Pokemon: A New Journey
By: AU Pokemon Project
Pokemon and all related characters are the intellectual Property of Satoshi Tajiri, Nintendo, and The Pokemon Company. All original characters are the property of the AU Pokemon Project Team.
Chapter One: New Friendships
"Arod. Wake up, Arod. You're gonna be late." The familiar voice wafted through the dreams of the young man whose name was being called. "You don't want to be the only trainer without a Pokemon, do you?"
The young man woke with a start. Glancing at the clock, he relaxed. "Phew. I thought I was gonna be late for sure."
"You will be if you don't get out of bed. Remember, you still have to get to Pallet Town to pick up your new Pokemon." Arod rushed to dress. His mother shook her head at her son. "It's hard to believe you're already twelve and you're only just starting your Pokemon journey." Arod finishes dressing and rushes out the door, saying a quick farewell as he heads to Pallet Town.
Arod runs the entire way to Pallet, arriving out of breath and exhausted. He finds his way into Professor Oak's lab, only to run into a young man coming out of the lab, carrying a Poke Ball. The young man glanced at Arod before heading out of the town. Arod ignores him, and runs inside the lab.
"You must be Arod Ishikawa. You've arrived just in time." Arod stared straight into the eyes of Professor Oak. "I already gave away one of the Pokemon I was keeping for trainers. There's only two left, Squirtle and Charmander. Which one will you choose?"
Arod didn't even hesitate before replying. "I want Charmander."
"Well, then. Charmander will be your first Pokemon, Arod. Take this, too. It's a Pokedex. It contains all the information you'll need in your journeys." Oak hands a small case to Arod.
Arod turns to leave and runs into another young man. This one was pushy, all attitude. Arod hurried away before the attitude could be turned on him. Outside, Arod hurries after the other trainer he saw earlier. As he walks back to Viridian City, he hears shouting from behind a tree. Peeking around the trunk, he spotted the trainer, and two oddly dressed people, a man and a woman, dressed in white, with a large R in the middle of their shirts. Arod crept forward until he could hear what they were talking about.
"...hand your Pokemon over, kid. You can't beat both of us, even if you are his kid."
The trainer gritted his teeth. "Are you two crazy? I'm not giving them up." The trainer grabbed for a ball at his waist. "Piplup, I choose you!" The Poke Ball opened and released the Pokemon contained within. "Heh, I guess being a gym leader's kid really does rub off on ya."
"Go Koffing." The two adults threw Poke Balls of their own. "Two can play at that game." The man said.
"Ekans, go. You'll understand why messing with Team Rocket will cause you trouble." The woman sneered. Arod grabbed his own Poke Ball.
Taking a deep breath, he called out to the trainers. "Two against one isn't really a fair fight now is it?" Stepping out from behind the tree, he threw his Poke Ball. "Charmander, I choose you!" Arod's new Pokemon came from it's Poke Ball.
The man laughed. "Look, Jessie. Another twerp. We're just collecting them today."
"Of course, James. We'll just take his Pokemon, too."
Arod gritted his teeth. "You can try, but it won't be easy. Right, Charmander?" Charmander glowered at Team Rocket.
"Ha, that little pipsqueak won't defeat my Ekans." Jessie laughed. "Ekans, bind that Charmander."
"Koffing, smokescreen attack!"
"Charmander, use your ember on that Ekans." A jet of flame flew toward the Ekans, lighting it and Jessie up. The Koffing spewed out smoke, blocking out sight of Team Rocket.
"Piplup, water gun!" As the jet of water shot from the Piplup's mouth, it collided with the Koffing, causing it to collide with James.
"Charmander, ember!" A second flame hits Koffing, causing it to explode, shooting Team Rocket to shoot skyward, disappearing into a distant pinprick of light. "Yes, way to go, Charmander. Return." Arod held out the Poke Ball, recalling his Pokemon to its Poke Ball. He turned to the other trainer, who had already recalled his Piplup. "Hi, my name's Arod Ishikawa. What's yours?"
"Yamato Ketchum. You're not from Pallet Town, are you?"
Arod shook his head. "Viridian City." Arod stopped. "Ketchum? As in Ash Ketchum?"
"It's not really that big of deal." Yamato picked a few blades of grass off his jeans and extended his hand. "Anyway, it's getting too late to continue to Viridian. You're welcome to stay at my place tonight. It's the least I can do to repay you for your help." Arod nodded and shook Yamato's hand.
