Rachel Berry, Coordinator Extraordinaire

So, I caught the end of your battle...

Sun, 06 May 2012 17:48:08 -0400

saffronrachel:

About that…I want you to have Sunkern. I know you were worrying about fighting Dad, becuase you didn’t have the right types of Pokémon, but Sunkern is a Grass-type, which are really effective against Rock-types.

…To be honest, nothing in the world could make me less nervous about fighting Mr. Leroy. But…really? Thank you, Rachel! That’s so sweet of you. I think I’ll name him Apollo. What do you think?

I think Apollo is a great name. :) And of course you can have him.

So, I caught the end of your battle...

Sun, 06 May 2012 14:33:10 -0400

poketraineralana:

And Rachel, you were amazing. That’s the first time I’ve seen Melchior in action, and he’s wonderful. Both of your new Pokémon will be great additions, and so will Felix!

About that…I want you to have Sunkern. I know you were worrying about fighting Dad, becuase you didn’t have the right types of Pokémon, but Sunkern is a Grass-type, which are really effective against Rock-types.

A Wild Sunkern Appears | Self-Para

Sun, 06 May 2012 13:34:30 -0400

Rachel was lying down, relaxing with Alana while Nova and Babs played in the grass. The sun felt nice on her face, and she closed her eyes, enjoying it, until she suddenly felt something blocking it. She blinked open her eyes and saw an upside-down Sunkern leaning over her head. She quickly scrambled away and stood up, looking at it. It occurred to her that it was a grass-type, and that it would be really good in a battle against her Dad. With that in mind, she decided to catch it for Alana, even though Alana had told her that she didn’t need to.

She was about to Call for Babs, but she remembered that bug-types were really effective against grass-types, so she pulled Melchior’s Pokéball from her belt and released him. “Melchior, I need you to battle this Sunkern for me. Will you do that?” Melchior nodded resolutely.

“Okay, Melchior, use String Shot!” Melchior shot out the string as fast as he could, but the Sunkern managed to evade it. She saw the Sunkern gearing up to use Absorb, so she shouted quickly, “Use String Shot again, Melchie!” This time, the Sunkern wasn’t concentrating, so the attack landed. “Follow it up with a full-strength Tackle, Melchior. Let’s end this quickly.” Rachel didn’t want to draw this out, feeling sick at seeing the Sunkern try pathetically to get out of the sticky string. Melchior reared back and tackled the Sunkern. The attack seemed to be pretty effective, causing the Pokémon to faint.

Rachel threw her last remaining Pokéball at it, hoping that Alana would want it. Her Pokédex beeped and she pulled it out of her pocket. “Sunkern, the Seed Pokémon. Sunkern drink the dew that collects beneath leaves. It is believed that it neither eats nor drinks anything else.”

Early Morning Training Session | Rachel, Babs, and Melchior

Sun, 06 May 2012 11:12:36 -0400

Rachel woke up at precisely 6am, curled next to Alana in their tent. She blushed at the proximity—Alana’s face was hardly more than an inch away from her own. She shifted back a few inches, yawned, and quickly changed into a pair of shorts, a tank top, and a sweatshirt. After tying her hair into a ponytail, she squatted down and petted Babs awake. The Dratini blinked sleepily up at her. “Come on Babs, let’s get in a little early-morning training.” Rachel whispered, then crept out of the tent, careful not to wake up Alana.

Outside the tent, Rachel released Melchior from his Pokéball. She turned to face the two Pokémon, which were facing each other and seemingly sizing each other up. “Ok, there’ll be plenty of time for you two pracice fighting each other later. For now, we’re gonna go for a quick run.” Rachel ganced at their surroundings. There weren’t any really good landmarks. “Okay, we’ll run about a mile. I think we passed a smallish tree on the road about half a mile back, so let’s run there and back, okay guys?” The two Pokémon nodded, and Rachel smiled.

She jogged until the campsite was a few dozen meters behind her, not wanting to wake anyone up, then slowly began increasing her speed. At home, she usually ran about 2 miles on her elliptical each morning, so a mile wouldn’t be a big deal, but she didn’t want to push her Pokémon too hard. She had to figure out what they were capable of, first.

It was a good thing, too, because by the time they reached the tree, Babs seemed to be getting tired. She was pleasantly surprised that Melchior seemed to have no trouble keeping pace, and that he didn’t even look tired. She guessed that he was probably used to running from Spearows and the like.

When they got to the tree, she rethought her plan. It would probably be best for them to battle here, where they wouldn’t wake anyone. She gave them a two minute rest break, then stood up and looked at the both of them. “You guys are gonna spar for a little while now, okay?”

