Introduction
For Astrid there have not been many events that are very memorable. Few still that she remembers but all of them are going to be topped tomorrow. She and her mother have traveled from home to spend the night with a family friend to be in Pallet Town for that day. After laying down in the bed of the son of the friend (he is out on his own adventure) her mother's Arcanine walks in.
"Hey big man, how are you?" She reaches out to pet him. There is a light breeze coming in from the open window carrying the scent of green gardens and grasses that the town is covered in.
The pokemon sits and lowers his head to get the, closer, ear scratched. An audible snort expresses his satisfaction. His long fluffy mane is pouring onto the bed.
"Yeah there aren't any fuzzy pokemon tomorrow otherwise that would be my choice." She sighs looking out the window.
He nuzzles her hand before licking it.
"I figure if I go third I can still get one but do not have to choose. Also if I make up my mind and do not get that one, what do I say to it and to the people and pokemon I told I wanted something else? Did that make sense? I want a good one not really much more than that."
Big black eyes look up at her.
"I know I didn't want any of the local pokemon back home. If you had a pup egg I would have jumped at that but you never did get along with the officer's pokemon did you?"
He snorts lightly before wagging his tail again.
"That is what I thought. The officer lady said you have to like eachother for an egg to appear. So how does that work?" She asks while setting her alarm on her phone for the morning.
He looks at her and starts panting.
She pets him. "Hmm, I wonder if it is the same as baby people?" She stops and gets up and off on the other side of the bed before crossing the room and pulling a berry from her bag. "Here you go."
Large as it is the arcanine's mouth very gently takes the treat.
"What I want most is the friendship… Like you and mom have, or what Uncle Fred and his Electabuzz have." He wags his tail.
She gets up, changes into her Pj's, listens to her mother and friend laugh before drifting off to sleep. The Arcanine for the last time, for a while anyway, lays at her feet till she goes to sleep and he returns to her mother.
Astrid is awoken by the sound of her phone alarm mimicking the cry of a Pidgey. She runs down stairs but the Arcanine stops her from running out the door. Sitting in front of the door himself she cant move him. Some pokemon make great barriers. She thinks to herself. Her mother Lariena is sitting at the table drinking coffee with with her friend Delia. The sharp visual contrast between the two women is made more striking because of their similarities. Both are tall auburn haired women with a thin build. But that is where it ends. Lariena has cold dark grey eyes with a suit even while on this short vacation from work. Delia is warm with brown eyes and in a casual t-shirt and cut offs.
Lariena smiles lighting her expression a touch. "Sit down and talk with us over breakfast."
"But Mom, I have to go get my pokemon." Astrid pivots "Thank you Mrs. Delia."
Delia smiles "There is some toast and jelly and ham on a plate for you."
"What kind of jelly?" Astrid asks sitting down. She is hungry but keeps looking at the clock.
Lariena looks up at her "Strawberry, now remember your manners"
"Thank you Mrs. Delia, May I please have it?" Astrid starts eating while watching the two women talk. The hand slowly ticks closer and closer but not at all fast enough.
Lariena rolls her eyes at Astrid calling the woman Mrs Delia instead of Mrs Ketchum but smiles at her friend and daughter. "Today is the day, in three hours you are invited to go down to pick up your first pokemon." Smiles and looks across the table. "So how about you? Enjoying the Bed and Breakfast life?"
Delia nods. "Yes, very much. It is a lot of hard works but very rewarding."
"I bet it is. I am happy for you."
"How about you? What is the fast paced world Spin? How much media is out by the Power Plant?"
"More than you would think but less than it feels like."
"Any new projects?"
"Not really."
"Still dodging work talk?"
"Yes." She smiles and sips her coffee. "I told you I can't, even to you, confirm or deny anything"
Astrid tunes them out and listens to the sounds of the bird pokemon outside and the arcanine panting under the table while eating. Once the plate is clean she runs up stairs and changes out of her pj's and grabs her back pack almost falling over but saving herself before running out the door. She rushes to the gate and it is locked. The metal is still cool and damp from the dew last night. 2 and a half hours to wait till it opens. She waits pacing in front gate for ten minutes before taking the pack off and continuing. Professor Oak steps out in his robe and walks around with a watering can watering the plants. He is whistling to himself.
"Hi, are you here for a pokemon today?" He says to her when he gets around to the gate.
She nods. "Yes." She walks right up to the bars and looks up at him.
