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Brendan seems to have to begin anew…

Author's Note: This will be a complete rewrite of, mainly, Pokémon Emerald. However, multiple things are changed. One of the smaller ones, found in this chapter, is the moving. In the game you've moved from Johto, but moving from Kanto will make this seem a little more original.

Important!: In this story, both Team Aqua and Magma make appearances. However, the story is including a third group that plan on dominating the world. I've tried to balance things out accordingly, but bare with me if I replace places where Team X was and replaced them with the third group; the Emerald Legion. (Really unorigional, woo.)

Finally, Captain Briney's first name is never found out, so in this story, it's Tom. Sorry for the extensive note, just needed to clear everything up so I don't have to later. You can PM me anything you feel needs to be explained.

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Applied for all chapters.

Chapter One (Prologue): A Tale of Two Towns

Littleroot;

The lights in the moving van flickered constantly above the head of Brendan North as he sat down against one of the large crates. His head was up, watching the lights flicker as he counted the petite cracks in the top of the moving van.

'122, 123, 124…'

Once he got to 170, Brendan stopped and moved his head down to its regular position. He sighed and tried to stand up, relying heavily on the crates. The constant bumps of the van jostled Brendan around, and forced him to grab onto a stationary bar used to keep the crates from falling off of each other in the van.

Swearing to himself, Brendan slid slowly down again to a sitting position and wrapped his legs around the bar. He nodded to himself and rested his back against one of the boxes, giving him a comfortable position to fall into.

"That didn't work…" Brendan said quietly as he noticed he'd moved less than an inch from his previous position.

Noticing a Pokémon guide handbook on top of a nearby crate – how it had stayed in one position escaped him – Brendan grabbed it greedily. Brendan was twelve years old – by far legally old enough for a Pokémon – and was a Gym Leader's son. They were moving into the Hoenn region from Kanto – namely Vermilion City.

Brendan had once had a few Pokémon, but had to give them away when his family moved. He was prepared to finally go on his Pokémon journey – something he wasn't allowed to do in Kanto.

His father was Norman North, who had studied under Surge – the Gym Leader in Vermilion – and had gained his Leader's license. There had been an opening at the Petalburg Gym, as the first Gym Leader – Captain Thomas Briney, now running a ferry service to Dewford and Slateport – had retired to go into an easier settlement. He and his favorite Pokémon, a Wingull named Peeko, lived outside Petalburg Woods.

Brendan shifted uncomfortably, leaning against boxes with your butt on a cold metal floor could test even a saint's patience eventually. He mumbled something about 'long trips and flirty mothers taking up all the room in front' before sighing and continuing to read the guide book.

Brendan slowly began to drift off and was soon closing his eyes peacefully, ready to drift into a long nap.

And then…

The van lurched to a sudden stop, bringing Brendan forward into the bar he was wrapped around. The bar connected with his face, and he slowly fell over onto the metal, grabbing his bleeding nose.

"Crap!" Brendan yelled as a foreign light blinded him. It took him a minute to realize that this light came from outside, and then noticed the door to the trunk had been opened. His mother, a mover and two Machoke movers stared at him for a moment before his mother clambered up into the van and helped him into the house.

The house had pinkish walls and some nice furniture – which more Machokes had just put in. Brendan's mother helped him onto a greenish sofa chair and gave him the remote, smiling. "Isn't this great honey? The mover's Pokémon do all the work, while we can relax!"

"Sounds like child labor…" Brendan mumbled, but nodded and pushed a button on the remote, turning the television on.

"This has been I. C. Battles," Brendan snorted while his mom just raised an eyebrow at him. "Reporting to you live from the Petalburg Gym, where Norman – the Gym Leader – has just given us an account of the battle that just took place. We'll see you later today at six for the latest news of the 'Rusturf Tunnel Crisis' and Pacifidlog's 'Skyscraper Pokémon Legend'."

Brendan flicked off the television as the Machokes finished up with the furniture and began to return to their Pokéballs. His mother was standing by the door, chatting happily with one of the movers and getting out her checkbook at the same time (very slowly one might add, as if she was dreading paying).

Taking a fleeting glance around the room, Brendan headed upstairs to his room.

Immediately, Brendan noticed a stopped, purple wall clock on his bed. Grimacing a little, possibly at the color, possibly at the sheer unnecessary need for it, Brendan grabbed it and flipped it over. There was a small dial where you could plant the time, so Brendan checked his watch and entered the correct time – four fifteen in the afternoon. When he flipped the clock back over, it had moved its hands to the correct positions and was now ticking away.

Smirking just a little bit, Brendan hung the clock on a nail previously hammered slightly into his wall, probably by his dad. Nodding once, Brendan then went over to his computer and powered it up. Checking his item storage, he realized that he still had a potion he had stored from his earlier experience in Kanto.

Dragging the potion symbol onto the bag symbol he had on his computer, the potion came down a ramp next to the computer. Grabbing it, Brendan realized he hadn't taken his bag from the van. His head rose slowly when he heard the certain 'vroom' noise a van makes when it starts up.

Grimacing at the adventure that had already began to take him down a path, only twenty seconds into his room and two minutes into the house, Brendan made an annoyed face, looked through his window (to make sure he wasn't imagining things), and sure enough, the van's driver was climbing into his seat.

Brendan shot down the stairs and out the door, only to see the van already headed off to Oldale Town. He snarled and glared, as if commanding the van to stop, turn around or magically drop his bag onto the path.

