This is written in a journal style. normal text is just a narrative while italics are a recalled memory.
Sometimes the descent into a life considered bad is just a slip of luck and the chance to get rich. Not everyone's first intent is to hurt those closest to them in order to keep them safe. Heck, no one really starts out evil, it shows ed itself as opportunity. Not everyone can be lucky in life. The fact that this journal has survived means either someone has spent a lot of time trying to protect it, or you have merely wandered upon it. My advice: stop reading; forget you ever found this journal. This is a tale I prefer to die quickly. The people in this journal may be famous, or have been famous at one point, but none- the- less I need this to be off my chest.
YEAR 1 Months 1-4
Just like all children in Kanto, on your tenth birthday you are allowed to start your pokémon journey. Most kids who don't live in Pallet Town generally are lent one of their parents' or older siblings' Pokémon and are given a pokéball and told to go catch what they find. That is the first test of one's ability to handle training. As soon as you can accomplish that, you are to return to the town center, registering yourself and the Pokémon, as well as giving a small DNA sample. They use it in case you're found dead, just as proof that it is truly you.
I was graced with the chance to go catch my first Pokémon using my dad's Ponyta. I had wandered around the park for a few hours, debating what a good choice was. Many in my group were already bragging about catching a Pidgey or some sort of bug. One kid even claimed he caught a Pikachu, but seeing as though we didn't leave near an electric power plant or Viridian Forest, we didn't believe him.
As I sat there pondering, a small cat came over and sat by me. It seemed incredibly docile for a wild Pokémon. It allowed me to pet it instead of clawing me like the other Meowths did I just figured it was someone's already and I didn't want to try to catch an already owned Pokémon and waste my ball. I just sat there, continuing with my thoughts.
It began getting dark, and I still hadn't caught anything. The Meowth that was sitting with me was still there, purring as I absentmindedly scratched its head. No one had come for this little guy, so I soon began thinking that he was abandoned. I stood up, watching the cat watch me.
"Do you have a trainer?" I ask the cat, wondering if it could understand a thing I said. It cocked its head as if pondering what I had just asked it. After a few seconds it looked at the ground and did what looked like it shook its head no.
"Did your trainer abandon you?" Again it looked at me then turned its head to one side, looking like it was trying to think of the best answer. This time I got a quick "Meow" in response. "Did you ever have a trainer?" A quick shake no.
I looked at the Pokémon for a second before backing up a few steps, grabbing my father's Ponyta's ball. I let the Ponyta out and looked at the Meowth. It had jumped off the bench and stood on two legs, standing much like I was. The two started fighting, the Meowth seemingly tireless. I threw the ball at the Pokémon, grinning when I heard it click and the ball return to me. I returned the Ponyta and in turn released my Meowth, letting it climb on my clothes to find a place on my shoulders, draping itself around the back of my neck. I slowly trudged towards home, ready to show my parents my new friend. Every so often my friend would lick my neck and bat its tail along my cheeks. It seemed to warm up to me quickly and vice versa.
That began a strong friendship between us. It took me a while before I figured out it was a male. When I discovered that we stated the name game. Again, it took a while before I thought of the perfect name for him. Instead of friend or Meowth, I started to call him Kuro. He seemed to like it. And we were getting pretty strong together. When it became time to register, I knew we were both ready to go start the Kanto training and gym circuit. We had beat most of my classmate and age mates in the town where I lived, now we could expand to greater things.
The days that followed after registration grew bothersome. Not many from my hometown kids made it past the criteria. A few did, but barely. My parents spent a little bit more time with me, making sure all my plans were made and ready to be executed. My mom had several tearful fits following when I finished packing, but I already had been expecting this. When you have older siblings, you get to experience just about every facet of your parents' behaviors.
I packed well. My parents got me a Pokémon encyclopedia, a few spare clothes, a small wooden box where I could hold my unused pokéballs, a sleeping bag, a little money, and a small collection of food, both Pokémon and human. Kuro went to investigate my bag, standing up on two legs to get a better view before jumping up and nesting in my clothes on top. My mom let out a quiet giggle and my dad put his hand on my back, his way of praising his kids while not saying a word. He was like that, not into verbal praise, but you could always tell when he was proud of you.
The next morning I was to join the bus that's route was to go from all the towns not close to Pallet Town and bring them down there to obtain the license and enter into the Kanto Circuit. It had already been a month since I had caught Kuro and I knew the two of us needed to get somewhere new. That night I went out onto the roof right next to my window over the garage, and just sat there with Kuro.
The bus ride sucked and it took several days to reach Pallet. Kuro sat next to me the whole time, preferring to watch the window and the outside rather than others on the bus, but both of us were safe and dry, so I can't complain too much. The other kids were trying to find groups to travel in, as recommended, but no one really came over to talk to me or ask me anything. Kuro would occasionally make chattering noises when there were some wild pokémon outside. For several days, I just sat there, not really having anything to do. When the boredom got too great, I would snake a hand out and pat my Meowth's head and stroke his tail.
