BEEP!
BEEP!
BEEP!
BEEP!
An alarm sounded off inside the bedroom of a young lady. There were half unpacked boxes placed about the room and dirty clothing lay on the floor from previous days. The only exception to the mess was a lone book bag that had been packed the day before with supplies and clothing for a journey the girl was about to take. The girl herself had rolled over and placed a pillow on her head trying to drown out the noise, until finally sitting up and slamming her hand down on the alarm. "It's summer, why is that damned thing even going off?" she thought to herself as she let out a yawn and stretched. She peered through sleepy eyes for her calendar for some clearance, a huge red circle had been drawn around the date. It only took a few seconds before it clicked in her head and she quickly removed her blanket and raced for the bathroom.
The bathroom was attached to her bedroom and was just as messy. With makeup and hair products cluttering her sink it was a surprise she could find her hair brush at all. "Oh my Arceus! Today is the day!" She sang to herself as she tried to comb the tangled mess of long blonde hair and fix it into a single braid. She washed her face and brushed her teeth before removing her over sized t-shirt that had a picture of a vulpix and the words "What does the vulpix say?" as well matching pajama pants. She replaced them with her favorite pair of dark jean shorts, the bottoms slightly worn out, and a light blue tank top with some lace on top. Grabbing the bag she had previously packed and placing it over her shoulder before taking one last look in the mirror. Her braid lay on over her shoulder and her emerald eyes starred back at her with excitement. Today was finally the day.
She headed down stairs humming a small tune when she heard a familiar voice echo from the kitchen "Catherine? Is that you? I thought you were already gone." The young girl walked towards the kitchen confused as she looked at her mother. Her mother was in her late 30's but still had the beauty of a young lady. Her dark brown hair, which was tied neatly in a bun, had gray strands shining through and her eyes that mirrored Catherine's emerald ones had long since grown crows feet. Her mother was looking up at her with a questionable look "You do know what time it is, don't you?" she asked. Suddenly Catherine's eyes became wide with terror as she twirled to look at the kitchen clock, realizing that she had forgotten to reset her alarm.
"I'm late!" she exclaimed quickly grabbing an apple from the table and her pink over sized hoodie from the coat rack before racing out the door. "oh how could I forget to reset my alarm clock?! I've probably missed the lecture, if I return home without a pokemon..." she didn't bother to finish that though as she ran as fast as her legs could carry her to the laboratory. The lab was only a few blocks away but the time it took to get there had felt like forever. Catherine starred at the tinted doors, her hoodie in one hand and her book bag hanging from her shoulders. She reached for the handle but hesitated. "No... I have to do this..." She quickly opened the door and raced in.
The lab was much bigger then it appeared on the outside, the walls were pristine white and there were a few doors that lead to various places. The main room however had a few desks and science equipment as well as some safety posters on the wall, and chairs that once seated the future trainers. There had been lots and lots of chairs, but they were currently being folded up by some of the assistants that took care of the place while the Professor was out. One of them, an older woman with gray hair and a white lab coat looked at her and noticed her confusion. "You alright dear?" she asked as she walked over to her. She noticed the bag on her shoulder. "... You wanted to come for the lecture, I'm sorry dear Professor Birch has already left..." She placed a gentle hand on the girls shoulder "Maybe next year." Catherine hadn't said a word, in fact the sudden touch on her shoulder caused her to get angry. Her mother would never let her leave now. She turned and raced out tears welling up in her eyes, leaving the poor old lady confused as she watched her go.
Embarrassed and not wanting to hear her mother's lecture she decided to head for the forest instead. She knew it was dangerous to go without a pokemon but she knew some people went anyways. She wasn't sure where her feet were taking her, only that she wanted to get away. She had dreamed of being a pokemon trainer since she was little. Her mother however wasn't fond of pokemon and Catherine being her only child, was very protective of her. After years of begging she finally acknowledged Catherine's responsible and smart nature and said she could finally leave. If she returned back home, she'd have to restart the whole process again, probably never being able to go until she was 100. Once she felt she was far enough out she sat down against a tree laying her bag on the ground and putting her pink hoodie on. the shade in the forest made it colder, but it was quiet and peaceful. It was the perfect place to think, and although she would never admit this to her mother, she actually went to the forest often. She folded her legs and curled her arms around them, what was she going to do now?
Suddenly she heard a man scream, she lifted up her head in time to see a slightly overweight man running through the trees. He had dark brown hair and was wearing one of the white lab coats she had seen on the assistants a the laboratory. She then saw a young poochyena chase after him, she quickly stood up in shock. What should she do? But she didn't hesitate one that thought before she ran off after them, just in time to see the man getting cornered against a tree. "Help! Help! Someone Help!" he was screaming, his voice was a bit husky but was still soft for someone who was panicking. He then saw Catherine running after them "You there! In that bag! Hurry!" he said pointing to a bag that he must have dropped. The Poochyena sensing someone behind him turned and growled at her.
Scared Catherine slowly walked over to the bag, trying not to make any sudden movements. Those careful movements didn't matter though as the Poochyena started to charge for her! She quickly scrambled for the bag and tried to figure out what could help her when finally she fished out a pokeball and threw it without a thought. It flew in the air before opening and releasing a red light that hit the ground revealing a mudkip who was battle ready and quickly knocked the poochyena away from Catherine. She stood up as she watched them go into a stand still, what should she do? Then she realized she needed to make a command "Mudkip use water gun!" she shouted with a mix of fear and excitement. Sure enough the mudkip opened it's mouth and unleashed a powerful water gun straight at the mut who then ran away. Catherine raced towards the mudkip and picked him up in her arms "We did it!" she exclaimed happily twirling about, almost forgetting about the man. She turned to face him "Are you alright?" she asked as she set the mudkip down and walked over. He had since stood and wiped off some dirt from his coat.
Being closer she was able to get a good look at him, his dark brown hair wasn't messy but it still could use a good brushing and he had scruff growing on his chin. He had on tan shorts and sandals, which seemed very inappropriate for a lab assistant. Most of all, he looked familiar but Catherine couldn't remember why. "I'm fine thanks to you, you handled that battle well. How long have you been a trainer?" he asked as he picked up the pokeball and pressed the return button. A flash of red light hit the mudkip as it disappeared from site. He placed the pokeball back into his bag.
"I'm not..." She looked away embarrassed. "I missed the lecture Professor Birch was suppose to have today..." she let out a sigh why was she bothering him with her problems. "But that's not your problem. I'm glad your alright." She turned to leave she had no other reason to stay, but the man let out a hearty laugh which caused her to turn back around in confusion. He walked towards her and put a hand on her shoulder. "What's with people and putting hands on my shoulder?" she thought to herself.
Suddenly the reason he looked so familiar hit her. "I'm Professor Birch." He said and laughed again as Catherine covered her mouth in shock, she was face to face with with Professor Birch! "Come with me back to my lab, lets have that lecture shall we?" he said and started to walk back to his lab as if he was never attacked. Catherine stood there in shock for a few more moments before catching up with him, grabbing her bag as they passed. Was her adventure about to begin?