"And so concludes today's program of Pokemon Talk with Professor Rowan of Sandgem Town. I hope you all enjoyed our time with the professor today and hope you will join us next time. Professor, do you have any last words for our audience, before we wrap things up today?"

The older gentleman chuckled, his white mustache twitching a bit. "Well I would like to say-" She didn't get to hear the rest of the message as the golden haired Gavin burst into her room like a rocket, causing the door to hit the wall with a loud thud. He looked at the wall for a moment and rubbed the back of his head.

"Err, opps," was all he could mutter. The incident seemed to register on his mind for a few seconds, which could seem like hours to him before he turned to look at her. "Oh yea, did you watch the episode of Pokemon Talk today?"

She glanced at the monitor which happened to show the credits and sighed. She turned off the TV. "I was, yes. Gavin, you know I don't care for you bursting into my room like-"

"Wow, hey! Is that a new computer?"

Her mouth fell open as he ran across the room, jumping over the small video-game system that sat in front of the TV, almost knocking it over in his rush. He glanced over the machine, his eyes growing wide. She got to her feet. "I wouldn't call it new new-"

"So cool," he said as he pecked at the keyboard with one finger, mesmerized by the screen. She folded her arms. He poked around for a little more but lost interest in it and looked at her. "What was I taking about again?"

"Pokemon Tal-"

"Oh yea! Jamie, Jamie, I had an awesome idea! A really really awesome idea! We should go to Sandgem Town and ask Professor Rowan for Pokemon of our own! You know how you've been saying how it'd be cool to have one? Well this is it, this is how we find a way to obtain one!"

That had to be the most sensible idea he had in some time. "That...does sound like a cool idea but-"

"See, it is right? So here's the plan. I go home and get my stuff and then we hurry over to Sandgem and ask him! Easy peasy, right?"

She folded her arms. "Well it sounds easy but what about some of the meadows that are in the path between here and there?"

Gavin frowned. "What do you mean? They're just meadows, you run through them all the time. Am I missing something here?"

"Didn't you watch the episode? Don't you remember the Professor mentioning that wild pokemon like to roam in meadows? What if we run into one and don't have a pokemon of our own? What do we do then?"

Gavin laughed and waved his finger at her. "Don't you worry about a thing! I thought about that already and I have a plan for that! I told you I had a plan, right?"

She sighed. "Well..."

He began to walk across the room, tripping over the system and crashing to the ground. He picked his head up and winced. "Ouch."

"Are you okay?"

He nodded. "Cool system though, when did you get it?"

She shook her head. "I've had it for some time. You should know, you've come over and played a few games on it!"

He got to his feet and dusted himself off. "Have I? I don't remember. Oh well, laters! Meet me at the entrance to town in a few and don't be late! I know how slow you can be!" He said before he ran out like he had been shot out like a rocket.

She walked downstairs, finding her mom at the table cutting up some onions. "Was that blur who just ran out Gavin? He moved so fast that I didn't get a chance to say bye."

She leaned on the table and nodded. "It was him. Don't blink or you'll miss him."

She finished chopping up the onion and Jamie had to push away to avoid the smell. "So what did he come over here for?"

"He wants to go over to Sandgem and ask the professor to give us some pokemon."

She frowned as she swept the onion bits into a bowl. "Now honey, you know the road has a few meadows around it. Wild pokemon roam those meadows and if you don't have a pokemon to defend yourselves..."

"Yea, I know. Gavin says he has a way around it. He probably got some Repels or something to keep them away. I'm not going into those meadows otherwise."

Her mom looked at her for a moment, her frown not going away. "Uh-huh. Listen, I know how much you love pokemon but-"

"Trust me Mom, I'm not going into those meadows if his idea doesn't work. I know how dangerous it is."

She let out a sigh after what seemed like an eternity and nodded. "Go on but please take care of yourself and don't get into trouble."

She let out a sigh of relief and hugged her. "Thank you, thank you! I promise not to get into any trouble!"

