James felt nervous, as he always was when he was in front of a TV camera. He felt himself shake a little, but forced them away – he didn't want to appear weak in front of the League Champion himself, after all. That would just be plain embarrassing, considering who was watching. He could do nothing, however, about the sweat that was dripping down his back, making him even more uncomfortable then he already was. After all of the adventures that had been through these past couple of months, he wondered what he was getting so wound up about. He just wished that Lance would shut up already, so that they could both get this over and done with. James gave an internal sigh of relief when Lance announced to the whole crowed, but to James in particular:
"...I, Lance, the Dragon Master, accept your challenge!" he yelled into the handless mike attached to his head as the 80,000 plus strong crowd screamed in admiration for the both of them. The screens on the four sides of the arena divided into two as the cameras did a tight shot of the two trainer's faces. James noticed that despite the terror and nervousness that clawed at him on the inside, threatening to bring on one of his panic attacks, he looked cool and collected, which helped to calm him down a little, and he smiled at that. He put his right hand on the six balls that were attached to his belt, and mentally said words of encouragement to them about the upcoming fight.
"Let the match begin," the referee on the sidelines said into his own microphone before blowing his whistle and bringing down the two flags.
The match for the Championship of both Kanto and Johto had begun.
SC
A teenager of 18 was watching the documentary on his laptop detailing the lives behind the Gym Leaders and Elite 4 memberships when they had some time to spare, as well as detailing some of their background and histories. For example, he never knew that Brock often went to Mt. Moon in an attempt to find some rare fossils, nor that the Great Crasher Wake was originally born in Cianwood City, on the edge of the Johto Region. He knew he should have long been in bed and asleep, as he had a relatively early start the next day, but he never was good at doing that kind of thing. Besides, he was too excited to get any proper sleep.
James was just like any other kid from any other town or city from any other place in the world. He wished to be a Pokemon Trainer, and have his very own Pokemon to look after and keep as his own. However, his mother had refused to have any Pokemon in the house, and had actively prevented him from getting his licence for the past three years, ever since he was 15, the age that kids could first get one. He had often previously asked her why this was the case, but she had kept tight lipped about the matter and refused to divulge anything, so he had simply given up wondering in the end.
Despite this, or maybe because of it, he had found a ton of information and charts detailing the strengths and weaknesses of individual Pokemon, the types of moves that they would be able to master at different ability levels, places where they could be found and located, and much more besides. James' bedroom walls were covered with posters of various different types of Pokemon, including his favourite, Typhlosion. It just looked so strong and imposing, especially with the bright flames that were around the ruff of its neck. James knew instantly from a young age that that was the Pokemon that he was picking tomorrow. Or rather, its pre-evolved form, Cyndaquil.
James checked his watch and saw that it was well past 1:00 am in the morning, so he shut his laptop down, got undressed into his pyjamas and snuggled under the blanket for a restless night's sleep.
SC
The first thing that James felt the next morning was his mother shaking him before opening the blinds that covered his window, very nearly blinding him due to the sunlight that was pouring through. This wasn't helped by the fact that the light bounced off the many glossy posters and bright orange walls that pecked through the cracks. Once he rubbed his eyes to get rid of the annoying sleep dust and spots that had appeared before them, it took him a moment to realise what that meant.
"Shit," he shouted. He had clearly overslept, and was thus late for his appointment with Professor Elm. He checked the clock to see what time it was. 9:00 am. Yep, defiantly late, and he knew the Professor wasn't going to be best pleased. Although he was glad to see new trainers start their journey, he also had important business in and around the lab, as well as other Regions. James hastily threw off the twisted remains of the blanket that had managed to get tangled up around him, as well as his pyjamas and put on some pants and long shorts that were black and stopped just below his knees. Searching frantically through his draws, he finally managed to find the last remaining tee-shirt that wasn't either being washed or packed neatly in his relatively large backpack.
