Hello everyone! This is the first chapter of Camp Catchem'all! But sadly, I have wayyy too many girls. So for a while I will only take male submissions! You all are welcome to submit as many as you like! Enjoy-Katie.
Dear Camper,
You have been cordially invited to attend Camp Catchem'all this summer. If you are interested in attending, please fill out the enclosed paperwork and return it promptly, or bring it with you on the first day! The camp will begin June 2nd, and end on September 20th. All of our campers will be aged 15-19, and be prepared for four months of training, battling, and summer fun!
We would be obliged if you brought the following:
1-6 Pokemon
1 Sleeping Bag
Appropriate Clothing (Hiking Boots, Swimsuit, Summer Clothes, etc)
Writing Material
1 Reusable water bottle
Appropriate Toiletries (Toothbrush, Soap, Shampoo, 2 Towels, Deodorant, Female Sanitation)
Please come to the Pokemon Center in Pewter City on June 1st to meet your counselors and fellow campers.
We hope to see you and your Pokemon soon!
Sincerely,
Nikolas Tarkov
Head of the Federation of Pokemon Summer Camps
Hiro Taminama, a boy around 17, read the letter aloud to his Aunt.
"Yumi, can I please go? I'll pay and I'll take a bus and—" Hiro was cut short when Yumi Yokomaru slapped her hand across his face. On his left side—his blind side. Hiro stayed quiet and touched his hand to his stinging cheek.
"Why would I allow you to go to some summer camp? A waste of space doesn't deserve a waste of time!" Her voice was cruel, evil, with every word drenched in hate for the boy.
"Please, Aunt Yumi."
The small woman glared at her nephew for a few moments.
"You have a choice. You can either go to this camp—and officially never come back to this house. Or, you can stay here and still have a home."
In Hiro's mind the decision was easy.
"Okay, I'll pack tonight and leave for Pewter City tomorrow."
"Good. I was getting tired of seeing your hideous face." She moved quickly, as if to hit him, and Hiro flinched. She laughed and shook her head.
"I'm counting the moments until you're finally gone."
Hiro walked from the room, tears stinging in his eyes.
XXX
"I don't get why she hates me so much." Hiro told his Jolteon. The electric pokemon licked his hand in response.
"Yeah she's a bitch, huh?" Hiro smiled, revealing rows of straight white teeth. The last thing he packed in his duffel bag was the picture of his family. Before it was separated. His mother stood behind him, her brown eyes warm and loving. His father, whom he looked like, was devastatingly handsome even as a middle aged man. And his sister—although annoying as she could be—held Hiro's hand in a vice. The entire scene seemed so far away now. So foreign.
"HIRO!" His Aunt screeched from downstairs. Hiro detested the sound and decided it was time to leave. Tonight.
"GET DOWN HERE, NOW."
Anger raged within the boy's stomach as he stomped down the stairs.
"Don't ruin my floors, you ungrateful brat. Do these dishes before you go to bed." She snarled, dropping a plate and smashing it into a million fragments.
"No."
She wheeled around. "Excuse me?"
"No, you evil bitch. I'm done being related to you. You're an absolutely horrible person and I am soo not surprised that you're single and everyone hates you. Do your own damn dishes." His aunt swung to slap him but Hiro caught her wrist.
"Not again." Hiro threw her arm down and turned away. Yumi Yokomaru stood in the kitchen, almost as if she had been electrocuted.
Upstairs, Hiro walked out to the balcony and released his Charizard. It roared in relief and stretched its colossal wings. Hiro attached his sleeping bag and duffel to his Pokémon's back and leapt on. Jolteon followed suit and sat in Hiro's lap. Hiro took one more look at the bright lights of Celadon before kicking off hard, eager to begin his journey from the ashes of his broken family.
XXX
"Delcatty! If we miss this train I swear to goodness we'll be late!" The girl scooped up her luggage and threw it onto a trolley, pushing it slowly towards the train platform.
The small cat pokemon meowed and leapt onto her shoulder. Once she was situated on the train, a boy sat in the seat across from her. Around the boy's neck was a shiny Ekans, and it hissed at her Delcatty. He stared at her with vibrant green eyes and opened his mouth to speak.
"Hey, my name is Zach Rush."
"I'm Emily Johnson." Her voice was somewhat quiet, sweet, and she swept her brown hair over one shoulder.
"Where are you headed?" Zach asked.
"This summer camp in Kanto. It's called—" she rummaged through her pack for the paperwork. "Camp Catchem'all?"
The boy's face lit up in surprise.
"I'm going, too! What a coincidence!" Zach shouted. Emily mentally sighed. This was going to be a long train ride.
XXX
"Mark, Let's go. We're supposed to have boarded by now." Alessandra "Alex" Cesarini fixed her blue headband and called back Blaze, her Infernape.
