Cherrygrove City was a little less than an hour's walk from New Bark Town, but Kris had never minded the distance. It gave her an excuse to get outside and exercise, and there was always something more interesting to do Cherrygrove City than there was in New Bark Town. Though the day was still chilly and Teddy had settled in for a nap, the warmth radiating from his small body kept her comfortable as she strolled along the road.
The walk was uneventful; though she'd had to skirt through some tall grass a few times, she'd thankfully avoided any encounters with wild pokémon. Teddy's nose twitched as they entered the small city, and he awoke with a small cry of excitement. "It's so big! Where are we?"
"We're in Cherrygrove City." Kris answered. "But we won't be staying here for very long. Professor Elm said that the friend he wants me to go see lives on Route 30."
"Oh…"
Kris made her way through the streets of the city, her pace slowing as she passed the Pokémon Center. Her thoughts turned to Mrs. Lowe's son Ethan, and a small shiver raced up her spine as she remembered his Marill.
"Are you all right?"
Kris shook her head, dismissing the thoughts from her head as she approached Route 30. "I'm fine." she said, glancing at the branching paths ahead of her. "Um…"
"Don't you know which way to go?"
Kris bit her lip, picking her way through a small patch of grass. "I've never been this way before…"
Suddenly, a flock of Pidgey erupted from the grass immediately in front of her, causing Kris to jump and cry out with shock. They flew off as quickly as they'd appeared, and Kris let out a long, slow breath. In her arms, Teddy was trembling like a leaf, and she petted his head softly to soothe him.
He quickly calmed down, but still seemed shaken. "Let's go that way." he said, pointing towards the left path. Kris didn't argue; it looked like that way was more well-traveled, and it seemed more sensible that an associate of Professor Elm's would live in an easily accessible area. She quickly set on her way down Teddy's chosen path. They walked in silence for a few minutes before Teddy let out a small sigh. "I'm sorry…" he said meekly. "I…I got scared."
Kris paused, confused. "Why should you be sorry? They startled me too."
"No, I mean…I was scared you were going to make me battle."
Kris took in a slow breath as the realization of what Teddy was actually confessing washed over her. "You're scared to battle?" Teddy lowered his head shamefully, and Kris gently cuddled him closer.
"Well, not exactly scared, but…you're not mad?"
"Why would I be?"
"Because you're a trainer, and I'm your pokémon."
Kris smiled down at him. "Yeah, but I can understand you, remember? If you don't want to tell me why you don't like battling, you don't have to, but I'll always be here to listen to you. I promise."
Teddy gave a tiny smile in return, his face shining with gratitude. "Thank you."
"It's the least I can do." Kris said as she began walking again. "After all, we are partners." The route ahead of her widened a bit, and Kris could see a few trainers up ahead. She could feel Teddy tense up in her arms, but she Kris carefully managed to sneak around them for about twenty minutes, until she happened to glance over toward the lower path.
"What is it?" Teddy asked when he heard Kris give a small groan.
"We went the wrong way." Kris answered glumly as she stared down the steep hillside at a small house.
Teddy grumbled, but said nothing as Kris turned around and retraced her steps. The sun was starting to sink in the sky as Kris finally approached the house she'd seen earlier, and Teddy was fidgeting with impatience.
"Sorry, Teddy – I'll try and make this quick." Kris apologized as she rang the bell. A tall elderly man opened the door and started at her for a moment, then smiled and opened it wider.
"Ah, you must be Kris! Professor Elm emailed me about you. Come in, come in!"
Kris gladly took the man up on his offer, hurrying into his home with Teddy hot on her heels. She rubbed her arms, trying to get some feeling back in her fingers as she looked around. It was a tiny home, and another old man was sitting nearby, looking over some notes. She smiled at him when he looked at her, but she was interrupted by the first man, who she could only assume was Mr. Pokémon himself. "This is what I wanted to show to Professor Elm – I think it's a pokémon egg!" he exclaimed, thrusting the egg into Kris' arms. "Please, have him take a look at it!"
Kris looked at the thing in her arms, completely puzzled. She'd never seen an egg this big, nor one with such strange patterns on it. Small red and blue triangles were all over the shell, and the egg itself was warm to the touch. Somehow it just felt alive, even though Kris knew the statement was redundant.
"Young lady…Kris, was it?"
