(A/N: If you want the Nuzlocke Rules for this run, you'll have to check the Chronicle of April blog on Tumblr. Sorry 'bout that. Other than that, enjoy!)


Chapter 1: A Regular Birthday

Night fell peacefully in Pallet Town, as night usually did. The sounds of nocturnal Pokémon filled the air as they began to awaken, while the lights inside the houses that made up the small town lit up, save for a medium-sized, two-floor house near the center of town, the lack of light was compensated by the faint glow coming from the kitchen window, the source being eighteen lit candles on a cake saying "Happy Birthday, April" in purple lettering, as the girl in question promptly blew out said candles.

Seconds later, a middle-aged woman, known to most of the town's residents as Ms. Newton, turned the lights back on. She had short, dark-brown hair, which complimented the long burgundy dress she was wearing, and was a few inches shorter than her daughter, April, who was sitting in the chair wearing a medium-length, purple dress with a bow across the bodice. April wasn't particularly fond of wearing dresses, but seeing how her mom shelled out a decent amount of money to buy it for her birthday, and the fact that it was of her favorite color, she felt obligated to wear it on her special day. Given, it was the day before her actual birthday, but her mom wanted to celebrate it tonight, seeing how April would be going on her Pokémon journey tomorrow.

"My little girl is 18 and about to go on a journey of her own." Ms. Newton said, wiping tears from her eyes. "I remember when your dad and I first brought you home as a baby. And now Professor Oak wants you to help him fill his Pokédex. April, you've truly matured into a wonderful young woman, and no matter what, I'll always love you." Ms. Newton quickly caught April in a strong hug, and April reciprocated it.

"Thanks, mom. I love you too. And don't worry, I'll drop by once in a while." April responded, trying to hold back her own tears of joy as her mom let go of her.

"Well, it might be nice to see how you're doing, but don't go about visiting on a regular basis, sweetie. This is a time for you to go out there and see the world, and I'm sure you wouldn't want Blue to get too far ahead of you Gym-wise, right?" her mom replied as she cut a piece of cake for April, and then placed it on a paper plate. April laughed as her mom handed her cake. As she dug in, April noticed an extra gift on the counter across from her.

"Is that from Daisy?" April inquired. Usually April received a present each from Blue and Daisy, but she figured that Blue probably didn't bother to get her a present this time. Her mom said otherwise.

"No, actually. That's from Blue. Daisy said she wanted to give you hers tomorrow before you go."

"Oh… I suppose Daisy forced Blue to get me something, again," replied April. Looking at the nearby clock, April and her mom noticed that it was 8:30. Knowing that she had a busy day ahead of her, April motioned to her mom that she was going to go to bed, which surprised her mom, knowing that her daughter was a night owl. Grabbing the gift and nearby card addressed to her, April climbed the stairs to her room.

Entering her room, April noticed that her mom's Flareon, Mary, was resting on her bed. Setting down the box on the side of her bed, and then softly petting Mary's back, April silently kicked off her shoes and set them near her closet. While there, April slipped off her dress and put it on a hanger and placed it on a hook in the wall, leaving April in her underwear. Deciding to get into something more comfortable, April unhooked her bra and cast it aside into the nearby hamper, then grabbed the t-shirt that she had worn today prior to changing into her dress. It was a plain black tee with the image of a Ninetales cloaked in silver-blue flames on the back. The simple feeling of being in her favorite shirt again made April hug herself out of spontaneity, and she let out an adorable squeal of delight. This startled Mary awake, who then noticed that it was just April, moving down to the foot of April's bed and falling back asleep. April smiled, and then went for her birthday present.

April looked at the present and card addressed to her by her neighbor and former best friend, now rival, Blue. Knowing how much of a cocksure jerk Blue was, April expected Blue's gift to be some sort of crummy piece of junk that would serve her no purpose, besides Daisy usually got April something nicer in order to make up for her younger brother's jerkiness. Despite being rivals, April at least put some sort of effort into getting Blue something at least useful for his birthdays. Granted, her gifts weren't a 100% effort, but she figured it was enough to give him something of value. So her mom didn't mind if April opened it in her bedroom or not, well aware of her daughter's rivalry, and the fact that she didn't care much for Blue's personality either.

Throwing the medium-sized gift box on her bed, April decided to perform the usual custom of reading the card before opening the gift. Tearing the envelope open hoping to get Blue's usual boastful scratch-and-sniff card out of the way, she was expectedly shocked to find that Blue had written a strangely, somewhat nice message to April:

Dear April,

Happy birthday.

You sure took your sweet time turning 18. Not like I care or anything. You're the reason why Gramps didn't let me have a Pokémon yet.

Anyways, now that you're 18, Gramps is finally going to give you and me Pokémon for us to have. He was rambling on about giving us our Pokémon at the same time so we could fill the Pokedex or something for months now. So just be at Gramps' lab early tomorrow so he'll give us our Pokémon, then we can just go our separate ways.

Also, I figured that I should at least give you something nice for your 18th birthday. I hope you like it. - Don't you dare think that I care about what you think about this stupid birthday present! I'll see you tomorrow.

From,

Blue

An astonished April set the card on her nightstand, seeing how there was nowhere else to put it, and unwrapped the box, containing a jade pendant with a golden-looking frame, and a simple gold chain. Setting the box on the nightstand next to the card, April couldn't help but yawn as she plopped herself onto her bed, and quickly drifted off to sleep, her last thought being about the adventure that she would soon be embarking on, which would unfold tomorrow morning.