AN:

Disclaimer: Neither the pokémon nor the regions are mine, only the characters. If I owned pokémon, "Two Tales" would be an anime running on TC all the time.
Warnings: Some vionlene, character death and a philosophy that could destroyone or another worldview

Yes, sweet nostalgia. The pokémon have caught up with me. And after listening to some great soundtracks, this ingenious idea has popped into my head, unnerving me for four weeks until I finally started writing it down.
Along the lines of "There's always more than one truth", this story will have two different protagonists:
Takeru, a human trainer, and Aoki, a riolu.
Both of them will have an own story, that will in the end come together on one.
I hope, this story will encourage some of you to think about things a little more, so please tell me your thoughts in a review =)

The sky was hued black. At least he assumed it to be, he couldn't tell with all the dark gray thunderclouds covering it. Pale brown eyes roamed over the rain promising forms, in search of the lonely light spot in the sky, the moon. White and mysteriously it sat in the only gap of the blanket of clouds that was, apart from that, uninterrupted.

The boy bent closer to the window. It wasn't something you could easily discover. Only when looking really close, you could spot the swarm of small dark dots barely over the horizon. His breathing was fogging over the pane and the boy raised his hand in order to whisk off the pale stain interfering his sight. He silently wondered which kind of pokémon these were. From a distance like this, it was impossible to tell. Maybe some kind of bird-pokémon that had been startled by the imminent thunderstorm. He didn't know. But he wouldn't have been able to recognize them if they had been closer, either.

After all, all he knew were the depictions in the coursebooks that he had remembered, along with a few brief information texts.

Spearow - aggressive, dangerous.

Pidgey - irascible, dangerous.

Hoothoot - nocturnal, hazardous.

Taillow - cute, but deceitful, dangerous.

Starly - weak, elopement advised.

Pidove - bovine, but dangerous.

Rufflet - vigorous, acting tactically, very dangerous.

All pokémon were dangerous.

Since kindergarden they had learned the principles. When meeting a slow pokémon, run away. If bovine, distract and run away. If fast, make an emergency call and hope for the best. Still, nobody survived an encounter.

It hadn't been until the 5th class that they had heared about it. The history. The past. That there had been a time when everything was different. A time when there was peace. A time when, incredible as it sounds, humans and pokémon had been living with each other in harmony.

They called it "the night of the black moon".

The boy couldn't help but look back at the light, pale circle that was sitting athroned in the sky, seemingly innocent. That night, there had been a full moon, too, they said.

In those times, humans and pokémon allegedly had been living together in peace, without problems, without fights. Without the gaplessly surveyed frontiers between the villages and towns where the humans lived and the wilderness that nobody dared to verge on. This place beyond civilisation was off-limits. Nobody wanted to go there, nobody had ever come back alife. Nobody but the trainers.

Lost in thought, the boy tipped his finger at the cold pane. It was already steamy again.

Trainer... The very word itself already sounded kind of auspicious. Awe-inspiring. Admirable. Back then, in the bygone times, there had been elusively many, it was said. Today there were only a few, but they were highly respected everywhere. Trainers travelled through the wilderness and survived. Trainers didn't fear any danger. Trainers fought the aggressive wild pokémon, they even lived and worked together with them. Trainers hadn't given up on those bygone times yet. Trainers were the most impressive people he knew.

And tomorrow, the time would have come. Tomorrow, he himself would set off in order to become a trainer like this.

The boy warded his eyes off the steamy window and took a glance at his clock. Already past midnight.

Tomorrow, a helicopter would come and take all the candidates for an own pokémon to Mt. Silver. There, everything would be decided. Whether he could start his journey or not.

The next morning, he was awake early. He left his home on schedule and full of drive, looking back one last time at the snowy roofs of his hometown. Inwardly he was almost bursting with excitement, dying to finally start his very own journey.

And if just then somebody had told him how this journey would end - he would have turned around instantly and never started it.

Panting and exhausted he slumped to the ground. He couldn't take it anymore, his legs almost giving in under his weight because of the unusual exertion. He ducked down some more, desperately trying to become as small as possible behind the rock so they wouldn't see him. He could still hear them in the distance, searching for him. The stomping of their pokémon, their angry roaring in the night and the harsh voices of the trainers bellowing command after command, their raspy voices aching in his sensitive ears.

