Title: Arachnasphobia!

Author: Diamond Eevie

Part: 1 of 2

E-mail: garyoak@bellsouth.net

Category: General




AUTHOR'S NOTE: This is a story that reflects a lot of myself. First of all, Gary Oak is my most favorite character in the pokemon universe. He is strong willed, independant, arrogant, and posesses a powerful competitive streak; he's like a male cartoon version of me! So I thought I might humanize my favorite character a little more by giving him another one of my characteristics. A phobia that has plagued me from babyhood until this very day. I won't say any more, for fear I might spoil the story for you. Hope you like it! Now, on to....



Arachnasphobia!



Ash Ketchum sped into Pallet Town, running down the dusty brown trail of his hometown as fast as his legs would carry him. He was breathing hard and sweat was pouring down his face, but he was grinning and his eyes were bright and happy. He even sped past his house, where his mother dwells. Normally, his home would have been his first stop when he came back to Pallet Town, but not today. Right now he was on his way to Professor Oak's house to receive a very special gift. He didn't stop running until he reached the front gate of Professor Oak's dwelling, where he finally took a short break to lean down and try to catch his breath. "Hey, Ash! Wait up!", called a distant voice behind him. Ash turned to see his friends Brock and Misty running to catch up to him. Pikachu, Ash's first pokemon and best friend, was riding on Brock's shoulder. "How... (pant) ....could you just... (pant, pant) ...run off and ...(pant) ... leave us behind like that?", Misty ranted breathlessly after she and Brock finally caught up to Ash. "Uh...sorry", Ash apologized. "I guess I was just excited." "Yeah, and I can see why", Brock said with a knowing grin. "Professor Oak called and said he had an extremely rare pokemon just for you!" "Yeah!", Ash said, grinning again. "He said it it was so rare that there was no information on it in the pokedex!" Ash,s eyes took on a dreamy, far off look. "I wonder what kind of pokemon it is? Hey, maybe it's an electric pokemon like you, Pikachu!" "Pi-ka!", Pikachu exclaimed happily as he hopped onto Ash's shoulders. "Or maybe it's an aquatic pokemon!", said Misty hopefully. Togepi squeaked happily in her arms. "It must be extra-special", Brock said, "because the professor didn't even want to send it to you via PC. He wanted to give it to you personally! I say it's high time we saw this pokemon for ourselves!" "Right!", said Ash, excitedly. "Let's go!" "Hey!", Misty suddenly exclaimed as she pointed up at Professor Oak's house. "Look up there! Isn't that!?..." Everyone turned and saw a familia!
r looking figure standing at Professor Oak's front door. It was the lone figure of a boy with spiky red hair. His back was straight and his head was held high atop two broad shoulders. Ash instantly recognized the proud-looking youth. "Gary!", he said in a hostile tone. "What's he doing here?" Gary Oak was Professor Oak's grandson and Ash's greatest rival. Of all the threats that stood between Ash and his goal of becoming the world's greatest pokemon master, Gary was the biggest. Needless to say, Ash was none too happy to see him there. Suddenly Ash bolted through the front gate and ran straight up the small path to Professor Oak's front door. He was on his way to confront his rival. Misty rolled her eyes heavenward. "Here we go", she said as she and Brock ran to catch up to Ash.

