Joey Young lived on the edge of a deep, grassy field. It had once been a baseball field. He had found the old bases and the poles that held the netting. There had been a baseball or two, a bag destroyed by the rain, and a broken wooden bat. Not many people played Baseball in this area, too few people, not enough funding.
Still, Joey liked to stand on the home plate and imagine he was doing something different with his life. Out in Pallet, where he was born, he'd at least been allowed to go to school with other kids. Here, in Redbury, he was limited to the people he could befriend. He had a lot of online friends, people who told him about Johto and Kanto-regions with magical technology, cities of never ending people-places he would never get to see. Not until he was older and had the funds.
The easiest way to travel was with a group. That way you had someone to watch your back. You increased your team limit from six to 18. It allowed you to see more, do more, and not worry about being robbed. Or worse, attacked by wild Pokemon. Not all Pokemon were sweet and people died all the time wondering around. The idea that *kids* were allowed out in the world like that? Joey's mom didn't believe in that sort of thing.
So he went to school online, sending his papers by pmail. His mother told him he could always travel when he was older. She bought him books on hunting, how to survive in the wild. She said that when he was 16 she would give him money to buy a real pokemon, or to go into the city so he could train.
She did get him some cheap Pokeballs, telling him he was free to catch whatever was around. Alice Young refused to let her son borrow the family dog, a Growlithe given to Alice when she was a teenager. She did not like the idea of fighting, her father giving her the powerful dog as protection. Duke didn't like Joey, always staying near Alice. So Joey was forced to figure out his own way to stun and capture Pokemon.
He had almost caught a Pidgey, but it had flown away. The grass was filled with rodent pokemon. No Pikachu, which Joey wanted, and certainly nothing more powerful than the occasional eevee passing through. The most common was Ratata, but Joey didn't want something so weak and childish. Ratata was for babies. It was like owning a hamster.
Once, a Stantler had stood in the yard. Joey had been told to keep away from larger Pokemon. He didn't have any training and it was one thing to "play at being a big bad trainer" and another to "put yourself in danger like an asshole." His dad-Steve-had thrown a large rock and scared him away. It was the same with the Ursaring. That time *Mom* had gone out, Duke following behind her. One firey roar and the wild bear had rushed back into the grass.
"Pokemon like that aren't healthy. He was skinny, Joey-boy. He wouldn't have been a good pokemon."
Still, Joey felt cursed. He often thought of who he could have been, had they stayed in Pallet Town. He would have gotten to pick out a starter pokemon. He would have gone to lessons with the other kids, borrowed Pokemon from the center to train. He would know types through experience, not just forums. Reading about something didn't make you good at it.
Sixteen would put him behind. He wouldn't be able to do much of anything. He would miss out on all the fun times with his peers.
Joey logged onto POKEPATH that night, fighting the bitter tears in his eyes. He was 14 and the offer to live with his Aunt Aagna had been unexpected. She lived in the City Center of a big town, her husband running an independent PokeLab. She offered to let him stay with her for the summer, to get to know the field of Pokemon.
The argument had begun almost instantly. Alice had thought the idea had merit, as long as he wasn't allowed to leave the city. "He is a smart boy, he has been working really hard. Ratty is very strong," Alice said. "He will do fine. He might find he doesn't want to travel at all. Aagna works in the sciences. She makes good money. She will be good for him."
But *Steve* [because he sure wasn't Joey's dad anymore!] had said no. No to everything. No to him leaving before he was an adult. No to Joey training anything more than a RATATA. No to everything Joey wanted.
"My son is going to learn proper skills. Pokemon training is for rich kids. He isn't going to make a career animal fighting."
Joey knew a lot of "proper" skills. Things people needed. But there was no one to use them on. His father programmed computers. Joey was good at that, knew how a lot of rare systems worked. Alice taught him to cook, clean, repair the home as needed. He knew how to survive in the wild-at least as far as books would take him-and he felt he was ready. He would be good in the city.
Yet, here he was, stuck in Nowhere, with three rat pokemon that refused to evolve.
Aagna said the offer stood. He could come next year, or when he was an official adult.
"When you are done with School," Steve said. Cause Fuck Steve.
Joey just pretended no one said anything, at all. He was used to disappointment.
POKEPATH booted up quickly. It was an old style website, filled with anonymous people discussing their latest "finds" and "catches." Joey told them about his parents, how he felt cursed.
**YOUNGSTER JOEY** has joined the *MY POKEPARENTS SUCK* chatroom.
**FIFTEEN PEOPLE** are **CHATTING NOW.**
Joey sent a picture of a sleeping Pikachu.
YOUNGSTER JOEY: *my aunt offered to let me stay with her and my parents refused. She works with pokemon every day. it was my only way out.*
*GHOST_MAROWAK is typing.*
GHOST_MAROWAK: just go. why do you need their permission? you're allowed to leave.
**YOUNGSTER JOEY**: all i have is three rats.
*Prof_Lickitung is typing*
**Prof_Lickitung**: Buy a pokemon then. I got one on the market for like 450. You're good at programming, so just trade skills with someone.
Joey stopped for a moment. PL was someone he rarely talked to, but they did have a point. Though, it wasn't the best idea to trade for Pokemon. Sometimes you got really shitty deals. But it had to be better than *this.* He could leave, anyone over 12 could leave. He just wouldn't be a full adult for two more years. But he could make it to Aunt Aagna's. She would take him in. Mom wouldn't be furious at him, but Dad would. No, Steve, the asshole who prevented him from following his dreams.
