"Ooooh! Too cute!" May giggled and looked at my Zigzagoon, McZagger. "You ready for this?" I nodded.

"Torchic, use Scratch!" The girl across from me shouted. My voice was barely a murmur.

"Watch out." McZagger zigzagged to his left, then right, avoiding the Torchic's scratch. "Now."

McZagger dashed towards Torchic and rammed the side of his body into the small bird.

"Gah! Torchic, hit it with Scratch!" The orange thing hobbled off the ground and jumped towards my monster. It aimed its webbed foot at him and landed a scratch on top of Zigzagoon.

"Do it." While Torchic was recovering, Zigzagoon tackled the back of his foe's head. The chick flew and landed at May's feet.

"Torchic!" The Mon hobbled onto its small feet. It had a few bruises, but the fire in it was unmistakable. "Growl!"

Torchic let out an adorable sound. I looked down at McZagger, who was pawing at my leg, begging for attention.

That went right over his head… I nodded at the rodent, who seemed to understand the message. It zigged and zagged towards the opponent, running headfirst into its small form. Torchic planted into the ground headfirst, unconscious.

"Torchic, you did well…" May took out a ball and called Torchic back. "You're pretty good, guy! What's your name, anyway?" She began to list off a bunch of random names, such as Landon, Terry, Sean, Seth, and Tom. I simply shook my head no.

I reached into my shirt pocket and pulled out my trainer card. I handed the small piece of plastic to the girl.

"Hey, we should be rivals… Brendan?" I nodded. She handed the card back to me. "All right! It's decided! You and I will be rivals, Brendan! We'll strive to become better than the other! We'll be each other's goal!"

I simply nodded again.

"You really don't care for words, do you?" I shook my head and shrugged. "No matter, I suppose. Let's head back to dad."

Professor Birch eyed up our Pokémon and murmured to himself. McZagger investigated all sorts of things around the lab, while Torchic watched him curiously.

"Hm. Yes, I can tell that they're growing already," Birch stated. "They're both on track to become quite strong."

"Dad, how'd I lose to Brendan?" May asked. "I've been a trainer longer."

"Who's to say?" The professor replied. "A win's still a win, right? This should just strengthen your resolve to improve, right?"

"Yeah, I suppose you're right… okay! I'm gonna beat you next time, Brendan!" I chuckled a bit as she reached into her bag. "Here. It wouldn't be fair if I didn't even the playing field, so take these Poké balls."

I offered my hand and May placed five balls into my hand. I didn't feel like taking my bag off my back, so I popped them into my pocket.

"If I may recommend it, your father is in Petalburg City as the gym leader. You should start there!" Professor Birch chimed in. "It's just west of Oldale Town."

I nodded simply and turned to leave.

"Brendan!" May called. "I'll beat you there. Don't keep me waiting!" May sprinted out the door ahead of me, Torchic already on her shoulder. The professor scratched his head. I signalled for McZagger to leave, and my partner heeled at my feet.