The little riolu curled up into a ball further. They couldn't find him! If that happened, everything would be over. At the very moment he saw those two humans coincidentally in the forest, the very moment they had noticed him as well, he had already known he was in big trouble. Riolu were rare and could become very strong, especially in case they evolved. And apparently, this had been enough of a reason for those two to decide they had to catch him.

Clouds were floating over the sky, the moon painting patterns of silvery-white light and midnight black shadows onto the rocky ground. Maybe that would be enough. Humans had bad eyesight. If he was lucky, they wouldn't be able to find him in this darkness.

He couldn't be caught. Not here, not like this. It couldn't be over for him. Not as long as he hadn't managed to find it.

What "it" was, he couldn't even tell himself.

The rumbling of the humans and their pokémon in the distance had died down. Maybe they had finally given up their search or had followed a false trail. Shivering and still out of breath, he rose back to his feet and proceeded on his path slowly.

He recognized this place, he knew it. It was called "Mt. Coronet", by humans as well as by pokémon. Meaning he had to be in Sinnoh.

Tired from running away for hours, he climbed up the steep rocks that felt much too tall for his small body. He didn't know where he was going - yet, his body seemed to know the way.

Eventually, he stopped at some plateau near the peak of the mountain. A piercingly cold wind blew over his head but he didn't retreat. The riolu saw an aperture at the cliff in front of him. It was in the shadow, impossible to find if not knowing where to look for it. But he knew it was there. Cautiously he lay his black paw into the immersion that gave him barely enough room to stay upright.

All of a sudden he knew why he knew this place. It was where he had hatched. He remembered it perfectly.

He sunk to the floor in exhaustion, leaning to the wall furthest from the entrance, through which the icy cold wind was still entering. The riolu closed his eyes.

Suddenly he could recall it perfectly, every second of how he hatched from his egg in this narrow crevice, as if it had been just yesterday. But he knew it had already been half a year since then. His sense told him, and as a riolu, he could always rely on his sense excellently.

He opened his eyes again, clenching his fists in bitter frustration. Yes, his sense didn't deceive him. It had been right here that he had hatched, a little more than six months ago. He could now remember perfectly. This just made it all the more depressing that he couldn't recall anything else.

Nothing.

All of this half year of his life, everything he had surely experienced since then, it was missing.

His memory was gone. There was nothing left in him, nothing but the nagging feeling that he had lost something very important. And no matter what it was, he had to find it again. Before he had accomplished this, he wouldn't be caught by any trainer in this world, nothing and no one would stop him.

The riolu closed his eyes again, trying to get a little sleep, when he was suddenly startled up by something. He could feel it clearly - the aura of an other pokémon. None of those who had been chasing him, but a completely different one. A soft, frail beating of a heart that was pounding just at the verge of his perception.

He rose to his feet, setting off again to the outside with its icy cold. The aura seemed neither aggressive nor malicious. Instead, it was simply... It was just there. He couldn't really describe it.

He was still at the end of his rope. Walking to the strange, inexplicable aure seemed to take forever, a terribly long and strenuous path. Eventually, his sense lead him into another cave, but this time a much bigger one that reached much deeper into the interior of the mountain.

When he saw it, he understood. No wonder that he hadn't been able to identify the aura. Something like this he met for the first time. In front of him, in a small pit, well hidden from glances from outside, there lied a medium-sized, red orange coloured egg.

The riolu put out its black paw, laying it carefully onto the smooth surface of the egg that was, despite the cold outside temperature, comfortably warm. The next moment, the egg began to glow. He could sense the silent heartbeat becoming more and more powerful and vivid with every second.

It hatched.

"Name?"

"Takeru Shinoda."

"Age?"

"17 years."

The woman behind the desk gave him a look of slight disbelief that he ignored skillfully. "A little young for becoming a trainer, isn't it?"

"Not really, nope."

The lady sighed, picking up the protocol again that everybody had to complete. Not that anybody ever listened to her. "Home?"

"Snowpoint City, Sinnoh."

Dutifully he kept providing all the information that had to be delivered. At the same time, he let his eyes run over the other potential trainers who had come. Most of them had to be about his age, not more than two or three years older than him. It weren't particularly many, considering this was the only chance to become a trainer within a whole year. There were about sixty to seventy people, thereof at least two-thirds boys. Those and the girls stood divided in two groups on the square. Takeru could barely suppress a chuckle when he watched the female grouplet that, with only one light brown exception, apparently had only peroxide blonde hair. Girls could be so strange.

