Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon or the characters. They are the property of Tajiri Satoshi, Nintendo, Game Freak, etc.

Notes: This idea would not leave me alone. I wanted to write about how Tracey had acquired Marill and Venonat. I'd had the thought for years that Marill was a special friend given to him by his father when he was still too young to legally train a Pokemon, but Marill could still be a friend to him.

A lot of what's featured is headcanon - Tracey growing up on Tangelo Island, his father (a well-known Pokemon Watcher on Tangelo) passing away when he was five, his mother passing away from grief when he was ten and on his first journey around the neighbouring islands (no further from the Southern region explaining why he hasn't been to Murcott Island before he travelled with Ash and Misty), Marill being a gift, Venonat being the first capture...

These chapters tend to focus more on the Pokemon's point of view rather than Tracey's.

I hope you enjoy this!

He sat on the beach to watch the sunset. He knew he didn't have many more chances to witness such a breathtaking sight. He heard a sound in the water, and averted his gaze to the source of the sound. "A Pokemon..." He reached into the pouch attached to his waist and pulled out some binoculars. He set sight to Sunset/Night and looked through the viewers. He could make out the shape; he just had to adjust the zoom to focus better.

The Pokemon ceased playing. It looked over the man, wondering why he was looking through those strange things.

His focus was achieved. "Oh, I see. It's a Marill. Must've come all the way from Johto." He returned his binoculars. He didn't want to disturb the small Pokemon, but he'd been looking out for the ideal Pokemon to give to his son. He wasn't going to be around for his son's tenth birthday when he could acquire a Trainer's license and his first Pokemon, so he wanted to give him a Poke-pal and see the look on his face when he first opened the Pokeball.

The Pokemon, identified as Marill, cocked its head in confusion. The human had put away the strange things, but was still looking at it. The human hadn't made a move to harm it, so it decided to tentatively approach the male human.

The man was surprised. The Marill was approaching him; slowly, yet surely getting closer to where he sat on the sand.

Marill sniffed the air. No traps, no bait, nothing to warn of potential danger. The mouse waddled a little further until it stood in front of the man. "Marill?"

He smiled gently. "Don't be afraid, little one. I don't intend any harm."

Marill smiled and sat near him.

"I prefer observing Pokemon rather than battling them. No harm to the Pokemon and more notes to share with Professor Ivy."

"Rill..."

"I do want to ask you something though."

"Ma?"

"You see, I..." He reached into his pouch again and brought out a photo. It had the image of a small boy with dark hair and large, brown eyes. The boy was smiling widely. He presented the photo to Marill. "This is my son, his name is Tracey."

Marill smiled. The boy appeared friendly.

"He might seem happy in this photo, but the truth is, he's pretty lonely. He doesn't have any friends, and despite our desire to give him a brother or sister, something ceased that from happening."

Marill's smile faded. Now that it looked closer at the human, he appeared weaker than the usual male who stopped by the beach.

"I'm not well. In fact, I'm dying. I won't be around on Tracey's tenth birthday. I won't be able to see him receive his first Pokemon."

Marill was starting to understand what the man was wanting to ask.

"So, I want to get him a Pokemon friend. He won't train it for battles, but at least I'll be able to be there when he receives his first Pokemon, and he'll finally have a friend."

The mouse pieced everything together. The man was hinting at asking if it would be willing to accompany him and be the special friend for his son.

"You seem like a nice Pokemon; very kind and sweet. I know that Marill have excellent hearing too. My son has already been considering watching Pokemon like I have done since I was young. Listening skills like yours would be a great help to him when he's seeking out Pokemon to observe."

Marill needed not hear any more. "Marill! Marill!" With a wide smile, it hopped up and down on the spot.

"Are you saying you would like to come with me and be my son's friend?"

"Rill! Marill marill!"

"Thank you so much, Marill. I just know that you and Tracey will get along well."

Marill jumped onto his lap and nuzzled him. Truth be told, Marill had been lonely too. It would swim with other Pokemon on occasion, but because of being new and strange in the waters surrounding Tangelo Island, it didn't have any close friends like many of the Pokemon it swam with had.

"I hope you don't mind, but I will need to put you into a Pokeball. I'll take you to the Pokemon Centre so you can be examined and treated for anything that ails you. You appear healthy, but I want to make sure."

The blue Pokemon nodded happily and with another nuzzle, started to coo. It had no issues with having to be in the Pokeball. It figured that would be the best way to surprise the boy it would soon meet.

The man replaced the photo in the pouch and pulled out an empty Pokeball. He didn't have any Pokemon of his own to battle the mouse, so he was thankful it was willingly joining him. He pressed the button on the ball to enlarge it, then gently tapped the ball onto Marill's head.

