Chapter 1: My New Pokémon

Chapter 1: My Journey Begins

I got up slowly blinking back my sleep. Looking up at my alarm clock I shouted in astonishment. It was already 7:30! I'm supposed to be at Professor Oak's lab in half an hour. Jumping out of bed I quickly combed through my brunette, tousled hair. Taking a step I fell realizing my foot was caught in the sheets. Cursing I unraveled myself. "Brook, are you ok? I heard a thud!" I groaned as my mom pounded on my door.

"Yeah mom I'm fine. Just trying to hurry and get ready." I threw the covers back on my bed and rummaged through the drawer of my dresser. Picking up a pair of ripped denim jeans, I switched them for the pajama pants I was wearing. Opening my closet I pulled out a red top with white stripes going down the sides. Throwing it on, I grabbed my ribbon off the desk. I was silver and I had kept it since my dad had given it me for my 5th birthday. He disappeared a few years after that. It was around the time Team Rocket came back in action. I was 8 and he was going to start to train me. He had already taught me all about Gyms. Next was how to connect with Pokémon. When he disappeared my mom told me to give up on Pokémon. I refused, but never continued to study. We never found out what happened to him either. I grabbed it and pulled back my hair. My bangs dropped covering the left half of my face. Grabbing my green pack I opened the door and slide down the railing. Jumping from the rail I slide into the kitchen chair to awaiting pancakes. I grabbed my fork and dug in.

"Brooke, actually chew your food. You can be so uncivilized sometimes. You know where the lab is right." I nodded and stuffed another pancake in my mouth. "And remember to call when you reach a new town." I nodded grabbing the plate and putting it in the sink. I ran up to her and grouped her in a hug.

"Bye mom, I love you." She smiled and hugged me back.

"Just…just be careful please. There are people out there that aren't safe. Promise me you'll be safe." She glanced at me her eyes showing fear and desperation. For some reason she had been really worried for the past few days.

"I will mom. Don't worry…I'm Brooke Ketchum." I ran out the door and hopped on my bike. Starting to push the pedals I turned a corner onto the roadway to the lab. My excitement grew as I hurriedly pedaled up the hill. As I reached the doors I hopped off my bike. Unfortunately my foot hit it and down the hill it went. Shit. I stood in front of the doorway to Oak's lab. He and dad had been really good friends back when he first got his Pokémon. Oak could tell my dad would accomplish great things. His first Pokémon was a Pikachu. Maybe mine is too. Oh, I'm soooo excited! Taking a deep breath I stepped through the doors of the Pokémon Lab. What I saw amazed me.

"Brooke, get out of the way!" Oak was in front of a Bulbasaur. It was crying out in fear. There in front of both of them was a huge machine. In two cages in the corner were Charamander and Squritle. Both looked very frightened and afraid. A terrified shriek alerted me. I turned my head to see a Ponyta running wildly with ropes attached to it. Charging at me I screamed and somersaulted over to the Professor. Pulling me up he looked in my eyes. "You have to help the Pokémon. Team Rocket is active again. Get Charamander and Squritle out of those cages. Put them back in their Pokéballs and bring them back to me. After that we have to get out of here." He handed me three Pokéballs.

"Wait what about that Ponyta? It looks scared." I turned to the baby and saw the members tying more ropes around it. It looked at me fear flashing through its eyes. It let out another terrifying shriek as they pulled it along with the ropes.

"I'll deal with her just get the three starters to safety!" He dashed off in the direction of the members. I gulped and ran to the other Pokémon. A man pushed me to the ground as I neared.

"You're not getting these here Pokémon. The boss needs them." He grabbed my hair holding me to the ground. Grunting in pain I held out the Pokéballs.

"Return!" A red light emerged from the Pokéballs and engulfed the two. The grunt shouted in frustration and yanked my hair harder.

"You just made a big mistake." He bent down and pulled me up. I panicked and kicked him. Hard. Shouting he let go of my hair and scrambled to get towards the door. Again I heard that shriek of pain. Turning I saw the Ponyta rearing up ready to strike Oak.

"NO!" I screamed running. I jumped in front of the Pokémon. It stopped and looked at me. "Stop it we just want to help! Don't attack us!" It stepped down and looked at me. Slowly it walked up and nuzzled me. Suddenly an evil laugh came from behind me. I turned quickly to see a man in a black suit.

"Well, well, well what do we have here? A little girl and a little horse. I will let you go with a warning this time, do not meddle in the affairs of Team Rocket again. Or you will regret it." He lifted his hand and caught onto a helicopter ladder. Laughing he floated into the air. I knelt down to where Oak was and helped him up.

