Swish, swish. Green foliage began to rustle excitedly in the gaze of the morning sun. The grass became immobile. Suddenly a turquoise dorsal fin rose above the grass, along with a pair of eyes attached to it. These eyes gleamed mischievously as they searched for something… Locating its objective, the pair of eyes plus fin sank back within the vegetation, and the rustling started back up again. They were traveling in the direction towards a young boy of no more than fourteen years old, who was sitting on a rock.
The dark haired boy was staring nonchalantly out into the nearby pond, his eyes tracing the path a Magikarp, a carp-like pokemon, swam. Between his fingers he twirled a dawn stone, a parting gift from his parents back in Sinnoh. "A stone?" cried the boy incredulously. "Is that how you'll remember me by, by giving me a rock?"
"Now Jason, that isn't just any rock," calmly explained his mom. They were standing outside the yellow doorway to their vibrant house in Floaroma Town. His dad was backing out of the driveway in their black sedan, the car that will take Jason to the ferry in Canalave City. "This is a dawn stone. They are especially rare, and are supposed to make certain pokemon evolve." She handed Jason the aquamarine stone, which he snatched from her hand.
"Mom, this present sucks," grumbled Jason, leaning on their white picket fence. "A freakin' rock…."
His mom ignored his comment and looked into the distance. "Soon you'll be finding new pokemon and making new friends in Hoenn with aunty and uncle Rob… I can't believe it." She abruptly hugged Jason, which cut off his whining temporarily. "I wish I could've watched you grow up," murmured his mom, neglecting to pay attention to how purple Jason was getting. "But, your sister and her new family needs a spot for the time being. You know how it is, right?"
"Mom… breathe- can't-"
"Oh! My bad dear." Relief flooded down Jason's lungs as his mom backed off. A car horn blew out Jason's eardrums as his dad waited for Jason to hurry up. "Well! Guess this is it then," said his mom, flustered. Jason began striding for the car, dragging his compact suitcase behind him. Opening the car's trunk, Jason began stuffing his luggage inside.
"You got your running shoes, right?" Jason looked up to see his mom by the fence, grasping it tightly. "Yes ma'am," he answered.
"Tooth brush?"
"Yes."
"Pokeballs?"
"Yeah."
"Underwear?"
"Mom!"
"How about Claw? You got him, right?" worriedly asked his mom as Jason opened the passenger door and plopped down into the seat.
"Its Talon, mom! And of course I do," shot back Jason through the rolled down window. He subconsciously felt for the cold metal of the lone pokeball on his belt.
"Sorry! But I love how you decided to take your sister's farewell pokemon with you. New place, fresh pokemon. And once your sister's settled down we can send you your old team if you want. Well, have fun in Hoenn! And say hi to aunty and uncle!"
"Bye mom!"
The dawn stone radiated in Jason's palm as he studied it, pulsating blue in the morning light. It had taken Jason a while to metabolize with the warm temperatures of Hoenn when he first arrived, having to get used to wearing only a single layer of clothes. Today he was garbed in jeans and a white v-neck with the sleeves rolled up. After a few seconds he stuffed the stone into his pocket, got up and stretched. A sudden thought passed through his head.
"Ah, my Hoenn license comes in today!" He jumped into the air, giddy with excitement. "My adventure can-"
"Gibleee!"
"Oof!"
In a blinding flash of turquoise Talon had leapt from the brush he was hiding from onto Jason, tackling him to the ground. "Ow…" moaned Jason, rubbing his stomach as he slowly sat up. Opposite of him, the round-bodied blue creature with a large, disproportional jaw and stubby arms and legs sticking out from its sides was jumping around Jason, chirping out "gible! Gible!"
"Calm down, Talon!" Talon continued prancing around Jason. "Guess you can't help it, you can't help feeling excited about today, right?" To answer him, Talon performed a frenetic dance in front of Jason, pumped for the oncoming adventure. "Gible! Gib gib gib!"
"Then let's go see the professor and get our license!"
"Gible gib!"
Jason leapt to his feet with a new vigor. With the small land shark pokemon close at his heels, Jason ran back to Oldale Town, the town that he lives in with his aunt and uncle. It was just a short ways from the pond Jason was at, so it didn't take more than a minute to reach the small town. It technically shouldn't have been called a town because it comprised of only four buildings; his aunt and uncle's house, a crazy archeologist's house, a large, red pokemon center, and the cobalt-roofed poke mart. Jason zoomed past the town and was soon in a grassy path. He jumped a ledge, landing on his feet smartly. Talon didn't see the ledge till it was too late, and tripped head over feet into Jason, knocking over Jason like a bowling pin.
"Mph! Face planted, " muttered Jason as he got up, wiping dirt and grass off his face. Talon just cried in merriment.
"Watch out for those next time, okay? Anyways, I can see a lab or something close by. Let's go!" And the duo took off again, streaking past the grassy area into Littleroot Town. Jason's been here only once to get his Sinnoh license swapped for a Hoenn one, and it surprised him how tiny the town was, even compared to Oldale Town. On the day that Jason was to turn in his Sinnoh license, uncle Rob took him down to see Professor Birch: a stout, muscular man Rob was friends with. Surprised to not find someone scrawny, Birch explained to Jason how he loves to do his research in the field, and not be cooped up in his laboratory. "It's fun, being able to interact with pokemon in their natural surroundings!" cheerfully said Professor Birch while taking Jason's old license to mail off to the Pokemon Trainer's Academy.
