Author's Note:

Back with another chapter of Bonnie! Hooray! Just a quick little plug before we get to it, though. In case some of you don't know, I've published the first of the oneshots that will be going along with this series. They'll all be collected in one story titled Generation Z – Gotta Catch 'Em All so if you want to check that out, it's on my profile. The first oneshot actually takes place between this chapter (16) and chapter 18, so when a certain something happens in chapter 18 that seems a little weird...well, it won't seem so weird with the oneshot as background. Anyway, hope you enjoy that if you haven't seen it, and hopefully you enjoy this, as Bonnie is coming off of her big win against Roxanne, and now needs to head off to Dewford Town.

Chapter 16: Captain Briney

"I won! I won, Clemont! I won!"

Bonnie might've been embarrassed if she hadn't been so excited, her shout of glee at the video phone heard all around the Pokemon Centre. She'd imagined calling Clemont about her first badge and acting calm and cool about it, but that had all gone out the window as soon as her brother's face had appeared on screen. She was almost sure he was somewhat expecting it, too, an excited gleam in his eyes as he looked to her when he had answered.

"Wow Bonnie, that's so great!" Clemont finally said, once Bonnie had yelled, "I won!" a few more times. "Show me the badge! I've never seen the Hoenn ones before."

Bonnie quickly pulled out her badge case, proudly holding it open so that the Stone Badge pinned inside was clearly visible to her brother. She was glad to see it sparkling in the light, as she may have spent quite a bit of time the night before polishing it. "It was a really tough battle," she said, once Clemont had looked approvingly at the badge and she'd put the case away. "Beautifly managed to beat Roxanne's Geodude, but she got really tired out. She managed to wear down Nosepass a bit, though, and even got it with a String Shot, which might've been the difference for Dedenne to win the final battle!"

"Nene!" Dedenne added proudly, puffing out his chest from Bonnie's shoulder.

Clemont smiled once more. "Wow, so both of your Pokemon played a big role! That's really good teamwork, Bonnie. You must've been working really hard with Beautifly to get her to help so much."

"Of course!" Bonnie told him seriously, putting her hands on her hips. "I'm making sure every one of my Pokemon ends up as strong as they can be."

"That's great, Bonnie," Clemont told her, looking pleased. "I guess you'll need to make sure to catch another Pokemon soon, huh?"

Bonnie had actually been thinking the same thing, realizing that she'd been in somewhat of a difficult situation in her battles with Roxanne due to only having two. If she hoped to win at the Dewford Gym, she would probably need some additional help. "I'll try my best. Maybe Roxanne can help me find a new one to join our team." At Clemont's confused look, Bonnie realized she needed to explain. "Roxanne asked if she could come along on the journey with Clyde and me. She wants to learn more by travelling so she can teach her students better."

Clemont almost looked relieved at the news, and Bonnie realized he'd likely been worried about her lack of...supervision. She resisted the urge to glare at him, and accepted his excited words that came after. "She should be able to help you a lot, Bonnie. You must've really impressed her in your battles if she wants to travel with you."

"She sure did!"

Bonnie jumped at the voice, turning her head to see Roxanne behind her, apparently having met up with Clyde and Rotom as well. She looked pretty excited, a backpack around her shoulders looking quite full of supplies. "Roxanne!" Bonnie said in surprise, smiling as she looked upon her newest travel companion. "It looks like you're ready to go."

"Yep," Roxanne answered, looking almost giddy with her excitement. "I've made all the various arrangements necessary for the school, and my Nosepass and Geodude have been taken care of by Nurse Joy." She then looked to the screen where Clemont was looking on in interest. "Is this your brother?"

"Yeah, his name is Clemont!" Bonnie told her, turning back to Clemont. "Clemont, this is Roxanne!"

"Nice to meet you," Clemont greeted with a small wave. "It sounds like you two had quite the battle. Well, quite the two battles."

Roxanne nodded in agreement, smiling at the memory. "Oh yes, your sister was quite impressive. I'm sure I'll be able to learn quite a bit travelling with her."

"Well I'm glad she'll have a fellow Gym Leader to help her out," Clemont said, giving Bonnie a teasing look. "Bonnie can get a little carried away sometimes."

"Zzt! But Gym Leader Clemont is the one that blows up inventions," Rotom argued, floating over so that he was hovering next to Dedenne.

"Hey!" Clemont whined, looking flustered.