He was one of the last to furnish his particulars. The helicopter had had some problems in the usual snowsquall around Snowpoint City, but had then arrived at Mt. Silver without further complications.

After all candidates had registered, a man stepped onto a poorly built platform, tipping at a microphone put there for him a few times and clearing his throat nervously. The general mumbling died down, all gazes turning to the man in the suit, although everyone already knew what he was about to say.

"My dear boys and girls, collaborators, organizers, soon-to-be trainers! As all of you certainly know, we have come together in this place today because of a very special event, the second of its kind since that ominous night. The honorable history of the trainers is something all of you are aware of for sure, but please let me still outline it in short because of the occasion given. Our five regions Kanto, Johto, Hoenn, Sinnoh and Unova can all look back on many talented people associating with pokémon proudly. Since the night of the black moon, in which most of them unfortunately passed away, there have sadly been only a few of them. But humans and pokémon can't live in dividedness forever! Surely there will be a day when the time for a renewed cohabitation has come! But first, this yawning gap, that has been torn back then, has to be closed. This without a doubt difficult and dangerous task can be entrusted only to a few people - the trainers. People who are against all odds still venturing to cooperate with the pokémon that bear this inexplicable grudge against humanity since that night.

It wasn't easy but I'm proud to be able to proclaim to you that this year we have managed already for the second time in a row to find young pokémon not sharing the wrath of their conspecifics and willing to set forth on a journey alongside a suitable human, leading us all onto the way to reconciliation! Just like last year they're the historically established, traditional starter-pokémon of our five cherished regions, that will elect their trainers among you, dear boys and girls! Hence, I'd like to ask for all of you to keep calm and not to be too disappointed, in case you have to return this evening without a pokémon!"

Many of the youths applauded. Takeru looked at the man who was now going off the stage, obviously exhausted from his fervent speech. So everything was the same as last year. Fifteen pokémon that, in order to ensure a good cooperation, would choose their trainers themselves. The humans had no choice but to leave the best possible impression if they wanted to start their journey. Without a pokémon it just wasn't possible.

The two gropus of boys and girls blended to one single bunch, slowly heading to where the pokémon were waiting.

They were on a huge clearing on Mt. Silver. Some tents and the small stage had been positioned for the organizers. All around, there was thick forest. Allegedly thick enough that the wild pokémon wouldn't feel threatened by all the turmoil and attack. In front of the trees, there was now a smull bunch of mostly green, red or blue creatures.

Pokémon.

Takeru once had read that in the past it had been common for soon-to-be trainers to choose one of three pokémon waiting neatly and patiently, sitting on a laboratory bench. But now that there were more than sixty voluntary trainers and only fifteen possible pokémon, somebody apparently had decided to give them some more freedoms than just electing their favourite human.

In any case, the fifteen pokémon didn't wait sitting neatly on a table. Technically speaking, they didn't wait in any somehow discernable arrangment. They didn't even wait at all.

The first two to draw his attention to them were a piplup and a totodile. The totodile had, for whatever reason, bitten into the small penguin-pokémon's head, not willing to set it free from its jaw. Because of this, the piplup was now running forwards and backwards, shrieking loudly, whereby it almost every time collided with a squirtle that, due to this, was already lying on the floor and crying. A chikorita was standing next to him, trying to comfort it, but getting knocked down by the shrieking piplup after some time, too. A torchic chased after the odd duo, apparently trying to get the totodile to finally release piplup's head. However, it seemed to be a little to absorbed into its wild pursuit straight through the pack. When the running piplup dodged a sleeping cyndaquil, the torchic wasn't able to turn the corner anymore, stumbling over the other fire-pokémon and crashing into an oshawott, that up to this moment had admired a flower together with a turtwig.

Now the oshawott toppled because of the unexpected impact as well, gracefully burying the flower beneath it. Completely astonshied it began to cry as well. The chikorita scurried from the crying squirtle over to oshawott, not being able to console it in any way. Instead, it stepped on its path onto the tail of a mudkip, that now awoke from its nap, too. Apparently it would have liked to sleep some more, because it angrily dashed after the chikorita. A bulbasaur blocked its way, probably in order to stop and placate it, but this try also wasn't crowned with success. The two were arguing loudly enough to wake up the last sleeping pokémon, a tepig, that opened its eyes and instantly started to howl full-throatedly, whereby it even managed to drown out all the others. It was even loud enough that the snivy, who had ignored the whole chaos up to this moment, sitting a little offside together with a treecko, a chimchar and a charmander quietly, now got to his feet and started to beef at it angrily. The tepig fell silent and seemed to be just about to calm down, when suddenly the piplup with the totodile on its head ran it down, closely followed by the torchic also dashing over the tepig laying on the ground.

