Pokegirls: What Lies Beneath

Scott sat on the largest remains of what had been one of the kitchen's chairs, and looked around in shock. The entire room was a shambles, it looked like a war had broken out. For all intents and purposes, it had. He thought back to how it all began.

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His mom's shift had just ended, so they were all going to head home for one last meal together before he'd pack up and set out on his journey. It seemed a little short notice, but considering what his dad had told him, Scott agreed that dragging it out could only end badly. So he was prepared to say his goodbyes and leave in the morning. Assuming his sponsor showed up on time, anyways. He tried asking who it was, but his parents only said he'd find out soon enough. By then, they'd reached home, and he walked in with relief, eager for a few hours of peace and quiet before he left. Cinthia was waiting for them all to get home, she was already standing up to welcome them home, when she froze, upon seeing the Duelette.

"And just who are you?"

The Duelette didn't seem bothered by Cinthia's tone, and calmly replied. "I am Scott's pokegirl. Who are you?"

Cinthia showed she was her mother's daughter, her expression turning into something very close to the glare Janelle had sent Greg earlier. "What?! You can't! I'm not going to let you take my brother away!"

"It's not your choice, little girl."

"I don't care, you just can't!"

"And who is going to stop me, a weakling like you?"

Cinthia had had enough. Showing she was closer to being a pokegirl than anyone thought, she sent an Ember attack right at the Duelette. Scott and their parents were shocked into inaction by Cinthia's unexpected display of ferocity. The Duelette was under no such restriction, however. She grabbed a card and summoned it, and a girl that looked much like a Whoresea appeared in a sparkle of shimmering lights, before glaring at Cinthia and shooting out a torrent of water from her mouth, destroying the Ember and continuing on towards the fire Pokegirl. Cinthia's eyes widened when she saw the water, and leapt wildly to the side, her tail slapping one of the chairs towards the Whoresea. She leapt forward, tackling the water Pokegirl to the ground and instantly going into a fierce Fury Swipes technique.

The Whoresea screamed in pain, and vanished in a flurry of motes of light. At the same time, the Duelette screamed in pain, before she revealed another card, at the same time as Cinthia sent another Ember at her. The card glowed, revealing a large crystalline wall. The Ember hit it, and rebounded, flying back towards Cinthia, who was too shocked to do anything. The Ember hit her square in the chest and she went down, crashing against the table and breaking it. The Duelette readied another card, but was blindsided when Janelle grabbed her by the ear, pinching tightly. At the same time, Greg had rushed forward, doing the same to Cinthia. The two girls tried to fight it, until Janelle started speaking, in a voice that brooked no argument.

"Alright, that's enough from both of you! Now both of you, go outside. Scott, go with them and make sure they don't start fighting again, okay?"

"What, me?! How am I supposed to do that?"

"Just do it!"

The three of them had trudged outside, then. Cinthia was sending constant glares at the Duelette, and both of them looked somewhat the worse for wear. Scott sighed, glad he'd received part of his starting Tamer package, and pulled out a pair of spray potions. Tossing one to each of the girls, he told them to heal up as best as they could. While they did, he settled down onto the porch, looking out towards the rest of the city. The sun was just beginning to set, creating a view that would normally be quite beautiful, if he wasn't having to deal with one surprise after another. He groaned and lay back on the porch, the view changing from sunset to wood. He closed his eyes and just tried to relax for a second. In hindsight, he should have known better. Soon, he felt something warm against his side, and a fraction of a second later, another warm thing against his other side. Even before opening his eyes, he knew what he'd see. But nevertheless, he opened them. Sometimes, he really hated being right.

The Duelette had nestled up against his right side, and Cinthia wasn't about to let the challenge go unheeded, and only an instant later she had taken his left side. He sighed, staying the night seemed a lot more trouble than he originally thought. But they weren't actually fighting over him, yet anyways, so he decided to just let it be. The three stayed like that for a few moments until his dad stuck his head out the door and told them it was okay to come back in now. They had gotten to their feet and marched indoors with all the eagerness of prisoners facing a firing squad. If it came down to a choice, Scott thought he'd rather go that route.

