Chapter 1

(I'm going to tell you guys that I can't do the little slash above the 'e' in Pokemon. Also, this story takes place in Sinnoh. There's no Unova Pokemon. ALSO, I'm using a group of Team Galactic members as the bad guys. They are similar to Team Rocket in the show, but without the speeches. Team Galactic does steal Pokemon, you know. I'm also going to warn you, this probably won't be good. It's my first Pokemon story. Another warning, this is in first person-present tense. I've met some people don't like that. If you don't, then you don't have to read this. ANOTHER warning, this first chapter has some major POV changing. If it gets confusing, tell me! Oh, when I put names in parenthesis, it means there's a POV change.

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon! But, Alex and Desy are my characters.)

(Alexander)

"Give back my Riolu!" I shout to the two Team Galactic members in the giant metal machine.

"Hm, let me think. No!" One of them, Victoria, yells back. "This Riolu will be perfect for our experiments."

I carefully study the machine that is trapping my best friend. It is large, that was for sure. It has a red, circular body with long, metal limbs that extend from it. On top of the body is a glass control room that Team Galactic is sitting in. Riolu is trapped in a glass cage that is located in the "hand" of one of the "arms". Wait a minute… glass cage! That's it!

"Riolu, use Brick Break!" I command. Riolu's paw glows white and he punches the glass, which shatters it. As he falls through the broken glass, I run as fast as I can to him. Riolu lands safely in my arms. I set him down and order, "Use Force Palm on the machine!" Riolu puts a palm against the machine and sends out a blast of green light. The machine explodes, sending Team Galactic sailing somewhere in the distance. I turn to Riolu. "Good job, Riolu! That was great!"

Riolu nods happily. "Ri!"

"Let's continue on our way to Jubilife City, shall we?" I ask my partner.

Riolu nods again.

(Team Galactic Member: Victoria)

"Pesky little rat," I mutter as I shake the twigs out of my hair.

"Maybe it had something to do with our machine design," My partner in crime, Darien, chimes. "I mean, we probably should've seen the whole 'glass breaking' deal coming."

"Shut up, Darien," I snap. "Our design was perfect! The problem is that Riolu."

"Well, perhaps we should—"

"Sh!" I hiss as I wave my hand vigorously at him. "Look over there." I point to a large field where a young girl was training with her Pokemon, a Kirlia. Darien and I crouch behind a bush to spy on the girl.

"Okay, Kirlia! Use Magical Leaf!" She orders. Kirlia spins around like a ballerina, then sends a bunch of leaves into the air. When the leaves float to the ground, the girl commands, "Now use Confusion!" Kirlia uses Confusion to make the leaves literally dance around. They hop around and dance. "Now use Double Team!" Kirlia makes copies of itself the circle the dancing leaves. Kirlia and the copies start to dance around the leaves. The girl runs to her Kirlia as the Double Team clones disappear. "That was great, Kirlia! I think we have that down pat!"

"A dancing Kirlia, eh?" I whisper. "Seems… catchable."

Darien grins evilly. "Good thing we still have this baby!" He holds up something that looks like a robot's arm. On one end is a claw that is used to capture the target. On the other side is a button. When you push it, it sends out the claw. "Let's catch Kirlia and use it for our experiments!"

"Then do it!" I tell him.

Darien nods and presses the button. The claw zooms out of the bush and grabs Kirlia.

(Destiny)

"Kirlia!" I yell out. "Who's doing this?"

I hear menacing laugh as two people in strange outfits step out of the bushes. One of them holds the claw that is holding Kirlia. "We're Team Galactic, little girl! I think your Kirlia would be perfect for us to use," The female one says.

"Let go of Kirlia!" I demand.

"Never!" The male one says. "Kirlia is ours now!"

"Kirlia, use Confusion to pry yourself from that claw!" I order. Kirlia's eyes glow and a light pink light surrounds the claw. I see the claws fingers open slightly, but not enough for Kirlia to escape. Kirlia isn't strong enough. I resort to begging. "Please let my Kirlia go!" I plead.

Team Galactic just laughs. "The answer is still no!" The woman says.

"Use Quick Attack!"

A blue and black blur dives forward and strikes the claw, which opens quickly. Kirlia drops to the ground and lands on his feet gracefully. Kirlia leaps to me. I welcome him back with a hug.

"Now use Brick Break!" The blur zooms forward and attacks the claw, causing it to burst. Team Galactic goes flying, screaming all the while.

I finally get a good look at the "blur". It was a small figure with long, black ears and a black tail. It had a blue head and a black mask. "Good job, Riolu," I hear the voice behind me say. **A Riolu?** I think. I whip out my Pokedex and scan the Pokemon.