"Okay, okay! I'm coming!" Markus Pearl gave his best friend a playful shove and slung his carry on over his shoulder. They half-ran through the terminal and into Gate C. A flight attendant tapped Alex on the shoulder.
"Excuse me, miss? Would you and your boyfriend like to upgrade your tickets?" She asked.
"He's not my boyfr—"
"We would love to, thank you." Mark had clapped his hand over her mouth before she could finish that sentence. He wanted to pretend, even if it was just a moment, that what the attendant said was true. Alex blushed furiously and followed the stewardess into first class. Leaf, Mark's shiny Leafeon, snickered at Alex's expression and followed his master.
The intercom came on and the Captain began speaking.
"Good evening, Sinnoh travelers! This is your Captain Tom Ato speaking, and tonight we'll be taking our journey from Twinleaf Town to the Pewter City Terminal! It's a warm summer night, about 78 degrees Fahrenheit, and the time in Pewter City is 11:00 PM. Please keep all pokemon in their pokeballs or properly harnessed in—and enjoy your flight! Thank you for flying Sinnoh Air!" The transmission cut and the engines of the plane rumbled to life.
Once the plane gained speed and began to take off, Alex clutched Mark's hand.
"Hate airplanes?" He asked with a smile. Alex gave him a nervous smile and nod.
"It's okay, you're with me. Only a few more hours." And with that reassuring note, Alex fell asleep, gripping the hand of her childhood friend.
XXX
"Swablu! I choose you!"
The fluffy blue bird emerged from its pokeball with a gleeful chirp and flew around the bedroom a few times.
"Kame! Come down here! I have something to show you!" Her "Aunt" Miki called. Kame dragged her bags down the marble steps and next to the front door.
"Where are you, Miki?" Kame shouted.
"In here, silly!" Miki's voice came from the den and Kame eagerly followed it. The den's floors were mahogany and its walls were filled with expensive paintings. She found her mother's best friend behind the desk, with a wooden chest on its surface.
"Your mother wanted me to give this to you when you left for your pokemon journey. She gave it to me in case something ever happened to them." Miki Sahara choked on the last few words and opened the box.
Inside was a single pokeball, a new pair of gloves, and a backpack. Inside the backpack was a picture of her family, a wallet with about 3,000 dollars in it, and her mother's necklace.
Kame was so shocked she forgot to breathe. The necklace was delicate, a thin gold chain that was braided a few times. From the bottom of a chain dangled a tiny golden charm—a Vulpix.
"It looks just like mine." Kame breathed, placing the chain around her neck and picking up the pokeball.
"Open it." Miki urged.
Kame gently tapped the red pokeball against the desk's surface. With a flash of brilliance the giant pokemon bayed softly.
"A Meganium? Unbelievable!" Kame's throat was so choked with emotion that the words were hardly understandable. The great beast lowered its head and touched it to Kame's forehead. In response she threw her arms around it.
"Your parents trained Meganium from a little Chikorita—even though experts recommend the trainer does it on their own—and wanted to give it to you as a parting gift. I've been training and feeding it, don't worry, but she's all yours now."
Kame returned Meganium to her pokeball and hugged her "Aunt".
"Thank you Miki. I promise I won't let you down. When I come home, I'll be the best pokemon trainer Blackthorn City has seen! Just you wait!" Kame gave her aunt the "victory" sign and ran from the den.
"Swablu! Are you ready?"
The parrot-like pokemon chirped and landed before its master. Kame sat on Swablu's back and situated for flight.
"Off to Pewter City!" With a cry of anticipation, Kame Takeshi and her pokemon travelled through the night and into the unknown.
XXX
"Welcome to the Pewter City Pokemon center! How may I help you?" The Pewter City Nurse Joy strode into the room, flanked by a couple of Chansey. The girl ran her fingers through her short black hair and thought for a moment.
"How much for one night?" She asked. Nurse Joy frowned apologetically.
"We're booked completely! But there is one more bed available—I'd just have to confirm with the room's occupant if it's all right you stay in there."
The girl blinked her violet eyes twice and nodded.
"Sounds good to me."
Nurse Joy retreated down the hall and was back in a few minutes.
"The occupant is eager for your arrival. Your room number is Twelve. Don't hesitate to ask for anything!" Nurse Joy smiled and handed her a room key. The girl thanked her and made her way down the hall.
"Ten…Eleven…Twelve!" With a triumphant smirk she unlocked the door and kicked it open.
Standing inside was a really tall guy—wearing nothing but Jigglypuff boxers. Neither girl nor guy moved from their spot—but the girl's mouth fell agape.
