DISCLAIMER:Chapter 1 was written by my good friend PikofthePok go check them out on tumblr! Otherwise,Enjoy!
John blinked his eyes open slowly. He exhaled quietly, the sun shining directly into his eyes. He was about to move to grab his glasses when he heard quiet giggling coming from nearby.
"hehe, this is gonna be so great!"
"shhh, he'll hear you!"
"look, he's moving,"
He sat up, confused. He doesn't live with anyone but his Dad and Nanna, and none of the voices were theirs. What was going on? He grabbed his glasses and-
"SURPRISE!"
Three figures jumped out from the side of his bed, popping confetti containers. John let out a startled yelp and fell over, throwing his glasses into the air. One of them looked up and leaned back slightly, reaching up and catching his glasses gently.
"careful now, don't wanna lose these." they said, handing the glasses back to him.
John gratefully took them back and balanced them lightly on his nose, adjusting his eyes to the light. He finally recognized the figures as his three friends, Jade, Rose, and Dave. Jade was wearing a light green shirt with little blue pawprints on them. She had a long blue skirt on, resting lightly on her black sandals. Her hair was long and wavy, her green eyes hidden behind large, circular glasses.
Rose was wearing a purple t-shirt with black flower print, white frills decorating the sleeve and neck openings. She had a black skirt on with purple and black striped leggings. Her shoes were dark blue dress shoes. Her hair was short and blonde, held back by a headband to keep them out of her sharp purple eyes.
Dave was wearing a white t-shirt with red sleeves and a pair of normal jeans. For some reason, he always wore shades. He never seemed to want to take them off. His hair was short and white, brushed off to the side. He wore red and white tennis shoes, always untied. Miraculously, he never tripped over them.
"guys, what are you doing here!? It's like.. 7 am!" John complained, rubbing his eyes a little. "Not to mention I'm still in my pajamas and you guys are all ready to go out or something..."
"oh, john. did you forget? it's your birthday!" Jade said, giving him a big hug that pushed the air out of his lungs. Oh. Of course. It was April 13th, how could he forget?
"oh. right. but that doesn't explain why you guys are all dressed up. what's going on?" he wheezed, patting Jade's arm. She finally let go and looked at the others, jumping up and down lightly with her signature smile. Rose sighed light-heartedly.
"Jade's Grandfather had decided to celebrate by giving us a Pokemon. It is quite generous of him, and it would be appropriate to dress up for such an occasion, wouldn't it Dave?" Rose said, putting emphasis on the final part while giving Dave a sarcastic stare. He shrugged nonchalantly, keeping a poker face. John smiled.
"oh, sweet! you guys head on downstairs while I get dressed. I'll be there in a jiff." John said enthusiastically, giving a thumbs up before grabbing some clothes and running into the bathroom. The others headed down the stairs to wait for him. John hastily threw off his pajamas and threw them on the floor. He took out his blue t-shirt and pulled it over his head, followed by a dark green jacket. He kicks open the bathroom door, his dark blue sweatpants half on his legs. As he fell down the stairs, he managed to get his pants fully on. He gave a weak thumbs up.
"i warned you about stairs bro." Dave joked, earning him a dirty look from John.
"He did inform you of this, Brother." Rose commented innocently.
"god damnit Rose." John said, pushing himself up.
A strangely sweet smell filled the room. It felt incredibly warm. Warmer than usual. Suddenly, John remembered.
"oh no." John said, his enthusiasm fading.
"what's wrong?" Jade asked, concerned.
"they're baking a shit ton of cakes aren't they." John said flatly. Rose rolled her eyes.
"It's your birthday, of course they are." She said. John groaned. He hated cake. His parents would not stop baking them. It tired him out really fast.
"let's go before they finish..." John said, pushing his friends out the door while glancing worriedly at the kitchen. He could swear he heard laughing.
The four kids stepped outside, the bright summer sun shining down on them. A flock of Pidgey flew overhead, chirping pleasantly. The flowers waved lightly in the wind. John inhaled the clean air, exhaling heavily. Jade grabbed John's arm, pointing to a building to the west.
"there's the lab! grampa is waiting inside! come on!" Jade said enthusiastically, practically dragging John towards the lab. Dave smiled the half-smile he always did and followed in suit, Rose by his side. After a short run across the town, Jade bursts into the lab, John in tow.
"GRAMPAAA! We're here!" Jade exclaimed loudly, making John flinch.
A figure walks into the room wearing a white lab coat and a bowl hat. He had square glasses and a very impressive mustache. A large dinosaur-like pokemon with huge leafy wings followed behind him.
"Hello children! As you know, I am Professor Harley. Today I have brought the four of you for a very special occasion. It will be your first step into a marvelous journey full of vigor and adventure! New lands and new friends! I will present you with your first pokemon partner!" He exclaimed, obviously very excited. Jade starts clapping excitedly.
"that was really good grampa! have you been practicing?" Jade asked, intrigued.
"Why yes, I have! Thank you Jade." Prof. Harley laughed. He cleared his throat.
"I have picked a pokemon from the ones that I have caught along my travels. I think they will suit you all very well."
Prof. Harley took out four pokeballs, one for each of them.
"John, seeing as it is your birthday today, I believe you should be the first. Come now!" He said, motioning for John to come forward. John blinked and stepped up, a little anxious. Prof. Harley held out a pokeball. Almost on cue, it popped open in a brilliant flash of light. It twisted and shaped into a small ball. The light faded slowly, revealing a small blue and white bird pokemon with a red and white feather on its head. It blinked open its eyes and let out a little peep.
