"Phew, none of them died. Excellent. That's all money, ha ha." Torchic went over the Beedrill one by one, found that none of them were dead, and could not help laughing.
Six more to the haul. Six times the joy. Bliss. Such bliss.
"Boss, boss, put them away, quick."
Torchic came running up in front of Vance, hurrying him along.
Vance looked at the impatient Torchic, said "all right", took out Poké Balls and gathered the Beedrill in.
"Hee hee. On, on. Let's go, let's go."
Spurred on by something or other, Torchic was in high spirits.
"This lad." Vance swore at him fondly, recalled Gyarados and Vigoroth to their Poké Balls, and followed after him.
The point of this was to season Torchic, and if those two were left outside there would be no seasoning to be had; overawed by their presence, the weaker Pokémon would not dare come near.
And whatever did dare come near would be more than Torchic could handle.
Vance and Torchic went on in fits and starts, fighting, resting to get their strength back. After many battles Torchic levelled up again, reaching Level 10, and by the look of him he was not far from breaking through into Novice strength.
"Let's rest a while. Are you tired, Torchic?"
"Torchic—"
Torchic nodded wearily and sat down beside Vance.
"Good work, good work. You put a lot into it today."
Vance reached out and stroked Torchic's head. He happened to be hungry himself, so he got his gear out and cooked; the food was soon ready, a portion each for the three Pokémon and another for himself, and he ate along with them.
"Boss, when are you going to do that roast mutton again? I've been wanting it. And make more this time — I want three whole ones."
Gyarados clamoured for it while they ate. Eating out here reminded him of the whole roast lamb Vance had once made on Trial Island.
"Vigoroth, you want some too, don't you."
Seeing that Vance said nothing, Gyarados dragged Vigoroth into it.
"All right. I'll make it for you in the next day or two."
Vance swallowed the mouthful he had been chewing and answered with a smile.
"Heh heh. Plenty of chilli powder, I love that."
"All right."
Most Pokémon food carries too much nutrition and too much energy for a human to digest easily; the ordinary Breeder who tries it eats only a little and does not dare eat more.
So as a rule humans do not eat the food prepared for Pokémon.
The reverse, though, is fine: Pokémon can eat human food without any trouble, except that over the long run the energy they take in is insufficient, which affects their advancement in strength.
By comparison, Pokémon food is high in nutrition and energy while human food tastes better, and a skilled Breeder will make food that takes the advantages of both.
Every fine Breeder is also a fine cook, and Vance happened to be exactly that kind of Breeder.
What Gyarados and the other two ate came from Vance's own hands, and he adjusted it specifically to the stage each of the three was at.
That was also why the three of them were gaining strength so quickly, and why they could fight above their grade.
A fine Breeder matters a great deal to a Pokémon, and such a person is sought after by Trainers; small groups travelling abroad in particular are very keen to have a Breeder in the party.
Because of all that, the Pokémon get better care.
In the anime, Brock was a fine Breeder, and some share of the credit for how Ash Ketchum's Pokémon grew belongs to Brock.
The meal was soon finished, and after a rest Vance took his Pokémon on through the forest again; walking on and on, he came to a place called Green Vine Mountain.
Vance had the Pokédex in his hand, with a map displayed on the screen, and it was a mission note in the Pokédex that had brought him here in the first place.
It said that someone had once gathered the herbs the mission called for on this Green Vine Mountain, which was what had directed Vance there.
"Let's go, Vigoroth."
"Hoo—"
Vance set off towards Green Vine Mountain with Torchic standing on his shoulder and Vigoroth following behind; as for Gyarados, he was too enormous, so he stayed in his Poké Ball, ready to come out at any moment.
Green Vine Mountain was, as the name says, a mountain with a great many green vines on it; look at it and you saw nothing but a spread of green.
In that kind of environment, no small number of Grass-type Pokémon grew as well.
Grass-type Pokémon are generally mild-tempered and timid, and as long as you do not provoke them they will not attack you; some are afraid of people and get out of the way well in advance.
A few Oddish that had been sunning themselves saw Vance coming, had no time to get away, and dived head first into the soil, leaving their few leaves sticking out above ground.
"Torchic—"
"Come on. There's nothing interesting about these Pokémon, and they're not much use in a fight."
Only once Vance had gone did the Oddish dare put their heads out again.
...................
"There we are, Squad Leader Cerise. Your Drowzee has recovered."
Overseas, at a large Team Rocket base, a middle-aged scholar in a white coat, with a pair of small spectacles beneath a thick head of hair, held out a Poké Ball to Cerise.
"Thank you, Dr. Fuji." Cerise took the Poké Ball, thanked him and went straight on: "Doctor, is my Drowzee going to go on being like this?"
"It is. When it comes to advance to Elite next time, I must trouble you to make the trip again, Squad Leader Cerise — and it can supply some data for our research as well." Dr. Fuji said it with a small laugh.
Seeing Cerise's face darken somewhat, he added, "Of course I will also apply for a generous bonus for you by way of compensation."
"Doctor, this is not a question of compensation."
Cerise said it coldly. What she wanted was for it to be cured completely, with no further trouble, and the answer she had just been given did not satisfy her at all.
"Those genes are not something an ordinary Pokémon can bear, but any that hold out are bound to inherit something remarkable from them." Dr. Fuji did not answer her, but went on talking to himself.
"And your Drowzee is one of the few Pokémon that held out. If you raise it with everything you have, with the additional benefit of my research findings, its potential will be no less than any pseudo-legendary Pokémon — better than a pseudo-legendary, even!"
Hearing that, Cerise showed a flicker of temptation.
"Squad Leader Cerise, do you feel it's not worth the gamble to end up with a Pokémon as fine as that? All it takes is coming here at fixed intervals so I can collect a little data. As I see it, that's a very good bargain."
Seeing her face, Dr. Fuji said it in a tempting tone.
"Besides, I can apply for compensation for you as well, so you won't lose much. All you have to give up is raising your Pokémon attentively, and coming to me here from time to time — and raising your Pokémon attentively is what a Trainer ought to be doing anyway, isn't it? Your instructors will have taught you that much."
Cerise bit her pink lip, her face torn. She wanted this splendid Pokémon and she did not want the trouble that came after it.
Seeing her waver, Fuji played his trump card.
"I can't promise anything else about it, but as long as you raise it attentively and treat it with genuine feeling, with my research to help it along, Elite-Four-class is an absolute certainty. So what are you still thinking about?"
"I'm willing to cooperate with your research, Doctor."
Cerise agreed to it straight out. Indeed — what was she agonising over? With a Pokémon that could rise to Elite-Four-class in prospect, what was there to agonise over?
"Heh heh. If it weren't out of regard for your teacher I wouldn't have said half this much to you. Since you understand, so much the better."
Dr. Fuji nodded, satisfied.