She hurried outside, greeted by a cool breeze as she stepped out the door. Spring had come but winter still refused to leave just yet, giving them a small snow shower from time to time. She hoped it would pass soon, winter had lasted too long as usual and she was ready for summer. She tugged on her scarf and turned onto the small path that led out of town. She waved her hand at a few neighbors out in their yards. It had been a while since she had been out of town, it'd be fun to get out-"

"Too slow! What's the hold up slowpoke!" Gavin yelled, interrupting her thoughts and bringing her back down to earth. He stood at the entrance to Route 201, arms folded across his chest, his red scarf fluttering in the light breeze. She walked up to him and he shook his head before looking at his wrist like he had a watch. He waved his finger at her. "Tooo slow! You think we got all day here or something? If I hadn't told you to have hurried up, I would have been waiting here for years!"

"Too slow-"

"Ten million dollar fine for holding me down! Now let's go!"

"Ten-ten what?" She said but before she could protest this huge fine, he grabbed her by the arm and dragged her along. They came to the edge of one of the large meadows that lay between Twinleaf and Sandgem and she could see a few Startly in the grass, searching for food. She bent over and cooed at them. "Ahhh cool, Startly! They look just like how Professor Row-"

"Hey, hey! Are we here to stare at some silly little birds or are we here to get to Sandgem? What will it be?"

She stood up straight and shot a glare at him. "I thought you liked pokemon? What's wrong with looking at a few as we're walking along?"

He stomped his foot in the snow. "We don't have time for that!" He yelled, his shrill voice causing some of them to fly away to another patch of grass. He watched them leave and looked at her with a big grin on his face. "There, see?"

She frowned. "I see you scared those poor things off."

He waved her off and looked at the meadow before them. "Now, remember how I said I had an idea to get through these meadows without running into any wild Pokemon?"

She nodded. "Yes, I do. Did you find some Repels?"

He laughed. "Repels? Those only work if you have a Pokemon of your own, otherwise they're useless. No, I mean the only solution to getting to Sandgem is running!"

She didn't know what to say for a moment but he seemed encouraged by her silence and smiled. She recovered and shook her head. "Running? We just run?"

He laughed. "Of course we run! If we walk, they could attack us but if we run really fast, we can avoid them! I mean it's not that far to Sandgem, right?"

She looked at the ground. "Running? We just run? How is that going to work?"

He held up a hand. "Watch and learn Jamie. Watch and learn," he said. He took a few large steps back from the meadow and crouched to the ground. "Okay, on the mark of three, I'll take off. One...two...three-"

"Hold it!" A loud and stern voice yelled. Gavin took off but came to a stop, slipping on the snow and falling to the ground. Jamie turned around to see Professor Rowan coming down from the path that lead to Verity Lake. He looked a bit taller than she imagined, dressed in his trademark light blue sweater, dark blue slacks and brown loafers, though he also wore a dark brown long coat for protection from the chilly weather. He looked at both of them with a stern glance, also something he had become famous for. He looked at her first and then Gavin and then back to her. She gave a nervous smile, even though it felt as if he could see through her and to her innermost thoughts. She never got that vibe from the show but then again, she didn't have the real life professor glaring at her. "What are you two doing?"

"Ahhh Professor Rowan! Just the man we needed to see-or were looking for! I know how you host Pokemon Talk and all so I was hoping that you might be able to give us some Pokemon of our own to take care of!"

He folded his arms. "And just how were you planning to get to Sandgem without any Pokemon of your own? Those meadows are full of wild Startly, Bidoors and Kriicketots. You'll need a Pokemon of your own to defend yourselves."

Gavin laughed. "Well we were...we were...uh, tell him Jamie!"

She looked at him with an incredulous look. "Tell him? Tell him? It wasn't my idea to run through the meadows!"

He glared at her. "Hey, why are you trying to throw me under the bus? You agreed to come along!"

"I agreed to come along but I thought you had a better idea of getting through the meadows apart from running as fast as possible!"

"Ahhh Professor, there you are! You left your briefcase back there and I had to bring it along," a young man said. She noticed a guy coming up from behind, clutching a large brown briefcase at his side. He looked about their age with short black hair. He wore an outfit similar to Rowan's but wore a red cap, a white scarf and a red overcoat. He set down the briefcase and gasped for breath. "Man, I forgot how heavy that thing is. Oh, who are these two?"

Rowan looked at the newcomer and sighed. "Merely a pair of reckless teenagers about to explore meadows full of wild Pokemon."

The guy's eyes grew wide and he shook his head. "That won't do. Trust me when I say this, you do not want to do that. Angry Startly are pretty fast and-"

"And now they want me to give them a pokemon. These two! How am I supposed to react to this?"