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And that brought everything back to the present. Scott looked over the mess and shook his head. They had only fought for a minute or two, and look at what happened! His parents didn't look all that thrilled about it either, not that he could blame them. All five of them were in the kitchen again, and some of the mess had been cleaned up. But it was still a mess. He made a motion to start picking up some of it, but a brief shake of the head from his parents stopped him. He glanced over at Cinthia and the Duelette. Both had made the fortunate choice to look apologetic over what they'd done. He watched his mom for a moment longer, sure she'd start the chewing out any second now. But it never came.

Instead, she just stayed silent, and somehow, that was even worse than any scolding she could have done. Scott felt bad, even though he hadn't done anything. That was the problem, he'd been so surprised by what had happened, that he hadn't even tried to stop them. He glanced at both of them, and saw they were both looking at him for guidance. A bit puzzled, he nonetheless made a decision. Lowering his head shamefacedly, he quietly apologized, which was echoed by Cinthia and the Duelette's. He risked a glance up, and blinked when he saw a small smirk on his dad's face for a fraction of an instant before his face went carefully neutral. Wait a minute, they weren't actually angry? He felt confused. It cleared up a little when he heard, actually heard, his mom smile. Straightening up, he saw her grin, mirrored by the casual smile on his dad's face he knew so well.

His mom finally broke the silence. "Okay, that's enough from the three of you. Why don't you all go up to your room and give us time to clean up?" This she directed at Scott, who gulped nervously. "And no more fighting, got it?"

The three of them nodded and quickly made their escape. A quick dash up the stairs, a brief thunder of feet, and they were there. Scott looked around his room. It wasn't very big, and kind of messy. But it was his, and he'd gotten it just the way he liked it. Cinthia walked in right behind him, perfectly at home. She'd been in his room plenty of times already, including a few times she'd snuck in that he didn't know about. The Duelette's reaction was a little different. She walked in slowly, closing her eyes and breathing deeply, making Scott feel really embarassed about not having cleaned up earlier. He looked at the pile of clothes he'd left on the floor, and tried to nudge them out of sight with his foot, earning a mischievous grin from Cinthia. She stepped further inside of the room and plopped down next to his table, her tail curled up around her. The Duelette still seemed kind of lost in her own little world until Scott called out to her, at which she jerked awake, with a noticeable blush on her face. Scott didn't notice it, but Cinthia did, and her eyes narrowed accordingly.

Scott took a seat at the table opposite Cinthia, and the Duelette took one of the remaining sides. The silence stretched on until it was beginning to get uncomfortable, and then Cinthia decided to restart their 'conversation' from before.

"Just because I couldn't defeat you doesn't mean I'm letting you have Scott!"

The Duelette didn't seem fazed by her words, shrugging them off like water. "And since when do you determine what happens to him?"

"Since I'm his sister!"

"Um, don't I get a say in all this...?" Scott looked back and forth between the two, trying to think of something to say to defuse the situation before another fight broke out.

"No!" He was surprised, the two of them had said that completely in unison, their voices blending together surprisingly well. That did the trick. They all looked at one another for a moment, and then started laughing. Even the usually soft-spoken Duelette giggled a little before blushing and covering her hand. Now that the proverbial ice was broken, the conversation turned to lighter matters, and time passed quickly. Before they knew it, there was a knock at the door and Greg opened it before sticking his head in to let them know supper was ready. That was all the encouragement they needed. They'd been enjoying talking so much they forgot what time it was, or how hungry they were getting. They marched back down to the kitchen, to see the damage had been remarkably cleaned up. Nothing anywhere close to fully repaired, that'd take quite some time. But enough that the kitchen actually looked usable.

