Bright sunlight showered down into my room in large rays, shining their harsh light right onto my eyes. Moving my hand up to block out the bright assailant, I tried to sit up, but felt a rather large amount of weight settled right onto my chest. Looking down, I saw a ball of mareep curled up onto my chest. As if the nerves on my chest weren't working for a bit, the warmth of the little creature settled in, and suddenly, I began to feel drowsy. The warmth was working to soothe the abrupt awakening's grogginess… I had to admit it was a pleasant feeling, to be slowly lulled back to sleep with nothing but the warmth of another body. With the last walls of my body's resistance falling, I fell back into a deep sleep, my eyes drooping closed. The second awakening wasn't anywhere near as pleasant. A shrill yell met my ears, followed by stomping so hard that the floorboards vibrated under the force. My door was sent swinging open, crashing against the wall with a loud SMACK.
"YUUKI, IT IS ALREADY TWO O'CLOCK GET UP"
That voice was undeniably my mother's. The scream sent Hana quite literally jumping into the air, her wool all fluffed out to the point where she looked like nothing more than a gigantic wool ball.
My mind was at once, rocked free from the stupor that such an amount of sleep would put on my mind. Groggily stepping up from my sheets, I gave a loud yawn, which my mother looked to be insulted by. What? Abruptly woken up by my mom after such a relaxing sleep and I'm not allowed to display signs of being groggy? With a rather irritated huff, I turned my eyes to my mother, who was glaring daggers at me.
"What excuse do you want to give this time? Or do you want to just say you pulled another all-nighter and you were too tired to even get up before noon?" Her tone just dripped anger and annoyance.
"I was up. But Hana was sleeping on my chest, and I fell back asleep. This wouldn't have happened if you hadn't have gotten me that Mareep." I shot the words right back, the defensive part of me kicking in. My mother, unsurprisingly, wasn't phased in the slightest.
"You have ten minutes to get ready, I've things to give you before you get going today," She said, turning to walk out of my room, but of course, not without slamming the door as hard as physically possible.
"Get going?!"
"You're starting your journey today!"
Oh happiest of days! I get to trudge around and camp out when there isn't a Pokémon center in sight? How lucky of me! I really wasn't thinking positively about this, not one bit. It would all be a huge pain. My eyes then turned to the Mareep, who was slowly crawling its way back to my bed. It looked positively spooked, its little legs and tail were shaking so hard it looked like it'd break into pieces. My heart was suddenly struck with sympathy. Ghh, if only I weren't so easy to sway when something looked scared. My arms reached out, wrapping around the little sheep. I then got a feel of just how much she'd been shaking, the poor thing. Giving a little yank, I hoisted her to rest on my lap, a hand moving to stroke through the fluffy wool of hers. The little curls twirled out around my fingers, allow my hand to glide effortlessly through the curly mass of wool. This at least, seemed to calm her down some. Her head lifted, her little beady eyes looking up at me. Oh if there were a time where I wanted to literally hug the life out of something, it would've been then. That look was absolutely heart breaking, she looked so scared, but she looked to me with a look of trust, as if she were relying on my to make sure everything would be fine. With a grin, I gave her little head a little pat.
"It's all fine Hana, my mom is just a little angry with me." I said.
Her body finally seemed to cease its shaking fit, and she gave a rather happy bleat.
"There you go~ Now, I guess we should get packing up." I said, moving to lift her little body off my lap and onto the sheets. With a huff, I rose off my bed, stepping over to my closet. I swung the door open, the pairs of clothes that sat neatly hung on their hangers greeted me. I reached for a few t-shirts and the same number of pants. Slinging them onto my bed, I stepped over to the dresser tucked into the corner of my room. From there, I grabbed a few pairs of socks and underwear, and a few pairs of shorts for when it'd be too hot for pants. Neatly placing the clothes into a messenger bag. I then turned to the tablet that rested on my computer desk. I needed some sort of electronics to go with me. I snatched the tablet up from its resting place, sliding a few portable charging sticks in, as well as the USB charger cord. Turning to the now snoozing mareep, I reached for the pokeball that sat at the edge of my desk. With a press of the middle button, a red light shot forth, engulfing the mareep and retracting her to her ball. Well, so began to the first step into the exciting journey.