"Riolu, the Emanation Pokémon. When sad or scared, Riolu's aurabecomes stronger as a way of signaling its allies."

"Are you okay?" The voice asks me.

I turn around to face my rescuer. He has spiky, light brown hair and sparkly blue eyes. "Oh, I'm fine. Those weird people were trying to take my Kirlia when you showed up and saved us. Thank you."

"It's no problem. I go through this on a daily basis," He tells me.

"Really?!" I exclaim.

He nods. "They seem to really want my Riolu." He gestures to Riolu. "I'm Alex, by the way." He sticks out his hand. "Alexander, actually."

I nod and shake his hand awkwardly. My hands look like doll hands compared to his. I take my hand away, not wanting to concentrate on that.

"… Do you have a name?"

"Oh! Um, it's Desy," I say. Realizing that that's not my real name, I correct myself, "Destiny."

"Cute name." Aw, that's nice of him. Wait… he called my name cute? Does that mean he thinks I'm cute, or just my name. **Desy, you're over-thinking this. It's just a compliment,** My brain tells me. "Well, bye," Alex says, walking off. His Riolu follows.

"Wait, wait, wait!" I call, running in front of him. Kirlia jumps up next to me. "You have to protect me!"

Alex looks puzzled. "From what?"

"Those people!" I say. "What if they come back for my Kirlia?"

"They won't." He continues walking away, Riolu following.

I walk next to him, Kirlia by my side. "But what if they do?"

"They won't."

"How can you be sure?"

"I just am."

"That's not logical."

"Sure it is. Now, I have to get to Jubilife City."

"That's where I'm going!" I jump in front of him again and cross my arms over my chest. Kirlia mimics me. "I'm coming with you, whether you like it or not."

Alex tries to walk around me again, but I block his way. He tries again, but gets the same result. "Destiny, get out of the way."

"No!" I refuse. "I need to be protected. Also, you can call me Desy."

Alex sighs heavily, but ignores my ending statement. I turn my nose up stubbornly. Suddenly, I am lifted off the ground. I squeal, "Alex, what are you doing?" Alex doesn't answer. He just slings me over his shoulder. I hit my hands against his back. "Hey, put me down!"

"You said you wanted to come with me," Alex points out.

"And this is your way of saying yes?!" I exclaim. Kirlia giggles from behind Alex. "Hush, you," I say.

Alex sighs contently. "Well. Isn't this fun," he says sarcastically.

"It's not too fun back here, either," I retort.

"You insisted on coming."

I don't respond to his comment. "If we're going to be traveling together, we should get to know each other."

"Fine. Ask me anything."

"Alright. Is Riolu your only Pokemon?" I ask.

"Yep. I've had him since he was an egg."

"Hm. Do you have any badges?"

"Nope. I'm just starting my Gym battles."

"So you've already been traveling for a while?"

"Yep. I thought that I'd to some training and bonding with Riolu before I start the Gym battles."

"Cool," I say. A silence arises. "… Aren't you going to ask me some questions?"

"I prefer not to talk to your butt."

"Then put me down!" I demand. Alex obeys and sets me back on the ground. I straighten my pink skirt and yellow jacket. I sigh and put on a smile. "Much better. Now you can ask me stuff!"

"Fine. Is Kirlia your only Pokemon?"

"Yeah! I— Hey!" I protest. "That's the same question that I asked you!"

"Oh well. Maybe I just wanted to know," Alex shoots back calmly. "Just answer it."

"Fine. Yes, Kirlia is my only Pokemon so far. "

"So far?"

"Yep! I have this egg…" I take the cylindrical case out of my bag. The egg in it was brown with a single tan zigzag across the middle.

"What Pokemon is inside of it?" Alex asks.

"I'm not sure. I found it in the woods outside of Twinleaf Town."

"That's cool. So, do you have any badges?" Alex asks.

"Nope. I don't do Gym battles," I answer, putting the egg back in my backpack.

"Hm? You don't do Gym battles? Then why are you traveling?" Alex questions.

"To do contests, silly!" I reply. "I was never much of the battling type, and neither was Kirlia. So we decided to do contests. We don't have any ribbons. Our first contest is in Jubilife City."

"Sweet! I'll get to see it, then," Alex says.

"Yep! I'm hoping to catch another Pokemon by then."

"Speaking of Pokemon, where'd you get your Kirlia? I've never seen any wild Kirlia around here."

"My father caught him for me in Hoenn," I respond. "That's where I'm from."

"I would've never guessed," Alex tells me. "If you do contests, then you must have a performance for the appeal round."

"I sure do."

"Can I see?"

