Let's do this -
Setting: Unova ~ PRE-BW2
He knew this was a horrible idea, one of his worst ones yet. The high noon sun blared down with little mercy as his brown eyes scanned the surrounding area. He saw nothing but a cloudless sky that stretched off into the horizon. Knee-high grass hid a supposed dirt road that led travelers onto the next town. However, the road was entirely useless considering you couldn't see it.
The teenage boy ran a bandaged hand through his dark brown hair, adjusting his gray and white hat. He brought his other hand up to shield his eyes from the blinding sunlight and sighed, "Dammit, I knew I should've brought a map."
In truth, it wasn't entirely his idea; his parents had set him up to leaving on this hopeless journey in the first place. They had thought it'd be a swell idea to give him a Pokémon for his sixteenth birthday; a silent demand that he had to get the hell out of their house and make them proud. He couldn't blame them really, most kids would have been out of their parent's home by the age of ten, but he was "different". At least that was what he told them whenever the topic arose.
Sighing for a second time, he decided giving up was the best course of action seeing as he couldn't find his way around the damn route. He removed what he believed his mom had called a messenger bag (he just called it his man purse), and dropped the heavy bag full of all his recently packed supplies on the ground. He sat down on the ground, crushing and bending the tall grass under his weight.
He stared at the deep blue sky, avoiding staring directly into the harsh rays of sunlight and said, "Well at least no one can harass me about being lazy way out here". The teenage boy was pale, not in a sickly fashion, but untouched by the sun. He was lean and slim, definitely not the outdoors type but young and glowing with health nonetheless. He wore a thin black jacket with a dark blue collar and a gray zipper over a white T-shirt. He also sported the typical trainer shoes, gray pants, and a hat over his messy brown hair. He was dressed to be out in the wilderness, but in all honesty he would have much rather preferred to be in the comfort of his bed.
His thoughts drifted to the events that had occurred earlier that morning: his rude awakening by cries of "happy birthday!", the birthday pancakes he ate for breakfast, the new clothes and trainer items he received from his mother, and the Pokémon he had received from his father- his starter. Which shouldn't really be a starter considering how dangerous it was, but his father thought since his son was one of the older rookies he'd be able to handle it.
The boy scoffed. "Yeah Dad, I can so handle a dragon type as my first Pokémon." A damn deino. "I mean honestly of all the Pokémon out there," he muttered.
There wasn't anything wrong about a deino or dragon types- just that fact that dragon types are the hardest to train and that they are quite dangerous in the wrong hands. Oh and the fact that deino were blind sure didn't help. The damn thing had bitten him earlier, and he had a bandaged hand to prove it. Sure the stupid Pokedex had warned him that that was how the stupid lizards became acquainted with their surroundings, but he didn't really expect it to draw blood.
Sighing for a third time, he half thought about taking a nap and continuing his journey when he woke and half considered releasing the dog-like lizard and living on the lam (from his parents that is). He opted to choose the former, since the latter would take much more effort, and slowly allowed sleep to take him away from his thoughts.
Excitement couldn't begin to describe the emotion that had possessed her the moment she stepped onto route one. She was beyond giddy, she had to pinch herself a couple of times to focus back on the task on hand; navigating her way through the grassy route. The sun blazed down over her, but she didn't care, she simply shielded her sea foam green eyes and continued down the dirt path trying hard not to skip or break out in song. This was the day she had desired for so long. Granted, it should have happened four years ago when she was ten, but sixteen worked too. She had finally broken free from her parents protective vice grip and had begun her Pokémon journey!
She giggled, remembering the tingling sensation she felt when she first released the cutest tepig she had ever seen from its pokeball. Her parents gave her the tepig as a birthday present, along with the rest of her gear and her pokedex. She had dutifully named the tepig Bacon because she knew he would do the name justice. The little tepig loyally followed her in a giddy stride through the tall grass that obscured him from view but bent and folded from his weight. It let out a "pig" or a "te" with every step it took. The young female trainer absentmindedly adjusted her red hairband and tied her orange-brown hair into a pony-tail that would have made her mother upset because of its messiness. She, however, couldn't care less.