They returned to Pallet Town Gym, where an amazingly beautiful woman with blue hair answered the door. "Yamato, what's wrong? I thought you were already in Viridian City by now." Arod stands shocked.
"Hi, Mom." Yamato said. He motions at Arod. "This is Arod. Arod, this is my mom." Arod extends his hand shakily. The woman laughs and shakes his hand.
"H-h-hi." Arod stutters. "N-n-n-nice t-t-t-t-to m-m-meet you, Mrs. K-k-Ketchum." Yamato pushes him inside.
"You don't mind if Arod can stay here tonight. He lives in Viridian, and it's getting late." Dawn Ketchum nodded as she closed the door.
"Of course. Oh, your father wanted to talk to you."
"I'll talk to him tomorrow, Mom. Anything I can do to help get dinner ready?"
"Nope. The table's all set and ready to go."
"Alright then. Call me down for dinner?"
"Sure, sweetie."
Yamato and Arod then proceeded to the backyard and let out the Pokemon that they had captured. Piplup, Bulbasaur, and Charmander all emerged from their Poke Balls in a flash of light.
Yamato spoke clearly. "Alright you guys. We begin our journey tomorrow, so we have to get a lot of rest. However, for now, feel free to explore the property, okay?"
Bulbasaur and Piplup squeal in delight and entered the house to go explore. As for Charmander, It looked at Arod expectantly.
Arod looked at the Orange lizard Pokemon, with its flame burning expectantly. "What is it little buddy? Do you want me to train you for a bit?"
Charmander nodded eagerly. –Let's get to training. Your friend's Pokemon look like they'll be strong, so I want to be strong too!-
Yamato laughed. "Looks like he's eager to get started, Arod. Use one of the practice fields by the house. Just don't damage it too much, okay?"
Arod nodded. "Not a problem. And Yamato? Your mom's HOT."
Yamato sighed. "Happens all the time, and yet I'm still not used to it." Yamato headed toward the house. Arod watched him close the door then turned to Charmander.
"Well, Charmander. Guess we should start training." The small Pokemon nodded.
"Char." ~I agree~ Arod felt a sense of eagerness. It was a feeling that he couldn't explain to normal people, but he could sense other Pokemon's feelings. The two of them made their way to the practice field.
After a few hours, Arod realized that both he and Charmander were exhausted. Realizing they were leaving early the next day, Arod returned Charmander to its Poke Ball, and headed back to Yamato's house. As they drew close, Yamato's mouth dropped. Arod's clothes were toasted and ripped in various places. He also had a burn mark on his cheek.
"What happened?"
"Target practice. I guess I got a little carried away." Arod grinned sheepishly. "Oh, well. I'll change when I get back to Viridian. If you think this is bad though, you'll hate what I did to the field."
"What did you do to MY field again?" Yamato and Arod gulped as a deep voice was heard coming from behind them. They turned and saw a tall man with black hair and a beard walk in the room.
"Oh…Hi Dad….Sorry about your practice field…" Yamato laughed sheepishly as he backed away from Ash Ketchum, the Pallet Gym leader. His faithful Pikachu on his shoulder, he looked especially fierce, especially coming straight from the gym.
Dawn ran over to her husband and gave him a huge hug and kiss. "How was your day, Honey?"
"It was fine, dear. Plenty of trainers coming in, most of them losing, sadly. Yamato, can I talk with you for a minute?"
Yamato nodded. "Sure, Dad." As the two walked over to the outside of the house, Arod started to follow, trying to stay out of sight.
Once they got to the point where they thought that they wouldn't be heard, Yamato and Ash started to talk. "Son, there's something that I want you to have." Ash reached into his pocket and proceeded to present Yamato with 2 Poke Balls. In his left hand, the Poke Ball had a flame sticker on it, while in his right hand was a Poke Ball with a lightning bolt sticker on it.
"Dad…You know that I can't accept the Pikachu that you're offering."
"Why not, son? Why can't you carry on the family tradition?"
"It's hard to explain…I'm tired of living in your shadow all the time. People look at me and see YOU, not me. I want to be known for who I am." Yamato reached out and grabbed the Poke Ball with the flame on it. "However, with this Pokemon, and my other Pokemon, I can make a name for myself."
