The Pokémon School Challenge

by Jeanette Lane

  “Oh!” exclaimed Mallow. “It must be time for the Pikipek flocks! Around this time, Pikipek gather and store their food for the coming year. They travel in large flocks and harvest food wherever they can find it.” She looked up at the sky. “I think they’re coming for our fruit. It’s a good thing we have lots of it.”

  Mallow and Ash watched as the little Pokémon swooped in and grabbed the fruit with their feet. When the flock had gone, there wasn’t a piece of fruit left.

  But there was still one Normal- and Flying-type Pokémon looking for fruit. When it flew down to the porch, it aimed right for Bounsweet!

  Luckily, Bounsweet was prepared with a cool spinning move that knocked Pikipek away.

  “Hey! Who’s that Pokémon?” Ash asked.

  “Rowlet!” answered Rotom Dex. “Rowlet is the Grass Quill Pokémon, a Grass- and Flying-type. It swoops down without making a sound and unleashes a powerful kick.”

  Rowlet aimed again for Bounsweet. And again, Bounsweet used its spinning move to defend itself.

  Mallow explained that Bounsweet was always on guard. Because Bounsweet smelled like a delicious fruit, it needed good defenses.

  “Lured by its scent, many flying Pokémon mistake Bounsweet for a berry,” Rotom Dex confirmed. “Rowlet is attacking again!”

  This time, Bounsweet’s Spin knocked the other Pokémon all the way to the electrical wires, where Rowlet grabbed ahold.

  “Maybe that Rowlet’s hungry,” Ash thought out loud. When he looked up, he saw that Rowlet had lost hold of the wire and was falling. Ash dashed off the porch and made a leaping catch just before it hit the ground.

  Mallow brought more fruit from inside.

  “Are you okay?” Ash asked.

  Rowlet responded with a quiet trill. The next moment, Rowlet discovered a bowl of melon and devoured it all.

  “Want this, too?” Ash asked, offering a banana. Rowlet grasped onto Ash’s arm and gulped down the banana as well. “Man, you’ve got a strong grip.” Ash reached out to give its feathers a pat. “You’re so soft,” he said, feeling his heart warm to the Grass Quill Pokémon. He took a Poké Ball in one hand. “Rowlet? Is it okay if I catch—”

  Before Ash could finish his sentence, Rowlet grabbed a watermelon and took off into the sky.

  “Are you going to catch it?” Rotom Dex asked.

  “You bet!” Ash replied. “Let’s go!”

  * * *

  Not far away in the forest, Team Rocket was trapped in Bewear’s den. The Strong Arm Pokémon had kept them captive. Bewear had kept them well-fed, but it wouldn’t let them go.

  The good news was that Jessie had been able to catch Mimikyu in one of James’s Luxury Balls. And, for once, it appeared as if Bewear was not guarding the den door.

  “It looks safe,” James said. “This is our chance.”

  Just as Team Rocket was sneaking out, a flock of Pikipek swarmed into the den. The Pikipek quickly located Bewear’s fruit stash, collected it, and flew away.

  Team Rocket was shocked.

  “They couldn’t have!” James said, appalled.

  “They took Bewear’s food!” Meowth grunted.

  “Let’s get it back!” Jessie said. “We owe Bewear for feeding and giving us shelter, so not helping it would be against our evil ways!”

  Team Rocket hurried after the flock of Pikipek.

  There it is!” Ash called out. “Over there!”

  Ash, Pikachu, Mallow, Bounsweet, and Rotom Dex had all chased Rowlet deep into the forest. When they finally caught up to the Grass Quill Pokémon, they saw that it was in a nest with the flock of Pikipek, plus a Trumbeak and a Toucannon.

  “Here’s where I come in.” Rotom Dex began giving data on Pikipek, the Woodpecker Pokémon. “It can unleash sixteen pecks per second to drill a hole into a tree where it stores its food.”

  Next came information on Trumbeak, the Bugle Beak Pokémon. Trumbeak was the evolved form of Pikipek and could attack with seeds stored in its beak. Finally, Rotom Dex shared data on Toucannon, the evolved form of Trumbeak. “Toucannon’s beak heats up to over two hundred degrees,” Rotom Dex declared, “and its peck can inflict a serious burn.”

  Ash was watching Rowlet interact with the other Pokémon. He now understood why Rowlet took the watermelon from the porch; Rowlet needed to gather fruit just like the Pikipek. He guessed that Rowlet had probably been with the others since he had hatched from an Egg, even though he was the only Rowlet.

  When Rowlet noticed Ash, it flew over to him and nestled itself inside his backpack.

  “Wow,” Ash said to the Pokémon, “I had no idea you had so many awesome friends.”

  All at once, there were sounds of an attack. Giant nets fell on the Pikipek nests, trapping them.