Gary grinned as he rang the doorbell for the third time. This was truly a red-letter day in his career. His grandfather had contacted him and said he had something very special for him. A pokemon that was so rare that not even Dexter had any info on it. Gary began to tap his foot impatiently as he waited for his grandfather to open the door. He was so anxious to get his hands on his new pokemon he could hardly stand it. His grin suddenly became wider as he began to understand the significance of it all. Whatever pokemon his grandfather had for him was never caught, and possibly never seen, by any other trainer in the world. That meant he would be the first person ever to train one of it's kind. Any other trainer would sell their soul for an opportunity like this. Gary was no exception. Suddenly, just as Gary thought that if he had to wait another second for his grandfather to open the door he would burst, he heard an unpleasantly familiar voice calling his name. Gary's body whirled a 180. 'No way!', he thought to himself. 'It can't be!' But it was. His rival Ash Ketchum was fast approaching, coming up the short path like a speeding train. Gary sighed inwardly. 'What the heck is he doing here?', he thought exasperatedly. Gary hoped his rival wasn't in the mood for a battle. He really didn't have time for that at present. He had more important things to do. "Hey, Ash", Gary politely greeted his foe when they were finally face to face. "I gotta admit I'm kinda surprised to see you here. What brings you by?" "Funny, I was just about to ask you the same thing", Ash shot back defiantly. Gary smirked at his rival's rudeness. But he remained as cool and calm as ever. He was as proud as his rival was spirited. "Grampa called me and asked me to come", he answered. "He said he had a rare pokemon for me." Ash and Pikachu exchanged puzzled looks. "Huh?", Ash said. "Pika?", Pikachu mimicked. "What a coincidence!", said Brock who, alongside Misty, had finally caught up to Ash in time enough to hear a little bit of the co!
nversation that the two foes were having with each other. "Yeah! That's exactly why Ash is here!", Misty said. Togepi squeaked a happy hello to Gary. "Hmm", Gary said wonderingly. But before the conversation could continue the front door to Professor Oak's house opened. "Hello, everyone", the professor happily greeted them. "You got here sooner than I thought. Won't you come in?" Almost no later than when they recieved the invite was Ash inside the house, looking frantically around. "Where is it?", he kept asking over and over. "Ash! For Pete's sake, calm down!", Misty sharply repremanded. Gary, on the other hand, was as cool as ice as he walked serenely into his grandfather's house and calmly took a seat. "Easy, Ash", the professor said with a smile. "They're on their way. Tracy will be bringing them shortly. But before that, I have a few things I want to say to you and Gary." The two trainers quickly snapped to attention, noting the solemness in the professor's voice. When Professor Oak saw he had Ash and Gary's full attention, he continued. "You two have done exceedingly well as trainers. Even better than I expected. I have seen your skills progress greatly over the years, and I am sure that someday very soon you two will be the magnificent pokemon masters that I know you are destined to become." "Yeah!!", Ash crowed eagerly. "I am gonna be a pokemon master!" "Pi-pikachu!", Pikachu said delightedly. Gary remained silent, although his chest swelled with pride at his grandfather's words. "I'm not the only one who has noticed your progress", Professor Oak continued. "Professor Willow from Greenkey University has heard about your skills and is very impressed. So impressed that she has decided to select you two for a very special assignment." As if on cue, Tracy suddenly walked into the living room. "Hi, everybody", he chimed. In his hands he was carrying a small tray. On the tray sat two shiny pokeballs; one was red and white and the other was blue and white. "Ah, Tracy", the professor greeted his assistant!
. "Good timing." He waved his hand toward the tray. "These are the two new pokemon that you are to receive. They were caught not too long ago by Professor Willow, and after a few months of studying them she feels it is time to see how well they can get along with a trainer. She began to search for trainers that would be skilled and responsible enough to handle two unknown pokemon. When she heard about you two, she felt her search was over." Professor Oak walked over to the tray and picked up the red and white pokeball and held it out towards Ash. "This one's yours, Ash", the professor said. Ash took it eagerly from the professor's hand. "Thanks!", he exclaimed. He examined the pokeball. "I wonder what it looks like?", he thought out loud. "Well, you won't find out by just staring at the pokeball", Gary suddenly said his first words since he'd entered his grandfather's house. "Why don't you release the pokemon and find out, Ashy-boy?" Ash winced. He hated it when Gary called him that, but he was too excited to argue. Ash pointed the pokeball forward and released the pokemon inside. Out of the ball popped a creature unlike any Ash had ever seen. It's body, which hovered about three feet off the ground, resembled a dark patch of smoke. It's eyes glowed a bright, piercing red as it simply floated there, silently observing it's surroundings. It made Misty's hair stand on end. She hated creepy looking pokemon like that. Ash, on the other hand, was fascinated. A pokemon that looked like this could only fall into the category of.... "A ghost pokemon!", Ash said, delighted. Professor Oak knodded his head, clearly impressed. "Very good, Ash", he stated. Ash looked smugly over at his rival, but Gary wasn't paying attention. He was instead eyeing the blue and white pokeball, a look of anticipation etched across his face. "It's name is Whispus", the professor continued. "Whisss-pusss", Whispus slowly whispered it's name. "It's a very strong pokemon", Oak went on, "which means it probably has very powerful attacks. It !