Ash nodded. "Understandable. I was the same way when I was your age. Give the Pikachu in the other ball to your friend. I feel as though I owe him for helping you out today."
"I will, dad. And trust me. When the time comes that I have to face you in battle, I'll give it my all."
"I wouldn't expect any less. Take good care of that Chimchar there, son. And I'm always proud of you."
Just then, Dawn came out and called them. "Ash, Yamato, dinner's ready!"
Yamato smiled. He would miss his mother's cooking. "Coming, Mom! Go ahead Dad. I'll catch up."
As Ash went inside with Dawn, Arod emerged from the shadows. "So, you want to be out of your Father and Mother's shadows."
Yamato nodded. "Yeah. Dad wants you to have this." Yamato tosses Arod the Poke Ball. "It's a Pikachu, one that's a descendant of my dad's original Pikachu. Train it well. We leave in the morning." Yamato then walked off, entering the house for dinner, leaving Arod to his thoughts.
The next day, both Arod and Yamato waved at Ash and Dawn as they headed out towards Route 1. Ash turned to his wife. "Do you think they'll be alright?"
"He wants to be the very best, like no one ever was. To do that, he needs to travel across the land, searching far and wide."
Meanwhile, Arod and Yamato were walking down the path to Viridian City. All of a sudden, one of Arod's Poke Balls broke open, releasing it's Pokemon. A small yellow mouse-like creature with brown stripes appeared. Yamato shook his head.
"I guess it runs in the family." Arod looked at Yamato quizzically. "Dad's Pikachu hates Poke Balls, too." Arod nodded, then closed his eyes partially as he sensed Pikachu's mood. He turned to it.
"I'm Arod, and I'll be your trainer, Pika." The Pokemon glared at Arod. "There's no reason to give me that look. I won't hurt you." Yamato quickly stepped away from Arod.
"PIKACHU!" ~Take this!~ Pikachu said as it released its thundershock attack at Arod.
"Yaaaaahhhhh!" Arod shouted as the electric power hit him. As the electricity faded, Yamato glanced at Arod. His friend's hair was sticking out in all directions. "That was quite a thundershock, Pika."
"Pika pika pi." ~You let yourself get hit with that.~ Pika cocked it's head to the side.
"I'm fine, Pika." Arod brushed the dirt off his clothes. "I'm not hurt. Like I said, I'm your friend." Pika ran up to Arod and hopped onto his shoulder. Arod laughed. "I guess I really can understand Pokemon."
"Well, this should be a good journey, except for one thing." Arod looked over at Yamato with a look of questioning in his eyes.
"We don't have any Poke Balls to catch wild Pokemon."
Arod face-planted into the dirt at this. As the wild Pidgey and Rattata ran by while they walked towards Viridian, Yamato eagerly grasped his Pokedex, recording data on all of them and trying to decide just what he wanted to catch.
Finally, after a couple hours of walking, they arrived at Viridian City. Arod sighed in relief, before turning to Yamato. "Let's head to my house, so I can change and grab my stuff." Yamato shrugged and followed Arod to his house. As Arod drew close, a blond woman opened the door.
"Arod, sweetie. You're back!" The woman noticed the Pikachu riding on Arod's shoulder. "Oh, your first Pokemon's a Pikachu! It's so cute." She noticed Yamato. "Is this a friend of yours?"
"Hi, Mom." Arod motioned to Yamato. "This is my new friend Yamato Ketchum. Pika is a gift from his father. However, this is my first Pokemon." Arod grabs the Poke Ball hanging on his belt. "Charmander, come on out!" He threw the ball, which released Arod other Pokemon. "Say hello to my mother, Charmander."
"Char." ~Hi there.~
Yamato nodded to Kaiyo Ishikawa. "Hello, Mrs. Ishikawa."
"Actually, it's Miss Ishikawa. I never married, kiddo." Kaiyo laughed as she said this. "Anyway, it's rude to keep you two outside like this. Arod, your new clothes are waiting in your room. You should change out of those torn and dirty clothes." Arod nodded and ran to his room. A few minutes later, Arod returned. He was dressed in dark jeans, a gray t-shirt, a black and gray jacket, and a black hat with a black semi-circle its blue front..
