I have kind of a big problem. I raised these twin Wurmple brothers. They were an inseparable duo, those two. However, they’re fully evolved now. The elder became a Dustox, and the younger became a Beautifly. It seems like Dustox is jealous of his younger sibling, however. He attacks him without provocation and steals almost all his food. My beautifly is very timid and just let’s it happen, however. I feel like it’s partially my fault since I always told them they’d both be Beautifly. Any advice?

Well, to be perfectly honest, it might also have something to do with the fact that dustox are naturally more aggressive than beautifly (which isn’t to say that beautifly aren’t more vicious, but that’s another story). So that should at the very least explain the attacks.

That having been said, the best thing to do is to help your dustox acclimate to his new form. It wouldn’t hurt to apologize for promising that he would evolve into a beautifly, but your main focus should otherwise be on convincing him that dustox aren’t so bad. While you can teach him the positive aspects of being a dustox, your lessons will definitely stick if you train with him. Set aside an extra hour to work with him one-on-one on abilities only he can learn (Light Screen, Moonlight, Psybeam, and Venoshock, for a few examples). Devise a battle style that suits him, and make your training revolve around that. Highlight his importance on your team and power as an individual until he understands how his body and abilities actually work. The closer he gets to this point, the more he’ll become proud of what he can do.

All you’ll need to do from there is keep him from attacking your beautifly out of pride, but the secret there is having the two team up and work together through battles against other trainers or team building exercises. Or through sheer positive reinforcement by bribing him not to attack your beautifly. Whichever you prefer.

Best of luck!

Do Pokémon in similar animal groups (like foxes and cats) get along? I ask cuz I recently acquired a butterfree and I’m worried about its interactions with my beautifly

For the most part, yes—when caught and introduced to a team, anyway. Of course, in the wild, the general answer is no, as pokémon often compete for resources or space. Or, well, eat each other, as nature is wont to do.

However, pokémon actually understand that being with humans means they no longer have to worry about their own survival. This is quite literally half the reason why pokémon are very fond of befriending and bonding with us humans: to them, we represent a plentiful source of everything they need. Hence, once caught and tamed, pokémon that may be bitter rivals in the wild—such as butterfree and beautifly, meowth and growlithe, and so forth—have no problem setting aside their differences and considering each other as partners, friends, or even family.

For the most part, anyway. It’s also not uncommon for two pokémon to fight for personal reasons (jealousy, anxiety over the possibility of being replaced, prejudice against a species or type, or simply a dislike for someone). If this occurs, however, it’s important that you address those issues as soon as possible. Check the team building tag (http://bills-pokedex.tumblr.com/tagged/team-building) for tips on how to handle this.

Best of luck, anonymous!

The Wurmple Line

Wurmple
The Worm Pokémon
Type: Bug
Official Registration #: 265
Entry: There is an easy way to tell if a wurmple will evolve into either a cascoon or a silcoon. What you’ll need to do is this: upon encountering a wurmple, grab it by the ridges on the back of its neck and [ERROR]

Silcoon
The Cocoon Pokémon
Type: Bug
Official Registration #: 266
Entry: The evolved form of wurmple, by a combination of battle experience and the individual’s personality. As a reflection of the wurmple’s own nature, silcoon are inherently graceful and beautiful and are known for both the softness and pure whiteness of their silk and the fact that they drink the dew off their own threads until evolution. In order to better understand silcoon and its close cousin the cascoon, imagine the most energetic morning person you have ever seen in your life. Have someone give them coffee and tell you that you are not, under any circumstances, permitted to punch them. This is the silcoon according to all cascoon.

Beautifly
The Butterfly Pokémon
Type: Bug/Flying
Official Registration #: 267
Entry: The evolved form of silcoon, by battle experience. True to the rule that the cuter a pokémon looks, the more likely it is that the pokémon in question possesses either a violent temper, the means to disembowel you, or both, beautifly are among the most beautiful and vicious bug-types in the pokémon kingdom. Its mouth is actually a coiled needle that can grow to be at least double its body size in length when straightened, and needless to say, it uses this needle to stab anyone who gets within reach of it as it feeds on flower nectar.

Cascoon
The Cocoon Pokémon
Type: Bug
Official Registration #: 268
Entry: The evolved form of wurmple, by a combination of battle experience and the individual’s personality. As a reflection of the wurmple’s own nature, cascoon are literal balls of hatred and rage, capable of remembering you, your face, and the fact that you hit it, looked at it strangely, or put it within two feet of a silcoon. It is highly advisable to apologize profusely to your cascoon on a constant basis to avoid being Psybeamed in the face immediately upon its evolution into dustox.

Dustox
The Poison Moth Pokémon
Type: Bug/Poison
Official Registration #: 269
Entry: The evolved form of cascoon, by battle experience. Despite its initial burst of rage, dustox settle into a more passive persona as they age. Rather than live solitary lifestyles and engage in aggressive, territorial behavior, dustox are more prone to congregating with their fellow dustox near sources of light, and they typically only attack when directly threatened. However, the main problem with dustox is that their scales are covered with an extremely toxic powder that happens to be released with every flap of their wings, which means they are also far, far more likely to inadvertently poison anyone who happens to be anywhere near them, much to the typical dustox’s dismay.