The Pokémon nodded at her resolutely and then moved to face each other. “Okay, Melchior, use String Shot!” The Wurmple did as commanded, and just as the sticky string started to come out of his mouth, Rachel called out, “Babs, dodge it and use Leer!” She watched curiously as Babs glared menacingly at Melchior, her eyes glowing blue. Melchior was visibly frightened, but valiantly tried to appear unafraid. “Now, Babs, use Wrap!” Babs darted forward and attempted to wrap around Melchior. “Dodge it, Melchior!” Rachel commanded, but Melchior seemed too frightened to listen. When Melchior was in Babs’ grasp, Rachel acted on instinct. “Melchior, now, use String Shot!”

Melchior shot the sticky string at Babs, who had no way to avoid the attack, and got wrapped in the sticky substance. “Now, Melchior, use Tackle!” The Wurmple tackled Babs while she was down, but not hard enough to faint her.

Rachel called out, “That’s enough. Melchior wins this time.” She jogged over to Babs and started pulling the string off of her. She frowned sympathetically at the tiny dragon Pokémon, who seemed to be almost embarrased that she lost. “It’s okay, Babs. That’s what this practice is for. I’m not upset with you. Come on, I’ll let you be my scarf for the run back.” This seemed to cheer Babs up, and Rachel picked up an exhausted Babs, putting her on her shoulders. She looked at Melchior, who was looking almost afraid.

Rachel’s eyes widened and she him up as well, clutching him to her chest like a favored stuff animal. “I’m not upset with you for winning at all, so don’t you ever think that. I’m so proud of you. But you definitely still have more energy than Babs, so you and I are going to run the rest of the way back, deal?” She put him back down, and he looked up at her resolutely. She grinned at him, and as they ran back to the campsite, Rachel felt lighter than she had in a while.

She was shaping up to be better at this than she’d thought.

Photo

Sun, 06 May 2012 09:27:18 -0400

Rachel?

Sat, 05 May 2012 21:33:42 -0400

poketraineralana:

saffronrachel:

You know you’re welcome to unlimited hugs and cuddles whenever you want, Alana. And I prefer your hugs as well—you give the best hugs. You make me feel so safe and happy, I never want to let go.

If it were up to me, you wouldn’t have to. I can’t imagine life without you, Rachel. I honestly can’t.

I can’t imagine life without you, either. You’re my rock. I need you so much—I don’t know how I was even thinking of doing this without you. I can barely function without you around.

poketraineralana replied to your photo: I took this picture earlier, when we were lying...

Sat, 05 May 2012 21:28:32 -0400

poketraineralana replied to your photo: I took this picture earlier, when we were lying in…

You know I like to humor you, but I wasn’t expecting you to actually post it.

I know I’m selfish sometimes, but I’m not selfish enough to keep this picture from everyone else. You’re too beautiful for me to keep you all to myself.

I took this picture earlier, when we were lying in the shorter...

Sat, 05 May 2012 21:04:28 -0400

I took this picture earlier, when we were lying in the shorter grass together during a rest break.

Rachel?

Sat, 05 May 2012 21:03:15 -0400

poketraineralana:

saffronrachel:

Oh, you’re not just getting a hug. You’re getting the mother of all hugs. You’re the best friend I could ever wish for—I really have to question whether you’re even real, sometimes. But then, I figure my fathers would’ve gotten concerned at some point, if you were just a figment of my imagination.
Anyway, yes. I won’t just give you a hug. I now owe you an entire hour of cuddles. You can cash in on that at any time. And I’m glad you like the name. I remember reading once that Felix mean happiness, and since Plusles are so happy all the time, I thought it just fit.

I’m pretty sure that would have called your fathers’ respective sanities into question, feeding an imaginary girl and all that. I’m definitely real, Rachel. And right here, whenever you need me.

Hm, will there be a distinction between the aforementioned cuddles and any other cuddles I may or may not ask for? As you should be well aware, I tend to prefer your hugs when given the option. But if I’m limited, I suppose I should make them count.

You know you’re welcome to unlimited hugs and cuddles whenever you want, Alana. And I prefer your hugs as well—you give the best hugs. You make me feel so safe and happy, I never want to let go.

Rachel?

Sat, 05 May 2012 20:44:56 -0400

poketraineralana:

saffronrachel:

Oh my god, Alana, you are the sweetest person on the planet. Yes of course I want him. Oh my god I love you so much right now. I feel that I would be accurate if I made the statement that you are the best friend in the history of best friends.

I think I’ll name him Felix.

It’s not a problem, Rach. I just remembered, that’s all - I remember practically every thing about you. …That’s what best friends do, right?

