I was sitting on my bed, nervous out of my skull, while Cheren sat at my computer, looking perfectly calm and reading a Trainer's Handbook. Bianca was late, which meant we couldn't open the package in the middle of the room.
There was a flurry of footsteps outside the door, and Bianca ran in, hair messed up and grinning.
"Hi guys, sorry I took so long. Where are the Pokémon? Ooh, is that them?" We all went over to the box. I tore open the packaging to reveal three Pokeballs, each with a different symbol on them. I looked at my friends.
"I say we close our eyes and grab a random one." Cheren and Bianca nodded in unison, and we all faced the box again. I shut my eyes and started counting.
"Three, two, one...grab!" My hand plunged in, brushing someone's fingers, and grabbing the closest Pokeball. We all opened our eyes and looked down. I'd picked the one with the fire symbol. We all opened our Pokeballs. Out of mine burst the Fire Pig Pokémon, Tepig, with a huge grin on his face, ready to go. Oshawott, the Sea Otter Pokémon, was hugging Cheren, much to his amusement. Bianca had the Grass Snake Pokémon, Snivy, which she seemed happy about. The little guy was sitting on her shoulders.
"Gender check." I raised an eyebrow at Cheren, but looked anyway. My little Pokémon was a boy, and so too was Bianca's. Cheren somehow got a female Oshawott, which was strange, considering all three of these Pokémon were usually male. I shrugged and looked down at my little Pokémon, who was happily blowing fire out of his nostrils.
"I think I'll call you...Nuri. Do you like that, boy?" The Tepig snuggled up against my chin, which I took as a yes. Beside me, Bianca was running through names.
"Grassy, Snake, Hiss, Leaf, um...oh, I can't think of any good names!" I walked over and looked at the little Pokémon, who seemed a bit smug and sure of himself to me.
"How about Vireo? It means green." Bianca gave me a smile and squeezed the newly named Pokémon to her chest. He seemed happy with the name, but not so much the squeezing.
Cheren had already picked a name for his: Nixie. She was already learning to fight, standing in an attacking stance and swinging her shell-blades.
"Hey, Hilda, want to battle?" Bianca was giving me a huge grin, Vireo curled around her neck. I shrugged and put down Nuri. He started blowing out fire in larger quantities, Vireo cowering behind his trainer. Bianca patiently set him down in front of Nuri, and then it was battling time.
"Nuri, Tackle!"
"Vireo, Leer!" The Snivy gave my Pokémon an evil glare, but Tepig just ran forward and slammed into him, letting out a battle cry. Vireo fell backwards, stunned.
"Nuri, Tail Whip!" My Pokémon waggled its tail, looking as sweet as could be, which made Vireo pause before he attacked. Nuri fell back, but was up straight away and used Tackle without being told to. Within seconds, the battle was won and I was petting Nuri for being such a good little battler, while Bianca cradled the fainted Vireo in her arms.
Cheren laid a hand on each of our Pokémon and muttered something. Suddenly, Vireo was up again, going up to what appeared to be his favourite perch, Bianca's shoulders, and Nuri was more energetic.
"Okay, now it's my turn. Hilda, you're going down!" I set Nuri down in front of me, while Nixie ran over, falling into a battle stance.
"Nuri, Tail Whip!" Nuri waggled his tail, and something changed in Nixie's eyes. Cheren just scoffed.
"Nixie, Tail Whip." Nixie shook her tail, and Nuri giggled. I didn't realise Pokémon could giggle.
"Okay, now we get serious. Nuri, Tackle!" Nuri slammed into Nixie, sending her crashing into the wall. It was a critical hit, but not quite enough to make her faint.
"Nixie, Tail Whip again!" Nixie shook off her dazedness, and did her little tail shake again, making Nuri laugh.
"Nuri, Tackle! Let's finish this!" Nuri head-butted Nixie, sending her into the ground. She was down for the count.