Bonnie smirked, giving Rotom a little high five, before turning back to Clemont. "Well, we should probably get going, big brother. I want to get to Dewford Town before Max gets too far ahead. We've still gotta find a way to get there."

Clemont nodded, looking proudly back at his sister one last time. "Sure, Bonnie. And don't worry, I'll let dad know how your battle went. If I talk to Ash and Serena at some point, I'll let them know as well."

That made Bonnie excited, thinking of the reactions of those three when they heard about her early success. She knew she was going to have to work even harder, though, if she wanted to keep it up. "Thanks Clemont, and make sure you keep training, because I'm gonna be strong enough to beat you pretty soon."

"I'll keep that in mind. Good luck you guys, and be careful out there."

With one last wave, Bonnie ended the call, before turning around to look at her two travel companions, excited at the thought of having a new group of friends to travel with, just like Ash always talked about from his journeys. It was definitely going to be interesting to find out what Roxanne could teach her and Clyde throughout their time together, too. Based on her years with Clemont, Bonnie knew gym leaders were pretty smart people.

"So, I guess we're off to Dewford Town then, aren't we?" Roxanne said, adjusting her backpack and looking expectantly at Bonnie. "Were you planning on getting the ferry?"

"Ferry?" Bonnie's eyes widened, looking to Clyde and Rotom as she felt panic rise in her chest. "I didn't...I thought...oh no!"

Clyde looked guiltily at his feet. "I should've remembered we'd need a ferry. There's one that leaves in the morning from what I remember, but we've probably missed it by now. I guess we could get the evening one, but..."

"Aww, why didn't I think about this?!" Bonnie buried her head in her hands in frustration. She'd really been hoping to get on their way. She knew Max was already on his way, and now he would probably be winning his badge well before her.

"Don't worry, it'll be fine," Roxanne told the two of them, chuckling as they groaned in answer. "We can ask Briney if he can take us. You know who he is, right?"

Bonnie looked up, tilting her head as she tried to think of the name. She vaguely remembered Ash telling a story about someone with that name. From what she remembered, he'd had a cool Wingull boat. That certainly seemed like an appealing thought at the moment. "He took Ash to Dewford Town, didn't he?"

Roxanne nodded. "Yeah, he's quite well known in Rustboro City these days," she told them. "He started running a mail business with his Wingull, Peeko, not too long after Ash came around here. It lets him travel the sea a little more with his boat. He's even taken some of us from the school out on the boat a few times. If he's got any deliveries out near Dewford Town, I bet he'd be happy to take us."

"You think so?" Bonnie asked, looking excitedly to Clyde, who seemed just as hopeful with the idea.

"We might as well try," Roxanne said, turning towards the doors of the Pokemon Centre. "And besides, it's worth it just to see Peeko!"

With that, Roxanne was already heading towards the door, so after a quick glance at one another, Bonnie and Clyde followed after her, Rotom exclaiming about how he was excited to get some data on Peeko the Wingull. As they caught up to the Rustboro Gym Leader, Bonnie could see the spring in her step, and she could tell just how excited Roxanne was to be on this journey. It almost reminded Bonnie of her and Clemont when they'd been so excited to join Ash in Kalos. Did I really impress her that much? Bonnie wondered, remembering how Ash had made Clemont so eager to learn. It made her feel proud, but also a little nervous.

As they walked through the city, Bonnie realized they were heading through a different part of it, away from the gym and the route towards Petalburg City. She realized why soon after, as the harbour came into her view. It was quite empty, a few small boats around and a flock of Taillow flying away in the distance, but as Bonnie looked out past it, she could imagine herself and her friends sailing away to their next destination. It wouldn't be long now.

Roxanne led them a little closer towards the harbour, and then they began to walk along it for a few minutes until she paused, pointing towards a what appeared to be some kind of boathouse near the dock where a couple of little kids were playing. "That's where Briney is," Roxanne explained, smiling as she noticed the door opening, an elderly man stepping out with a small Wingull on his shoulder. "Looks like we're in luck! He's here!"

Bonnie was relieved at that, and she and Clyde followed along, Rotom floating slowly behind them as he tried to snap a few pictures of the flock of Taillow that were flying around. By the time they reached Briney's house, though, everyone was together, Briney having noticed the group approaching. He seemed happy to notice Roxanne at the head of the group.

