Up a Tree
A Clover Guild Story
By Ribombee-anon
One warm morning, Cooper and Testa took a quiet walk on a shady forest road outside Capim Town. The peace didn’t last long before an unpleasant noise assaulted their ears.
Cooper flinched. “What’s that?”
“It sounds like... crying?” his partner replied.
Wasting no time, the Torchic and Squirtle rushed down the dirt path. Not far ahead, they found a young Smoochum bawling by a towering tree. Cooper’s eyes darted around for any signs of trouble, but he saw nothing.
“What’s wrong?” Testa asked softly, approaching the child.
Smoochum jumped when the Squirtle spoke. She wiped her eyes and sniffed. “H-hi... Mama said not to t-talk to strangers...”
“That’s good advice,” said Cooper. “But it sounds like you need help, and we’re a rescue team.”
“Yeah, we’re Team Buckler!” Testa added, pointing at the two badges on her red bandanna. “Are you lost?”
“N-no. I w-was just playing, and then that dumb bully Spearow came over and s-stole Muffin!”
“He stole your muffin?” Testa asked.
“Yeah! He took my best friend and put her in that tree and laughed at me!”
“Wait, back up, please,” said Cooper. “Your best friend... is food?”
The kid laughed. “Haha, silly! What do you mean? She’s a Pokemon! Look!”
Cooper and Testa peered up at where Smoochum’s stubby arm was pointing. Among the green leaves and gray wood of the tree looming high above, they saw the slightest glimpse of a little yellow thing.
“Oh, her name is Muffin,” Cooper said quietly.
“Muffin hates heights!” Smoochum cried.
“Poor thing...” said Testa. “Don’t worry, we’ll save her. Right, Cooper?”
The Torchic nodded. He circled the tree, his purple eyes roving over it. It was big and sturdy with a perfectly vertical trunk and many branches that began half a dozen feet above the ground. His target was near the top, trapped on a high limb.
“What are you doing?” asked the child.
“Planning my route,” said Cooper. “Stand back.”
Testa ushered Smoochum away. Cooper backed off, crouched, then charged forward. He leaped at the tree and ran up the side for a couple seconds. Just as his momentum died down and gravity was about to reclaim him, he kicked off the trunk at an upward angle. In midair, he summoned the energy within him and molded it into Aerial Ace. He fired the move behind him, unleashing a strong gust of Flying-type energy that launched him higher. He landed softly atop the lowest tree branch and held on tight with his talons.
He looked down at the ground below. Testa gave him a thumbs up, while the child’s eyes were practically sparkling with excitement. Cooper immediately averted his gaze and shied away.
“That was so cool!” Smoochum yelled up at him.
“It’s nothing special,” Cooper mumbled.
He climbed ever upward, using his strong legs and Aerial Ace to move as deftly as a bird in flight. He heard Smoochum’s cheers from below, as if she were watching an acrobat at a circus. Cooper winced and sped up so he could spend as little time in the spotlight as possible.
In his haste, he missed a jump and crashed into the side of the branch he had been aiming for. He flailed his legs, but his talons only clutched air, and Testa and the child cried out as he fell. Fortunately, he did not plummet to the ground, and instead landed with a pained grunt on another branch. Before he tumbled off the side, he frantically clutched at the limb with his talons, steadying himself as he lay on his back. For a moment, he was safe. Then the branch creaked. Splinters flew from a large crack forming halfway between Cooper and the trunk. He gasped.
“Don’t move!” shouted Testa from below.
A beam of frigid white energy flew up and engulfed the crack in the branch. A thick coating of ice grew rapidly, covering the fracture and gluing the two ends of the tree’s limb together. Cooper sighed in relief, thanked Testa for her timely Ice Beam, and resumed his ascent with more caution now.
The Torchic finally reached the spot where Muffin was trapped. He looked at Smoochum’s best friend up close for the first time. He was greeted by the smiling face of a small yellow Pichu plushie.
With an exasperated groan, he took the doll in his beak and carefully descended branch by branch. Once he reached the final limb of the tree, six feet above the dirt, he hopped off and used Aerial Ace one last time, slowing his fall with a burst of energy just before hitting the ground. He landed and grunted, letting the toy slip from his grasp. Smoochum was at his side in an instant, scooping the doll into her arms and hugging it tightly.
“Yay, Muffin! You’re back!” Smoochum shouted.
Testa laughed as she realized Muffin’s true identity. Cooper just frowned. He felt angry heat rising inside, and his talons dug into the dirt. He had spent all this effort and even endangered his life—all to save a mere toy? What a waste. It was all this child’s fault for misleading him. She should have known better.
But as he saw the sparkling eyes and immense grin of the girl, he felt a rising tide of satisfaction pushing away his frustration. Retrieving this doll brought this little girl so much joy... that was a good cause, right? And that was what Team Buckler stood for: not just saving people in mortal peril, but helping anyone in need.
Testa smiled at her partner. “Great work,” she said, ruffling his head feathers with her hand.
Smoochum smiled at Cooper and hopped up and down cheerily. “Yeah, thanks, Mister Torchic! You’re the best!”
Cooper realized his frown had been replaced by a small yet warm smile. “N-no problem,” he said. “It’s... just what rescue teams do.”
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