will be up to you, Ash, to find out what those attacks are. Think you can do it?" "Yeah!", Ash cried excitedly. He loved any challenge that involved pokemon. "Don't worry, professor! I won't let you down!" The professor knodded. He then turned and picked up the blue and white pokeball. "Ah, here you go, Gary", the professor said awkwardly as he handed the pokeball to his grandson. Gary looked at his grandfather's face as he took the ball. His grandfather had broken out in a sweat. "Hey grampa, is something wrong?", Gary asked quizzically. "You look nervous about somethin'." "Who, me? Nervous? Whatever do you mean?", the professor asked nervously. "I'm just anxious for you to see your new pokemon, that's all." Gary, though unconvinced, shrugged his shoulders. "Whatever you say, gramps", he said as he released his pokemon. Thus appeared a marvelous sight. A pokemon that looked like a giant black widow spider on steroids. It was jet black all over and had light blue splotches all over it's abdomen, which was about as big and thick as a standard pillow. It's two front legs were about six feet long, and it's six other legs were only maybe two feet shorter. On it's head were two large, dark, almond shaped eyes. Misty shrieked when she saw it. She hated bug pokemon. "Eeep! Look at the size of it!", she said half in terror and in disgust. Ash, Brock, and Pikachu, however, were awed at first sight. "Awesome", Brock said. "Pika", Pikachu said in agreement. Ash just looked at Gary's new pokemon, with mixed feelings of awe and envy. Although he'd probably never admit it out loud, he was extremely impressed with Gary's new pokemon. "Hey, what's wrong with Gary?", Tracy's voice asked, cutting into Ash's thoughts. Ash, Misty, Brock, and Pikachu looked over at Gary and were puzzled at what they saw. Gary was slowly getting up from his seat, eyeing the spider pokemon with a look of sheer terror. His face had turned pale. "Uh, it's name is Arachnas", Professor Oak suddenly said somewhat hastily. "It's beautiful, isn't it?" !
Gary's only answer was to start slowly backing up. "It's a very powerful psychic/bug type pokemon", the professor continued in a rather desperate tone, "which is good, since you do so well with psychic types." Arachnas turned and faced Gary. It chirped a friendly hello and started walking forward, ready to greet it's new trainer. That's when Gary fairly went nuts. "YAAAHH!!", he screamed as he turned and ran across the living room and out the front door of his grandfather's house. Everyone looked at the front door where Gary ran out, shocked into silence at Gary's odd behavior. The only sound was Togepi squealing with delight, thinking Gary was playing some sort of new game. Finally, after about a minute of silence, Arachnas chirped quizzically and cocked it's head to one side, wondering what was going on. With a sigh, Professor Oak recalled Arachnas back into it's pokeball. "I was afraid of this", he said wearily as he slumped down into a chair. "What was that all about?", Brock asked the professor. "I've never seen Gary act like that before." "Maybe he's afraid of bugs", Misty said. "Believe me, I can relate." "No", said the professor. "He's not afraid of all bugs. Just one kind in particular. Gary has arachnaphobia." "Arakka-what?", Ash asked, confused, "Arachnaphobia", Tracy corrected him. "That means he's afraid of spiders." "Gary's afraid of spiders!?", Ash asked incredulously. He then fell to the floor, laughing histerically. "Gary's afraid of spiders! I can't believe it! What a wimp!", he shrieked jovially. "Well, he's sort of been afraid of spiders since he was little", Professor Oak said wearily. That made Ash laugh even harder. "Ash, you're being rude!", Misty scolded. The professor just sat there with an unhappy look on his face. "This is all my fault", he said softly to himself. "I was so hoping he'd be over it by now..." "Professor?", Tracy said, concerned. That seemed to snap Professor Oak back to attention. "Oh, uh... ahem", he sat up and cleared his throat. "Um, Ash, it would be best if yo!
u started studying your new pokemon as soon as possible. Professor Willow will be here in a couple of days, and she will surely want to know how well you've been doing with your pokemon so far." Ash, who finally got control over himself, quickly stood up. "Two days!?", he said. "Then I'd better get busy, fast!" 'I'll probably do a heck of a lot better with my new pokemon than Gary will do with his', Ash thought smugly to himself. "Hey, Ash", Tracy said, "You'd better go visit Ms. Ketchum now. You probably haven't been at your mother's house since you got back to town." "Yeah, and you know how sensitive she is", Misty added. "She'll probably be happy if we show up while it's still light outside. You know she likes to prepare a big dinner whenever you come home." "Gee Ash, you'd better go", the professor chimed good-naturedly. "Your mother would never forgive me if I kept you away from her house for too long." "Yeah, I'd better get home", Ash agreed. "Good-bye, professor! Good-bye, Tracy!", he said as he and his friends started to leave. "See you in two days!" "Good-bye, Ash!", said the professor. "Good luck with Whispus!" When Ash and his crew were out of sight Tracy went and got his coat out of the hall closet. "On your way to fetch Gary?", the professor asked him. "Yeah", Tracy answered. "Be back in a few minutes." Professor Oak watched him leave the house to find his grandson. 'That Tracy', he thought with appreciation. 'I couldn't have invented a better assistant.' He then sighed heavily and closed his eyes. 'Why, oh why, wasn't I more careful all those years ago?', he thought sadly. 'I suppose I should tell Gary about it, but he'll probably never forgive me. How can I possibly bring myself to tell him?' The professor sadly shook his head. He knew he'd have to tell Gary about what happened to him when he was a toddler sooner or later. Perhaps sooner, thanks to today's escapade.

