Pokemon Swap Meet

h and the others were now at Palmpona Town, a beach town.

"This is a nice place to relax." Ash said.

"I agree." Brock nodded. "The beach is lovely."

Tomo was playing with Togepi and Growlithe on the beach.

"Hey, where's Misty?" Ash asked.

"She's at a phone booth." Brock answered. "Her sisters wanted to speak to her."

"About what?" Ash asked.

Before Ash could get a answer, Misty came over to them.

"Is everything okay with your sisters, Misty?" Brock asked.

"Yes and no." She sighed. "My sisters have been complaining about how energetic my three Wooper and three Marill have been."

"Well they are rather young." Brock said. "So they would be energetic."

"I know." Misty said out loud. "But my sisters really want them to calm down so that they can be used in gym battles and water ballets."

"I'm sure that problem will be solved soon." Brock said reassuringly. "Now let's all get going."

Ash called Tomo, Togepi and Growlithe over and then the gang started to walk along the beach.

As they were walking along the beach, they noticed a trainer talking to a blue Pokemon with a black tail.

Ash looked at it on the Pokedex.

"Wobbuffet, the Patient Pokemon. It hates light and shock. If attacked, it inflates it's body to pump up it's counter strike."

"Hey that's a nice Pokemon." Ash said.

"Thanks." Wobbuffet's trainer replied. "I'm Benny, by the way."

The gang introduced themselves to Benny.

"So Benny, what are you and Wobbuffet doing?" Ash asked.

"I was making sure my Wobbuffet was in tip top shape." Benny answered. "I'm taking it to the Pokemon swap meet."

"What's that?" Tomo asked.

"Every year they hold a swap meet here so trainers can trade their Pokemon for new Pokemon." Benny explained. "I plan to trade my Wobbuffet for a new Pokemon."

"Really?" Misty asked. "Why would you want to trade your Pokemon?"

"I do love my Wobbuffet." Benny admitted. "But I wish to have a new Pokemon."

"That makes sense." Brock said. "Trading is a good way for trainers to get new Pokemon. Come to think of it, I want to trade my Poliwrath for a different Pokemon. Truth be told ever since I caught it I haven't bonded with it."

"I wish to trade some Pokemon myself." Ash confessed.

"Me too." Tomo said.

"So do I." Misty added.

"Come with me then." Benny said. "I'm heading over to the Pokemon swap meet now."

Benny brought the gang to the swap meet which was being held in the center of Palmpona Town.

"This is like a festival." Misty said.

Just then they heard a rumbling noise.

"Hey what's that sound?" Ash asked.

Suddenly they saw a herd of Tauros coming their way.

"What's happening?" Brock asked.

"It's the running of the Tauros." A man beside them explained. "It's Palmpona Town's tradition. You see, if any person is brave enough to touch Tauros's horn while running with them, they receive a special trophy from the mayor."

Then he ran to join in.

"That's the craziest tradition I've ever heard of." Misty said.

"I'd rather wait until I was twenty before I joined in." Ash said.

The herd of Tauros started to run to a stadium.

"The Tauros have now entered the stadium." An announcer said. "They are now ready for the one on one Tauros battling competition. In this competition we will see whose Tauros is the strongest one of all."

Ash started to get excited and ran to the Pokemon Center to get his Tauros from Prof. Oak.

"What Pokemon do you want to swap Tauros for Ash?" Prof. Oak asked.

"I'll send you my Sentret." Ash replied.

So Ash swapped Sentret for Tauros and ran back to the Tauros into the competition. At the moment a Tauros belonging to a trainer named Fernando was undefeated. But when Ash entered his Tauros into the competition, he overpowered Fernando's Tauros and won the Tauros battling competition.

After the Tauros battling competition, the gang went back to the Pokemon swap meet. There were lots of trading machines and trainers with Pokemon. A lot of trainers were going on about how great their Pokemon were; like how shiny a Quagsire was or how springy a Sentret was, etc.

"Wow they sure are bragging about their Pokemon a lot, aren't they?" Misty asked.

"Well when you've raised a Pokemon a lot, you have a reason to brag about your Pokemon." Brock said.

Just then three Pokemon trainers came up to Ash.

"Your Tauros was amazing." One trainer said.

"The strongest one I've ever seen." Another added.

"It was the bomb." The third finished.

They wanted to trade with Ash for his Tauros. One offered Onix, another his Nidoqueen and the last one his Rhyhorn.

"I'm not willing to trade this Tauros." Ash turned their initial offer down. "However, there is another Tauros that I'm willing to trade. And I'll do it for Onix."

