BATTLE FRONTIER HERE I COME

I've been working on this for #PKMN-Battle-Frontier nonstop all weekend and I have the stomach flu aaaaa

ANYWAY here's the 4-1-1.

Magina "Mango" Mitchell is a Berry Maniac from the Hoenn region. She is always snacking on PokeBlocks because she's at constant risk for hypoglycemia. (One of the more notable aspects of her development as a trainer is how her asthma and Type 1 diabetes kept her out of the ring for a while--her parents were rightfully worried about her and she didn't start on her journey until she was 16. She grew up putting up a bubbly and cheerful front so that they wouldn't fret over her, and sort of became the mask.) Her personality is a weird mix of valley girl and tomboy, and she is very supportive of other trainers because of her own struggles. She can be a tad bossy but is always upbeat.

Then there's her hat, which is actually worth talking about. She accepted it from a bug catcher in lieu of prize money while she was preparing for a gym match in Pewter City. She will battle anybody and anything as long as they keep it "sportsman-like."

Her cousin Mushi is a reserved kid from Johto. Her dad was the league champ back in '78. She has the gift of gab, you might say--she can communicate orally with a Pokemon even if she doesn't know them. But it comes at kind of a price; her people skills are far below par. To the average trainer she seems stoic and/or consistently spaced out. She's very good at the Japanese Tea Ceremony. Her dream is to convert her family's teahouse into a place where people and Pokemon can enjoy nature together. She recently toured the Sinnoh region and helped recover some stolen Pokemon.

These two girls are teaming up, contributing three Pokemon each to the team as a whole and acting as one trainer. This is because they thought they were going to a doubles tournament at the Battle Tower but they got on the wrong boat. (It is also because I couldn't decide which one to pick. Since the game has double trainer classes like the Young Couple and Crush Kin, I hope it's acceptable for this contest!)

Let's talk about these Pokemon. Mango's first, then Mushi's.

Kapp'n:
Nobody really knows how Kapp'n got to be the Gyarados he is today. Maybe he ate too many Sailors. Maybe a sweet sea shanty filled with longing and regret made him want to turn his life around. Or maybe looking at the bleak, empty ocean and drinking seawater for endless hours made him lose his marbles. But whatever the reason, Kapp'n believes himself to be the saltiest pirate captain ever to sail the, uh, seven seas. Or however many there are in Hoenn. He eats like a pirate, talks like a pirate, sings like a pirate, fights like a pirate, and has a filthy dirty mouth, like a pirate. Any other Pokemon unfortunate enough to be in his presence are treated like members of his crew of scurvy pirate scallywags, and anyone being disagreeable is declared to be mutionous. In fact, Kapp'n is quite paranoid, especially where mutiny is concerned. Another one of his issues is his preoccupation with superstitions, to the point where he will not board a ship if there is no figurehead or if someone boarded while sneezing and stepping with their left foot first. He expects all 'crew members' to observe the same code of pirate conduct. He considers Mango to be the fairest lass he ever laid eyes on, and has a disturbing crush on her. He is the only Pokemon on Mango's team to regularly call Leopold by his full first name, and usually designates him as his first mate because, for whatever reason, he finds him trustworthy. He IS delusional, after all.

Leo: The Kecleon living around Fortree city generally made a living as theives, tripping up trainers and travelers using their "invisibility" and then stealing food and items with great precision. But one Kecleon had no interest in any of it--not because of a great sense of moral values, mind you, but because he was too lazy to get involved. Instead, he claimed to be an objective observer of both man and Pokemon, a philosopher. In time, he began to wander at his own leisure, seeking out the ultimate answer to questions like "What makes a human human? What makes a Pokemon a Pokemon? What makes them different from each other? From others of their species? From a tomato sandwich?" He has yet to come up with anything good, and is seen by both wild and trained Pokemon as a lazy good-for-nothing with no direction in life. His hippie attitude only adds to their case. He allowed himself to be captured by Mango because he wanted to live the experience, and is so far quite enjoying himself on her team as he no longer has to scrounge for food. He enters and exits his Pokeball as he pleases, and likes traveling on top of Mango's head since he enjoys the view. He retains the move Thief, despite never using it out of battle, to symbolize the struggle between his past and present--or maybe he was just too lazy to learn a new move.
Currently singing: Blowin' In the Wind.

Venus Jr.: Venus Jr. was the third Pokemon Mango got in the Kanto region, and she was a key player in her victory against Misty. While continuing her eternal search for berries, Mango found a friend who liked them as much as she did, a little Bellsprout who kept following her around to beg for food. Mango caught her and named her Venus Jr., because she resembled a certain type of flytrap I could mention. But that changed when her appetite reached new levels and she evolved into Weepinbell. Now it took half of Mango's allowance to keep her fed. (She would go through five or six hamburgers in a day. She also ate things she wasn't supposed to. Like Mango's PokeNav.) Later on, while she was snooping around in Team Rocket's base, Mango was shocked to find that Venus Jr. had consumed an entire box of stolen leaf stones. She evolved as a result of that incident, but because she was exposed to so much radiation at once, she now glows in the dark, giving her an ethereal glow at nightime. It scares people.

Little Bro: One day, little Mushi asked her mommy and daddy where babies came from. They looked at each other and made funny faces. "It all starts with a sack full of eggs," her father told her, choosing his words carefully. "Yes, that's right--the Delibird goes around with his sack and delivers eggs to mommies and daddies," her mother cut in nervously. Thus, the sweet little white lies of childhood gave way to a quest--a quest for an egg, one that would hatch so that Mushi could finally have that baby brother she always wanted. And by luck, she chanced upon an egg--a Togepi egg. And some time later Little Bro the Togepi was born. Poor, deluded Mushi is certain that all little brothers are, in fact, just like Little Bro--they can fly and fight wild Pokemon, for example. She treats him just like a person, and because of her loving kindness and gentle guidance, he evolved. Mushi's parents still haven't told her the truth. Probably for the best.

Penwing: Now Penwing is a special little guy. He was the runt of his litter, left behind to fend for himself at Lake Verity. He was taken in by some kindly Psyducks, who kept him fed. One day, he saw a beautiful Pokemon rising up out of the bottom of the lake. Penwing was mesmerized, and lept headfirst into the water to meet it. (Unfortunately, he couldn't swim.) Luckily for the baby Pokemon, Professor Rowan happened by, and because Professor Rowan is an extremely cool and reckless sort of old guy, he jumped into the freezing waters and rescued the drowning Piplup. At the lab, Rowan nursed him back to health, and when Mushi and her childhood friend Lucky came across the Professor in his travels, he entrusted Lucky with an energetic Turtwig and Mushi with the dopey but lovable Penwing. As they traveled together, Mushi tried numerous times to get Penwing to try being in the water, but even the shallowest of kiddie pools made him have a sudden conniption. That is, until Mushi got him an inner tube. He almost never takes it off, as it gives him the confidence to use Surf. He also will not evolve for fear that his beloved inner tube will become too small for him.

Violet: So named for the field of flowers she was found in, Violet is a brainy little Pachirisu with big ambitions and a strong work ethic. Her goal in life is to become a marine biologist. Sadly, most of her forays into the world of the mysterious deep have been failures because all the water-type Pokemon are afraid of her electricity. She refuses to be deterred, though. She always takes notes on her fellow teammates, and might compile them into a novel some day. She is also studying architecture on her travels with Mushi and is well on her way to becoming a civil engineer.