Finally, after five minutes of walking in silence she couldn't contain it any longer - she burst. She exclaimed, "I can't believe it!"
Her outburst shocked the tepig, crying out his species' name. "Tepig!"
"Sorry, Bacon! I'm just so ECSTATIC. I've never felt so free!" The girl outstretched her thin arms and ran around in circles, laughing to herself. Her red skirt that reached her mid-thigh rustled the surrounding grass. Her petite body wore a tight white shirt with a loose, sleeveless black jacket and her feet were protected with red, white and black trainer shoes.
Bacon responded with a "Pig!". He wagged his squiggly tail and watched the trainer do a victory dance.
After the teenage girl tired herself out they settled back into the already familiar stride through the thick grass. Route one was notorious for its tall and thick grass and lack of trees and Pokémon. Eventually, the young girl's mind trailed back to her tearful departure from her parent's home. She remembered the look they had in their eyes; she had seen it more than once. They doubted her and her ability, but she would prove them wrong! She decided the moment she stepped onto the dirt road that she would complete her journey, become super powerful, and capture lots of cute Pokémon too. The young girl got lost in her thoughts and failed to notice how the grass in the surrounding area seemed to thicken and grow, shielding the dirt path from view.
Her thoughts, however, were interrupted as she her foot hit a hard object, sending her tumbling down. She heard a mixture of outcries, one she recognized as a cry of worry from Bacon and another of surprise from a male voice. She groaned, hating her luck. She had tripped over someone, a boy no less. Great.
The boy groaned and pushed her off roughly. He exclaimed, "what is your problem?!
"Sorry! I wasn't paying attention and the grass is really tall around here so I didn't notice you," said the flustered girl as she quickly pushed herself back up. The boy rolled his eyes and stood up, stretching out his back which popped and cracked from stiffness. She watched nervously and then a thought came to mind. "Hey, wait! What were you doing on the floor anyway?"
"Napping," the boy replied smugly.
"In the middle of the road," she said. The boy, however, did not reply. She studied his appearance, green eyes scanning his attire. "Oh! Are you a trainer? You're dressed like one... but you don't look roughed up," she said and then a bright smile formed itself on her face. "You must be new - I'm a rookie trainer too!" She pointed to Bacon, who sat watching the two humans with his black eyes.
The boy trainer only stared at her, slightly annoyed he had been awoken from his nap but mostly annoyed that the person who had woken him up was this chatty. He offered no comment, neither confirming nor denying her statement. He eyed her suspiciously, her nice demeanor rubbing him the wrong way. He noticed she only had one red and white pokeball hooked onto her skirt so he assumed that the tepig was her starter. After about a minute of awkward silence and lots of staring, the boy silently collected his bag, dusted off his pants, and began to walk away.
"Hey! Hey wait!" The girl started after him. "You haven't even told me your name."
"Neither have you," he said, quickening his pace.
The girl, however, kept up with his fast pace walking along beside him. "I'm Emily! You can call me Em," she said happily, clearly pleased with the nickname she gave herself. "Oh, and that's Bacon. He's a tepig," she said as an afterthought.
The fire pig Pokemon cheered happily at his name. "Tepig!"
For a moment he said nothing, contemplating whether or not he should give out his name. For a moment he considered running away, although that'd be pointless seeing as there was nowhere to hide and he didn't want to make a fool of himself. He had hardly known her for five minutes, but then again how much harm would come from exchanging names. Finally he said, "Rob. You can call me Robert."
"Ha ha, very funny," she rolled her eyes, not bothered by his mocking gesture. "I think I'll call you Robby," she said thoughtfully.
"We're not even friends," the boy protested, annoyed at the girls eagerness to be social.
"Well then let's be friends! You're on a journey too right? We can travel together, I read in a trainer magazine once that a journey is always much more fun in groups," she looked at him eagerly.
He avoided looking her in the eye. It was bad enough he had to go on this stupid journey, he didn't want to do it with other people. "No," he said.
"Come on, Robby! It'll be fun I promise," she begged, clasping her two hands and giving him the best pleading look she could muster. She was definitely glad to have acquired new independence, but she didn't necessarily want to do it all alone. Besides, she thought to herself, he's kind of cute.