I gave Nuri a hug, and handed him over to Cheren for healing. Then, by reflex, I glanced around and cursed. The room was in shambles, my favourite poster of Skyla torn down, and my bed sheets ruined.
"Uh oh. Um, Cheren..." My sentence was interrupted by my mom.
"Hilda, Professor Juniper wants to see you three." Cheren looked around and swallowed nervously, putting Nixie down on the ground next to him". Um, what's your mom going to think about this room?"
As if her name had summoned her, Mom was suddenly standing in my doorway. "Oh dear..."
I gulped and shrugged in apology. "We didn't know battling did this much damage. Sorry, Mom." Mom shook her head and smiled.
"It's alright, dear. Just remember to have the rest of your battles outside. Now, go and see Professor Juniper, she's waiting for you. I'll clean up." I grinned, grabbed my bag, and ran out, Cheren and Bianca close behind.
"Wow, we've got real Pokémon! Pokémon we can battle with, and dress up, and raise, and enter in contests...we might even be Gym Leaders one day!" Yep, Bianca was excited.
"Well, I have a goal. Pokémon Champion. I'm going to be the best in this region! What about you, Hilda?" I shrugged at Cheren.
"I don't know, really. I just want to be with Pokémon. They're nice to be around, aren't you, Nuri?" He curled up into my chest, warming me up and making me giggle.
Cheren gave me a faintly amused look before we reached Professor Juniper's door. He knocked hesitantly.
"Come in, you three." We looked at each other and gulped, before Cheren went in, Bianca and I following.
Professor Juniper was standing in the middle of the room, hair a little messed up and her coat hanging open. She smiled at us.
"Hello. I was just taking care of something. So, how do you like your new Pokémon?"
We replied in unison, "We like them a lot, Professor." Professor Juniper smiled at us.
"Now, I have got another motive for giving you those little guys. You see, I study Pokémon for a living." I stifled a groan. I'd heard this many a time on the television. "Over the years, I've discovered that I need help finding out about all of the Pokémon in this world. And that's where you guys come in. Cheren, Bianca, Hilda, would you like to help me fill the Pokedex pages?" Bianca screamed with joy and started jumping up and down, smiling widely. I nodded, barely containing my own grin. Cheren just stood there coolly and nodded.
"Very good. Now, it's time for you to begin your own Pokémon journey!" We grinned at each other and went to go out the door, but just as we reached it, Professor Juniper shouted, "Wait!"
I turned around. "Yes, Professor Juniper?"
"Tell your parents that you're leaving. You should make sure they're okay with it. Bye now!" Cheren and Bianca went out, but I paused, spotting something on the desk. I went over and picked it up. It was a movie called 'Golem Gets Rock-Hard'.
"Eugh. Is this..." Professor Juniper came back out and saw me holding the movie. "Oh, oh dear. Please, give me that." I handed over the movie to Professor Juniper, who was looking rather distressed.
"Um, let's pretend this never happened, alright? Thank you." Professor Juniper went back into the side room, leaving me very confused and slightly sickened.
I shrugged and went back out where Cheren and Bianca were waiting. "What took you so long, Hilda?" I shrugged.
"Professor Juniper wanted to see me. She just told me to be careful with this little guy. He's got a Hasty Nature, so he's probably going to rush into things a bit." Cheren scoffed.
"I could have told you that. It was in the manual we got with them. Didn't you guys read that?" He saw our puzzled looks and sighed, pulling out a booklet. Cheren opened it and began to read.
"These three Pokémon have different Natures. Tepig has a Hasty Nature, meaning he has a boosted Speed and decreased Defense. Oshawott has a Calm Nature, giving her increased Special Defense and less Attack stats. Snivy has a Sassy Nature, so he has more Special Defense and less Speed. Use these to your advantage." Cheren closed the book and gave me a cocky smile. "See? Easy. Now let's go see our parents."
We split at my doorway, Cheren going to the left and Bianca the right.