I walked from my room, down the stairs and finally, to the dining room, where my mother sat with an assortment of items waiting for me. Among them, a weird thing that looked like a cellphone, a card, five more pokeball, and some potions.
"Ah, there you are. Before you say a word, let me explain what these are," My mother said, gesturing to the pile of items before her. She pointed a finger to the cellphone looking thing.
"That, is a Pokedex. It'll keep record of any Pokémon you catch, as well as inform you about their stats and moves," she explained. She then pointed to the card
"That's your trainer ID, you may need it once in a while. And you know what Pokeballs and potions are." She finished
I simply nodded to her explanations, and began to scoop the items one by one into my bag. Once the last potion had been slipped into the messenger bag, my Mom looked at me with a happy look. I was confused, seeing her like this. She was furious all morning, why would she be so happy now?
"You're going to do fine, Yuuki." She said, moving to trap me in a tight embrace.
"Just go as far as you can, then you come home." She finished, and released me.
As far as I could huh? She sounded so proud, to finally have her kid go off like all the others.
"I will, I'll see you in a while. I'll text you if the Pokémon Center has Wi-Fi." I said, and moved to step to the front door. With a reluctant move of my hand, the door swung open, and I stepped outside.
At once, the sweet smell of the flowers that seemed to me, everyone grew in this little town. Even in the town's square, flowers were set into the stone triangles. The houses here had stone walls at the front, a hedge of flowers surrounded the town, and the exit lead into a path to the city just ahead. All I saw were the usual people out and about, watering the plants or talking amongst themselves. I took to walking into the square, and then began to start up the path to the city up ahead. My goal, was to reach Santalune, where there'd be the Pokémon center. Which meant, no camping out tonight. But the catch was, I had to get through Santalune forest, which of course. Meant trainers. A lot, of trainers. I really hoped today would be a slow day or something, and maybe there wouldn't be many people. Hoping for the best, I continued my trek up the path.
Around me, bushes grew in an almost boundary like way, trees towering up above them, as if to signify that they weren't to be crossed. Cool winds greeted me, ruffling the trees, sending a few leaves dancing down from their height up on their branches, and floating delicately to the ground. As much as I didn't want to admit it, the nature around here really was beautiful. Nonetheless, this was almost forced on me, so I still held a bit of a grudge against this whole "journey". As I walked, I thought it might be a good idea for Hana to get some exercise. Reaching my hand into my pocket, I chucked the ball into the air, and out popped Hana, flopping right beside me as she was released from her ball. She let off a little bleat, looking up to me, wondering why she'd been called out.
I kind of assumed that anyway, and just went on explaining.
"Well, I figured you should get some exercise. You know, we're going to be battling soon and all that…" I said, trailing off a bit at the end, as my thoughts tried not to focus on the whole battling subject. I knew I'd probably have to do a few battles today, hopefully not too many. Anyway, with the situation explained, Hana seemed to just be happy to be out and about. Continuing my walk, I kept a close eye on the little sheep. The little sheep did nothing out of the ordinary though, she just kept bleating and giving these happy little skips as she waked. As if walking down this flowery path with her trainer were one of the best things in the world…
While looking to her, I saw we reached the next little town that was the last stop before the forest that lead to the first city. Ah, this town was actually one I knew well. My mom had talked about it a lot, how wonderful the riverside was here. I could see it from the entrance. A flight of stone stairs lead down into a town square, lined with shops and residences. Beyond that, a river cut through the town, and a stone bridge lead over the river. Finally, beyond that, a small path lead to the entrance to the forest I'd been dreading ever since I stepped out of the house. But the atmosphere here was so pleasant, so fresh. People lounged in a few tables that were set out, sipping coffee and talking as they were fanned by the cool winds that blew across. Today really was a great day to get outside huh? I gave a happy glance around, this town seemed like it would be fun to just walk around in. The cool afternoon was great, and from what I could see, off in the distance, over cast weather would keep it cool. Great~!
