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Chapter 1 ~ Me

Author's Notes: Hey all. I've risen from the dead! I haven't actually been working on much writing-wise, to be truthful... Although I've been drawing like crazy. My writing style has changed despite this, I believe. Anywho, please R&R! I've had this story in mind for a very long time, and I believe I'll stick with it.

Enjoy.

I'm not particularly into adventure, and I never have been. When I was a kid, my definition of adventure was playing with the anthills outside of my mother's apartment. My ideas never quite seemed to stray farther then the front lawn, even when I got into upper elementary and all of my friends had their hearts set on the day that they'd get to set out on their own little adventures with pokémon at their sides.

Perhaps I was an odd kid, but the idea of pokémon never quite seemed appealing. And still, to this day, the thought hardly rings a bell of interest. My forte has always been with other things. When I was young, I always wanted to become somebody important.. Perhaps a singer or a dancer, or somebody in the entertainment business. Something that was challenging, but fun all the same. Perhaps that was due to my childhood. If I could owe the spark of my interest in fun to somebody, it would definitely be my mother, who, to the eyes of a child, was the most boring, predictable person in Kanto.

I remember long days in the winter where she would simply sit in her boring old chair, which seemed to be as gray as her, and read dull books about boring topics, and things that were unachievable to the average person. She grew up with her head in the clouds –the need to always be chasing things she could never have converting her into the mindless, walking dead after years and years of stewing on the whole 'this is unfair' thing.

A strange woman to the average joe –a miserable old fool to me.

I frowned to myself as I gazed listlessly out the window, propping my head up with my hands –elbows on the sill.

Then again, I thought, perhaps I was turning out to be like her. Twenty-three and living alone, going to work each day at a desk to file paperwork for a company that makes pokémon food, never having once been on a date..

My lips tightened, and I pushed away from the sill gently, running my hands down my arms to wipe off the dust on my elbows. I stood, resisting the urge to heave a sigh. My head was full with nostalgic thoughts, and it was weighing me down. Pivoting on my heel, I shoved these aforementioned thoughts to the back of my head, moving to my kitchen to fire up the stove.

'Head full.. belly empty...' I thought to myself, the corner of my lip twitching very briefly into a half smile. I must've found that thought amusing for whatever reason. The smile faded abruptly as my thoughts trailed back off to my withered old mother, living alone in her apartment. I tried picturing myself in her place as I rummaged around for something edible to put in the heating pan. I attempted to imagine myself sitting in her chair, reading one of her dull books. This thought made me frown. Perhaps it was a good thing I couldn't exactly see myself in her position yet.

Click –bing!

My eyes trailed sluggishly over to the clock on one of the kitchen walls. It's spindly second hand ticked timidly passed the thicker hour hand, which was stuck on the roman numeral one. I sighed softly to myself, letting my gaze linger for a minute before looking back to my roommate's ancient stove, but I paused as the kitchen phone let out three sharp trills in rapid succession.

My left hand shot out instantly, snatching it off the receiver and bringing it to my ear.

"Hello, who's.."

"Gineen, it's Kathrine."

A frown came to my face as my subordinate's voice registered. She always sounded so.. serious.

"Yeah.. What's up?" I questioned blandly, reaching for a can of chicken noodle soup as I absentmindedly listened to my co-worker start to yammer.

"You didn't organize those files properly I gave you at lunch yesterday, and when I got into work this morning, they dumped it all on me. Can you believe that? I mean, it's your paperwork isn't it? Isn't it?"
"You're absolutely right Kathrine.."

"Yeah, I know! What's been up on your end? Why'd you call in sick today? Can I bring you anything to make you feel better, or what, huh?"
"It's nothing Kathy.. I just don't feel good."

"What kind of 'don't feel good' is this?" I could hear her voice hitching with anticipation. Maybe she was hoping that I'd caught some exotic rash or something else she could use as an excuse to come over and bug the living shit out of me.

"I dunno.. It's just a flu I think... What're you up to?"

"Oh! That reminds me of something I was going to tell you! I'm over at Annie's. Annie called this morning and told me to tell you that she found the cutest pokémon outside her sister's house on Route–"

"Fuck!" I hissed softly into the phone as a few hot noodles splashed out, burning my hand. Kathrine squawked indignantly over the phone as I dropped the pan on my foot. The phone slid from my grasp as well. I jumped back a few feet, slipping on the hot broth and letting out of a cry of frustration as my ass hit the floor.

