Chapter 9
In the Town of Pallet
Haru walked with a new pep in his step as he left the boat, Kayla and Connor trailing behind him. He looked out at the bustling town of Pallet and smiled.
"Hey." It was Connor. "We need to go see professor Oak before we can enter the pokemon league."
"Oh yeah." Haru said, remembering that he needed to get his pokedex to be able to be a true pokemon trainer. He turned around, hands behind his head. "Hey Kayla, are you out to become a pokemon trainer too?"
"No, I want to be a coordinator." She said. "I want to enter the Grand Festival and win this year."
Haru nodded and turned back around, enjoying the sea spray as he walked. Trainers ran along the path, playing with their pokemon, checking out shops and having small battles and Haru remembered he had to go heal Shade up. "Hey guys, can we stop by the Pokemon Center on the way to Professor Oak's lab?"
"Sure." Connor said with a yawn.
Kayla was distant as she stared out across the ocean.
"Hey look up there, in front of the Pokemon Center, there's a large group." Haru said running over to the gathering.
He blinked as he entered the circle and all he saw was a piece of paper. "Huh?" He asked. "It's just a piece of paper."
"Don't you know anything?" It was TJ's voice. "That's a flyer for the Viridian City Pokemon Tournament, duh."
Haru grabbed the flyer and looked at it closely. "Pokemon Tournament huh?" He said. "Sounds interesting."
"Don't even bother." TJ said, turning away. "I'm entering, which means you have no chance."
Haru held up a fist and shoved closer TJ, obviously angry. "Oh yeah!?" He yelled. "Says who?"
"Says me!" TJ pushed back, and then he noticed Kayla behind him. "Oh, so you're hanging out with this loser now? You've lowered your standards I see."
Haru couldn't take it he lost his temper and before he knew what he was doing he released his fist, slamming it into the bottom part of TJ's jaw with a satisfying crack. He got closer as TJ doubled over. "Don't you ever say that again." He said. "Or they'll be more where that came from." Behind him, Shade growled.
TJ crouched holding his jaw. Haru turned and brushed past Connor and Kayla. "Come on." He said and he left him, staring at him angrily as he did. Shade seemed content as he jogged along with Haru.
Connor finally caught up with him and he lowered his voice. "Hey, what was that? I didn't think you were the type of person to do something like that."
"Yeah, well he pissed me off." Haru said under his breath where Connor could barely hear. "Now the sooner we leave that behind the sooner we can get on with getting to professor Oak's lab."
Kayla just stared, feeling she shouldn't speak. Connor occasionally tossed a coin up in the air and caught it out of boredom.
Finally after what seemed like an eternity of silence they saw professor Oak's lab on the horizon, its windmill turning lightly in the breeze. It seemed much more tranquil and quiet, a snapshot of the old days of Pallet Town. Before it looked more like a city and less like a town.
He sighed as he reached forward and gripped the iron knocker which was in the shape of an Arbok, its tail wrapped around the handle.
He rapped hard against the heavy door and waited. The door swung open and a small man stepped out, eyeing him carefully. "Oh, it's another one of you trainers. You've come to receive your pokedex, have you not?"
"Yes." He said looking around at all the strange machines that made strange beeping sounds and held intresting items.
"What about yer friends?" He asked looking over at Connor and Kayla. "Do they need one too?"
"I do." Connor said, stepping forward and taking a pokedex.
"I don't." Kayla said. "I'm going to be a coordinator."
Professor Oak stared at her before grunting. "Nothing compares to the thrill of training." He said. "But to each his own I guess."
Haru reached for the pokedex as Professor Oak handed it to him but it was jerked away before he could take it. "Now with this pokedex comes a responsibility." He said. "You, among the thousands of other trainers out there, must complete this, and log every pokemon in it." He handed him the pokedex. "Only one boy has been able to do so, so far."
"Who was that?" Haru asked.
"A Mr. Ash Ketchum." Oak said. "Took him all of twenty years." He grunted. "But he did it, finally." The old man turned around. "No one has heard of him since the day, and there are many other pokemon waiting to be discovered. You could be a legend of your own."
Haru accepted the pokedex and the man retreated, walking toward the back room. "Make sure to close the door on the way out." He said and when he was farther away he lowered his voice. "He could be, he's got the feeling about him."