"Ahoy Roxanne!" he called out, waving as his Wingull flew off from his shoulder. "Here with a couple of your students are you?"

"Hi there Mr. Briney!" Roxanne greeted as their group came to a stop in front of the man. He was bald, with a white beard that almost hid his huge smile. Bonnie could immediately tell that he was full of enthusiasm for the ocean as his eyes drifted to the harbour. "These aren't actually my students," Roxanne then answered, bringing his attention back to her. "They're...well...my new travel companions."

"Travel companions...?" He looked interested at that, his eyes focusing on Bonnie and Clyde. "Well I take it this is an interesting story," he added with a smile, his Wingull flying back to his shoulder to look at the newcomers. "My name is Briney," Briney finally greeted, saluting Bonnie and Clyde, before blinking in surprise as Rotom floated forward to greet him and then take a picture of his Wingull.

"Zzt! Hello, Captain Briney, I am Rotom!" the PokeDex called out. "Wingull, the Seagull Pokemon!" he then blurted out. "Fishermen keep an eye out for Wingull in the sky, because wherever they're circling, the ocean is sure to be teeming with fish Pokemon."

"Aye, that's true! This one here is named Peeko, though," Briney confirmed, smiling at Rotom, interest in his eyes. "Intriguing technology...a Rotom inside of a PokeDex. What will those Pokemon researchers come up with next?"

"It seems Bonnie is one of the few people to have one," Roxanne told him, gesturing to Bonnie and Clyde as Briney looked at them once more. "Mr. Briney, these are my friends Bonnie and Clyde, and their Pokemon Dedenne and Treecko. Bonnie just defeated me at my gym, and I've decided to accompany her on her journey throughout Hoenn to learn from her and have a better background of knowledge for my future students."

Briney looked surprised by that, but interest in Bonnie seemed to top that, as he took a step towards her and Clyde, shaking each of their hands in greeting. "You defeated Roxanne, eh?" he asked, Bonnie nodding in answer. "Well, that's no easy feat, but to inspire her enough to travel with you...that's something special." He then looked to Dedenne curiously. "This is a Pokemon from Kalos, is it not?"

"Yeah!" Bonnie answered, happy to finally have a chance to properly introduce herself. "Dedenne and I are from Lumiose City. My brother is the Gym Leader there. I just started out on my journey and I decided to start out here in Hoenn after hearing about my friends having such an awesome time here."

At this, Roxanne spoke up again. "Bonnie here, is friends with Ash Ketchum."

Briney gave her a big smile at that. "Ah! Ash! That boy was something else. He and his friends were. I recently saw Max actually. Have you met him?" Bonnie nodded, deciding not to voice her opinions on Max. "It's a shame he took the ferry to Dewford Town, I would've been able to take all of you. I had a delivery that day, though, so he decided to head out a little early. More room for us, though!"

"Does that mean you'll give us a ride?" Roxanne asked hopefully.

"Aye! Of course! Looks like the seas are good for sailing today!" Briney told them, sniffing the ocean breeze. "Peeko and I started a mail business to travel the seas more not long after Ash visited, you see," he told Bonnie and Clyde. "It allows us to live our dream and sail the seas as much as we'd like. We have a few deliveries to make in Dewford Town in the next few days, so we'd be happy to take you along with us. We can even stop by at some good places to look for Pokemon if you'd like!"

Bonnie and Clyde exchanged an excited look at that. "Sure, that sounds awesome!" they said in unison.

"Wonderful!" Briney said happily, looking to Peeko. "How would you feel about travelling with Bonnie and Clyde, Peeko?"

"Wingull!" Peeko cheered, hopping off and flying over to properly greet Bonnie and Clyde. "Wing gull gull!"

"Aww! Wingu- I mean Peeko is so cute!" Bonnie told Briney as the Seagull Pokemon landed on her head. "I want to catch one!"

"Well, you may get your chance," Briney told her, smiling as Peeko hopped over to Clyde's head, greeting him affectionately as well. "Lots of Wingull hang out on the beaches in Hoenn, and they love to roam the sky over the seas."

"A Wingull might've come in handy against Roxanne in your battles," Clyde pointed out, reaching up to gently stroke Peeko's beak.

"Zzt! Correct!" Rotom chimed in, floating in front of Bonnie with an image of a Wingull on his screen. "Wingull may be part flying type, but they are also part water type. While particularly vulnerable to electric attacks, they can handle a matchup against a rock type Pokemon quite well."

