Disclaimer
Pokemon and related concepts do not belong to me. I am simply borrowing them because they're fun to write stories about.

Pokemon Rose
Written by: Stripe

Prologue

"...and the reigning Champion, Red, is set to take on another challenger!"

Two sets of eyes were glued to the screen as the camera zoomed into the battlefield - a typical coliseum with a large Pokéball in the center, to remind the spectators of what they were about to see. The two battlers stood at either end of the field, waiting for the match to start. It was dead silent for a moment, until finally, the announcers voice rang out over the stadium.

"The trainers may now release their Pokémon, and begin the battle!"

In a two large bursts of light, the two Pokémon were released. On the challenger's side, there was a Gyarados, large and fearsome, even out of its natural water habitat. It let out a roar as it glowered at the audience in a way that was likely simply theatrics, planned by the challenger. But planned or not, it worked; several members of the live audience let out a scream, and even the two children in front of the television couldn't help but look a little intimidated. But it didn't last long.

"A Gyarados! That's so cool! I'm gonna get me one of those when I grow up!" This came from the girl who, after her initial reaction of shock, was now on her feet, fists clenched in excitement as though she were going to be the one to fight the large water Pokémon instead.

"It's fitting," said the boy in a calm, almost bored tone. "But keep it down, Levana. If our parents hear us watching this, you know they'll make us turn it off."

Levana pondered this for a few moments before she finally seemed to realize the truth in his statement and sat down again. By this point, they were showing the champion's Pokemon, so small that the camera needed to zoom in to identify the species. But, of course, to those who knew the Champion well, it was no surprise - his prized Pikachu was already gathering electricity up into its cheeks.

The two siblings watched on intently as the battle continued. Though the challenger's face looked grim, he took the initiative and the Gyarados immediately took the offensive, lunging at the Pikachu what should have been a devastating attack. Levana had to restrain herself from leaping up again, so instead, she went ahead and voiced her thoughts. "That challenger's definitely gotta be able to win. I mean, look that that Gyarados! It's giant! I bet you it could eat that Pikachu whole! Don't you think so, Cy?"

"My name isn't 'Cy,'" the brother corrected, an irritated expression crossing his face. "It's Cyrus. How many times do I have to tell you? And anyways, my money would be on the Pikachu, if I have to be honest. Think about it - the Champion has been in his position for several years now. The Pikachu is obviously well trained, despite being unevolved. And you can never forget the type advantage, either. I wouldn't be surprised if it only took one hit for the Pikachu to bring that down."

Levana frowned. "But that thing's so big. It's gotta be strong too, right?"

Cyrus didn't respond as they both continued to watch. The Champion's Pikachu dodged out of the way of the Gyarados, easily latching itself onto the back of the water Pokémon. A clever camera angle of the challenger showed that he was visibly sweating, but he still didn't back down, continue to shout out commands as though his life depended on it. But no matter what happened, the Pikachu remained in the one spot that the Gyarados couldn't reach.

And finally, just as things were beginning to get frustrating, the Champion gave his Pikachu a command: the first command he had used in the entire battle so far.

"Thunderbolt."

But the siblings didn't get to see the outcome of this command, as the screen suddenly flicked off. The two were dumbstruck for a moment until their mother's critical voice came in from behind them. "What have I told you about watching those blood baths on television?"

Both Cyrus and Levana turned to face their mother, who was eyeing them critically over the couch while holding their youngest sister, Vienna, in her arms. Neither of them got a chance to respond as the lecture continued. "Battling goes against everything your father and I stand for, and though we don't want to restrict your creativity, we absolutely refuse to let that filth onto our television."

"But Mom-" Levana protested, looking indignant even though this was a rule she already knew and had futilely argued against several times before.

"No buts. Why don't you go play with your younger siblings instead? I'm sure that Felix and Kestrel would enjoy spending time with you."

Levana and Cyrus exchanged glances for a moment. Neither of them had any great desire to play with their younger brother and sister, who were all of six and nine at the moment, but without the TV to watch, there wasn't anything better to do. So they obliged, though Levana did her best to make sure that their mother knew she was unhappy with this alternative activity.

And as the day went on, she couldn't keep herself from thinking back to the brief glimpse of the battle she had seen on the television, picturing herself in the challenger's shoes with hundreds of thousands of people watching her every move. It was an exhilarating thought, and for as much as Levana knew her parents would be against it, she found she didn't care. She had already set her goal, with no intention of ever looking back.

"One day..."

A/N: What's this? A new fanfic from Stripe? Why yes. Yes it is. Though it's in that weird area between original fiction and fanfiction, since I'm using the universe, but none of the main characters. So I guess this chapter is just a test run of sorts.

The other weird thing about this story is that it's actually meant to be viewed with illustrations. But, obviously, fanfiction is not going to let me upload images, so I'll just be forced to link them to you. You can find this prologue in its original form here: teh-stripe. deviant art .com/#/d35zpt2 (without the spaces, of course) and view some decent drawings so you can see the characters and so on and so forth.

Anyways, as for the story itself, this prologue is pretty unimportant and just a mite cheesy. Like I said, just a test run. The actual story will start a year from this point, and will be following (at least initially) both Levana and Cyrus on their respective Pokemon journeys. Yeees these are OCs, and noooo this is not a canonxOC story. I pinky promise. Also, this is not sticking precisely to the games. Why? Because you've played the games. You know that story already. I want to tell a different one, dammit.

But anyways. If this interests you or you want to read more or whatever, leave a review/fav/alert/some sort of indication. If you think I'm an idiot and that this is a terrible idea and that I should never write again, go ahead and leave a review stating so. Or don't. Whatever.

Regardless, hope you enjoy~