From the moment I set foot I knew it was going to be the last time I entered the classroom for a while. The thirty or so desks that sat in rows facing a blank whiteboard were slowly being filled by my classmates who all looked like they had drunk three cans of Red Bull for breakfast. There was nothing I could say to describe the adrenaline rush I was feeling right then. I was so nervous and excited all at the same time every part of my was trembling. Today my class was starting their journey on Route 1.
A year ago my mom had signed me up for weekly Pokemon lessons at the Professor's lab. Each week we would learn how to better care and understand our pokemon and it was all leading up to today. Last week we'd been told to pick a group of friends to travel with. Each group had to consist of at least two people or else Professor Swan wouldn't let us start our journeys. I decided to go with Anita because she had been a good friend to me ever since I joined the class. I was one of the youngest students and so was she so we worked well together.
Anita was a very outgoing person, and liked a lot of attention. It was just as much an advantage as a disadvantage. One of the only reasons I agreed to go with her was because she seemed the most dedicated. Some of the other kids were just there because their parents wanted them to follow in their footsteps. I was here because I knew someday I'd be the greatest pokemon master ever to live. Anita seemed to share the same dream so I partnered with her instead of someone who wanted to visit all the tourist attractions.
As I approached the front of the classroom with my pack full of supplies for the journey, I took out my permission slip I had to have signed and handed it to the professor. Anita was waiting for me in the front row and she looked so exited her eyes were bulging. Her brown hair was pulled back into braid and she was wearing jeans and a t shirt. I saw by her side was a very large bag of supplies and I felt kind of bad I'd asked her to bring the tent. She waved me over and I sat down.
"Alright class settle down," Professor Swan said. She was a tall and very young professor with straight black hair that she always kept in a silky ponytail. "I know you're all very excited to begin your journey," she said and the class erupted in whispers. "Attention, attention class," Professor Swan said clapping her hands together. The whispered conversations died down. "Thank you. Now I'm going to pass out some pokeballs. Please know that this is completely random and no pokemon is better than the others. These are are freshly caught and are just dying to meet you all."
More hushed whispers as Professor Swan placed a pokeball on each of our desks. She gave me mine first and I stared at it. It was so small and shiny. I wanted to open it more than anything right then and see what was inside. Any moment now I would know who I would be starting my pokemon adventure with, any moment. It was agonizing, watching as Professor Swan reached into her bag for the last pokeball to give to Wallace who was sitting at the very back. Then she had to walk all the way up the aisle to the front before giving the okay to open the balls. There were several flashes of light as everyone pressed the center button in their pokeball and let out the twenty or so pokemon. Something inside me held me back though and left me staring at the pokeball in silence. Why couldn't I open it?
I looked to my left and saw Anita staring at a tiny bird pokemon, a Starly. I knew it
because one of our first class assignments was to write a poem about a particular pokemon and I'd chosen Starly. Anita looked delighted.
"Why haven't you opened yours Penny?" Anita asked when she looked over, expecting me to had a pokemon sitting on my desk.
"I don't know," I said truthfully. Something in my brain was telling me to grab the ball and press the center button but my limbs weren't responding. Just then Anita grabbed the ball and I sprung into action before she could press the button. "Anita no!" I said snatching the ball away. I couldn't believe she had been about to release my pokemon. Anita giggled and I got mad.
"What?" Anita said playfully. "I want to know what you got."
So this is what traveling with her would be like. Maybe I had made a mistake. Going with Faith or Melissa suddenly didn't sound so bad.
"Fine," I said, clutching the ball. I could hear my heart beating in my head which always meant I was really nervous about something. Then, I sent out the pokeball. It bounced twice on the table before letting out a glowing red light. As soon as the light cleared I saw it, the Blitzle standing on the table. It was bigger than I expected and if I put it on the floor it would come up to about my knees. I starred in shock and a wave of happiness and warmth washed through me. This was my pokemon, no one elses and it was perfect. I wanted to hug Blitzle but I knew people would think that was odd. Instead I stocked it's soft black and white fur and mane that stuck up at the front like a lightning bolt. Anita's Starly walked up to Blitzle and stared up at it.