"Dedenne and Beautifly did well enough, I'd say," Roxanne pointed out, laughing as Bonnie narrowed her eyes at Rotom, who added in that she put herself at a disadvantage with Beautifly. Whether she had been thinking that herself or not, she didn't need to be told it over and over again.

"Must've been quite the battle!" Briney said, looking intrigued once more. "You used a Beautifly as well?" Bonnie nodded at that, feeling a little embarrassed by the impressed look he gave her. "That's a tough matchup indeed. All the more impressive if it played a part in your victory."

"You can see why I want to learn from Bonnie here, don't you?" Roxanne asked with a laugh.

"Absolutely!" Briney chuckled, looking back out to the water. "Well, how about we get the S.S. Wingull set to go, and we can be off in good time." He glanced at Peeko, who was already preparing to take off from Clyde's head. "Peeko, would you mind checking out the waters, and seeing if there are any issues before we take off?"

"Wingull!" Peeko nodded happily, taking off immediately and allowing a gust of wind to carry her out above the water. Bonnie watched her, smiling as she admired the Seagull Pokemon gliding along the with the ocean breeze. The kids they'd seen playing before watched as well, cheering as Peeko dove down towards the water, dipping her wing and turning slightly to splash them lightly. "Wingull gull!" she cheered out as they waved to her while she headed further out.

As Peeko disappeared out of sight, Bonnie, Clyde and Roxanne followed Briney as he headed inside his boathouse. When they were inside, Bonnie's eyes immediately widened when she noticed the boat that was very much deserving of its name. It truly looked like a Wingull, and Bonnie was sure that it sailed as nicely as Peeko flew.

While Bonnie and Clyde looked at the boat in awe, Rotom moving forward to snap a few pictures, Briney opened up the front so that they'd be able to exit, while Roxanne helped to untie some of the ropes. After a few more moments of staring, the two younger trainers pitched in, though, grabbing some of the packages Briney was intending to deliver and loading them into the boat, along with some other various supplies.

Overall, it didn't take too long, and after a few minutes, everything was essentially prepared to go. All they needed was for Peeko to return, and they could set off. Assuming she hadn't found anything wrong out on their planned route of course. Bonnie was barely controlling her excitement for their journey. She felt they'd hit the lottery getting to travel with Briney like this.

She was about to say so, but just as she was opening her mouth, Bonnie heard a scream from the docks. Her head whipped around, and she and her friends immediately followed Briney out of the boathouse, running towards where they'd heard the scream. As Bonnie caught up to Briney, she realized it was the kids they'd seen earlier, although she realized that they didn't seem to be hurt. They were, however, pointing towards something in the distance.

"Oh no..." Bonnie heard Briney whisper as they came to a stop next to the kids, eyes wide as he stared out at what they were pointing at.

Bonnie squinted, trying to see what it was, before her own eyes widened. "Peeko!" she called out in concern, watching as the poor water and flying type was bombarded from all sides, a flock of vicious Taillow pecking her with no sign of holding back. "Why are those Taillow attacking her?"

"I don't know, but I need to do something," Briney breathed out, looking back to the boat. "It will take too long to get the boat started..." He then pulled something out of his pocket, and Bonnie realized it was a pokeball. "Sharpedo, come on out!" he shouted, tossing the capture device out over the water, where it opened up to reveal a navy blue shark-like Pokemon, with some of the most dangerous looking teeth Bonnie had ever seen. It did look pretty cute to Bonnie, though. "Sharpedo, can you take me out to help Peeko?" Briney asked it, the water type nodding fiercely in response, its eyes darting towards the commotion.

"Wait!" Bonnie told Briney quickly, realizing what he wanted to do. She knew she couldn't let him head into that kind of danger. If Peeko was as defenceless as she seemed, it was pretty clear that Briney wasn't much of a battler. As tough as Sharpedo looked, Bonnie knew they needed battle ready Pokemon out there. "I'll go! You get the boat ready and we can get Peeko out of there."

Briney looked at her, surprised, but after a nod from Roxanne, he smiled, gesturing to Sharpedo. "Hop on! Sharpedo, can you take our new friend Bonnie with you?"

"And me!" Clyde declared, stepping forward, looking surprisingly determined. Bonnie supposed he wanted to make up for being slow to fight against Team Archaic at Devon Corp. "It won't be the first time we fight off angry Taillow!"

