"So, um… Just what is that thing?"

My mother laughed, pushing the little pink plant-like thing into my arms. "A Hoppip, kiddo," she said with an amused smile. "I would've thought you knew."

I didn't respond, silently taking the wriggling Pokémon from her arms. I looked down at it with a small frown, feeling my nose tickle slightly. I wrinkled my nose, taking in a deep breath…

And I sneezed.

"Ugh…" I wiped my nose, letting go of the small Pokémon immediately. It hopped gracefully to the ground and shot me an angry look before sticking his tongue out at me and hopping away.

"Mom, I allergic to it," I complained, sniffing. My mother only laughed loudly and patted my shoulder.

"I wish you luck, then," she said simply before walking off towards the kitchen.

I watched her go off exasperatedly, biting the inside of my cheek. "What am I supposed to do now?" I called, my voice weak.

"You have your things ready!" I heard her call. "Just go ahead! Have fun!"

I stared at the ceiling blankly, a part of me wanting to drop to the ground and roll around in frustration. I wasn't ready at all. A week after that little talk I had with my mother, she found out about my plan to perfect my training. She tried convincing me that wasn't possible, but I had refused to listen or give in. A bit later, she spun up some crazy plan to get me to travel around, an offer she made sure I couldn't resist. She claimed that she had a friend in Solaceon Town that could teach me all there is to know about Pokémon. I had assumed she was bluffing, but it couldn't hurt to try – even if it probably would.

My mother's ideas were just as stupid as my Pokémon, which was now sniffing my shoes curiously. I picked Hoppip up from its green sprouts and whirled it over my shoulder, hearing it cry out angrily. I ignored its cries and made my way to my room, grabbing the bag my mother had packed me and heading for the door. I was just getting there, however, when Hoppip wriggled out of my grasp and latched itself onto my face. I tumbled back, letting out a few loud sneezes, and fell with a small thud. Hoppip laughed and started to run away, until I reached out just in time to grab onto its sprouts once again and pull him back. I stood up again and dangled Hoppip in front of my face, giving it the sternest look I could manage.

"You're coming with me whether you like it or not," I said firmly, poking the struggling Pokémon on the forehead with a finger. Hoppip let out an annoyed breath and looked away, nodding slightly. I took that gesture as a yes and dropped Hoppip to the ground.

And with that settled, we left home.

._._.

After leaving my home and heading out into nature, which I disliked as is, I started to realize something.

I had no idea where I was going.

In fact, the only thing I knew location-wise was that I was in Sinnoh, and I had just left Sandgem Town. That was basically it. I also knew that the next town was due north, whatever that town was. I wasn't even sure I was going north.

I looked around at my surroundings. Trees and tall grass. That's all I saw.

I sighed and crashed to the ground.

"Let's take a break," I muttered to Hoppip, who reluctantly nodded and hopped onto my head. I let out a loud breath, holding my node to keep a sneeze in. I was pretty sure Hoppip only stayed so close because I was allergic her – or whatever it was. Its voice was pretty feminine, so I decided to stick with "her".

"So," I began, feeling awkward for talking to a Pokémon. I knew I would have to deal with it, but still. "… Would you mind doing a bit of training with me?"

"Hop?" she asked, looking at me with wide, yellow eyes.

I sighed, and covered my face with my hands. I noticed that everything Hoppip said was a question. She was either playing with my mind, or very stupid. I was starting to think it was both.

I stood up and nodded to myself, feeling Hoppip tighten her hold on my head.

"Let's get to it, then," I said in the brightest tone I could manage, making my way to a close patch of tall grass. I was steeping foot into its leafy depths when a relatively strong breeze swept across the field and took my Hoppip with it. I blinked, watching Hoppip fly away with a loud shriek. It took me a second to react, and sheepishly ran after the thing. Hoppip looked terrified, rising higher into the air, and I could only watch in slight despair as she flew over the trees and out of sight.

I got the strangest feeling that this would be happening a lot.

._._.

After a few minutes of searching, I concluded that Hoppip was gone and I could never get her back.

'A shame, but I can live with it…'

I turned around and tried finding the path I had gone in when I heard a shrill scream that sounded a lot like Hoppip. I pursed my lips in annoyance but ran in the direction of the shout. It didn't take long for me to spot the bright pink ball that was Hoppip, who was on the head of a confused-looking blond girl. I let out a sigh, weary of having to talk to another person, but made my way to them. When the girl caught sight of me her eyes brightened and she grinned.

"So, I'm guessing the thing on my head is yours?" she asked loudly as I approached her. Hoppip looked relieved to see me and jumped onto my head in a single jump.

I only nodded as she gasped loudly and stared in awe at Hoppip. I could obviously see this girl was a newbie, or something. Who else could get so excited over a stupid Pokémon?

"Wow, I've never seen a Hoppip in the flesh before," she said fondly, beaming up at my Pokémon. Hoppip shot her an open grin and shuffled on my head, causing me to sneeze.

"Yup, she's quite a gem," I muttered, wishing I could just throw the annoying little thing onto the ground. The longer I felt her warmth on my head the more annoyed – and stuffy – I grew.

"So, what's her name?" I loved how she didn't ask for my name first.

"I haven't thought of one yet," I mused, shrugging. The girl looked surprised.

"But Hoppip must be really easy to name! How about something like Hop or Skip?"

"Uh, no."

"… Jubilee? Fluff?"

"… Nope."

"Trill, Glide?"

"… No."

The girl let out a large groan. "You're making this difficult. What ideas do you have?"

"Hoppip doesn't need a nickname," I said simply, starting to walk off. "And I don't need help from strangers. See you."

"Hey, you can't just leave without a formal battle!" she called angrily. "That's not how a real trainer acts!"

At that, I turned around and shot her a glare. I didn't need to know that. It only reminded me of how unprepared I was. I decide right then that I would beat this girl's Pokémon right here and now just so she could shut the hell up.

"Alright," I said flatly. "Let's get this over with."

The girl scoffed. "You sure aren't much of a trainer if you're not excited," she said pointedly. "You won't be able to beat me or anyone like that. Ever."

I only glared at her and placed Hoppip on the ground.

At that moment, I decided that I hated trainers. Especially happy-go-lucky-ones like her.

That would make it a bit more satisfying when I defeated every one of them.