The Pulled String

The whole thing... it was a bit of a shock. Rhodes had grown up in that forest, as far back as he could remember. He knew much of it by heart and could always find his way around it. Better than most of his Sneasel brethren, even! To see the trees felled everywhere by Sorbet’s rampage left an empty feeling, like he was looking at his home destroyed. Of course, many villagers would now have that feeling, but it was one he would understand better than they might realize. The Sneasel hardly even kept his eyes forward as he traveled on, distracted by the displeasing scenery.

“Hey... it’s not that bad, you know...”

Apparently, his feelings didn’t go unnoticed by the Dragonite following alongside him. She had taken to using her wings to hover, rather than wander as he did on two legs. The gentle beating noise they made was hardly even noticeable after a while, falling into a rhythm that Rhodes had gotten used to. So much so, that he’d almost forgotten she was accompanying him until she spoke up.

“Isn’t it?” Rhodes replied, lifting his head to look up to the larger Dragonite. She didn’t look happy, though neither did he. The worried Sneasel clasped his big claws together in front of himself, once again averting his gaze as he spotted another downed tree, outright snapped in two. “I’ve never seen the forest this way. It’s kinda scary...”

Abruptly, the beating of Udon’s wings came to an end as she lowered her large form to the ground, opting to walk alongside Rhodes. He wasn’t certain why, until he noticed she was still looking at him. Then, he realized it: she was staring at his scar. His first reaction was to look away nervously, shielding the offending mark with one of his large claws. Other Pokemon actually didn’t stare at it very often... even he didn’t quite realize he was so self-conscious about it.

“Did you stop following him around after he... you know...” Udon tried to ask. Her voice trailed off though. She seemed reluctant to finish, perhaps realizing that such a question was kind of insensitive. As a result, she stuttered into awkward silence. It wasn’t often that someone would leave Udon speechless. Living her life in the care of Merlot, she wouldn’t have been able to imagine what it was like to be in the care of someone who would leave a life-long mark on your face out of spur-of-the-moment anger.

Regardless of how sensitive it was or wasn’t, Rhodes voiced a calmed sigh, and let his claw rest at his side as he walked. Once again, his three-pronged facial scar was visible. There wasn’t a real point in hiding it, anyway. “He was no good. I would have been no good too, if I just kept listening to him,” he began. “I just... wish... hm?”

---

Something was off. There was a commotion in the distance that caused Rhodes to perk up all of a sudden. “What is it?” Udon attempted to ask, only to be shushed hastily by Rhodes. She may have been confused by the gesture, but it had to happen. He needed silence. He needed to hear this.

Approaching closer, Rhodes could gradually make out more and more of what was being said, with a now-curious Dragonite following closely behind him. Unfortunately, she did not share his acute sense of hearing.

“... if they won’t even … you’re wasting your time!”

“No … wrong! You can’t make us do that!”

“Well... you don’t have much choice in the matter, huh?”

The conversation got clearer as Rhodes closed in on the source of what was going on. His approach wouldn’t be stealthy, due mostly in part to the company of Udon. However, he was nervous. If some of the straggling gang members were involved, a fight might break out. It’d be nice to have a big, strong Dragonite backing him up in such a case.

Stepping turned to sprinting and nimble leaping over any obstacle in his path. Was Udon keeping up? He only had sound to go on as his eyes were busy spotting forward, but he could hear those wings of hers beating again as she once again took flight.

“What’s that noise..?”

They knew. It had to happen fast, before they tried to cover up whatever they were doing. As quickly as he could, Rhodes sprinted, pushing his claws flat against most trees that neared his sides along the way, just for that crucial bit of momentum provided.

As he dreaded, the sight unfolded from behind several obscuring tree trunks. Fellow Sneasels. Five of them. Two, he recognized as friends that followed him to Tao, to live a better life. The other three... he didn’t know so well. Most worrying was the fact that his two friends were bound to one of the trees that was still standing strong, at the mercy of the other three. There was no time to survey further; depending on how Slasher trained these three, the captives could very well be in grave danger!

“Stop right there!” Rhodes yelled, frustrated that, yet again, his former gang brethren couldn’t get along. The three Sneasels who were antagonizing his bound friends turned to face him with unimpressed glares and outright sneering, though their victims were a mixture of surprised and hopeful. It would have been a little intimidating for Rhodes to stand up to them... but if he didn’t, who would?