Bonnie smiled at that, nodding to Briney to signal she could use Clyde's help. He seemed agreeable, and Sharpedo did as well, moving closer so that they could hop onto his back. "Shar! Sharpedo!" he cried out, as they got on. Bonnie and Clyde gave Briney and Roxanne a quick wave, before the Brutal Pokemon took off, Rotom and their Pokemon holding on tight to them as they sped through the water. A quick glance back showed Bonnie that Briney and Roxanne were already heading to the boat to get it ready in case they needed it.

"Got a plan?" Clyde asked, as Sharpedo swam towards where Peeko was crying out, frantically trying to get away from the Taillow pecking her.

"Yeah," Bonnie said confidently, narrowing her eyes as she pulled out Beautifly's pokeball. "We fight them and we win!" With that, she called out Beautifly, the Butterfly Pokemon emerging and immediately focusing on their target up ahead. "Beautifly can you take Dedenne with you?" Bonnie asked, her bug type flapping her wings hard to keep pace with them.

"Beauuutifly!" Beautifly nodded, flying closer as Dedenne leaped to her back from Bonnie's shoulder. She looked nervous as she noticed the flock of Taillow, but Bonnie was glad to see a determined look in her eyes as well. She wants to show she can handle her fear!

"Okay, you guys need to get as close as you can, but be careful," Bonnie told them, pausing briefly as she noticed Sharpedo slowing down, their destination just in front of them now. Peeko's cries were even louder now. "Dedenne, you'll need to use Thunder Shock, but don't do it if you think you might hurt Peeko, okay?" Dedenne nodded, eyes narrowed with determination. "And Beautifly, you try to slow the Taillow down with String Shot. If you can, try to pull Peeko closer to you."

"What should we do?" Clyde asked, while Beautifly and Dedenne took off.

"We'll try to get closer so that Treecko can help them from down here," Bonnie suggested, patting Sharpedo lightly to signal for him to go forward. She could feel its rough skin, but for some reason, it seemed to be softer than it should have been. Rotom confirmed that thought a moment later, floating closer and snapping a picture while informing her that Sharpedo had an ability known as Rough Skin, that it could hold off if close to friends.

As Sharpedo swam forward, Bonnie looked up, watching as Dedenne and Beautifly initiated the fight, Dedenne quickly hitting a group of three Taillow towards the edge of the flock with a good Thunder Shock. Beautifly was quick to act as well, pulling one Taillow into the path of another who was charging in with a Peck attack, and causing the two to collide painfully. As the flying types started plummeting to the water, Bonnie could see their enraged eyes clearing up a bit, before they managed to right themselves and fly away.

"Did you see that?" Bonnie asked Clyde, looking back at him while Rotom seemed to be doing some kind of scan.

"They're like the Taillow that attacked us," Clyde pointed out, looking uneasy. "Something's not right about them."

Bonnie frowned, looking up briefly as Sharpedo hit an incoming Taillow with a Dark Pulse, while Treecko leaped upwards and used Pound on another. Both flying types appeared to have the same reaction to getting hit by the attacks, their enraged eyes clearing once more, before they took off. "If we can hit enough of them, we might be able to get a path to Peeko," Bonnie realized, happy that they weren't at least fighting an enemy fully aware of what it was doing. Not directly at least.

"All right then, Treecko, use Bullet Seed!" Clyde yelled, Sharpedo darting forward to use Bite on a Taillow coming towards them with an Aerial Ace.

"Treecko!" the grass type cried out, leaping up once more to hit a pair of Taillow rushing towards them. He hit them perfectly, the two flying types darting away like the others as their eyes cleared up. Bonnie grinned, happy to see they were making progress, and she noticed Dedenne and Beautifly were having success as well, each having taken down a few more Taillow in their way.

"Wingull!" Peeko cried out, seeming to have noticed them. She appeared to try to fly down towards where Bonnie and Clyde were, but a couple of Taillow quickly intercepted her, pecking her and keeping her back.

"Beautifly, see if you can get closer!" Bonnie called out, gritting her teeth as she noticed Beautifly's brief hesitation. "I know you can do it!"

"Beautifly!" the Butterfly Pokemon nodded, narrowing her eyes as Dedenne patted her encouragingly. "Flyyy!"