It was a strange sensation, to say the least. One second after the ball made contact, the mouse was suddenly changed to a beam of red light that vanished into the ball. It opened its eyes once inside and smiled. It wasn't the beach, but there was a sense of security; like nothing could bring harm to the mouse while it was inside the confines of the ball. It heard the man make a comment about Now I'll take you to the Pokemon Centre so Nurse Joy can give you a check up, and felt the ball moving slightly. Soon, its surroundings were still once again.

Marill opened its eyes and shook its body after being released from the ball in a flash of white light. It looked around the strange surroundings and saw a woman with pink hair in a nurse's outfit. "Marill?"

"Don't worry, I don't mean any harm. I'm Nurse Joy, I'll be giving you a check up to ensure you're as healthy as you appear," the woman responded with a soft smile and warm voice.

Marill smiled and relaxed. The tone of the woman's voice was very comforting.

"Now then, you appear to be female, correct?"

"Marill!"

"I thought so. It's subtle, but there's a difference between you and males of your species." She picked Marill up and set her on a pair of scales. "First, I'll check if your weight is at a healthy range. Even in the wild, Pokemon can either eat too much or too little."

Marill almost jumped as a shrill beep sounded seconds after Joy's explanation. She (as Marill has been identified as female) wasn't expecting to hear such a sound, but after Joy gave her a comforting pat, she calmed down.

"Very good. You're right at the mark of the healthy weight range for your species. You're also the correct height. Now, I'm going to check your heartbeat, pulse, breathing, blood pressure and reflexes. Following that, I'll need to draw some blood from you so I can ensure everything is well inside as well."

"Marill...?"

"Don't worry. It might sting a little, but it's a lot better having it checked now than to find later that something's wrong requiring painful treatments."

"Rill..."

The nurse brought out a stethoscope and put the plugs in her ears. She pressed the rounded end to Marill's torso and listened carefully. Heartbeat is normal; no skips or murmurs. Breathing is normal; there aren't any troubling sounds coming from her lungs. She removed the rounded end and pulled the plugs out of her ears, looping the tool around her neck. "I'm going to check your pulse now." She took hold of one of Marill's stubby arms and found the pulse point. She was looking up at the clock as she felt the pulse thrum lightly under her fingers. "Very good, it's normal."

"Marill?"

"I can't say for sure just yet. We still need to test everything else. I'll need you to sit down please."

Marill did as was requested and watched as the nurse brought out something that looked like a small hammer. She tensed, wondering just what was going to be done with that.

"Oh, no need to fret, Marill. I'll tap this to certain parts of you to test your reflexes. I'll need you to relax though, or you won't respond as you should."

She inhaled deeply then exhaled slowly, allowing herself to calm down so Nurse Joy could give her the examination. She felt the hammer tap her arms and her arms twitched.

"Very good. Now for your feet." She tapped the hammer to the mouse's lower appendages, not far from where the very short legs met with the rounded torso. Again, more twitching. "Very good. You have fine reflexes. I'll check your tail too." She turned Marill so she could see the blue Pokemon's back. She tapped the ball on the end with her fingers to test how bouncy the tail was. "Very good; not too tight, nor too loose." She put the hammer away and found a syringe, needle, drain, tourniquet and some vials. "I'll need to give you the blood test now."

Marill turned around and let out a shrill "Marill!" in shock at the sight of the needle.

"I promise, it's not going to hurt as much as you think. But, you must stay absolutely still."

The pink Pokemon beside the nurse looked up to her partner. "Chansey?"

"If Marill starts to look like she's going to move, I might need you to help hold her still enough," Nurse Joy responded to the Chansey.

Chansey nodded and turned to Marill. "Chansey sey chan..." she whispered comfortingly.

"It will help if you don't see the needle as it enters your skin. You can look away if you want." Joy had finished tightening the tourniquet around one of Marill's very stubby arms and felt for a vein under the short fur. "I found one. This will only take a second." She pulled the fur back slightly with the fingers of her left hand and applied a liquid to where she felt the vein.

Marill closed her eyes tight and waited. She felt a slight stinging feeling, but it passed quickly. "Marill..."

"I told you it would be fine." Once the nurse had enough blood to examine for potential pathological issues, she put a gauze over the tiny hole and wrapped a small bandage around it. "This will keep it from getting any germs in it." She finished labelling the vials and handed them to Chansey. "Please get these to the pathology lab."

Chansey nodded and carefully carried the vials out of the examination room.

Nurse Joy gave Marill a pat on the head for being a brave Pokemon. "I'll let you rest in a recovery room for now, then you can have something to eat, alright?"

"Marill!" Marill then let out a yawn. It had been a big day. She closed her eyes and felt herself being picked up and carried.

