Disclaimer: I own neither Pokémon nor its characters
Chapter 9: a look into the past
After breakfast, we checked with Nurse Joy and headed out immediately. The Rout was long, so there was plenty of time to talk. I had my Pokémon out (except for Zubat, who tended not to listen to me even though I took good care of it), and Aqua had a few of hers out too.
"You guys keep your Pokémon out?" Red asked
"Yea, it's good for company" I said
"They sure are" Leaf said with a happy sigh "aren't they red?"
"Uh, yea, defiantly" he said. There was something wrong, his usual collective attitude was now scattered and distracted
"What's up Red?" Aqua asked the question I was thinking
"Well…I'd rather not talk about it" he said
"Come on Red, it's an interesting story!" Leaf said
Red sighed "well, being with Pokémon reminds me of how I got here" he said
"Wait, you're not from Kanto?" I asked
"He's from a nearby region, similar in many ways, but not exact" Leaf said
"Well, why don't you tell us about it?" I asked.
"Well, ok" he said with a sigh "I lived with my parents, both of whom love Pokémon. When I was five, a group of bandits forced us out of our house. My parents had been in another city that day, and my friend, who was watching me, tried to defend me. He was out matched, and was taken by them. He did, however, leave a poke ball behind. The poke ball had a note that said 'if found without a trainer, release Pokémon inside.' I did so, not knowing what it would do, and I found it had a Pikachu. I fully expected the Pikachu to run away, but he didn't, and instead, he looked at me. I had never been interested in Pokémon until I saw that Pikachu. I could tell it had been put through tough training, and I could tell it had a strong bond with my friend. It led me to the next town, where a group of travelers took me in. ever since then, I've loved being around Pokémon. I never found out where my parents were, or what happened to them, but after a few years, Pikachu disappeared. I assumed he ran away, being bored keeping me company. When I was old enough, I took a boat to Vermillion city. That's how I came to Kanto. I don't exactly remember how, but I ended up in Pallet town, and I stayed there. Even though I love Pokémon, I don't like keeping them out because I feel like they'll run away, and you still need them in sight to return them to the poke ball." Red said.
"Wow…so you've been through a lot" I said
"I suppose so. It's also why I want to become so powerful, so that I can defend others, instead of having to be defended." He replied.
Wow, that explained so much. Just then, we got to the end of the path "I think this is Saffron city" Leaf said, changing the subject.
"Then let's go" red said. The moment we stepped in, the gourd stopped us.
"Sorry, I can't let you through" he said
"Why not?" Aqua asked
"Just cant." He said "do you have any water on you?"
"Not really, sorry" I replied. Truth was, we only had enough for us, and only for one day.
"Ok, I still can't let you pass" he said
I saw red about to take out a Poke ball, but Leaf stopped him "let's just go you guys, we should find another way around" she said, walking out.
"Leaf, there isn't another way" Aqua said.
"Actually, there's a passage that runs under the city, we can get through that way" red said
"Oh…then let's go" she said.
After we went through the secret passage, there was another long, empty rout ahead. We walked for a little bit before I asked Leaf "so, what's your story?"
"Mines is a bit less dramatic" she said "I grew up in Pallet town. I wasn't really interested in Pokémon, but I liked being around people. Actually, I was best friends with Grey growing up. About five years ago, Grey didn't come over like normal. After a week, I went to see what was going on, and he was really mean to me. I never trusted anyone after that…except my mom, of course. I became lonely, and soon looked for other things to do. That's when I discovered how wonderful Pokémon really can be. A Pidgey had landed on my shoulder while I was looking in the water. At first, I absentmindedly shoed it away, but it came back. It had a berry in its mouth, which it dropped in front of me. This happened several times throughout the week, and I learned to love Pokémon because of it. Later on, after Professor Oak had convinced me to go to his lab, I found Red there, as well as a kid named Max. Max became Reds rival, and after a battle, took off with a Bulbasour. Red had already chosen Squirtle, so I got Charmander. Red was about to challenge me to a battle, but hesitated to pull out the poke ball. Instead of challenging me to a battle, he asked if I wanted to help him complete the Pokedex the professor gave us. That's when I found my new friend, and why I'm not shy anymore" she finished with a sigh.
"Wow, I couldn't imagine being abandoned like that" I said
"Well, we have each other now, and neither one of us wants to leave the other." Leaf said, looking at Red.
I was about to say something, but we had gotten to the city, and they went to go train. I talked to Nurse Joy about sleeping arrangements, and quickly went to bed. I wasn't sure what was next, but I knew it would be hard, and I fell asleep.
Another chapter done! I wanted to complete this chapter and upload it today to make up for not uploading one yesterday, so here it is! Also, I looked at the path for rout 5 and 6, and seeing how long they were, and how few events there was, I decided to put in Leaf and Red's back stories instead. Remember: I love criticism, reviews encourage me, and I'm open to input. Bye for now!