Chapter One:
The Kanto National Pokemon Academy. One of the top four universities in the world, and current number one in Pokemon battling between the four. The National Intramural Battle Tournament takes place at the end of every school year, where the top 8 students from each school compete in an elitist tournament to decide school pride. Naturally, the goal for all students is to get a good education to perhaps join the professional battling circuit, the professional coordinator circuit become a professional breeder, etc., as well as to join the End-of-Year Tournament. The Kanto Academy prides itself on hard work and dedication.
8:37 AM, Sunshine illuminated the face of a dark-haired adolescent, sleeping peacefully next to what seemed to be a breathing yellow pillow. These Pokemon and ketchup-filled dreams were not to last, as the young man's phone vibrated on his dresser, promptly asking him to investigate what had ruined his fantasy. There were three simple words on the phone.
"Where are you?"
The boy's mind instantly responded, "In my room, duh." The time was 8:37, on a Tuesday morning. He had school on weekdays, didn't he? First hour starts at...8:30. The boy jumped out of bed, knocking off the resting pile of yellowness, which turned out to be a very aggravated electrical rodent, who in anger, delivered an unnecessary yet satisfactory dosage of voltage to its trainer. The singed boy quickly apologized as he ran through his room, quickly dressing into his uniform blazer and pants, and threw on his signature hat. He strapped his belt of pokeballs around his waist and beckoned his irritated companion out the door. Together, they left the dorm and ran towards the lecture hall.
This boy's name is Ash Ketchum.
And he had overslept again.
Now in AP Battle, where everyone's distracted focusing on their opponent, or PokeMed, where everyone's falling asleep, it's very easy to slip in unnoticed by the class and the teacher. Which is why when Ash entered the lecture hall twelve minutes late, he had the full attention of the class.
"Well good morning Mr. Ketchum."
"Good morning Professor Elm."
"Though I'm quite pleased you beat your arrival time yesterday, twelve minutes late is still pretty damn late. One more this month and it'll be a detention."
The class snickered.
"All right, sorry Professor"
Ash lazily walked towards the top right corner of the hall, his favorite napping spot in the room. Around him, he could hear the whispers.
"Man, he's so arrogant."
"What a prick."
"Just cause he can battle..."
Then a snarky voice rang out amidst the murmurs:
"And I even sent you a text to help get you here on time."
Ash looked towards the voice. There was his best friend, and the only guy who could give him a good run for his money in this school, Gary Oak. His spiky brown hair and jockish attitude had attracted girls since they were kids. Which was good because Ash, though good-looking, had a complacent lazy attitude and never chased after girls. Women concluded that he was just dense.
"Thanks Gary, your text came at 8:37."
"Better 8:37 than past 9 right?"
"Fair enough." Dejectedly, Ash slumped in his chair as Professor Elm proceeded to describe the proper care of growing Pecha berries.
"You know what I did last night?" Ash really didn't feel like hearing Gary's latest escapade.
"Who, I know what, you told me when, where, I hope not in our room, why?"
"Misty Waterflower, she's a senior!"
"Where, Gary?"
"She's beautiful and she's got a great personality-"
"Where did you do it Gary?"
"And she-"
"Gary."
"...Our room when you were out training."
"Well goddamn. Thank God my opponent yesterday wanted a 6v6 instead of a 3v3."
"Amen to that. But you know? I actually think I might stick around with her for a bit"
Ash's eyes widened and he flinched, dropping his textbook on his foot.
"Ash, as long as you're making noise, could please you tell me the effect of the Salac Berry?" inquired Elm.
"Err...that would be a speed boost, right?"
Professor Elm was surprised he was still awake.
""Miracles DO exist," thought Professor Elm.
"Miracles DO exist," thought Ash.
"That's good, just surprising to see you finally getting serious," he said to Gary.
"Yeah, I'm surprised too. Anyway, she wants to meet later today."
"Good for you."
"Around 5:30."
"Nice time for dates."
"We're meeting in the courtyard and we'll just hang around downtown."
"Sounds like fun."
"Yeah it's gonna be a blast."
"I bet."
"Lots and lots of fun."
"Yeah..."
"Say, Ash, are you free around 5:30?"
