Chapter 186
In the clearing, the young Kangaskhan clutched her injured shoulder and growled at the Arbok in front of her.
Arbok raised its body and spread its hood, displaying the threatening pattern across its chest.
Then it spat another mass of purple liquid.
The young Kangaskhan rolled aside, narrowly avoiding the attack.
She glanced once toward the Berry tree.
Then she turned and ran.
Arbok watched her flee, gave a dismissive shake of its head, and slithered back up the tree to enjoy the abandoned Berries.
Mike watched the young Kangaskhan disappear, stood, and gave Beedrill a small nod.
Then he took his camera and followed her.
Gengar, Snivy, and Glameow moved with him.
The adult Kangaskhan followed behind at an unhurried pace.
Before leaving, she glanced back.
Beedrill was already flying slowly toward Arbok.
Arbok had barely managed to eat a few Berries when it saw a Beedrill noticeably larger than normal hovering directly in front of it.
It reared up and started spreading its hood, intending to intimidate him.
It never got the chance.
Beedrill’s stinger struck before Arbok could fully open its body, knocking the snake straight out of the tree.
"HISS!"
Arbok glared furiously at Beedrill from the ground.
Beedrill remained completely expressionless.
One stinger thrust forward.
Then withdrew.
Then thrust again.
Again.
And again.
By the time Arbok lay motionless on the ground, Beedrill calmly brushed a little dirt from his armor.
Only after Beedrill left did Arbok open one eye.
It slowly climbed back to its feet, dragged its aching body up the Berry tree, and began eating as fast as it could.
Since it had already been beaten, it might as well eat enough to recover.
The moment Arbok realized Beedrill only wanted to teach it a lesson rather than actually finish it off, it had simply collapsed and pretended to be unconscious.
...
Elsewhere, the young Kangaskhan staggered through the forest on her short legs.
She had been poisoned, and she knew she needed to find the Berry her mother had once taught her about as quickly as possible.
Eventually, her persistence paid off.
She found a tree covered in Pecha Berries.
Barely able to remain standing, the young Kangaskhan struck the trunk as hard as she could.
A single Pecha Berry fell.
She picked it up and bit into it immediately.
Juice spilled from the fruit as she leaned against the tree and ate slowly.
For the first time, she seemed to truly understand that her mother was not coming back.
From now on, she had to depend on herself.
Even while eating the Pecha Berry, she kept looking around nervously.
Her mother would no longer stand guard while she ate.
If she wanted to avoid another ambush, she had to protect herself.
Eventually, exhaustion won.
The young Kangaskhan fell asleep against the tree, and the half-eaten Pecha Berry slipped from her hand onto the ground.
Mike was startled when he saw her eyes close.
He immediately looked toward the adult Kangaskhan.
"You’re really not going over there?"
Kangaskhan shook her head.
"Kanga."
[The poison is gone.]
Mike looked back at the sleeping youngster and sighed.
"...All right."
"Kanga."
[Thank you.]
The adult Kangaskhan lowered her head toward Mike and expressed her gratitude sincerely.
Mike looked confused.
"For what?"
"Kanga."
[For getting some revenge for her. If you hadn’t done it, I probably would’ve had to wait a long time before I could find that Arbok myself and beat it senseless.]
Mike blinked.
Then he waved his hand.
"No problem."
He looked at the enormous Kangaskhan in front of him and lifted his camera slightly.
"Would you mind if I took some photographs of you?"
Kangaskhan looked at the camera.
She hesitated briefly, then nodded.
While the young Kangaskhan slept, Mike began taking pictures of her mother.
He eventually moved to a position behind the adult and recorded the scene of Kangaskhan silently watching her daughter from a distance.
That was when the young Kangaskhan woke.
She instinctively called out, expecting an answer.
None came.
The youngster froze.
Then the pain still lingering through her body reminded her of reality.
She was living on her own now.
Her expression fell.
The young Kangaskhan picked up the half-eaten Pecha Berry from the dirt, carefully brushed the soil from it, then put it back into her mouth and finished chewing before swallowing.
Afterward, she looked up at the remaining Pecha Berries.
She struck the tree again.
Several more fell.
The young Kangaskhan picked them up and stuffed them into her little pouch before wobbling away in search of somewhere else to go.
The adult Kangaskhan followed.
Mike followed behind the mother, continuing to film them.
...
They remained like that until evening approached.
When the light began fading, the young Kangaskhan looked up at the sky and found a relatively safe place to stop for the night.
She sat down, took out some of the Berries she had gathered along the way, and began eating.
The adult Kangaskhan stopped as well.
Then she sat down.
Mike checked the sky and decided it was getting too late to keep following.
He lowered his camera, hung it around his neck, and asked Gengar to take out some food.
Mike offered it to the adult Kangaskhan.
She accepted it but had no appetite.
Instead, she placed the food beside herself and kept staring at her daughter without moving.
Mike gently patted her shoulder.
"Don’t worry. She’ll get used to it."
Then he turned and left.
Kangaskhan didn’t look back.
To her, Mike was only a human she had happened to meet that day.
Her daughter mattered far more.
...
On the way back, Glameow suddenly jumped into Mike’s arms and remained there without moving.
Mike gently stroked her head.
He could tell she was feeling low, so he didn’t force her to talk.
By the time the cave came into view, they could already hear Nidoking’s voice in the distance.