As Jason trudged down the worn path winding towards the lab, he passed by two houses that were side by side, opposite each other on the path. Who lived here? Jason racked his head till he remembered the occupants. "Brendan, my son, and May live in those houses," stated Professor Birch when questioned by Jason. "They're about the same age as you, and they started their pokemon journeys together again about a week ago. Now they train to participate in the Pokemon League. If you meet them on the road and need any pointers on raising your pokemon and what-not, I am sure they'll be happy to help."
Now Jason stood before the laboratory itself, which emanated a sense of sophistication. As he pulled open the door and he and Talon walked in, whirrings and beepings and many other sounds met their ears, emitted from the variety of machines all along the lab.
He walked down the white-tiled hall lined with unusual contraptions till he reached a table that Professor Birch was writing something down upon. The broad man was facing opposite Jason, so he didn't see him till Talon cooed aloud. Whipping his white coat around, Professor Birch stood erect, staring at Jason. "Oh hi! Your Rob's kid, Jason, right?" Jason nodded. "I'm glad to see you again!" he broke out into a wide grin as he shook hands with Jason. His brown eyes drifted from Jason's face down to the bouncing blue pokemon at his feet, and widened in surprise. "Oh! And I see you've got your first pokemon already, is that a Gible?" Jason nodded again and Talon waddled forward to meet the professor. "I've never seen a Gible in person," muttered Professor Birch as he crouched down to eye level with the land shark. "He's a cute one, aren't you Gible?" asked Professor Birch as he poked the Gible on its snout. Talon playfully snapped his jaw at Professor Birch's finger, forcing him to retreat instantly. "And a feisty one, too," added Jason, chuckling. "Heh heh, definitely!" laughed Professor Birch as he got back up to his desk. Jason noted tiny beads of sweat had formed on the back of his neck. "So I just got your pokemon license in the- oh, hello April!"
Turning around to see who interrupted the professor, Jason saw a girl stride in through the door. She had long blonde hair that cascaded down her back, along with topazes sparkling as her eyes. Her outfit pertained to the Hoenn colors, as she was dressed in a red tank top striped with black lines. Underneath that were white daisy dukes which, in Jason's opinion, were too short to go out in public with.
"Hi Professor!" cheerily called out April as she skipped towards the professor and Jason. "So I'm ready to start my journey today, do I get an awesome starter pokemon?"
"All in good time," chuckled the professor. "April, I'd like you to meet Jason Wood here. He came all the way from the Sinnoh region to start his adventure here. Jason, this is April Summers; she's starting her journey today as well."
"Hey, nice to meet you," said Jason coolly as he extended his hand for a handshake.
"Likewise." April shook his hand, the warmth in her eyes extending to the way she responded and when she sized Jason. Suddenly her eyes shifted downwards and noticed the Gible by Jason's feet. "Oh! I've never seen that pokemon in the Hoenn charts, what is it?"
"This is Talon, he's a Gible from Sinnoh." Jason reached down to pet Talon, who enjoyed the touch of Jason's hand. "He'll be my starter, so he'll easily pulverize whatever pokemon you pick."
Jason wryly smiled at April as her mouth gaped open in offense, her eyebrows scrunching together.
"Introductions out of the way, I've got your license Jason," called out Professor Birch from another room, clearly missing what Jason just said. "And come over in here April, to pick out your first pokemon!" Completely forgetting what Jason mentioned to her, April cried in glee and bounded through the door adjacent to Jason. Curious, Jason tagged behind April.
In the middle of the room was a large machine, probably some kind of incubator. Within its glass dome were three pokeballs, which April was ogling at. Professor Birch stood working the controls at the far side of the room, and suddenly the glass barrier rose silently towards the roof. "April," calmly said the professor as he walked back to the incubator. "In each of these pokeballs is a different pokemon, specializing in grass, fire, or water. You may choose any one of them."
After pacing around the incubator for what seemed forever, sizing up each pokeball, April raised one in her hand and called out, "Professor, what is the fire type?"
"Torchic? It's the chick pokemon. It might be difficult to nurture in the beginning, but it is certainly one pokemon worth raising. Is that your choice?"
"Definitely," answered April with certainty. She enlarged the pokeball by pressing the button in the middle and threw it upon the lab floor. "Come on out, Torchic!"
White light burst like a firework from where the pokeball landed. Once it faded a tiny chick pokemon came into appearance. Its yellow and orange feathers ruffled up as the pokemon took in the lab surroundings, and finally turned to face its owner. "Chic!" it cried out.
"Aw, its so cuh-yute!" cooed April, crouching down to pet her new pokemon. "My name is April, and I'll be your new trainer! I'll name you… Blaze!" The newly named Blaze chirped in excitement and flapped its wings, as if wanting to fly.
"How adorable!" Professor Birch came back to April's side with two small devices in hand, beaming down at pokemon and trainer. "I think she already likes you. And before you two go marching off on your adventures," he referred to Jason, who had witnessed the procession while casually leaning against a wall. "I'd like you two to take these." The professor handed one of the red devices to April, and Jason walked up to receive his. It flipped open to reveal a screen with rows upon rows of dashes next to numbers in numerical order. "This is a pokedex," explained Professor Birch as April and Jason became immersed into their gadgets. "It is a high-tech tool that automatically records any pokemon you encounter or catch. Since I don't get around to the whole Hoenn region, I'd like you two to help me research new pokemon out there in the wild.
"As close as we are to pokemon, there are still many mysteries surrounding them out in the world. To unravel those, I'd like for you to travel as far and wide as you can on your pokemon adventure, looking for those. Are you two up for it?"
"You can count on us Professor Birch!" exclaimed April. "Us?" muttered Jason under his breath. "What have I gotten into…"