When we finally arrived, I was excited and mildly disappointed. The pictures of Pallet Town were much better than the town itself, but the lab was beautiful. It stood up on this hill, a long path winding up to the lab, trees providing shade. It was perfect. I went to grab my bag, finding that Kuro was waiting right next to it. Sometimes I wondered about him. He always seemed to know what to do before I did. I felt him climb up and rest on my bag once I had put it on. It got some giggles from some of the other kids, but as long as Kuro was content, I could be too.
The group went along this path, some mumbling that it was too long. I found it enjoyable. There were distractions everywhere, always something to see. I felt Kuro licking the back of my neck at the hairline. It was really ticklish, but I didn't want to draw attention to us. The aide leading us to the lab would stop often, letting others catch up.
The inside of the lab was just cold. There were no personal items except on desks and it was still minimal. We were led up to a big desk and given our licenses then pointed into a theater. Soon the lights darkened and this strange old man in a lab coat came out.
"Welcome children. Thank you all for coming. As you know, this world is big and vast, full of opportunities that will take you far. As you all now have a Pokémon, a new opportunity is presented to each of you. Will you become a Master? Maybe in time. Want to beat all the gyms in this region? Someday you might. Want to enjoy all this region has to offer you and then travel to another? You can!" He then proceeded to put a disk into a projector and soon more pictures and videos of Kanto greeted us. There was a guy feeding a Rapidash out of his hand then jumping onto its back, an artist sketching a scene of two Pidgey.
The opportunities the video made me feel refreshed. After all of that, I still had half a day left to start my journey if I wanted or I could go explore more of the lab. Quickly deciding that I wanted to start my journey, I told Kuro to get off my bag and instead walk beside me. Like most of the time he walked on all fours, but I knew he could have as easily walked on his back two legs.
We went out of the town towards the Route 1 sign. Remembering that wild Pokémon are more likely to attack when you walk in the taller grass, Kuro and I went into the tall grasses, looking for a new companion.
Kuro would stand up on two legs, sniff around, use his scratch attack on the grass then continue along the way on all four. I think he was as excited as me to obtain a new friend. We soon came across a Pidgey. I told Kuro to scratch the bird and the battle continued. I tried to weaken the Pokémon slowly, making it more likely to be caught. I went into my box and found 5 pokéballs and used one on the Pidgey. The ball returned to me, but I was unsure whether to let this Pokémon out or not. It didn't seem as docile as Kuro that first day I found him. I just didn't want it to run away from me. Choosing to keep it in the ball, I continued along the Route.
After 3 days, I arrived in Viridian City. Along the way I had caught a Rattata and had Pidgey from before, neither of which had seen the world since I had caught them. I felt incredibly horrible about how I had treated these two. Why hadn't I let them out? I rushed to the PokéCenter to heal all of my team. My team was in perfect health. I rented a room for the week, getting to enjoy this city. At night when Kuro and I were in the room, I would release the other two Pokémon. Neither of them had any interest in me. By the end of the week though, the Pidgey would let me pet it and stroke its wings without fighting me and the Rattata would now lie on my lap and had shown some interest in playing with the others. I looked at my encyclopedia and discovered that my Pidgey was a male and Rattata was a girl. I started trying to think of names for them before we left.
By the time we got through that I had a fiercely loyal Pidgey who I called KJ. I can't remember why I called it that, but it seemed to fit. The little Rattata was supremely skittish, buy could pack a punch. She, I resolved to call her this, Buffy. There was a popular show, Buffy the Legend Hunter, which I had watched right before I started my journey. It was about a girl, Buffy, who went around the regions, looking for Legendary Pokémon.
As the months progressed by, I slowly lost all my money I had made. Most of it went into renting rooms and food and some towards medicines and more training supplies for the team. By the time we reached Pewter City, my team had grown again. I had a Caterpie, Wilson, who evolved into a Metapod and a little rambunctious Pikachu, Chewy.
No one really tells you that training is expensive. No one will tell you how some nights it's so cold you wish that you were back home. But at night, when we were out on the routes between towns in tents, no one tells you how your team will try to help keep you warm, or the amount of bonding that you and your Pokémon must have gone through. And still, some nights, I would put all my team back in their balls and resolve to climb a tree with Kuro on my back and just watch the stars and moon.
It would take another three months for me to challenge Brock, the Gym Leader. Within this time, I worked so hard on training my team that my personal health was one of my lesser worries. I was in the hospital for a few days from exhaustion apparently. But throughout all the struggles, my team blossomed into a great unit. Wilson graced me again when he evolved into a Butterfree and KJ evolved into a Pidgeotto. At times I thought I was the luckiest person in the world. I had a great team.
Hello, this is Anything1516. Hope that you enjoyed this new story. It was just an idea I had one morning and I felt the need to start writing it. I would love any opinion on it and I hope that the concept is fairly original. I had a friend edit so I pray that there are few mistakes.
