely shook its head.
"..." Ryū fell silent. He hadn't expected this Gligar to be so difficult to persuade.
Gurgle.
Suddenly, the Gligar's stomach rumbled loudly.
"...She can give you delicious food and a warm nest." In other words, food and lodging included.
"Gligar! (I was born to be her subordinate!)" The Gligar's eyes lit up. It immediately dropped to one knee, offering its loyalty to Liz.
"Hmm?" Liz opened her eyes and looked at the scene before her, tilting her head blankly.
"..." Ryū stared at the Gligar, wondering where it had learned such a human-like gesture. He had to take back his previous assessment. This Gligar wasn't hard to fool; he just hadn't offered the right incentive.
A biting sea wind blew in from the broken window, making Liz shiver. "Alan, cold," she mumbled, shrinking back into the covers and hugging the warm Little Flare. She seemed to have completely filtered out the Gligar.
"Come with me," Ryū said to the Gligar. He could guess that the strong wind had caused it to lose control while gliding and crash through the window.
"Gligar!" it nodded.
Ryū wrapped his tail around Liz and Little Flare, blanket and all, and moved them to the adjacent room. Then, he took the Gligar to the kitchen. Elder Maeve also raised Pokémon, so her home was stocked with Pokémon food. Ryū found some fragrant berries, likely for Ledyba, and threw them to the Gligar.
"Gli, Gligar~" The Gligar began to eat ravenously, as if it hadn't had a good meal in ages.
After it had eaten its fill, Ryū took it back to the bedroom to sleep. The rest could wait until morning.
The next day, Liz came to the living room to find Elder Maeve.
"What is this?" Maeve asked, looking at the Gligar next to Liz's left leg with a bewildered expression. Then she looked at Little Flare next to her right leg. If they hadn't appeared together, she might have thought Little Flare had mutated.
"This is Little Scorpio," Liz said without batting an eye. Her mindset had changed quite a bit. It was no longer strange for a random Pokémon to suddenly appear by her side. When she woke up and saw a purple creature in her room, she wasn't even scared. She vaguely remembered Ryū talking to it last night, so she understood his unspoken intention.
This feeling was quite nice. With these children by her side, she had completely forgotten the taste of loneliness. The winter morning even seemed to have become warmer. And a little... smoky?
"Liz..." Elder Maeve said suddenly, looking down.
"Hmm?"
"Your skirt is on fire."
"...Little Flare!!!"