The table had been replaced with a smaller one, Scott recognized it from when they had guests over. The chairs that were still usable were still in the kitchen, coupled with several folding chairs. On the table was what really drew the eye, though. A full meal, how in the world had his parents had enough time to make all of that?! He glanced at his mom for a moment before she recognized his look, and told him that a little mystery would do him good, he had bigger problems to worry about. And sure enough, she was right. Despite the mouth-watering aromas of the various foods, Cinthia's and the Duelette's eyes were stil being drawn back to Scott like iron shavings to a magnet. He nervously looked between the two of them, it felt more like he was on the dinner table, not the food! He took a seat, and nobody was surprised to see the two girls sit on either side of him, their chairs somehow moving closer to his. Greg and Janelle shared a knowing grin at that, before helping everyone dish up.

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A short while after dinner, it was getting late. Scott was already yawning and wishing for his bed; after everything that had happened, he was pretty tired. As he started to head toward the stairs, he heard footsteps behind him, and mentally sighed. Sure enough, the Duelette was hot on his heels, and Cinthia was following as well. He had a sinking feeling what was going to happen if he didn't stop them. He stopped in mid-step, nearly making them bump into him. He turned around, and waited until he had their attention.

"Okay, since none of us want a repetition of what happened earlier, we are going to have to do something about tonight's sleeping arrangements. I know that you," he points to the Duelette "are planning on coming into my room, and that you," he points at Cinthia " are going to try to stop her because you don't want us to share a room, right?" They both nodded emphatically. He sighed, then ran a hand down his face. "Okay, that leaves one choice. Cinthia, go to your room, Ms. Duelette, you can have my room, and me, I'll have the couch. Alright?" But even before they had a chance to argue, he was walking past them, back to the rather lumpy couch. He caught glances from his parents, as well as a pair of small nods. So he'd made the right choice then? Lucky him.

Cinthia and the Duelette turned around to try to get Scott to change his mind, but Greg and Janelle swung into action. He'd made his choice, they'd enforce it. They bustled the two girls up the stairs and made sure they were in the right rooms before coming down. Once they did, they took one glance at Scott and smiled. He'd already fallen asleep! Janelle spread some covers over him before she and her husband returned to the kitchen, to do some more cleaning.

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Morning rolled around, and Scott slowly opened his eyes. His bed was so warm, he felt like just going back to sleep for another few hours. But then his bed shifted, and his memories of the day before returned to him in a flash, and he finally focused on where he was. He was still on the couch, but he wasn't alone. Both the Duelette and Cinthia must have snuck downstairs and cuddled up against him. He sighed, and tried to extricate himself as best as he could, but soon had to give up, they were just not letting go of him. He sighed, and looked around as best as he was able. Straining his neck, he could see into the kitchen, it looked like both of his parents were there, presumably having breakfast, or maybe doing some last-minute cleaning. He tried to think of a way to let them know he needed help without waking the others up.

In the end, he had to gamble on his voice not being loud enough to wake either of them up, and risked calling out for some help. A moment later, Janelle came in and took one look at the tangle before stifling a giggle at her son's discomfiture. But she composed herself quickly enough, and set about helping him escape. A long moment later, he was straightening out, stretching as his tense muscles complained about sleeping on the lumpy couch all night. He glanced down at Cinthia and the Duelette, seeing that they had snuggled closer to each other's warmth.

"Of course, they can actually get along when they're asleep..."

He went to wash up and then went to the kitchen for breakfast, only to stop short as he realized it'd been completely cleaned and repaired. He asked how in the world had they managed to do it, but neither of his parents wanted to say, they just said it didn't matter. Using that as an excuse to change the subject. Janelle reminded him the final portion of his testing was scheduled in an hour, back at the Pokecenter. He still had to have his psyche evaluation, as well as a Megami scan. He blinked in surprise before hurrying to finish his meal, he'd forgotten all about that! He wolfed down the rest of his food, and went back upstairs to get ready. A short while later, he was done and out the door.