Him and his mother had spent the whole of the previous day packing, arguing other whether something was considered important for the upcoming journey or not. For example, James had wanted to take the laptop with him, arguing that he would be able to access a larger amount of information with it around. His mother, on the other hand, had argued that the laptop would be far too heavy and cumbersome to carry any great distance, and questioned what James would do once the power for it had run out, and he was out in the middle of the wilderness. He had shut up at that point, and had relented to his mother's overwhelming display of logic.
James shock his head at the memory, and got back to the task at hand. The tee-shirt was a plain black one, and on top of that, he put on a red woollen fleece that would help to keep him warm, although, looking out of the window, it didn't look like he would need it at the moment. And finally, to complete the look, he put on his favourite cap, which looked like the top half of an Ultra Ball, which he wore backwards. Currently, he didn't care that the quiff of his hair was under his hat rather than through the hole in the back of it.
After looking all around his room, including under the bed, he ran down the stairs, two at a time, all the while frantically looking for his backpack that he was sure that he had put at the end of his bed for easy access. Having searched thoroughly all around his bedroom, he was rummaging around in the living room when he felt the first signs of a panic attack coming on. He suddenly felt sick and light-headed, and ended up puking on the wooden floor before shaking uncontrollably. Luckily, his mother was next door in the kitchen. Having heard all of the commotion that was going on, she rushed on through to the living room, picking up two bags along the way. By this point, James had stopped vomiting, but was still shaking, abet less violently then before and was feeling faint. His mother carefully picked him up and moved him over to the black leather settee, where she handed him one of the plastic bags.
"Okay, remember what the doctor said before. Hold the bag over your mouth, and breathe in and out slowly but evenly," she said as she rubbed his back. James nodded as he did as she said, and eventually, he managed to calm down enough to stop shaking and the nausea to go away, although there were tears running down his face from the whole experience. He turned to face his mum, and wrapped her in a tight hug, continuing to cry freely as he did so, whilst she took off his hat and stroked his hair, like she used to when he was a lot younger. She heard the phone ringing in the hallway, but she managed to ignore it. When he eventually managed to stop crying, she asked him why he had had one of his panic attacks.
"I...I couldn't *hic* find my backpack," James replied between hiccupping. His mother looked at him with a look of sympathy.
"I'm sorry James, it was my fault. I took it downstairs when I woke you up to pack the fresh food supplies."
"That's alright, I understand," James responded. "But now, I'm even later for my appointment with Professor Elm," he continued, making him start to panic again. His mother noticed this, and handed him one of the plastic bags. He nodded in appreciation whilst his mother got up and retrieved a glass of water and two tablets that aimed to control the attacks from the kitchen. She went back into the living room and handed them to him, whilst also noticing that he had puked in the bag. He took the water and tablets from her, and swallowed them quickly. His mother sat down beside him, and put her hands on top of his.
"This is why I've prevented you from going on your Pokemon Journey. Having done it myself, I know that there are going to very, very tough times ahead of you, and I don't want you to have a panic attack every time something like this happens." James nodded slowly in understanding, having heard this kind of thing all before.
"I know that mum, but you can't exactly keep me confined to this town for the rest of my life. I'm officially an adult now, and I need some independence before I go stark raving mad," he countered before laughing out loud, whilst his mother simply smiled back at him.
"I know that, honey, but I'm just worried for your well-being – that's all," she said once James had stopped laughing. He moved in closer to hug her as he nodded.
"I know, I know, but if we go on like this, then it'll be yet another month wasted," he acknowledged as he hugged her tighter. His mother was the first to let go, and James shortly followed. They both stood up and whilst James sat back down again to put on his shoes and socks, his mum finished off the packing that she was previously doing. Once finished, she helped him put the one strap backpack on, handed him his mobile and wallet with a parting gift of £3,000, and hugged him one more time. James squirmed this time.
"Mum, you're embarrassing me," James said as he tried to wriggle out of her grip, and avoid being kissed by her at the same time.
