Pokémon A Snippet of Life (Drabble Bingo 2025)

[windskull]

Combusken - Not Bound by Birth​

“Lola! Faster on those kicks!”

“I’m working on it!” Lola snapped, springing out of the way of a hitmontop’s attack before retaliating with a blaze kick of her own. Her opponent spun out of the way. Then, keeping his momentum, delivered three swift kicks to her jaw that sent her sprawling with a yelp.

She groaned, carefully climbing back to her feet and rubbing at the smarting spot, her talons scoring lines in the dirt. Behind her, she could hear the dojo master, a marowak, grumbling. She didn’t turn to look at him. Or at her partner. She didn’t want to see the look of disappointment on their faces.

She was a combusken. Kicking was her species’ whole thing! How was she supposed evolve if she couldn’t manage this? How was she supposed to let anyone rely on her if she couldn’t master the basics.

Growling, she dashed back towards the hitmontop, this time trying a double kick attack. The first hit managed to clip him, but the second went wide, throwing her off balance. He took the opportunity to grab her leg and threw her across the arena. She screamed before hitting the ground hard, the breath driven from her. This time, she didn’t bother getting up.

Pathetic. She was hopeless.

She wasn’t sure how long she laid there, staring up at the dojo ceiling. But it was long enough for her partner, a grovyle, to come over, blinking worriedly down at her.

“You good, Lo?”

“Fine,” she snapped as she rolled onto her stomach then climbed to her feet. Immediately, she felt guilty for being short. Her partner didn’t deserve that. “I’m… fine. Really. Just need a break. Can we swing by Spinda’s, Mal? I think I’ve ate enough dirt today.”

The grovyle, Malachite, tilted her head, her long head-leaf crinkling. “If you really want to, I guess we could call it early.”

“I really do,” Lola confirmed. She grabbed Malachite by the wrist and started hurrying out the door, pausing only long enough to thank her opponent and the dojo master.

The marowak stared sternly for several seconds, then relented with a nod. “Very well. Come back when you’re ready to try again.”

Lola let Malachite lead her out of the dimly lit chamber and into the bright afternoon sun of Treasure Town. She kept silent as they passed townies and guild members alike, only raising her free hand to greet them.

The buildings began to thin out as they reached the edge of town, eventually leaving them a crossroads, vacant aside from a sunflora making her way towards the guild in the cliff. They took a right, passing through a secluded entrance and making their way down a ramp into the dimly lit bunker that housed Spinda’s Cafe.

Malachite ordered them each a pinap and razz smoothie, then they settled at a table in a dark corner to nurse their drinks.

“Pokecoin for your thoughts?” Malachite said after they’d sat in silence for an uncomfortable stretch.

Lola sighed, pushing her drink away and leaning forward to rest her head on her arms against the table. “It seems like no matter how hard I try, I can’t get these kicks right. I’m either too slow, or not accurate enough, or I hold back too much. How are we supposed to get better explorer jobs if I can’t get this right? How am I supposed to evolve if I can’t get this right?” She snorted, letting out a puff of embers. “My parents would be so disappointed if they saw me now.”

“Hey.” Malachite leaned forward to place a clawed hand on Lola’s elbow. “I’m sure you’ll get it eventually.”

“But I don’t want to get it eventually. I want to get it now!” Lola threw her hands in the air, slumping back in her chair. “Why did I have to be born a torchic? Why do I have to be good at kicking?”

Malachite hesitated for a moment. “Do you have to?”

Lola blinked. It took several seconds for the grovyle’s words to click. And even then, she struggled to comprehend them. “Of… Course? It’s what I’m supposed to be good at.”

“It’s what people think you should be good at,” Malachite corrected. “But that doesn’t mean it has to define you. You can find other methods of fighting. Figure out what works for you.” She paused to tap her chin, tilting her head back. “You know, I heard there was an abra — now an alakazam — that made a name for himself a few years back over on the Air Continent. His psychic powers didn’t work right, so what does he do? Learns to be a physical fighter. Uses all the elemental punches.”

“That’s different,” Lola protested. “You said he didn’t have any psychic powers. Obviously, he had to find some way to fight.”

“But it doesn’t change my point! It doesn’t matter whether he could use psychic moves or not. What matters is he found his own way to be successful.”

Malachite’s expression softened. “I just want you to be happy, Lo. If that means continuing to improve your kicking, then by all means, go for it. But just remember you have other options, okay?”

Lola was silent for a moment, considering Malachite’s words. Finally she took a deep breath. “Maybe you’re right. I’ll give it some thought.”

The grovyle smiled. “That’s all I’m asking for. Now then, why don’t we hurry up and finish our smoothies? I’m starving! And we want to get up bright and early tomorrow if we want to beat the rush at the guild.

