The soft ocean breeze brushed against my cheek as I leaned against the railing of a large ferry. I could hear the distant calls of Pokemon as we slowly approached land. The sun danced in my eyes for a brief moment before revealing the shimmering coast and the lush green land of the Sinnoh region. I took it all in for a moment before turning to the mass of orange and black fur next to me.
"This is it, buddy," I smiled. My partner's gray eyes flickered over to me. He was just barely holding onto the railing with his paws. "This is the journey we've been waiting for." He nodded a bit before fixing his gaze back onto the approaching dock. "I bet you're ready to get off this boat, huh?" I laughed. I reached over and picked him up into my arms. Leaning my chin against his head, I breathed in and snuggled him against my chest. "I can't wait until we catch our first Pokémon. That's our first step."
"Ladies and Gentlemen, we have arrived at Twinleaf Town. Please gather all your belongings and exit the ferry on the south side," a booming voice sounded out from the overhead speakers. I could hear the rumble of footsteps as adults and kids alike quickly left the ship. There seemed to be aspiring trainers and tourists mixed in together. I could easily pick out the numerous cameras as families snapped pictures of the new region. I took a deep breath before nodding.
"Alright, it's time to start our Pokémon adventure." A yip responded before I headed off the boat. The smell of sweet grass greeted me as my feet finally touched land. My partner wiggled in my arms and I quickly let him hop onto the ground. He seemed relatively relieved that we're finally off the ferry. He quickly bounded down the winding road of Twinleaf Town, prompting me to chase after him. "Hey! Get back here!" I shouted as I sprinted after him. The wind rushed past me as I kept my eyes focused on the bounding mass of orange. "Look! I know that you're excited because I am, too, but we just got off the ferry!" I yelled. My partner continued running off into the forest. I could feel my heart beating faster as I pushed myself to run after him. "Growlithe! Come on!"
After chasing him for a while, he finally stopped on the road. He was lying on his stomach, panting. "What was that all about?" I had my hands on my knees as I tried to catch my breath.
"Lithe," he let his head plop onto the dirt path, too tired to hold it up.
"Yeah, I have a lot of pent up energy, too," I straightened back up and picked my partner off the ground. "But I think I just used it all chasing after you," I laughed as Growlithe snuggled into my shoulder. The road was covered by a few trees but for the most part, it was open to the blue skies above. The soft rustling of trees and the crunch of dirt under my shoes reminded me of some of the small towns in the Kanto region. I guess there are always some similarities between regions. I kept walking along the road, not really sure where it was taking me, before I heard a male voice shouting. Growlithe's head immediately perked up. "I wonder who that is," I mumbled as I eyed the trees to my left. "Should we check it out?" I took a step in that direction hesitantly. "Someone could be in trouble."
"Growlithe," I felt his answer rumble in his chest.
"Alright, let's go then." I set him down and parted some of the bushes with my arms. We got closer and closer to the sound until we could make out each word.
"You've got to be kidding! Talk about pathetic," I heard someone say. My eyes widened in response as Growlithe and I stopped right behind the bush next to another dirt path. I slowly peeked over the bush to see three guys facing each other. There was a guy with purple hair and an Elekid beside him. He seemed to be confronting the other two. One of them had a red and black cap on, a bird Pokemon on his shoulder and a monkey-like Pokemon by his side. The other had a camping bag on his back and an orange jacket. "Elekid, let's go." The purple haired male turned on his heels and started walking away. The yellow Pokemon smirked before following its leaving partner. I was speechless. The guy in the red and black hat seemed disheartened to see the guy leave. He reached out his gloved hand briefly before retracting and forming a fist.
"Man, I wish Pikachu was here," he growled between his teeth. Not a second later, a giant beam of electricity shot up in the distance. The boy's companion, a tanned skin male with spiky hair, turned towards him in surprise.
"Ash! Did you hear that?"
"Yeah, that's a volt tackle!" the boy in the cap responded before running towards it. His companion followed close behind him.
"Let's follow them and see what that was all about," I whispered to my partner before jumping over the bush and chasing after them. The two guys skidded to a stop in front of me and Growlithe and I headed a couple feet next to them. We ended up at a clearing where a large orange machine with flailing arms was trying to hit a young girl and her Pokemon. There were two people and a Meowth inside the machine controlling it. The girl was dodging the metal arms along with her Pokemon. It seemed to resemble a blue penguin with its body structure and wings.