“Heh! If it isn’t the little traitor!” the tallest of the three remarked. Not at all deterred, he stepped forward while the other two stayed close to their captives. His appearance was bedraggled, looking as though he’d had a scuffle or two already. Once he approached Rhodes, an unsettling smirk crossed his face. “I was wondering if you were gonna show up. Guess he was right.”

Those were words that lead into an ambush if he ever heard them. Suddenly, Rhodes found himself putting one foot backwards, ready to book it if something went wrong. “I dunno who you’re listenin’ to, but I’m not leaving without them, so cut ‘em down!” he demanded. Trap or no trap, he came out here to bring them back safely, and he would one way or another.

The supposed leader of the three simply scoffed, crossing his arms in front of himself. “Yeah? You and what army?” he asked with a confident chuckle, eliciting minor laughter from his apparent lackeys behind him. However, they’d become so complacent with the fact that their target had shown up, that they forgot one thing. The noise of beating wings had gotten closer.

Right above them, in fact. The downed trees gave enough of a break in the forest canopy for a rather large, uniform-clad Dragonite to let herself harmlessly drop through, landing behind the leader and in front of his lackeys. The scuffed-looking Sneasel turned in surprise to face the beast, only to see the surprised looks on his captives, and his two partners immediately running for their lives.

“H-hey!” the remaining, now-surrounded Sneasel yelled out, “get back here, ya cowards!”

Before he knew it, the Sneasel was lifted up... by his head. The Dragonite had outright grasped it in her entire claw. All of the flailing he immediately attempted was futile. Perhaps worse for him, he could hear a girlish giggle emanate from her as she watched him try. How embarrassing!

Of course, Rhodes couldn’t get enough of this. All that big talk, and look what happened! It was enough to make him giggle along with Udon, forgetting all the frustration he’d built up before. He looked up to the elevated Sneasel with a bright smile, “I guess ‘he’ didn’t tell you about Miss Udon, huh?”

The captor-turned-captive grunted with anger, only to be swiveled around as the Dragonite performed an about-face. He was now facing the two Sneasels he’d tied up, both of which looking upon him with amusement.

“Cut them down, okay?” Udon asked rather nicely. However, the Sneasel in her grasp didn’t play along, sulking and crossing his arms. With another giggle, she added, “Did you know? I can crush a Watmel Berry in one claw!”

That sure got his rear in gear. With some minor flailing, the Sneasel began reaching out, attempting to cut the looping rope with his claws. He snapped one loop... only to be interrupted.

---

“Are you really going to go down without a fight? Sheesh!”

Rhodes and Udon alike turned their attention to the right, where the voice seemed to have originated. From the top of the nearest tree in that direction, a strange figure lowered itself. It was a Banette! All the way down from the branches to the ground, it fell at a feather’s pace, posing as though it was lying on its side and propping its head up on its elbow for dramatic effect.

“Uhm...” Rhodes began, not at all knowing where this was going. He’d never seen this Pokemon before. From the looks of it, neither had his two friends, or Udon. “Who are you?”

“I think the better question is, who’re you?” the Banette asked in retaliation. As though lifted with some sort of unseen strings, he was pulled from side-laying position to stand up, placing his arms behind himself and pacing directly toward Rhodes.

This seemed to make Udon uneasy. “Hey, no funny business!” she demanded, swinging herself around once more to face the approaching Banette. Unfortunately for the Sneasel she was still holding, this turned out to be a bit of an uncomfortable ride for him.

“It ain’t funny business, doll. It’s just business,” the Banette responded. He now stood before Rhodes. Like the Sneasel currently in Udon’s grasp, he was somewhat taller, so he looked down upon the scar-faced pathfinder. That zipper-like mouth of his contorted into an unsettling grin. “Take a look at this guy,” he said, gesturing toward the Sneasel that was now hanging in Udon’s grasp without any struggle whatsoever. In fact, he looked a little dazed. “He doesn’t respect you, and he ain’t gonna start now just because you had somebody else beat him up, right?”

This didn’t add up. Rhodes didn’t trust this guy one bit. In fact, a certain feature made him rather uneasy. This Banette’s face was bearing a patch, probably to hide some sort of rip in his cloth-like body. However, the patch looked remarkably similar to a facial scar on his left cheek. Needless to say, it made Rhodes nervous. “I don’t think it’s really your business...”

The strange Banette leaned his head in closer, which forced Rhodes to take a step back. His uneasy feelings became rather obvious. “Didn’t you kids always settle this with one of your little canopy duels in the gang? Seemed like there was no question on who to listen to after one of those...”