"Gineen? Gineen? Hey!"

I sat for a minute, staring stupidly at the overturned pan as my co-worker babbled hysterically on the other end of the line. Only when the warm liquid reached my toes did I pull them back, pushing myself up to stand with a bit of difficulty and swiping the phone up off the floor before the broth could reach it. I hastily threw it to my shoulder, tilting my head and pressing my ear into it to keep it in place as I started to clean up the mess.
"Yes –yes?" I snapped, groaning slightly as I bent down to pick up the still-hot pan with a potholder.

"Jesus, Gineen! Are you ok? What happened over there?"

"Nothing Kathrine.. m'fine... tipped over a hot pot –what happened to who's sister?"

"Oh, oh, oh! Annie and her sister found the cutest thing you ever will lay your eyes on.."

"Is it a man?" I resisted the urge to quirk a brow as I continued to wipe up the sloppy mess of noodles and chicken with a few uncooperative paper towels. "–a woman?"

"No, no Gineen! It's a pokémon, Jesus! I already told you that!"

"No offense, but you know I really don't listen when you talk to me."

"Cute.. Really cute."

I sighed softly, tossing a few broth soaked paper towels into the trash can with effort due to the limited mobility of my phone hand. What on earth was this woman poking at?

"So..?" I urged her to continue on with the actual point.

"So.. I was thinking that you could come over and check it out!"

A frown spread across my face, and I put a halt to the cleaning.

"Kathrine, you know I don't like pokémon."

"So? It's not like we're sending it home with you."

"Ya-huh. Really... Is it already in a pokéball?"

"No, it's not, for your information, Mrs. tight-ass... She found it injured on the side of the road. Although, it really needs somebody to care of–"

"I knew it! No, I'm not taking the damn thing, Kathy." I grumbled into the phone, bringing a hand up to run through my hair. I really couldn't believe that she'd called me up just to dump a friend's sister's pokémon on me. How truly absurd...

"Oh c'mon Gineen! It's cold and scared and hungry and lonely, and it really needs a place to stay! Will you at least come look at it?"

"Hell no. Why me? Why can't you take care of it?" I hissed softly as I turned to grab more paper towels, wrapping the long ugly yellow phone cord around my middle incidentally as I did so. A permanent frown imbedded itself upon my tired face as my subordinate started to tell me about how her land lord didn't accept pokémon, and how her boyfriend wouldn't have it, and so on. After a few minutes of listed excuses, I simply stopped listening, continuing to hold the phone to my ear as I cleaned up the rest of the broth –letting the words go in one ear and out the other.

I remained in this state until my task of cleaning up the kitchen floor and putting the pan in the sink was complete. After that was done, I simply leaned back against one of the counters, sighing to myself as I unwillingly joined the conversation once more.

" –such an adorable little thing! I'm lookin' at it right now! And know what? It's just screaming to be given a new, lovely, competent owner such as yourself! Oh, won't you Gineen? At least take a look at the poor little fellow? I'm sure it would appreciate it, at least. As well as Annie! Poor lady already has enough to deal with without this little thing to take care of. And it's not like we can release it back yet.."

"Let me ask you something."

"Sure hun, shoot."

"Do you want to take care of a sick pokémon for x amount of weeks?"

"Oh Gineen.. At least just come over and look at him. Please? Annie wants to see you anyhow."

I brought a hand up to rub at my temples as I shimmied my way over to the bread drawer, pulling out a loaf of sourdough and popping a slice into the toaster. I figured I might as well go for something simple if soup was too much.

"...Gineen?"

"I'm here. And yeah, sure. I'll drop by on my way to the store. I need to get out anyhow and grab some groceries. Ran out of pickles and tomato soup yesterday."

My eyes rolled of their own accord as I heard my co-worker squeal a squeal that would've probably cost me my hearing had her mouth been closer to the phone. I brought a hand up to grab said phone, shifting it to my other ear absently as I pulled a tub of butter out of my fridge. My eccentric subordinate took a few seconds to collect herself and spread the news of my soon-to-be arrival to whoever else was in the room before bringing the phone back to her own ear.

"Lovely! We'll see you in a while over at Annie's place then!"

"Nice."

The phone made a soft beep as I hit the 'end call' button.

~Fin Chapter 1