The Johto Case
Authors Note: This will (hopefully) be a long-running story but may not get updated as often as I'd like, because of my commitment to my other fanfiction(s). At the time of writing, my main story that I work on is L-Voldemort (L version) and as I have several people avidly reading that, I like to keep the updates as regular as possible. Until that story finishes, I may not be able to update this story so often, but please - if you have enjoyed the parts that I've written so far, be patient until I get round to the next chapter! I write only so others can enjoy the ideas I have in my mind and your input and comments are great fuel for my inspiration and motivation.
The Johto Case
Prologue
The small green pokémon cried out in pain. It had to get away. The white-haired individual was gripping it too tightly, with a fearsome expression on his face. The pokémon was frightened beyond anything it had experienced before. The human was making no sound but radiated badness, which penetrated the pokémon's entire being. With more effort than it thought it could possibly use, it activated its power and teleported - through time and space, to the one place it knew it could find help. It heard the furious growl of the human as it disappeared, then found itself suddenly in a different country, in a different time, in a different universe.
A Hotel, L.A., United States of America, 21st May 2003
The pokémon had been here once before, about a week ago in this time but a year ago in the pokémon's time. It had watched a human, who had strange habits but a strong, kind heart, solve a brutal murder case all on his own. Although the pokémon did not really understand about police and detectives, it watched enough to understand that a human had killed other humans in a bloody fashion, cold-heartedly, and this kind hearted young man had used his brain to work out who it was. That had been impressive to the pokémon, and it knew it could come here if it ever needed help with something that it could not solve on its own.
It appeared in front of the strange young man now, the bright light created by its travel startling the man to fall out of his seat. The pokémon was a bizarre-looking creature to him, and he had no idea what it was. He stared at it a moment with wide-eyed surprise, but approached it gently as it looked frightened. A tear tipped out of the pokémon's eye, and the young man circled it cautiously. It stayed still, hovering in the air until he had inspected it.
"What are you?" he asked, pushing one finger into the corner of his mouth. The pokémon did not reply, but instead darted forward and caught hold of the human's clothing - a baggy white long-sleeved t-shirt - and transported him forwards in time and in space, to the world where the pokémon had come from, arriving the following day from when it had disappeared from the white-haired human's grasp.
The pokémon was exhausted. It fainted, releasing its grip on the human, who fell about thirty feet, since the pokémon had appeared in the sky rather than near to the ground. He hit his head and fell unconscious.
Luna Griffiths was so excited about becoming a pokémon trainer that she had left the house much earlier than she had intended to! It was her fifteenth birthday today, the age at which young people in Johto were allowed to get their first pokémon and begin their pokémon journey. A few years ago, the age had been raised to thirteen from ten, and in recent months the age had been increased again to fifteen, on account of the many complaints and worries of parents - the mysterious criminal gang calling themselves "The Righteous Team Kira" were becoming stronger, better-known and were still completely undetectable, and their crimes were continuing. Parents feared for the safety of their children and Luna's own mother had forbidden her from leaving on her journey until she was fifteen, at least. Now that the legal age was fifteen anyway, he mother could not argue that she couldn't leave today. Besides, the sun was shining, the breeze was slight and the pokémon were chirping bright and early so Luna simply couldn't stay indoors a moment longer.
With her hands gripping her rucksack, swinging it from side to side, her dress - sweet lolita style, naturally - rippling cutely in the breeze, she began the short walk to Professor Oak's laboratory. It had once belonged to Professor Elm, an elderly man, as Luna could recall, who had lived there for a long time, but after he died, a professor from the Kanto region had taken over. The son of a famous conservationist, who was in turn the grandson of a famous and successful pokémon researcher, Professor Blue Oak was a charming young man with an open heart, who loved to learn about pokémon. He gave regular talks and lessons to the children of New Bark Town and all of their mothers swooned and blushed when he was nearby. He did not seem interested in romance, though, and was married to his research. His particular interest lay in unusually coloured, or "shiny", and legendary pokémon. Inside his lab, as Luna recalled, he had a whole library of books about the various legends of pokémon from a handful of different regions.
Luna thought about this as she walked along the street to the laboratory. She was drifting off into a daydream when BAM!, a person landed right in front of her! She looked up into the sky and saw a very rare pokémon floating gently from the sky, either asleep or fainted. It was a Serebii! Professor Oak had a Serebii, so Luna knew she needed to return it to him right away. The person who had fallen from the sky looked unconscious too, but he was too big for her to be able to carry or drag him. It wasn't very far to the lab now, so she scooped up Serebii and ran there. She banged on the door several times, her heart pounding. The Professor opened the door almost immediately. Luna hoped the panic showed on her face, because she could not force out any words. She pointed back up the street. In the distance, the collapsed man was visible. The Professor took her drift.
"Put Serebii in the healing machine in the corner and press the big red button. I'll be back in a few minutes," he instructed, calmly and soothingly. He ran down the street towards the man. Luna did as he had told her and placed the shivering green pokémon onto the machine in a corner of the cluttered room. It was small enough to fit in without a pokéball, so she hit the red button. There was nothing more she could do right now so she leaned against the wall and took deep breaths.
A few minutes later, Professor Oak returned carrying the young man. He placed him on the floor, gently, and examined him. Apart from a lump on his head caused by the fall, he seemed okay, the Professor explained. He told Luna he would be fine with a bit of rest, and a once-over from a professional doctor. He took the man upstairs to rest on one of the beds, where he would be more comfortable when he woke up, and returned quickly.
"Now, today is your Starter pokémon day, right?" Oak smiled, kindly. Luna nodded, but did not return the smile. She was worried about the man upstairs.
"Can I just put it on hold until he wakes up? I don't want to leave until I know he's okay," she sniffed.
"Sure," Oak nodded, "Do you want to call your mother? You can use my phone if you'd like. And stay as long as you want." Luna nodded, and went to the phone. She was startled as the machine beeped to say the healing process was finished. Serebii was healthy again!
Luna's mother told her to stay with the man until he was well again, and then to accompany him to his destination.
"It's your duty as a pokémon trainer," she concluded. Luna nodded in agreement. After hanging up, she waited a while with Professor Oak, until they heard movement from up the stairs. Together with the now energetic Serebii, they went to check on the man.
He was awake.