"Sure! C'mon, Kirlia!" I say. "Okay, use Magical Leaf!" Kirlia sends a group of glowing leaves into the air. As they gently float down, Kirlia twirls about. "Now use Confusion!" Kirlia's eyes glow and a pink light surrounds each leaf. The leaves jump around like they are dancing. "Use Double Team!" Kirlia makes clones of itself that circle the dancing leaves. Kirlia dances around the leaves. The clones and leaves disappear as Kirlia and I take a bow.

"Wow! That was great!" Alex compliments.

"Thanks!" I say, walking back over. "We practiced that a lot. Shall we keep going?"

"Yep. Let's go." We continue our trek to Jubilife City.

After about 20 minutes, I groan. "Are we there yet?"

"No," Alex says simply.

There was an awkward silence. I break it by asking, "Why do you do Gym battles?"

Alex looks surprised by my question. "Um… I'm not really sure. I just always wanted to be a strong battler. Why do you do contests?"

"Because battling is hurtful to Pokemon!" I burst. "It hurts them, and that makes me sad."

"There's battling in contests," He points out.

I cross my arms. "Yeah, but it's not about attacking your opponent, it's about making your moves look good."

"That's absurd! Battling in contests is no different from battling in gym battles!" Alex argues.

"Lies!" I squabble. "There's a world of difference!"

"Then show me!" He demands. "Have a battle with me."

"No! Didn't I just say that I don't like battling?" I decline, turning away from him in distaste.

"How about this? If I lose, I'll do enter a contest."

I whip back around. "Deal!"

"But—" He continues. I groan loudly. He shoots me a look. "But, if I win, you have to participate in a Gym battle."

"What? That's not part of the deal!" I protest. "I've already said 'deal'! You can't add things!"

"I wasn't finished when you interrupted me," Alex tells me. "And I should get something for winning if you get something for winning."

"Couldn't you just… choose something else?" I beg. Alex shakes his head, so I give him my best puppy eyes.

"That doesn't work on me," Alex states. I frown. "And if you're so confident about your contest battling, you should win no problem. Right?"

"Right," I mutter, shooting him a glare. I turn to Kirlia. "Ready, Kirlia?" Kirlia smiles and nods.

"Let's go, Riolu!" I hear Alex tell his Pokemon. Alex and I move to an empty space. "Ready, Destiny?"

"Sure," I say half-heartedly. "You can call me Desy."

"You can have the first move!" Alex flashes me a smile.

I roll my eyes at him. "Kirlia, Will-O-Wisp!" Bluish-white, individual flames appear in front of Kirlia. When Kirlia starts spinning around, they zoom forwards towards Riolu.

"Kick them back at them!" Alex orders Riolu. Riolu jumps up and kicks the flares back at Kirlia and me.

"Use Safeguard!" I command quickly. Kirlia's body becomes surrounding by a mystical blue barrier. The blue flames are repelled by the Safeguard and form a circle Kirlia, like a shield.

"Impressive!" Alex compliments. "Using Safeguard to make a shield out of the fire was a good move. But that won't stop us! Riolu, use Quick Attack!" Riolu bolts forward at an incredible speed and strikes Kirlia. Kirlia falls backwards, but hops right back up. Suddenly, a red glow appears around Riolu, making him sink down. Alex gasps. "Riolu, are you okay?" Riolu nods and stands.

I chuckle. "You've fallen right into our trap," I tell Alex. He looks back at me, puzzled. "Okay, okay. I'll explain. We started off with Will-O-Wisp for a reason. I knew that you would just have Riolu deflect it or dodge it. For the latter, Kirlia would make the flames circle around. Either way, the fire would come back to us, which is where we use Safeguard to repel the attack and make a shield. Knowing that you only use physical attacks, I knew that would have to go through the flame sometime. And that's when Riolu would be burned." Alex grits his teeth, realizing he's been outsmarted. "Kirlia, use Confusion!" Kirlia's eyes glow pink and the same pink surrounds Riolu and lifts him up. Kirlia dances and spins around Riolu, taunting him.

I can almost see Alex's brain working inside of his head. "Riolu, use Brick Break on the ground!" Riolu flips around as his paw glows white. He smashes his paw into the ground, sending up clouds of dust. The dust gets in Kirlia's eyes, causing him to lose concentration. He drops Riolu on the ground and rubs the dust from his eyes. I notice that the cloud also extinguished the Will-O-Wisp shield. "Force Palm!" Riolu jumps out of the dust cloud, palm out.

