The Musings of an Umbreon

So, hey everyone. This is gonna be a sort of review story, or a life journey-journalish thing told by me! I'm gonna be reviewing some fanfictions I read (mostly Pokemon) and maybe typing out some reading suggestions. You can give me stories or chapters to read out on or something in the reviews or PM me. So of course, as our first chapter, a story review.

Pokemon Black & White: Tale of a Legend

Chapter 1: Dreams and Recollections

Author: Cottonmouth25

Description: Volan and his Pidove wait anxiously for his sister to come of age. When she finally does, they set out on their journey together. But there are always obstacles in the way - Team Plasma, Volan's troubled past, his longing for a certain girl, and the strange white Pokemon haunting his very existence... Will Volan overcome all this and save Unova from N?

The Gurei household was completely silent. It was midnight, and thus, no one in Lacunosa Town was stirring one bit. The air was thick with silence. There was not a single human or Pokemon to be seen.

In the aforementioned house, there were three humans. The adult woman was sleeping well for the first time in ages. Ever since the death of her husband, she hadn't been able to rest. But now, she finally seemed to be letting go. Her soft, calm breaths were the only thing audible.

Upstairs, a teenaged girl slept equally peacefully. She had finally managed to get to sleep only a few minutes ago, as she was excited beyond belief. In her dreams, the girl known as Thrin saw the moment as she had always imagined it – getting her first Pokemon from Professor Juniper, starting her Pokemon journey. She was turning fifteen tomorrow, so at last her dreams would become a reality.

But suddenly, the dream turned to a nightmare. Thrin saw the nighttime forest outside Lacunosa Town just as she had seen it years and years ago. One of her daredevil friends had convinced her to journey into the forest at night in order to see if the stories were true, and a horrifying monster prowled the forest at night.

An interesting start, I think I'll read a bit more, see what this story has in it.

That friend had gotten cold feet at the last minute and abandoned her, leaving her alone, lost in the dark forest. Thrin shivered in her sleep as she dreamt of the cold, unforgiving wild that she was stuck in.

But in her dreams, the forest seemed to get colder, as if all heat was being sucked from it. Thrin shivered harder as frost formed on the trees, mist rose from the ground, and snow began to fall. She remembered thinking, This is summer! Why is it snowing? And then her thoughts turned to those of a lost little girl as she sniffled, crying softly out for help.

Snow. In the summer. What.

And then the trees in front of her were smashed down, and a gigantic icy creature was revealed. Thrin metaphorically froze at the sight, convinced it was going to eat her. The creature was hard to see in the dark, but she could make out huge, frozen armor and sinister yellow eyes.

The creature stepped forward and peered down at her. Thrin tried to make herself look as small and unappetizing as possible. But then, something strange happened. All the color faded from the world, turning it black and white. And although she herself could not see it, the creature saw in the gleam of her eyes the shadow of a huge black dragon.

The monster let out a frigid huff and stomped away into the forest.

Thrin let out a huge sigh of relief, and by the time her family found her, it was as if the monstrous creature and its cold chill had never been there.

Aaaand someone almost gets eating. Seems like a cool story to me so far, anyways.

Next to Thrin's room, oblivious to his sister's trouble, her older brother slept as well. Volan was already legible to be a Pokemon Trainer, but had been loyally waiting for his sister to become of age. Tomorrow, he would be able to start on his journey with her. Volan was perhaps the only other person as excited as Thrin was for tomorrow.

A Pidove perched on his footboard. Bernice had been his closest companion since he had been born. The Normal-and-Flying type looked after him, and was as friendly and loyal as any Pokemon could be. She was to be Volan's Starter. Together, they would journey across Unova, battling Trainers and earning Gym Badges.

Bernice ruffled her feathers slightly, dreaming of that fateful day. The day she had let Volan down. The boy had only been twelve. "Piiii… doooove…" she cooed in her sleep as she shifted restlessly, trying to shake the nightmare away.

But Volan… Volan was smiling in his sleep. Ironically, impossibly, he was dreaming of that same day.

That day… exactly four years ago…

-.-.-.-.-.

"Bernice!" Volan called. "Use your Quick Attack!"

"Pidooooooove!" she warbled confidently, streaking down from the sky with white light blazing behind her. Her opponent, a Sandile, was unable to dodge in time, and was sent sprawling. "Dile!" it exclaimed in pain.

"Sandile, get up and use Dig!" called its Trainer, and the crocodile Pokemon was quick to obey. It sprang to its feet, clawing at the sand underneath it. Within moments, it was gone.

Volan ordered, "Bernice, stay in the air so it can't reach you!" The Pidove nodded and flapped in rapid circles in the air, waiting for the Sandile to come out. Both of them knew that Bernice's Flying type gave her an edge.

"That isn't going to help you, Bird Brain!" taunted the other Trainer, slightly older than Volan was now. "Sandile, use Sand Tomb to get yourself close!"

Oooh. Insults. I like this story.

