Journey I Take, Pokémon I Meet

Ch. 1: "Escape and Abandonment"

My Name is Agatha Wesmen. For as long as I can remember, I've lived in the tiny town of Equin within the Ryokō region. I have always loved Pokémon and growing up at a daycare, I was constantly surrounded by them. But I always wanted to start my own journey in Ryokō. My mother left when I was very little, so I don't remember her much and my dad…well, he wasn't the best role model. He was a functioning alcoholic that ran a sleazy breeding program with his Ditto. I was made to work in the daycare every day for dad feared I'd leave him like Mom, so I really had no friends. But I did have Adalind, my Eevee.

I will never forget the day I found her. I was taking my lunch break at the local park one day when something caught my eye. At the base of a big weeping willow tree was a Pokémon egg. It was tan in color with a cream zigzag wrapped around the shell. I searched all around but could find no sign of a nest or worried parents. So I took the egg home, wrapping it in my hoodie to keep warm. Once home, I had made a makeshift nest from my dad's old newspapers and placed heat lamps around it. A week went by of me watching it and one day, *CRACK* a little Eevee pushed its way out. "Eevee…" she squeaked. To anyone else it would have sounded like a normal Pokémon cry, but I had always had a gift of understanding the Pokémon language, not that anyone believed me. "Mama?" she said.
"No," I smiled, lifting her out of the remaining egg shells, "I'm not your Mommy. But I promise I will take care of you like a mother would." She snuggled into me and I held her close. "My name is Agatha…and your name is Adalind." We've been together ever since. She's kept me sane while I've been living in this place, but I still longed to take my first step in Ryokō. And I had a plan to do so.

XxXxX

"Agatha! I'm heading out." Dad barked as I looked up from the front desk.
I rolled my eyes. "Let me guess, you're going to get sloshed at the Tipsy Pokéball bar and won't be back till morning."
He turned to look at me as he grabbed his wallet. "Don't be smart with me, young lady. Now I want you to-"
"I know Dad. Feed the Pokémon, close the gates and lock the front door. We do this every time you go out."
He started toward the door. "Good girl. I'll be back."
"Don't forget, the key is under the blue flower pot, not the Pikachu gnome! I'm tired of you breaking them."
As he left the daycare, Adalind came frolicking in from the kitchen, her eyes sparkling as she jumped up onto the desk. "Today's the day, right Aggs? The day we finally get outta here and start our journey?"
I smiled and pet her head. "You got it, Adalind. Tonight we say Sayonara to this dump!"
"Yes!" the evolution Pokémon exclaimed, flipping in the air. "So what's the plan? You do have a plan, right?"
"Of course I do, ya fluff ball! Set off the automatic feeders and meet me upstairs." I rushed upstairs and left her to activate the gadgets I had made over the years to feed the Pokémon of the daycare. Up in my room, I grab a hold of my light purple backpack and lay it on my bed. I pull open my bedside table drawer and take out the Pokédex and Pokéballs I had gotten from Prof. Kauri the day before and placed them in the bag. Going to my closet, I set aside a light blue and pink striped hoodie trimmed with dark purple fur, a purple shirt with two hugging Pichu on the front, blue jeans with bright mulberry circles down the legs, black fingerless gloves and my lucky pink sneakers with light blue bolts on the sides. I packed my Ponyta PJs, dark blue rain coat and boots, first aid kit, my sewing box and other essentials.
As I finished getting dressed, Adalind walked in. "So, what do I have to do?" she asked, gazing at the backpack.
"Why don't you go ahead and pack your bed and food bowl. There's something I need to get." I took a silver key from the drawer and went back to the closet. Pushing aside the clothes, I pulled out a large wooden box. Unlocking the keyhole, I sighed lifting the lid and taking out another box. This one was studded with jewels and carved pictures of legendary Pokémon.
"Is that Mrs. Mom's box?" Adalind purred.
I nodded as I placed it in my bag, clutching my necklace as I did so. Like I said before, I don't remember much of my mother. There aren't even any photos of her in the house. But she did leave me this box on the day she left and told me only to take it out when I go on my Pokémon journey. Inside the box are the Mega Stones she had collected over the years and the necklace I always wore held her Key Stone. "We'll be needing it." I shook off my feelings and stood up. "Well, that's us packed. Time to get going." I swung the bag onto my back and headed out, Adalind at my heels. I stopped in the kitchen and wrote a quick note to Dad before pinning it to the fridge with an Aron magnet.