"Thanks for washing my favorite hat, Mom." Arod settled the hat onto his head, grinning as he did. "I guess it's time to go. Charmander, return." The Pokemon returned to its Poke Ball, which Arod clipped onto his belt. As he and Yamato walked away, Kaiyo spoke softly to herself.
"He wants to be the very best. To catch them is his real test, to train them is his cause. To understand the power that's inside each Pokemon, he needs to travel across the land, searching far and wide."
"We should probably go to the Pokemon Mart and the Pokemon Center before we do anything else," Yamato said as they walked. "Besides, we do need to get registered for the Pokemon League challenge, and I need to get some supplies."
Arod nodded in agreement. "I need to get some supplies myself, but why would you need to stop by the Pokemon Center? I don't remember you training at all…"
Yamato smirked viciously. "For me to know and you to find out later."
As they arrived at the Pokemon Center, a large building that had a Poke Ball shaped roof on it, Yamato walked in with his hands in his pockets and his MP3 player blaring. Arod followed quickly, hoping to get to see Nurse Joy.
"Nurse Joy, could you please heal my Pokemon? Also, how would I go about registering for the Pokemon League challenge?" Yamato asked, his headphones now hanging around his neck.
"Sure, I will gladly heal your Pokemon. As for registration, Can I see your Pokedex for a minute?"
"Not a problem, Nurse Joy."
Yamato handed his Pokedex to Nurse Joy and went to the phone to talk to his mom and let him know that he was at Viridian City. Meanwhile, Arod stepped up to the counter, determined to also register for the Pokemon league.
"Excuse me, Nurse Joy, but can I please register for the Pokemon League?"
Nurse Joy looked at Arod from the computer where she was registering Yamato for the league.
"Not a problem. By the way, could you give this to your friend over on the phone? He's all registered for the league now."
"Sure." Arod handed Nurse Joy his Pokedex, grabbed Yamato's, and set it down next to Yamato while he was on the phone.
"You're all registered."
"Thanks, Arod. Isn't yours all set yet?"
"Not quite. Although, when are your Pokemon going to be fully healed?"
"Should be ready any time now." Yamato and Arod looked over at the numerous trainers talking about their Pokemon, where they wanted to go next, and the Trainer House that was in the center of the city.
Just then, the PA spoke. "Would Yamato Ketchum please report to the front desk? Your Pokemon are all healed and ready to go."
Yamato stood up. "Alright mom, I'll talk to you later. Next time you hear from me should be Pewter City."
Dawn nodded. "Just do your best. No need to worry, okay?"
Yamato grinned and put his Pokedex into his pocket. "No need to worry. Bye, mom."
Arod and Yamato walked to the front desk. As Yamato recovered his Pokemon and clipped them to his belt, Arod recovered his Pokedex.
"Thanks, Nurse Joy." Arod said with a smile.
"Thank you. And feel free to come back to our Pokemon Center any time. Have a great day."
The two young trainers walked out of the Pokemon Center, into the hustle and bustle of Downtown Viridian City. Their next destination? The Viridian Poke Mart.
After about 20 minutes of walking and seeing the sights, they finally arrived at the Poke Mart, a smaller building with a blue roof and a Mart sign outside of it.
"This place should sell what we need, right?" Arod asked, looking at the shop.
"Only way to find out is to go in and look," Yamato stated. "What are your funds, anyways?" Yamato pulled out his wallet, which contained a good amount of money in the neighborhood of 5000 Pokedollars.
"I have about 3500. How do you have that much?" Arod asked, noticing Yamato's wallet.
"I've been kind of forced to save up since I was little, actually. My parents made a bank account, where they put all of my allowance and savings into it."
"Ah. I see."
Arod opened the door to the mart. Inside, there were many items and Pokemon training aids, such as multiple types of Poke Balls, potions, and other necessities for a trainer.
As Arod went around the store, taking in the various goods and items, Yamato went straight to the Poke Ball aisle. Grabbing about 10 Poke Balls and a few Great Balls, he then proceeded to the Potions aisle, grabbing a few of them. He then proceeded to the checkout, where an attractive teenage girl was flipping pages in a magazine.
Arod, meanwhile, having figured out just what he wanted, went about his shopping more conservatively. He picked up 10 Poke Balls himself, before grabbing a few potions and antidotes. He then headed to the register himself, to the same checkout aisle, and proceeded to check out.