Kris turned, seeing the other man had made friends with Teddy. "Yes?"
"This is your Cyndaquil, correct?"
"Yup! His name's Teddy. I just got him this afternoon from Professor Elm."
"Just this afternoon?" the man repeated, raising an eyebrow. "That's rather surprising; he seems to be very close to you already."
Kris blushed and put a hand behind her head. "Oh, thank you, Mr…"
"Oh my, how rude of me." the man said, walked up to her and extending his hand. "My name is Oak. I'm a professor from Kanto."
Kris shook his hand firmly. "I've heard of you…you're the one who developed the Pokédex!"
"Yes, that is correct." Professor Oak said, nodding. "Actually, I would like to speak to you about that."
"What? Why?"
"Y'see young lady," Mr. Pokémon cut in, "Professor Oak is a great judge of character when it comes to potential trainers. Every kid he's handpicked to give a pokédex to has gone on to do great things."
"I'm not some sort of clairvoyant, Mr. Pokémon." Oak protested. "I just recognize when trainers care about and have bonded with their pokémon. And I can tell, Kris," he continued, turning to her, "that your Cyndaquil is already very close to you. And for having only received him this afternoon, that's quite impressive."
Kris put a hand behind her head and blushed. "I haven't done anything special." she protested.
"Regardless, I think that you have a lot of potential as a trainer, Kris." Oak said, holding out a small red device. "I would like to give you a Pokédex."
Kris hesitantly took the small device. She'd heard tales of the device and its owners, but until now had never really believed them. After all, a handheld computer couldn't possibly have the capacity to give two boys from Professor Oak's hometown the things it took to become Champions; there had to have been something more to them, and Kris was certain that, whatever it was, she lacked it. And yet, here she was, staring down at the thing itself. It shook slightly in her hands as she stared at it in awe, and she glanced back up at Professor Oak. "A P-Pokédex?" she stammered. "For me?"
Professor Oak nodded. "Yes, Kris. For you." He smiled and placed a hand on her shoulder. "I know it will be useful to you. Now, if you both will excuse me, I must go to Goldenrod City. They've put me on a radio show, and it's not much good if I'm not there for it."
"Right, then." Mr. Pokémon said, getting up. "I'll show you out. Kris, thank you very much for stopping by."
Kris nodded, carefully placing the egg in her bag and making sure it was padded. "I'm sure that Professor Elm will be really interested in this." she said, smiling. "I'll get it back to him now. Goodbye!"
"Goodbye, my dear. And don't hesitate to stop by any time you like!" Mr. Pokémon offered. "A friend of Professor Elm's is a friend of mine!"
Kris smiled again. "Thank you very much." she said. "And thank you too, Professor Oak."
"It was my pleasure." Oak assured her. "Now, I really must dash." With that, he pulled a pokéball out of his coat. He released an Abra from it, then took its hand. "Teleport, please, Abra," he said, "to Goldenrod City." And just like that, they were gone.
Kris looked down at Teddy. "Well, we'd better get back too." Teddy nodded, but they hadn't taken a single step before Kris' phone began to ring. "It's Professor Elm. I hope I didn't take too long getting here." She quickly flipped the phone open and held it to her ear. "Sorry I took so long, Professor, but –"
"There's no time for buts!" the professor nearly shouted. He sounded positively frantic. "You must come back to the lab immediately! A pokémon has been stolen!"
"What?" Kris yelped. "Stolen?"
"Yes! There's no time to explain any further – please, just get back here as soon as you possibly can!"
"Yes sir!" Kris hung up and scooped Teddy up in her arms. "Sorry, Teddy, but we have to hurry! A pokémon has been stolen from the lab!"
Teddy looked worried, but he nodded. "I understand – let's go!"
Kris ran back toward Cherrygrove as fast as her legs could carry her, and she reached the city within half an hour. She sprinted through the streets, not stopping for anyone until she neared the entrance to Route 29. She skidded to a stop, seeing a familiar mop of red hair coming towards the city. "You don't think, Teddy…"
"Maybe." Teddy whispered. "Didn't you say you saw him sneaking around outside the lab when I asked you about where we were going?"
"Yeah. There's only one way to find out." Kris said. Steeling herself, she walked briskly towards the route, her head held high. She could feel Teddy shaking slightly in her arms, and she held him a little tighter. They mustn't be afraid. This was, after all, a public thoroughfare.