But the boy remained in silence, refusing to make eye contact. He looked far ahead into the distance, squinting and trying to spot the next town. No luck. He stopped his walking, taking notice that the girl stopped with him. He turned around staring in all directions for the dirt road. "Where the hell is it," he groaned.
"Where's what?" Em asked confused.
"The road! The damn road that's supposed to lead you to Accumula town," he sighed. "This journey thing is so much work."
Em fought the urge to laugh at his complete lack of enthusiasm. "I have a map," she offered. She stuck her hand in her heavily packed bag, shuffling through the unorganized mess. She grumbled to herself as she tried to locate the device. She pulled out a black colored watch-like wristband with a red screen. "Here we go! It's a C-gear," she said when she saw his confused look. "It has a map app," she said, holding up the watch with pride. It had also been a gift from her parents.
The boy succumbed himself to following the euphoric girl. Slowly, the two moved through the grass in some direction or another, following the digital map carefully. Em, only spoke only a couple of times, commenting on little things, but soon fell into the peaceful silence. They walked for about an hour as the sun slowly descended behind them, casting an orange glow over the grassy fields. Em returned Bacon back into his pokeball after he began to slow down with signs of fatigue. Slowly the horizon seemed to sink away and give way to a tiny and quaint little town that rose out the distance.
Eventually the wild knee high grass began to diminish into much more tamed foliage. The dirt road seemed to appear beneath their feet from out of the field. Said dirt road slowly turned into stone pavement and finally the two trainers walked into the town just as darkness fell over them.
"Well, we made it to Accumula town," Em said as she scanned the quiet town. Most of the citizens had already retired to bed, but all of the street lights illuminated the road. There were dozens of small, identical brown and indigo houses all lined neatly along the roads. Off in the distance a red roofed glowed, with the familiar pokeball design, among the the small apartments and blue roofs. Emily absentmindedly checked the time on the C-gear, which she had strapped to her wrist. "Oh it's already eleven! We should hurry to the Pokemon center and check into a roo-" her stomach growl interrupted her mid-sentence.
Robert smirked, clearly amused. "And hit the cafeteria too, huh?"
The girl smiled embarrassingly. "Yea- Wait! So it's official we're traveling together?"
The amused smirk fell and quickly he tried to amend his mistake. "I didn't say that."
"You haven't denied it either," she pointed out. He responded with silence. "I'll take that as a yes," she said smiling. She threw her arms around him happily. "It'll be a Robby and Em adventure!"
It was a usual quiet night at Accumula town's Pokémon center. A pink haired woman dressed clad in a pink and white medical dress walked down the silent hall of the Pokémon center with her assistant, a cheerful and also pink audino. All of the trainers had already gone to bed for the night which left Nurse Joy and her audino, which she had lovingly named Cherry, to tend to the messes left behind by the daily mobs of trainers that went through the center every day. The two diligent nurses had just finished clearing the cafeteria, which had closed just about an hour ago - dinner ends at ten o'clock sharp.
The young nurse and her Pokémon did their final rounds around the modestly small sized building, checking each floor for anyone that might still be awake. Nurse Joy was adamant about lights out at eleven, even for the older trainers.
At a quarter past eleven, the pink duo began the arduous task of sweeping the main lobby, wiping counters and tables, and re-stacking piles of magazines tossed about the area. Cherry would let out a satisfactory "dino" once she had rid a counter top or table of fingerprints and smudges. Nurse Joy quietly hummed to herself as she swept the yellow lobby tiles with a wooden broom, occasionally moving the leather couches around to get every nook and cranny.
Fifteen minutes before midnight, once they were sure the lobby was completely spotless, Nurse Joy headed towards the door, key in hand, to lock up for the night. Much to her surprise the automatic doors slid open before she could reach them - two trainers walked through hunched over and panting. Clearly, the young trainers had ran to the center.
"Oh!" The nurse stepped back, shocked by their abrupt entrance. Cherry, who had been preoccupied rearranging a bunch of flowers in a vase, looked up at the nurse and let out a cry of worry. "My, what are you two young children doing out so late?"