He informed the three trainers that he already owned a Nidoqueen and Rhyhorn. Even though his Rhyhorn evolved into Rhydon, Ash didn't want a second Rhyhorn. The Nidoqueen and Rhyhorn trainers nodded in understanding and the Onix trainer got ready to trade Ash his Onix.

Ash ran to the Pokemon Center to get his second Tauros.

"When did you get another Tauros Ash?" Misty asked.

"I caught two more Tauros, a Gastly and a Abra the day before we came to Johto." Ash replied. "And I've been thinking about trading them for different Pokemon for quite some time."

Ash sent his first Tauros, Cyndaquil, Lugia and Houndour to Prof. Oak for his additional Tauros, Gastly and Abra. Soon he traded Tauros for the trainer's Onix. Ash and the trainer thanked each other for the trade and then the trainer walked off.

"Let's check out my new Onix." Ash said.

When Onix emerged from the Poke Ball Ash, Tomo, Misty and Brock thought it looked strong and healthy.

Suddenly Onix began to glow and then it changed into a giant metal snake.

"Wow Onix evolved into Steelix." Brock gasped.

Ash looked Steelix up on the Pokedex.

"Steelix, the Iron Snake Pokemon and the evolved form of Onix. It's body has been compressed deep under the ground. As a result, it is even harder than a diamond."

"That's cool." Ash said, amazed with his new Pokemon.

Then he saw something around Steelix's neck; it was a metal object that looked like a small weight used for weight scales tied with a very long piece of string.

"What's this thing?" He asked after taking it off Steelix's neck.

"That's a Metal Coat." A scientist said. "It allows Onix and Scyther to evolve into Steelix and Scizor. It also powers up steel type moves."

"Wow, it seems like we have a lot more to learn about a Pokemon's evolution." Brock said.

"Well now that I traded one of my Tauros, I'm going to see what I can trade for my Gastly, Abra and other Tauros." Ash said.

"Yeah, I'm going to see who would want my Poliwrath." Brock said.

"I caught another wild Goldeen and another wild Psyduck the other day." Misty said. "And I wish to trade them for other water type Pokemon."

"I have a Bellsprout, Scyther, Nidoran and Poliwag that I wish to trade." Tomo said.

"Okay since all of us want to trade here's the plan." Brock said. "We'll all split up and then after we traded our Pokemon we will meet back up by the water fountain. Agreed?"

"Agreed." Ash, Misty and Tomo said together.

So for the next hour Ash and the others set out to trade Pokemon in the swap meet.

"There might be Pokemon I'm interesting in obtaining." Ash said. "Better keep my eyes open."

Misty hoped to trade her Goldeen and Psyduck for different water type Pokemon. Tomo and Growlithe looked around to see what Pokemon Tomo would like. Brock had his Poliwrath out to see who would want it. One hour later they all met back up at the water fountain.

"How'd it go guys?" Ash asked.

"It went great." Misty said. "I traded my Goldeen and Psyduck for two new water type Pokemon."

"I traded my Bellsprout, Scyther, Nidoran and Poliwag for four new Pokemon." Tomo said.

"I traded my Poliwrath for a new Pokemon too." Brock said.

"I ended up trading my other Tauros, Gastly and Abra as well." Ash said.

"Let's show them to each other." Misty advised.

They did just that.

Misty traded her new Psyduck for a blue Pokemon that looked like Marill, but it was bigger and had long ears like a rabbit. And for her new Goldeen, she got a blue Pokemon that looked like Wooper but was bigger.

"Wow Misty." Ash said. "You got an Azumarill and Quagsire, Marill and Wooper's evolved forms."

"Yes and get this." Misty said. "Azumarill has the egg move Sing and Quagsire has the egg move Recover."

"Now your sisters will have help training your Wooper and Marill." Brock said.

Tomo traded his Bellsprout, Scyther, Nidoran and Poliwag for a little brown teddy bear Pokemon, a yellow and black stripped Pokemon that looked like Electabuzz, only smaller, a red Pokemon that looked like Magmar, only smaller and a pink bulldog Pokemon.

"That's Teddisura." Brock said. "That's Elekid. And the other Pokemon are Magby and Snubbull."

"Wow." Ash said. "I wonder what Casey will say when she realizes that we have an Elekid with us."

"I don't know." Brock replied. "But she might be a little jealous."

"Do my new Pokemon know any egg moves?" Tomo asked.

Ash looked at the Pokedex,

"It says your Teddiursa knows Metal Claw, your Elekid knows Rolling Kick, your Magby knows Thunder Punch and your Snubbull knows Metronome." He said.

Tomo was happy with the results.

"What Pokemon did you get Ash?" Misty asked.

"I'll show you right now." Ash said, holding three Poke Balls. "Come on out Misdreavus, Girafarig and Miltank."