She darted forward with a Tackle attack, managing to hit one Taillow, but getting struck in the side by another, nearly causing Dedenne to fall off. Fortunately, Bonnie's partner Pokemon was able to right himself quickly, hitting the culprit with a Thunder Shock, while Beautifly flew back and then tried again. Bonnie could see it wasn't easy, two more attempts made, and two more intercepted Tackles from Taillow nearby. Meanwhile, Treecko was putting his all into it as well, holding off a fairly large group that were going after those who were with Sharpedo, the grass type and the Brutal Pokemon hitting them back with Bullet Seed and Dark Pulse.

"Come on Beautifly! I know you can do it!" Bonnie shouted out, wincing as a Taillow managed to get in, Rotom surprisingly floating in front of her to block it.

"Zzt! Ouch!" the PokeDex cried out, slapping the Taillow before Treecko hit it with Bullet Seed. "Updating data! Peck hurts!"

Bonnie reached out and grabbed him, holding him safely as she looked up once more to Beautifly, seeing the Butterfly Pokemon wince while Dedenne tried to right himself once more. He managed to do it, though, and then quickly fired off a Thunder Shock as three more Taillow charged in, striking them all head on and clearing them from their path. It may have just been what Beautifly needed.

"Beauuutiflyyy!" the Butterfly Pokemon cried out, her body briefly glowing in a white aura as she burst forward, with more speed than she'd ever used before. She barreled through about half a dozen more Taillow, making a clean path to Peeko. As a few more of the flying types seemed to realize what was happening, Dedenne took care of them, hitting them with Thunder Shock while Beautifly sent out a String Shot that caught Peeko and pulled her in.

"Yes!" Bonnie cheered, ducking as Treecko hopped over her and struck a Taillow trying to Peck her. "Great job, Beautifly!"

"Zzt! That was Aerial Ace!" Rotom informed her. "A powerful flying type move!"

Bonnie remembered how powerful Aerial Ace had been for Ash and his Greninja back in Kalos, so she was glad to hear that. It might've just been what they needed to help them through this fight. She smiled as Beautifly and Dedenne reached them, Wingull looking extremely relieved as she landed in Bonnie's arms, wrapped safely in the webs from String Shot. Dedenne managed to clear away a couple more Taillow as they attacked, before a voice was heard behind them.

"Bonnie! Clyde!"

"Roxanne!" they both said in relief, Sharpedo quickly turning around as he noticed the S.S. Wingull having arrived on the scene. Roxanne and Briney were both at the front, waving frantically for them to come back, having seen that they'd collected Peeko.

With a few more attacks aimed at the incoming Taillow to hold them off, Sharpedo and Beautifly sped towards the boat, getting their passengers there as fast as they could. When they reached the boat, Roxanne quickly helped Clyde in, while Bonnie handed Peeko over to Briney. The poor thing looked pretty beaten up, but the relief in both her eyes and Briney's was enough to make Bonnie smile.

"I've got some Oran berries," Roxanne told Briney, quickly heading to her bag. "That should help her until we can get to Nurse Joy."

Briney nodded, gently handing Peeko over to Clyde, and reaching his hand out to help Bonnie onto the boat. Bonnie was about to take it, when she heard the Taillow screeching as they approached once more. She ducked as one nearly pecked her head, while Treecko managed to jump to the top of the boat and hit a few away with Bullet Seed. It was clear the fight wasn't over, even if Peeko had been rescued.

Sharpedo seemed to realize it as well, calling out to Briney as though telling him he needed to keep fighting. Bonnie was agreeable to that, knowing they needed to stop these Taillow before they hurt anyone else, and she looked to Dedenne and Beautifly to see if they could still fight. Each seemed willing. As she turned to the rest of the Taillow, Bonnie could see that there were still plenty to deal with, and it wasn't going to be easy. Unless...

"Roxanne, Clyde!" Bonnie called out to her friends, seeing them both ducking as a pair of Taillow flew towards the boat. "Protect the boat!" Bonnie told them, seeing the two of them nod, while she patted Sharpedo and he swam further out, ready to confront the flock. "Okay Beautifly," Bonnie called out to her bug and flying type, "I need you to hit as many Taillow as you can with String Shot. Try to force them as close together as possible."

