1x1 Pokétopia Tour (Tala x 122)

"No, not yet..." Leon muttered.

However, at some point Leon had lost his footing on a slippery section of the trail, causing him to fall forward and accidentally fling Belle into the water.

[Eek! I'm too small for this!] Belle cried.

 

"Wh-what do we do...?" Like Michelle, Leon was prepared to send out another Pokémon to help but then remembered that he was only permitted one Pokémon to accompany him for the adventure. "Argh, I'll think about it later."

He took off his hat and then dived into the water to reach for Belle.

 

It did not help Michelle that Leon's hair was blue, which blended with the water. The only thing she could look for was a speck of green which would indicate Belle's presence.

Meanwhile, in the water, it helped that Belle was not very heavy which meant she could just float on the water. But being carried by the waves was something she only experience in Pokémon battles. Very rarely did she ever swim, because she didn't know how to swim. At least Leon knew how to swim though, so there was no risk of him sinking.

Soon enough, Leon was able to catch onto Belle to keep her from drifting away.

 

Leon couldn't tell how far he had swam with Belle holding onto dear life on his neck. At least he could still see land. Where he should go next was another question. There was a rock that stood out amongst the trees, so that was a start. Leon then began swimming towards the rock.

 

And so said red hair really became a beacon for Leon as he could see the speck of red in the distance. As he swam closer, he could tell it was Michelle. Would it be too much to say how flashy she looked posed like this? This shot would have been photo-worthy for Pokétopia were Leon in Maria's shoes.

"Michelle!" he called out.

 

“I’m… not sure,” Leon replied. “Take care of Belle first!”

With that said, he tried to stand up straight to throw Belle towards Michelle. Belle landed in the water not too far from where Michelle was standing.

“Ugh… I don’t like this…” Belle squeaked, trying to climb ashore.

 

"Huh? Thanks, but I..." Belle started, but by then, Michelle had swam away.

The waves were getting taller by the minute and Leon wished that there was some rain to calm the water. It didn't look that way, though, so he was left fighting the waves as he swam. He couldn't possibly be this far from shore, could he? He had thrown Belle in that direction, after all.

He heard the faint cry of his name. "Michelle?" he said quietly and swam to that direction.

 

Fortunately, Leon could hear the rest of Michelle’s voice now that she was closer. He eventually found her red hair above the water. “Hey… you okay?” Leon asked, even though he looked like he was about to sink. Fighting these waves was not easy.

 

(Heh. I happened to have a holiday, so making the most of it)

Leon didn't realise that Michelle was already bringing him back to the shore. She definitely had more experience with swimming in the ocean, just from the way she towed him. "Thanks, Michelle," he replied.

Soon enough, they were back to the rock, right by the shore.

 

Leon walked the side of the cave to remove his shirt and wring out the water that was soaked on it. "That cost us time. So we shouldn't take too long here, yes," he agreed.

Belle also tried wiping off the water that was sticking to her. Saltwater was not her favourite. [We should be able to continue on the trail, I guess.]