Pokemon and Humans have gotten along for centuries. They help each other, save each other, and bond with each other. Often times, a human will gather many Pokemon and command them in competitions. But no matter how many Pokemon that human has, there is always one that started it all with them. These Pokemon, often dubbed "Starter Pokemon", come to understand their Human masters, nay, allies, better than anyone else.
I was one such Pokemon.
"Almost done guys, just stay put for a few seconds more," I yawned, but obeyed the command from the stocky, brown haired man. We sat, my colleague and I, in a dull field of short grass, being gently licked by the warm breeze blowing in from the south. The human commanding was busy studying some small, brown and white furred quadrupeds with a goofy smile. He was an idiot, and yet he was among the smartest humans in all of Hoenn. What did that tell you?
"Mudkip...want to play a game?" I glanced over at my colleague, a bipedal, green scaled lizard with feet and a tail that seemed too large for his body. He was a youngster, brought in recently to be given out to a trainer when the time came...okay, he wasn't that much younger than me, but that wasn't the point. The point was...we were bored out of our mind.
"Nah, I'm good Treecko," I responded, shifting slightly so my tail fin could stick out straight. "Maybe later,"
"Ah hah, done. What calm Zigzagoon," the stocky man in a white lab coat said. Professor Birch was a bit too long for my liking, so I called him Stumpy. Some might call it offensive, some might call it funny. They'd all be correct. "You guys ready to bail back to the lab now?"
Treecko and I nodded, and I let out a quiet groan as he pulled two red and white orbs from his coat pockets. Sure, I was bored, but I'd rather be out here then within the confines of a stupid Pokeball. Rumor had it there was a trick to getting out yourself, but I had yet to figure it out. Until that day came, I had to sit obediently, and let the potentially cancerous red laser suck me into the ball, blinding me for about a straight minute.
When my vision did return to normal, I rolled my eyes at the scene around me. Now there were trees, tall ones. There was muddy land nearby, but I was seated upon a lilypad, which stayed motionless upon a vast expanse of murky brown water. It was safe water, just filled with mud. If it were a real scene, the lilypad would be drifting lazily downstream, for this swamp had a slight current to it. I should know, I was born in it.
But it was fake. Just a simulation to make me feel at ease. Yeah, right. All it did was piss me off, mock my intelligence, and make me homesick like you would not believe. Not a good mix of emotions to be feeling for a Pokemon that was picked for it's tolerance. How the hell was this trickery fair to me at all?
I swatted at the muddy water angrily, my paw passing through the water as if it wasn't even there, and I let out a sigh. No need for this place to get me down again. Staying positive was a virtue or something, right? Maybe someday I'd never have to see this place again, I just gotta wait. Could at least admire the technology and all, capturing an image of my birthplace, and-
There was an echoing click, and I found myself blinded once again. Right in the middle of my train of thought, too. How rude.
After several blinks, it was apparent that I was suddenly back in the clearing full of short grass and not much else. The hell did Birch want no-
"Crap!" I cried out as something slammed into my side, knocking me over and leaving a stinging pain in my ribs. Okay, this was just stupid now. I was attacked?
"Mudkip, get up," a foreign voice commanded. I felt an urge to obey in the back of my mind, but I resisted it and looked to the source of the voice instead. Sure enough, I saw a human, this one female. She looked fairly young, about the same age as Birch's kid. Her hair was black and short (for a female), ending just past her neck and covering her forehead at the front. Her clothes...wait, why did I care about what she was wearing? Where was my attacker?
I heard a rather intimidating snarl, looked to my right, and saw a less than intimidating Pokemon with four legs, dark gray fur, a black snout and red eyes. Just a Poochyena who thought it was tough. Wasn't the first one, definitely wouldn't be the last.
"Stupid fish!" the Poochyena growled. I frowned at that remark, and spat a glob of water forcefully at the mutt's face, making an oh-so-satisfying splash sound upon impact.
"I'm not a fish, jerk. I'm an amphibian," I retorted with a smirk. The human girl from earlier cleared her throat, catching my attention.
"Mudkip...wait for the next attack," Uh, d'uh? I was going to do that the whole time. Despite having four legs, I'm not that fast on land, so I can't just speed around opponents...I learned that from sparring with Treecko, and Trish before she was picked.
Despite getting information of my strategy, the Poochyena charged at me, barking as it did so. The stupid mutt let out a yelp of surprise when I moved out of the way, then a yelp of pain as I rammed my head into his ribcage.