She laughed. "Don't be such a baby. Who's going to notice you from the outside?" She did have a point, but it was the principle of the matter that counted. "Anyway," she continued, becoming serious again, "Remember to take two tablets at the beginning of each day, and to always buy more supplies then you think you'll need, whether that be food or Potions for your Pokemon. I've put the home number into your mobile, so you can call me at any time if you're worried about anything. Other than that, have fun on your journey," she rambled as James opened the door and stepped outside. She moved to stand in the doorframe and wave at James as he turned around and waved back. Once she had shut the door and had turned back around, he breathed a sigh of relief. Although he loved her as any child to a mother could, she was always worried about him, and that really got on his nerves sometimes.
Another thing that constantly got on his nerves was the person standing before him as he turned the corner into the next street.
Lyra. That one name was enough to send shivers down his spine.
Most people considered her to be cute enough. Chocolate brown eyes, ebony coloured hair, moderately sized bust, wearing denim overalls that didn't go halfway below her thigh, a medium length sleeved jumper and red shoes with plain white stockings pulled up past her knees. What wasn't there to like about her? Her personality for one. She had an arrogance the size of Goldenrod City, and a vindictive streak just as large. Being the niece of Professor Elm, she assumed to have absolute knowledge of each and every aspect of Pokemon that there was to know, although she had been shown up more than enough times at school for everybody in New Bark to know that this wasn't the case, despite her claims to the contrary. In her spare time, she attempted to seduce, and thus have sex with, the majority of the trainers that passed through the town on the way to the Pokemon League. Fortunately for both the town and the trainers in question, they always refused to. And everybody knew that because she had a gob that refused to shut up, and was so loud that James could swear that people in Kanto could hear her as well.
However, the biggest pain in the ass thing about her, in James' personal opinion at least – if she ever decided to pick on somebody about anything, then it was always James that she picked on first. Whether it was the quiff or the "horrendously awful" dress sense that he had enquired, she apparently always had something to go on. He didn't know how long that had been going on foe, or how it had got started in the first place, but he did know that he was thoroughly sick of it. So to meet her here now put an immediate damper on his spirits.
"Ohhh, hello there, James," she said, in a way that made him shiver all over. And not just from the way she had emphasised his name in the most cringe worthy way possible. She quickly saddled up to him, and he saw the copious amount of makeup that she had slapped onto her face, making her look more like a doll then any real person. "What you doing?" she asked, wrapping her arm around his waist. He attempted to wriggle out of it as quickly as possible to try and get away from her. No such luck, as he noticed that people were beginning to stop and stare at the pair of them. "Not that they would ever bother to help out," James thought bitterly.
"Piss off," James answered back, still attempting to break free and escape from her. "It's none of your business what I'm up to," he continued. But she was having none of it.
"If I had to guess, I would say that you were going to my Uncle's lab to get your starter Pokemon. Am I right?" she asked, flashing her overly long eyelashes right into James' face. He struggled to not get poked in the eye with them.
"Again, none of your fucking business," he replied, his voice beginning to rise from immense irritation. Lyra evidently noticed this.
"Ohhh, aren't we touchy today," she responded with a fake air of concern, before breaking into snickering. In the process, she somehow managed to snatch his backpack off his back, opened it up, and pour out all of the contents into the middle of the street, before full out laughing and skipping on her merry way. Naturally leaving James to deal with the mess that she had created. Now that the little display between the two of them was all over, the people who had stopped and stared previously began to get on with their own personal business.
James fell down onto the ground, not caring that he scrapped his palms on the pavement, and started to cry his eyes out. He had been looking forward to this day for the longest time, and now that bitch had to ruin it for him, utterly and totally. He thought back over his life thus far, trying to find one plausible reason why she acted that way, but he had no luck. Fortunately for him, his luck was about to change, as a man riding a large Arcanine, massive even for the species, headed his way. He stopped before James, got off the Arcanine's back, scratched it behind the ears, and turned to face James.