The man was there. She was back in the Pokeball, but she could recognise his voice. She could hear the nurse telling him that she was the bill of perfect health and was ready to be presented to his son whenever he was. She then heard the nurse make a comment of concern.

Sir? Mr. Sketchit? Are you alright?

Not really...I think I'm...

Oh dear! You shouldn't even be out in such a condition! What will your wife say?

She can yell at me later. For now...can you please call an ambulance...?

A thud. Marill's ears twitched and she screamed from inside the confines of the ball. Nobody would hear her, but she continued to call out in worry.

Concerned voices. A woman crying, a boy whimpering softly as someone...a new male voice...spoke that unfortunately, he only had a day left before he...

Marill shook her head. She knew the man was dying; he'd told her that himself. But, she couldn't believe he would be gone so soon! She was glad she was able to help grant the wish of him being there to see his son receive his first Pokemon.

Tracey, I have something for you... I won't be there on your tenth birthday...so, here...

A Pokeball? Marill figured that voice was the young boy she was to befriend. She felt saddened as she heard just how small his voice sounded. She knew the boy was upset; frightened and full of sorrow that soon, his father wouldn't be there.

Why don't you open it?

There's a Pokemon inside?

Marill heard a woman still sobbing lightly as she advised the child do as requested; that he grant his father the chance to see him receive his first Pokemon. She braced herself. She couldn't appear sad when she first appeared to the child. She put on a smile and was ready for when she felt that warmth of the white light envelop her and carry her out of the ball and into the outside world. "Marill!"

"Tracey, this is a Marill. She wants to be your friend," the man said softly.

Tracey's eyes widened in surprise. He knelt down to the blue Pokemon's level (which wasn't much further from his own once on his knees) and reached out a hand, not wanting to startle it. "Hello, Marill. I'm Tracey. I'd like to be your friend too."

Marill nodded and with a call of her name, she leapt into the boy's arms and nuzzled him. The photo hadn't lied, he truly was a friendly boy. It seemed now, she'd be needed more than ever.

Marill felt tears in her eyes as the man said his last words. She felt Tracey hugging her tightly, almost enough to bruise, but she refused to cringe, cry out to let him know she was in a bit of pain or jump out of his hold until he was certain to loosen his grip. Instead, she shed a couple of tears as she whispered her own goodbyes to the human who'd introduced her to her first real friend. As she felt the boy's tears dripping on her head, she turned in his embrace and nuzzled him. Her arms were too short to reach around and hug him properly; something she wished she could do at the moment once the boy started to sob. All she could do to try to offer physical comfort was continue to nuzzle his chest gently. Just as his tears dampened her fur, her tears dampened his shirt.

As she heard the woman begin to wail and scream her husband's name as a low beeeeeeep filled the room, she let out her own sobs that blended with the sound of those of the boy who held her. The man was nice, the boy was nice. Why did this have to happen?

As the years passed, Marill stayed by Tracey's side as he grew from the five year old she'd met. She would nuzzle him whenever he would mourn his father. She would laugh with him whenever they saw or heard something funny. She wished she could use her Water Gun on the other kids who made him feel more miserable than he already was, but knew if she did that, then she'd be taken from Tracey.

She currently sat with him on the floor in front of the TV as they watched a show featuring the world's leading researcher Professor Oak. Marill was intrigued to hear what the man had to say about Pokemon, and wished Tracey could understand her when she put in her own two-cents about the species mentioned. But, she noticed even if she had said anything, the boy wouldn't hear her. Why? Because his attention was locked onto the TV. She'd known for a couple of years that he was quite the fan of the researcher featured on TV.

The show finished and Tracey picked up the remote control. "That was really interesting, huh?"

Marill nodded to let him know she agreed. She followed him across the room and hopped onto the couch as he sat on the soft cushions.

"I hope I can meet Professor Oak someday. I'm working hard on being a Pokemon Watcher like Dad was. He taught me a few things when I told him I wanted to be a Watcher just like him. I'm even working on my drawing skills."

"Marill!" She knew. She was with him every time he followed the two rules his father had taught him that allowed him to observe Pokemon without being seen or heard. She was with him when he would work on a sketch of the Pokemon. At his age, the drawings were a bit rough or clumsy, but he was still determined to draw as well as his father had.

Marill heard Tracey's mother enter the room and looked over to her. It seemed that the grief of losing her soulmate was taking its toll on her. She appeared tired and withdrawn.

"Tracey, has Professor Oak's talk finished?"

"Yep!"

"Do you plan on going to look at more Pokemon on the beach?"

"No, not today. The weather looks bad."

Marill nodded in agreement as she looked outside. She had a feeling Tracey knew more than he let on about the weather.

"That doesn't stop a Watcher though." She sat beside her son, but didn't pull him into a hug.

"It does if a hurricane is coming."

"You know about the hurricane, Tracey?"