Kris didn't get to say anything before the red haired boy stopped in front of her. He glared at Teddy, and Kris could feel him begin to shake harder. "You got a pokémon from the lab?" he spat.
"What of it?" Kris demanded. "I've got just as much a right to have a pokémon as anyone."
"I just can't believe a weakling like you managed to get a pokémon." he sneered. "Look at it – it's trembling so hard it can't even walk."
"His name is Teddy, and he happens to be shivering because he's cold." Kris shot back.
The boy raised an eyebrow. "A fire type? Cold?"
"I don't have time to deal with you." Kris snapped. "Let us pass. The professor asked me to come back to the lab."
"No doubt to help solve the case of the stolen pokémon."
Kris froze, and she could feel Teddy tense up as well. "How do you know about that?"
"The whole town is abuzz about it." the boy said, casually taking out a pokéball and bouncing it lightly in his hand. "All ten of them. They can't believe something like this could happen."
Kris eyed the small red and white ball in the boy's hand suspiciously. "Where did you get that?" she demanded.
The boy caught the ball and gripped it tightly. "I'll tell you what." he said, his voice suddenly serious. "If you can beat me in a battle, I'll tell you my name."
"I didn't ask for your name, I asked where you got the pokéball." Kris spat.
"Send out your pokémon. Or is he too scared to fight?"
"K-Kris," Teddy whispered, "I know that pokéball. That's Toto's – this boy stole Toto!"
Kris grimaced, but set Teddy down on the ground. "Sorry, Ted – looks like you're going to have to battle."
The boy sneered. "Apologizing to your pokémon for making it battle? You are weak. I'll show you real power! Go, Totodile!"
"Teddy! We haven't got much choice – you have to battle!"
Teddy held his ground as the boy's Totodile emerged. Kris thought that it was a mean-looking thing, growling as it came out of its pokéball. She'd heard most Totodile were playful and fun-loving. This one was obviously an exception.
The Totodile snarled again. "Oh, this will be good. I get to battle you and that stupid killjoy of a professor isn't here to hold me back."
Teddy's whole body was trembling so badly that Kris was ready to call off the match. His flames ignited, but they were weak and sputtering. "I don't want to fight you, Toto."
"You never did! You knew I'd always win!" the Totodile shouted, lunging at Teddy claws first. "And this time, you can't run away!"
"Teddy, use Smokescreen!"
Teddy quickly spat out a cloud of black smoke. Totodile landed and scratched fiercely, but Teddy had used the smoke as cover to get out of the way. He appeared out of another part of the smoke, tackling Totodile and catching it off guard.
"Scratch again. And don't miss this time." the boy ordered.
Kris shuddered when she looked at his face. He was so serious, so focused on the match, that his face barely looked human anymore. It was like he was a demon, concerned only with raw power.
Teddy cried out as the Totodile's claws raked across him, and he used another Tackle to push him off. It had landed a good blow, and Teddy seemed to be out of breath. "Kris!" he called out. "I c-can't beat him!"
"You can do it, Teddy!" Kris called. "Use Smokescreen again!"
"Oh no you don't," Totodile growled, "you're not getting away this time!"
Teddy blew out another cloud of smoke, but Totodile got in another Scratch before Teddy could disappear. Teddy shoved back with another Tackle and escaped into the smoke.
"Where are you?" Totodile muttered, trying to see.
"Come on, you weakling." the boy snapped. "It's in there somewhere, just Scratch it!"
Kris' hands balled into fists at her side. "We'll show you who's really weak! Tackle again, Teddy!"
"Behind you, Totodile!"
Totodile whirled around, claws out, but Teddy ducked under them and delivered one final Tackle attack. Totodile reeled backward, thrown off balance, and finally fell down on its back. As the smoke cleared, Teddy was badly scratched up, but standing victorious over the Totodile. Kris was already over in front of the boy, grabbing him by his jacket.
"All right, out with it." Kris demanded. "Who are you? Where did you get that Totodile?"
"Get off of me." the boy growled, shoving her away. "I earned that Totodile, it's mine. Why would I steal a pokémon so weak it would lose to an even weaker pokémon like yours?" he reasoned, calling back the Totodile.
"How can you call Teddy weak after we beat you?" Kris asked, scooping up Teddy in her arms. "And you still haven't told us your name. Those were your terms!"