"What happened here then?" the man asked. James raised his head to look at the man, tears still streaming down his face. He was wearing a white lab coat with a red tee-shirt underneath, which said 'Professor Elm's Aides'. He evidently worked at the lab, but his dialect told James that he came from Kanto. James whipped the tears away from his eyes.
"Lyra," was all he had to say, and the Aide understood immediately what must have happened. He kindly helped James pack his stuff back into his backpack, and then offered him a ride on the Arcanine, which James gladly accepted without hesitation. On the way to the lab, James asked the man what he had been doing previously.
"Looking for you, as a matter of fact," the man answered. "Me and Professor Elm were beginning to worry as it was getting on a bit, so we looked up your number in the telephone directory and attempted to call you. However, there was no response, so I was sent out to find you. That was half an hour ago, so it's lucky that I found you so close to home, as that was my next destination," he continued as he patted the Arcanine on its head. "So, what kept you?" he asked, and by the time James had finished explaining the events of that morning, they had reached the lab, which was located on the outskirts of town.
"Ouch. Not exactly the best start to any day, let alone one as important as this," the man said. James nodded silently in agreement, simply wanting to put the whole incident behind him.
The two of them entered the lab, and whilst the aide went to the back of the lab, presumably to explain to Professor Elm the current situation, James had a quick look around. The lab itself was smaller than he had expected, although the fields that stretched onto Route 29 more than made up for that. There were numerous books lining the walls, the majority of which were about Pokemon breeding and grooming, including a few written by Professor Elm himself. There were a few gaps to allow for large windows that allowed plenty of light to stream through at all times of the day, as well as a spiraling staircase that James guess lead up to where the Professor's family lived. At the back of the lab, where the two people were currently talking, there was a machine that James recognized as the ones used in Pokemon Centers to heal both sick and injured Pokemon back to full health. Next to it, there was a capsule that he assumed contained the three starter Pokemon that he could pick from. He noticed that the aide was signaling to come to the back of the lab, so he did so.
"Tom here has told me everything. I'm sorry to hear about what happened with my niece," Elm said in an apologetic tone. "I'll make sure that she apologizes to you and makes it up," he finished. James scoffed internally. That was the last thing that Lyra would ever do – listen to any kind of authority.
"Ummm, thanks, I guess," James said."But I just want to put the whole incident behind me and just pick my starter Pokemon."
"Of course, of course, we mustn't let a little incident like that make us unhappy. Now, please wait here a moment whilst I collect them," the Professor announced as he went over to the capsule that James had spotted earlier. A moment later, he was back with three Poke Balls.
"Now, before I show you the Pokemon within, there is something I have to tell you. The starter that you pick in a moment will most likely be the companion that you will have for the rest of your life. There is no going back and picking another starter later on. Do I make myself perfectly clear?" the Professor asked. James nodded, eager to get the process over and done with.
With that, the Professor released the Pokemon, one at a time. The first to appear was Chikorita, the Leaf Pokemon. It was a pale green colour, with a darker green leaf that was longer than the rest of the creature's body, to say the least, and necklace of buds around its short neck. James assumed that they were used for moves such as Razor Leaf and Vine Whip once the Pokemon gained enough experience, and that the leaf could provide shade when it got too hot. It had a surprisingly large head compared to the rest of its body, with large red eyes that appear to have no pupils. It had four short legs with a single nailed toe on each leg, and a small, stubby tail that appeared to have no practical purpose. Once it had fully materialized, it took in its surroundings, and then attempted to run away, apparently scared of the people that were looking down at it. It would have made a quick escape – if Tom hadn't grabbed it and held it tightly in his arms. It attempted to bite him and struggle to escape, but James could see that its teeth weren't fully developed yet, so it did little to no damage to the man.
