This is my first fanfiction.
The beginning will focus on Dawn's journey. I will leave Ash's adventure in Unova to the anime.
Since the idea of ten-year-olds traveling through foreign countries alone while battling with powerful beasts along the way always seemed strange to me and the characters acted pretty mature for their age (at least most of them) I changed their ages in this story:
Ash: 16; Dawn: 14; May: 15; Brock: 19; Drew: 16 Misty: 16
Kenny: 15 Zoey: 15 Ursula: 15 Iris: 14 Cilan: 16 Paul: 16
Those should be the most important characters in this story. So basically a pokémon journey may start at age 14 here.
Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon or its characters.
Chapter 1: Arrival
Dawn was making her final preparations . The ship would arrive in Slateport City soon and her new adventure could finally start. Everything was ready, she had her pokémon, her Hoenn contest pass and was full of determination to do better this time. She spent most of her time working on new moves with her pokémon so that they could pull off more different combinations.
With help from Mamoswine it wasn't difficult teaching each pokémon the move hidden power. She also tried to teach thunderbolt to Pachirisu but wasn't done yet. Quilava was close to perfecting flamethrower. One the other hand Buneary learned jump kick and Piplup learned drill peck during their battles against other trainers on the ship. As it was frequently used by trainers and coordinators, a big and solid training field was recently installed where they could battle. Since that could be pretty dangerous for the ship, it is protected by various pokémon and machines all the time. A shock for everyone there was Mamoswine's new earthquake move. It was a bit more powerful than they thought and the crew asked Dawn to make sure that he wouldn't use it again on the ship. She also met a nice trainer with a gardevoir who helped her Togekiss learning psychic.
When the city finally came in sight, Dawn let out a squeal of joy as she couldn't wait to finally enter a contest again.
It will be strange to perform in my street clothes after wearing a dress every time, she thought and looked at her outfit. It was still the same as in Sinnoh, just with a bigger size since she has grown a bit and the skirt was getting too short.
Piplup was still lying on her bed fast asleep. The training was exhausting and even though he insisted on continuing Dawn knew that he had enough and would soon collapse if they didn't stop. While she admired his spirit she didn't want him to overwork himself again. But now it was time to leave the ship and enter Hoenn.
As Dawn took her bag she remembered the day she started her Sinnoh journey shaking her head in disbelief. It wasn't a bag but a big suitcase at that time, filled with various outfits not suitable for such a journey. How could she ever have ever thought of taking them? But all that didn't matter anymore. She carefully took Piplup into her arms, trying not to wake him and left her cabin.
Her mother told her that it's warmer in Hoenn than in Sinnoh and she was right. Dawn figured that her beanie and scarf were probably too much, took them off and stuffed them in her bag. Slateport City was big, so it wasn't too easy for someone like Dawn to find her way to the pokémon center and neither the many people crowding the streets nor the interesting shops on the way were making things any easier, but in the end (after going into the wrong direction several times) she was successful. It was already really dark when she got there.
When she entered she saw a familiar face.
"Hi nurse Joy! I'm Dawn. I'd like a room to stay in for the night," Dawn greeted the woman at the reception.
"Here you go. Please enjoy your stay in Slateport City," Nurse Joy said as she handed her a key.
"Thanks! Could you also heal my pokémon?" Dawn asked.
"Of course. Just leave them here and they will ready in the morning." Dawn gave her the Pokeballs and took only Piplup with her.
While Dawn was going to her room she realized that she should have asked about the next contest around here.
Oh well, it's already late and I'm getting sleepy after that trip. And I would probably get lost like that anyway, she thought and giggled. Then it hit her. She promised to call her mom when she arrived in Hoenn.
After she entered her room she placed Piplup on the bed and her bag next to it. Her mom was probably worrying about her.
Geez, I'm not a little girl anymore, she should know that, Dawn thought while making her way to the videophone.
After dialing the number, her mom's image appeared on the screen.
"Dawn, dear, I thought you'd never call. What took you so long?" Johanna asked with a worried look.