"This pokemon is called Rufflet, a Flying and Normal type pokemon. I think you two will get along well." Prof. Harley chimed in with a smile. John let out a little gasp. He held out a hand to the small bird pokemon, who looked at it with curiosity. It lay its head in his hand, content with his presence.
"oh my gosh... thank you, prof. harley!" John gasped, petting his new friend.
Prof. Harley laughed and handed him the pokeball, turning to Rose next.
"Now it's your turn, Rose." He said, holding out a pokeball. Rose nodded, but it was easy to tell she was excited as well. The ball burst open, revealing a small, furry pokemon. It had big, round eyes and floppy ears.
"This is Espurr, a psychic type pokemon. I can already tell this is the right pokemon for you." the Professor said.
Rose squatted down and gazed at the small purple pokemon. It gazed back. They continued, as if in some sort of greeting. Rose smiled, and the Espurr smiled back.
"I will admit, it was a bit of a challenge finding a pokemon for you, Dave. However, I think that this one is a good decision." Prof. Harley said, presenting Dave's pokeball.
Inside was a strange white and green pokemon that appeared to also have a bowl hat, but way too big. It looked up at Dave. Dave looked back. He held out a fist to it. It tapped it with its nubby little hand. Dave laughed.
"Sweet." He said.
"This is Ralts, a Psychic and Fairy type pokemon. I do believe you two will get along." Prof. Harley laughed. He turned to Jade.
"Of course, I wouldn't forget you, Jade. I think you will like the pokemon I picked out for you."
In the final Pokeball was a small quadrupedal fox-like pokemon with long ears and a lot of fur. It yawned loudly and shook itself off. Jade's eyes sparkled.
"oh my gosh..!" she squeaked, and immediately gave it a big hug. It squeaked quietly, but didn't seem to be bothered.
"This is an Eevee. Treat your pokemon well and I'm sure they'll grow strong and healthy!" The Professor said. John placed Rufflet gently on top of his head, who perched comfortably in his hair.
"hey, uh, you mentioned types earlier. what does that mean?" John asked.
"oh! oh! grampa, can i explain?" Jade said, bouncing up and down. Prof. Harley nodded to her with a smile, and Jade beamed.
"ok so! every pokemon has its own typing! it's like a category! some types are better on some types than others! for example, a fire type does well against a grass type, but a water type does not!" Jade explained. John had a feeling she'd been practicing as well.
"ok but... why? is there any rhyme or reason to this?" John asked. Rufflet began preening his hair.
"well, think of it like this. fire burns grass. grass absorbs water. water puts out fire. Its one of the most basic type advantages!" Jade said proudly.
"huh. I guess that makes sense." John said, putting a hand on his chin.
"Very good Jade! There's one more thing I need to give you, though." Prof. Harley said, handing each of them a small red device.
"This is a pokedex. You can use it to record and learn more about the pokemon you meet along your journey!" he said, holding up a finger for emphasis.
"Excuse me, but I do believe you said 'journey.' Does this imply we are going somewhere?" Rose asked, holding Espurr in her arms. Professor Harley blinked.
"Oh dear, I'm afraid I've ruined the surprise! I held a meeting with your parents earlier and we have all agreed that it would be a great idea for you all to go out and explore the world now that you're all thirteen!" Prof. Harley laughed. Jade gasped.
"oh my gosh really!?" she squeaked. Rose raised her eyebrows slightly.
"That does sound quite fun." She commented.
"i'm in!" John exclaimed excitedly. Dave held a neutral expression, but gave a thumbs up.
"All you need to do now is see your parents. They will have gathered a bag of supplies for your trip. Be sure to write often!" The professor said, waving them goodbye. The four ran outside after saying their goodbyes and met up in the center of town.
"all right. i say we should go to our houses and come back at this spot. then we can go out together." Dave said.
"sounds good!" John said, giving a thumbs-up.
They all split up, and John ran back to his house. Rufflet huddled against his head at the wind passing by. He finally made it back to his house and opened the door. A wave of warmth hit him, and he braced himself for the oncoming storm of cakes his parents probably baked for him.
"Oh, John! Welcome back dear! Did you head over to the lab?" Nanna called to him from the kitchen. John braced himself and walked in
"yeah. he gave me a pokemon and said you had something for me." John said, patting Rufflet on his head.
"That was very sweet of him! And yes indeed, we do have something for you! It's your pack for the road." Nanna said, holding out a backpack. Please don't be cake.
"It's full of cake!" Nanna said.
"ARGH!" John groaned, and Rufflet flapped its little wings quickly in an attempt to keep balance.
"Hoo hoo! Of course it's not just cake, dear. There is a change of clothes, a few extra snacks, and a few pokeballs that Professor Harley gave me." Nana chuckled. John sighed a breath of relief. Thank god.
He took the pack gratefully and put it on his back.
"Thanks, Nanna. Good one." John chuckled a little uncomfortably.
"You are very welcome, Grandson. Now, get out there and have some fun!" Nanna smiled and patted his shoulder. John smiled back and gave her a big hug. When he finally let go, he waved at her before running back out the door. When he came out, the others were waiting for him
"it's about time." Dave said. Ralts was perched lightly on his shoulder. John rolled his eyes.
"yeah, yeah. so. are we gonna get going or what?" John said light-heartedly.
"yesss! let's head to route 1 first!" Jade exclaimed enthusiastically.
"Sounds like a plan." Rose commented.
The four finally began to head out. Their journey was finally under way.