However, today, I was just eager to get to the Pokémon center as fast I could. I nudged Hana along, waving to a few strangers as we entered the square. It was then, a door swung open from one of the shops, and good god if I would've been able to disappear, I wish I could've then. Sauntering out from said shop, stood without a doubt, the most obnoxious person I knew.
"OHHHHHHHHH look who climbed out of their hole!" A teasing tone came from the person.
Nic. God dammit.
He stood at a good five feet ten inches. His body, was the same white of a total shut in, and he was. His gigantic gut just outlined the fact he sat around doing nothing but gaming and eating all day. His gut was huge, and his shirts failed to hide that fact. The shirt he was wearing right now, was a huge, white t-shirt. A pair of camo jean shorts hugged his waist.
"Hello, Nic," I replied calmly.
His eyes shifted from me, to Hana.
"And you finally got a Pokémon too? Are you in serious trouble or something?"
Good god that snarky tone. I wanted to beat it out of him.
"And it's puny! Look at that thing, I bet she couldn't even make a dent on a caterpie!" Nic continued to ramble off carious nonsense that I didn't even care to pay any attention to. But Hana, she seemed to be shaking, but this time, it wasn't fear. No, this was fury. I could already see the sparks beginning to gather in her wool.
"Hana, shock him,"
And at that, Hana let out the angriest sound I ever heard her muster, and out shot a bolt of electricity. It shot right into that fat stomach of his, and it sent his entire body into a twitching fit, he then tumbled over, giving an occasional twitch.
As violent as that was, I just couldn't stop the grin that took root on my face. With a sneer, I leaned over the now twitching mass of flesh that was Nic.
"Well, looks like my little Hana over here isn't too bad after all~"
Knowing that he'd probably be immobilized for a while, I simply turned my back to him, a few people still looking horrified at what just transpired. Whatever, if someone's going to sit there and insult you, you shouldn't just sit there and take it. I gave a happy glance to my Mareep, who was holding her little head up high, retaining that look of confidence she gained ever since laying out Nic. There wasn't a need to tell my Mareep what to do next, she followed after me as I stepped onto the bridge. The bridge was impressive, the tan brick was held up by huge tan pillars, and below, I could see spaces between the columns. I assumed that they were for boats, as the bridge was rather high above the river. The water itself was almost as spectacular as the bridge, the sunlight that hit the water sent it into a dazzling sparkle, gleaming the light off its surface. The bridge was a bit longer than I remembered, but I didn't mind the extra walking. The bridge finally let off onto a short path. I could see that a branch of the river cut into it, and a short patch of tall grass was right in front of me, with another right before the entrance to the forest. As I looked upon it, my eyes spotted another boy. He looked to be about ten, short blonde hair atop of his head. He was dressed in a white t-shirt and blue athletic shorts, whose shiny fabric almost looked to be glowing in the sunlight.
Please don't be a trainer
And much to my dismay, I saw the boy chuck a pokeball into the air. In a flash of white light, a little panda looking thing popped out. The little creature had a white head, little black ears on the top. Its small torso was a darker black on the top half than the bottom half, where is transferred so a lighter black, and in its mouth, it held a leaf.
The trainer then turned his head to my direction, probably hearing the sigh I gave as soon as I saw that little Pokémon he sent out. At once, his eyes lit up, and he gave off a shout that just dripped new trainer hype.
"HEY TRAINER! YOU WANNA BATTLE?!"
Good GOD.