Gary's head hung low and his hands were stuffed deep in his pockets as he followed Tracy back to his grandfather's house. He couldn't believe he went histerical and acted like a total loon in front of everybody, including his rival! He knew Ash would never let him live this down. Gary's heart filled with shame as he thought about how much his grandfather had probably been embarrassed. "Cheer up, Gary!", Tracy suddenly said, trying to brighten up Gary's mood. "Lot's of people have phobias. It's a very common thing." "Yeah, yeah", Gary replied grumpily, still thinking shamefully about how he'd freaked out in front of company and had to be found and brought back by his grandfather's assistant like a lost little kitten. "Even pokemon have phobias", Tracy went on. "Why, one time in my travels I ran across a mareep that was afraid of wool. The poor thing ran in circles all day long, trying to run away from himself! It was hilarious!" Gary looked over at Tracy, annoyed. It was bad enough enough being afraid of something stupid without listening to some dork talking about it. They traveled on the rest of the way in silence until they finally reached the front door of Professor Oak's house. "Professor! We're back!", Tracy yelled as he and Gary walked in. Gary didn't even bother to wait on his grandfather. He started climbing the stairs on his way to the guest room. "Gary?", said a kind voice behind him. Gary turned to see his grandfather looking up at him from the bottom of the steps. "Are you hungry?", Oak asked his grandson. "Dinner will be ready soon." "No thanks", Gary replied sullenly. "I'm not really hungry right now. I think I'll just go to my room." Gary often referred to his grandfather's guest room as 'his room' because Gary usually stays at his grandfather's house more often than he stays at his own, the reason for that being that Gary's grandfather understood and nurtured his love for pokemon more than the rest of his family, who basically thought pokemon was really nothing more than a waste of time. Pr!
ofessor Oak watched his grandson slowly finish walking up the stairs. His head hung low. "Are you mad at me?", the professor asked as Gary started walking towards his room. Gary stopped and just stood still for a few seconds. He then whirled and faced his grandfather. "What kind of a question is that!?", Gary asked, his voice full of anger. "Heck yeah, I'm mad! Grampa, you knew that I was afraid of spiders! And now, thanks to you, everyone else in the free world knows! How could you just give me that.... thing!? Couldn't you at least attempt to warn me first!?" Professor Oak eyed the ground as he listened to his grandson's complaint. When Gary was finished, the professor knodded. "You're right", he told Gary. "I should have warned you. It's just that.... well.... I was sort of afraid you would tell me you were still scared of spiders. I.... really hoped you weren't...." Professor Oak's voice trailed off. Gary's eyes narrowed as he scrutinized his grandfather. He could tell there was more to this than his grandfather was telling him. Suddenly Gary just sighed and shook his head. He just couldn't stay mad at his grandfather. "Well", he said with a smirk, "I guess I'll just have to get over my fear of spiders." "Huh?", the professor and Tracy said in unison. ""Sure", Gary stated. "It's the only way I'll ever be able to train Arachnas. Besides, I can't be afraid of spiders forever." He turned and started walking to his room. "Ah, Gary?", Professor Oak said hesitantly. Gary turned around. "Yah?", he said brightly. Gary's sudden better mood encouraged the professor. "Professor Willow will be here in a couple of days to see how well you and Arachnas are getting along", he told his grandson. "Do you think you can conquer your fear of spiders before then?" "Hmm", Gary said. "Two days, huh? Well I guess I'll have to. I'll start working on it first thing tomorrow morning." Gary stretched his legs and started walking down the hall. "I think I'll get a bath before I turn in tonight. Smell ya later, gramps. You too, Tra!
cy." When Gary was out of sight Professor Oak and Tracy turned and looked at each other. "You think he can do it?", Tracy asked the professor. "I don't know", Professor Oak replied. "I truly hope so."