Just making the most of a good opportunity. I’ll trade him to you when we get to Saffron, okay? Don’t even feel obligated to find a Pokémon for me - as long as I get a hug. :) Felix is a cute name, by the way.

Oh, you’re not just getting a hug. You’re getting the mother of all hugs. You’re the best friend I could ever wish for—I really have to question whether you’re even real, sometimes. But then, I figure my fathers would’ve gotten concerned at some point, if you were just a figment of my imagination.

Anyway, yes. I won’t just give you a hug. I now owe you an entire hour of cuddles. You can cash in on that at any time. And I’m glad you like the name. I remember reading once that Felix mean happiness, and since Plusles are so happy all the time, I thought it just fit.

Babs's First Battle // Self-Para

Sat, 05 May 2012 20:17:29 -0400

Rachel had gone off on her own for a little bit, as the other members of her group had. But sitting by a tree in the tall grass of Route 7, she couldn’t help but feel slightly glum, despite her earlier good mood. Alana and Zoey had both already caught Pokémon—Pokémon that were on Rachel’s wish list, for that matter. And yes, Alana had given her the Plusle she’d caught (which Rachel had promptly named Felix), so she forgave her pretty much instantly (not that there was really anything to forgive). But for Zoey, for whom she still had a strange dislike, to catch an Igglybuff, which was one the Pokémon Rachel wanted most (Rachel’s Daddy had nicknamed her Igglybuff when she was a baby, and she’d wanted one ever since she’d found out what it was)…well, Rachel wasn’t exactly jumping for joy.

She sighed, knowing that her pouting (there was no better word for it) wasn’t going to help anything. Her face lit up when she remembered Babs. Babs could cheer anyone up, and it wasn’t like Rachel had to keep her in her Pokéball anymore. She pulled Babs’s pokeball from her belt and released the tiny dragon Pokémon, grinning when Babs chirped happily at the sight of her. She bent down and picked her up, needing some Babs cuddles. Rachel giggled when Babs settled herself in her cleavage, shaking her head at the fact that Babs seemed to favor women’s chests over any other possible surface to rest on.

She started gently singing Funny Girl to her, because by now singing to Babs while cuddling was just what they did. She stopped when she heard a rustling sound behind her, but when she turned she saw nothing. She started singing again, and this time turned to face the rustling sound while she was singing. She almost shrieked. Right in front of her was a a creepy, crawly Pokémon—well, okay, that wasn’t fair. It was kind of cute, actually. And if Rachel remembered correctly, it would eventually evolve into Beautifly, which would be a really great Pokémon to have. Rachel bit her lip and looked down at Babs. “Hey, Babs, I know you haven’t done this before, but I think I need you to fight this Wurmple for me. Do you mind?”

Babs stared into Rachel’s eyes, looking almost eager. She slithered down Rachel and faced the bug Pokémon, “Okay, um, Babs, use Thunder Wave!” She remembered reading in one of her books about Dratinis that Thunder Wave was a move that Dratinis learned early on, and Rachel wanted to avoid physical conflict as much as possibly, so a move that would stun the other Pokémon was ideal. Babs put on a look of concentration, and then sent out a large pulse of electricity, which hit Wurmple even as it tried to run away. Rachel frowned in sympathy for the Pokémon, but knew it was necessary. The Wurmple froze in place, and seemed unable to move, so Rachel assumed the attack had worked.

“Now, Babs, before it wears off. Use Wrap.” Babs darted forward and wrapped around the Wurmple, squeezing it. It seemed to do quite a bit of damage, but the Wurmple wasn’t knocked out yet, and the shock seemed to be wearing off. Rachel frowned and wrapped her arms around herself, not enjoying seeing the Wurmple in so much pain. She decided it would be better to end it quickly, than to let this draw out. “Babs, use Wrap again.” Babs constricted her body around the Wurmple again, and this time it fell limp. Babs immediately slithered off of the Wurmple, seeming to hate fighting as much as Rachel did.

Rachel pulled an empty Pokéball from its clip on her belt, and threw it at the Wurmple. The Wurmple disappeared into the ball in a flash of red light, and the ball shook a few times before eventually settling down. The Pokédex beeped, and she pulled it out of her pocket. “Wurmple, the Worm Pokémon. Wurmple live primarily off of sap from trees. The suction cups on its feet keep it from slipping.” Rachel grinned. However much she’d disliked battling, she’d caught her first Pokémon and it felt GREAT.

Rachel?

Sat, 05 May 2012 18:10:56 -0400

poketraineralana:

I…um, have a surprise for you.