"Thank you Brooke. You defiantly have your father's blood in you. Now help me over to the table and we can get the lab organized again. I put his arm over my shoulder and walked over to the table. As we neared I saw aids coming out of varying hiding places. They groaned at the sight of the lab. Each one started to go about picking up. I grabbed the Pokéballs releasing the Pokémon inside. Oak turned to me once he was able to stand. "Why don't you go outside for a bit while we get things straightened up in here?" I nodded and walked outside.

"Wow, is that what my life is gonna be like when I start my adventure? Cool." I started up at the clouds. I laughed as I pointed out the different Pokémon. "There's Slowpoke, Pikachu, and…Ponyta!" The horse snorted and I hugged it. Amazingly it didn't burn me. It whinnied and lifted me up. I laughed and climbed on its back. Realizing how small it was I hoped off. "Oh my gosh, did I hurt you?" It shook its head and I stepped forward placing a hand on her head. Gently stroking her I sighed. "Man, your trainer must miss you." It snorted and looked at me. "You mean you don't have a trainer? You're wild. Man I wish I could catch you." It walked away and pushed a Pokéball towards me. I started at the Pokéball realization dawning on me. "You want me to…I can't." Ponyta gave me a questioning look. "It's not that I don't want to, but I have to catch a Pokémon on my own. You just letting me would be unfair to you. Stay here and then when I get my starter I can catch you." Jumping up I started towards the lab. I accidently tripped over the Pokéball and a red light emerged from it. Engulfing Ponyta she disappeared. The Pokéball shook a few times and then stopped. "…PROFESSOR OAK!!" I picked up the Pokéball and ran inside the lab.

"What happened?" He questioned looking at the Pokéball in my hand.

"Well I was getting up, and I tripped, then I caught Ponyta." I pushed the button on the Pokéball and Ponyta emerged.

"Well it seems as if you need not a starter Pokémon. You already have yours. This Ponyta has taken a liking to you. Do you want to keep her?" Oak patted Ponyta.

"Yes of course! Why wouldn't I? Yes, yes, yes!" I grabbed Ponyta around the neck and hugged her.

"Do you want to give it a nickname?" I shook my head and recalled Ponyta. He smiled and walked over to his desk. Rummaging through it he picked up a red item. As he neared he held it out to me. "This is a Pokédex. I want you to travel the world and learn about every Pokémon there is out there. Will you do this for me Brooke?"

"Yes, of course I will Professor. You can count on me!" I ran out the door. Attempting to hop on the bike I remember it was down the hill. "Well looks like I'm walking from here on out." I grumbled walking down the hill. Kicking a stone I walked down the road to the nearest Pokémart. I need to buy some more Pokéballs, potions, antidotes, and other medical items. Nothing was going to happen to my Pokémon while I was around. Taking a look around, I noticed a lot of other Pokémon around. Many were running in fields and flying in the sky. I loved it. I started to run to the Pokémart. I heard a click and the next instant Ponyta was at my side. Laughing we raced all the way down the road. As we neared Ponyta slowed down so I could catch up. As I got closer she suddenly sped up and left me trailing behind. "No fair, you have four legs!" I shouted. I grabbed the Pokéball and recalled her. "At least I can take you back in here." I sighed and started to fantasize about my new journey. Pokémon after Pokémon would become my friend and I would become a Pokémon Master. Just like dad. Suddenly I bumped into someone.

"Oh, are you ok?" I looked up to see a boy about my age holding a hand out to me. He had spiky blonde hair with bright blue eyes.

"Yeah, I wasn't paying attention. Sorry about bumping into you! What's your name anyways?" I took his hand and he hoisted me up.

"I'm Kenny, what 'bout you?" He smiled and rubbed his neck.

"I'm Brooke; I'm a new trainer." He gaped.

"Me too! Come on out Seel!" He clicked his Pokéball and a white Seel came out. It looked at me and clapped its fins.

"See, seel see!" It waddled over to me and rubbed up against me.

"Awww, so cute!" I flipped open my Pokédex.

"Seel the Sea Lion Pokémon. The protruding horn on its head is very hard. It is used for bashing through thick icebergs." After getting the info I nodded.

"Ponyta let's go!" Throwing my Pokéball in the air, Ponyta came out. It looked at both boys and turned to me.

"Wow, do they give out Ponyta as a starter?" He questioned looking at my Pokémon.

"Well it's a long story. Wanna sit down and eat something. It'll take awhile." He nodded and we both recalled our Pokémon. We walked towards the nearest restaurant chattering.

At the Restaurant

"Wow all that happened on your first day? That's pretty exciting. See my mom is the Pokémon Gym leader in Cerulean City. I always wanted to be a breeder so she gave me this Seel so I could start. Do you know someone named Ash?" Kenny looked up from his food.

