Over ten years ago, three children received their first Pokémon from that famous Professor Oak of Pallet Town. To be sure, it didn't take long for the first two children to make a name for themselves. Within a year, the two, thanks to their fierce rivalry, were able to reach great heights. They were the youngest boys ever to challenge the Elite Four and emerge victorious. The first was a young boy named Blue, the grandson of Professor Oak. He, however, only managed to be Champion for about three hours, thanks to Red entering the picture.

After defeating Blue, Red renounced his championship and headed off for the mountains, in an attempt to deal with his newfound (and unwanted) fame. Left feeling somewhat bitter and lost, Blue left Kanto. He didn't return again for several years, but when he finally did, the young Trainer decided to take ownership of the old Viridian Gym.

Oh, but wait a minute… There were three children to start with, weren't there?

Ah, right. There was also Leaf.

Unlike her peers, she was slow to learn the ways to train very strong Pokémon… She never became famous, in any shape or form.

After three years, she finally attained enough badges to challenge the Elite Four. However, even after spending an entire year training for it, the girl still wasn't able to rise up to the challenge. She was defeated by Agatha, a woman who decided to retire from her post shortly afterwards. Leaf never got the chance to challenge her again, but it didn't matter. No matter how many times she tried, she never was able to achieve the same success as her peers. The Elite Four challenge remained insurmountable to her. Over time, Leaf gave up on it.

Despite her lack of innate skill on the battlefield, she still adored Pokémon, and so the young Trainer decided to become a Researcher. She attended school and eventually took up a post observing Pokémon for Professor Oak. Since the old Professor didn't have the time and energy he used to, he was happy to send her out in the field. She loved the work, traveling throughout Kanto and doing what she liked most: spending time with Pokémon, all without having to face the stress of very strenuous competitions.

oOoOoOo

"Eh? Professor Oak? What does he want…?"

Leaf bit the inside of her cheek, confused. Apparently, Oak had decided to video chat with her, but thanks to the slow connection, it had yet to work. Was this about that weekly report…? No, she had sent him that two days ago; she still had time to prepare the next one, so then… what?

At long last, Professor Oak's face appeared upon the screen. He was just standing there, holding up a book, like usual. Leaf had yet to find out the actual title of that book he was always carrying, since it was simply a basic-looking book with nothing on the cover but a boring shade of brown. Maybe he needed it in order to look scholarly…?

"Ah, Leaf! Hello! I have some great news! I found a new assignment for you!"

"Really? Uh, what is it?"

"Oh yes, it's going to be very exciting... But first, I must ask you: are you a boy or a girl?"

"I'm a girl, Professor…"

Did he really need to ask her that… every time they talked?

"Ah yes! Right! And my grandson, his name is…?"

"Blue, Professor… His name is Blue…"

And that question again, too? No wonder Blue had so many self-esteem issues…

"Ah yes! That's right; how could I forget? Now, ah… back to the issue at hand! How do you feel about… heading to Sinnoh?"

"Sinnoh?" Leaf blinked. "Where's that?"

"You really don't know? Didn't one of your sisters, Lily, head out there a few years ago?"

Oh, so he knew one of her sisters by name, but not his own grandson…? It really seemed that Blue's name was the only one he ever failed to recall on a routine basis. The minds of geniuses could be strange things indeed…

"Uh, yeah… I guess she did."

Now Leaf, on the other hand, had so many siblings coming and going, she hardly remembered where any of them were at present. They were all wanderers, forever off on journeys in different regions. It was hard to keep track of everybody.

"Well, that's where you're going too. Tomorrow! Now… I'm sure it will be a fine journey, filled with friends and brand-new Pokémon that are unique to the region! Go forth and find your path in life, Leaf; it's sure to be one blessed with new friends and adventures, one that will be shared with both humans and Pokémon alike!"

"Yes, yes; I understand, Professor…!" Leaf hurriedly exclaimed, frantically waving her hands to get his attention. It could be difficult sometimes, especially when he jumped into one of those lively speeches about starting journeys. "But what would I do there? I thought you wanted me to… Well, I've got to give you one of those reports in a week or so, and-"

"Oh, don't worry about any of that!" the Professor cried, waving his book as if to cast the thought aside. "You won't be doing any of that for a while. And actually… by 'a while,' I mean a year or two. Now I want you to work with my colleague, Professor Rowan. You'll be fulfilling jobs for him until further notice."

"You're… transferring me?" Leaf exclaimed, suddenly frantic all over again. "What did I do—I didn't even—I don't even—! What am I going to-?"

"Relax!" the Professor chuckled, though his stoic expression hardly changed. "You didn't do anything wrong, and this isn't the result of any punishment. Nothing of the sort. Rather, it's more of a promotion, actually. Professor Rowan has been a little short-handed lately, and he has a very interesting task waiting for you. I figured you would enjoy it, so I decided to send you off, right away!"

"Oh. Okay," she replied shortly, feeling a little dumb over her previous outburst.

"Well, good. If that's all, I'll send you your ticket. You'll need to leave Vermillion by seven. You're in the area, I presume?"

"Yes… so I'll be leaving by boat then?"

"That's right. Oh, and while you're there, do your best to enjoy yourself! You can participate in Gym battles, collect and trade new Pokémon, go shopping for new items and power-ups, and-"

"Yes, Professor. Thank you. I'll… do that."

"Oh, good! And, good luck! Oh, and remember, you'll be starting a brand-new journey, filled with new friends and surprises! You're sure to meet plenty of new faces, those of people and Pokémon alike! It's sure to be a grand adventure! You're about to enter a new phase of your young life…"

Leaf exhaled, shifting so that she could rest her head on her palm. This was going to take a while…

oOoOoOo

NOTES: Well, this chapter has been entirely rewritten! It's still not that great, but I think it's better than it was… I didn't really know what I was doing back then. ^^;