Gary walked out of the bathroom and into his room, drying his red hair with a towel. Another towel was tied around his waist. The bath felt good, and now he was ready for a long night's sleep under his cool, clean sheets. He knew tomorrow was going to be a rough day, and he would need all the rest he could get tonight. He pulled on his pajamas, hopped into bed, and switched off his lamp. His eyelids were already starting to feel heavy as he slid under the covers. 'What if I can't do it?', Gary thought to himself. 'What if I fail? What if I can't get over my fear in time?' Those were his last thoughts before he drifted off to sleep.

Gary ran frantically down the brick road, trying desperately to escape the laughing and taunting and finger pointing. But the attempt was utterly futile, because the brick road he was running on was thickly surrounded on either side by hundreds of pokemon trainers who he knew must have found out about his arachnaphobia and were now making fun of him for it. Gary almost felt like crying as he ran faster and faster down the road, but his pride wouldn't let him. 'How did they find out? How?', he thought as he ran between the long lines of jeering and taunting pokemon trainers. Suddenly he stopped running. Something, no someone, was blocking his path. It was his rival, Ash Ketchum. He was standing in the middle of the road, pointing a finger at Gary and laughing evilly. Gary's chest swelled with rage. He now knew exactly how the other trainers must have found out about his phobia. "YOU!!", Gary exploded. "You told everyone!! I'll have your head!!" Gary rushed forward, reached back, and swung a hard right hook directly at Ash's jaw. But his fist made no connection, for Ash had disappeared. Startled, Gary took a step back and noticed that all the other trainers that were making fun of him had disappeared as well. "Huh?", Gary said in bewuilderment as he looked around, wondering where everyone went. Suddenly the brick road he was standing on began to rumble violently. Gary cried out as he fought to keep his balance. 'What the heck is going on?', Gary thought in alarm. That was his last thought before the road crumbled and gave way under his feet and he found himself falling through empty space. "Whoa!!?", Gary cried out before quickly regaining his mental composure. 'A pokemon trainer should never panic', he thought coolly. 'Not as long as they have their pokemon. I'll just release one of my flying pokemon and let them carry me....' Gary reached his hand to his waist to find the pokeball that sealed his dragonite inside and was justifiably dismayed when he didn't feel any pokeballs at all. 'Okay', he thought. 'No!
w might be a good time to panic.' But before he could start panicking he suddenly landed on his back in something that felt like a huge, sticky hammock. He tried to sit up but found he couldn't even move. Whatever he'd landed in clung fast to his entire body, making it almost impossible to lift a finger. 'What is this?', Gary thought to himself as he looked at his surroundings. The geometric design of what he'd landed in looked uncomfortably familiar.... Suddenly the realization of what he'd landed in hit him and he was so terrified he could barely see straight. He was smack dab in the center of a gigantic spider web! Gary cried out and struggled fiercely, trying desperately to escape what he knew was a humongous, sticky death trap. The spider that spun that web had to be at least ten times his size, big enough to consider him an appetizer. Gary could feel eyes staring at him. Suddenly he saw something moving in the corner of his right eye. He slowly turned his head to the right.... and saw exactly what he feared. A giant, mean looking arachnas, with glowing red eyes and long, powerful looking legs. Almost it's whole body was jet black. It's entire abdomen was a bright blue. Something about the spider seemed familiar to Gary as he laid there studying the beast with mixed feelings of sheer terror and awe. For a few minutes the spider just stood there and stared at Gary, like a hungry pidgy looking at a fat caterpie. Then it suddenly charged across the web towards Gary. Saliva and venom was dripping from it's mouth. Gary knew exactly what the spider was up to. Supper. Gary tried to scream but no sound would come out of his mouth. He knew he was going to die. The arachnas reached Gary's side and, using it's two long front legs, plucked Gary up from the web and started shaking him back and forth. "Gary! Gary, wake up!", the spider said to him. If he hadn't been scared out of his mind, Gary probably would have wondered why the spider said that, or how it even knew how to talk, or furthermore why it's voice soun!
ded so much like his grandfather's....

"Gary! Gary, can you hear me?"
Gary gasped and his eyes snapped open as he abruptly woke up from the horrible dream he was having. Professor Oak was sitting on the side of his bed, shaking him. "Gary! Are you alright?", the professor asked in a worried voice. Gary sat up, yawned, and shook his head. "Yeah, I'm fine, grampa", he answered groggily. "I was just having a nightmare." "I came upstairs to see if you were awake yet", the professor continued in a concerned voice, "and I heard you whimpering in your sleep. It must have been some nightmare!" Gary knodded. "The worst", he said as he recalled the grim events of his dream. He looked over at his window. "Boy, morning sure came fast", he said. "I'd better get up. I've got a lot to do today." Professor Oak knodded and stood up. "Tracy is downstairs making breakfast", he said as he began to leave. "Be sure to hurry down before the eggs get cold." After his grandfather left Gary got up, stretched his legs, and went into the bathroom. He had a feeling this was gonna be a long day.