"Look," Anita said, scooping up Starly and placing it on top of Blitzle's head. "They're both black and white so they must be friends," she said and laughed as Starly walked down Blitzle's back. "I'm going to call you Flaps," she said to the bird Pokemon. "What are you going to call yours Penny?" she asked, stroking Blitzle's mane as I'd done. Something about that bothered me like I didn't want anyone else touching my pokemon.
"Um, I don't know," I said, picking Blitzle up and placing it on the floor. I stared at it for a while wondering what nickname I should give it. The professor said it was always a good idea to give them a name because you don't want it to get mixed up with the other pokemon just like it.
"Looks like you've got a female," Professor Swan said as she passed Blitzle. I wasn't sure how she knew but I was glad I now knew what kind of name to give it.
"Chloe," I said patting Blitzle's head. "That's her name."
"Cool," Anita said, coming around the other side of me to pet her. "Flaps and Chloe, I like it."
After a while Professor Swan called for attention again. "Everyone, retrieve your Pokemon," she said and there was lots of red light as the pokemon slowly disappeared. I shot out my red light and watched Chloe disappear inside the ball. Then, it shrunk down to the size of a thimble in my hand and I realized it was the most precious thing I had ever held. "Now does everyone remember how to log onto the database?" Professor Swan asked and there was a unanimous murmur of agreement. "Good," she said. "Once you reach Acumula City you go first to the Pokemon Center and heal your Pokemon. Then you call me and anyone you need to call using the computers. I want to hear from everyone of you. Once you've done that log onto the class database and enter your Pokemon's scientific name, given name and a brief description of it. Make sure to do it for all the pokemon you've caught because as you know we're having a race to see who can catch the most Pokemon and who can raise the best Pokemon."
"I'm going to win both," Anita whispered.
"Good now I have everyone's permission slip," Professor Swan said waving the stack of papers in hand. "Wait until we're all outside to release your Pokemon and we'll start the sending off parade."
I fidgeted excitedly in my seat. Every year Peridot Town would host a big parade for the embarking Pokemon trainers were we would walk down the streets with our pokemon at our side and people would hold signs and cheer for us. I couldn't believe that this year I'd be in it.
The parade started at the gates of Professor Swan's laboratory with all the parents. As I slung my pack over my shoulder I spotter my mom and dad and waved at them. Then I produced Chloe's pokeball and in a flash of red light she was by my side. Leaning shyly on my legs. All around there were camera's going off people screaming, waving sign's with certain people's names on it. I found Anita and the crowd and walked with her as we paraded down the streets. Sadly I noticed none of her parents seemed to be in the crowd waving at her. I saw Anita trying not to look too disappointed.
A little ways down the parade I spotted a big purple blob. Oh no, I thought as I realized the blob was actually a bunch of people, Violet's cheer squad. Violet was the only other twelve year old in the class, everyone one else was older. She was the head cheerleader at Anita and I's school and just as mean you'd imagine. I considered her my biggest rival because she too shared my dream but I would never want to travel with someone like her. I also noticed she hadn't even let her Pokemon out of it's ball.
"Just keep walking," I said as Anita gave the cheerleaders a nasty glare. They had started to jeer catcalls at us.
"Just wait till I can teach Flaps how to blast them out of the sky," Anita muttered.
At last we reached the entrance to route one. We weren't the first one's there but at least we weren't the last. People liked to take their time in the parade, say goodbye to old friends and talk to their parents before they left. I'd already said goodbye to my mom and dad this morning. Yes they'd been a little tearful but I knew I was more than ready to start my adventure. Even my little sister had given me a few jealous looks.
"Over here," Anita said and she pulled out her phone. She opened up the camera app and we smiled as she snapped the picture of us in front of the sign that read Route 1. "This is it," she said and we took our first step on our Pokemon adventure.