"Oh come on, mom. I have just arrived. You worry too much," Dawn answered rolling her eyes .
"How can I not, knowing you are out there all alone in some foreign region. Of course I worry about you. Especially considering your sense of direction." Her mother laughed, abandoning all seriousness for a moment.
"I'm not that bad, mom!" she said with puffed out cheeks. "I only got lost twice. And the city is pretty big too. Besides I'm not alone. I have my pokémon with me so there's no need to worry."
"Dawn, you know that when … ," Johanna started, but was interrupted by her daughter.
"I know, I know. Don't say it. But I can take care of myself. After all, I learned a lot from traveling with Ash and Brock," Dawn said waving her hand.
"Maybe you should find someone to travel with. That way I won't have to … ," her mother started again.
"I already said that I can take care of myself," Dawn reassured her mom. "You really should have a bit more faith in me, Mom. I've grown a lot. And I will prove that I can do this by myself and win the Hoenn Grand Festival!"
"That's the spirit. With that attitude you'll do great. Never forget that I'll be cheering for you and that you can always call me if you have trouble," Johanna said with a proud smile.
"Thanks mom." Dawn gave her a bright smile. "I will make you proud, I promise,"
"You already did, Dawn. So please take care," Johanna said again.
"I will! And I will call you again after my first contest here," Dawn told her with a big grin.
"Do you already know when and where it will take place?" The former coordinator couldn't wait to see her daughter in a contest again.
"To be honest I forgot to ask nurse Joy about that since I was so tired after that long trip." Dawn yawned after she said that. "Sorry, I slept pretty badly today. I was just too excited."
"No problem, dear." Her mother smirked. "Just make sure you get enough sleep this time or you might fall asleep during the contest."
"It's not that bad." Dawn giggled "Oh, and guess what? Buneary learned jump kick, Mamoswine learned earthquake and Piplup learned drill peck while battling on the ship. And wait until you see Togekiss' psychic move. A friendly trainer on the ship helped Togekiss with that."
"Congratulations. Now you must create some great combinations." Johanna knew that her daughter was creative so she didn't worry about that.
"I've always hoped, Piplup would learn that move ever since the first time I saw an Empoleon using it. You can be sure that I have something up my sleeve," Dawn said proudly.
"I can't wait to see it. But now you should really go to bed. You look like you could collapse any second now," her mother warned her.
"Alright, alright. See you, mom." She said with another yawn.
"Goodbye, dear." With a click the screen went blank.
Dawn would never admit it, but her mother was right. She could hardly keep her eyes open anymore so she stumbled to her room again.
While changing into her pyjamas she couldn't help but think about the next day. It was obvious that despite her sleepiness she was really excited.
Tomorrow the real journey will start. I can't wait. All our hard work will soon be rewarded, I hope. What am I thinking? Of course it will! No need to worry. I just have to believe in myself and my pokémon. Still it feels strange to be without Ash and Brock. Ash was like a mentor to me and taught me so much and at the same time he was my best friend, comforting me when I was down and cheering for me when I was on the stage. But now I need to this without him. I have to prove everyone and myself that I am strong and can do things by myself! It won't be easy but I know I can do it.
Finally she was done and went to bed, but her mind couldn't calm done yet.
It will be so different without Brock's cooking, that's for sure. I wonder how he's doing right now. Anyway I should learn how to cook properly.
It probably won't be as exciting without Ash. You simply can't deny the fact, that wherever he goes something is about to happen. If it wasn't for him I would have never seen Dialga, Palkia, Arceus, Giratina and all the other legendary pokémon.
Ugh! Why am I always thinking about him? I hope we will see each other again soon but I have to go on without him right now. No more dwelling in the past!
Her thoughts shifted to her rivals, her pokémon and the adventures she had. Somehow it was all connected to a certain black-haired boy, which annoyed her to no end. Furthermore she should sleep instead of keeping her mind busy like that. Eventually she relaxed and fell fast asleep.
So that was the first chapter. As English is not my mother tongue please inform me if there are horrible mistakes or if something doesn't make any sense. After all this is also about improving my skills.