Immediately, Rhodes went wide-eyed with shock. “How do you know about that?!” he yelled. Even his two bound friends seemed surprised. That was an activity they never spread outside of the gang, for fear of being caught unaware while doing it. The fact that this Banette they’d never seen before knew it... and that scar... it was enough for an uncertain fear to begin building within Rhodes.

The Sneasel in Udon’s claw didn’t seem fazed at all, however. In fact, a bit of a smirk came over his face. “You’re nothin’! I’m gonna tell everybody you had to have one of Merlot’s stooges help you!” he threatened.

Udon herself didn’t take to this very well. “Stooge?!” she exclaimed, lifting the smart-mouthed Sneasel up and rearing back with all of her might. It looked as though she was going to spike him to the ground like a football.

“Miss Udon!” Rhodes interjected, immediately running to her side while the strange puppet-ghost watched with amusement. Thankfully, it caused her to pause her motion, not immediately going through with forcibly planting the now-terrified Sneasel in the ground. Rhodes gazed up at the lifted Sneasel, and their eyes met for that moment. He knew it had to be this way.

“... I’ll do it... let him down, please.”

A minor glare gave way to the idea that Udon didn’t like this. Still, after a moment of contemplation, she sighed, and reluctantly released the Sneasel, letting him drop into the grass with an unceremonious thud. “Fine...” she agreed, crossing her arms and turning her head away with a huff, “I just hope you know what you’re doing!”

The now-freed Sneasel gave a brief rub to the back of his own neck, perhaps feeling the strain from being held in such a brutish manner. Still, all things considered, he looked no worse than he started out. He acted no worse either, given that he immediately reared back and hopped to his feet in an agile display.

“Um... miss dragon lady?” a meek voice called out. It caught Udon’s attention, bringing her out of her sulking as she averted her gaze to one of the two Sneasels that were bound to a tree before. It would seem that they had managed to wiggle free, just from the one cut in the loop made prior. Rather than run in terror like their antagonizing brethren, they stuck around. “... Thank you!” he said after a moment of fidgeting.

Slasher’s gang members were generally aware of Merlot’s distaste for them. This would be a first, in which any of them actually felt grateful toward one of her servants. It would seem that some were following the example Rhodes was setting. Tickled by the very idea, this lightened Udon’s expression right up! “Oh... how sweet!” she exclaimed, pressing her own plump claws together pleasantly. “I’ll have to tell Lady Merlot that you’ve developed manners, she’ll be very impressed!”

The display made the more antagonistic Sneasel scoff. “See? You’re already ruinin’ our reputation!” he accused. Both he and Rhodes had begun making distance between each other, each approaching a different standing tree. “If I win, all three of you gotta do what I say, got it? No more of this bein’ buddy-buddy with Merlot crap!”

This was risky... what if he did lose? No, he couldn’t think that way. It was distracting. Rhodes placed one of his claws up against the trunk of the nearest tree, gazing toward his adversary. He was doing the same, ready to partake in their gang’s so-called decision-making process. There was something else that was distracting, though.

That Banette. Rhodes shot a glance over to him. Ever since he’d instigated this, he was silent. He just watched like a quiet spectator, always with a grin of interest.

No! Another distraction. Answers would have to wait. The other Sneasel was already clawing his way up one of the trees, prompting Rhodes to do the same. Both of them watched each other for the few moments they still could, until they disappeared into the leafy canopy above, leaving nothing but sound and smell to guide them to each other.

“How does this work..?” Udon asked, peeking up at the leaves above. She was the only one among them who honestly had no idea what was going on, it would seem.

“It’s pretty simple,” the Banette replied, perhaps the only other pokemon present who shouldn’t know what was happening. He turned his gaze to Udon, outstretching his arms in a casual, disdainful shrug, “First one to hit the ground loses. That’s it.”

---

To everyone below, it was almost impossible to follow except by the occasional rustle of leaves. For Rhodes, it was a tense bout of survival. His every move along the branches mattered. Slow and silent, or quick and evasive. It was all a matter of adapting to the situation.

On foot and claw, Rhodes crawled over the sturdiest branches he could. Every crack, every creak, even the sound of leaves against his fur as he moved, could give him away. His opponent had the same weakness, though. It was the nature of this competition to exploit these things, but more importantly, to avoid being exploited.

This practice was kept secret from outsiders, because it was how they put to the test their expertise in traversing and tracking within the forest. There was never a tougher target than a fellow gang member. They knew all the tricks, and maybe more.

Rustling. They were both doing it as they moved. The question was never whether they could attain complete silence in search of each other -- in the treetops, it was impossible. Their senses were too sharp to miss the sounds of moving leaves and branches. Trickery and cleverness were key.