That did it for the fire-pokémon. Unstoppably, it started its downright abnormally loud howling with renewed vigour, with squirtle, piplup, oshawott and cyndaquil tuning in. Apparently becoming a nervous wreck, mudkip and snivy screamed at the wailing grouplet in order to put it to silence, but that seemed to only encourage them even further. Bulbasaur, chikorita and turtwig unsuccessfully tried to calm everyone down, but in order to even be heared, they had to scream, too. Finally, totodile released piplup's head, instantly snapping at treecko's tail. Treecko, however, slung it away in anger, whereby totodile landed on turtwig, dragging it to the ground along with itself.

Shell-shocked by the display in front of him, the tepig howled even louder, with everyone else, especially the crying water-pokémon, joining in. That moment, the chimchar apparently couldn't stand it anymore. Taking a deep breath, it shot a well aimed fire attack at the crying pokémon, that afterwards, looking completely sooted and dumbfounded, really did keep silent. The others quieted down as well, since now nobody needed to be reassured or consoled anymore. Snivy and the others heaved a sigh of release. And even though all the potential trainers had been standing there for what felt like ages, the pokémon seemed to take notice of them only now. In some cases sooted, tearstained or just a nervous wreck, they bit by bit disbanded from their chaos, having a look at the humans.

Takeru took a deep breath. He was still fully determined to start his journey. But whoever of this pack would become his pokémon, it surely would become an unforgettable adventure.

A pair of huge, navy blue eyes blinked at him, filled with expectations and curiosity. Four small, white canines flashed in the glow of the fire that now illuminated the previously dark cave.

"Charmander...", the riolu mumbled under his breath.

The small, orange pokémon in front of him rose to its feet, looking a little clumsy. "Charmander?", it asked, blinking at him with those blue eyes of his again.

He didn't know what this meant. There weren't any charmanders in Sinnoh, especially not on Mt. Coronet. And what was even more important, its egg had been lying here completely abandoned. It had been well hidden from the eyes of unknowing, somebody surely had to put much effort into finding a hideout like this for it. And then this somebody had simply left it behind. Just like him. Without a doubt this little pokémon had gotten to this place in exactly the same way he had. But how?

"Anything wrong?", the little orange coloured lizard asked him quietly. Again his look was drawn to the small but without a doubt sharp canines, then wandering back to the deep blue eyes that were framed by thick black lashes. Unless he was very much mistaken, that little pokémon in front of him was a girl. The charmander was a little smaller than him, despite this kind of pokémon usually growing bigger than riolus. The fire-pokémon's scales were shimmering orange, yellow and reddish in the shine of the flame that was blazing at its tail tip.

"Akako", he mumbled eventually, finally being done with examining the just hatched pokémon in front of him.

"Pardon?", it, or rather she, asked uncomprehendingly, since it wasn't an answer to the former question in any way.

"Akako", he repeated solely, this time even more convinced. "Your scales are shimmering reddish. That's why you should be named Akako."

The charmander tilted its head to the side, observing him quizzically for a few moments with those blue eyes that had been staring at him all along as if he was something incredibly interesting. Eventually, the small fire-pokémon nodded, apparently pleased with the name. "Okay, Akako. And what's your name?"

The riolu shook its head. "I don't have a name."

Maybe he had had one somewhen in the past. He couldn't remember. However, the little charmander didn't seem to be content with this answer. Without saying a word she stared at him for some time. "Aoki", she finally mumbled.

He couldn't help but smile involuntarily. "Because of my blue fur?"

"No", she answered, for some reason puzzling him thoroughly. "No, it's just... you're simply Aoki."

He didn't understand. This little charmander, whose egg for some reason had been laying completely abandoned on Mt. Coronet, just like his, seemed to easily understand him, even more than he did himself. What a strange little pokémon.

Riolu again put out its paw with which he had previously touched the egg. "Fine then. Nice to meet you, Akako. My name is Aoki."