As is obvious, I do not own the Pokemon franchise.
I haven't quite figured out where it is I'm going with this story yet. Hopefully, it's not too terrible when it comes to the actual writing. Feel free to tell me your thoughts and whatnot after reading it. Also, I am aware that the gym leader of Snowpoint City is actually Candice. However, when Aren left on her journey, Tara was in charge, because I wish it to be so.
Aren looked out her ferry window to the land they were quickly approaching. After five years of visiting foreign regions and towns, she had finally decided to return home. The visit she was making wasn't expected, so she wanted to surprise her parents. She just hoped none of the townspeople decided to tip them off. No doubt none of the townspeople had forgotten about her just yet, despite the long time apart. In Snowpoint City, with its small population, it was hard to forget someone. Normally, the only people who even visited were trainers looking to take on Tara.
"Guess I better start packing," Aren said as she turned to look at the floor of her cabin. She had strewn her clothes randomly about the room on the first day of the voyage, not even thinking about what she would have to do in the future because of it. Aren continued to survey her room. She always had hated cleaning. It just seemed so trivial. What was the point when it would just get messy again?
There was a loud pinging noise, then the captain's gruff voice came on over the intercom. "We will be reaching Snowpoint City in approximately fifteen minutes time. An attendant will be coming around to check on each room, and make sure everything is clean and in one piece. Thank you for traveling with us."
"You have got to be kidding me," Aren said, falling back on her bed. Not only did she have to clean up, she had to do it before an attendant came around.
There was a light knock at the door.
Aren groaned. This day just kept getting better and better. Maybe if she ignored it the attendant would leave and come back once she had finished checking all the other cabins.
Several seconds passed in which Aren just lay there, staring at the door, willing the person on the other side to go away. Then the knocking started again.
"Alright, alright. You win." Aren rolled out of the bed, and instead of standing up, padded over to the door on hands and knees. She yanked the door opened, and was immediately surprised to see that it wasn't an attendant like she had expected it to be. Rather, it was a member of Team Rocket, unmistakable in her dorky looking uniform.
Aren had run into Team Rocket once before. They had managed to steal one of her most precious Pokémon, Togekiss. She had spent more than a year raising Togekiss from a Togepi, so that act was unforgivable. To say she had been angry would be an understatement.
However, just because she hated them, did not mean she should just stand there gaping at them like a little girl. She had to come up with a plan to get off of the ferry quickly, and preferably, she would like to do it with all of her Pokémon still in her possession.
"Yo," Aren said, catching the Team Rocket member off guard. She took advantage of the situation, and quickly glanced down the hallway. She couldn't see any, but she didn't doubt that there were even more Team Rocket members in that direction. "What a fine day today has turned out to be."
The girl smiled at her. "Why, yes, I completely agree. In fact, it's such a nice day, we should take a walk."
"Ah, I'd like to, but you see, I have to clean my cabin up before an attendant comes around."
"Don't worry about that. I'll have my...friends take care of your room,"
"I coul--"
"What's taking you so long?" A bored voice asked, interrupting Aren.
The Team Rocket member turned towards where the voice had originated. "I was enjoying myself."
"Yeah, well, enjoy yourself some other time. If we take any longer..."
"I know, I know." The girl lazily waved her hand.
Aren watched the exchange with little interest in what they were saying. She had already come to terms with the fact that she would end up somewhere on this ship she didn't want to with the rest of the passengers. She knew there was nothing she could do right now, so there wasn't any point in worrying. The entire ferry was probably crawling with Team Rocket members, so her chances of making it up to the deck were slim, which eliminated the possibility of making a run for it.
"Hand over your Pokémon," The male Team Rocket member said, snapping Aren back to reality. "The quicker you do this, the quicker you and the other hostages will be able to go free."
Aren shrugged her shoulders. "I don't have any Pokémon to give you. Sorry, but I'm not a trainer." It was a lie, of course. Aren had six very well trained Pokémon on her person right now. Six very well trained Pokémon that she didn't particularly feel like sharing. She just hoped the Team Rocket member wouldn't be able to notice a lie when it was said right to his face.
"Oh, er, well, you'll still need to follow me down to the lower level of the ship. We want to keep all the passengers of this boat in the same vicinity."
Aren gave a fake smile. Her lie had been bought. Aren knew it wouldn't have been bought so easily if she had kept her Pokéballs in plain view, instead of hidden in her sleeve. It made it harder to get them out, but in situations like these, it paid off. "Completely understandable and logical. Although, if it's all the same to you, I would much rather take a walk up to the deck. The ocean air would feel so good..."
"No."
"Okay," Aren said, a smile still on her face. She walked into the corridor, the two Team Rocket members walking on both sides of her. "You know, I thought Team Rocket had control of Johto and Kanto, not Sinnoh."
Silence met her words. This didn't particularly bother Aren. It was better to be seen with villains when you weren't chatting merrily with them.
To keep herself occupied for the remainder of the 'walk,' Aren hummed a tune. It wasn't a catchy one, or, in truth, a good one, but it was the only tune she knew. However, this tune was important. Aren used to sing it to her little sister Mira before she left. It was like their nightly ritual.
She used to be cute back then, Aren thought, continuing with her humming. I bet she grew out of it, though. It's impossible for a ten-year-old to be cute.
And then it hit her like a stampeding Tauros.
If she didn't get off this ferry, she wouldn't be able to see her sister anytime soon. The ferry would probably get redirected, and even if Aren managed to get away safely then, she would still have to find another way to cross the sea. It would probably end up being another three day ferry ride, which was something she definitely wasn't looking forward to.
"You know," Aren said, making her two guards jump. "It's times like these I'm thankful for always having a backup plan."
Aren sweeped the man's legs out from under him, then kicked him where it hurts. She turned on the woman who was now making a grab for her. Aren shoved her hand up into the girl's nose, watching as water started to flow freely.
"Sorry," She said, watching them both writhe in pain on the ground. "But I have no intention of going any farther." With that being said, Aren ran off in the direction they had come, looking for stairs that would take her to the deck.
After making her way through numerous hallways and proving to anyone in the nearby vicinity just how out of shape she was, Aren found the stairs. She wanted to collapse on them, and rest for a moment, but the sound of feet clacking on the wooden floor forced her to keep moving. From the sound, Aren guessed they had sent some Pokemon after her. With how quickly the noise seemed to be gaining in volume, it was probably a Dodrio, one of the fastest Pokemon alive.
"Time to hustle, Aren," She said, forcing herself to crawl up the steps. "All of this is to see your sister, so just keep going."
Aren had almost reached the deck when her foot caught on the lip of a stair, and she slammed down onto the floor. Her knees and elbows scraped across the unforgiving material. She ignored the blood that was now smeared across the deck, and ran to the side of the ferry.
"Lapras, I hope you had plenty of time to rest," She said, a moment before she pulled a Pokeball out of her sleeve. Aren unleashed the Pokemon contained within it, and before the blinding white light even faded away, Aren had jumped over and onto Lapras's back. Her landing was painful, but she couldn't worry about pain right now. Aren had to get away from this ferry before Team Rocket sent even more Pokemon after her.
Please inform me if anything was confusing or if you notice any mistakes (I'm terrible at self-editing). ^^