After a quick moment, and a realization that this wouldn't happen, he shot after the van, urging himself forward with thoughts of his bag alone. He pushed by some small child that tried to keep him from following the van with ease.

He also thought the child had called him a punk, which nearly made him turn around and show him what that meant, but he didn't believe it, and kept running.

As he pushed his way through the grasses, he began to see why the child had tried to stop him, wild Pokémon were everywhere. And they were all waiting for him, because he was stupid enough to not get one of his own from Professor Birch before he took off.

It was a Poochyena that broke off to attack him first.

Starting off with a tackle attack that it seemed way too strong for a weak Pokémon, the Poochyena launched itself at Brendan's head. Unfortunately for the Poochyena, he flew behind Brendan as he shot in front. "Do they always go for the jugular?" Another Poochyena did the same. "I'll take that as a yes…"

Brendan managed to get through the Poochyenas with minimal battle damage. However, he was now stepping into the bug section of the grasses as he struggled to follow the van that was slowly leaving him in the dust.

Things did not get better when he stepped on a Wurmple.

…

"Oh shiz!"

As if on cue, multiple Wurmple, Beautifly, and Dustox came hop/fluttering up from the bushes. Converging together, the bugs decided to give Brendan a chase. Seems like they knew he would have to stop sometime…

As they massed slowly behind him, Brendan kept his head down, looking forward at the same time. "Just don't look back!"

Brendan seemed to get lucky – just as the bugs seemed to get bored of the chase and begin to prepare for attack, Brendan broke through the end of the grass and into Oldale Town. He tried to use his feet as brakes, but his plan backfired and he ended up sprawled out along the road.

After slowly getting up and brushing himself off, Brendan was able to make out his surroundings. Oldale Town, the small village north of Littleroot, was a copy of Littleroot, except instead of houses for people, there were PokeMarts and Pokemon Centers. Brendan looked around, trying to find the van that had taken off with his van.

"Hey guys, look at my great new tool bag!" Brendan turned as he heard the voice, and saw one of the trainers, who had the Machokes that unpacked for him, holding up his bag. Brendan grimaced as the trainer unbuckled the fastener of the bag and dumped the contents – a few Pokeballs and some photographs Brendan had taken in Kanto – onto the ground, obviously not caring for them.

Grinning, the man undid his belt and dropped his tools into the bag. Brendan wasn't sure what was worse – the fact that his bag was being used as a tool-kit, or that the man had taken off his belt, and that his pants were now dangerously close to falling down.

Brendan slowly crept forward, until he was directly behind the man, who was still showing off the bag to a crowd of other workers who had arrived at the scene, their eyes dreamy as they stared at the bag.

He was about to tap the man on the back when he spun around, shocking Brendan.

"Hello there sonny!"

Brendan almost toppled over at the volume of the man's sudden roar.

"I see you like my bag, exquisite, isn't it!?"

Brendan gave a half-sigh and was about to order the man to give him back his bag when he spun around again, completely forgetting Brendan.

Confused by the man's apparent short-term memory, Brendan was completely content with pounding on the man's back with his fist. The man – who shall from now on be dubbed Dusty – spun around, fire glaring in his eyes, rage burning in his soul…and all that other drama.

"I challenge you to a…umm…"

"…Pokemon battle…?" Brendan said with a sigh.

"Yeah! One of those!"

"Too bad, I don't have any Pokemon with me…"

"Not to worry!" Dusty boomed. He grabbed two Pokeballs from the back of the truck. He tossed one to Brendan, and released his own, a Machoke.

Brendan weighed the consequences of battling. Get his bag back, or lose all his dignity by failing to defeat a man whose pants were halfway down his legs. He decided there wasn't much else he could do but battle, so he released his Pokemon from the ball.

…

It was a…

Machoke! Betcha thought I was gonna say Wurmple or something pathetic, didn't you?

Dusty's Machoke charged at Brendan's, nearly knocking it off the ground. With a ferocious roar, Brendan's Machoke leaped at Dusty's and both Pokemon were caught in a struggle. Neither was better than the other, but Dusty didn't seem to notice, he had dropped the bag and was whooping and cheering his Machoke along.

Brendan took his moment of apparent loss-of-thought to sneak over to him and grab his bag.

Turning around, Brendan fled the scene.

He was soon racing along through the maze of shrubs and ledges that led back to Littleroot from Oldale. Hearing no yells or footsteps behind him, Brendan figured his thievery had yet to be noticed and slowed his pace, finally getting a chance to admire the trees…and stuff.

It was a Poochyena that broke off to attack him first.

"This sure seems like it just happened a few minutes ago, oh wait, it did," Brendan said impassively, annoyed, disturbed and still being chased madly.

Brendan stopped right in front of his door. "All that working…well…running sure was hard, but it was worth it in the end," he smiled, but then suddenly noticed something.

"Gah! I dropped my bag!"

Face crumpling in disappointment, Brendan leaned on the door and sighed, he would just have to get more Pokeballs later on. Glancing down, Brendan realized he was still holding the potion. Opening the door with his left hand, he stuck the potion in his pocket with the other…

End Chapter One: A Tale of Two Towns

Well, this chapter is just a Prologue of sorts. The real story starts later, and trust me it'll be better. I personally don't like this chapter too much, going to revise it eventually. Anyway, even if you hated this chapter, give the second one a try when I put it up (or if you're reading this later on, try it now, haha :D)

Thanks!

Next Chapter: Press Start, Player Two!