"We...," the male trainer began, and paused, short on breath. "We got lost," he finished. "Do you have room for two?"
"Or better yet, is the cafeteria still open?" The female trainer asked hopefully.
The boy rolled his eyes, running a hand through his thick brown hair. "Way to keep your priorities straight, Em."
"What? Food before shelter," the girl named Em whined. "Oh! You called me Em. Does that mean we're officially friends now?"
"I'd rather give up a meal for a nice and warm bed," said the brown haired boy, rolling his eyes. He chose to ignore her question.
"I'm afraid you two missed dinner, the cafeteria closes at ten," the nurse sighed, shaking her head in disapproval. Young trainers shouldn't be out this late at night. The male trainer sighed, while the female trainer groaned, clutching her stomach. "However, I might just have some leftovers in the fridge that I can bring to your room. You two are very lucky; we also do have one last room available!"
The young girl gave out a triumphant cheer, jumping in place. "Yes! Thanks, Nurse Joy," the female trainer said, reading the silver name tag on the pink haired nurses dress. At this, the male trainer rolled his eyes again.
The Nurse couldn't help but laugh at the girls excitement. "This is Cherry," she began, motioning to the audino, who had watched the interaction patiently from a distance. Hearing her name, the audino cheerfully came to Nurse Joy.
Em cooed at the Pokémon. "Aw, she's cute!"
Cherry responded happily, "Audino!"
"She'll lead you two to your room for the night," Nurse Joy said, handing Cherry a silver card. "In the meantime, I'll head over to storage and reheat you two some leftovers. Is that okay?" The two trainers nodded.
"Good! I'll bring you your dinner over to your room shortly," she said, smiling. And with that she went down the main hallway, turning right at the corner.
"Aud-audino," said Cherry, motioning the two trainers to the hallway. They took that as a sign to follow and both complied, following the pink Pokémon obediently. Instead of turning to the right, like Nurse Joy did, the trio turned left and took an elevator to the second floor. The audino led them to a room at the end of one of the hallways on the second floor where all the trainers slept. She fumbled a bit with sliding the key through the slot on the door but eventually the door opened revealing the small room.
"You have got to be shitting me," the boy said.
Em shot the boy a disapproving look. "Robby!"
The small, modest room contained what all the other rooms had: a drawer, a large window with blue curtains, a small wooden table, and a bathroom. However, unlike most rooms that had two beds or like others that had bunk beds, this one contained a single blue bed large enough for two.
"Now young man I understand you're upset but I will not tolerate such foul language while you're at my center," Nurse Joy scolded, her pink eyebrows furrowing in annoyance. She approached them, walking up the hallway behind them carrying two brown trays with various dishes and a bag of Pokemon food."This is the last room available so I'm afraid you two will have to make do."
Cherry moved off to the side, letting Nurse Joy pass with the trays, which she set on the table near the window. "Now it is-," she paused to check her wrist watch. "It's already midnight, I expect you two to eat your dinners and head straight to bed, got it? Good night!" And with that she and Cherry left the two trainers outside of the room in silence.
Emily fidgeted, suddenly finding a loose thread on the hem of her skirt much more interesting than the boy in front of her. "We could sh-,"she began but paused, noticing the boy had gone in already. He dropped his belongings in a corner of the room and sat down on the floor. He removed a single pokeball from his waist, setting it next to him. He then propped up his trainer bag and made a make-shift pillow, lying down.
"Take the bed," he said simply.
Em finally entered the room and looked down at Robby, who was sprawled against the wall across from the bed. "But the floor must be uncomfortable and it definitely can't be good for you back! Besides, aren't you even going to eat?" She cast a glance over at the food that Nurse Joy had brought for them.
He closed his eyes and rolled over, his back facing her. "Tired, I'm not hungry."
"Oh. Well, okay good night then," she said but he didn't reply. She sighed, and walked over to the table. She placed Bacon's pokeball on the table along with her bag. She grabbed the tray closest to her, sitting on the stiff bed, and began to quietly eat her dinner.
So much for a fun traveling companion.