"Put. On. Some. Pants." She growled, advancing into the room and throwing down her bag. The guy laughed loudly and turned to face her.
"Not a chance, shorty. You're staying with me, remember?" His voice was kind of scratchy, rustic. He walked over to his bed and sat on it.
"Who are you, anyway?" The girl asked, trying (unsuccessfully) not to stare at his muscular chest.
"I'm Riley. Riley Hansen. Age 18, I train fire pokemon, my favorite color is red, and I detest the cold. Anything else you wanna know?" Through the poorly lit room the girl could hear the smirk in his voice. It made her stomach feel as if three hundred Butterfree were flying in it.
"I-I-I'm Kaiy-ya." She mentally punched herself for stuttering. Riley raised a brow in response.
"Do I make you nervous?" His voice dropped to just above a whisper, and he stood from the bed slowly.
"N-no!" Kaiya was very unconvincing.
Riley laughed again and sat back down.
"Don't worry, babe. It's just for one night. I'm not gonna rape you or anything. Just try and get some sleep, okay?" Riley was half-laughing during this statement and Kaiya became angry. No one laughed at her.
"I don't like you. And I don't like you calling me 'babe'". Kaiya didn't stutter and her voice grew venomous.
"Well someone likes to speak their mind, ain't that just bitchy." Riley shot back.
Kaiya scoffed and strode over to his bed.
"Thank god it's only one night and then I can get away from you!" She shouted.
"Yeah, Thank god indeed!" He spat.
"Did you just say indeed?" Kaiya couldn't help but giggle a bit, and in his frustration Riley cracked a smile.
"Suddenly, I'm not so tired anymore." Riley's voice had adopted the sultry tone once more and Kai's anger dissipated instantly.
"So what brings you to Pew-t-ter Ci-t-ty?"
"This new summer camp thing. It's called Camp Catchem'all, and I figure it'll be a good way to meet new people and pokemon, y'know?" He said.
Kaiya gasped.
"What? Did I say something wrong?" He touched her arm and she drew back—his skin was alarmingly warm.
"No, no. I'm going to that camp, too!" Her excitement skyrocketed and she subconsciously leaned towards him.
Riley smiled. "Awesome. We could bunk together, y'know. We've already got some practice." He winked one blue eye at her and flipped his brown hair out of his face.
Kaiya's heartbeat quickened and her skin began to crawl. He leaned close in her face and his delicious scent—a woodsy smell and cinnamon—filled her nose. He was about an inch away when someone burst through the door.
"Miss, I brought you some extra blankets and—oh goodness! Sorry!" Nurse Joy blushed madly before running back down the hall. Kaiya adopted a furious blush of her own and immediately moved to her bed without a word.
"Night, Kaiya." Riley laughed.
"Hmpph." She growled. It was going to be another sleepless night.
XXX
The sun rose over Pewter City, casting brilliant rays of light through the terrain of Mt. Moon and onto the buildings. The people and pokemon soon began to rise to the early light and the town seemed to awaken.
With a loud roar, a Charizard swooped down to the pokemon center and landed before its entrance. Almost simultaneously, a Swablu and her master followed suit, and with a flash of a pokeball the blue parrot got to rest.
In the Pewter City Terminal, Alex and Mark woke up from an uncomfortable rest in the cheap terminal seats and gathered their luggage and pokemon.
Within the hour, a small congregation had formed in the lobby of the pokemon center.
On the back wall leaned Kaiya and Riley, whose extreme height differences seemed to illustrate the duo's entire dynamic: complete opposites.
Sitting on the low couch was Hiro, who was brushing his Jolteon and removing the majority of the static electricity from its sharp fur.
At the tables now sat the Sinnoh trainers Alex and Mark, who were conversing quietly in hushed tones.
Chasing an oddly chipper Vulpix was the 15 year old Kame, and helping her was the newly acquainted Jessica Cooper. Jessica looked around 14 years old, with gorgeous caramel colored skin and curly brown hair that was pulled back into a neat ponytail. She wore a purple t-shirt and jean capris that cut off right at her knee. Her muddy running shoes made tracks on Nurse Joy's clean floor—and a Chansey hastily cleaned wherever the pair ran.
Next to the large windows was Emily Johnson, flanked by her "friend" Zach Rush. Zach's Ekans surveyed the room with gleaming yellow eyes.
Arriving a few minutes later was another group of campers—a girl later to be known as Maria Errow, and a set of twins—Anthony and Reymundo Delafuente. Flanking the two boys was Tyler Mason, whose Luxray followed in behind him with a pompous trot.
And lastly, arriving with the two counselors was Talia Martino. Her golden hair reached her lower back and flowed in long curly tresses. Her eyes were a curious shade of burnt orange and she was daintily dressed. Definitely not an outdoor girl.