Misdreavus was a dark bluish-green ghost Pokemon with lilac trimmed hair and a red necklace around it's neck, Girafarig was a giraffe Pokemon with a brown tail that had a face with teeth on it and Miltank was a pink, black and cream colored cow Pokemon.

"Wow Ash." Misty said. "You've got some good Pokemon then."

"Yes and get this." Ash said. "Misdreavus has the egg move Sucker Punch, Girafarig has the egg move Double Kick and Miltank has the egg move Double Edge."

Brock revealed what Pokemon he traded for his Poliwrath. It was some sort of snail Pokemon.

"Meet Magcargo." Brock smiled.

Ash looked at Magcargo on the Pokedex.

"Magcargo, the Lava Pokemon and the evolved form of Slugma. The shell on it's back is just skin that has cooled and hardened. It breaks easily with a slight touch."

"Wow, so my Slugma will evolve into that." Tomo said excitedly.

"Hey Brock." Ash said. "The Pokedex says it's a fire/rock type. Are you going to send it back to your gym?"

"Yes I am." Brock told him. "It will help against grass and ice type Pokemon. And his egg move Smokescreen will help in gym battles."

Ash sent Misdreavus and Miltank back to Prof. Oak. His team now consisted of Girafarig, Chikorita, Cyndaquil, Totodile, Mareep and Lugia. Tomo sent Elekid, Magby and Snubbull to Prof. Oak and kept Teddiursa with him. So his team was Growlithe, Slugma, Teddiursa, Farfetch'd, Kabuto and Omanyte. Misty sent her new Azumarill and Quagsire to the Cerulean Gym and her team was Togepi, Staryu, Psyduck, Gloom and two Poliwhirl. Brock sent Magcargo to the Pewter Gym and his team was now Geodude, Onix, Vulpix, Zubat, Pineco and Stantler. The gang was happy with their new Pokemon when Misty suddenly remembered Benny.

"I wonder if Benny has traded his Wobbuffet yet." She said.

The gang decided to see how he was doing.

When they found Benny, they found out that he hadn't traded his Wobbuffet yet.

Ash looked thoughtful.

"I think we need to demonstrate how great Wobbuffet is." He said.

"How do we do that?" Benny asked.

"Well." Ash said. "Wobbuffet can only use the moves Counter, Mirror Coat, Safeguard and Destiny Bond. The moves Counter and Mirror Coat are amazing because they bounce back attacks that are thrown at them. So what we should do is demonstrate the moves Counter and Mirror Coat."

"I get it." Brock said. "If we demonstrate what those two moves can do, people will how great a Pokemon Wobbuffet can be."

The gang and Benny agreed to the idea and went to set the plan up.

What everyone didn't know is that trouble was rearing it's ugly head at the swap meet. Team Rocket also came to the swap meet.

"It's a good thing we found out about this swap meet." Jessie said.

"I agree." James said. "There are so many Pokemon here, we'll be rich."

"And with our machine it will be a snap taking all of them." Jessie said.

Team Rocket had their own trading machine, but it was a fake trading machine.

"Meowth are you ready?" Jessie asked.

"I have all the empty Poke Balls ready and the baskets for the real Poke Balls are ready too." Meowth said.

The trick was that Team Rocket, dressed as scientists would trade trainers their Poke Balls, but instead of getting Pokemon the trainers would get empty Poke Balls.

"Everything is all set." Meowth smiled. "Time to get to work."

Meanwhile the gang began to demonstrate Benny's Wobbuffet.

"Now everyone." Brock said, speaking into a microphone. "I'm pretty sure that you don't think Wobbuffet is a great Pokemon. But we are going to prove you wrong."

Benny and Ash were facing each other like in a Pokemon battle. Ash brought his Pikachu over from Prof. Oak's lab.

"Pikachu, Quick Attack." Ash said.

Pikachu charged at Wobbuffet to tackle it.

"Use Counter Wobbuffet." Benny said.

Wobbuffet's body became outlined in pink and as soon as Pikachu tackled it, Pikachu bounced off.

"The move Wobbuffet just used was Counter." Brock explained. "Counter bounces off physical moves like Quick Attack and then the attack is sent back at double the damage."

"Pikachu, Thunderbolt." Ash said.

Pikachu sent a bolt of electricity at Wobbuffet.

"Use Mirror Coat Wobbuffet." Benny said.

Wobbuffet's body was surrounded by a white color and then bounced Pikachu's Thunderbolt attack back at it.

"That was Mirror Coat." Brock explained. "It bounces off special moves like Thunderbolt. And just like Counter the attack is bounced back at double the damage. So even though Wobbuffet can't use moves like Psychic or Solar Beam, etc. it's a brilliant defensive Pokemon when it uses Counter or Mirror Coat."