"It will be 3250," The register girl said as she handed Arod a free Premier ball to go with his Poke Balls and items.
"Thank you." Arod smiled at the girl and then left the store, where Yamato was waiting, having put his items in his black and red backpack already.
"Hurry up and get ready. I don't think that we want to be going through the Forest at night, do we?"
Arod nodded in agreement, hurrying to put his gear away. After he finished doing so, they proceeded to head towards the northern part of Viridian City. About an hour later, they reached the remnants of what was the Viridian City Gym.
"It's too bad, really…When the Viridian Gym burned down, Dad felt like he had to do something to keep the 8 Gyms of Kanto fully operational, so he opened the Pallet Gym to compensate. And ever since he did, it's been tough on people to get their 8th badge, since they think that they're ready, when they just aren't ready to deal with what Dad throws at them in battle."
Arod looked at Yamato with a frown on his face. "I heard he doesn't use the same team twice when in battle."
Yamato nodded. "It's true, too. He always seems to change his team from day to day, which allows him to have so many damn options for an opponent. I'm not looking forwards to having to face him, but I think that if I train hard, I can beat him. Same applies to you, by the way."
By this time, Arod and Yamato had reached the outskirts of Viridian City. Arod paused for a last look at his hometown before following after Yamato. Out of nowhere, a young girl appeared with a Growlithe at her side. "Which one of you is the son of the great Ash Ketchum?"
"That'd be me. Why?" Yamato called out.
"I challenge you to a Pokemon battle." The girl stated.
Yamato grinned. "I accept your challenge!"
"I'll start with you, Weedle." The orange haired female threw out her Poke Ball and a small Weedle popped out.
Yamato laughed. "Too easy," he jests, before reaching back to pull out his Pokemon, "Take care of it, Chimchar!" Chimchar popped out of the Poke Ball. "Use taunt," Yamato commanded. In response, Weedle used poison sting. The move connected and knocked the Chimchar back. "Darn it, use Ember."
"Dodge it Weedle!" The Pokemon moved, but it was too slow and the blow connected, knocking Weedle completely out.
"Do you have any other Pokemon?" Yamato asked with mock interest.
"Go Psyduck." The yellow duck appeared. "Use water sport".
Yamato glared as his Pokemon got coated with water, lowering his attack. "Chimchar use scratch!"
"Counter with a water gun, Psyduck!" The Psyduck allowed Chimchar to make his move and hit him point blank with a water gun which knocked him back a good two feet.
"Use scratch and knock it out!" Chimchar rushed forward again.
"Dodge it, Psyduck!" Psyduck just stood still and tilted his head to the side while he got hit.
"Use scratch at least!" The Psyduck rushed forward and attacked, knocking out Chimchar, although Psyduck was well worn.
"Fine then. It's up to you, Bulbasaur."
"Should have figured that his son would be well-rounded. Use scratch, Psyduck!" The water duck waddled forward and scratched Bulbasaur.
"What's your problem with me anyways?" Yamato asked before having his Bulbasaur use vine whip which knocked out Psyduck.
"I guess I have no choice, you're pretty tough" she admitted. "Take 'em down Growlithe." The fiery dog stepped forward from behind his master. "Use bite!" The pokemon rushed forward.
"Dodge it, Bulbasaur!" The grass-type barely made it out of the way, but the moment it landed the Growlithe used ember without prompting from his trainer. "What the-?" Yamato staggered back dumbfounded, "but you-?"
"There's no rule that says you have to announce your attack kid," the girl smirked, tucking her hands into the pockets of her black jacket. Yamato gritted his teeth.
"Bulbasaur, tackle that Growlithe!" Bulbasaur ran forward and Growlithe roared, causing Bulbasaur to trip up and fall into Growlithe instead.
"Bite," the dog turned his neck and bit down on the face of Bulbasaur.
"Bulbasaur, use vine whip!" Yamato shouted, now panicking. The vines pushed Growlithe back but then he used another ember and Bulbasaur was knocked out.
"Now I'd better get some answers once I beat you. Take care of it Piplup!" The little penguin Pokemon chirped as it sprung from the Poke Ball. "Use bubble!"
Growlithe was hit hard, and whimpered. "Come on, you can make it, hun. Use bite!" Growlithe stood up and ran towards the Piplup and bit its arm. Yamato had his Piplup respond with Peck, which knocked Piplup loose. Growlithe limped back awaiting another command.
