"Professor Holly is expecting you Hailey!" my dad shouted down the steps. "Get your ass in gear." Leave it to him to be nothing but blunt. Athos stretched out beside me and yawned, flashing fangs before he closed his mouth. Athos was my Umbreon who'd evolved a week ago, scaring the shit out of me at Luke's bonfire. Everyone else just laughed at me when I quite literally fell out of my chair.

"Hailey, get up," he said directly, following my dad's example. I mumbled at him about something to do with pillows, but he pawed at my face until I was forced to get out of bed. I never really hated mornings, but they weren't my favorite time of day either.

Yawning, I made my way over to my dresser and pulled out my favorite outfit; the light grey, three-quarter sleeve shirt, my black, high-necked vest with the mauve top half that ended in a V at my chest, my dark grey short-shorts with the mauve cuffs and my mauve hat with the grey peace sign on the front corner. I know it was a lot of mauve, but it was just the right blend of red and violet that I couldn't help but love the color. Athos followed me as I slipped into my clothes on the way to the bathroom to comb out my wavy, brown hair. This thing had a habit of becoming an untamable Rattata's nest when I didn't take care of it right away.

So after I took care of my daily hygiene, I trekked up to the kitchen to find Professor Holly sitting at my kitchen table. My dad was conversing with her about something, but stopped abruptly when I poked my head up the stairs. Holly looked back and smiled at me, pushing a strand of her blindingly bright red hair out of her eyes.

"Mournin' Hailey," she said amiably in her thick accent. Finding Professor Holly at my house wasn't all that weird considering I worked for her and she never felt the need for personal space. It was just weird that she would show up on a Saturday… usually my only day off.

"Um… Morning," I replied, heading straight for the coffee pot on the counter. This was the stuff that I could not function out. I think I may have developed a caffeine addiction, but there were worse things in life. Athos even loved to sip out of my cup when he thought I wasn't looking. When I had poured myself a mug of coffee, I sat at the table with the two adults. "So whatcha need today?"

"Hailey!" my dad looked a little horrified that I was being rude, but Holly was here on my day off. It's her fault for being weird. Holly laughed her musical laugh and shook her head.

"Ets fine. Hailey an' I haff no need to be overly polyte to one anuther." I nodded, toasting my mug in Holly's direction just to try and appease my dad. He could be a little over the top when it came to manners. "Hailey, I wuz wondering if you wood run a very impurtant message fur me today. A colleeague off mine needs an egg that I haff been keepingk at my lab. I haff no tyme to run it to him and he only is staying on Fernvale Island fur a leetle while. He es in Forestri Town at the moment, helpingk the Poké Center set up their transfer compyooters. Please wood you help me?"

I thought about it as I sipped my coffee and eventually nodded. "Okay, I'll do it for you." Holly smiled and clapped her hands together.

"Excellent! Excellent!" she cried. "Comb by my offyces when you are ready tu go. Yur father has sumthing to tell you tuu." She danced out the door, leaving me and my dad in an awkward silence. He sighed and ran his hand over his face, looking into his own empty mug, trying to drag up the words of what he wanted to tell me.

"Hailey, I know you've been working for Professor Holly for a long while. She told me today that she thought you were getting restless and antsy." I didn't quite know where this conversation was going, but I knew if I interrupted now, my dad wouldn't finish what he was saying. "I know you're sixteen and nearly an adult, but you're still my only little girl. I don't know where the last seven years went… Anyway, what I wanted to say is that… I want you to go explore Archipelago. I am giving you my permission to leave on your own journey."

Coffee nearly shot out of my nose, causing me to have a coughing fit. My dad was letting me leave! He was finally letting me go explore Archipelago! I though joyously, then I remembered that he was sitting right there.

"Wow, dad. I-I don't know what to say…" I really didn't. Thank you seemed too inadequate. I didn't know how to express my joy, besides jumping around the table like an idiot. He smiled like he'd heard an old joke.