"...Did you agree to another double date without my consent?"
"Nahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhyes."
"Damnit Gary, I was supposed to perfect Pikachu's latest attack combination today."
"You'll have all the time in the world to battle later, and Misty said this girl was cute."
"What's in it for me?"
"I'll pay for your second helpings at the cafeteria until Friday."
"Done deal," but quickly backtracking, Ash asked, "How old is she?"
"She's our age." The dark-haired teen sighed in relief.
"All right, just making sure she wasn't in eighth grade like last time..."
"Come on, man! She had to bring her little sister and I paid up for that debt already!"
"Ahh, Gary Oak suspended for running in the nude at 7:00AM."
"Don't worry, she's just transferred into our year, Misty's showing her around, so she's definitely a sophomore."
The bell rang.
"Well I'll see you in AP Battle later, don't forget, 5:30!"
"Yeah, yeah, see you Gary."
People always talk about how nice it would be to be talented. The attention, the busy life, all the friends. But as Ash walked down the hallway alone, he certainly didn't feel talented. It was, sort of lonely. People get jealous, people feel threatened, and then people don't understand.
To escape this loneliness, Ash often turned to food. It was an amazement he wasn't overweight considering how much he could put down in a single sitting. He pulled out a sandwich and was just about to unzip the plastic bag when something as fast and blue as Sonic the Hedgehog zoomed towards him and BAM! The sound of books, papers, and Ash's sandwich hitting the floor echoed throughout the hallway. Turning around, he looked at the offender.
If blue hair could ever look natural on someone, it would be on this girl. Blue eyes accompanied an angry expression, as the girl wearing a sophomore uniform stood up.
"What the hell?! Watch where you're going!" Girls could talk like this?
Now Ash might be apathetic in everything besides Pokemon battles, but if someone CLEARLY ran into HIM, he expected at least a small apology.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, YOU were the one running in the hallway, there's still two minutes to get to class!"
"I have chemistry on the fourth floor, that's a pretty long walk!"
Ash looked confused and look to his right.
"Chemistry's in this room here," he gestured.
The girl's face turned somewhat apologetic.
"Oh well, I'm kinda new here so I don't really know where I'm going."
Ash lightened up too.
"It's fine, just slow down and don't go crashing into anyone else." He grinned and readjusted his cap.
"All right." She gave him a smile and they picked up their scattered belongings.
"I guess I'll see you around," the girl said.
"See ya."
Ash sat in his math class, pondering what would go best with his tomato-chicken-lettuce-bacon sandwich. Realizing he already had everything that would possibly work together on the sandwich, he ate it without thinking further.
Now the last time Ash checked, the artistic combination of the aforementioned ingredients did NOT taste like mayonnaise.
"Wait, mayonnaise?" he thought.
He was allergic to mayonnaise.
Well this was turning out to be an A-class day all right. Gary had set him up AGAIN, he was late to school, and got sent to the Nurse's Office after spitting out as much mayonnaise sandwich as he could onto his desk. He broke out in serious hives. They were just starting to calm down when someone pulled back his bedside curtain.
"Hahahahahahhahahahahaha, you look terrible!" laughed the lettuce-head.
"Drew, don't be such an asshole. Ash! Are you all right?"
"Hey May, I'm all right."
"What happened?"
"I ate some mayonnaise."
"You what?!"
May Maple was a junior at Kanto Academy. Long brown hair, calm blue eyes, and a nice smile seemed to draw people to her. Ash met her at last year's National Intramural Tournament, and they hit it off right away. Recently, she started dating Drew, a senior and fellow coordinator. He used to be arrogant, but spending time with May had tranquilized his former personality.
"Oh Ash, why would you eat mayonnaise?"
"Well short-story long..."
"...So then our sandwiches got mixed up and I got her mayonnaise sandwich. I mean, who the hell eats a sandwich with just mayonnaise?"
"That's just unlucky," Drew remarked.
"Aren't you guys supposed to be in class?"
"Well," May started, "I walked by the math hallway and all the everyone talking about some kid who threw up on his desk and broke out in boils. I was about to steer clear in case it was contagious, but someone mentioned how the boy was followed out by a Pikachu. Then I got worried and skipped class!"