"Piplup use Peck!" The Pokemon ran forward.
"I forfeit!" the girl shouted, running and jumping down in front of Growlithe. The Piplup stopped about 4 inches from her face with a funny look on its face. Growlithe growled from behind his master, "Please, I give up. Okay?" The girl was shaking as she held her arms out to protect her Pokemon.
"Fine, but you shouldn't jump in front of a Pokemon like that. You're lucky you didn't get hurt," Yamato quipped, walking over to her. He reached a hand down to help her up, "So who are you anyways? I'm Yamato, and this is my friend, Arod Ishikawa."
"My name is Ai, and someday I'm going to beat your father, along with dozens of other trainers," she declared, neglecting his hand and pushing herself up off the ground. Now standing, she dusted off her black coat and smiled. "Nice to meet you." The orange haired girl grabbed his hand and shook it.
"So is that why you came after me?" The girl smirked and leaned down to inspect her Growlithe.
"I just wanted to see what the son of the famed Pallet Gym Leader was like. Not bad, but if my Weedle was more experienced, you would have lost. You know it."
"I'm surprised. I didn't think someone could be so arrogant after a defeat," Yamato sneered. Ai was about to respond when a cloud of smoke rolled over them. Yamato, Arod and Ai coughed. "What's this?"
"Prepare for trouble!"
"Make it double!"
"To protect the world from devastation."
"To unite all peoples within our nations."
"To denounce the evils of truth and love."
"To extend our reach to the stars above."
"Jessie!" A familiar woman with blue hair appeared in the smoke.
"James!" A familiar man with red hair appeared beside her.
"Team Rocket, blast off at the speed of light."
"Surrender now, or prepare to fight."
Arod scowled. "What do you two want?"
Jessie laughed. "Why, we've come for your Pokemon. Too bad they're tired out from your battle."
Arod smiled. "Not really. Pika, thundershock attack now!" Pika charged up its attack and launched it at Team Rocket, blowing them skyward.
"That's the second time that twerp beat us." Arod watched as they faded from sight.
"Guess they won't be back for a while. Right, Pika?" Arod asked his Pikachu as it climbed onto Arod's head.
"Pikachu pika." ~How dare they steal Pokemon.~
"You said it, buddy." Arod turned to find the other two staring at him. "What's the matter? Do I have something on my face?"
Yamato spoke first. "You understand what Pikachu's saying, yet you've only had him for a day or so. That's impossible!"
Ai nodded. "It took me years before I understood Growlithe. There's nobody alive who can learn this fast."
Arod shrugged. "It's not really surprising. Since I was little, I could sense the thoughts and feelings of Pokemon. I don't even fully understand myself." Pika settled onto Arod's shoulder again. "Hey, Ai. Wanna come with us?"
Ai laughed. "Thanks, but I'd rather go my own way. Besides, I'm using my bike."
"Do you mean this?" Yamato said as he pulled a blackened and warped shaped out from behind the bushes.
"My bike!" Ai rushed toward it. She whirled on Arod. "This is all your Pikachu's fault! You owe me for a new bike."
"I don't exactly have any money on me," Arod replied.
"My poor bike."
"Hey, my house is near here. I'm sure my Mom wouldn't mind looking after it for a while. She used to fix mine all the time, so I'm sure she'll fix yours if I ask her."
Yamato looked at the remains of Ai's bike. "It might be better to just get a new one. This thing couldn't have cost that much."
Ai turned her fury on Yamato. "It was a CUSTOM BIKE!" She turns back to Arod. "Until you pay me for a new bike, I'm gonna be traveling with you, Arod Ishikawa."
"So where is it you live Arod?" Ai asked, following the two boys back into Viridian city. She had to literally carry her bike; it was so destroyed it couldn't even be rolled let alone ridden.
"Just in the city." he replied, leading her to his house.
"Long time no see, did you get homesick already?" his mom joked as he opened the door.
"Not quite. I sort of messed up this girls bike. I was hoping you would be able to fix it." His mother followed Arod outside and let out a low whistle when she saw it.
"Do I even want to know?" she muttered, walking up to Ai so she could take a closer look at the bike. The entire thing was charred black and the metal was contorted.
