Well, it's time to start my first story on fanfiction.

I'm a little nervous, as I'm far from an experienced author, but hopefully this'll go smoothly, and hopefully you'll all enjoy.

The idea behind this fanfic is that it's how I think the Hoenn anime should have gone, without important characters cut out like they were. Just so you know, there will be no Ash, or Brock, or any other characters or events that are solely to the anime. This fic has nothing to do with the anime itself.

Disclaimer: Pokemon does not belong to me.

Enjoy!


Episode 1, Part 1.


Brendan played nervously with the edge of his sleeve, feeling a sense of dread fester up inside him. His dark red eyes flew up and down between the long, grassy plains before him and the tiny watch that was fastened firmly upon his wrist.

It was 7:55AM.

Five minutes before he got his first Pokemon.

Five minutes before he set out on his journey.

Five minutes to calm himself so he wouldn't have a nervous breakdown right in front of Hoenn's famous professor, Professor Birch.

Brendan hugged himself anxiously, a small shiver sending itself down his spine. One that wasn't from the morning's cold.

He knew this could only end in disaster.

Don't get the wrong idea; Brendan didn't hate Pokemon, quite the contrary actually. However, in all honesty, he was AFRAID of them.

The boy knew how ridiculous the idea seemed. The world he existed in was practically devoted to the creatures. But still! That didn't stop them from going beserk and killing everyone.

Brendan knew for a fact, that once he was alone, there was absolutely nothing that could prevent his new Pokemon from burning him, drowning him, or... Whatever bad thing grass types could do to trainers. Sure, he could always retract it back into it's Pokeball, but he had heard that if the creature really, really wanted to, it could burst out of it's ball, leaving him unprotected.

'However...' The white haired boy thought, leaning slightly on the lab's wall, eyes closed. 'Pokemon have also proved themselves to be wonderful companions to humans...'

It was this simple notion that kept him from falling to his knees and begging his mom just to let him stay home and rot for all of eternity. The idea of making friends with his new Pokemon did honestly sound quite wonderful, and, in all honesty, there was no harm in trying, right?

That was something the boy never would have thought if it weren't for-

"Hey Brendan!" A loud, definitely female voice rang out unexpectedly from behind him.

Brendan let out what could only be named the most girly scream ever to come out of a male's body, jumping backwards in terror. The terrified look in his eyes faded immediately when he realized who had spoken.

"Oh... Um, h-hi May..." He greeted awkwardly, giving her a nervous smile.

The girl, her brown hair messy and clearly not brushed, starred at him for a good two seconds, before breaking out into hysterics.

"What the hell was that?" She chocked, laughing so hard she was at the verge of tears. "I didn't even know it was possible to scream that loud! Holy crap dude..." May placed a heavy hand on his shoulder, causing him to flinch. "You're hilarious! Ha!"

Brendan felt his face grow hot, suddenly wishing even more that he could disappear from existence. He kicked at the ground nervously, looking to the side.

"Umm... Uh, yeah..." Was his whispered response.

May finally seemed to recover from her case of uncontrollable laugher, but still continued to make the occasional giggle when she spoke.

"So little dude!" She said eagerly, referencing the fact she was almost a whole head taller then him. "Ya' excited?"

"...About what?"

The brunette punched him roughtly on the arm "About getting our Pokemon, duh! What, did you hit your head or something? Just think, today is the day two future champions begin their journeys-"

Brendan blinked. "W-well I don't exactly want to be-"

"-A struggle for endless proportions! Each day they will have to withstand the greatest danger known to man!" Brendan's face grew visibly paler. "And in the end... Only one... WILL BE VICTORIOUS!" She finished with a shout of pure determination, pumping her fist in the air.

"...But if only one can be victorious, how will we both be champions?" The white haired boy questioned quietly.

May gave him a long look, before ruffling his hair, chuckling. "You're cute."

May Birch was, as her last name suggested, the daughter of the previously mentioned Professor Birch. However, this didn't seem to have any effect on her personality so to speak; while Birch was a patient, focused, thoughtful man, his daughter had proved herself to be more reckless then anyone who resided in the simple town of Littleroot thought possible, and this included Brendan. The girl was over-confident, loud, even a little bit rude at times. She had zero tolerance for those who couldn't keep up with her incredibly rushed pace, and could never, ever seem to be able to keep her cool...

And yet somehow, she was Brendan's best friend. Only friend to speak of, but they were so closely knitted the title of "best" just seemed fitting.

May, getting tired of the silence that had once again grown between them, decided to try and kindle and new conversation.

"Wonder what's takin Pop's so long..." She grumbled, banging her elbow lightly on the lab's door.

"...'M sure he's almost ready..." Brendan muttered almost inaudibly.

May fidgeted with her ears. "You alright little dude? You're being more quite then usual, and trust me, that's sayin' something!"