"How about that you'll be careful and you won't forget to buy a map for each island you land on?" I smiled so wide I thought the top of my head would have fallen off and hugged my Ursaring-sized dad.

"I will. I'll make sure to call you every time I leave and enter a town. I'll never leave without checking my supplies and I'll send you pictures any time I can. Thank you!" He hugged me back and handed me a dark violet backpack.

"This might be of help." It looked worn, but sturdy. Like those old monster buildings that wouldn't crumble in an earthquake out of stubbornness. There wasn't one bit of it torn, frayed or broken, but I knew it had been used before. "This was your mother's when I met her. She used to travel a lot and we met in the Crescent Isles. Take it for good luck."

"Wow, dad… now I really don't know what to say…" Mom had died when I was six. I didn't have many memories of her, but the ones I did were always bright and happy.

"Well, I already packed it for you. Trainer stuff, clothes and your PokéGear. There's a whole pocket in there for your travel gear and your Poké balls. Your wallet is in the middle pocket with a little gift from me. You'd better get to Holly's place before she thinks I made you stay." I swiped at my eyes to get rid of the tears forming and instead went to the door and pulled on my black high-tops.

"I promise I'll be careful, so don't worry about me," I told my dad before skipping out the door with Athos by my side. He had his tail held high in the air and was practically whistling with happiness.

"Finally! I was wondering when he's make up his mind." Athos, of course, would know that. He seemed to know everything in the world of gossip. I think it's because he could be practically invisible at night and sneak around like a ninja.

"I know! But we have to run that errand for Holly first. Then we can totally take on the Skye League." Athos and I dreamed of taking on the league in the Skye Archipelago, or Archipelago as every native called it. I hadn't trained with him much, but then again, we've never had much chance to. With me running errands for Holly, I never had time to battle with the other kids my age. I had only gotten to run all over town.

Even when I went to Forestri Town, there wasn't much to battle with. As far as Holly had told me, Athos was still not very strong, even if he had evolved. The road to Forestri was calm and only had a few birds and bugs on it. Most stayed away just because they thought Athos was too strong for them.

"Hailey!" I whipped my head towards the voice, finding Luke darting across the road with his hand raised in greeting. I waved at him, but didn't slow my pace. He knew I loved to run and was one of the few people who could keep up with my long stride. "How's it going, Sweetheart?"

"Eh. Holly's making me run an errand for her. I have to deliver an egg to her colleague in Forestri, then I have to call my dad, then I'm going to Festa city to start my journey across Archipelago." Luke tripped over his feet, but righted himself.

"You finally got permission to leave?!" he shouted, drawing more than a little attention.

"Yeah, just a few minutes ago." I giggled at his face. "I finally get to challenge the Skye League, right after I run that errand for Holly." Luke's huge smile faltered a bit when I mentioned the League.

"Don't you need a Trainer card to challenge the League?"

"Yeah. What about it?" Luke slapped his forehead in frustration.

"You have to take classes at the Trainer Academy to get a Trainer card. As far as I know, you never went to the Academy in this city." I groaned and would have slapped myself for forgetting such a basic principal if it wouldn't have made me look weirder than normal. "Sorry Hailey, just reporting the facts."

"I'll ask Holly what I can do about those classes when I get to her lab. I've really gotta go, Luke. See you later, or maybe not. Who knows?" He laughed as he went down the street that led to the park, his usual haunt on nice days like that.

"Are we going to Holly's lab or would you like to find another person to talk to?" Athos reprimanded me. He never had much patience when we had a job to do.

"It does not matter how fast one goes, only that one does not stop," I quoted at him. He barked out a laugh and jumped ahead of me, turning down Rowan Street. "Wait for me you insufferable beast!" I could hear his barking laugh from around the corner.

"Here I thought you were the fastest runner in the city," he taunted. "Run, run as fast as you can!" Athos was such a fool, but he was my fool ever since I found him on my doorstep.