"Actually, his Pikachu managed to take out the whole group It was pretty epic," Yamato admitted.
"It would have been more epic had he done it without destroying my main mode of transportation," Ai pointed out.
"Now if, and I mean IF, I can fix this, it'll take some time," Kaiyo warned. "So what's your name?" she asked, still inspecting the bike.
"I'm Ai, from Cerulean, Mrs... Ummm..."
"You can call me Miss Ishikiwa. Here, we should exchange numbers so I can let you know when I fix it, assuming I can."
"Any expenses should be paid for by Arod, since he wrecked it," Ai pointed out. His mother just chuckled and moved the bike under the awning of the house.
"You and I should stop by the Pokemon center again," Yamato pointed out.
"Yeah, lets head over."
"Hey Arod, could I talk to you for a minute."
"Sure mom, I'll meet you guys up there." Yamato and Ai headed for the Pokemon Center, leaving Arod behind to talk to his mother.
"So what do you think she wants to talk to him about?" Ai asked as they entered the Pokemon center.
"Probably telling him to wear clean underwear or something." They gave Nurse Joy their Poke Balls and headed over towards the waiting area. "So how long have you been training?" Yamato asked as Ai sat down in the waiting room.
"Since birth? I've had both Psyduck and Growlithe since I was little, but Weedle's new. I only left home a week or two ago."
"So you headed to Viridian just to face me," Yamato boasted, still standing.
"More like I wanted to get some Pokemon in Viridian forest, and I heard from Nurse Joy that Ash Ketchum's son had just been registered."
"Oh, so are you really going to be following us?" Yamato asked, sitting down next to Ai. "Hey I want my bike fixed, the easiest way to guarantee that is if I stick to you fools like glue."
"It's just a bike," Yamato pointed out.
"Just a bike? That thing is custom, I can travel more than four times as fast as you pedestrians with that thing. I can travel on ledges too small for you guys, and go up rocky paths too."
"Whatever."
"Yamato and Ai, your Pokemon are healed and waiting at the front desk," Nurse Joys voice rang over the intercom. The two of them jumped up from their seats and headed over to the counter.
"Here you go Yamato, all three of your Pokemon are fully healed. And Ai, here are your Pokemon as well."
"Poor Growlithe, come on out." Growlithe sprang from the Poke Ball and materialized at her side.
"Good luck you two, but don't work your Pokemon too hard."
"Hey guys," Arod walked up to the entrance, with Officer Jenny behind him.
"I hear that the three of you had a run in with Team Rocket? It's been awhile since we've seen that group around here. I was hoping you could tell me what happened." After a half hour of talking with Officer Jenny the sun was starting to set. "You guys have a place to stay the night, right? You shouldn't sleep in the forest if those thieves are back." Officer Jenny then escorted the three of them back to Arod's house and told Miss Ishikawa the same.
"Well you three are free to have the floor, Dinner should be ready in a few minutes."
Once they had eaten and washed up, Yamato and Ai unrolled their sleeping bags on the floor. Growlithe diligently laid down between the two and Ai draped her arm over the Pokemon. She quickly fell asleep despite Yamato's snoring. The trio woke as the sun was rising, all three of them anxious to get through Viridian Forest.
"Here, I packed some food. Don't be too hasty, but make sure you get through by nightfall. And don't forget about the underwear!" Probably not the send-off Arod had hoped for, but that was the last his mom said to him before the three of them headed into the Viridian Forest.
"Your mom's pretty nice," Ai stated, "I like your house too, it's very cozy."
"Needs some guest rooms though," Yamato quipped.
"Like she'd want you over again, you didn't even thank her for dinner."
"Ugh, are you two going to fight like this the entire way?" Arod asked.
"I'm just saying, it's nice that your mom lets you bring friends over and stuff at short notice," Ai muttered, sinking her hands back into the pockets of her black jacket.
Arod shrugged. Having already gotten two Pokemon, and made a few friends, Arod sets his sights on the next stop on his Pokemon journey.
End of Chapter
AU Pokemon Project Team
The AU Pokemon Project Team is a side project created by members of Anime United, a small Facebook group dedicated to anime. The people who work on this project are:
Alex Hilbish (a.k.a. The Pikamaster)
Matt Norman (a.k.a. DarkBlazeCharizard)
Heather Sibley (a.k.a. GrowlitheQueen)