**YOUNGSTER JOEY**: I'm close to thirty miles from the nearest train station. I am not sure I could walk that without some serious firepower. My mom has a dog, but he hates me and never listens. Plus she would kill me if I took him. Where do I get something like... that on the market. Something powerful enough to get me through a forest?
**Charlotte-Chu**: how old are you?
**Youngster Joey**: 14.
**Charlotte-Chu**: And how much training have you had? Like with more than RATS?
**YOUNGSTER JOEY**: Just the rats.
**Charlotte-Chu**: You're going to be eaten alive. Don't listen to those assholes. I am sixteen and just started last month. You need training. You can't just march into the woods without help. It's stupid. Wait until you parents will pay for you to go.
**TEAM_COCKET**: wut. wutever char. hes never going to go if he doesnt now.
*PRIVATE MESSAGE* from * .daniel* to **YOUNGSTER JOEY**: ***Joe, if you are interested in the Market, go to [LINK] and put in an offer/request/need. Someone will contact you shortly and send you on the right direction.***
Joey looked at the screen for a moment, before hitting the link button. The went dark for a moment as the page loaded.
WELCOME TO THE YELLOW MARKET.
The letters were in bold, bring YELLOW, with a picture of a Pikachu beneath.
A private message popped up after a second.
Hello, my name is Club Member Sara, I will be your guide for today. Don't worry, you do not have to agree to purchase anything. Please fill out the profile, then click send. Reply to me when you are done filling it out and give me the code generated by the form. Thank you.
Joey clicked the link, this time a new tab opened up. It had the normal information, sort of like he was buying something off Amazing.
It wanted his name, birthday, a nickname to call him, where he lived, and his occupation.
At the bottom was a large paragraph.
THE YELLOW MARKET is a privately owned and operated website. We do not remain in the same location for long. The link sent to you by a CLUB MEMBER will only be valid for 12-15 hours. By agreeing to take part in the MARKET, you are agreeing to discretion. We do not always require money, sometimes we barter with skills, information, or other Pokemon. If you choose to continue, you will be taking part in the selling of Pokemon to unknown parties or purchasing them with the risk to yourself. Thank you and enjoy your time here.
*AGREE* *DISAGREE*
Joey hit agree.
He was not sure why ROCKET_SHIP_13 wanted his help. He had been asked for an address and told someone named Paul was coming to meet him. They would meet on the Brook Road Forest, sitting down in the small park to discuss what was needed.
Paul wanted help with a program he was making. He had an abundance of pokemon, all level 16 to 45, that he was willing to trade in exchange for help.
"I do not want you asking what it's for," Paul said. "But the Pokemon I am giving you are all legal, not stolen."
That made Joey wince. "Is that something that goes wrong?"
"A lot of people steal them, sell them, and then people get in trouble. I am sure you have an ID chip reader, these pokemon were caught by me and have never been traded to no one," Paul said over the com.
When they met, Paul was closer to twenty than Joey expected. He wore a white shirt, black pants, and tall boots. He had a jacket covering the rest of his shirt. Joey had a suspicion he was part of some sort of *group.* He wouldn't ask what, but the uniform looked vaguely familiar.
Paul was all business. He showed Joey ten different Pokemon, all grass types or normal. They didn't have fancy attacks, though he had programmed some with basic TMs.
"I know how this works for kids like you, your parents will want to know where you got it. Part of the MARKET is knowing your demographic," Paul said. "You can't just show up with a water type. Mommy and Daddy will ask questions."
Joey was impressed. He knew that these Pokemon weren't rare. He had seen some of them from his window, when his mother refused to let him go out. She claimed they were too powerful for him and without Duke to help, he was SOL.
Joey decided on a zangoose called Peta. There had been some around the area, eating people's crops.
"Okay, he is yours. I just need you to fix this program and I am on my way."
Joey sat down, clutching the Pokemon in his hands. They had traded one of his shitty ratata for the zangoose. So it was official, he was the registered owner, his DNA would open the Pokeball. The excitement of... of having this possibility was endless.
The program Paul wanted fixed was pretty weird. He said it was a type of registration 'game' where people could locate pokemon by logging in. "It's sort of like... a Pokemon registration. We have people who see a group of, like, ratata and log in, put where they were. So we get an idea of migration, population, etc."
Joey didn't question this. He just fixed some of the errors. Fifteen minutes later he was done.
Paul handed him a second ball, saying it was on the house. There was also a small amount of money. He told Joey to leave when he could and programmed his number into the phone. "If you ever want to make money, call me."
Joey kept his pokemon secret. The second ball held a Lillipup, very small, very eager to show affection. Paul had texted him the names of the attacks the two had, saying the dog [who he called Lilly] was still very young. He bred them, he said, as companion animals. So the dog didn't have many attacks.
Paul also told him he needed to leave, just go. "I did, when I was 15. I wish I had gone sooner."
"Don't let people hold you back."
Joey took two days to decide. Steve-still can't call him Dad, Joey thought-had to leave to visit his sister. Not Aunt Aagna. No, this was boring Auntie Tay. She was the worst person in the world, hated anything fun-sort of like Steve.
So it was just Alice and Joey. It was during this time that Joey began to pack his bag, while his mother worked on her art. He was going to leave, he had already bought a ticket with some of the money Paul gave him.
He was going to train on the way there, thirty miles to the next town would take him at least two days. Even if he could walk that far in one day, he would need to walk through the woods and that would mean potential Pokemon encounters, hills, and obstacles.
He went into town and bought some Pokeballs, a food device, and medication for his pokemon. Then, with the last of the cash, he bought some real hiking boots and a new jacket.
He stowed it away inside his closet and spent the last day with his mom, really enjoying time her.
Then, the morning of the third day, he left at 4am.
He was going to be something.