The guy shook his head and smiled. "Well, they seem genuine. They made a mistake sure but we shouldn't hold it against them. There are far worse people to give Pokemon too. You almost have to admire their heart, nothing would stop them from trying to acquire one of their own."

Rowan looked at the guy for a few minutes and nodded. "Very well then. Unfortunately I only have one Pokemon in my briefcase, a Turtwig. He's a grass ground Pokemon that resembles a turtle."

Gavin jumped up and down. "A turtle? A turtle? That means it'll grow up into something big and strong, right? Right?"

Rowan nodded and reached into his jacket, pulling out a dark blue Pokedex. Jamie's eyes grew wide as Rowan punched a few numbers in and then turned it around to show them a massive Pokemon that looked like one of those old tortoises, with a large spiny shell and a small tree growing on the side of it. Gavin leaned forward, his nose almost touching the screen, his eyes as big as dinner plates. "This is Torterra, the final evolution of Tortwig."

"That's really cool."

Not the exact words she would use. Gavin might love it but she didn't care much for turtles. "No thanks. Gavin you can have him."

"R-r-really? You really mean it?"

"Yes yes!" She said and he jumped into the air again.

"Yes, my very own Pokemon! Mine, my very own Pokemon! I finally got one, yahoo!"

His yelping and yelling caused more Startly to fly off and Rowan shook his head. "You're going to scare off all the Startly."

Gavin stopped his celebration and nodded. "Uh, sorry," he said with a grin. Rowan grumbled and held out his hand.

"Lucas, can you open it up and give our friend here the Pokeball?"

Lucas nodded and opened the briefcase. He reached down and pulled out a red and white Pokeball, which he handed to Gavin. Gavin raised the Pokeball in the air, jumping up and down but not screaming at the top of his lungs, for once. "I need to go show my mom!" He said before running off in a blur. Jamie held down on the edge of her skirt from the wind Gavin had stirred up in his mad dash home. Rowan waved his hand to clear some of the dust and looked at her.

"Is he always like this?"

She smirked. "That's pretty subdued for him actually. So...what about me? Do you have another Pokemon somewhere?"

Rowan looked at Lucas and frowned. "Do you think that...he might be right for her?"

Lucas shared Rowan's expression. "Well, he is a bit of a mischievous guy. I don't want it to seem like we're dumping a problem Pokemon on her."

She folded her arms. "What is it? Just how much of a problem child is he?"

Lucas laughed. "Well he isn't too bad but he loves to cause a bit too much mischief. We've had quite a time trying to get him to mind. That seems a bit much for a brand new trainer though..."

She shook her head. "Can I at least see him? What kind of Pokemon is it?"

"A Chimchar. They are known for being a bit mischievous but this one is exceptionally belligerent," Rowan said, shaking his head. He tugged on his coat. "If you wish to see it, we should head over there. I have to stop by my lab anyways."

She nodded. How bad could it be? If anything, being friends with Gavin had taught her a little something about dealing with difficult people. Or at least she could only hope that it prepared her for this.

Sandgem wasn't much different from her hometown, a small little burg in the middle of some woods with three roads, one leading out to the north and Jubilife, one leading back toward Twinleaf and the last road leading out to a small route which ended at the sea. She took in a deep breath and could smell the salty breeze blowing in from the sea but before she could enjoy it a little more, she heard a loud crash and someone yelling. She turned to see a small orange chimpanzee running out the door of the lab. It's tail had a bright flame burning at the end, which somehow kept ablaze even with it running as fast as it could. "Professor, he got free again!"

Rowan shook his head. "That's okay."

The chimp noticed Rowan and took off toward the road leading out to the sea. Lucas ran after it and she opted to follow. The Pokemon led them to the edge of the beach, stopping at the water's edge when it realized it had cornered itself. It looked at Lucas and put up its small fists as if looking for a fight. Lucas laughed at the sight and then held out his hand toward it. "And this would be that troublesome Pokemon we warned you about. It's a Chimchar and a really mischievous one at that."

She looked at the little monkey and smiled. Maybe he was a mischievous guy but he had a certain charm to him. The Chimchar noticed her and dropped its fists and scurried over to her. He stared into her eyes like a small puppy that had taken a keen interest in the newcomer. She held out her hand, inching it closer and closer to it. He reached out his hand but at the last moment making a grab for her hat. She had been ready for such a stunt and lurched back, causing it to fall on its stomach. It looked at her, a bit confused that its trick didn't work. He began to jump up and down and she stood up. "Uh, so what now?"