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Scott arrived at the Pokecenter with just a few minutes to spare, and only slightly out of breath. He straightened up his clothes a little, dusting himself off before walking through the doors. He already knew his mom wasn't in, since she was at home. Looking up at the counter, he recognized the NurseJoy sitting there, he'd talked to her a few times before. Her name was Alicia, if he remembered right. Walking up to the counter, he let her finish up what she was doing before coughing lightly to get her attention. She turned to see who it was, and smiled when she saw him. Like all NurseJoys, she had bright pink hair. In her case, it was tied into twin ponytaurtails, one hanging low behind each shoulder.

"Hello Scott! Here for the rest of your tests?"

"Yup, Mom said they were scheduled to start soon?"

"Mm-hm. Your examiners are already waiting, you can go ahead and head over to the second conference room."

"The second? Alright, thank you!" Scott turned and went on his way, if they were waiting he didn't want to take any longer than he had to. Only a moment later, he stood in front of the door, feleing a sense of trepidation. He knew he was a nice enough person, at least he thought so. But what if the Megami thought he wasn't suited for being a Tamer? What if he failed the psyche test? That wasn't something he could study for, after all.

He shook his head, stopping himself from dwelling anymore on those thoughts. He hadn't studied for the written portion of the test after all, and he'd passed that without too much trouble. All he could do was tell the truth, and hope for the best. A little more at ease, he took a deep breath, before knocking and opening the door. Only to instantly blush and close it right away again. He turned around, breathing heavily. There went his composure! Even in the brief instant that he'd seen, he had noticed the two 'girls getting more 'acquainted' with one another. Nothing too raunchy, but definitely not something he was supposed to walk in on!

He looked up above the door, wondering if he'd gone to the wrong room. No, it was the right one. And he wasn't early, either, as far as he knew, he was more or less right on time. Should he come back later, give them time to do... well, to finish up? He was just about to walk away when he heard the door open behind him. He studiously stayed turned away, until he heard a soft voice.

"It's alright, we're decent now. Sorry about that, we kind of lost track of time. Now, if you're ready, we are ready to begin."

Scott turned around, his eyes widening now that he got a closer look at who'd just spoken. She stood a little taller than him, maybe just under 6'. She had a very curvaceous figure, a large bust and a slender waist which flared out to her hips. She wore a garment of soft blue with lavender embellishments, to pair with her long blonde hair and violet facial markings. She smiled, and he felt his mood lighten, what was he worried about, things would go just fine. He followed when she gestured for him to come inside, and he saw the other occupant, looking a little out of sorts. Either embarassed at getting caught, or put out at not getting to finish, if he had to make a guess. She had slightly dark orange skin, and a pair of antennae sprouting from her forehead, which were a slightly pale yellow. She had a very impressive bust, which strained at the simple white business shirt that she wore, visibly stretching the material. He'd have to be careful about flying buttons.

-I heard that.- She turned to face him, as he heard the voice in his head. Her mouth never moved, then again, it didn't need to.

"Sorry, I'll try to be more careful."

The Megami took her seat and gestured for Scott to do likewise. She introduced herself as Amber, and the Ka-D-Bra's name was Sheryl. Scott introduced himself, despite the fact that they already knew who he was. Amber said that she'd scan him first, and then the psyche test would come next. He nodded, asking what he was supposed to do. She told him to just relax, so he did. Adjusting his posture in the chair, he leaned back slightly, letting his eyes flutter a bit as he tried to empty his mind. He felt Amber's presence hovering just outside of him, although she was still on the other side of the table. He didn't fight it, he let her go where she wanted. What felt like a moment later, but according to the clock was nearly twenty, he heard her say she was done, and straightened up again.

Amber smiled at him, but didn't say what her findings were. Then it was time for Sheryl's examination. This would be in two parts, a series of questions while she used a low-level scan on him to see his intentions while he answered. He nodded, and they got ready to begin. Overall, the questions weren't hard, although quite often there was no right answer. Each question was based on opinion, and several seemed to be odd in the way that the 'right' answer was technically illegal, or at least frowned upon. But finally, she was done. She turned to face Amber, and they seemed to be mentally conversing, because he couldn't hear anything.