Mike spotted the glow of the campfire ahead and smiled.
Then he looked down at Glameow in his arms.
"Don’t worry, Glameow. We’re always here."
Glameow lifted her head and looked at him.
After a moment, she nodded and gave a soft cry.
"Meow~"
From outside the cave came the constant laughter of Nidoran♀ and Hatenna playing together.
Mike paused for a moment with Glameow in his arms and looked toward Hatenna, who was clearly having the time of her life.
A smile appeared on his face.
Then he continued walking.
...
Once they returned, Mike took advantage of the remaining daylight to wash up first.
He had Gengar wash his clothes and hang them near the fire to dry, then began preparing dinner.
After everyone finished eating, Mike sat on the blanket outside the cave and enjoyed the evening breeze.
Then he remembered something.
He took out his phone, opened his private chat with Gholdengo Bro, and sent a message.
[Mike: Gholdengo Bro, do you know where I can get some portable cameras? I’m thinking of buying a few for Beedrill and the others to wear so they can help me film.]
[Gholdengo Bro: Portable cameras for Beedrill and the others? Let me know when you reach Eterna City. I’ll have someone deliver a few to you.]
[Mike: Thanks, Gholdengo Bro!]
[Gholdengo Bro: No need to be so polite.]
Mike put his phone away.
Then he looked toward Hatenna, who was playing with Nidoran♀.
After taking several pictures of the two of them, he reached into his belongings and took out one of the pearls left behind by Clamperl.
"Hatenna, this is for you."
He held it out.
"A gift."
Hatenna looked at the pearl in Mike’s hand, then raised her head toward him, clearly wondering why he was giving her something.
"We’re leaving tomorrow and heading toward our next destination. This pearl has a lot of psychic energy inside it, so you might be able to absorb some of that power and become stronger."
Mike smiled.
"That way, you’ll be better able to protect yourself—and Nidoking and Nidoran♀ too."
Hatenna immediately brightened when she heard that Mike was giving her a present.
Then she heard that he was leaving tomorrow.
Her happiness vanished.
’He’s leaving?’
Hatenna slowly raised her head.
Her eyes remained hidden beneath her fringe, but she stared at Mike without moving.
Mike waited.
When Hatenna didn’t respond, he looked confused.
"What’s wrong? You don’t like it?"
Hatenna quickly shook her head and accepted the pearl.
Mike nodded.
"I’ll find a cord later and string it for you. Then you can wear it around your neck. How does that sound?"
Hatenna nodded again.
This time, she still didn’t speak.
"Nidoking?"
Nidoking was sitting nearby eating snacks when he looked toward Mike.
[You’re leaving again?]
"Yeah. I still have other things to do, so I can’t stay here too long."
Mike nodded.
"Otherwise I probably would’ve stayed a while longer. I really like it here."
He looked toward the Pokémon Egg.
"It’s a shame I won’t get to see little Nidoran♂ hatch."
Nidoking tilted his head.
"Nidoking?"
[Then why don’t you take the Egg with you?]
Mike stared at him for several seconds.
Then he finally spoke.
"You do realize that’s your child, right? You’re just going to hand it to me?"
Nidoking gave an easy shrug.
"Nidoking—"
[Nidoran♀ and I can have more Eggs. You’re the one who said you wanted to see this one hatch, so you can take it.]
He seemed to think about it.
[If that doesn’t work, then after it hatches, you can bring it back.]
Mike reached over and smacked Nidoking hard on the head.
His own palm went numb.
"You idiot!"
Mike glared at him.
"You think that Egg belongs to you alone? Did you even ask Nidoran♀ before deciding to give away your child?"
"Nina."
Nidoran♀ spoke before Mike could continue.
[I don’t mind.]
Mike’s remaining words died in his throat.
He looked toward her.
Nidoran♀ was lying comfortably in Nidoking’s arms.
"Nina."
[I’ll go along with whatever he decides.]
Mike stared at the pair.
For several seconds, he had no idea what to say.
"You two..."
He pointed at them with a trembling finger.
"Thank you for the offer, but no. It’s not like I’m never coming back. By the time I visit again, you two might already have another Egg."
Mike looked at Nidoking and snorted inwardly.
There was no way this hopeless fool was going to show any restraint.
Nidoking suddenly shivered.
He looked suspiciously at Mike.
For some reason, he had the distinct feeling that Mike had just insulted him in his head.
Eventually, Nidoking waved his hand.
"Nidoking."
[Allright.]
Mike clapped his hands.
"Okay, it’s getting late. Time for bed. We still need to pack tomorrow and start the next part of the trip."
...
That night, Mike chose not to sleep inside the cave.
Instead, he spread the blanket outside and lay beneath the open sky.
Gengar floated nearby.
"Gar?"
[You’re not taking Hatenna with us?]
"I thought about it."
Mike rested both hands behind his head and watched the scattered fireflies drifting through the darkness.
"But you saw how happy she is playing with Nidoran♀. Nidoran♀ was the one who helped save her in the first place, so staying here might be better for her."
Gengar didn’t argue.
He picked up his thin bamboo staff, floated into a nearby tree, and started telling Beedrill the adventure story he had invented earlier that day.
Snivy rested against the tree trunk with her eyes closed, lost in thoughts she didn’t share, while Glameow had already fallen asleep in Mike’s arms.