Ever black

Have you ever seen a Pokemon you want so bad you’d do anything to get it? How far would you go to get it? Would you cross the line like I did?

So it was back when Black and White came out and I was so excited for the new generation. I know some fans like to buy both versions of the game, but I usually just choose one based on the Pokemon on the cover. I picked White because I liked the legendary – I’ve always liked black dragons.

Only I got to a point in the game where an NPC sent out a Gothorita. I loved this Pokemon straight away, I mean, just look at that gothic Lolita standing in front of me! I wanted one so bad but was uopset to find that I couldn’t get it on White version. I considered going on the GTS to get one but I like nicknaming and raising Pokemon myself, plus I didn’t have all the gym badges yet and I don’t like using traded Pokemon before I get all the badges and I wanted that Gothorita NOW!

I decided to look online for a copy of Black version I could buy. I surprisingly found a used copy for dirt cheap, so I ordered it. After a few days wait I got my game and started it up right way. I named my character Anna as I always do and just like on White I picked Oshawott as my starter.

For the first three gym battles I was impatient wondering wehen I could get my Gothorita. Then I finally ended up on rout 5 where where I found the pre-evolution of Gothorita – Gothita. I caught a female one, naughty nature with a quick tempered characteristic and the ability Competetive. I named her Bellatrix after my favourite villain from Harry Potter because I found it fitting.

I trained her like mad until she finally evolved into Gothorita. She quickly became the main Pokemon on my team, joining Flipper (my Samurott), Leopold (my Liepard), Flamian (my Simisear), Kotone (My Whimsicott) and Peace (my Tranquill). I liked my team, but Bellatrix was the queen. I had fun with her Fake Tears move in battle, I entered her in musicals and just enjoyed looking at her cute sprite and hearing that cheerful little noise she made! But then after one battle she started to evolve. While I’m usually happy about my Pokemon evolving, I wasn’t prepared to let my Bellatrix evolve – she was my favourite Pokemon and I didn’t know what she was going to evolve into, so I pressed B and cancelled her evolution.

“Bellatrix didn’t evolve”

She tried to evolve a few times on my way to the next town as I didn’t really switch her out much in battle and I kept her at the front of my party so she levelled up a lot. I pressed B every time.

But I started to notice something strange happeneing every time I cancelled her evolution. The next time I cancelled her evolution I got this message:

“Bellatrix didn’t evolve. Bellatrix wants to evolve.”

And the next time I cancelled her evolution: “Bellatrix didn’t evolve. Why won’t you let her evolve?”

It continued in this fashion until Bellatrix’s sprite started to look sad somehow and this text came up:

“I want to evolve. Please let me evolve. Why won’t you let me? Please!”

I freaked out and shivered. This was really weird! I made it to the next city, saved and turned the game off. This was freaking me out. I’ll play more tomorrow.

The next day I turned my game on and the first thing I did was take the Everstone I got from the Roggenrola I caught and gave it to Bellatrix.

As the message “Bellatrix was given the everstone to hold” came up, I thought I could hear a faint Gothorita cry. It sounded irritated. But it was so quiet that I dismissed it as my imagination.

After that everything seemed fine and no weird messages came up this time. The only problems I had with Bellatrix holding the everstone was her EVs being frozen and her not being able to hold a useful item for battle, but these were only minor problems.

Everything was fine until I got to the elite four and challenged Caitlin. She sent out a Gothitelle – the evolved form of Gothorita. At this point something really unusual happened and Bellatrix let out a Gothorita cry so loud it hurt my ears. The text box underneath the battle screen said this:

“This is what I could’ve been! This is what I was supposed to become. Why do you refuse to let me complete my evolution?!”

I stared in disbelief. This was insane! I couldn’t help myself from saying out loud, “But I just wanted a Gothorita! I just want to use my favourite Pokemon!” To my surprise, I got a response in the text box:

“Well, I just want to evolve. And you won’t let me. So I won’t let you get what YOU want……………………………………………………. What will Bellatrix do?”

Shaking, I pressed “fight” on the touch screen. “Bellatrix doesn’t want to fight.”

I selected “Pokemon”. “Bellatrix refuses to be switched out.”

I tried this a few times before getting annoyed and shouted “well, what am I supposed to do?!”