Imagine, little five-year-old me going out to play in the rain puddles, only to trip over a forlorn little Eevee huddling on our porch. Of course it took an hour of wheedling and begging and pouting to get my dad to let me keep him, but I knew he'd grown to love Athos. I saw when he slipped treats to him under the table, and when he scratched right behind his ear where he liked it the most.

"We're here," Athos said, snapping me out of my reminiscing. He was standing in front of Holly's place, the large, three story building. The whole thing was painted bright blue, but it fit in with the other brightly colored buildings of Nikkus City. On Fernvale, Nikkus City was the only place not surrounded by forest, so the citizen's made sure to make it as unique as possible.

I pushed open the orange door and said hello to Holly's assistants. They were always happy to see me, usually because I took a bit of their workload from them. Nick was trying to handle a Starly that didn't want to be held. I whistled a five note tune to it and it flew over to me to investigate the noise. When it hovered over my head, I grabbed it by pinning its wings to its body, handing it to a very grateful Nick.

Miranda, usually a very organized person, was covered from head to toe with papers and clips. I bet they had gotten a fax from a professor in another region, maybe Oak from Kanto or Juniper of Unova or Birch from Hoenn. I grabbed a few from her hands before she would have dropped them. She smiled at me and put them on the nearest desk.

"Holly's in out in the backyard, if you were wondering," she helpfully informed me. "She's getting that egg ready for you."

"Thanks Miranda," I said, heading for the backdoor. Athos waved a paw at her before he followed me. Holly's lab wasn't too big of a place, but her backyard was a totally different story. The place was nearly an acre big and that was a lot of land considering it was in the middle of a city.

Even though Holly was researching the effects of the islands on the local population of people gifted with aura talents, she had a whole bunch of Pokémon at her lab. She was one of the first professionals to notice there were more aura users per square mile in the Skye Archipelago than any other region. That's not to say they aren't still rare, because I was the only one in this city as far as I knew.

"Hailey!" Holly shouted, over by a group of Nidoran of the female variety. "You are finally here! I take it yur father told you whut he wanted tu tell you?"

"Yeah, he did. I don't know how you convinced him, but awesome work Professor." She smiled as I gave her a high five. Holly and I had grown close after working together for such a long time. She was hardly thirty right now, one of the youngest Professors in the world. She and I had become good friends, mostly because she had yet to mature fully.

"The egg is over here, follow quick." Holly led me over to the egg nursery she had sitting there like a greenhouse. Inside were shelves lined with eggs from the Pokémon here. Blue ones with sharp spots, yellow ones with black lines, green ones with yellow tops, just about every color of the rainbow was in here.

Holly plucked an orange egg from a shelf next to the Oddish eggs. As far as I could tell, it might have been a Buizel egg. I wasn't too good at guessing what would hatch, but there was a running bet with Holly and I about what would hatch from which eggs. We had almost gotten it down to a science.

"Here is the wun I want you tu take tu my colleeague." She put it in an egg case made for travel. "He wanted me to send him an egg that had been bourn under the moonlight. So, I had to wait unteel wun of the couples had an egg at nighttime." She handed the case to me and I took it carefully.

"Don't worry, I'll get this to Forestri without a single scratch." She smiled and nodded.

"Oi, I know yu weel. Here, take this with yu tuu." She handed me a Poké ball. "This weel help yu on yur journey around the Arkipelaago."

"Thank you Holly… but what is it?"

"Ets a Charmander. He's been doting over this egg and refueses to let me send it away without lettingk him go with tuu. Since you haff that talent with the aura and speak with Pokémon, I thought yu'd be able tu talk sum sense into him."

"Um, okay?" Holly laughed at my confused face. I'd always thought that if I ever got to go out and challenge the League, that I'd do it with Athos as my partner.

"Ets tradition to send off nu Trainers with a Pokémon, is et not?" She laughed at my face again and dug a black electronic thing out of her coat pocket. I put the Charmander's Poké ball in my bag before I took it from her. "This is a PokéDex. Et will tell yu about any Pokémon you run acrosst out there. There are Pokémon frum every region here in Arkipelaago, so there will be many tu see and befriend. Don't forget tu find sum that are frum only here, the Pokémon only found in Arkipelaago."