Gary jogged downstairs and went into his grandfather's study. He searched the room until he found what he was looking for sitting on top of a wooden coffee table, the shiny blue and white pokeball that had his arachnas inside. He gingerly picked it up and headed for the back door of his grandfather's house. He almost made it out before he heard his grandfather call his name. He turned around and saw his grandfather standing there with a stern look on his face. "Gary, you haven't had breakfast yet", he near scolded. "I know, grampa", Gary said, "But I have to get started. If I don't get over my fear of spiders before that lady professor shows up tomorrow...." "There is always time for breakfast", Professor Oak stated. "You didn't have dinner last night either. It's not good for you to go hungry. You can't concentrate on an empty stomach." "I know, grampa", Gary said impatiently. "I'll eat something later. I promise." Professor Oak sighed and shook his head. He knew it was no use arguing with someone as proud and independant as his grandson. "Very well", he relented. "But you will eat lunch later. Understand?" "Sure grampa", Gary said as he started heading towards the back door again. "Smell ya!" "Gary?", the professor called out. Gary turned aroud. "Yah?", he said. "Good luck", Professor Oak said earnestly. Gary grinned and winked before he went out the back door. Professor Oak watched his grandson leave, wondering if Gary was really as confident as he seemed.

Gary stood on the lawn in back of his grandfather's house, examining the blue and white pokeball nervously. He knew what he had to do. If only he could bring himself to do it! Gary shuddered as he thought of the first time he laid eyes on his arachnas. It was the hugest spider he had ever seen! And now he was about to release it so he could see it again. Gary shuddered again as he thought about it. Normally he wouldn't do something like this, but he knew the best and perhaps the only way he would be able to rid himself of his phobia is to face what he feared the most. Gary took a deep breath and prepared himself. 'Here we go', he thought to himself. He pointed the pokeball forward and released Arachnas. Gary's hair stood on end as he noticed the great beast hadn't gotten any smaller overnight. Arachnas stared up at Gary, a lookof curiosity in it's large eyes. For a few minutes they just stoodthere staring at each other Then suddenly Arachnas chirped in a friendly way and started to walk towards Gary. Gary's heart leaped into his throat. He hastily pointed the blue and white ball at Arachnas. "Arachnas, return!", he blurted out, recalling the great spider back into the confines of it's pokeball. He then stared at the pokeball, feeling sad and pathetic. 'How will I ever be able to conquer my fear if I can't even get near Arachnas without freaking out?', he thought wearily to himself. Suddenly he heard someone snicker behind him. Gary whirled to face none other than (yep. you guessed it) his rival. Ash was standing there with his hands on his hips and a smug look on his face. "Hey, Gary. How's it been?" Gary glared at his rival. "Fine, till you showed up. What d'ya want, Ash?", he asked as if he didn't know. He knew exactly why his rival was there. Time for some abject humiliation. "I only came to see how well you were doing with Arachnas", Ash said innocently. "I'm doing great with Whispus so far. Yesterday I discovered two of it's attacks." "Good for you", Gary said coldly. "Hey, if you're having too many p!
roblems with your new pokemon you can always give it to another trainer", Ash said with a sly smile. Gary only smirked back at his foe. "Dream on, Ashy-boy", he replied. "What good is having a pokemon", Ash said with a grin, "if you're too afraid to train it?" That made Gary angry. "Don't worry about me and my pokemon", he shot back at Ash. "I can still train a hundred times better than you can!" Ash's grin became wider. "Alright, Gary. I accept your challenge", he said before turning around to leave. "Huh!? What challenge?", asked Gary, confused. Ash turned back around. "The challenge you just issued", he replied, "To see which of us is the better trainer. And the best way to do that is to have a battle with our new pokemon. Whispus versus Arachnas!" "W-wha!?", Gary said, taken aback. "Yeah", Ash said with a sly grin. "What do you say we have our battle when Professor Willow gets here? That way we can show her just how well we can handle our new pokemon." Gary's hands balled into fists as he glared at Ash. He knew that his rival was trying to manipulate him into a battle just so he can watch him humiliate himself by going histerical like he did yesterday. But he also knew that if he refused to battle, Ash would probably taynt him about being a chicken from that day forth. "Fine", Gary growled angrily. "We'll have our battle tomorrow. And I will beat you." "Okay, Gary", Ash said as he turned around and started to walk away. "See you tomorrow." Gary's eyes were practically burning a hole in the back of Ash's head. If looks could kill, his rival would have dropped dead on the spot.