The Chimchar let out a squeal and scurried up her legs, up her body and onto her shoulders. Lucas smirked. "He seems to like you. I haven't seen him do that before."

She winced as he tugged on her ear a little. "Oh, so what does he usually do?"

Lucas frowned and then looked off in the distance. "Hmmm, well he does various things. Sometimes if he sees a Pokeball at their waist, he'll grab it and toss it in the distance. He can also grab someone's hat and take off with it. I've also see him-"

"Okay, okay I think I've heard enough."

He looked at her and nodded. "Well he hasn't done any of those stunts so I'd say you're clear. Are you going to give him a name?"

"A name? You mean like a nickname?"

He nodded. "Yea, I mean you're free to call him by his regular name but it seems a lot of trainers choose their own little names for the Pokemon, to identify with it a bit more."

"Oh I see. I don't really have a good name for him but I'm sure I can think of something. He's a cute little guy so a name is just bound to come to me."

Lucas nodded. "Let's go back to the Professor. I'm sure he'll be happy that Chimchar has found a trainer he likes."

Rowan wore a relieved expression after Lucas had explained what happened. He nodded toward Lucas and folded his arms. "I'm glad to see that he likes someone. I can't tell you the number of trainers who tried to adopt him but were unable to catch his attention. He's a real stubborn one."

She pulled him off her shoulders and set him down but it only took a minute for him to get back on her shoulders. "I-I see what you mean."

Rowan stroked his chin. "I'd like for you to come back tomorrow. There is something I'd like to give you. Invite your friend too because I think he might be able to gain something from this as well."

Lucas looked at the professor with a puzzled look on his face. "Huh?"

Rowan ignored him and gave the first hint of a smile she had seen. "Okay Professor, I'll be back tomorrow! And thank you!"

Just what did he have in store for tomorrow? A Poketech perhaps? She had seen lots of commercials for them and it seemed like they were the new and fancy thing for trainers. Or maybe a Pokedex? That would be a bit more helpful for identifying new Pokemon that she came across as her computer wasn't really portable. Chimchar scurried a little ahead of her, poking around in the grass. She stopped walking and bent down to his level. "Huh, what are you looking for? Did you find something-"

"There you are!"

She jumped in the air and landed on the ground, looking up to see Gavin. He wore a big smile on his face and waved at her. She let out a sigh, trying to calm her racing heart. "A-are you trying to give me a heart attack?"

"Of course not! Why would I do that? Hey, is this your Pokemon?"

He didn't seem interested in helping her up and she got to her feet as he looked at Chimchar. The chimp didn't seem to care much for Gavin and kept poking around in the grass. "Yep, it's Chimchar. I haven't picked a name out for him yet."

"That's cool. Hey listen, I had another idea!"

She looked up at him, eyebrow raised. He just brimmed with them. "Yes, what is it this time? I hope it's better than your run through the grass and try to avoid getting attacked by wild Pokemon."

He grinned. "Much better! Besides, we probably could have done it. The Startly aren't that aggressive. In fact they tend to fly away if you get close. Me and Rigel had a time trying to track some down to train against."

"Train?"

He looked at her with widened eyes. "Yea, train! You know, like a Trainer? You have to fight wild Pokemon and other trainers to make your Pokemon to improve and get stronger! How else do you expect to do it?"

She blushed a little. "Err, I see your point but fighting wild Pokemon?"

He frowned. "Didn't I just say that?"

"Couldn't you just fight other trainers? I mean do you really need to knock out a bunch of wild Pokemon when there are all those trainers out there instead?"

He shook his head. "It's not my fault some of these Pokemon look to fight. You have to defend yourself."

"I know that Gavin but I mean...doing what you're doing. I don't have an issue with defending yourself but just going out and hunting after wild Pokemon who are just...minding their own business...that seems a bit much."

He laughed. "Oh Jamie, you worry too much. It's nothing to worry about. Pokemon are competitive like that. It's in their nature to fight and compete. You don't have to be a trainer though, you can do whatever you want now that you have a Pokemon."