"Thank you Holly," I said, genuinely grateful for her help. "I'll be sure to make it useful. Though you and I still have bets going. I'll call around once in a while to check up and make sure you're paying me my dues."

"What iff I win? Yu'd better make enuff prize money to pay me my rewards." I laughed with her.

"We'll see Holly! Hey, I need to ask you something." She raised an eyebrow.

"Whut is et?"

"My friend Luke reminded me that you needed a Trainer card to challenge the League. I didn't take any classes at the Academy to get mine." She smiled broadly and slapped her head like she'd just remembered something.

"That es right! I nearly forgot. Since yu haff been wourking fur me fur so long, yu already haff the skills they teach at the Academy. They gave me purmission tu give yu a Trainer's card. Miranda taught yu about edible frooits in the wild, yes?" I nodded. "Yes! And Nick taught yu about livingk outdoours, yes?" I nodded again. "See! Yu learned about Pokémon frum me and yu even know more about eggs and raisingk baby Pokémon than any other teenagers out there."

"Wow, I guess you're right, Holly." She nodded with pride and shuffled through her pockets, throwing away useless junk that always seemed to accumulate around her.

"Aha! Here yu go." She handed me a thick piece of laminated plastic with my picture on it. On the back were ten indented spots for the Skye League badges. "Yu know that only eight baadges are required to chaallenge the League's Eleete Foour, but I say yu go fur ten. It'll make yu a stronger challenger fur the Eleete Foour."

"I'll see what I can do," I promised her. "See you later Feraligator!"

"In a while Krookodile!" I headed for the back gate and Athos barked a farewell as he jumped over the gate to show off. I rolled my eyes at him and pushed the gate open with a pointed look at him. He smirked and trotted down the street.

I was still amazed at the fact that I was leaving Nikkus City for good. I had been dreaming about it for so long, and now that dream was coming true. From what I knew, the first Gym was in the Cat's Paw Islands. It was a group of roundish islands that looked like a cat's four fingered paw. I knew that most of it was covered in forest, like Fernvale, but there were a few places where the forest was thinner.

"Hailey! Quit day dreaming," Athos reprimanded me. "You nearly ran into a pole." I hugged the egg closer to my chest and shook the thoughts away. There would be no journey if I scrambled the egg before I even left the city.

"Thanks Athos." I sighed at my own stupidity and headed for the road out of town. I knew it would take roughly three days to get to Forestri. Usually it would take me two, but I had to make sure the egg stayed safe and I was leaving a bit later than I usually did. So, if I planned things right, I would get to Forestri at about one o'clock three days from now.

I turned the corner and nearly ran into Luke, who just happened not to be looking where he was going. I juggled the egg case to keep it steady and Athos even tried to help keep it in my grip. This egg's chances were looking bleaker by the second.

"Luke! Damnit, you gotta learn to watch where you're going!" I scolded him. He blushed and turned to the friend he was walking with. I noticed that it was Oliver, my favorite ginger.

"Told ya so," Luke puffed. Oliver's face broke out in a giant smile.

"Good for you Hailey! I can't believe you're finally leaving!" I giggled as he hugged me. Oliver was a touchy-feely kind of guy, but it only ever worked for him in good ways. Girls fawned over him like Combee over honey. Too bad for them that he didn't go for girls.

"Yeah, I am. Though I'll make sure to write home a bunch for you guys. Will you say goodbye to Jesi and Maia for me? I've really got to get this egg to Forestri for Professor Holly." Oliver winked and held a thumb up.

"You bet Cutie Pie. They'll be mad you didn't say goodbye yourself, but I'm sure they'll understand." I nodded and smiled as I walked around them.

"All right guys, I'm off. Don't do anything stupid without me unless you record it for me to watch later!" Luke laughed loudly and Oliver gave me another thumbs up. I started jogging back down the street again with a smile on my face.