From the hole Sandile had dug, a tornado of sand erupted, spiraling higher and higher. The Sandile appeared in the center, spinning wildly as it gained height. Volan gasped and Bernice squawked in shock. "Pi-Pidooooove?!"

"Say goodbye to your Rattata with wings!" the Trainer crowed. "Sandile, finish it with Crunch!" The Sandile's teeth glowed and extended to twice their length as it spun closer to Bernice.

"No one calls her a Rattata with wings and gets away with it!" Volan raged. "Bernice, get it with Air Cutter!" She flapped her now-glowing wings, sending several whirling blades of wind at the Sandile and its Sand Tomb.

The Sand Tomb was torn to shreds, but the foe was already too close. The blades missed it entirely, and it lunged at Bernice. Its glowing fangs crunched down on her wing, causing her to shriek with pain. "Pidoooooooove!" Her cry was long and agonized. Tears sprung to Volan's eyes.

The Sandile landed roughly on the ground as it tossed Bernice onto the ground, throwing up a cloud of sand. A moment later, the poor Pokemon was revealed to be slumped in an unconscious heap, feathers dirty and ruffled from the unsuccessful fight.

The older Trainer approached the stricken twelve-year old. "Better luck next time, Bird Brain," he sneered, and shoved Volan hard to the side, sending him down to the ground, much to the amusement of the young crowd that had gathered to watch. Laughing, none of them paid any heed to Volan as he picked up Bernice's body and started to cry. The crowd left, with only a few glancing back and feeling sorry for the young boy.

"This was supposed to be our vacation," he sobbed. "Bernice, why did it turn out so wrong? Why did our visit to Undella Town have to end this way?" He threw himself down on his knees, body wracked with continuous sobs.

Poor kid. This makes me sad.

Volan slowly stopped crying, as he no longer had any tears to shed. He sniffled and cradled his friend in his arms, unaware that he was being watched.

"Are you OK?" came the soft, timid voice, and Volan flinched badly. He turned around to see a girl about his age watching him. Her clothes and even the way she stood made him realize that she came from a wealthy family.

However, she turned out to be the polar opposite of what Volan was expecting from a rich girl. She sat down beside him and gazed at him with sympathy emanating from her green eyes. "Are you OK?" she asked again.

Volan nodded sadly and held Bernice a little tighter. "Everyone loses," she said simply. "Your Pidove just needs to rest. She'll be fine." The girl smiled kindly at Volan.

"Who are you?" he croaked, wiping the dry tears from his eyes. She laughed softly and replied, "My name's Caitlin. I live just over there." She pointed down toward one of the large mansions on the other side of the beach.

"I-I'm Volan," he said after a minute. Caitlin nodded and stretched out her arms. "Can I hold your Pidove? I… I've never held a Pokemon before."

Wordlessly, the boy handed over Bernice, now breathing peacefully. "She's beautiful up close," Caitlin said to him. "I've only ever seen Pidove from far away. I always assumed they were pests like other people say."

Woah woah woah. In my opinion, Pidove look like derped out pidgeons. Beautiful is not a word I would use to describe one.

Volan felt a flash of anger. "Bernice isn't a pest," he said indignantly. "She's been with me forever. She's the kindest Pokemon I've ever known."

Caitlin handed the unconscious Pidove back to him and said guiltily, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you upset."

The two kids shared a long moment of silence together.

"Are… I mean…" Volan stammered after a while. "Can we be friends?" he blurted, to which Caitlin grinned. "Of course," she said. "If you ever come back to Undella Town, you can visit me if you want."

The two new friends talked for a while. Volan told her that he lived in Lacunosa Town and was visiting his grandparents in Undella. Caitlin said that her dream was to become a Psychic-type Pokemon Trainer. Volan replied that he loved Flying-types. They talked more and more, with Volan soon forgetting the dilemma that had just taken place as he cheerfully chatted with Caitlin.

She suddenly turned around in response to something only she could hear. "My mom's calling me," she explained. "I have to go." Volan nodded and said, "Thanks for making me feel better."

Caitlin's only response was a heartfelt hug before she got up and ran down the beach.

Why do I get the feeling that shipping is going to come of this?

Volan and Bernice had never forgotten that day. The Pidove remembered it for painful reasons, and painful reasons only – thus, she tried her best not to remember it. She never liked being reminded of the day she had let her master down.

The boy in question remembered that day for painful reasons as well. However, there was a happy reason embedded at the center of that pain. That reason was the memory of the girl Caitlin, who helped Volan recover from Bernice's defeat and the taunts of the other Trainers.

Four years had passed, and Volan never forgot her. He wondered where she was now, and what she looked like. He wondered if she remembered him. Now, the sixteen-year old boy shifted in his sleep and murmured her name wistfully.

Caitlin…

And that's the end of my first review. I'll give the story a... 96 out of 100. I prefer longer chapters and more elaboration, but it's still good. I'll be reading this. Good Job, Cottonmouth25! Review suggestions for me to review. Ta-ta!