Professor Oak and Tracy got up from the dining room table after finishing a huge breakfast. "That was delicious", said the professor. "I wish Gary could have joined us." "Speaking of Gary", said Tracy, "I wonder how he's doing with Arachnas?" "Let's go see", said the professor. He and Tracy went to the back door of the house and walked outside. What they saw wasn't too promising. Gary was sitting on a bench, his shoulders slumped and his head hanging low. "Well", Tracy said, "things don't look like they're going to well for him." Professor Oak sighed unhappily. He knew the time had come. "Um, Tracy?", Professor Oak addressed his assistant, "Do you mind leaving me and Gary alone for a little while? I have a few things I want to tell him." "Uh, sure professor", Tracy replied. "I'll just go and tidy up the kitchen a little." After Tracy had gone Professor Oak walked outside and sat on the bench next to Gary. For a few minutes they just sat there quietly. It was Gary who finally broke the silence. "Grampa?", he said. "Why am I afraid of spiders? No one else in my family is afraid of spiders. What the heck is wrong with me?" Professor Oak rubbed the back of his neck. "Nothing's wrong with you, Gary", he said nervously. "It's not your fault that you're afraid of spiders. It's my fault." "Huh?", Gary said as he looked over at his grandfather quizzically. Professor Oak took a deep breath. Then he began:

"About ten years ago", he said. "That's when it all began. Back then I was just starting to make a name for myself in the pokemon profession, and you were just a toddler. I used to love it when you would sneak away from your parents' house to come over and sit in my lap and watch the pokemon with me. Even back then you had a strong fondness for pokemon. One day when I was showing you how to brush a vulpix's fur a new pokemon suddenly showed up on in the doorway of my lab. It was an arachnas, a particularly big one. If I had known then what I knew abou Arachnas now, I would have been much more wary. Do you remember the light blue splotches that was on your Arachnas' abdomen?" Gary knodded. "Well, those splotches represent the amount of venom it has in it's body. The more splotches it has, the more venom it must carry." A lump formed in the professor's throat. "This arachnas was so full of venom, it's entire abdomen was light blue", he said. Gary almost gasped when he heard that. 'That's just like the arachnas in my nightmare', he thought to himself. "I was so excited when I saw it", the professor continued, "I simply threw caution to the wind. I quickly ran out of the lab to get a pokeball to catch it with. I was so busy looking for a pokeball that I completely forgot that I had left you alone in my study with a wild pokemon! I had finally found a pokeball and was on my was back to the lab when I suddenly heard you scream. I ran as fast as I could to the lab and when I got there I saw you lying still on the floor with your eyes closed. Arachnas was standing over your body, chirping almost triumphantly. There was a cruel look in it's eyes. I picked up the closest thing to me (which was a broom) and whacked that monster silly! It must have flown clear into space! I then bent down and tried to see if you were okay, but you wouldn't even wake up. There were two marks on your arm where the arachnas must've bitten you. I picked you up and rushed you to the nearest hospital as fast as I could. There was so much ve!
nom inside of you that it took almost six hours for the doctors to extract it all. They told me I was lucky I got you to the hospital in time. Had I gotten there maybe ten minutes later the poison would have reached your heart." Professor Oak lowered his head in shame. "I was able to save you from Arachnas' poison, but the psychological damage had been done. From that day on you were deathly afraid of spiders, even to this very day. And all because of my irresponsible incompetence." The professor sighed heavily. "So, now you know", he said. "Are you mad at me?" Gary sat there and looked at his grandfather for a moment. He then reached over and hugged his grandfather. "It's alright, grampa", he said. "You had no way of knowing that arachnas would attack me. Even you can make mistakes sometimes." "That 'mistake' could have cost you your life", the professor said, feeling miserably guilty. Gary stood up from the bench and put his hands on his hips. "Well, it didn't", he said stubbornly. "I'm still alive, and I still believe I can get rid of my stupid phobia before Professor Willow shows up." Gary pulled out the pokeball that held his arachnas and looked at it. "I'm certainly not gonna be able to do it using Arachnas", he stated. "I can't even get near it without freaking out. The only thing I'm probably accomplishing that way is hurting Arachnas' feelings." He lightly tossed the ball at his grandfather, who easily caught it. "He then started walking towards the house. "If I'm to get rid of my fear", he continued, "I'll have to do it using more drastic measures." "What are you going to do?", Professor Oak asked. Gary stopped just before he got to the door. The professor thought he saw Gary shudder. "Tonight, I'm gonna spend the night inside Howling Cave", Gary said before he went into the house.