A louder rustle. The other Sneasel was close. Rhodes planned accordingly, planting his feet and claws on the same extended branch in a perched position. If there was an opportunity to pounce, either toward or away, he would have to take it. The abundance of leaves masked clear vision of his target, but he could see it. The tinges of black fur moving along. However...

Rhodes made a mistake. He attempted to leap through the leaves at what he saw, attempting to end the engagement quickly... only to have his adversary hop and grab a higher branch, leaving him at a disadvantage. Before Rhodes could do more than gain footing on the new branch and hastily look upward, his error had already cost him. In one quick swipe, the other Sneasel had grabbed one of the hanging ends of his green scarf.

In a panic, Rhodes began to tug away. He realized this could be the end right away if he didn’t do something drastic. The other Sneasel had begun to pull, attempting to make him lose balance. It was also starting to work. His footing was being lost, leaving him little choice. A heavy lurch away from his assailant freed him, at the cost of ripping his scarf free. He wouldn’t get a chance to survey the damage until he was able to slink away, but at least he’d be able to.

---

On along several branches Rhodes leaped, turning his head to notice he wasn’t followed. That was to be expected. Committing to a chase usually had to be quite thought-out, in these cases. This gave Rhodes precious moments to think. In one of his large claws, he lifted the end of his scarf and peered down at it. Gazing upon the two gashes left upon it caused a sinking feeling to well up inside him. If not for the advent of a sudden idea, he might not have perked back up.

“Yer lucky that wasn’t yer feathers!” the other Sneasel taunted. He was creeping around once more. Whether he was looking for a vantage to strike from, or another trick to pull, Rhodes couldn’t be sure. It wouldn’t matter, if his idea worked. He slid a claw between his neck and his scarf, tugging the accessory from his body. To mask the sound it made, he began to move once more, creeping in the opposite direction of his opponent. Leaves rustled against his fur, and so did the cloth he removed, leaving the scarf draped loosely over his claw.

The other Sneasel was stalking him. He could hear it. Perfect. Rhodes surveyed above himself for a sturdy branch to leap higher to. Not just any branch, though. One that was well-concealed by the many leaves. Eventually, he crept upon one, and leapt right up to it. It was just sturdy enough that there was only minor swaying, though that was enough to gain attention.

The taller, bedraggled Sneasel finally closed in on Rhodes’s position. He managed to spot that green scarf hanging in the sea of equally-green leaves. An impressive feat to anyone else, though one that was natural for their sharp eyes. It was the kind of thing one would easily overlook, and he was going to take full advantage. With a hearty pounce, the branch he was on cracked and wobbled. It’d likely be unsafe to put weight on again, committing him to his attempt to pull Rhodes down by the scarf!

That was the cue. The hanging scarf pulled up like a lure, causing the pouncing Sneasel to look up as he adjusted his shaky footing on the branch he just transferred to. The only thing he could see was the tinges of black fur past the leaves... followed by a claw-toed foot striking him right in the face as its owner swung down from his perch.

His footing was lost.

Onlookers from the ground had been watching in suspense, barely able to see the action other than mild movements of the tree’s parts. They couldn’t see how the duel was going until the very end, when one of the Sneasels plummeted to the ground. At least the landing wasn’t gruesome, allowing him to mostly catch himself on his claws, though the force of gravity still made him buckle and roll to his side, avoiding most of the physical pain from the fall. It looked as though his ego was bruised more than anything else.

---

Shortly after, Rhodes fell as well, landing much more gracefully at the other Sneasel’s side, on his feet. His scarf was still in his claw. Having outlived its usefulness as bait, it was thrown back over his own neck and tightened. Rhodes turned to see the surprise on his comrades’ faces become excited joy... and then he turned to the Banette. It was staring at him. That smile, it was even more unsettling now. Did he want this to happen? Rhodes shot the puppet-like ghost a brief glare as their red eyes met each other, before turning back to the grounded Sneasel.

The scarred pathfinder extended his claw to the downed Sneasel, who looked up to him, defeated. Rhodes took a turn for the cheerful, flashing him a smile. “I didn't wanna do that just to beat you up, ya know. We should all work together instead of fightin',” he explained. His extended claw was like an olive branch, of sorts. It seemed to confuse the other Sneasel, making him look away.

“Why should I do anything you say? Yer just disrespectin' the boss, sidin' us with the villagers...” the downed Sneasel defied, refusing to look Rhodes in the eye.