The boy grimaced. "Right. My name was the only condition, and not a scrap else." He crossed his arms. "Silver."
"Silver? What kind of name is –"
"I'll be leaving now." the boy – Silver – interrupted. He pushed past Kris and began to continue on his way.
Kris watched him go, seething. "Oooh, that guy makes me so mad!"
"K-Kris?"
Kris looked down and her mind immediately turned away from Silver. "Oh, Teddy, I'm sorry! Let's get you to the Pokémon Center. Then we'll head back to Professor Elm's lab as quick as we can."
Teddy nodded, then rest his head against her chest. He still seemed worried, but Kris was glad he was finally able to relax. The Pokémon Center was nearby, and thankfully, Teddy's injuries were minor. When he was all patched up, he allowed Kris to scoop him up in her arms again and race back to New Bark Town.
"Professor Elm!" she called out as she through the entrance to town. The professor was standing outside his lab, wringing his hands as he spoke with a policeman. The professor's face brightened when he saw Kris, but the policeman's brow furrowed.
"Who are you? The culprit come back?"
"It's all right, officer!" Professor Elm quickly assured him. "This is Kris! The girl I told you about!"
The officer's face immediately softened, and he tipped his hat at Kris. "My mistake, miss. The suspect is a trainer about your age, you see."
"A trainer – does he have long red hair?"
"Why, yes." Professor Elm said, blinking in surprise. "But, how did you – "
"I battled him in Cherrygrove! He said his name was Silver, but he took off."
"Silver, eh?" the policeman said, rubbing his chin. "No last name?"
"Not that he gave me."
"Well, it's more than we had to go on before." the policeman sighed. "Thank you for your information. I'll head back to the department and see what we can find. Can't be too many kids around with a name like Silver." With another tip of his hat, he walked away, leaving Kris standing with the professor outside his lab.
Professor Elm sighed and groaned. "What a day." he muttered, collapsing into a lawn chair. He quickly brushed himself off and stood back up, stretching his arms. "So, Kris, what did Mr. Pokémon have for me?"
"Oh! Um, this." Kris said, setting Teddy down gently and rummaging through her bag. The egg had been cushioned quite well, but Kris still handled it as delicately as she could, and the professor did the same as he began to examine it.
"Hm…looks to be a regular pokémon egg to me." he finally said. "But I'll get back to Mr. Pokémon myse – Kris, what's that?" he suddenly asked, pointing at the corner of a small red device that poked out of Kris' bag.
"You mean this?" Kris asked, sliding her pokédex out. "It's a pokédex. Professor Oak was at Mr. Pokémon's house, and he gave it to me."
Professor Elm nearly dropped the egg in shock. "Professor Oak gave that to you? Kris, that's amazing! Professor Oak is a flawless judge of character when it comes to potential trainers – he must see a lot in you!"
Kris scuffed the ground with her foot. "Yeah, that's what Mr. Pokémon said."
"Kris, I think you should take the Gym challenge."
Kris blinked. Even Teddy looked up at the professor incredulously. "What?"
Professor Elm nodded. "I think you may just have what it takes. You'll need pokéballs, of course – but that can wait until morning. It's getting dark. Why don't you come back to my lab tomorrow and you can begin your journey?"
Kris looked down at Teddy, who looked back up at her. She couldn't gauge Teddy's reaction, but Professor Elm was right about one thing: it was getting dark out. "Come on, Teddy. Let's go home." Kris said. "Thank you, professor. We'll consider it."
"All right. Good night, Kris."
"Goodnight, Professor." Kris said, heading back towards her house. Teddy followed closely at her heels.
"Gym challenge? That sounds dangerous."
"It could be." Kris admitted. "But you know…we're never going to accomplish anything in this town. That kid – Silver – may be a jerk, but he was right about one thing."
"What's that?"
"This is a really small town." Kris walked past her house and on to the small beach that formed the town's eastern border. She stood on the sand with her hands behind her back and stared out over the water. "I've always wanted to get out – to see the world, go to new places, meet new people. I know there's more to the world than this."
Teddy came up beside her and also looked out over the water. He was silent for a while, but when he spoke, his voice was serious. "If it's what you want, then I'll go too."
Kris looked down at Teddy and smiled gently. "Thanks, Teddy." she said, turning back. "Come on, let's get inside. I'm sure Mom can't wait to meet you."
