A lone boy sat at the pc in his room. With the curtains drawn and the lights off, the only light came from the screen which illuminated the pale boys face. His eyes

stared at the screen, his mouse clicking every now and then to get to browse the next page. He would have went on like this for the rest of the day before retiring to

bed. His mother however, had different plans for him. She opened the door and flicked the light switch, causing her son to cringe from the sudden brightness.

"Aubert, we need to talk" she said, putting her hands on her hips. Aubert finally re-opened his eyes and looked up at his mother without a word. Her lips tightened

as she took in his appearance. Pale. Circles under his eyes. As thin as a twig. All she wanted to do was comfort him, to take him in her arms and tell him she would

take care of him; but she knew what she had to do if her son was ever to grow to be strong. She had tried everything she could over the years, and this was her

last resort. She took a deep breath to strengthen her resolve.

" It's been eight years. We both know you should have started your journey a long time ago"

Aubert's eyes widened and he abruptly stood up, his computer chair roiling back into his bed from the sudden force. "You can't be serious!" he exclaimed. His

naturally quiet voice was groggy from not speaking. Auberts mother was pleased, seeing her son animated for the first time in years even if he wasn't happy about

it.

"I am serious. I talked to the professor, and your starter you had picked is still there. Your bag is packed with everything you need. It's in the porch."

"Y..You're k-kicking me out.." He said. His shoulders slumped, and he stared down at his shoes. His breathing started to quicken and he ran a hand through his

messy brown hair.

"Aubert, it's been eight years. We both know this had to happen."

"But..there are lots of people who don't train Pokemon!" He said, looking back up at his mother desperately. "I could do something else!" His mother inwardly

cringed at his expression, wanting to lie and say it was all a joke; but she had to do this. For his own good.

"Honey, we both know that is not going to happen." She walked over to the computer he had been at and moved to mouse to rid it of its screen saver. On the

screen were dozens of tabs open to pages all about raising Pokemon, Pokemon battle 101, current gym leaders, etcetera.

"I..that's..." Aubert looked embarrassed at being caught, and returned to looking at his feet. "I..I can't.." he mumbled. "I'm no good.."

His mother kissed her son on the cheek, which was a challenge because of his height. "Sweetie, you're ready. You've had so much time to prepare. I know that is

what you've been doing. I know you can do this, you don't need to be afraid."

Aubert nodded, his mouth shut tight in a grimace. He grabbed his grey hoodie embossed with a black poke ball and pulled it on. He gave his mother a hug and

proceeded down the stairs to the porch where he found his rucksack stuffed to bursting with provisions. He heard steps, and looked over his shoulder to see his

mother teary eyed as her soon took the steps to finally leave home.

"I'll miss you mom.. I call as soon as I get to Viridian.."He said as he pulled the pack over his shoulder.

"I know baby.. remember to talk to the Professor. And be safe out there" she said, sniffing.

"I will" replied Aubert. He pulled his hood over his head and opened the door.

Aubert shut the door behind him and walked down the familiar road. His home was located on the edge of pallet town in a small tree covered area most people

referred to as the Pineroad. Aubert suddenly stopped, leaning on one of the tree's at the edge of the path. He took several deep breaths with his eyes closed.

"Ok, I can do this. It wont be like last time. It wont be like last time," he repeated. He took another deep breath and with strong purposeful steps continued to the

main road of Pallet Town.

"It won't be like last time. It won't be like last time.."

Author Notes-

Hello, thanks for reading my first work. I haven't written any stories in quite a long time, and this is the first one i've attempted to share.

The rating is M due to later chapters. Lots of foul mouthed characters and violence. Perhaps some fleeting romantics.

Any comments or advice would be very much appreciated. I have the general idea of the storyline planned out, but this doesn't mean that it isn't subject to change

so suggestions are welcome.

Thanks again for viewing this. Next chapter you'll get introduced to the two trainers who started their journey the same time Aubert was supposed to start his.

Farewell for now.