The next Pokemon to be released was Totodile, the Big Jaw Pokemon. It looked like a small, bipedal blue crocodile with relatively large red spines running all the way down their back and tail, the one on their back being larger with additional ridges next to the back spines. Its head was, again, large, with much of the head's size made up of its snout and strong jaws filled with loads of sharp, pointy teeth, unlike Chikorita's. On its chest was a yellow, somewhat V-shaped pattern that extended to its arms, with a line bisecting the pattern at the middle. Totodile have five sharp claws and three toes. It clearly appeared to be a carnivorous hunter, at least when it was encountered in the wild. This one appeared to be no exception. As soon as it was released, it went straight for James' leg in an attempt to bite it off. Fortunately, Professor Elm still had the Poke Ball in his hand, so he recalled it rapidly. The Professor scratched the back of his head.
"Oppps, sorry about that James. If you picked that Pokemon, you would definitely have to vigorously train it just so that it wouldn't attack you on sight, let alone get it to listen to you or obey any of your commands." James wondered why such a Pokemon would even be considered as being given away to inexperienced beginner trainers, let alone actually put into practice. He put it to the back of his mind, however, and concentrated on the task at hand.
The final Pokemon that was released was the one that allowed James to make up his mind once and for all. That was Cyndaquil, the Fire Mouse Pokemon. Its fur was a light navy blue on top of its body, but a milky colour on the underside. The most distinguishing feature about it had to be the flames erupting from its back. Its eyes were closed, as it was obvious that it was the youngest of the three Pokemon given away. It had four red-colored spots on its back from which the flames erupt from. It lacked claws on its forelimbs, but has a single claw on each hind foot. In James' opinion, it was definitely the cutest of the three starters, especially once it stretched out, squealing out its name almost as a kind of yawn, and decided that the floor would make a nice comfy spot to take a nap on. Professor Elm looked James in the eye.
"So, James, which of these starters will you pick: Chikorita, Cyndaquil or Totodile? Remember, you can't change your mind later if you find that you can't handle the Pokemon in question."
"I wanna have Cyndaquil, Professor." James was very nearly bouncing up and down in excitement.
"Very well. Here is Cyndaquil's Poke Ball," Professor Elm said as he handed the red and white sphere to the eager young man. "Now, your first job as a trainer is to recall Cyndaquil back into the Poke Ball, so that I can scan it and add it to your Trainer Card."
James stared at the Poke Ball, wondering how he was supposed to recall Cyndaquil. He had seen it done plenty of times before on TV, but he wasn't sure how to do it himself. Tom noticed the confusion that was evidently apparent on his face. "I guess that you've never used a Poke Ball before, ehhh?" he questioned. James shook his head, feeling slightly embarrassed. "Okay, well, it's simple enough to grasp. All you have to do is aim the button at the Pokemon in question, and the Ball itself will do the rest for you." Knowing now what to do, James did what he was told, and a beam of red light appeared, heading straight for Cyndaquil. However, to everybody's amazement, the Pokemon in question managed to dodge the beam and run about the room. Professor Elm and Tom wondered what they should do.
"What should we do now?" James questioned. The two of them shrugged the shoulders.
"I don't know," the Professor responded after a long pause. "I guess that we should surround it and make sure that it doesn't have an escape route." It was the best idea that they had, so they set about putting it into action. James went in front of Cyndaquil, Poke Ball at the ready, whilst Tom and Professor Elm snuck up on the Pokemon, attempting to be as inconspicuous as possible. As soon as they were close enough, the two of them leapt at the Cyndaquil. However, despite its closed eyes, it must have noticed them coming up behind it, as it managed to scamper out of the way just in time, causing the Professor and Tom to crash into each other. At the same time, James aimed the Poke Ball again, but still managed to miss. Then a thought occurred to him.
"Professor, what if Cyndaquil doesn't like being in its Poke Ball? Maybe that's why it's avoiding our attempts to capture it," James explained. The Professor got off the floor, followed shortly afterwards by Tom, both of them rubbing their bruised heads whilst Cyndaquil was still running about the place, certainly not lacking any sort of energy. The Professor mulled the idea for a few moments before answering.
