Hey. This is my first fanfiction. I wanted to make something after reading some of the fanfiction here, and I wanted to make it different. I honestly have no idea where it's going to go, but I'm going to do my best to steer it away from clichéd waters. Feel free to review; I could always use some constructive criticism. Emphasis on constructive there. Don't torch me to death, ok?

Chapter 1: Setting the Scene

Soft jazz played in my left ear. I breathed in time with the music. My partner, Gallade, swung his bladed arms as he sauntered along next to me. It was a fine day, truly. The sky was a beautiful azure color; the air was somewhat crisp; the leaves on the trees were just turning a lovely golden color. A great day to start an adventure…

Pity it wasn't me who would be doing the adventuring. Behind me huddled a group of 12-year olds fresh from Professor Oak's lab. Each clutched a Pokéball containing their new Pokémon in his/her meaty fist. None of them had been outside Pallet Town before. All were terrified.

All, seemingly, except one. A bold-faced little girl looked around her with awe and excitement. The Squirtle she carried in her arms seemed to share her attitude. She looked at me- I could see her out of the corner of my eye- and marched up to tug on my elbow.

"Hey." I pretended not to hear.

"Hey!" She slapped my ribs. I winced and looked down.

"Yes?"

"Mister, where are we going?" She was cute, really. I shouldn't've been rude. Gallade seemed to think so too and he nudged my shoulder gently. I nodded and turned off the music. "Well, I'm taking you to Viridian City."

"Is it far?"

"No, not very. It's a nice place. You'll like it. Good opportunity to get to know your Squirtle better." She beamed and squeezed the little turtle to her chest tighter. Squirtle seemed to smile a little through the pain.

A thought seemed to strike the little girl. "Mister, why are you here? You seem… old to be just starting out like us." She gestured toward the less-frightened children behind her.

My mind flashed back to an article in the Pallet Post a year ago. "Ace Trainers Release Pokémon!" it blared. "Pallet Town-Viridian City route overrun by Pidgeots and Raticates!" I guess a couple of trainers had felt bad about capturing Pokémon and decided to let them go… They were quoted in the article as to having been persuaded by a Team something-or-other. Phantasm? Orgasm? I'd forgotten… I snapped back to the present. "This road is filled with powerful Pokémon. I'm here to make sure you don't get hurt."

"Oh." She put down her Squirtle and pondered this. The turtle rubbed his midriff thankfully and struck up a conversation with Gallade. "But… but why aren't you out adventuring?"

I winced at the pangs from my memory. Gallede frowned and looked over with concern; I waved him away. I'm OK, I thought to myself. It's behind me now. I gave the girl a weak smile. "It's a long story."

She giggled happily. "Great! I love stories!"

I sighed. This girl wouldn't be put off. Very well, then. "When I was around your age, I too was due to start my personal adventure. When I'd got to the lab, however, Professor Oak was clean out of Bulbasaurs, Charmanders, and Squirtles. I couldn't go into the world without a Pokémon, so I had to wait until the next month, when the new shipment came in. In the interim, I volunteered at the Junior Rangers outpost in Pallet Town. I looked after the Pokémon the Rangers didn't take with them on their missions. It was fun, a nice summer job. I enjoyed playing with Pokémon.

But one day, we took in a Pokémon no one at the ranch had seen before: a male Ralts. Ralts were rare in Kanto, and males even rarer. He was considered a mutant and shunned by the inhabitants of the town and their Pokémon. This guy here-" I lightly punched Gallade's shoulder- "was a leper." Gallade laughed and punched me back before reengaging the Squirtle in conversation. "I felt bad for him, a Pokémon without a trainer. He felt bad for me, a trainer without a Pokémon. We took each other in and have been partners ever since." I cut the story short and stared straight ahead, hoping the girl would take the hint.

She didn't. "Go on," she commanded.

Groaning inwardly, I continued. "So at the end of the month, Professor Oak handed out more Pokémon. He couldn't give a starter to a trainer with a Pokémon already- legal reasons- so he handed me my Pokédex and sent me on my way.

"When we arrived at Viridian City, I and Gallade- still a Ralts back then- did a bit of training and tried to continue on our journey. The Viridian Gym Leader blocked our way. He said only Pokémon native to Kanto could go into the Viridian Forest. I tried to explain to him that Ralts weren't an invasive specie, but he would have none of it. Ralts and I had to go back to Pallet Town.

"This was a black time for us. We were stuck in our hometown with nothing to do, and nowhere to go… So we trained. We trained and we trained and Ralts evolved into a Kirlia. When this route became dangerous, we volunteered to guide new trainers to Viridian City. One day, we guided an odd old man… He had a little Pikachu on his hat and kept rambling about wanting to "catch 'em all". He gave Kirlia a Dawn Stone as thanks, which he used and evolved into-" I turned to Gallade to tease him again, but I found he had stopped. He stood a few paces behind, staring into the bushes lining the side of the path.

In a flash, I shoved the little girl and her Squirtle behind me. "Go back to the others," I muttered. "Tell them to hide somewhere." She scampered back to the group.

Gallade sank into a raised combat stance, arm-swords raised at the ready, shifting his weight from foot to foot. The bushes began to rustle.

Suddenly, a large Pidgeot shot out of the undergrowth. It soared into the air looking at me in a mad fury, and shrieked something I couldn't understand. Gallade listened, and responded in a quiet voice that nonetheless carried to where the Pidgeot hovered. I knew he could be a very persuasive speaker. He gesticulated with his hands and pointed to the children in the trees. The Pidgeot's gaze seemed to soften a little. Finally, she chirruped a soft, melancholy goodbye and slowly flew away. I knew she was one of the Pokémon abandoned by the Ace Trainers, and felt nothing but pity. She must have thought I was her trainer…

Gallade sighed and turned to me. Doesn't it just make you want to hit something? he said. I frowned and considered this. Pity, yes. Sadness, yes. But rage?

"You're rather violent today, Gallade." I joked as the children filed in behind us. He shrugged. Meh. Just bored, I guess.

I nodded; I knew how he felt. I used to feel deep, painful longings when we first started this job. I'd learned to suppress those feelings…

Ooo, eerie, right? I just have Gallade talking in italics... It's just stupid having him say "Gallade lade gallade" and all that. More on its way, depending on how you like it...

-Wordsmith