Ash laughed. May liked to find good excuses to leave lessons.
"I appreciate the concern, I'll be fine after lunch."
"Want us to get you anything?"
"A lunch that includes no mayonnaise whatsoever would be great."
"I'll see you at lunch then!"
"Wait, May, weren't we having lunch-" Drew interjected.
"Pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeease?" She turned on the charm.
"Argh, all right, but you owe me!"
"Well I can't skip a whole hour without my teacher getting mad, we're gonna go, rest up Ash!" May got up and hugged the sick boy.
"Thanks guys."
Ash smiled as they left. At least there were a few people here who could make him feel wanted. And one Pokemon. Speaking of which...
"Hey buddy you can come out now."
Pikachu came out from under the bed.
"Why did you hide from May? I thought you liked her."
"Pika, Pika-chu."
"Drew? What about Drew?"
"Pikaaaaaaaa" the rodent gestured with his paws.
"Haha, of course, his hair is pretty scary."
"Pikachu, Pika, Pika?"
"I'll be fine in a few hours. I just have to let my symptoms die down. On the plus side, I'm skipping math, breeding, and physics."
"Chu."
"Don't worry we're still battling later. You and these guys (Ash gestured towards his belt) could probably take the other kids by yourselves."
"Kachuu."
"Yeah we'll fix your new combo later, but for now, a well-deserved nap."
The Pokemon jumped onto the bed and swaddled itself in blankets, and the two clocked out.
"Hey. Heyyyy. HEY!"
Ash jerked awake and surveyed the room. May, Pikachu, and Gary were eating next to his bed. May handed him a plastic food container.
"Lucky bastard, she cooked for you," Gary grunted in mock jealousy.
Ash chuckled and turned to May, "Thanks, May, you're the best."
"This is only cause you're bedridden! Otherwise, I'd expect payment," May stated.
"So you would cook for me if I got sick?" Gary asked hopefully.
"Nahh, you'd have to pay anyway."
They laughed and spent the rest of the hour eating, talking about recent battles, and discussing the possible origins of Drew's ever-so-green hair.
(45 minutes later)
The bell rang.
"Yes! Ash, ready for AP Battle?" Gary asked excitedly.
"I'm not, but my Pokemon are raring to go."
"I'll see you guys later, AP Coordinating is on the other side of the school." May hugged Ash and waved to Gary.
"Bye May!" they called out.
Ash got out of bed and put on his hat.
"Pikachu, time to go!"
"Pika!"
Kanto Academy's Battle Complex contained 64 separate fields, each containing multiple, switchable terrains and its own set of bleachers. The ceilings could open or close and overhead lights and referees were always around, making battling access available 24/7. It was here where AP Battle was held.
"All right guys, let's get going!" shouted Volkner, "We have to get through all 10 matches today so let's get started right away. Umm...3 Pokemon each, no substitutes. You can leave once your match is finished."
"Man I'm so amped up," said Gary.
"Gary, take Brandon."
"Ashley and Winona.'
"Ash...hmm..." Volkner looked around the room, "How about you take on Kyle today."
Kyle groaned loudly. Ash shrugged.
"Well I've got nothing to lose now! Let's have a good one," Kyle said.
"That's a good attitude, let's go!"
The battlefield quaked and a half-ocean, half-earth field came out.
"Hmm...Well let's go with Gyarados!" Kyle threw a PokeBall and out came a large Gyarados. Its size and vicious-looking face was intimidating to most opponents but Ash looked it in the eye.
"Pika Pika!"
"Sorry Pikachu, you battled last time, I have to give someone else a chance."
"Pikaaaaaaa" it whined.
"I know bud, tell you what, you can go second if one of these guys gets knocked out."
"kaaaaa."
"Yeah, yeah. Okay, Squirtle, wreck'em." Ash threw his own PokeBall and Squirtle came out posing like a swimsuit model.
"Can you try not to embarrass me before the battle even starts...?" Kyle laughed out loud.
"You can have the first move, Kyle."
"All right, Gyarados, Dragonbreath!" A stream of green fire erupted from Gyarados' gaping jaws and rocketed towards Squirtle.