"Yep. You taught me to look at the sky and sea to know how bad a storm would be. It won't reach here though, right?" It helped that his mother was a former member of the Tangelo Meterological Bureau.

Marill was impressed. Not even she, who lived in the seas since she could remember, could identify just how bad a storm could get. Not that it ever caused her problems thanks to the ball on the end of her tail helping her keep afloat during the worst of it.

The woman nodded to let her son know the hurricane was far out in the ocean, so they'd only face bad weather instead of having to bunker down until it passes. "Good boy. You really paid attention."

"Are you okay, Mum? You look tired."

Marill nodded in agreement and let out a sound.

"I'll be alright, you two. I didn't sleep well last night, thats's all."

Marill sighed inwardly. The woman was lying and she knew it. She'd been in the same state since the night her husband died. She knew Tracey was aware of it too, but the boy chose not to argue with his mother on the subject. He didn't handle his father's passing too well either, but it would be worse for the woman who'd been in love with him for so long. "Marill ma?"

Tracey looked to the mouse. "What's up, Marill?" He'd learned to identify Marill ma as his name in Marill-speak.

Marill pointed to a painting in the room. It had been done by Tracey's father. She was hinting it might be nice to practice drawing since the weather was too unpleasant for seeking out Pokemon to observe.

The woman caught on. "I think Marill's suggesting you do some drawing practice."

"Good idea. I can't go and look for Pokemon, but I can at least practice so I can do better sketches the next time I see one."

"Your sketches are already very good, Tracey."

"But, they don't look right. I want to draw just as good as Dad did."

The woman's eyes filled with more sorrow. "Yes. He was quite talented. Alright then. When you feel you're good enough to, will you show me your sketches?"

"Okay, Mum!" He slid off the couch and waited until Marill had jumped off. "Come on, Marill. Let's do some drawing."

Marill nodded and went to follow the boy, but a whisper almost halted her in her tracks. Keep being a good friend to my son. I think you'll be the only one he'll have in the future. She couldn't help but worry about what those words meant.

Two more years passed, and Tracey was finally ten years old. He was able to receive a Trainer's license permitting him to catch and train Pokemon, and could finally set off on his journey. He and Marill stood outside the house waiting for his mother to come out and see him off on his journey.

Marill looked up at Tracey. She knew the boy was a bit anxious about heading out on his own, but there was also the excitement of venturing out into the world. "Marill ma?"

He looked down to her as he felt her nuzzle his leg. "Are you excited about our journey too?"

"Rill!"

"Of course, we'll mainly be visiting nearby islands and exploring all of them before coming back home." He looked back to the house. "Something's wrong with Mum, and it worries me too much to be away from home. I wanted to stay home, but..."

The mouse nodded. She knew the situation. She knew Tracey preferred to stay home as he could see his mother's grief was taking its toll on her to the point she appeared physically ill. Of course, when the child had made that comment to his mother, she assured him that she would be alright while he was gone. If she felt herself deteriorating further, she'd contact someone to make sure she'd be okay.

The woman finally stepped out of the house. Her cheeks were shrunken; she looked like she hadn't eaten in weeks. That wasn't far from the truth, she barely managed to eat her meals those days and preferred to just lie in bed and rest. It was a good thing Tracey was self-sufficient in preparation for heading out on his first journey, otherwise he'd likely starve too. The woman smiled as brightly as she could as she approached her son and embraced him. "It's finally the day. You've always been eager to go on your first journey and see what Pokemon you'll find."

"I'm not quite sure about what I want to really do..."

"What do you mean?"

"I kind of want to be a Trainer, but I'm leaning more towards being a Watcher."

"Either way, Marill will be a valuable partner." She looked to the Pokemon. "Won't you, Marill?"

Marill nodded. "Marill marill!"

The embrace was broken after the woman gave her son a kiss on the forehead. "Before I forget..." She reached into her pocket and brought out a light red/pink headband. "It will be hard to sketch Pokemon with sweat in your eyes, so wear this to keep it out of them."

Tracey nodded as he accepted the headband and slipped it on. It was a little loose, but it stayed where it was meant to.

"My little boy, finally heading out on his own. You be careful, won't you?"

"Of course, Mum! I'll be back in a few months to tell you about my journey and show you my new Pokemon."

"I look forward to it." She knelt down and gave Marill a pat on the head. "Look after my son, okay? He'll need you," she whispered so only Marill could hear. She stood up again. "Goodbye, you two. I love you."

"Bye, Mum! Love you too!" Tracey replied as he finally turned and took the first step on the path heading towards the port. He planned on catching a ferry to the next island, no matter which one.

Marill waddled alongside her trainer, though the words his mother had said caused her to feel some uneasiness. What did the woman mean? Was something more wrong than either she or her trainer comprehended?