  “What’s going on?” Ash questioned.

  Team Rocket had arrived, and they had a new plan. “Team Rocket, let’s fight!” they said in chorus.

  “Team Rocket, let Pikipek and the others go!” Ash demanded.

  “Sorry,” screeched Jessie, “but the twerp loses again. They shoplifted Bewear’s food and that’s a no-no.”

  “And we’re here to take it back, so we can pay it back,” explained James.

  “And we’re going to give your Pikachu as a perfect present to the Boss,” Jessie warned. “Take it away, Mimikyu!”

  She flung a Luxury Ball, and Mimikyu sprung out with its scritchy-scratchy sound. “Take care of them the way you know how!” Jessie cried.

  Mimikyu charged up a Shadow Ball and whizzed it Pikachu’s way.

  “Pikachu, Electro Ball!” Ash called out. Then, over his shoulder, he whispered to Rowlet. “Now’s the time to save your friends,” he said.

  Rowlet took off for the Pikipek nests.

  After the Shadow Ball and Electro Ball canceled out each other in midair, Ash called on Pikachu to do Iron Tail. But after Pikachu slashed at Mimikyu, the other Pokémon did not lose energy. Iron Tail had no effect at all!

  Meanwhile, Rowlet had been able to approach the nests without being detected. With a quick slice, the nets fell open.

  “Rowlet cut through that rope with just one kick!” Rotom Dex declared.

  The Pikipek flew away to safety, and Team Rocket realized they’d escaped.

  Meowth stared down Rowlet. “What? It’s one of them?” he grumbled.

  Jessie was not about to give up. “Mimikyu! Quick, attack one more time!”

  Mimikyu rushed forward, catching Pikachu off guard.

  “Check out Mimikyu’s Play Rough,” Meowth bragged. Mimikyu attacked again, sending Pikachu flailing through the air to land with a thud.

  Seizing the opportunity, Jessie demanded, “Mimikyu, wrap—it—up!”

  “Shadow Claw!” Meowth said. “Cool!”

  “It knows Shadow Claw, too!” James said approvingly.

  “You okay, Pikachu?” Ash asked, worried. Pikachu was weak and couldn’t get up.

  All at once, Rowlet appeared overhead. A whirlwind of green leaves spun around it. Protected by the rush of wind, Rowlet dove down and lifted Pikachu from the forest floor.

  When Mimikyu’s Shadow Claw hit, Pikachu was no longer there.

  “Nice job, Rowlet!” Ash said. “Pikachu, you okay?”

  “Pika!” the little Pokémon replied.

  “Then Thunderbolt,” Ash called. “Let’s go!”

  The strike hit Mimikyu. The mysterious Pokémon was rattled, but it was not exhausted.

  As Rowlet rushed over to release Trumbeak and Toucannon, Mimikyu warmed up a Shadow Ball.

  But at that very moment, Bewear appeared. Bewear plucked Wobbuffet, Meowth, James, and Jesse clear off the ground. Then it picked up Mimikyu, too.

  “Is this—” Jessie began with disbelief.

  “—déjà vu?” James finished with grief.

  “Bewear, bewear,” Bewear murmured innocently as it carried Team Rocket away.

  “Bewear,” Jessie and James groaned. “Again.”

  Pikipek surrounded Rowlet in
a celebratory circle. Even Trumbeak was there, hugging the Grass Quill Pokémon.

  “Rowlet looks so happy,” Ash observed.

  “It’s wonderful,” Mallow agreed.

  Ash called to Rowlet. The Pokémon flew up to him at once. Ash had Pikachu on one shoulder and Rowlet on the other. It felt nice.

  “Rowlet, thanks,” Ash said. “Everybody’s fine, thanks to you.” He knelt down and helped Rowlet back to the ground, next to its friends. It wasn’t easy. Ash had grown fond of the young Pokémon.

  “Okay, guys,” he said to Mallow and the others. “Let’s go home.”

  “Going home?” questioned Rotom Dex. “I thought you were going to catch Rowlet.”

  “It’s okay,” Ash insisted. “The thing is, Rowlet has a lot of friends. Look at them. They’re a family.” Ash turned around. “So it’s all fine.”

  Mallow seemed uncertain.

  Toucannon did, too. It reached out and nudged Rowlet with its beak.

  Rowlet cooed and took off, flying right up to land in Ash’s backpack.

  “Rowlet, what’s up?” Ash asked, looking over his shoulder.

  Rowlet lifted its wing, motioning to all its friends who were waving farewell.

  Ash paused. “Rowlet, are you saying that you want to come with me?” he asked.

  Rowlet trilled and rubbed its soft head against Ash’s cheek.

  “Awesome!” Ash exclaimed. He pulled a Poké Ball from his pocket. “You really want me to catch you?” he asked.

  Rowlet trilled.