"Yes, yes, I suppose that is plausible," Professor Elm answered. "The only problem now is, it needs to be in its Poke Ball in order for me to register it onto your Trainer Card, so that other trainers know that it isn't merely a pet, for example, that you happened to bring along for the trip." The three of them thought through the possibilities. In the end, they decided that James should go up to it and tempt it with a delicious and nutritious Pokemon treat, and then reward it once it was released again. James noticed that Cyndaquil had managed to disappear whilst they had been talking, but easily found it again, hiding under the desk that Professor Elm's laptop rested on. The plan worked like a charm. Cyndaquil was sucked into the Poke Ball, scanned into the computer, and then released again as quickly as possible. If possible, the cute Pokemon had a look of dissatisfaction and annoyance on its face, but that completely disappeared once it had been rewarded with another Pokemon treat by James. Once Professor Elm had done everything that he had needed to do on the laptop, he turned to face James.
"Here is your Trainer Card," the Professor said, handing James a plastic card that had a microchip in the top right-hand corner, and a digital screen in the centre, taking up most of the card itself. "It contains your unique ID number that will be needed to challenge the Gyms that you'll face along the way. It also contains details of the amount of money that you currently process, and the number and types of Pokemon that you are currently carrying. Just remember to hand it over to the resident Nurse Joy each time you go and heal your Pokemon, and they will update it for you automatically." He also handed over Cyndaquil's Poke Ball. "I guess you won't be needing this much, but I would recommend keeping it with you at all times. Just in case, if you catch my drift." James nodded in understanding. Picking up Cyndaquil from the ground, where it had resting whilst Professor Elm had been talking exhausted from its little exertion earlier, James pocketed the card and turned to leave. However, before he could even turn around fully, he heard a coughing sound, and span in a circle to face Professor Elm again.
"Aren't you forgetting something, James?" he asked. James had to think for a moment before realizing that he had totally forgotten about the Pokedex. He grinned sheepishly back in embarrassment. Professor Elm smiled back before retrieving the Pokedex from the pocket of his lab coat.
"As you well know, this is a Pokedex. It will record all the data of the Pokemon that it is pointed at, including average height, weight, and other such necessary characteristics. It will also provide a short description of the Pokemon in question. Why don't you try it out on Cyndaquil," he finished as he handed the contraption over. James did so, and the Pokedex emitted a bright blue light that totally eloped Cyndaquil before speaking.
"Cyndaquil, the Fire Mouse Pokemon. It is timid, and always curls itself up in a ball. If attacked, it flares up its back for protection. This Pokemon is Male, weighs 8.0 kilograms and is 0.5 meters high," the Pokedex concluded before shutting down again. James smirked.
"I have to say, Professor, this Pokedex doesn't seem to be correct. In no way shape or form is Cyndaquil timid. Are you?" he questioned as the Pokemon looked up at him. He let out a squeak of his name, seemingly confirming James' assessment. Professor Elm looked amused.
"Well, well, it certainly appears that you and Cyndaquil are already forming a strong bond of friendship with each other," the Professor assessed. "Well, I don't have anything else to say or give to you, except – good luck on your journey, and hopefully, the next time I'll see you, you'll be a powerful trainer with a number of wins under your belt." The Professor held out his hand, and James took it, giving him a firm handshake in the process. James left the lab in high spirits, Cyndaquil snuggled into his owner's arms; with the flames on his back currently out so that they didn't burn James' face.
He was currently debating what to do. On the one hand, he desperately wanted to start his journey right away and try to reach Cherrygrove City before nightfall. Checking his watch, James saw that it was already 11:00 am, far later then he had planned to set out. On the other hand, he really wanted to show his mum his Cyndaquil, which he had decided to name Exbo, but was worried that by trekking to the other side of town, he would have to start his journey the next day. In the end, he decided to make for Cherrygrove City, and call his mum once he reached the Pokemon Centre using one of the videophones that everyone processed nowadays. So with that in mind, he turned westwards, towards Route 29, and officially started his Pokemon Journey.