The combusken puffed the feathers around her head and neck, her way of returning the grovyle’s smile. “Right. Good idea.”

As she slurped down the smoothie, she let Mal’s words bounce around in her head. And the more she thought about it, the more certain she became.

It was at least worth a try.

 

[windskull]

Gyarados - Pros and Cons
​

Speaking from experience, it sucked being a magikarp.

Like. Really, really sucked.

Some people say we’re nothing but skin and bones. But that doesn’t stop the other pokemon from gobbling us up. Its a wonder any of us survive to evolve at all.

But I got to be honest, evolving isn’t as glamorous as it’s made out to be, either.

I mean, don’t get me wrong, it’s cool to suddenly be strong enough to scare everyone in sight…. But you scare everyone in sight. No one wants to hang with a magikarp because they’re so “weak” and “pathetic,” but no one wants to hang out with a gyarados because they’re “dangerous” and “short-tempered.”

And on top of that, you’re suddenly huge! Suddenly your favorite rocky resting places won’t even fit your head, let alone your whole body.

On that note, for some of us, it’s difficult to shake instinctive fear that you have a magikarp. I’m sure some pokemon got a kick of watching a gyarados turn tail and cower at the bottom of the lake bed at the first sign of trouble.

I suppose there’s one thing good, though. You can properly go on land. As a magikarp, all you can do is flop about uselessly. On the other fin, as a gyarados, you can slither about or even fly.

And perhaps, if you’re the adventurous type, you can find some companionship with guild teams. They occasionally hire water search and rescue. Or for outlaw hunting. We certainly are capable mon in those scenarios, though unfortunately though our size can make it difficult to flush pokemon out of tight spaces.

(Also, In my experience I think we make fore a decent ferrymon, but unfortunately the lapras have a choke-hold on that market. A shame.)

Being a magikarp sucks, that much is clear. And being a gyarados isn’t all it’s shaped up to be, either. But, end the end, I suppose there’s nothing else I’d rather be.

Except a friend.

Won’t someone be my friend?

...Gods, I’m so lonely.

 

[windskull]

Aggron - A Good Steward​

Flint trudged through the loose soil, each heavy step leaving a footprint behind. His tail scored a long path as it dragged through the dirt, betraying his exhaustion as he made his way to the top of the landslide.

The last half moon had been plagued with heavy rains, confining him with a to one of his many dens on the mountain. And not even his favorite, at that. After so much rain in so little time, something had to give. And something had, shaving a layer of dirt and debris off of one particularly steep slope, taking down trees and wiping out a deerling track.

And who knew how many pokemon had been caught in the slide.

There was nothing Flint could do about that; he’d been on the far side of his territory when that happened. But he’d felt the earth move all the same.

“Right, what a mess this is,” he mumbled as he surveyed from the top. “Best get started if I want anything done this moon.”

With that said, he turned and headed further up the hill, to an untouched copse. Then, in great pawfuls, he scooped up seedlings and grass sheltered beneath the great trees, returning to the mud mound to spread them over the destruction. He returned to repeat the process a second, third, and fourth time, taking from a different section each trip. The sun crept across the sky as he continued his task in silence, slowly taking from further and further away.

As he toiled, a pidgey landed in one of the trees just as he passed. He let out a warning growl, but let it be.

It, however, did not seem to take the hint. “I’ve been watching you all morning,” the pidgey began. “What in the gods’ names are you doing?”

“What’s it matter to you?” Flint grunted, continuing at his slow, lumbering gait. But the pidgey wasn’t keen on letting him ignore it.

“Hey, no need for the attitude. I’m not trying to be rude. Just wondering what’s going on. I’ve never seen an aggron garden before.”

“I’d hardly call this gardening. It’s a hack job at best” Flint avoided continuing the conversation by stooping down to dig up a particularly dense patch of grass, doing his best to keep it in one piece. But as he turned around, he had no choice but to face the pidgey.

“Look, if you must know, I’m simply working to stabilize the landslide. Best to get it held down now, before it rains again.”

“Have you had to do this before?”

“No, but my mother showed me when it happened in her territory. I was just a wee aron then, hardly more than a yearling.” Flint let out a long sigh, allowing himself to momentarily drift in the memories.

“Okay, but why?”

“Because I live here, idiot,” Flint snapped, tiring of the pidgey. He grumbled as he stomped past, then paused. “Plus, if I don’t, it’ll only turn into a bigger problem later. The last thing I want is to lose my home from something preventable. And for more pokemon to get hurt.”

“Do all aggron do this?”

“Any aggron worth their weight would.” Flint shifted his weight, looking the pidgey in the eye. “If we don’t steward the land we claim as our own, then why are we even here?”