The day was off to a rough start.

Just getting to Ever Grande City had been hard enough – she could count the amount of times she’d flown with one hand, and that made for a terrible piloting experience.
Her reward was a beautiful, well cared-for city of trainers’ dreams. The few buildings she could see exuded prestige and polish. The flowers and meadows were shaped and maintained. All great things, and none of them were words people would use to describe Annie. Even without her baggy tracksuit, she looked out of place in the city.

The cleanliness, the wealth of it all… It was worlds away from what she was used to. A boutique mall was the closest she’d come to a place like that, and she rarely found herself close to professionals at work when she wasn’t in danger (or moments away from getting arrested).

She’d already had an awkward encounter with security and the receptionists. They’d searched her before they let her into the room, confiscated her backpack, and raised a fuss about her pocket knife. She didn’t know whether to be more frustrated or embarrassed, explaining to them that some people didn’t have the luxury of a place to leave their stuff overnight. Everything she had to her name was on her person. Or was. All she had left were a few Pokeballs and what she’d put on that morning.

It’d left her feeling like she didn’t want to be there at all, and it showed. Her brow was furrowed, her fingers were fiddly when they weren’t hidden in her pockets, and she sat with a slouch (though that last one might have been a result of her upbringing).

Still, she stayed put. She had to. A member of Camp Annie could use some help, and what kind of leader would she be if she ignored that? It went against the Camp Annie Tenets – or at least, that one she’d made up days before. She’d learn to bear with the discomfort if it meant better days for her most mysterious creature.

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Another starry creature appeared to her. As useful as they might be for decorating at that time of year, Annie saw no need to catch two of them. No, her last ball had to be reserved for something special. She at least gave the Starmie a wave, and was greeted with a flash of colours from its gem in return. A little confusing, but she decided against asking for more details.

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Whether or not Annie had made a snowman was up for debate. The beast stood at over five feet tall, and was more Pokemon than snow. As in, multiple Pokemon. Bubba stood at the base, his round body making him the obvious choice to hold up his team. He’d hold what he thought to be an angry face when the judges arrived, although it was just as likely that he was struggling under the weight of his peers.

Fortuna stood on top. Being a Blissey, she had to be taught what an angry face looked like, but attempt both comically exaggerated and unnervingly fixed. A Dragonair acted as the snowman’s scarf, bobbing up and down with the ‘wind’ and hissing at passer-by’s.

Finally, the crème de la crème. It was a team effort, Annie had told Frankie. “Everybody has to be involved in a Camp Annie activity.” ”You’ll be perfect for the part!” “Just stand on the top! It’ll be fun!”, she’d said. And yet, balancing atop the Blissey, bound by snow (but mostly by loyalty), the Type: Null didn’t seem to be having fun at all. In fact, it seemed to be silently fuming. To have a monster of its strength and status reduced to being a living prop, dyed white with whatever snow his rage hadn’t melted off its helmet, had left it feeling… a little displeased. Enough that it stared death into the hearts of the few that dared to meet its gaze. Or maybe it was just that good at acting.

It may not have been considered a snowman, but to Annie, it was a masterpiece.

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And with that, they were done! The Zorua-turned-human thrusted a near-empty tray to his master, which she set down onto a table. “Phew! I think we nailed that one.” For his efforts, the trickster earned a ruffled head of hair. Kit took that as his cue to return to normal and wander around while Annie finished their business. “Oh, you don’t have to tell me! I can make at least two meals out of this!”

Then came the real prize: cold hard cash. A little squeal escaped the girl’s lips as she accepted the note. “Thank you so much! If I wait for the sales, I can use this to buy a new tent. Good timing, too – it’s getting really cold outside.” She’d been trying to avoid thinking of how she would survive the winter nights. “If you have any more jobs, let me know! I always need money. …I don’t have a phone or anything, but I’m sure if you shout for Annie long enough, I’ll hear it!” She didn’t have a bag to collect the treats with, so instead she stacked them up and balanced them in both hands. Sure, it’d take some focus, and her hands were going to be very sticky, but it was all she had.
“I’ll see you around, nice lady!”

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“Always! Why wouldn’t I want to enjoy myself? Life’s too short for anything less, right?” It was a mindset that had both almost killed her and kept her alive - more so the latter than the former. As long as she kept moving, she didn’t have to stop and consider her circumstances. That she was lost in a foreign land. That she was poor and homeless. That she had to rely on the generosity or strangers or petty crime to keep her stomach from growling. That she was alone in the world, save for the beasts she’d captured along the way. That she was travelling aimlessly, in search of some goal to give her purpose. That if she died that night, nobody would ever think to look for her.

It was much easier to have a blast.

As it fate enjoyed giving her hope, a Tropius flew by overhead. If it had been closer, or she had been smarter, she might have recognised the fruit on its neck as a source of food. Unfortunately, it wasn’t interested in interrupting the gathering. It would be boiled Blissey eggs for her again. "So!" She tilted her head back down to eye Monty. "Scratch what I said earlier, because I might be a little bit lost. Do you know where the nearest town is? I thought we were going in the right direction, but I don’t think it’s meant to be on an island."

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Annie nodded at his claims or a world of mystery. Several times in a row in fact. “That’s part of why I’m on the road! There’s so many adventures to have, things to see and do, and there’s only so much time to see it!” She chose not to mention the fact that she lacked the funds to have a permanent home, even if she wanted one. And she did want one, at least to escape the cold. “Though… It’d be nice to get paid for it once in a while. Food isn’t cheap, for me or my Pokemon.” And there were only so many ways to spice up boiled Chansey eggs.