"Aipom, swift, and Starly, whirlwind!" Ash, the guy in the cap, called out. Aipom's tail glowed before it swung in an arc and shot some stars at the machine. Starly quickly took to the air and created large gusts of air by batting its wings. The moves knocked the machine slightly off balance. "Pikachu!" Ash called out. That's when I finally noticed the small yellow Pokemon in the grasps of two metal fingers. The people controlling the robot didn't seem too pleased at the sight of him so they shot out a hand to knock him off his feet. I gasped as he was flung a couple of yards away.
"Ash!" the tanned companion rushed to his side along with Ash's Pokemon. Ash pushed himself backup and rushed towards the machine.
"Oh no, you don't!" he shouted as they blocked him with a metal arm. The fingers attached started swinging at Ash.
"Don't do anything crazy!" the male called out to his friend.
"They've got Pikachu!" he responded angrily.
"We've got to do something Growlithe," I looked onto the scene with worry. "I know Mom never said to interfere with fights but this is just something else! Pokemon thieves are no joke," my eyebrows furrowed as the people inside the machine rose up on a platform. They stood on it with their arms crossed. They began shouting at Ash.
"This is your lucky day after all!" the pink haired woman started.
"You get to witness the brilliance of the new Team Rocket motto!" the blue haired man chimed in. They went off, reciting a motto by heart. They ended it by announcing their names while striking a pose. In my utter disbelief, however, the Meowth talked and joined in on their merriment.
"I cannot believe my eyes," I gasped as the sight. "I've never seen a talking Pokemon before."
"Grow," Growlithe responded quietly.
"You know what, this can't go on any longer," I glared at the machine. It tried attacking Ash once more. "Let's go, it's our turn for some fun." Growlithe nodded in response and jumped forward so that he was in front of me. "Okay Growlithe, use flame wheel on one of those arms!" I pointed my finger towards the large machine. Growlithe's mouth filled with flames before he spun his body into a wheel and launched towards an arm. He hit dead on, causing the arm to burn before flying back and lodging into the side of the metal body. Electricity danced around the machine as the broken exterior took effect.
"Ash, hurry! I think it's going to blow," the tanned companion ran up to stop beside the girl from earlier. Before anything else could happen, the machine started blowing up. "Get down!" the male shouted before diving for the floor and covering his head. The girl screamed and followed suit. I quickly rushed forward and covered Growlithe's body with mine. Smoke filled the clearing as the thieves were launched far away due to the force of the explosion. When the smoke cleared, I slowly got up. "Pikachu! Hey Ash!" the male shouted into the rubble. The machine was now a heap of broken parts and wires. It was quite for a moment before there was a shift in the dented metal plates. A slightly bruised Ash surfaced from among the metal and Pikachu soon followed after. They quickly spotted each other and hugged with smiles on their faces. Aipom and Starly joined in on the festivities, greeting the Pikachu. The girl and the tanned companion walked forward.
"Pikachu, we did it! We found your trainer!" the girl smiled. Her Piplup seemed quite happy as well.
"You saved my Pikachu. Thanks so much," Ash got out of the rubble and stood in front of the blue-haired girl. He extended a hand towards her. "My name's Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town and it's really great to meet ya." They shook briefly before the tanned companion joined in.
"Hi, I'm Brock."
"Hi guys, my name is Dawn," she replied. "And this is my partner, Piplup." She turned towards me and waved me over. I approached slowly and gave a tentative smile. "And who are you? Your Pokemon really did a number on that robot."
"It was nothing," I quickly replied. I stuck a dark-teal gloved hand out towards her and shook her hand. "My name's Brooke. It's nice to meet all of you."
"The pleasure's ours. If it wasn't for your Growlithe, Pikachu and I would still be in trouble." Ash turned towards me, Pikachu at his side. Growlithe seemed pleased by this and relaxed by my feet. "Anyways, I was wondering if you guys would like to travel with me and Brock. It would be really awesome if you guys came along."
"It's always better traveling with friends," Brock nods in agreement.
"Sure, Piplup and I would love to come with you guys!" Dawn immediately responded. Her Piplup looked up at Ash and waved its arms. "How 'bout you Brooke, it would be nice to have another girl," she looked back at me with pleading eyes.
"Lithe!" Growlithe barked a response.
"Well, looks like Growlithe is okay with it so I don't see why not," I smiled at the trio.
"Alright, well it's official now! Do you hear that Pikachu? We're all traveling together!" Ash looked down at his companion.
"Pika pika!" Pikachu cheered.