  “All right then. Here we go, Rowlet! Go Poké Ball!” Ash flung the Poké Ball into the air.

  “I just caught a Rowlet!” Ash cheered. But as quickly as he had caught Rowlet, he let the Pokémon out of its ball.

  Rowlet snuggled into Ash’s backpack, and Pikachu sat on his shoulder. Ash couldn’t imagine anything better.

  Ash had caught his first Pokémon in Alola, but his adventures in the beautiful tropical region had just begun. Ash had many plans and had set many goals for himself while he was there. With Rowlet and Pikachu on his team—and the help of Rotom Dex and all his Pokémon School friends—Ash knew he had an amazing journey ahead of him!

  Turn the page for a sneak peek at another Pokémon adventure, Battle for the Z-Ring!

  For ten-year-old Ash Ketchum, every day was a step on his grand journey to becoming a Pokémon Master. Since he’d arrived in the Alola region, Ash had enrolled in the Pokémon School, where he and Pikachu had met many new friends and Pokémon. Each and every day, they were learning new things and having exciting adventures.

  Ash and Pikachu loved exploring Alola. One of Ash’s favorite parts of being in a new place was discovering all the new Pokémon. Since they’d first come to Alola, they’d met many new Pokémon friends, and they’d also found a new battling partner for their team. The adorable Rowlet was a Grass- and Flying-type Pokémon with a knack for sneaking up on opponents … and then sleeping away the rest of the day in Ash’s backpack.

  One morning, Ash was on his way to school when he encountered a Pokémon he hadn’t seen before. It stared at him with its intense yellow eyes. Ash gazed right back.

  In no time, Rotom Dex gave Ash the lowdown on the Pokémon. “Litten. The Fire Cat Pokémon,” Rotom Dex announced, hovering in the air just behind Ash. “A Fire-type. Litten show few emotions and prefer being alone.”

  Rotom Dex was a unique companion for Ash. Rotom was a Pokémon that had the ability to live inside various electronic devices. This Rotom was a present from Ash’s teacher, Professor Kukui. Rotom had slipped straight from an electrical outlet and into a Pokédex. Now it was an amazing talking device that kept Ash informed about all the unknown Pokémon in Alola. Ash took Rotom Dex with him almost everywhere.

  Litten stood on top of a stone wall and kept its steely eyes on Ash. Ash knelt down, trying to lure it his way.

  “Litten takes time to build any level of trust,” Rotom Dex told Ash.

  Ash heard Rotom, but he still wanted to try to make friends with the cute Litten.

  Litten jumped down from the wall and approached Ash.

  “Hi. What’s up?” Ash said, holding out his hand.

  Without hesitating, Litten began to rub up against Ash’s knees. Pikachu watched from its perch on Ash’s shoulder.

  “Hey, maybe you’re hungry!” Ash said. He opened his backpack and pulled something out. “See? It’s my lunch,” he explained to the curious Litten.

  Ash was excited about the lunch that Professor Kukui had prepared for him. The professor was not only Ash’s teacher, but he was also his host. Ash was staying with the professor in his cozy island bungalow for the school year. Professor Kukui was an expert on Pokémon, and he could also make a delicious sandwich.

  “Yay! Yummy,” Ash said. He tore off a corner of the sandwich and offered it to Litten. “Here you go. It’s great!”

  “Mrow? Mrow?” Litten looked at the corner of the sandwich in Ash’s one hand, and then it looked at the larger part of the sandwich in Ash’s other hand. All at once, it leaped for the larger chunk of sandwich, swiping it right out of Ash’s hand. Then Litten tried to escape, but not before Ash grabbed its thick tail.

  Litten lashed out with its claws, slapping Ash across the face. Rotom Dex chased it down, but Litten swatted Rotom away with a brisk swish of its tail. Ash, Pikachu, and Rotom Dex watched as Litten trotted off along the stone wall, jumped down, and escaped out of sight.

  It was a rough way to start the morning. Plus, now Ash was running late for school!

  The Pokémon School was on the island of Melemele, which was one of many beautiful tropical islands in the region. Ash had originally visited Melemele on vacation with his mom. With its strong sun, lush forests, long stretches of beach, and fresh, delicious food, the entire Alola region was a paradise.

  Of course, Ash didn’t feel like Melemele was paradise that morning. He was really annoyed about his encounter with Litten. It wasn’t just that he’d lost his lunch. Ash sensed something else in Litten, and he wasn’t sure what it was. He hoped his friends at school might be able to fill him in.

  ©2021 Pokémon. ©1997–2016 Nintendo, Creatures, GAME FREAK, TV Tokyo, ShoPro, JR Kikaku. TM, ® Nintendo.

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  First printing 2017

  Cover design by Becky James

  e-ISBN 978-1-338-80069-2

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