“It's... it's not about whether or not we respect the boss,” Rhodes replied. It was a bit tougher than he thought to say such a thing. Bitterness overflowed within him toward Slasher, but... that was his own problem. It wouldn't help to dwell on it here, if he wanted to get through to this Sneasel. “Nobody will ever respect us if we just keep tryin' to bully people just because we can. He's gone, but we still have to live here, and we gotta do it our own way.”

With that statement, Rhodes reached his claw out a little more, as if to offer it further. “We've got a chance to get respect by helpin' everyone, instead of just helpin' ourselves. Do you really wanna keep robbin' the villagers when we get so much more outta helpin' 'em out? Come on...”

The grounded Sneasel was clearly confused. It was a new way of thinking to a lot of the old gang members. Eventually, he began pulling himself to his feet before Rhodes. It wasn't certain what he thought about the speech he was given as their gazes met... until his claw met the one offered to him, cupping the two together in a handshake of sorts.

“I still dunno about this... but you make a lotta sense. It might be better than sittin' out here bein' hungry every night...” the Sneasel surrendered, bringing a smile to Rhodes's face. The other present Sneasels cheered with happiness from behind Udon, having stuck around for the entire duel.

As expected, so did that Banette. After the resolution, he approached behind Rhodes, seeming to float as he moved, and put one of his soft, stuffed hands upon the boy's shoulder. It startled him momentarily, causing him to drop the handshake he was performing.

“Touching. Now that you've got all that squared away, I need you to take me somewhere,” the Banette revealed.

It was shady at best. Rhodes peered at the red-eyed ghost for a moment, then averted his gaze back to the Sneasel he'd just recruited to his cause. “You and my other friends should go meet the rest of the villagers at Merlot's castle. They're staying there for now,” he instructed, before turning and approaching Udon, who had been onlooking with amusement, interest, or both. He couldn't be sure. He did, however, miss the part where the Sneasel, who was now behind him, became quite worried at the mention of going to Merlot's castle. “Can you please make sure they get there, Miss Udon?”

For once, Udon looked a little troubled. “Well... we still have to go to Tao to extend Lady Merlot's invitation to the rest...”

“Ah! That's right! ...” Rhodes responded. He had almost forgotten about that in all the commotion... especially when there was something very troubling nagging at the back of his mind, due to that Banette.

One of the friendlier Sneasels stepped out from behind Udon to speak up, “We can go on ahead, I think... there's prolly so much goin' on there, they won't notice us join up with the rest of the villagers, right?”

“Now hang on!” The 'new recruit' stomped forward in a fuss, quickly gaining the attention of everyone else. “I don't remember agreein' to go to Merlot!” he exclaimed. His eyes then wandered to Udon once more, who looked just a little bit ticked-off. That was enough to settle him down a bit, clasping his claws together as he peeked away with sheepish nervousness. “I uh... I mean, she's kinda scary, is all...”

Fortunately, this admittance was enough to appease Udon. “Oh, is that all that’s bothering you?” she asked in a bubbly, cheerful voice. “Lady Merlot is very busy. Though she’s graciously extended her castle as a temporary home to all Tao villagers, you’ll still be far beneath her notice!”

This seemed to calm the worried Sneasel down, at least a little. “So uh... no maid stuff?”

The question caused Udon to stare at the one who asked it for a moment, only to burst into laughter. “Goodness, no! Lady Merlot outright despises the idea of Sneasel servants. Your figures and body colors don’t make her favorite outfits stand out well enough for her tastes. You’re still welcome to a room, though.”

Every Sneasel present felt a moment of mild awkwardness, learning this fact. Still, it was... good news? More or less, anyway. Relations between Merlot and the Sneasels of the forest were shaky at best, though at least with Slasher out of the way, there was room for improvement. … Hopefully not in any way that would make them appealing as servants, but still.

“Well...” the Sneasel pondered, thinking it over momentarily, “... okay. I’m boltin’ if it ain’t how you say it is, though!” With that, he and the two more agreeable Sneasels congregated, and began heading off in the direction of the castle.

However, one did stop and turn to Rhodes briefly. “Um... thanks for helpin’ us out,” he said, before flashing a glance to the ever-present Banette, then back to Rhodes, “... be careful, okay?”

Though there was impending worry in Rhodes’s heart, he returned a smile to his concerned friend. “Don’t worry, I’ll be there soon. Make sure to try the food there; it’s really good, and they have lots of it!”

With that, the other Sneasel parted on pleasant terms, leaving only Rhodes, Udon, and the strange Banette together.

---