"Yah…he was my dad. A couple of years ago he disappeared. Is your mom Misty? My dad used to talk about her all the time. How is she?" I asked excitedly.

"Oh still going strong. She was going to hand the gym over to me, but my dream to become a breeder was a bigger goal. She agreed to it and told me to visit someone named Brock. Hey do you maybe want to travel together…just until we get to Pewter City! I don't want to impose or anything!" He grinned looking at the table again.

"Just to Pewter City. My dad said that he and Misty and Brock traveled all through Kanto together. Why don't we do the same?" He grinned bigger and nodded. We got up and walked out the door. I turned and looked at all the buildings. "Are we in Viridian?" I questioned.

"Yeah, why." I gasped and flew towards the Pokémon Center. Jumping over to one of the phones I quickly called home.

"Mom, I'm so sorry I forgot to call. I was talking to Kenny about what happened at Professor Oak's lab and we lost track of time." I rambled on and on till Kenny rushed in.

"Hi, Mrs. Ketchum." He waved as mom smiled.

"Kenny…Kenny Mist is that you? My how much you have grown! I remember when you were just a little boy." We both fell.

"Mom, please don't embarrass him. You do that all the time. We're going to travel together just like Dad and Misty used too." She smiled and looked to the both of us.

"Well then I guess you don't need to call me when you get to every town. With Kenny, you should be safe. Still call everyone in a while. Ok? Oh, and let me see your gorgeous Pokémon, both of you!" Grumbling both of the kids called out their Pokémon. "They are adorable! Take care of them so both can evolve into big strong Pokémon. Bye-bye now!" The screen went black and I laughed.

"Sorry I kinda took off on you like that. Sometimes my mom can be…"

"Scary? I think all girls are." I glared at him. "Not you, I mean like, moms and older women. Sorry." I hmphed and turned to the door. "Hey, wait! Do you wanna battle? Since we're both beginners I figured…"

"Man you're really shy. Sure we can battle. Let's find a good spot." He followed me out to a big field. I looked around and nodded. "This is good, but we don't have a judge."

"That's fine, whenever one Pokémon faint that's the end of it. Ready?" He grabbed his Pokéball enlarging it.

"I don't like the idea of not having any judge, but yah. Ponyta let's go!" Ponyta emerged from the Pokéball and stomped the ground.

"Come on out Seel!" Seel came out and did something of a growl. "Seel what was that?"

"See, seel see!" Seel clapped it fins and stared at us.

"Ok Seel use Headbutt!" Seel leapt in the air and came down. Its head was surrounded by blue as it spiraled towards Ponyta.

"Dodge!" Ponyta leapt to the side and Seel collided with the ground. "Now use Quick Attack!" Lifting its hoof, Ponyta nailed it down on Seel's back. "Ember!"

"Use Aurora Beam quickly!" Ponyta collected the fire, before she could exhale Seel fired a rainbow jet of light. Ponyta flew backwards and then staggered back up.

"Ember again, super powered!" Ponyta blew a bit of fire and it hit Seel. Seel let out a cry of pain, fire surrounding him.

"Seel, use Icy Wind to cool off and freeze Ponyta!" Seel blew up a gust of cold wind. The fire went down and Ponyta froze. They both fainted a few seconds later.

"Return Seel!" Kenny lifted the Pokeball and Seel was recalled. "You did a good job. Thanks for the awesome battle."

"You were wonderful." I recalled Ponyta and walked over to him. "You were really good Kenny."

"Yah, you too. Why don't we take our Pokémon to the Pokémon Center? I'm sure that they need the rest." He nodded and we walked to the Center. Entering we saw Nurse Joy behind the counter.

"Hi, welcome to the Viridian Pokémon Center. How may I help you?" She looked back and forth between the two trainers.

"Yeah, uh could you heal our Pokémon?" Kenny asked holding out his Pokémon.

"Sure just give me a few minutes." She took the two Pokéballs and walked into the back room. Brooke sighed and sat on a chair in the reception area.

"What's wrong?" Kenny questioned looking at the girl.

"Nothin…just thinkin 'bout Team Rocket. My dad used to be really involved in stopping them. With the help of a few close friends he managed to defeat the Boss Giovanni. Now, that they're back and my dad isn't I wonder what will happen." She fiddled her thumbs and Kenny sat down next to her.

"Well, if anything does happen we can stop them. If your dad could then we can too. Just think…you the next Pokémon Master and me the next Pokémon Breeder. We can stop Team Rocket and save the world!" He punched the air and I giggled.

