"A Group of Misfits" By Luke's Dragon

Disclaimer

I don't own Poke'mon, well actually I own Poke'mon Gold, and Poke'mon Stadium 2 but not the actual rights or product which is probably what disclaimers are supposed to deal with.

A/N

I wrote, "I am Ivysaurace" about eighteen months before I posted it on Fanfiction.Net where it has the dubious honor of being my first ever Fic. It was intended to be part of a series of fics about my favorite Poke'mon who make up my party and teams on the Gameboy game. Anyway all this slipped my mind until I was clearing all the old text documents off my PC after finishing University and I came across the half finished version of "Of Sea and Sky" (which will become part of the collection when I get around to finishing it). After searching on my PC I found "Hot Head Warm Heart" and "In Another Life" and deiced that this fic deserved to be finished off.

Incidentally the first few chapters may not be that great since decided not to re-write any of the existing parts even though I feel I've grown as a writer since I penned them.

Also although "I am Ivysaurace" was penned first it has moved from it's original role as chapter 1 to become chapter 4 since it makes sense in terms of the fic's timeline to have it in this position.

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"Storm Warning"

Sometimes I wonder where my life changed, and how I ended up where I am, and how my life would have been so different if I had never took a chance on a dream.

My life started off as happy as could be hoped for, my parents and me lived in Lavender Town. I used to love it there but I haven't been back for about four years now and I don't think I ever will go back. There are just too many memories about that place and anyway it isn't home anymore.

I never took up Poke'mon training until I left Lavender, nor did I ever have any friends, I just never seemed to have it in me to make the effort, or to care.

No that is not entirely true, there was one girl I cared about. When I was young…Young he says I'm not old now I just feel like it, but then I've seen so much despite my tender years.

Still when I was a kid, every summer we made a trip to Fuchsia to visit my grandparents, and every year this girl and me would spend the summer together.

Now, I can't even remember her name although I still think about her sometimes.

As I said, I spent most of my childhood alone, exploring the world around me, even back then I loved getting into adventures and trouble I guess something's never ever change no matter how much you want them to.

During my adventures I often found wild Poke'mon, but they never attacked me. Perhaps it was because I had no interest in capturing them or hurting them or perhaps because even back then I had some sort of power to understand them.

My parents died one week after my twelve birthday, I'll say no more about it to anyone.

I left Lavender that night, and vowed never to return. I tried to tell myself that it hadn't affected me, but I sort of froze up inside I'd never been that close to anyone but after my parents... I decided never to let anyone get close to me again.

I wandered across the Kanto region helping people out if I could but I found so many people who did not understand the needs of their Poke'mon and were so cruel out of sheer ignorance. I found myself getting more and more depressed and disillusioned with the world, until I found Sparky.

I was walking around Viridian forest when I found him, he was an injured Raichu, who had been abandoned by his trainer and left to his fate.

I don't know why I didn't just give him some healing potions and let him go on his way just like I had done before when I had met an injured Poke'mon.

I looked at him, and suddenly I was eight again, on the beach near Fuchsia City, with her.

This would be my last trip here, my Grandparents had decided to live out their dream and go to live in Johto, so I would not be coming back next year. After all my childhood dreams were made here there would be no more adventures here, with her. Damn it why can't I remember her name? But I remember our last time together, as we sat together on the beach and made a promise.

"So this'll be the last time we see each other?" she said

"Yeah" I was trying not to cry so opted for one-word answers

"I know, lets make a promise, when we're older, we'll meet up again, and then we can go on all sorts of adventures, and see the world, Okay?"

"Okay"

"No, you have to promise me"

"I promise" She gave me an amulet, for luck, and then we left

I don't know why that memory can back to me that day I met Sparky. Perhaps because it was the last time I was really happy. I kept the amulet for all the good it ever did me. And I still can't remember her name.

I guess it was his eyes, like mine both a different color, or perhaps because I wanted a Poke'mon so I could have a friend.

I asked myself earlier where my life changed, and now I know. It was that day that Sparky the Raichu, and I became part of a team. There were more adventures when I met the rest of my party and where I fell in love. But without that one encounter, without opening my heart and becoming a trainer, none of my other adventures would have happened.

I wonder, did I make the right choice that day?

No, not with Sparky, there's no doubt I made that call right, but with her, should I have stayed with her when I was eight, no that would have been impossible. Or when I left home at twelve should I have gone to look for her?

Actually we did in the end, me and Sparky set off for Fuchsia City to look for a girl.

Man! sometimes I feel like the hero of some romance novel, but then again they tend to know who there are looking for.

Nikki! that was it!

She's called Nikki!

Nikki, my childhood friend, the one who I want to find.

This was only the start of my story