"All campers sit front and center! Everyone else, please leave the Pokemon Center!" The male counselor shouted, his accent thick and intimidating. The female counselor behind him only smirked.
"My name is Nikolas Tarkov, and I will be one of two counselors on your journey at Camp Catchem'all. This is my colleague, Hunter. You will follow any and every order we give you. Is that clear?"
Everyone found themselves nodding out of fear.
The woman named Hunter stepped forward.
"My name is Hunter Larsen. But call me Hunter. Not Ms. Larsen, or Ms. Hunter. And this—" She threw a pokeball in the air. "—Is Teddiursa." The tiny bear growled menacingly and the campers laughed. Hunter shook her head and sighed.
"Everyone please grab your things and head outside. The buses are waiting!"
With the flurry of movement Hiro kept bumping into people, impaired by the total lack of depth perception. Kame noticed this and hurried to get a seat next to him on the bus.
"Hey, my name is Kame Takeshi! What's yours?" Kame made no effort to hide the excitement in her voice. In their laps, Jolteon and Vulpix shook paws.
"My name is Hiro Taminama." He replied, and extended a hand to shake. She noticed his skin was cold, and on his arms were millions of bracelets. Woven ones, beaded ones, wire and plastic, you name it—it was on his wrists. Upon looking at him, she noticed he was extremely handsome, and she yearned to touch his black fohawk. Hiro noticed her staring and looked away.
"I'm sorry. It's just that—"
"I know. My eye. It's hideous. Don't worry about it." He said curtly.
Hiro's statement stung Kame. She didn't even notice his eyes—she was too busy admiring his face.
"I wasn't looking at your eyes." She corrected him, and turned away to face the aisle of the bus.
"Hey, baby, you may not be lookin' at his eyes, but by god—yours are like diamonds—I mean I get lost in them! Crap. Nevermind. I'm Tyler Mason." The awkward boy extended a hand and Kame took it. His hazel eyes peeked out from his blonde hair and Kame saw his embarrassment. She gave him an encouraging smile.
"It almost worked."
Tyler was not convinced.
XXX
The bus ride to Mt. Moon took about a couple hours, due to the fact that they had to venture inside the mountain to reach the upper levels of the outside. The stalactites dripped water onto the bus' roof, and everything within the cave echoed.
Hiro studied Kame for the bus ride as she conversed with an overly flirtatious Tyler.
"The kid needs lessons." Hiro thought. But in his defensive stance towards his eye, he failed to notice that Kame had a bandage over her eye as well.
He tapped her on the shoulder and she turned around, looking impatient.
"Why is your eye taped up?" Hiro asked.
Kame now noticed Hiro's cloudy blue eye and inhaled a little. His eye healed much prettier than hers did.
"A wild herd of Zangoose attacked me. They clawed out my right eye and I can't see out of it."
Any anger or discontent instantly dissipated from Hiro's stomach. Someone else shared his impediment.
"What happened to you?" She asked.
Hiro just shook his head "no" and turned to face the window.
XXX
"Tony, I swear to god if you touch my leg one more time…" Reymundo "Rey" Delafuente snarled. His older brother stared at him with taunting red eyes, and his black hair sat unkempt on his head.
"Yeah? Whatcha gonna do about it?" Tony deliberately poked one finger onto his brother's thigh, and Rey slammed Tony's head into the window. Rey grabbed a fistful of Tony's tight black shirt and growled.
Under pressure from his brother's body and the fact that his head was sandwiched between the glass—Tony began to laugh. He wriggled from his brother's grip and tackled Rey into the aisle, tugging at his black cargo pants. They wrestled in the middle of the bus until Maria pulled them apart.
"Will you idiots knock it off already?" Anger colored her dark skin affectionately as she slammed their heads together.
"Ow!" They exclaimed in unison.
"Don't you make me come back there again!" Maria warned, and she returned to chatting with Talia for the remainder of the ride.
"Attention! All of you little maggots will be getting off the bus in single file lines, and you will line up outside until I give you cabin assignments! Is this clear?" Tarkov roared.
Everyone nodded once more and the bus eventually emptied.
"Cabin #1: Taminama, Hansen, Mason, Delafuente!" Hunter shouted.
"Which one?" The twins asked.
"Anthony!" Hunter replied.
"Cabin #2: Rush, Pearl, Delafuente!" Tarkov handed them the key and directed them accordingly.
"Cabin#3: Cesarini, Johnson, Takeshi, Kaiya!" Hunter called.
"And Cabin #4: Martino, Cooper, Errow!"
With every camper assigned, the counselors called lights out, and instructed everyone to bed down and get some rest, because tomorrow was "supposed to be hell."
Every camper wondered just exactly how like hell this camp was going to be.