'Dad,
By the time you read this note, Adalind and I will be gone. I know you've kept me around because Mom left, but I promise I will come back some day. The urge to take on Ryokō as a Trainer is too great to be contained. Who knows, maybe by the time I return, I will have fulfilled my dream of being a famous Pokémon fashion designer. I love you, Daddy.
~ Agatha
P.S. I poured out all your booze! X3 You'd better be sober when I get back!'

I locked the door and placed the key under the blue flower pot. The two of us stopped to take one last look at the only home we've ever known before running off into the night and not once did we look back.

XxXxX

"Ee…vee… Can't we… stop and… rest soon?" Adalind panted as we continually ran along route one.
"Just keep at it for a bit longer, Adalind." I called as she dashed along beside me. "We need to get to the Pokémon Centre in Orega Town before it closes for the night. We can sleep when we get there." We rushed across the forest as fast as we could, even avoiding potential Pokémon encounters. At last, we made it to the town of Orega and headed to the Centre, just as Nurse Joy and her Blissey were closing up. We got a room for the night and slept till at least ten o'clock. Adalind woke up to find me messing with my brown hair in the bathroom.
"Whatchya doing, Aggs?" she purred, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes with her front forepaw.
I smiled as I put my brush down, finally finished with my new look. "I was dyeing my hair light purple. This way if Dad comes looking, he won't recognize me." I gazed in the mirror at my shoulder length, now lavender hair.
"Ooh! I love it!" Adalind exclaimed, jumping up onto the vanity, "You look so pretty!"
"I'm glad you like it," I grinned, "Cuz now it's your turn."
"Wh-wha?!"
"Don't worry!" I laughed, "I'm not going to dye your perfect fluffy fur." I rummage through my bag and pull out a small, hand stitched light purple hoodie, about the same shade as my hair, trimmed with cream colored fur on the sleeves and bottom hem. I help the Evolution fox into the garment, zipping it up, and then take out a pet brush and a light blue ribbon. I straightened up her neck fur over the hoodie and then tie the ribbon around her left ear. "There we go, what do you think?"
She took one look in the mirror and was overjoyed. "*GASP* I LOVE IT! I LOVE IT! I LOVE IT! I look positively adorable! Just wait till I use Attract; I'll be irresistible!"
"As well as incredibly vain, but that's Adalind for you!" I thought to myself as she pranced around the mirror admiring her new outfit. I stand up and stretch, "Well, why don't we start heading out? I'm dying to catch my first Pokémon as a free Trainer."
"Yeah," Adalind smiled, "and I can show off my new look!"

XxXxX

We had a quick breakfast and said our goodbyes to Nurse Joy. Orega Town was quite close to Equin, so I had run errands with my dad here a few times and knew about the area and the forest nearby. We walked a fair way into the woods keeping a lookout for a potential first Pokémon. Just as the dark clouds of an approaching storm started to form overhead, I spotted one. "Check it out, Adalind!" I whispered, "It's a Spinarak. Let's catch it and start our team…Adalind?" I turned to look at my Pokémon partner. Instead of the green spider I had noticed, she was staring down into a swampy ditch, a look of worry across her face. I follow her eyes and down at the bottom of the muddy trench… was a small, shiny Pansage. The grass monkey lay knocked out in the mud, his body thin as a twig and the leaves on his head looked close to wilting. Around his neck was a rope, chewed at the end and tightened around his throat. I jumped down into the ditch and carefully cradled his small frame in my arms. He stirred slightly and slowly opened his light brown eyes. His breathing was short and shallow and he was shivering as the cold winds started to blow.
"Is he…alive? I hope he's ok…" Adalind peeped, her front paws on my leg attempting to get a better look.
I unzip my hoodie and held the grass Pokémon to my chest to keep him warm and shield him from the wind and approaching rain. "He will be once we get him to the Pokémon Centre. Come on, hurry!" We rush through the forest just as the rain began coming down in thick blankets, mud falling from the Pansage's body and exposing the bright green fur.