"You act just like him. My dad I mean. Always enthusiastic about everything." I got up and walked over to the magazine rack and picked up a PokéToday. Sitting back in the chair I scanned over the articles. Glancing every once in a while I saw Kenny fidget in his seat. I giggled as he started to pace.

"I wonder if Seel is ok. Ponyta is a hard hitter. How did you train it so well in the short amount of time you had it?"

"I didn't. She was already trained that way. That's why I thought she had a trainer. Is it natural to find strong Pokémon in the wild?" He shrugged.

"It depends on the area where you find them. Here in Pallet Town and Viridian is really rare. They must have taken it away from its natural environment. How cruel can they get? That's why it must have taken a liking to you. With you being the only friendly person, in that strange environment it must have connected with you." He stated sounding logically.

"You go from Breeder mode to Idiot mode in like 2 second. How is that possible?" He glared at me.

"And you don't ever change from Annoying mode." He stated smirking.

"You think you're so smart, Mister-Come-Back-King?"

"Yeah." I suppressed a giggled and remained stone-faced. He grinned goofily and I burst into a fit of laughter. A few moments later Nurse Joy came out from the back room.

"We've had a slow day today so I managed to fix your Pokémon up already. Please come again!" We both got up and grabbed the Pokéballs. I turned and walked up to Kenny.

"Well there is a Gym here so I have to go train. Do you wanna come with?" He nodded enthusiastically and we walked out. I looked around and walked over to a grassy area by a small river. Grabbing my Pokeball I called out Ponyta. "Ok, let's work on our attacks. Use Ember on the tree, but keep it controlled so we don't start a fire.

"Pony, ponyta ta!" Ponyta exhaled a small flame and it hit the tree. Ponyta repeated the process. After a few more times the burn grew about one inch larger inside.

"Nice job Ponyta! You're getting stronger all the time! Kenny, call out Seel so he can train. What moves does it know?" Kenny clicked the Pokéball and Seel emerged.

"Uhhh, Headbutt, Growl, Icy Wind, and Aurora Beam. What about Ponyta?" He bent down and patted the white Pokémon.

"Quick Attack, Growl, Tail Whip, and Ember. I heard that the Viridian City Gym Leader was Giovanni, but since he's gone who runs it now?" Kenny shrugged.

"My mom said that the new Gym Leader has been kept under locks. No one really knows who he or she is." He looked over to Seel. "Why don't we work on that Aurora Beam?"

"See, seel se!" The pair walked into the bushes.

"Guess that leaves just you and me uh Ponyta?" It nodded and blew out some more of fire. I narrowed my eyes. "Hey, try building up more of the flame of your mouth. If you can build up more pressure then the attack might be more powerful." Ponyta glared at me. "It was just a suggestion. Don't have to get all huffy."

"Pony, ponyta ta ta." She stomped over to me.

"I was just giving you a suggestion. After all, I'm your trainer so you should listen to my advice. If you don't like it then…" I stopped myself remember my dads words.

Flashback

"Hey Brooke come here!" I lifted my head to see dad waving me over to him. Jumping up I ran over to him.

"Yeah daddy?" He bent down to my level.

"Look over to the river. Tell me what you see." I looked through the bushes and saw a trainer fighting with her Pokémon.

"Why won't you listen to me?! I'm your master; you obey me so only listen to what I say. If I say jump into the river then you'll jump into the river. You are a Pokémon!" She growled and went to hit the Pokémon.

"I see a lady being mean to her Pokémon." I growled clenching my fists.

"You are part right. That right there is the wrong way to train your Pokémon. You see the…" Dad stopped suddenly and narrowed his eyes.

"What's wrong daddy?"

"It's nothing, but anyways when you train with a Pokémon you have to take all angles into perspective. If the Pokémon is bossy then making a simple suggestion will anger it. And with a shy Pokémon, when you make a suggestion it will immediately obey, which can sometimes hurt it. Understand your Pokémon type and learn how to connect. Now if you excuse me, sugar, I have to go and call Uncle Brock. Come on Pikachu." Dad looked at the lady one more time before disappearing into the house."

Flashback ended

"I'm sorry Ponyta. I was just suggesting it. What so you think?" She raised an eyebrow then opened her mouth. Blowing out deep breaths I didn't get what she was trying to say. "The fire…is hot! Oh I see. When you keep it in your mouth for a long time it starts to get hot. Well why didn't you just say so?"

"Ta, ponyta." Ponyta turned and collected fire. Holding it in her mouth for a few seconds longer, she exhaled and the fire burnt the tree.

"Nice job! Why don't we work on Quick Attack? I want to improve the speed of everything. Let's do this thing!"

"Ponyta!" She flickered back and forth as the Pokémon ran through the woods.