"How do YOU like it?" I taunted as the Poochyena rolled across the ground, dirt coating his fur. The Poochyena got up, growled at me for a bit...then ran away with its tail literally between it's legs. Poochyena were all bark and no bite. As soon as the going got rough, they got going. Common knowledge for the win.
"Phew...thank goodness. You really saved me there," Wait, don't tell me...Yup. Stumpy was standing up behind me, dusting his lab coat off. His face was glistening, coated in sweat...that Poochyena had him on the run? The thing was like one tenth his size! He could have just stepped on it or given it a swift boot in the rear. Idiot professor. "Nice job with Mudkip there, too. What's your name?" Okay, good, the girl wasn't actually my trainer.
"I'm Erica," the girl responded, her tone less than enthused. I turned to face her, as I had yet to finish my examination. She wore a beige sweater over top of a red skirt. She had some tight black socks or something that went nearly to her knees, and she had black leather shoes one. Okay...was she a tourist? That was a not an outfit fitting for Hoenn; a hot, rough region with a lot of ocean around it.
"Oh, yes! Erica, I was expecting you back at the lab. Come, let's head back there," Stumpy said. Erica nodded and held my Pokeball out at me, but I growled at her in response. No way in hell I was going back inside that thing already! But, after a second's hesitation, Erica activated the cursed device and brought me back into it. Bitch.
Just as I was about to fall asleep on top of that lilypad, I found myself outside of the illusion world again. This time I was lying on top of a white table, in a mostly white room that was filled with various white colored objects. Stumpy's lab. Beside me was Treecko, who was happily humming to himself, and a new Torchic to replace Trish. The orange feathered bird was pecking pointlessly at the table we sat upon, and was clearly infantile as well. At least Treecko wasn't...well...never mind, he was.
"Torchic, Treecko, and Mudkip are your options, Erica. Which one do you want to start with?" Stumpy asked. Straight in front of me was that Erica bitch again, and she eyed the three of us carefully. Her hazel eyes rested the longest on Torchic. Seriously, she eyed the bird as if she wanted it for...you know...adult content. It was apparent that she came here for that feather-brain, so I was shocked when her index finger was pointed directly between my black eyes.
"Mudkip," Erica said, her eyes following her finger. I blinked up at her, confused as to why she picked me, but didn't object. Not that I could; Stumpy handed Erica my Pokeball, giving the girl full ownership of me. Pain in the fin.
"Excellent choice Erica. Though, either of them would be," Stumpy said with a chuckle. It hit me then that this would probably be the last time I saw Stumpy, baby Treecko, or baby Torchic. Huh...I was actually a little sad. Didn't let it show, though. Not because I had held it in, but because a whole whack of emotions were blasting my conscious mind at that time. I was leaving with a bitch to start on some dull journey across Hoenn.
"Thanks for everything, Professor Birch," Erica said politely. Even then, her tone was still dull...what was with this girl? Stumpy's kid was chattery and always laughing, a good kid. I was stuck with a robo bitch?
"No worries...well, actually, there is one favor I'd like for you to do, if you don't mind," Stumpy just had to say. -I- did mind. Minded plenty. And yet..."My son is studying battling at Rustboro for about a week. Shouldn't tak you nearly that long to get there, and you would be heading there anyway, so would you mind dropping off this for him," Erica blinked as she was handed another Pokedex, and I hopped off the table before the two infants noticed I would be leaving.
"Sure," Erica responded after a while. She probably reminded herself not to be a bitch but to be polite. Stumpy did that with his boy. Erica looked down at me, and held the ball out. I growled again, ready to shoot the damned contraption of of the bitch's hand...but she clipped onto a belt she kept around her skirt. It was then that I noticed Erica was carrying a dark green bag of sorts, which probably held provisions for the road ahead...ugh, the road.
Okay, I guess I always did want to go on a journey. Get stronger and all that, but...then why was I straight up cranky?
"Take care, Erica," Stumpy said. He didn't even bid me a farewell...bastard. That stung more than I'd have liked it to. Erica walked towards the lab's doors, and I followed. Well, she was my trainer now. Liscensed and all that, whether I liked it or not.
Looking back now, I was a real jerk to Erica. Thankfully, it didn't stay that way. I changed. Erica changed. Hell the whole damn world changed...but, we'll get to that.