He nods. "Stay here and I will be back in a moment. Aren't you a bit early?" He looks at his watch. "Very early"
"Yes, But I thought if I got here I could early I could get first pick." This way I don't have to choose at all. Just don't ask and grab one.
He nods. "I'll be back once I'm dressed." He heads inside chuckling. "Eager as usual. All the children are always so very enthusiastic to get their pokemon." He talks to himself and sighs before closing his door behind him.
She watches a pidgey come from a tree in his yard and land on the gate. It starts to puff and preen. She just slowly walks over to it and offers her hand. The bird waddles over to her on the gate before rubbing against her hand. She scratches it on the back of the head and pulls a peanut butter cracker pack out of her back pocket and opens it with her teeth offering the two crumbled crackers to the bird.
The bird eats a few before flying back to the house. Professor Oak comes out about a half hour later, looking respectable. He walks over to the gate opening it. "Hi I'm sorry it is really early your Lariena's daughter right? I can't remember your name, what was it?"
"Yes sir, I am Astrid." Leans back to put her pack on and almost falls over before pulling it up in a squat motion. "Got it." She mumbles to herself before following him in. "Thank you, thank you, thank you."
"Do you know which one you want?"
"Nope, but I do not plan on picking." She says proud. "I realized it would lead to disappointment somehow and the only way to do it would be to not chose but just grab one." She smiling and confidant.
"It sounds like you are not ready."
She frowns. "Maybe, but I have given it a lot of thought." Astrids looks him in the eyes. "All three options are really good. But then I realized what if I woke up late and missed them so what would I do then? I made a point of being early but what if someone beat me here and got first pick anyway. I would have gotten my hopes up and felt disappointed and it does not seem fair to the pokemon to go into this disappointed. Also I realized it does not matter as long as the pokemon is healthy." She pauses then looks down then back up again worried. "Please do not take offense to that. I did not mean to imply they weren't healthy. Your pokemon are the healthiest not that the other professors give away sick ones or weak ones…or…"
"Stop." He laughs and puts his hand up. "I can see you have given it full consideration. Good." He leads her to the lab. "Well here they are." He points to the chest height column he keeps them on. There are three balls and a hole in the center of the table. "Take your pick."
"I really don't know how."
"Do you want me to tell you which is which?"
"No thank you." She looks at them. Gets at eye level and looks at each ball. She has three perfectly valid choices. She reaches for the ball closest to the entrance of the room.
"Let's take it out side?" He smiles. "But first here take this PokeDex. I am always looking for new pokemon and new facts about old ones." The PokeDex is a pale icey green in color. "Type in your name I have already registered your trainer id number in it."
"My what?"
"Trainer Id number. All recognized trainers are given numbers that match the data linked to their pokemon and pokeballs." He waves his hand. "It is confusing. The papers were filled by your mother. Sign your name in the pokedex, it holds your trainer card. Type your name in it. Then take these pokeballs." He hands her 10 more empty red pokeballs.
She nods following the Professor outside in to the yard pocketing the balls and grabbing something tiny from her bag while she walks. She stands in the yard looking around at the sky, the sun is bright and grass is green. The pokeball with her pokemon in it is lighter than she thought it would be. The red ball is smooth and warm. She is confused as to why it is warm and not lab room temperature.
She opens pokeball holding her breath through the flash of red light.
Infront of her on the grass is a small blue and green pokemon, a bulbasaur and a few scattered leaves have appeared around it. It lifts it's head and looks up at the girl and the man. Astrid pulls a small apple from behind her back and offers it to the pokemon.
"Hi, im Astrid. Do you like apples?" The pokemon nods and walks forward as she gets on one knee. Bulbasaur eats the apple from her hand. "So um, bulbasaur do you want to come with me?" She holds the pokeball up to show it in her hand.
The bulbasaur looks up at her cautiously and sits down on the grass.
"Okay that can wait. Here. " She sets the ball in her pack and uses her free hand to stratch the pokemon's ear once the pokemon relaxes into it and can be heard makings content sounds. "So pretty boy do you want to come with me?"
The pokemon shakes it's head.
"You don't why?"
It nods.
"You do want to go with me."
It nods again.
Professor Oak laughs. "He is a she."
Astrid pouts then nods. "Oh, how can you tell?"
"With that type it is hard to tell visually but I do dna testing so I know." He laughs.
Astrid nods. "okay, Miss Saur would you like to come with me?"
The pokemon nods finishing the apple. She walks over to Astrid's leg and nuzzles it.