It took me an hour to get out of the city. Dodging old neighbors and many other citizens, I reached the gates at about two and strode through them with a new feeling of freedom.

Making runs for Holly in the past was exciting, but I still had to come back home. Now I could go where I wanted, when I wanted without any say from anyone but myself. The pure thought of it made my skin crawl in anticipation. Athos looked at me with a weird expression when we passed through the gates.

"Why are you smiling like that?" he asked. I shrugged.

"I just can't contain myself, Athos. We're finally on our way to the top. We can finally make a name for ourselves. I can finally see the world beyond Fernvale Island. What's more to want?"

"A sandwich?" I rolled my eyes at him.

"I just fed you like three hours ago. You'll be fine." Athos looked disappointed, but perked up quickly when our road formed along the path. He loved jogging down the road with me when we ran things to Forestri. In the city he didn't have as much room as he did out here.

"Didn't Holly give you a Pokémon?" he asked. "You should introduce yourself before it gets too late." I hadn't thought of that. Actually… I had completely forgotten about the little guy in my haste to get out of the city. I dug the ball out of my backpack and threw it in the air.

The Pokémon to come out was a small, orange lizard with brilliant blue eyes and a bright fire burning at the tip of his tail. He looked around at the scenery before his gaze zeroed in on me and the egg.

"Where's Holly?" he asked bluntly. "And why do you have my egg?"

"So this is your egg?" I wondered aloud. The little lizard shook his head.

"It's under my protection." I nodded and gave him a smile.

"Holly gave the egg to me so I could transport it to Forestri Town and give it to a colleague of hers. She gave you to me so you could make sure it stays protected along the way." Charmander nodded thoughtfully as he turned the idea over in his head. Taking the chance to use my new PokéDex, I pointed the camera at him.

"Charmander, the Lizard Pokemon. The flame at the end of Charmander's tail is an indicator of both its energy and its emotions. When it is happy and full of energy, it burns brightly, but when it is tired and sad, it sputters and smokes." I was intrigued by all the information it had in just a few sentences. I pressed the 'more details' button and brought up a list. "Charmander, level 5, Male. Known moves, Scratch and Growl."

"Well this thing is pretty useful, ain't it boys?" Athos nodded happily and Charmander agreed. "Hey Charmander, would you mind me giving you a nickname? Charmander is so generic and I wouldn't want to distract anyone else's Charmander."

"Sure. Holly calls me Little Guard," he told me. "But that's too long." I thought for a couple of seconds as we walked.

"How about Koal?" He agreed readily, liking it a lot apparently. "Okay Koal, welcome to the team."

"I'm only staying with you until you hand off that egg. I'm staying with it." I could see what Holly meant when she said I should talk some sense into him. I doubted the other Professor would take Koal with the egg.

"We'll see about that Koal." He turned his nose up at me and I returned him to his Poké ball with a smirk. He was going to be fun to get to know. "Let's go, Athos. I want to get at least to the grove with the Combee nest before the sun sets."

Athos nodded and jumped ahead, leading the way down the dirt road. I followed with the egg safely tucked into its case and in my arms.

Hey all! This is gonna (hopefully) be a story I'll keep up and not delete after two days. Since I found the concept really fun, the main character is me! I wanted to write a story with my own reactions and ways of doing things, so I made the main character me. As always, if there is anything that needs fixing, like grammar errors, feel free to tell me in the reviews or just tell me the story sucks, whatever.

On a different note, I want y'all to send in OC's! I can't promise they'll all be used, but I will do my best. Send them to my PM box because I wouldn't want my reviews being clogged up with character descriptions. Here's a template for ya.

Name:
Age:
Gender ('cause Alex is way too generic for its own good):

Looks:

Distinguishing marks or features:

Personality:

Pokemon (moves, genders and personalities would be appreciated but not mandated):

Goals:

Aura user, yes or no?

Any background info useful for character development or fun situations:

Anything else?:

Are you sure?:

'Cause i will use this:

All done?:

Okay. Good.