"Meet you on Route 1 in ten minutes!" Cheren and Bianca shouted back, "Okay!" and went into their houses. I turned around and went inside, calling out to Mom.
"Hey sweetie, you're home already? I thought Professor Juniper would want you for longer." I remembered the movie and repressed a shudder.
"No, she sent us away rather quickly. Um, we need to talk." Mom sighed and sat down on one of the ottomans, patting the one next to her. I sat down.
"I knew this would happen one day. Professor Juniper's been hinting for years that you three would be perfect for her Pokedex program. Every region does it, but you three are the first here. So, you're going to be heading off soon, right?" I smiled sadly.
"Yeah, probably. You're the best mom ever, you know that? Even without Dad being here, I've had the best childhood ever." Mom wiped away a tear and reached behind her, pulling out a box from behind her.
"These are Running Shoes. These will help you get to new places faster, and there's going to be so many new places. Maybe one day, I'll go on my own journey and come find you. You be safe now, and make sure you come back every now and again to show me you're safe." I was getting teary now, wiping at my eyes.
"Thanks, Mom. I promise I'll come back every now and again. Right, Nuri?" Nuri snorted happily, blowing out a little fire. He went over and rubbed into Mom, making her smile.
"Oh, have fun, you little guy. Make my daughter proud, and serve her well." I was almost crying now, tears blinding me as I pulled on the shoes. Nuri came back over to me, burying his head in my chest. I patted his head, smiling.
"Mom, I love you, so much. I'm going to miss you more than anything. I'll call you every time I get to a new town." Mom was sobbing now, but smiling at the same time. I looked at her, and made a snap decision. I ran over and hugged her, sobbing into her shoulder. Mom made a sound of surprise, but soon we were hugging and sobbing, Nuri squealing as he was crushed between us. I laughed and moved back, letting Nuri fall out, breathing heavily.
"Bye Mom. I'll see you again one day, I promise. Don't forget that." I gave her one last hug before I turned around and went out the door, Nuri walking beside me.
Cheren was waiting at the door, looking a little amused. "Well, we're off, aren't we? But where's - "
"NO!" My head snapped towards the sound, coming from Bianca's house. We shared a glance and ran over just in time to see Bianca run out the door, hat slanted to the side and face flushed with rage.
"Dad, I'm going, whether you like it or not!" She joined us, straightening her hat. "C'mon guys, we're leaving right now!" I shrugged at Cheren and followed Bianca, who was storming to the entrance of the town. She paused at the start of Route 1, waiting for us. Cheren went ahead, while I took one last look at my hometown. With an almost symbolic air, I waved solemnly and walked over to Cheren and Bianca.
"Okay guys, who's going first?" My question was answered when Bianca tugged us all over at the same time, meaning we started in the exact same second. A warm feeling started growing in my heart. I looked at my friends, laughing.
"We did it! We're on a Pokémon journey! Now what do we do?" A voice from behind us answered the question.
"Why, catch some Pokémon, of course!" I turned around and saw Professor Juniper, looking much more tidy this time, running towards us. She handed us each five Pokeballs without a word, then looked into each of our eyes.
"Well, this is the beginning of a grand adventure. Have fun, don't forget your friends, and experience all that there is in this world!" Professor Juniper turned around and walked away, leaving us standing there with Pokeballs in hand. Cheren broke the silence first.
"She's a little...kooky, isn't she? Oh well, she gave us Pokeballs. I say we have a competition. Who can catch the most Pokémon?" Bianca started jumping up and down again, laughing in joy. I merely raised an eyebrow at Cheren.
"I'll do it." Bianca stopped bouncing. "Me too!" Cheren grinned. "Well, that's settled. As soon as we reach the next town, we see how many each of us have caught, and whoever has the most then wins! Ready, set...go!" Cheren ran off, closely followed by Bianca. I shrugged and stepped into the grass, looking around. Nuri was right beside me.
All of the sudden, a Lillipup turned up, barking at me. I grabbed a Pokeball to have it ready.
