A/N: Finally, here's the second chapter. Things will start to pick up for Ruby (hopefully) and come to a halt for other budding trainer's in my other fics, namely Stella. Not really sure what's happening there.. Anyway, thanks in advanced for reading. :D - MadHairGirl
Goldenrod city left Ruby Lockwood lost for words. The young girl had never left her small hometown of Mahogany and the size of the maze-like big city swept her mind about. It was in this big city that Ruby found herself waiting for the Magnet train. One of the few connections between the Kanto and Johto regions, Ruby knew it was her ticket to her new start.
She was mighty scared, any youngster who'd found the small amount of courage inside themselves to leave home would be. But Ruby had with her what another may not - she had her faithful partner, Rocket, as graceful and energetic as the next Glaceon one would come across but with his own perks of clumsiness and frailty. She had the will and drive one needed in order to carry out her task which was the one thing she lacked. Closing her eyes for a brief moment, though the girl had never been remotely religious, Ruby whispered words in her head to Lugia, Ho-oh and any other legendary she could think of at that moment for she knew that they might be her only hope for something more.
The train rolled into the station more or less on time. Ruby held her breath for a mere moment, nodded towards Rocket who was seated beside her, his fur glistening in the late afternoon sunshine and headed for the train.
Although the Magnet train was of top quality, the ride to Ruby's destination would still take a considerable amount of time, four hours tops.
The carriage the young girl had entered was nearly empty, with an older lady dozing in her seat and a young man with a creme coloured Pokemon seated next to him were the only occupants.
Ruby smiled to herself as she saw the man's eyes widen when Rocket sauntered past him and his Pokemon, jumping gracefully onto the red velvet seat where Ruby had just seated herself but knocking his small, black nose on the booth table.
Ruby let out a giggle and Rocket's eyes turned cold as he glared at his trainer.
"Sorry Rocky," Ruby whispered. When she'd composed herself, she held her palm out to the icy Pokemon beside her. She let out a small sigh of relief when Rocket very quickly mimicked the motion of his trainer, placing his paw in her hand. A sign of respect and friendship between the pair and the only thing Ruby was thankful for that her grandfather had taught her and Rocket. Ruby did not realise how important respect was when entering a partnership with a Pokemon. These creatures had the power to do much harm a person, especially a defenseless young girl such as Ruby.
One person who did understand the risks involved in the partnership was the young man whose jaw had dropped the instant he had spotted Ruby's ice type Pokemon.
Sven Black was a Pokemon trainer and budding artist. Though his artwork was yet to appear in any magazines or galleries, Sven was dedicated to his work and to his Pokemon. The flouncing female Meowth who sat next to him, a member of Sven's team for quite some time now, had picked up a few of Sven's own unusual habits, as well as his ordinary nineteen year old male ones, which seemed unfortunate for the girlish Meowth. Fortunately, she seemed to only copy Sven's eating and sleeping habits.
Without a sound, the young man rummaged through his bag that sat at his feet, pulling out a small sketch pad and a pencil. He proceeded to sketch the unfamiliar Pokemon, trying to capture its sense of gracefulness among the chaos. He hoped his quick glances to his left were not noticeable to the Pokemon's trainer, at least not until he had finished his sketch.
To Sven's dismay, Ruby saw what he was doing. She refrained from saying anything until the unfamiliar young man seemed to have finished.
"Never seen a Glaceon before?" Ruby's voice was only just heard above the loud whistling of the train's horn as it chugged out of the station. Sven, a surprised look on his face, stared at Ruby. "I know he's meant to be kinda rare," Ruby continued. Rocket twitched slightly as Ruby stroked one of his blue diamond shaped ears affectionately.
"Never seen one o' 'em up close before," Sven's strange accent filled the cabin, along with the older lady's sudden snoring and the chugging of the train's wheels.
Sven stood himself up and made his way over to Ruby's booth, seating himself opposite Ruby and Rocket. He placed a scruffy and worn looking notebook on the table that separated them. Ruby gasped as her eyes scanned the off white paper. Sven's hurried sketch of Rocket held something more than being just a drawing, Ruby could see that. Rocket placed his paws on the table, staring at the sketch.
"You're really good!" Ruby exclaimed. Sven just smiled before he carefully ripped the sketch out of the book before handing it to Ruby.
"I'm Sven," He nodded towards the girl. "An' if I'm that good, then yer the only one t' notice," His hearty laugh echoed around them.
"Surely not," Ruby replied, staring longer at the sketch, grinning. "Thanks very much, I'm Ruby."
Sven bowed his head briefly before he motioned to his feline Pokemon to join him. The Meowth gracefully made it to his shoulder, mewing her hello in a quiet voice.
"So, where yer headed? No offence but yer don' seem like a trainer with a lot of experience," Sven smile told Ruby he didn't mean anything by it.
"That noticeable, huh?" Ruby blushed crimson.
Sven laughed again. "Nuh uh, jus' a guess."
Ruby spent the first hour of the train ride talking to Sven. He turned out to be an experienced trainer hailing from Olivine city, having several Pokemon at his disposal including a Flaaffy and a Houndoom. Having competed in the league held last year and not receiving a respectable placing, he decided to pack up and head for the Kanto region. Sven was going to try and make something of his artwork.
Many other travelers boarded the train at the rural stops, all with a variety of exotic Pokemon, some Ruby had never laid eyes upon before. Sven was frantically trying to sketch them all in his secretive way. He succeeded this time with no other passengers noticing Sven.
Ruby would be sad to leave behind Sven and his unusual Meowth. For the time they had spent together, Ruby had felt as if she wasn't alone in her journey - that it wasn't just a waste of time, like Grandpa Pryce would have said. Sven had told her that was what they all had in common, trainers. Though there were few nowadays, they all held a passion for Pokemon and adventure. It was what made them who they were and Sven truly believed that, even though he wasn't the best trainer or even fully committed to his training, his young mind obsessed with pencils and perfecting his sketching. What he was committed to was his Pokemon and Ruby admired that.
When the time came, both Sven and Ruby craned their necks, eager to catch a sight of their destination - Saffron city. Tall buildings towered around the station that the Magnet train pulled into. It was bustling with people, more so than Goldenrod's only station. Ruby gasped in awe at the sight until she could see no more, the train had finally stopped in the station, the horn tooting loud and clear.
Making sure Rocket kept close to her side, Ruby followed Sven out of the train's automatic doors. A blast of humid air shot right in her face, rustling her dark hair. Ruby blinked a few times before she looked at Sven.
"Sure you'll be alright, findin' yer aunt's place?" Sven asked. The pair made their way off the platform.
"Yeah, I think I'll be okay," Ruby replied, checking that the Glaceon was still following. The last thing she needed was Rocket disappearing in the bustling crowd.
"Well then, I'm gonna head straight for the nearest route, never much been one for the city," Sven laughed. "Good luck out there Ruby," he grinned, hoisting his bag on his shoulders. "But I'm sure yer won't need it," With one last smile, Sven, with Meowth on his shoulder, turned and left. Ruby watched him disappear in the crowd. The first friend she'd made on her journey, she hoped she'd meet up with him again one day.
A determined look on her face, Ruby called to Rocket before they headed for the opposite exit. Ruby pulled the Saffron city postcard from her bag, flipped it over and read the address on the back. Hopefully her aunt's house wasn't too hard to find.