She nodded, though a bit confused as to what else she could do. "But all you here about on the TV are Pokemon trainers, the gym leaders, the Pokemon League-"

"Yea but remember Rowan? He's just a professor researching the evolution of Pokemon. Then there are the people who dress up their Pokemon and put them in those dumb contests. There is also the Pokeathelon...really, you need to just stop watching so much TV and all the stuff pertaining to trainers. As for me, I'm a trainer through and through."

"So what's this big idea you had?"

He looked a bit bewildered, scratching his head for a minute. He had plenty of ideas but if you stalled him for a bit, he would forget whatever idea he had floating in his head, knocked out by another idea that had come along that didn't even pertain to the situation. A light seemed to flash in his eyes and he smiled. "Ahhh yes! I remember now! You know at the lake how there is a legendary Pokemon there?"

She nodded. "You mean Mispirit?"

"Yep, that's it! I was thinking that we should go catch it!"

"C-catch a legendary Pokemon?"

He nodded as if not realizing the part about it being legendary. "Of course! We can really impress Rowan if we can catch it! Let's go!"

He ran off in the direction of the lake and she stood there, shaking her head. Chimchar started to laugh and she glared at him. "Hey stop that! He means well...I think."

She caught up with Gavin at the lakefront, who stared across the water and at the small island that lay in the middle of the lake with the cavern where Mispirit rested. She put a hand on her hip and frowned. "So how do we get across?"

"I'm thinking. Well we could swim-"

"Swim? That water is icy cold! You'd go into shock a few minutes in, don't even do it!"

Gavin grumbled and kicked a few rocks into the water. "This is so dumb! I'm so close to a legendary Pokemon and yet so far too!"

"Do you even have any Pokeballs to capture it?"

He looked away. "I guess Mispirit will just have to wait. I'll come back a bit later and catch it. Just you wait!"

"So this is where Mispirit lives, huh?" A voice said from behind. Jamie turned around to see a young man standing nearby, with short brown hair. He wore an all black outfit with a large red R on the front, white boots and white gloves. It had to be the tackiest outfit she had seen in some time. He looked at them as if expecting an answer.

"Yea and what about it? We're going to catch him first! You'll either have to deal with it or just go catch some other Pokemon!"

The man chuckled and reached toward his belt, where a couple of pokeballs sat. "How would you like it if I just decided to take your Pokemon instead?"

"I dare you! I bet my Pokemon can crush yours with ease! You better run away! You don't want me fainting your precious Pokemon, do you?"

The man waved his hand in a dismissive manner. "Pity that it's in that cavern. I can't get to it now. I'll have to come back later."

"Why are you so interested in it?"

The man shrugged. "Didn't you say that it was legendary? Why wouldn't anyone be interested in a legendary Pokemon? They are usually some of the most powerful Pokemon around. Why bother with all these weak ones when you can go for the best?"

Gavin shrugged. "Err well, I guess I can't argue there."

The man didn't say anymore and walked off. Gavin watched him leave and then turned to her. "He's a jerk! We can't let him catch Mispirit before us! That would be some serious suckage!"

She looked away from him. "I guess."

"You guess? You guess? How can you say that? How can you think that? How can you even-"

"Gavin, Gavin just calm down. I'm a bit more concerned about that guy. Do you think he's part of some organization?"

Gavin laughed. "An organization who has their members dress in tacky clothes? Com on, all black outfit, white boots? White gloves? How stupid is that? How can you even take someone like that seriously?"

It was a pretty stupid outfit but the guy did seem serious, even looking ready to use a Pokemon of his own to take Gavin's. Of course Gavin would have taken his challenge but...

"You've got that look again," he said, interrupting her thoughts.

"Look, what look?"

Gavin grinned. "The look you have when you're thinking too hard. You frown, you fold your arms and you became all...distant."

She looked at Chimchar, who just shrugged. "I do not Gavin! Besides, I wouldn't be thinking if you did some thinking of your own about the situation!"

He yawned. "Again, you're thinking too hard about this. Well, I'm gonna go home and rest. Tomorrow, me and Luther are going to train some more and then travel to Oreburgh so we can take on the gym leader there!"

"A-a-already?"

He nodded, beaming with pride. "Yep, I decided I will be a trainer and that's what trainers do! They train up a team of Pokemon and take on the gym leaders! I'm going to become the best trainer ever!"

He may be a bit reckless but she couldn't fault him for knowing what he wanted to do. "I'm sure you'll do okay."

He laughed. "Okay? Okay? There's no place for okay! I can only be the best!