"Uh, Gary? Are you sure you want to do this?", Professor Oak asked his grandson nervously. "Positive", Gary replied as he packed his bag. "The core of Howling Cave is populated by thousands of spinaraks. If I can sleep in there for one night without having a heart attack, I'll know I'm cured." Gary finished packing his bag, reached over, and grabbed one pokeball from his utility belt which was laying on top of his desk by his bed. "Wouldn't hurt to have a little company", he said. He lightly kissed the pokeball and tossed it, releasing Eevie, his favorite pokemon. Eevie shook it's fur and looked up at it's trainer adoringly. "Eeeieeee?", it said inquisitively. "Hey, Eevie", Gary greeted his pokemon. "I'm going on a little adventure. Wanna tag along?" "Fiiee!", Eevie exclaimed before jumping into Gary's arms. Eevie would follow Gary anywhere. "Okay, let's go!", Gary said. He walked out of his room and down the stairs, preparing himself for the ultimate test in conquering his fear. The professor followed him, pleading with him to change his mind. But Gary wouldn't listen. He knew he had to do this. Tracy stopped him before he walked out the front door and handed him a flashlight. "You might need this", he said. "Thanks, Tracy", Gary said as he took the flashlight. He then looked over at his grandfather, who looked miserably worried. "Grampa", Gary said, "I have to do this." Professor Oak sighed. "I know, Gary. I know", he said. "Don't worry, grampa", Gary said with a smirk. "I'm Gary Oak. I can beat this." He turned around and started walking. "Good-bye, grampa. Good-bye, Tracy. See ya tomorrow morning." "Good-bye, Gary!", Tracy called out to him. "Good luck!" The professor just stood there and watched his grandson walk further and further away. He knew Howling Cave could be dangerous, especially at night. It worried him that his only grandson would be spending a whole night there. But at the same time, he couldn't help but marvel at the mass of Gary's independance and courage, which he knew was mostly due t!
o Gary's arrogance. Professor Oak said a silent prayer as he watched his grandson walk until he was out of sight.

"Eeek!"
Jessie suddenly shrieked, startling James and Meowth. The two whirled to see what was wrong with their female partner. "What's wrong, Jess!?", asked James urgently. "Is somethin' the matter?", asked Meowth in the same tone. "I thought I just heard something growling at us!", Jessie whined as she looked all around. But all she could see was woods, woods, and more woods. She, James, and their feline sidekick Meowth had been stuck in this forest for almost a week. They had followed Ash Ketchum and his friends to the forest, hoping for a chance to snatch Pikachu. But they had lost sight of the 'twerps' a few days ago and had been lost ever since. Suddenly Jessie shrieked again. "There it goes again!", she said. "Something is definately growling at us!" "Um, Jess?", James said nervously. "That wasn't anything dangerous. It was just my stomach." Jessie wasted no time hitting him upside his head. "Well cut it out!", she snarled. "I can't help it!", Jessie whined. "We ran out of food yesterday and haven't eaten since. I'm starving!" "Well, it's not like you're the only one hungry around here", Jessie snapped. "Keep that bellie of yours quiet!" "Hey, keep it down you two!", Meowth suddenly interrupted. "Look over there!", he said as he pointed a clawed finger to the east. "It's that arrogant grandson of Professor Oak's!" Jessie and James looked and sure enough beheld the infamous Gary Oak walking serenely down the forest path, accompanied by an eevie. "I wonder where he's going", Jessie said. "I say we follow him", Meowth suggested. "Yeah, he might lead us to some food", James said hopefully. The threesome silently followed Gary into the thick of the forest.

Gary wasn't too thrilled when he finally reached his destination. He gulped as he stared into the mouth of Howling Cave, dreading what he knew he had to do. "Well, here we are, Eevie", Gary said. "We made it to Howling Cave." Eevie cocked it's head and wagged it's bushy tail as it looked into the cave. Eevie was definately curios. Gary shook his head and laughed. "The things I'll do to keep a rare pokemon", he wondered out loud. "Well, it's starting to get dark. Come on, Eevie. No time for dawdling. Let's get this over with." "Fwee", Eevie replied before following it's trainer into the cave.

"Did you hear that?", Jessie asked her partners when Gary had disappeared into the cave. "He said somethin' about a rare pokemon", Meowth replied with a knod. "Do you think it's edible?", James asked hopefully. "Would you stop thinking about your stomach, Jimmy boy!?", Meowth yelled at James. "We have more important things to do!" "Yes, this is our chance to finally steal a valuable pokemon for the Boss", Jessie said with an evil grin. "We must take full advantage of this opportunity. We can get something to eat later. Let's go!" "Alright", James relented with a sigh. "But I'd really rather steal something to eat." Without another word, the wicked trio known as Team Rocket slipped out from behind the bushes where they were hiding and trailed the unsuspecting Gary Oak into the cave.


TO BE CONTINUED