XxXxX

Adalind and I waited anxiously in the Pokémon Centre's waiting room, the minutes seeming like hours and the hours that passed seemed longer. With a sigh of relief we hear the familiar *Ding, Ding Dingding, Ding* and look to see Nurse Joy walk through the double doors of the infirmary, Blissey wheeling a medical bed behind her. The Pansage was cleaned up, his shiny coloring bright and vibrant, and was no longer thin and weak… though he still seemed just as down as he rubbed at the scar around his neck where the rope was. "It's a good thing you brought it in; any longer out there and it would have been a ghost Pokémon."
"Thank heavens he's alright. I wonder what happened to get him in such a state." I walked towards the bed and seeing me, he jumped down and scurried toward the door.
Nurse Joy frowned as the grass monkey started to leave. "I think I remember that Pansage. It used to belong to a boy who lived in town who moved away to Alola. I thought he took it with him, but I guess it got left behind." Hearing those words, I took off after him, Adalind at my heels.

We chased him to the far end of the town, the rain coming down in a sprinkle. Soon we ended up at an old house, windows boarded up and a 'For Sale' sign on the browning lawn. Slowly we walked along the edge of the empty dwelling and found him curled up on the back door mat, tears in his eyes. I knelt down in front of him, shielding the rain. "Pansage?"
"Leave me alone!" he sniffed, trying to hide his tears. "I'm grateful for your help but please, just go away!"
Adalind placed a reassuring paw on his back. "You were hurt by the one you cared about, weren't you."
"Hurt doesn't even begin to cover it!" he snapped, "Dustin was supposed to be my Trainer, my best friend, but he ran off to do some Island Trial and tied me to a tree so I wouldn't follow him!" He wrapped the mat over his shoulders, facing away to conceal his pain.
"You must be feeling so-"
"How would you know how I feel?" He abruptly vented. "You have a Trainer that loves and cares for you. I have nothing but memories of what was and what should still be! You can't possibly imagine how I'm feeling right now."
I placed a hand on his head, a gentle look in my eyes. "I found Adalind as an egg. She's never known where she came from or who her parents were. I basically adopted her. I myself… I lost my mother when I was very young. I really have no memories of her… But I do know she loved me, and would always want me to be happy. So, I strive to bring the same happiness to my Pokémon." The rain broke and the sun began to peak through the clouds. "If you're willing to give me a chance, and yourself a second chance, I promise I'll be the Trainer you deserve."
As the sun shone down on us, new tears fell freely down the shiny grass Pokémon's face. "*Hic* Y-yes… Yes! Thank you!" he sniffed, jumping into my arms. The three of us embraced as the sun dried us of both the rain and our tears.

"We're all getting a fresh start." I smiled as we packed up our stuff outside of the Pokémon Centre and began walking the road to our next destination, "And we should start out right." I turned to my newest Pokémon partner as he rode on Adalind's back. "That means you need a name… I think Basil suits you perfectly."
"Basil… I could get used to that." He smiled then scampered off to the grass on the edge of the road. He plucked a single wild basil leaf and placed it in the top button hole of his new purple vest. I had also made him a white shirt with the grass type symbol on the front and a light blue neck scarf to hide his scar. As he climbed up my leg to ride in my hood, I knew I had made a difference…even in the short time I had started my quest. I couldn't wait to see what I'd be faced with next.

XxXxX

At last I finished this chapter! Usually I set myself a goal of 1000 words but I wanted to push myself this time. So bring on the bad comments, cuz I am proud of this! I will put in a Pokémon battle eventually but I do want to focus on the emotional side of the story.

Next time: Disaster and Loss, Can an Absol overcome a tragedy to save a life? Find out soon!