Only a moment later, Amber smiled at him and said he could return to the lobby, they'd be done shortly with his results. He nodded, and turned to leave, trying not to think if 'they'd be done shortly' meant anything besides his test. Just before closing the door, he could have sworn he had heard a button pop.

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Back in the lobby, he looked around, and was about to take a seat when he saw the NurseJoy at the counter beckoning to him. Curious, he walked back over to her, asking if something was wrong.

"No, nothing's wrong. But your mom called, she said you are to come right home as soon as you've gotten your results. Okay?"

"Alright." Nodding, he took a seat and watched some of the others in the lobby. Time seemed to slow down to a crawl, but eventually he saw who he'd been waiting for. Amber and Sheryl walked out of the hallway into the lobby, and he blushed faintly as he saw them straightening their clothes. He'd been right. Amber turned to look across the lobby until her eyes landed on him, then she smiled and waved, calling for him to come over. He did, walking over to them, stopping a few feet away.

"Alright, your results have been determined. The actual numbers will be put into the database by the end of the day, and you will be receiving your pokedex shortly, so you'll be able to check your ranking then. As for the here and now, allow me to congratulate you on passing with flying colors. You are now formally a Tamer! You can pick up your starter kit at the counter, and good luck!"

Scott was surprised when the Megami wrapped him up in a tight hug, and whispered into his ear. 'Just take care of your 'girls, and you'll do fine.' She released him and straightened up, before looking back at Sheryl as the two of them got ready to depart, headed towards the door. Scott watched them leave, then turned back to the counter, to see Alicia looking at him with a knowing smirk on her face. His blush deepened a little, and he tried to change the subject.

"So I guess you have my starter kit?"

"Yup. Although I got a note from Janelle that you already have a starter 'girl, is that right?" When Scott nodded, she continued. "So was it either of those two you had your eye on just now?"

"What?! No! I, It's not... that is... I-"

"Oh calm down Scotty, you know I'm just teasing. Here you go." With a smile and a pat on the shoulder, she handed the slightly bulky parcel to Scott.

He accepted the package and flipped open the lid, peering inside. There was the familiar belt and six empty pokeballs, as swell as his pokedex and the infamous 'Taming for Dummies'. He started digging stuff out, and nodded when Alicia reminded him he'd have to activate the pokedex with his thumbprint before he could use it. That was the last tip she had for him, so she wished him well, and asked him to tell his mom she had to come in early on Sunday. He nodded again, and turned to head back home. It was still early, despite how long it had seemed he was waiting for his results. But his parents wanted him home right away, so he'd do so.

The walk home wasn't very eventful, it was pretty much the same as all the other times he'd done so. Except for the fact that this time, he was now a Tamer, and some of the local pokegirls seems to know it, preening or strutting around a little more than he remembered. Odd, how in the world did they know? He didn't have the belt on, and the package could have been anything. But somehow, they knew. Feeling a little nervous, he rushed the rest of the way home.

Opening the door, he was greeted by four eyes all staring right at him. Nearly closing the door again, he recognized Cinthia's glare, but was surprised to see the Duelette was glaring at him, too.

"You left without me!" They said, again almlost perfectly in unison. This time they didn't laugh like they had before. They both looked really angry. He tried to explain, saying he just had to go to the 'center for the last of his testing, he thought they wouldn't have wanted to come because it would have been boring waiting for him. But while he said that, he saw the Duelette's nose wrinkle a little, as she seemed to smell something. She leaned in closer, sniffing around his chest. Cinthia had a curious look on her face, but didn't match the Duelette's actions.

"Um, is there something I can help you with?"

"Just some tests? Then why do I smell aroused pokegirl all over you?!"

"WHAT?!" Cinthia roared, looking furious. Scott gulped nervously, trying to think about what in the world she was talking about. "Oh yeah, that must have been when Amber hugged me."