Nothing could have been more infuriating than that high pitched voice of his! He sounded just like an overexcited girl about to get her first Barbie doll. Setting aside the mounting anger, I forced a deep breath into my lungs, then slowly exhaled.
"No, I do not want to battle with you, kid." I simply stated.
"Are you sure?! It'll be fun!"
"No."
At this point, the kid looked peeved, his little eye brows furrowed, and he pointed a finger to me.
"Pancham! Hit his Mareep with a tackle!"
At once, the little panda ran forward, his little paws slamming the ground, his shoulder extended towards Hana as he charged. What the hell was wrong with this kid?! Staring daggers at the little brat, I shouted to Hana.
"Use Thunder Shock before he can get to you!" The sheep gave me a little nod, she reared her legs, and a huge amount of sparks flew from her coat before a bolt of electricity was fire right at the little panda. At once, the bolt connected to the target, and the panda was stopped in his tracks, giving a pained grunt as his body gave a rather hard twitch. I felt my lips curl into a smirk. I'd be rid of this little punk's Pokémon in just one more move.
"One more move, that should do it." I said, and Hana didn't hesitate. At once, she fired off another bolt of electricity into the little panda, which sent the little thing off its feet. The kid gave a little whine, and scooped the exhausted Pancham into his arms. I didn't feel a need to say anything more, so I just stepped past the kid, skirting along the edge of the tall grass. How Pokémon managed to hide in these little patches of grass, I'd never know. Wouldn't you see this weird, colorful creature among the grass? How didn't people pick them out? Trudging along, I finally came to the entrance to what would be the worst experience of my life. Santalune Forest. The forest itself wasn't the thing I dreaded at all. No, I actually looked forward to the walk. But what was inside, was the real problem. Taking only a few steps in, I was already past the few leaves that hid the entrance. And there, I saw them. The forest itself really was lovely, the trees grew in a way where the forest paths were shielded from the sun by their leaves. The large, broad leaves swayed in the gentle breeze that rocked through the forest. It was then, I looked around. And much to my surprise, I didn't see the trainers I thought I would. Instead, just a few trainers who seemed to be more interested in picking berries than fighting. Well great! At this rate, I'd be happily on my way to the Pokémon Center. However, that image of peace was simply a ruse. Oh, a clever one! For the second I stepped foot into the forest, it seemed like every single person who was picking berries turned their attention to me, and had pokeball at the ready.
ARE YOU KIDDING ME!? My mind screamed, but on the outside, I simply kept my composure, taking a few steps along to attempt to step out of the reach of these ravenous trainers. Alas, that wasn't going to be the case in the slightest. A trainer stepped forward, and all it took was her eyes to meet mine. The girl herself seemed not to be a trainer, a slim, "pep" girl body and long blonde locks, but the pokeball in her hand would scream otherwise.
"Hey you! Let's battle!" She said, but to me, it was more like a scream.
"N-Now wait a sec…" I said, but was so rudely interrupted by the sound of a pokeball releasing the Pokémon sealed inside. And out popped a little purple rat, a pair of buck teeth sticking out.
With a sigh, I looked down to the rodent with dismay. This little creature, was going to be the first of many that would be pitted against my unwilling self and my poor sheep. Speaking of the sheep, it seemed more than eager to fight, sparks were already welling up around its fluffy coat. Seeing that, for some reason made me feel a little happy. Maybe it was the fact that the sheep was finally happy to be around me? For whatever reason it was, I took it as it was.
