From: Marco262 <marco262@geocities.com> Subject: [PW!] To hell with writers' block... Date: Saturday, July 17, 1999 4:29 PM Darian woke up staring at the inside of one of the cardboard boxes that had protected him from the previous downpour. He crawled out from under his homemade shelter, upsetting Pardus' perch on his stomach where the Persian had spent the night. Darian didn't mind, he had spent the night in much worse situations. Stretching in unison with his pokemon, Darian viewed their surroundings. Cerulean City was slowly coming alive following the onset of morning. Numerous alarm clocks could be heard waking up the peaceful residents. Cirrus clouds gently wafted across a beautiful blue sky, showing no sign of the dreariness that had prevailed only miles away in Pewter City. Lawns were scattered with Pidgeys, searching for worms and insects forced out of their homes by the night rain. Darian reached down and scratched behind Pardus' ears. "Morning buddy. What will be on the menu for today?" Pardus descended his nose to the ground and crept forward down the sidewalk of the awakening city. He stopped in front of a lavishly decorated restaurant. Darian read the sign in the window. "'All you can eat breakfast, only Ľ100. 1 a.m. to 7 a.m.' Perfect! It's about..." Darian glanced at a clock inside, "6:00 right now. We'd better get some money." The duo searched the east side of Cerulean City for trainers and wild pokémon. As they tromped through the tall grass, Darian removed a small woven bag from his pocket. The bag was made of two pieces of a burlap sack stitched together. A hemp drawstrings was thread through the top with glass beads on each end to prevent it from sliding out. He gathered various plants and herbs as they passed by them, adding him to his collection in his bag. "You're not wearing shorts!" Darian spun around to confront a boy about 10 years old. "Ummm, that's great kid." mused Darian as he tried started in his former direction. The kid jumped in front of them and yelled again. "You're not wearing shorts!" "So?" Confused by this comment, the kid decided to get to the point. "I challenge you to a pokémon match!" Darian smiled. He needed some money for breakfast and this was just what he needed to get some. "I accept. You ready Pardus?" Darian looked down at the Persian who was doing a pretty good Jackie Chan impression despite the fact he had four legs. "Alright! Pardus, I choose you!" Pardus leapt into the battlefield. "Pidgey, I choose you!" The boy threw out a pokéball and moments later a Pidgey was standing in front of Pardus. "Pidgey, use Gust Attack!" "Pardus, rapid Pay Day! We need all the money we can get." Pardus' gem began to glow and shot out a bright yellow beam at the Pidgey who was gearing up for a quick Gust. The Pidgey was knocked backwards out of the air. Pardus shot another Pay Day at the Pidgey but the bird jumped into the air for a near miss. Pardus' next shot didn't miss though and the Pidgey lay on the ground, fainted. The boy sneered and recalled his Pidgey. "Go! Rattata!" The small rat appeared and was quickly greeted by a Pay Day from Pardus. "Oh man! Use Quick Attack!" The Rattata leapt to his feet and struck Pardus with his . Pardus grimaced but hit it with another Pay Day. The Rattata fainted and the boy called back his pokémon. "You win." The boy stalked off in a bad mood. Darian shrugged and the coins from all the Pay Day attacks. It turned out there would be just enough for both of them plus a hefty tip. The food was delicious. Pardus practically scarfed the cinnamon rolls while Darian went straight for the pizza. Dish stacks later, the duo slouched in their chairs contented. They began to discuss their parting with Marvin and his crew. Famifax was sobbing uncontrollably until Darian calmed the tides a little bit by promising to visit her after every show if they were ever in the same town. Darian had released the Jigglypuff he caught after he said goodbye to Marvin. He decided to keep the pokéball in case he ever needed it. Darian and Pardus shuffled out of the restauraunt leaving plenty of money in the tip jar. Not quite ready for another trip, Pardus convinced Darian to spend the day in Cerulean. The two amigos strolled down the sidewalk searching for a way to pass the day. (OOC: Darian's going to be meeting up with my friend's character sometime soon, but if anyone else wants to join Darian, e-mail me and I'll see what I can do.) -- -Darian McCain, Aspiring Regular "It's not the pace of life I mind, it's the abrupt stop at the end." -Hobbes "He's a legend in his own mind. Anywhere else he'd be arrested." -Me "The only reason that people use profanity or insults is that they can't come up with even a half decent argument otherwise." -Me again AIM: Marco262