"Beautifly!" Beautifly nodded, flapping her wings and taking off, Dedenne with her, his cheeks sparking in preparation for his own attacks. As Beautifly prepared to enact the plan, Bonnie took a quick glance back tot he boat, seeing Roxanne's Geodude fighting alongside Clyde and Treecko. They seemed to have less of the Taillow going after them fortunately, with most of them now focused on Bonnie and her Pokemon.

"All right, Beautifly, attack!" Bonnie then called out, looking up to her Pokemon and pointing ahead.

"Beautifly!" Beautifly cried out, firing off a String Shot immediately and flapping her wings to take off around the flock of Taillow. She hit a few head on, almost blinding them with webs as they hit their faces. However, most were hit either in the chest or the wing, and as some tried to escape the path of the incoming webs, Dedenne would hit them with Thunder Shock, knocking them out of the sky altogether. Before too long, the Taillow were getting forced closer and closer together, many of them slowed down by the incoming webs and remaining huddled together in a group. Bonnie knew that this was her chance to attack.

"Dedenne, get in there with Thunder Shock!" she yelled, Sharpedo hitting a few of the straggler Taillow that attempted to attack them down below.

"Nene!" Dedenne cried out in answer, leaping off of Beautifly's back and into the flock of Taillow. "Neneneeee!"

The blast of electricity seemed to light up the sky, the Taillow all shrieking as electricity travelled amongst the flock. Bonnie knew they needed to be sure, though, and as Dedenne's attack began to end, the Antenna Pokemon disappearing in the group of Taillow, she pointed towards them, locking eyes with Beautifly. "Now hit them with Aerial Ace!"

"Flyyy!" Beautifly called out, body glowing in a white aura once more, before she shot forward towards the gathered Taillow. She struck them with a mighty crash, sending the flying types plummeting down all around her, and when she emerged from the opposite side, Dedenne was comfortably on her back.

As Bonnie watched the Taillow fall to the water, she was worried for a moment that they'd gone too far, but fortunately the flying types got their bearings quickly enough. Before long, there were dozens of calls of "Taillow!" in the air, as they began flying away. They may have been angry moments before, but now they were simply confused and desperate to get out of there.

When Bonnie was certain that the Taillow were finally done, she patted the relieved looking Sharpedo, and they headed back to the boat. Once Bonnie had gotten on, she couldn't help but sit down, breathing heavily after the ordeal. She noticed Roxanne looking determined as she checked over Peeko, while Clyde looked more exhausted than she felt. Meanwhile, Briney came over to her, gratitude in his eyes.

"Bonnie, thank you!" the old sailor said, sighing in relief as he looked over to Peeko, who seemed shaken up, but otherwise okay. "You were remarkable out there!"

Bonnie laughed nervously, looking over to Dedenne and Beautifly, who were now resting comfortably on the boat as well. "It was the Pokemon who did the work," she said honestly. "Sharpedo helped us get there, and Dedenne and Beautifly helped fight the Taillow in the air while Treecko backed us up. And Roxanne helped you with the boat."

"You still went out there and made sure Peeko was safe," Briney told her. He then looked to Dedenne and Beautifly, before standing up straighter and smiling confidently. "Well, as the Captain of this ship, I need to make sure that you get to your next gym for sure now. We might need to leave a little bit later, but the S.S. Wingull is at your service if you still want it."

Bonnie laughed at that, grateful for the offer. "That would be great, Mr. Briney!"

"All right then!" Briney called out. "Then off to the Pokemon Centre to regroup, and then we'll be back to sea!"

Bonnie was glad to hear that, looking forward to getting Peeko taken care of, and then getting on their way to Dewford Town. She was uneasy, though, wondering why there were so many unruly Taillow around. They seemed so angry, yet once they'd been hit, they seemed to become normal Pokemon again. There had to be something up.

Of course, she knew the likely culprit. She glared at the sky, wondering if they were nearby.

"I know you're up to something," she whispered, even if nobody could hear her. "You'd better watch out, Team Archaic."

Author's Note:

What the hell is with those Taillow, huh? Only time will tell, I suppose. Luckily Bonnie was here to save the day, though!

Might not seem like much of a chapter, I guess, but we've brought in Briney who has a...somewhat bigger role in this story. And of course, we see wider spread Team Archaic meddling in the Pokemon world. And Beautifly has learned Aerial Ace. Might come in handy in a few chapters...

So, hope you enjoyed. I'll be putting out one more of these soon, before LU is battled. Getting the feeling Bonnie needs a new Pokemon...