"Fine, fine. Hana, thundershock." I commanded. The sheep gave a little nod to me, and at once, the sparks began to grow and grow, until they had built into a small bolt of electricity, which was shot at the little rodent standing a few feet ahead. The trainer failed to command her rodent to do anything, so the little thing took the attack full on. Apparently, it was a good hit, for the rodent was done with in one hit. It let off a pained screech, and toppled over, its body giving little twitches. The girl at once dropped down to check its condition. After deeming it okay, she just nodded to me, as if sending me to the next trainer. Well, if that was how it was going to be, this would be a piece of cake! Or… that's what I thought. The next trainers ahead were just horrid, it was literally one after another, all ten year olds SO eager to test out their "Prized" Pokémon. By the time I'd reached the end of the forest trail, I was so exhausted, my body felt like it was lead. If I saw another person who looked like a trainer, I'd beat them.
It just so happened, that a person was approaching me from behind. Assuming the worst, I reared a leg back, and sent it flying behind me. I felt my foot connect with a stomach, and the weight of the person was sent flying off, a loud crash following, as whoever it was landed in some bushes.
"I'M NOT GONNA BATTLE YOU. YOU CAN GET ANGRY AND TRY TO ARGUE AS MUCH AS YOU WANT BUT LISTEN HERE YOU SPOILED BRAT, LOOKING AT SOMEONE DOESN'T MEAN A BATTLE," I shouted, finally turning, I gazed down to the heap of flesh I kicked. "YA GOT TH-"I cut off mid scream, for I recognized who it was instantly. The boy I'd just kicked was my age, a bit chubby, with a head of black hair both shorter and neater than mine.
"Cody?! What're you doing here!?" I asked, reaching a hand down, which was taken by his, he lifted himself up, brushing off his jeans.
"I came to find you, your mom told me you started your journey today." He explained, still brushing some leaves off his t-shirt.
"Mmmhmm, I'll tell you on the way to the Pokémon center." I said, and with that, we finally got out of the hell hole that was known as the Santalune Forest. A short trek along the L shaped dirt path of route three led us to the steps that lead down into the actual city itself. A brick road lay, connecting the small mass of buildings, roller skaters rolled abound, and I saw it, the red roof clashing against the orange sky. A Pokémon center! Literally yanking Cody along, I went through the swishing automatic doors. Inside, it was cool, air conditioned perfectly. Oh how good it felt to be indoors again. With a hurried pace, I walked to the counter.
"Welcome to the Pokémon center! How may I help you?" asked the all too familiar Nurse.
"One room, two beds, just for the night." I said, and with a nod, she slid me a key card. Oh how glorious. The sleek plastic of a key card, promising for a restful night, plush blankets… Wifi! It was all here. With a sigh, I turned, and rode the small escalator to the upper floor. There, a long hallway stretched down, doors spaced evenly out, all numbered. Mine was 5. With Cody following right behind me, I slid the key card in, and a click was heard. I pushed the door back. The sight that greeted me was like heaven on earth, a bright red carpet, two beds pressed against the wall, a bathroom directly left of the entrance. And, an outlet between the two beds. I chucked my backpack at my bed, where it landed with a loud plop. I staggered to my bed, followed by Cody, who sat himself on the opposite bed. For a while, we just talked about the summer, how it was going. I rambled on about how rash and idiotic these Pokémon trainers were. It was so refreshing, talking to him face to face again. All the while, Hana rested in my lap, my hand petting her little curls. Finally, it was around ten, and after the trek today, I needed my rest.
I reached my hand into my backpack, and retrieved my tablet. To my dismay, it had been left on all day, and was about to power off from lack of battery life.
"Aaah dammit…" I sighed. However, when Hana hopped up onto the bed, the charging symbol flashed. Giving a little grin, I reached over, yanking her to lay against my chest. The familiar warmth of her little body was comforting to say the least, and she seemed happy to be beside me again. With a yawn, I scrolled through Facebook for a while, kept up some sleepy conversations before finally locking my tablet, and slipping it back into my backpack. I didn't even bother with the blankets, I simply had my hands buried in toasty wool, and that was all I needed to be lulled to sleep.
(I'm sorry for the wait, summer was supposed to be a writing time. But, I've been feeling sort of bogged down. I'm sorry! Look forward to more frequent updates!)