"And just who in the hell is Amber?"

Scott shivered, the way they'd said that reminded him far too much of that dangerously calm way that his mom got when she was really angry. He backed towards the door, having no idea how in the world he could explain away what had happened. What in the world was he getting himself into?!

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Name: Allenford, Scott

Age: 15

Status: Active

Rank: 14

Licenses:
Tamer: Y
Master Tamer: N
Researcher: N
Watcher: N
Breeder: N

Harem:
Name: Species: Level:
??? Duelette 8

Badges:
None

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CHARAMANDA, the Fiery Lizard-esque Pokégirl

Type: Animorphic
Element: Fire
Frequency: Uncommon to Rare
Diet: Omnivore, prefers meat and cooked fish
Role: frontline soldiers
Libido: Average
Strong Vs: Bug, Ice, Plant, Steel
Weak Vs: Ground, Rock, Water
Attacks: Ember, Fire Spin, Fireball, Flamethrower, Tail Whip, Bite, Scratch, Fury Swipes
Enhancements: Fire powers, Endurance, claws
Evolves: Charmelons (normal)
Evolves From: None

The first elemental Pokégirl to make her appearance during Sukebe's War was the Charamanda and her more powerful evolutions. Using her fire attacks to attack the human forces, they decimated regiments of human soldiers and melted through tank armor to great affect. It was only when Sukebe's Charamandas attempted to infiltrate cities on their own that they found themselves overpowered by local fire departments and their fire hoses that held the lines against them. Eventually, when Sukebe learned to utilize other elemental types with the Charamanda forces, not even those defenders managed to hold the lines at all. After the war, these Pokégirls were hunted but many survived both the war and the Pokégirl hunts in the years that followed. These were also the first Fire-types that Researchers after the war obtained data on.

These days, these Pokégirls are known to be one of the most stable and easily tamed fire-types throughout the world. They don't need any special precautions before a taming, unlike their evolutions. They are reptilian, having scales rather than skin like a human, which is rather sensitive to temperature drops and water. Their scales are normally a deep red in coloration, though their front is often an orange color or at least a lighter red around their stomach, chest, and breasts. These Pokégirls also have a tail that is as long as they are tall that is not prehensile. Charamanda stand at about five feet tall, though some are a bit taller as well. Their tail actually has a fire that emits from it, which allows the Charamanda to heat up her surroundings easily. This flame may not be present in domestic Charamandas, however, although it can be dispelled with magic. Dousing this flame otherwise can harm a Charamanda that does possess this flame.

More affectionate than her evolutions, and perhaps moreso than any other fire type other than the Spitfire or the FireCat, the Charamanda enjoys cuddling with a trusted tamer almost as much as receiving a taming. This Pokégirl has a low pleasure threshold, which grows as she evolves. They are very careful with their tamers, not wanting to burn them, but ferals are known to go all out against any that enter their supposed territory, Pokégirl and tamer alike. These Pokégirls are often provided to new tamers as often as a Growlie is, simply because of their loyalty and abilities that are rather well suited towards traveling. Feral Charamanda don't normally have hair, but domestics usually do thanks to their origins with having a human father.

In battles, Charamandas are well suited for both ranged and close-combat. Their teeth are suited to tearing, ripping, and piercing- perfect for their Bite attacks. Although her tail isn't prehensile, it is strong and thick, and suitable for her tail whip attack. And their ability with fire allows for a variety of fire attacks to be available at most any range of battle. The Charamanda has claws on her hands and feet, allowing her to utilize them well in close quarters as well. In sex battles, their low pleasure threshold is an obvious liability. Their evolved forms are much more suited for such battles, however.

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Chapter End Notes: Again, stopped earlier than what I really wanted. Next one will be longer, I promise. And maybe something will actually happen, too! I already have a loose plan for the next few chapters, so hopefully I can keep up a decent release schedule. Reviews are loved!