"Nuri, Tackle!" Nuri bumped into the Puppy Pokémon, making it stumble. It glared at Nuri, making my Pokémon flinch. Nuri used Tackle again, without me telling him to. The Lillipup stumbled, but didn't faint. Instead, it used Leer again. I held Nuri back, and threw the Pokeball.
One shake, two shakes, three shakes..."Yes!" I checked my Pokedex. Lillipup was automatically registered, listing it. I grinned at it and released the Pokémon from its ball. It leapt up and yapped, seemingly very happy to be there with me. I rubbed its head and did a gender check. This Lillipup was a girl.
"I'm going to call you...Yaps. Do you like that?" She yapped again, which I took as a yes. I put her back in the ball and kept walking. Soon enough, another Pokémon popped up, a Patrat this time. Nuri easily weakened it, allowing me to catch it. This one was male. I nicknamed it Sentry and put it away.
"Hey, what's that?" There was a patch of rustling grass. I walked over and peered in, revealing a pink Pokémon. It giggled at me and mock-growled. I put down Nuri.
My Pokémon shocked me by firing embers out of its nose, hitting the Pokémon. It paused, slowing down, and I saw it was weak enough to catch. I threw the Pokeball and captured it, checking the Pokedex straight away. I'd caught an Audino. Releasing it, I saw it was female. I thought for a bit, then settled on Rose for her name. She giggled, then looked at Nuri.
"Oh, this is Nuri. Why are you - " I realised they were talking.
Below Hilda, Rose and I were chatting.
"So, your name's Nuri? I like that?" i blushed, not noticeably though, and grinned.
"Your name is pretty too. So, we've got Hilda as a Trainer. I think she's really cool." Rose laughed, pointing at her feelers, which curled from her ears.
"You think she's more than 'cool'. With these, I can read your feelings. You have a thing for your Trainer, don't you?" I blushed even more, my cheeks becoming coloured.
"Um...I might...yeah, I do. Is that weird?" Rose grinned again.
"Oh, no, in fact, in some places it's the norm. I've heard from visiting Trainer's Pokémon that there are ancient tales where Pokémon and Trainers were married." Nuri blinked in shock.
"Wow. Oh hey, I think Hilda wants to go. I'll see you later!" Rose grinned and let herself be tapped back into the ball, thinking to herself.
Oh Nuri, just you wait. Just you wait.
I could see Accumula Town from where I stood. I could also see Cheren and Bianca. I ran over, Nuri at my heels, and stopped in front of my friends.
"Hey guys, how'd you go?" Cheren looked at Nixie, who seemed very tired. "Well, she did her best, but we only got two Pokémon. Bianca, how did you go?" Bianca played with her hat, looking embarrassed.
"Um, I only caught one. They were all really strong." I smiled at her.
"Don't worry, one day you'll be stronger than them. I caught three, so I guess I win." Cheren gave me an evil glare before looking over somewhere in the town.
"Hey, what's that?" I looked over and saw a gathering of people. "Let's go check it out. It could be someone famous!" Cheren paused, quickly grabbing my arm and Bianca's. I saw a thin sheet of blue slide over my body to concentrate in my Pokeballs. Nuri was also covered. Cheren released us, blushing, as was Bianca. "There, your Pokémon are healed, and so are mine. It works better in large groups. Now, let's go over and see what's happening!"
We went over to the crowd, and saw they were surrounding a small group of eight people, seven of them wearing knight's gear and carrying flags, and the last wearing thick robes. He had green hair and carried a cane, but what made the most impression was the sheer aura of power radiating from him. Everybody seemed entranced by this man.
He stepped up to a lectern one of the knights had set up, and began to speak in a deep, almost soothing voice.
"Hello, residents of Accumula Town. I am Ghetsis, representing Team Plasma. I'm sure you've heard about other organizations, like Team Rocket, Team Galactic, and others. First, I must assure you we are not like them. Our motives are entirely different. These groups planned to enslave Pokémon. We..." He looked around for dramatic emphasis, seeming to focus on us. "We plan to release all Pokémon."