He detailed his discovery, and she tilted her head to one side. Context told her that he was talking about a grass-type, but beyond that- “Yeah, I’ve got no idea what that is. How do you know the names without a Pokedex? Do you just… memorize them?” An almighty task, if her tone was anything to go by. “Still, I can’t imagine just… leaving something special alone like that. I’d want to get up close and learn all about it!” Her Weavile huffed; it wasn’t a stretch to imagine that her mindset had gotten them both into trouble before. She reached down to wrap her arms around him, forcing him into a hug from behind. “Yeah, it’s a little rough sometimes, but we always get through it, and we’re stronger because we did it!” At some point, Blitz had learned the meaning of rolling his eyes. The skill came in handy for moments like this.

“From the moon, though? Like, in the sky? Does that mean that they’re stronger at night? What about when it’s cloudy? If fairies get power from the moon and a bunch of grass-types get power from the sun, are they destined to go to war?”

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Another snowy Vulpix appeared to the pair, and this time Annie looked conflicted to see it. A hand fiddled with the lone Safari Ball in her pocket, and almost drew it out. Almost. She stopped short, shook her head, and kept walking. The snowball was lovely… But maybe, if she persevered, she’d find something better.

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One problem became a dozen. She stopped to shield her torso and arms with her face, though it did nothing to stop the attacks. She earned new cuts in her clothes, arms and legs for her efforts. If not for the swarm, the Haxorus would have heard Annie wincing in pain. It was fine, she lied to herself. Her travels in the wild had left her burned, bruised, belittled, too many times before for her to let a few wounds stop her… But they called for a change of plan. She wasn’t going anywhere fast with the Zubats around, and she had no interest in being defenceless when the den beast carved itself a path.

Time to fight, then.

One arm protected her face as best it could, whilst the other retrieved a Pokeball. She had no time to look at the capsules, only open one and hope for the best. Fate had chosen Blitz to defend her. Though the Weavile was immediately surprised by the utter chaos he was thrown into, he steeled himself for a fight. She knew that he would have.

“Get the green one with a Feint Attack,” was all she needed to say. The attack relied on a distraction, and the flock of Zubats were perfect cover. From the darkness, Blitz would appear to the Haxorus, bearing his claws down upon his chest.

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Another Ghost Twig! Annie was starting to suspect that she might be seeing different Pokemon of the same species, as opposed to being stalked by the same handful of Pokemon. Still, she'd had a chance to catch a Phantump before, and nothing had happened to sway her thoughts on them since then. The Phantump would be free for another day.

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Grampa stuck his head in Annie’s path, stopping her short of stepping on something sharp and painful. To be specific, it was a Pineco, half-buried and seemingly stuck in the snow! “Oh, snap. Good eyes, buddy!” She hovered over the little beast, and when it became clear that she wasn’t under threat, she crouched down to lift him out of the earth and settle him elsewhere. A very grateful Pineco cheered at the trainer, but in return she only offered him a wave before she walked off.

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One of the women finally acknowledged her. A small victory, dampened by the fact that she had taken her for a lost child. Her left eye twitched, frustration threatening to ruin her spirit. No. She wouldn’t stoop to their level. Instead of answering, she closed her eyes, lessened her frown and tried to think of better things, better people.

It was the perfect moment to be distracted by the Bad Santa’s declaration – and prize. Annie’s eyes snapped open. She turned around. Spotted Kim. Spotted Najwa, the mistletoe, Fernando. She turned back to the adults around her. Her frown lessened, becoming-


She'd thought up a terrible idea.

The girl raised a finger into the air, demanding the attention of the trio. “That’s right, you do have children to feed! Myself included.” The same hand jabbed a thumb into her chest. The anger had fled her face, and in its place was an overconfident grin. She’d puffed her chest out, tilted her head towards the ceiling, and spoke with authority unbefitting of her size. She might have been able to pull it off in spite of that, if not for… You know. The costume. “Name’s Annie Mei, up-and-coming trainer. Since you’ve apparently got nothing better to do, you can help me win some cash! And since your lady friends were so rude, they can make up for it by joining in!”

All but one of the man’s Mightyena (‘who kept six of the same Pokemon on them?’) had fled the scene, leaving only one worthy of being pet by Annie. It was a shame that his team didn’t care for him as much as Camp Annie cared for his namesake, but they could deal with that another time. She had bigger priorities, like making sure she had food to eat the next morning.

“We need to get that weird council guy-“ She pointed to Kim; judging by his sudden popularity, he had to be the mark. “free so that I can make a move. Decide between yourselves who'll make that happen. I need another one of you to keep her-“ She pointed to Najwa, who had taken herself to the drinks table. “Out of sight, or at least distracted- but just for a minute or two! And I’ll need one of you, when you’re done with that, to get one of these mistletoe Pokemon ready to move in on the Kim guy on my signal. Alright, good talk, team! I believe in you all, so let’s make a scene!” She wasn’t waiting to hear their objections. She turned on a heel, took a half-step away, and then seemed to remember something. She turned back to face the trio.

“Oh, and no pressure, but if you don’t pull this off then I’m sleeping in a box on Christmas Day. Okay-let’s-roll!” She sped off – or tried to. Dragging a sack that was half her weight did nothing for her speed, but she eventually made her way out of the room.
She needed to prepare.

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First a Pokeball, and then a walking snowball! The Darakuma earned a giggled from the girl. “Awww, you look like a sweetheart… But I’ve only got one Pokeball left! I’m going to keep moving and keep an eye out. You wait riiight here, at least for ten minutes, in case we’ve got space for you!” It was a good thing the Pokemon could only understand her tone, and not the specific words; few creatures appreciated being called the back-up plan.

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