"Squirtle. Go home." Squirtle immediately sidestepped the oncoming jet of breath and dove into the water.
"Now spiral and Ice Punch!"
"Gyarados, Thrash!"
Gyarados flailed savagely in the water. Squirtle sweatdropped because he hadn't even started moving towards him yet. Calmly, the turtle weaved through the fins and scales of the pseudo-dragon and Ice Punched him in the jaw.
Now, normally, a punch from a Pokemon of this size wouldn't do so much, but the Gyarados flew out of the water and landed on the ground, hard. Kyle's jaw dropped.
"Squirtle, Seismic Toss."
Squirtle picked up Gyarados, jumped in the air, did a backflip just in case there were girls watching, and threw Gyarados into the ground, leaving a nice crater for whoever was battling next.
"That's a crazy Squirtle you got there."
"Thanks, I think he's crazy too."
"Squirtle Squirt!" Squirtle shouted in indignation.
"Well I'm not going to give up yet, let's go Staraptor!" A large brown bird came out of the Pokeball, and swooped down towards Squirtle with an Aerial Ace attack.
"Squirtle, let's be serious now."
"Squirtle."
Squirtle sidestepped the Aerial Ace and shot an extremely high pressured Hydro Pump that knocked Staraptor out of the sky. It lay on the ground, fainted. Spectators were starting to gather round.
"That's insane..."
"It's only a Squirtle too."
"He must be cheating..."
"Okay, I can't go down like this, Hitmonlee, let's show them!" A humanoid pokemon with disc-like legs and arms came out, and assumed a martial arts stance.
"Close Combat Hitmonlee!" Hitmonlee rushed Squirtle with a flurry of blinding kicks and punches.
Ash looked towards the crowd, then back to the field.
"Squirtle, give them a show, no attacks."
Squirtle proceeded to fight Hitmonlee in hand-to hand combat. The crowd was taken aback by the versatility of the small turtle. Now it might've gone on for longer if Squirtle didn't stick out his tail in the middle of the battle. Hitmonlee tripped and Squirtle jumped on top of it and beat it into submission.
"Hitmonlee! Are you all right?" Squirtle had only hit Hitmonlee to the point where it couldn't fight back, so it was still conscious.
"Hitmon."
"Well thanks for the battle Ash, I'm going to get stronger so watch out for me!"
"Thanks to you to, Squirtle had fun, didn't cha Squirtle?
"Squirtle Squirt!"
The crowd dissipated and Ash turned and walked back towards the dormitories, hoping to catch a few hours of sleep before he had to accompany Gary on his female excursion.
"Ash, come on!" Gary shook the sleeping boy, before giving up, and just pushing him off the bed. THUMP.
"Goddamnit Gary, let a man sleep."
"Well our date's in 30 minutes, I thought you might want to freshen up a little."
"What's not fresh about me?" Gary examined the bedhead, sweatpants, and drool hanging of the side of Ash's mouth.
"Yeah...just don't go looking like that."
"How did your battle go?"
"I beat him, Umbreon and Blastoise did really well. You?"
"I'm still managing to get by with one Pokemon. Squirtle's really been improving."
"Showoff. You and Squirtle."
"You're just jealous."
"Maybe, but really, wash that spit off your face and brush your teeth or something."
"Yeah, yeah.
Ash ended up wearing his sweatpants, flip flops and a fitted T-shirt, exposing his muscular physique. Gary wore a casual button-down with khakis and sandals. They chatted outside Gary's car when Gary called out to two approaching figures.
"Misty, over here!" The redhead ran over and kissed Gary full on the lips. Ash rolled his eyes.
"Misty, this is my friend Ash, Ash, Misty." They shook hands.
"You must be one helluva girl to keep Gary on a-" Gary slapped Ash hard on the back and laughed.
"What are you talking about, Ash?" Ash laughed sarcastically.
"Obviously nothing Gary." The other girl Misty was with just caught up with her.
"Oh guys," Misty started, "This is the new girl, she's your age. Dawn Berlitz."
Ash looked at her. "No way," he thought.
Cute, blue hair, electric blue eyes. Both pointed at each other in surprise and anger and in unison screamed:
"MY SANDWICH!"