"Nervous..."

"Nervous?! What's there to be nervous about?!" She smiled cockily. "This is Pop's were talking about! He's not going to bite you or anything! Unless you drop his fishing gear in a lake, that was pretty creepy..."

Brendan smiled shyly, getting the notion she was trying to cheer him up. "Thanks..."

Without even the slightest bit of warning, the girl hugged him tightly, lifting him off the ground.

"Hey, what are friends for?" She laughed as he started struggling.

A sudden, ear-splitting sound of breaking glass broke through the air, causing the two to freeze in surprise, May so shocked that she would have dropped Brendan had he not been squeezing her so tightly out of fear. The girl flinched, almost looking scared for a second, before quickly regaining her composure.

"What the hell was that?!" She snapped, looking around.

Brendan, who had gone almost completely pale with shock, only managed to form a few, shaky words, shuddering violently. "I-I th-think it c-ca-came fr-"

"THE LAB!" May suddenly

exclaimed.

"M-May, w-w-wait!"

Ignoring any and all protests that came from her friend, the girl grabbed onto the doorknob, hastily turning it around, throwing the door open and sprinting in, Brendan hestinantly following afterwards.

In the dark of the morning, added with the facts that it was overcast outside in regards to the sky, and that not a single light was turned on, the research area if the professor looked almost like something out if a horror movie. The shelves were crammed with books, despite the fact a lot of them had fallen out and onto the smooth white floor, and the only source of light worth noting was coming from one of the windows, the one that had been shattered. A small clock hung crookedly above the doorway, letting out disoriented "tik-toks" in an uneven pattern.

The girl's eyes narrowed as she walked through what little space there was, for once seeming entirely observant to her surroundings.

"They're gone..." She whispered, before saying in a louder voice, much more like her normal one. "There's nobody here!"

May's only response was a terrified shriek from Brendan, who had barely even made his way into the lab out of pure fear. May snapped her head around, blinking madly.

"What is it?!" She demanded, storming over.

Shaking like a leaf, the boy pointed fearfully towards the long white fabric he had clutched between his gloved hands, looking like he'd just swallowed a lemon.

The brunet snatched it from his hands, perhaps a little more forcefully then she meant to.

"It's dad's lab coat..." She muttered in confusion, giving it a quick look over, before turning her gaze back up to Brendan. "Are you honestly afraid of this?"

"N-no!" He shook his head quickly, indicating towards the object again. "L-look!"

She did as she was told, repeating the action from before, only this time more slowly and searchingly, trying to find what had the boy so terrified. Suddenly, May caught sight of a small stain, located right under the collar area. She leaned forwards, narrowing her eyes to make sure she had seen correctly, her heart tightening with dread.

"Is... That-?"

"Blood!" Brendan cried, suddenly hugging her around the waist out if pure fear. "H-he's dead! W-were going to get bl-blamed a-and then arrested and then e-everyone going to hate us and... And... WE'RE ALL GOING TO DIE!" He wailed, burying his face into her shirt, sobbing.

May rolled her eyes, placing a hand on her hip impatiently. "Ya' done?"

"Y-yeah, thanks." He sniffled, wiping his eyes.

"Good, because we can't have you crying when we go looking for dad, that's for sure." She told him matter-of-factly, straightening up.

The white haired boy blinked. "Wait, what?!"

"Ya' heard me."

"B-but, that's crazy!" He stuttered. "We don't even h-have our Pokemon y-yet!"

"Nope," She grinned proudly. Without giving him a straight explanation of what she was doing, the girl shoved her hand deep into the coat's pockets, serching around for a moment. Smirking, she retracted her hand, bringing two small Pokeballs up along with it. "But he does!"

"Wha-? N-no!" Brendan quickly protested, backing up slowly. "I-I can't! H-he'll get mad!"

"I think he'll be more mad if you let him get killed, Brendan." May pointed out, tossing the balls between her hands in a kind of juggling action. "Which one d'ya want?" She held them both up.

"T-this... This is... N-no, we don't e-even know if he was taken! H-how will we e-even know where t-to look, a-and..."

"Right one it is." May decided, whipping the ball in his direction.

Brendan yelped and help up his hands, the Pokeball landing heftily into them. Shuddering, the boy looked down at the object in his hand, more in the way you would if a molten rock had just landed there then your new companion.

Swiftly, the girl got up, not giving him another chance to protest as she grabbed him by the sleeve, all but dragging him out the door.

"C'mon little dude!" She declared boldly, flashing him a grin. "This is where our journey begins!"

Brendan covered his eyes, cursing his luck. "Oh dear..."


Thanks for reading! And I apologize for how short it is, that's just how I write!

I would really appreciate some feedback! It will only help me improve!

Updates should come quick!