"Kirlia, jump!" Kirlia leaps into the air and into the cloud. Riolu is forced to slide to a halt as the burn's effects come back and suck away energy. "Double Team!" I yell. The dust cloud dies down, showing multiple copies of Kirlia. "Now use Magical Leaf!" The clones start disappearing, revealing the real one, which was behind Riolu. Kirlia fires leaves at Riolu that circle around him like a tornado. When the tornado was nice and large, the leaves all shoot to the center and attack Riolu. The leaves subside as the burn affects Riolu again. Riolu sinks down, panting.

"You should start rehearsing your contest moves now!" I taunt. "Riolu has accumulated a lot of damage!"

I catch a glint in Alex's eyes as he smirks (a little creepily, if you ask me). "He certainly has." Okay, now he's starting to scare me. "Riolu, use Reversal!" Riolu stands up slowly and runs towards Kirlia, a mysterious blue light trailing behind him. [1]

**What is that move?** I wonder. As Riolu approaches Kirlia, I start to panic. "Um… uh… Kirlia, dodge!" Kirlia tries to move to the side, but Riolu is too fast. Riolu slams into Kirlia, knocking him backwards. "Kirlia, no!" I call out. I run over to Kirlia and see that he is knocked out. The shock settles in as I turn to Alex, who was waiting for my word. "You won," I say quietly.

Alex's mouth forms a wide smile. "Yes! Riolu, we did it!" He sprints to Riolu and lifts him up. "We won!" Riolu smiles, as well and starts to cheer.

I look down at Kirlia, who was just now coming to. I plop down next to him. Kirlia sets a hand on my leg, asking if I was okay. "I'm okay, Kirlia," I tell him softly. I knew I wasn't fooling him. I knew that he could sense how I was feeling. Kirlia stares into my eyes. My bottom lip quivers. "Okay, I'm not okay." I try to pull myself together so that I don't cry in front of Alex. I fail miserably. I throw my head back and wail, tears pouring to the ground. Kirlia stands in front of me and tries to calm me down.

Alex and Riolu look over in shock. "Huh? Destiny?" He sets Riolu down and walks over to me. "What's wrong?"

"I-I-I…" I stutter. "I lost!" I sniff loudly. "And you can call me Desy."

Alex panics. "H-hey! It's okay! It's just one battle!"

"Yeah, but now I have to do a Gym battle!" I cry. "And I hate losing! And Gyms!"

"It's just one Gym battle," Alex reasons.

"Yeah, but that's less time that I have to practice for contests!" I sob.

"It won't be so bad," He comforts.

"Yes, it will!" I bawl. "It'll be horrible! I'll make a complete fool of myself, just like I did here!"

Kirlia taps on Alex's leg. Alex looks down at him. "Hm? Can you help make her stop crying?" Kirlia nods. He faces me and closes his eyes. The horns on his head start shimmering and glowing. I can literally feel the negative feelings being sucked out of my body. I stop crying and wipe my eyes. Kirlia opens his eyes. The light that was glowing in his horns seems to burst, as the horns release small beams of light and glitter in every direction. Kirlia smiles at me. "Are you done crying?" Alex asks me.

I sigh. "Yes."

"Good. That means you can answer my question." He points to Kirlia, then to me. "What. Just. Happened?"

"Kirlia absorbed my sad feelings," I explain. "You see, my Kirlia is special. He has been ever since he was a little Ralts. Kirlia has a special ability that no other Kirlia has. He can "absorb" negative feelings into his horns from people and Pokemon to make them feel better."

(Alexander)

"That's amazing!" I exclaim.

"But Kirlia can't do it very often, because it takes a lot of energy. See?" Destiny gestures to Kirlia, who was slowly sinking back to the ground. "And since this time was right after a battle, it is especially bad." She turns to Kirlia. "Here, let me help you." She digs around in her bag and pulls out an Oran berry. Desy hands it to Kirlia, who eats it slowly.

"So you just carry berries around in your bag?" I question.

"Medicine, too," Destiny replies.

"You have like a portable Pokemon Center in there," I say.

"I guess you could say that."

"Seriously. I've never met anyone who carries around as much stuff as you do."

Destiny giggles. "Thank you! Now, I'll heal Riolu for you." She kneels in front of Riolu and pulls a Potion out of her bag. She sprays it on his wounds, which start to heal.

"Thanks," I say. "How do you keep all that stuff organized?"

"Easy." She pulls out a big plastic case with different compartments for each type of healing item.

"That's amazing," I tell her.

Destiny smiles at me and slips the case in her bag. She stands up and slings the bag over her shoulder. "Shall we keep going?" I nod in agreement. We continue walking to Jubilife City.

How do you guys think I did on my first Pokemon story on here? I think it turned out pretty well. :)

Notes:

[1] I'm completely making this up… The move is real, just not the description.