The crowd was impressed with Wobbuffet's demonstration.

Just then a lady with red hair and glasses showed up. It was a disguised Jessie. She witnessed Wobbuffet's demonstration and decided it would help Team Rocket.

"I would like to trade Lickitung for your Wobbuffet please." Jessie said.

"Okay that would be great." Benny said.

He and Jessie headed to the trading machine (a real one) and did the trade.

"Thanks for Lickitung." Benny said.

"No problem kid." Jessie said. "And thanks for your fabulous Wobbuffet."

Then Jessie went back to where James and Meowth were.

During that time James and Meowth had done well for themselves with the fake trading machine.

"We got a whole bag full of Poke Balls." Meowth smiled.

"You're right." James said. "But we should get going before they realize the Poke Balls are empty."

"I agree with that." Jessie remarked.

"Welcome back Jessie." James said.

"I'm surprised you traded Lickitung for that Wobbuffet." Meowth said.

"I've had enough of Lickitung's disgusting tongue." Jessie informed them. "Besides this Wobbuffet's Counter and Mirror Coat moves will be useful."

Suddenly a crowd of people turned up.

"Hey our Poke Balls are empty!" A man shouted.

"Yeah, where is my Pokemon?!" Another man shouted.

Ash and the others heard the shouting.

"What's going on?" Ash asked.

Team Rocket introduced themselves and explained their fake Pokemon trading machine.

"You are not getting away with this!" Misty shouted.

Meowth took out some sort of gun and fired it at the crowd. A big long rope came out of the funny gun and it tied everyone up together.

"Time for our getaway." Jessie said.

She, James and Meowth jumped in the balloon which flew away.

"They're not escaping that easily." Ash said.

A trainer released his Scyther and told it to cut the rope. As soon as Scyther did that, it freed everyone.

"Come on." Ash told Tomo, Misty and Brock. "We're going to stop Team Rocket."

Team Rocket was hiding in the forest with the balloon and the bag full of Poke Balls.

"We hit a jackpot." Meowth said.

"You're right." Jessie agreed. "Our fake trading machine may have been exposed. But we haven't failed yet."

"Team Rocket!" Ash shouted.

He and the others caught up to them.

"Oh great, it's the twerps." James said.

"Give those trainers their Pokemon back!" Misty shouted.

"Not a chance." Jessie replied.

She released Arbok, Cloyster and her new Pokemon Wobbuffet. James sent out Weezing, Victreebel and a new Pokemon Hoppip.

"Hey when did you get that?" Jessie asked.

"I swapped it for a measly Magikarp the other day." James answered.

Ash sent Pikachu and Chikorita out to battle. Misty sent out her two Poliwhirl to battle and Tomo sent out Growlithe and Farfetch'd to battle. Team Rocket's Pokemon actually put up a good fight, especially Wobbuffet and Hoppip. Wobbuffet's Counter and Mirror Coat attacks proved to be useful against the Pokemon's attacks. Hoppip turned out to be a good battler too; it knew good moves like Bullet Seed and Aerial Ace and it had the egg move Pay Day which was brilliant at distracting the gang's Pokemon. But with Pikachu, Chikorita, the Poliwhirl, Growlithe and Farfetch'd attacking together they defeated Team Rocket and sent them flying. Brock opened the bag of Poke Balls.

"The Poke Balls are okay." He said.

"Good." Ash sighed. "Now let's return them to their rightful owners."

Ash picked the bag of Poke Balls up and then he and the others ran back to the swap meet.

The sun was setting and the swap meet was drawing to a close. When Ash and the others brought the Poke Balls back, the trainers reclaimed them and thanked the gang.

"I'm glad that they are happy." Misty said.

Just then Benny showed up and he had his new Lickitung out of it's Poke Ball.

"I'm glad you were able to trade your Wobbuffet Benny." Ash said.

"So am I." Benny replied. "Because I think this Lickitung is great and I like it a lot."

Lickitung started to lick Benny's face affectionately; it liked Benny a lot too and was happier being with him than it was with Jessie.

"I was hoping to see that lady I traded with again. I mean we did thank each other after the trade, but I wanted to say goodbye."

"I'm afraid we haven't seen her." Misty said. "She must have left sometime after you two traded."

The gang didn't realize that the Wobbuffet they battled earlier originally belonged to Benny.

"Oh well." Benny sighed. "I will take good care of Lickitung like I did Wobbuffet."

The gang was happy for Benny.

"Well I think today has been a great day for all of us." Ash said. "I mean not only did Benny trade his Wobbuffet for a Lickitung, we also managed to get great new Pokemon by trading for them."

Misty, Tomo, Brock and Benny agreed with him.