Well, here goes my first ever fanfiction. Constructive criticism welcomed.
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There's one of 'em coming. I can feel it this time.
Nine year-old Xavier clutched firmly on the fishing rod, white knuckles tightly gripped along the bottom. His emerald eyes gazed across the still surface of the ocean. Blowing his red hair out from his eye, he glanced at his bobber. It was still drifting silently as the ocean waves pushed again and again. The boy tightened his grip. He was ready for whatever was coming.
A ripple.
He focused. His gaze as well as his concentration focused. Going into a balanced stance, he got ready to pull.
A shadow appeared near the surface of the water. Xavier's eyes followed it silently as it swam slowly over to the hook. The fish seemed to be curious. It swam in circles around the bait, then closed in on it. It bit.
Instantly, Xavier threw his arms back and pulled with his might. The fish jerked towards him, forcefully dragged through the water. It splashed desperately, but to no avail. After flailing a few more seconds, it decided to give in and let itself be pulled by whatever this force was. The boy reeled the fish in and out of the water. He looked at it in disappointment.
"Another Magikarp," he said. He closed his eyes, sighed, and released it back into the water. The last two hours were the same thing, all he caught were Magikarp and Magikarp.
It was getting dark. He had to go home soon. Grabbing his bucket and rod, he started walking away from the oceanside. His house was on the other side of Mossdeep City, near the west side. He was all the way in the east. Walking through the city for his billionth time, he took notice in all the places he saw familiar with.
There was some residential houses featuring some unique citizens. An old man who loved to play games with younger children, a boy who kept talking about some kind of "Secret Bases" that trainers seemed to know about. A strong Black Belt lived there to, talking about PokeBlocks. Even the Hoenn champion himself, Steven Stone, resided in one of these houses. He rarely was home, though, spending most of his time battling strong trainers and searching for rare stones. Xavier had heard rumors about how strong Steven was.
They say his Metagross could pummel others with ease, even blowing down the strongest of other trainers using its powerful body and psychic abilities.
They say his Aggron could bring down opponents more than double its size with its sheer strength and iron defenses.
They say his Skarmory could bring fear even into the mightiest opponents and brought them down through the air.
Xavier wasn't sure if these rumors were true or not, but if they were Steven was possibly one of the best trainers in the world. After pushing aside these thoughts, he kept walking.
There was the Pokemon Center, where trainers would heal their Pokemon of any casualties and injuries. There was the shopping mart, where trainers could buy potions, battle aids, and items.
The Space Center was a fairly popular place, but Xavier wasn't interested in space. He was interested in something else.
He stopped his walking and turned left. There was the Mossdeep City Gym, where leaders Tate and Liza waited for trainers to battle them. Xavier watched trainers go up against the duo only to be obliterated by their psychic powers, fascinating combo attacks, and deadly teamwork and cooperation. Someday he wished he could go up against them.
Xavier longed for the action Pokemon trainers faced. He longed for the thrill of battle, experiencing victory and even losses. Most of all, he longed for a Pokemon of his own. Not just the commonly found Magikarp around Mossdeep. His own Pokemon he can raise, become close with, and battle with. A companion. But he didn't.
Mossdeep was an island city, so it was fairly secluded from the rest of the region. Even though it was still pretty populated (the fourth most in Hoenn) Xavier still felt there was more to see. He longed to travel out from the island. He loved his parents, but sometimes he wished he could leave Mossdeep and travel on his own. There was so much more cities and towns he could explore and so many more people to meet and battle.
Right now, they were empty dreams.
He reached his house, sighed once again, and dragged himself into the house. His muscles were sore and he needed a good night's rest. His parents were already asleep. Xavier entered his bedroom, washed up, and blanked out as soon as his head hit the pillow.
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The sun had barely rose over the horizon, but Xavier bolted from bed. He was a light sleeper and usually got up early to fish. Early dawn and late night were his prime fishing times.
Xavier raced to his usual fishing spot, bucket and rod in hand. The morning mist had settled across the bayside. Light had scarcely penetrated the sea, so it was freezing cold. Dew was sliding off the grass nearby. Xavier paid attention to his rod. He saw a shadow in the water approach the bait, and prayed it wasn't a Magikarp.
The fish bit. It was the same cycle as yesterday. Xavier pulled and pulled against the struggling fish, fins flapping wildly.
Xavier glanced at the strange fish. It wasn't the typical Magikarp he caught, or the occasional Tentacool he found. It was a dull brown color, with darker spots plastered all over it. It sported an arch-shaped tail and blue fins, and what seemed to appear as a dark circle around its eye.
Upon closer examination, Xavier confirmed it as a Feebas. At first he was doubtful, since Feebas are rarely seen in all of Hoenn. He heard some trainers say there were exclusively in Fortree City, but eventually he disregarded his doubts and happily took the Feebas home.
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He burst through the door, eyes gleaming.
"Mother! Look what I caught!"
An young woman stepped down the stairs. She had solid red hair as opposed to Xavier's reddish-orange hair which he got from his father. She peered into the bucket and saw the Feebas, and beamed.
"Congratulations!" She threw up her arms. "Now, wait here. I've been saving this for a special occasion."
She strided into the kitchen. Xavier heard some pots and pans bang, with an occasional "oof". His mother was not a very organized person.
After a while she seemingly found what she was looking for, and entered the living room. She was holding something in her hands. Xavier cocked his head and looked at it with curiosity. As she approached nearer, Xavier saw it was a pair of green headphones, with a silvery band and black stripes running down the side. In the sunlight, it seemed to gleam. He stared at it in awe and wondered how his mother afforded such an expensive-looking object.
"Like it?" His mother laughed. "It was your father's before he passed away. He got them when he caught his first Pokemon, like you caught your Feebas today."
She slipped the headphones on Xavier's head. Xavier stood still for a long time, feeling the texture of the headphones and how they felt.
They felt as if they were meant to be there. He looked up and smiled.
Things were going to get better.
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There's the first chapter. Reviews are greatly appreciated, you guys need to help a newbie like me.
