Post by katya on Jul 23, 2011 20:40:51 GMT
When he'd taken Garnet from Professor Hawthorne's laboratory, Griff hadn't thought about how he intended on training the vulpix. In hindsight, maybe he should've.
He'd tried working with training dummies, but... well, they neither moved nor had any particular scent. When she tried aiming for them, Garnet's embers struck more or less in the right area, but it seemed like precision just wouldn't happen. She'd cleared a few obstacle courses earlier for exercise, and it looked like Garnet had a great time sniffing her way around corners and leaping through rings of fire and ice, but the lifeless dummies stumped her.
For a moment, Griff had been concerned about what would happen if Garnet ever had to battle a steel pokemon, but Garnet had given a lengthy explanation in a stream of <Vullvull! Pix, vulpix.> She'd leapt up onto his shoulder and nuzzled at his ear, which Griff took to mean that she could still hear steel pokemon and all their movements, not to mention they released plenty of smells just by being alive. Training dummies made of tin and straw didn't do anything but stand still and not stink up the place.
Instead, Griff and Garnet had a brief discussion over whether he was fast enough to dodge a blaze of embers. He argued that he was a pretty quick guy, years of thieving and all that jazz, and even if she struck him, hey, that was good! Garnet gave a derisive sniff at him appraising his talents, and found him wanting. "What, really? I'll be fine. I'll see the fire coming, and worse comes to worst, there's an infirmary right outside the door," he protested, but Garnet didn't believe him and refused to budge on the subject. The idea of attacking her own trainer even just for practice was anathema to her.
Spraying the dummies down with Griff's cologne was vetoed--not in the least because then Griff would, in turn, also smell like a training dummy. Besides, it wouldn't be very realistic. In the end, he'd called up Volta to see if she'd volunteer to be hit by great balls of fire. Volta looked at Griff, then looked at Garnet. With an apologetic but very firm <Emoool... Ga. Eee>, she'd turned tail and gone back to testing herself with aerial acrobatics. Bess wasn't even an option for soaking up attacks, but Griff thought he was onto something when he'd found Sprite lurking in a corner over a book.
Before Griff even said anything, the solosis accosted him with a series of images exalting the use of knowledge, study, and reading. "No, man, I don't mind that you're not trying to kill yourself on the obstacle course, it's cool," Griff clarified quickly. "Look, me and Garnet are just trying to train, but she can't hear or smell the training dummies that well. Could you just bring your book over to the range and... stand still? You don't even need to stop reading."
Psychically, Sprite relayed a gruesome series of images showing the suicides of madmen. To the solosis' surprise, Garnet started laughing in the bray of a hyena. Visibly disgruntled, Sprite glared at Garnet, and if looks could kill, Garnet would be a quartered corpse upon the ground by now. The vulpix couldn't see his eyes blazing though, and even if she could, Griff doubted she cared.
<Vul vul pix? Vulpix vuuuul,> she drawled, a sneer plainly evident in her voice.
Sprite slammed his book closed with telekinetic force. <Sol!> he snapped. His nose in the air, the solosis floated back towards the training dummies. Whatever Garnet had said, it'd struck a chord.
Next to the training dummies, Sprite was gearing up for... well, not for a fight. The solosis sent a brief message of olive branches paired with a lingering sensation that he'd been at the good part of the book, so Griff could rest assured that no stray psywaves would assault poor Garnet. Sprite powered up with a Reflect and Acid Armor, and then waited.
There wasn't much for Griff to do, really. Even when Reflect failed Sprite, his Acid Armor prevented any major damage, not that major damage was likely to begin with since he held the level advantage over the vulpix, not to mention Sprite's natural defenses were quite strong. Garnet, to her credit, was as unhampered by her blindness just as the Professor had claimed. She struck Sprite square on every time for the first few rounds, before Sprite upped and decided that this was too easy for her.
A curt <Losis> was his only warning before he started moving about the training grounds, slowly at first. Garnet tittered with laughter and gave chase. Sprite dodged blasts of flame with a cool-mannered ease, and once he even winced when a flight of embers struck home. <Vuuul~!> Garnet crowed in victory, but it was short lived, because Sprite upped the ante. In no time at all, the solosis was moving as fast as he could (given that he was a solosis, that wasn't all that fast, but Griff made a mental note to himself that he should work with Sprite on speed and dexterity anyway) with Garnet fast on his heels.
Flashes of brilliant, kaleidoscopic light littered the next hour as Sprite refreshed his Reflect. Garnet relentlessly tailed him even as Sprite dipped and dodged behind the training dummies and other equipment. By the end of the hour, Garnet flopped over to lie on her back upon the training mats, happily tired. She didn't budge until Griff came by to scratch her on the exposed stomach. <Vuuul,> she cooed before climbing into his lap and falling dead asleep.