I gasped. "What?!" Everyone was murmuring things to their neighbours. Ghetsis coughed, drawing all attention back to him.
"It seems drastic, I realise that. But take a minute to think about it. Those who call themselves Pokémon Trainers ruin their natural homes by walking in tall grass, before kidnapping - yes, it is true - poor, innocent creatures to battle to the point of exhaustion for what? Bragging rights? Money? I - I mean, Team Plasma, will not have it!" Ghetsis slammed the top of the lectern with his hand. "Pokémon would be infinitely better without human interference. Let us fight our own battles, and leave the Pokémon alone!" And with that, the knights packed up the lectern, and they walked away, passing through the crowd as they did. With much muttering, everyone left, except us.
Cheren looked at both of us. "It's not true...right? Our Pokémon grow to care for us...it's not slavery." Bianca adjusted her hat, looking sad.
"Well, we can't tell if it is, can we? I mean, we speak different languages. It's impossible." A cough interrupted us. I turned and saw a boy with long , flowing green hair, bound back in a loose ponytail, with a black and white cap on his head. He was wearing a white shirt over a black one, grey pants, and green sneakers. The boy was wearing many bracelets, and a pendant that appeared to be a sphere with two arcs perpendicular to each other, one blue and one yellow. Connected by a chain to his waist was some sort of cube, a puzzle, maybe.
"I am sorry to interrupt, but your conversation...intrigued me. You may not be able to understand your Pokémon, but I can. Please, send them over to me." Cheren gave him a strange look.
"I don't trust you. We don't even know your name. Why would we give you our Pokémon? Plus, I can barely understand you. You talk way too fast." The boy sighed in exasperation.
"Okay, I will talk slower. My name is N. That is my real name, so do not look at me like that. I have the ability to talk to Pokémon, which means I can tell what your Pokémon truly think of you. Please, hand them over." Cheren and Bianca shared a glance with me. I was confused and slightly scared, but Nuri made my decision for me, and ran over to N. Nixie and Vireo soon followed, the grass-type scampering up to N's shoulder, where he began talking rapidly. Nuri and Nixie waited until N picked them up to begin talking. I had no idea what they were saying, but it seemed important.
I'd sensed that N was a good person, so I'd ran away from Hilda to talk to him. Nixie and Vireo had followed me, and now we were chatting.
"So, why can you talk to us?" N gave Vireo a stern look.
"That's my secret. I can't share everything, can I? I didn't realise that Pokémon owned by Trainers were so forward." I put my paws on his chest and leant into his ear.
"I have secrets too. Ones I can't even share with these guys, even though I've known them since birth." N gave me an intrigued look.
"Oh really? Do tell." I sensed in my heart I could trust him, so I leant in and began whispering. N froze. "Impossible...a Pokémon who...I've always thought it was impossible." Nixie coughed.
"Mr. N, can we go back to our Trainer's now? They're getting worried." I looked over and saw that Hilda was panicking, looking anxious and sending pleading gazes my way. The blond girl called Bianca was sobbing into the dark haired boy's shoulder - what was his name? Charles? Darren? Oh wait, it's Cheren. Of course. I nodded at N, who sighed and set us down.
"Please keep my secret, N, and I'll keep yours." N gave me a worried glance. "I didn't tell you my secret, though."
I looked at the box by his waist. "I can tell all your secrets are in there." And with that, I went back to Hilda, who was happy to have me back.
I scooped Nuri back into my arms, happy that the boy hadn't stolen him. N seemed shocked.
"Wow...this is too much. I must go. I may see you along the way. Goodbye." N ran away, shaking his head, one hand on his cube. I gave Cheren and Bianca a smile.
"Well, we've made it to this town. Who's up for dinner?" Cheren nodded, as did Bianca.
"Okay, then let's find us a restaurant!"