I mean, if you want him. I know you said you wanted a Plusle or Minun and I found one earlier. Considering Nova’s an Electric type, I just thought he’d be a nice gift for you, instead. His Thunder Wave should make for good display combos and-sorry, I’m rambling. I shouldn’t have assumed you’d just take him…

Oh my god, Alana, you are the sweetest person on the planet. Yes of course I want him. Oh my god I love you so much right now. I feel that I would be accurate if I made the statement that you are the best friend in the history of best friends.

I think I’ll name him Felix.

popjester: Breakaway / Kelly Clarkson / Breakaway (2004)

Fri, 04 May 2012 19:14:37 -0400

popjester:

Breakaway / Kelly Clarkson / Breakaway (2004)

Departure | Zoinnalachel

Fri, 04 May 2012 17:56:12 -0400

poketraineralana:

Checking one last time to make sure that her bag was entirely prepped, Alana stood idly in the main lobby, waiting for the rest of her group. Was she that eager, or were they really just taking their sweet time? Maybe it was a combination of both, if she were being honest. Quinn probably had the most work to do, considering that she had the access and the funds to acquire most of the actual survival equipment. And she’d expect that type of delay from Rachel, who probably had ‘meticulous preparation’ encoded into her DNA. Chuckling to herself, she tapped her foot rhythmically, staring at the lift every once in a while.

Her anticipation getting the best of her, Alana pulled out her phone. She quickly sent identical reminder texts to Quinn and Zoey, before pausing and sending a different one to Rachel, wondering if her friend still remembered the joke. She gave the screen a small smirk before tucking the phone away. Now, she just had to wait.

Rachel was looking over her room one final time, making sure she hadn’t forgotten anything. Just as she finished her final once-over, she got a text from Alana. She flipped open her phone, and couldn’t help but giggle at the text. “Wake up, you sleepyhead. Rub your eyes, get out of that bed.” She texted back, “Be more patient or you’ll go where the goblins go.” She grinned down at her phone for a moment, unable to believe that she was really going to be a Pokémon Coordinator. And Alana was going to be right there with her. She felt like the happiness must have been leaking out of her pores.

She slipped her backpack onto her back, took a deep breath, and went downstairs. Upon spotting Alana in the lobby, she literally skipped to her friend’s side, too happy to worry about what people would think of her acting so childish. When she was within reach, she snuck up behind Alana and placed her hands over Alana’s eyes. “Guess who!” Rachel commanded. Of course, she’d never been very good at patience, so she immediately removed her hands and moved to stand in front of Alana, practically vibrating with excitement.

Rachel's Pokemon Wish List

Mon, 30 Apr 2012 23:14:00 -0400

in no particular order

Minun/Plusle
Igglybuff
Jirachi
Horsea
Azurill
Sneasel
Phanpy
Celebi
Mudkip
Frillish
Mew
Swablu
Tympole
Petilil
Feebas

celadonquinn: Everyone else seems to be doing this, so I...

Mon, 30 Apr 2012 20:30:54 -0400

celadonquinn:

Everyone else seems to be doing this, so I thought I’d join in and post a picture of me. Don’t laugh, okay?

Wow, Quinn. You look…phenomenal. Like a celebi who took human form, or something.

poketraineralana: They just envied you, Rae. You were the daughter of a Gym Leader, and you’re so...

Mon, 30 Apr 2012 20:30:02 -0400

poketraineralana:

They just envied you, Rae. You were the daughter of a Gym Leader, and you’re so beautiful and talented. You intimidated them, so they took advantage of the fact that they were bigger than you. It was the only thing they could do.

Don’t think I didn’t notice that jab at my height, ‘Lana.

poketraineralana: Only a matter of time, Rach. Only a matter of time. And you must be talking...

Mon, 30 Apr 2012 20:16:34 -0400

poketraineralana:

Only a matter of time, Rach. Only a matter of time. And you must be talking about the other Corian. I agree, Dani got the better pick of the genetics.

Dani is very pretty, but honestly, ‘Lana, you’re absolutely gorgeous. If I looked like you do, people might not have mocked my pokemon sweaters.

And thank you for the vote of confidence!

poketraineralana replied to your photo Never one to shy away from the camera. My best friend is...

Mon, 30 Apr 2012 19:42:06 -0400

poketraineralana replied to your photo

Never one to shy away from the camera. My best friend is gorgeous, but that’s no surprise.

Well, if I want to be a world-class Pokémon Coordinator, I can’t exactly be camera shy. And if your best friend is gorgeous, mine is stunning.

celadonquinn replied to your photo Wow! You look amazing in this picture Rachel. Oh, thank you...

Mon, 30 Apr 2012 19:36:26 -0400

celadonquinn replied to your photo

Wow! You look amazing in this picture Rachel.

Oh, thank you Quinn. I still don’t even compare to how you look every day, but I guess not all of us can be as beautiful as you.