He'd tried working with training dummies, but... well, they neither moved nor had any particular scent. When she tried aiming for them, Garnet's embers struck more or less in the right area, but it seemed like precision just wouldn't happen. She'd cleared a few obstacle courses earlier for exercise, and it looked like Garnet had a great time sniffing her way around corners and leaping through rings of fire and ice, but the lifeless dummies stumped her.
For a moment, Griff had been concerned about what would happen if Garnet ever had to battle a steel pokemon, but Garnet had given a lengthy explanation in a stream of <Vullvull! Pix, vulpix.> She'd leapt up onto his shoulder and nuzzled at his ear, which Griff took to mean that she could still hear steel pokemon and all their movements, not to mention they released plenty of smells just by being alive. Training dummies made of tin and straw didn't do anything but stand still and not stink up the place.
Instead, Griff and Garnet had a brief discussion over whether he was fast enough to dodge a blaze of embers. He argued that he was a pretty quick guy, years of thieving and all that jazz, and even if she struck him, hey, that was good! Garnet gave a derisive sniff at him appraising his talents, and found him wanting. "What, really? I'll be fine. I'll see the fire coming, and worse comes to worst, there's an infirmary right outside the door," he protested, but Garnet didn't believe him and refused to budge on the subject. The idea of attacking her own trainer even just for practice was anathema to her.
Spraying the dummies down with Griff's cologne was vetoed--not in the least because then Griff would, in turn, also smell like a training dummy. Besides, it wouldn't be very realistic. In the end, he'd called up Volta to see if she'd volunteer to be hit by great balls of fire. Volta looked at Griff, then looked at Garnet. With an apologetic but very firm <Emoool... Ga. Eee>, she'd turned tail and gone back to testing herself with aerial acrobatics. Bess wasn't even an option for soaking up attacks, but Griff thought he was onto something when he'd found Sprite lurking in a corner over a book.
Before Griff even said anything, the solosis accosted him with a series of images exalting the use of knowledge, study, and reading. "No, man, I don't mind that you're not trying to kill yourself on the obstacle course, it's cool," Griff clarified quickly. "Look, me and Garnet are just trying to train, but she can't hear or smell the training dummies that well. Could you just bring your book over to the range and... stand still? You don't even need to stop reading."
Psychically, Sprite relayed a gruesome series of images showing the suicides of madmen. To the solosis' surprise, Garnet started laughing in the bray of a hyena. Visibly disgruntled, Sprite glared at Garnet, and if looks could kill, Garnet would be a quartered corpse upon the ground by now. The vulpix couldn't see his eyes blazing though, and even if she could, Griff doubted she cared.
<Vul vul pix? Vulpix vuuuul,> she drawled, a sneer plainly evident in her voice.
Sprite slammed his book closed with telekinetic force. <Sol!> he snapped. His nose in the air, the solosis floated back towards the training dummies. Whatever Garnet had said, it'd struck a chord.
Next to the training dummies, Sprite was gearing up for... well, not for a fight. The solosis sent a brief message of olive branches paired with a lingering sensation that he'd been at the good part of the book, so Griff could rest assured that no stray psywaves would assault poor Garnet. Sprite powered up with a Reflect and Acid Armor, and then waited.
There wasn't much for Griff to do, really. Even when Reflect failed Sprite, his Acid Armor prevented any major damage, not that major damage was likely to begin with since he held the level advantage over the vulpix, not to mention Sprite's natural defenses were quite strong. Garnet, to her credit, was as unhampered by her blindness just as the Professor had claimed. She struck Sprite square on every time for the first few rounds, before Sprite upped and decided that this was too easy for her.
A curt <Losis> was his only warning before he started moving about the training grounds, slowly at first. Garnet tittered with laughter and gave chase. Sprite dodged blasts of flame with a cool-mannered ease, and once he even winced when a flight of embers struck home. <Vuuul~!> Garnet crowed in victory, but it was short lived, because Sprite upped the ante. In no time at all, the solosis was moving as fast as he could (given that he was a solosis, that wasn't all that fast, but Griff made a mental note to himself that he should work with Sprite on speed and dexterity anyway) with Garnet fast on his heels.
Flashes of brilliant, kaleidoscopic light littered the next hour as Sprite refreshed his Reflect. Garnet relentlessly tailed him even as Sprite dipped and dodged behind the training dummies and other equipment. By the end of the hour, Garnet flopped over to lie on her back upon the training mats, happily tired. She didn't budge until Griff came by to scratch her on the exposed stomach. <Vuuul,> she cooed before climbing into his lap and falling dead asleep.
952 (at least no one has to respond to this post :\) words
exp for Garnet/vulpix! notes
exp for Garnet/vulpix! notes