After what felt like hours, this message popped up:

“Bellatrix wants to learn Fling. Should a move be forgotten?”

I clicked on “keep old moves” but I was greeted with:

“Bellatrix wants to learn Fling. Should a move be forgotten?”

I realised that to move on I’ll have to teach her this move. As it was a Dark attack move, I replaced Persuit. I wasn’t prepared to replace Fake Tears, Psychic or Future Sight. “Bellatrix was forgot Persuit and… Bellatrix learned Fling! Bellatrix used Fling.

Bellatrix flung her everstone at Gothitelle.”

After the battle, Bellatrix started evolving again. That was strange – I thought that you get back the items you lose in battle besides the one-use items. I cancelled the evolution again. I knew I should’ve let her evolve, but… after seeing Gothitelle I decided it didn’t have the same charm as Gothorita did and I wanted to keep Bellatrix as my favourite Pokemon.

I pressed B. Bellatrix’s sprite appeared onscreen. She looked angry! I mean, really really angry! This was a “if looks could kill” face.

“You still won’t let me evolve?!” A pause, then “fine. Have it your way. Sooner or later you WILL let me evolve.”

I sighed and turned the power off. I’ll have to do the elite four again but this time I’ll use Leopold against Caitlin instead. But when I yurned the power back on, while I was on Victory Road where I’d last saved, Bellatrix’s sprite still had that “if looks could kill” expression and her cry sounded somehow annoyed. She wasn’t holding an everstone and her moves were Future Sight, Fake Tears, Psychic… and Fling. I got a horrible feeling in my stomach. But I carried on anyway.

After levelling up again, Bellatrix still tried to evolve and I cancelled again, but this time no weird messages came up. I found more everstones but everytime I tried to give her one she would automatically use Fling in the next battle and that everstone would disappear.

I tried switching her out in battle but I just got

“Bellatrix doesn’t want to be switched out.”

I tried to put her in the PC box – “Bellatrix wants to stay by your side.” I even reluctantly tried to release her or offer her for trade on the GTS for a Patrat, but…

“Bellatrix won’t leave you.”

So I decided that the only option was to put another Pokemon in front, so I moved Bellatrix to the back and brought Flipper to the front. But when I got into battle, it wasn’t Flipper who was sent out, but Leopold, who was the second Pokemon in my party. I clicked switch out and Flipper’s sprite was still in front but the slot was red, the sprite was grey with red splotches on it and where it’s health bar should’ve been it just said “DEAD”.

Flipper was dead. But… Pokemon can’t die! This was really freaked out.

In the next battle I expected Leopold to be sent out but instead I got Flamian. Leopold was now also dead. And this carried on with all of my party, and each time a Pokemon died, Bellatrix’s face got more and more psycho and her hands were turning red.

It ended up with just her left. I turned the power off and started the game again, but all my Pokemon were still dead and Bellatrix still had that psycho look on her face. Then my character started moving on her own and the music changed – what should’ve been the Victory Road theme was instead the Lavender Town music.

A wild battle started, but instead of a wild Pokemon it was my trainer Anna facing Bellatrix on the battle screen. The text box appeared:

“I have done everything I can to make you let me evolve. I forced you to use me in battle. I even killed your other Pokemon and still you refuse to let me evolve! Do you have any idea how it feels like to be forced to stop growing? It’s like being frozen in a point in time that I have to constantly live. Have you any idea how painful that is?!”

“I didn’t know…” I whispered, “I didn’t know…”

“But I can make you know what it feels like.” Bellatrix continued.

“I’m sorry…” I whispered, “I dodn’t know!” I was crying at this point.

“It’s too late for apologies.” Bellatrix said with the psycho look on her face.

“Bellatrix used Fling. Bellatrix threw her everstone at Anna. Anna is now holding an everstone”.

It returned to the overworld. I couldn’t move my character forward. I couldn’t do anything. I turned the power off and inserted White version into my DSi – the game I was playing before this madness started. But to my dismay, when I turned on the game I was met with the same screen that I just had in Black and I couldn’t do anything. And this happened to every game I tried to play, even the ones that weren’t Pokemon!

I thought I heard a Gothorita cry and a whispered voice saying “Now you know how it feels.”

Candy The Bunny Non Binary deems this awesome.