I still was feeling a little sorry for myself after having to say goodbye to Elliot, Jet, and Dragonite, but I had to pull myself together! I had a job to do! I had to find new Pokemon and strengthen my team! Vermillion was still a long way away, and Hoenn was even farther. It was nothing short of a minor miracle I managed to make it this far without any more additions to the team. I had heard of rookies that were carrying six Pokemon around with them.

So, I needed a new addition. I needed it fast. So, I started by exploring the water at the end of the bridge. There were a few heated battles between trainers taking place up ahead, but I wasn't that interested. Instead, I crouched at the river's edge, peering deep into the murky waters, expecting to see hundreds upon hundreds of Pokemon crawling or swimming deep underwater. But to my disappointment, all I saw was mud. Mud and weeds. My stomach churned unexpectedly and I had to back away. I had forgotten I was somewhat nervous around deep water.

"Bah!" I grunted in disappointment, falling back into a sitting position, whilst Meloi looked on, somewhat confused.

"Hey, kid!"

I hadn't noticed before, but there was an old man sitting at the bridge. He had a shock of white hair and a huge beard. He was fishing. "A…are you talking to me?" I called.

"Yeah!" the man had a rough, course way of speaking. "If ye wanna go catchin' water Pokemon, ye need a fishin' rod!"

"A fishing rod?" I stood up. "Wh…where would I get one of them?"

"Gotta buy 'em off specialists," the man said, tossing his lure back into the water. "And I warn ye, if you wanna good one, they don't come cheap."

I let out a groan. Really! Seriously? Was this happening? Thank you, universe. Thank you for throwing another huge block in my path. No-one told me you needed a freakin' fishing road to catch water Pokemon!

"And even if ye could get a fishin' rod, yer wasting your time fishin' round 'ere." The man said, half-heartedly casting his lure out further. "Ain't many good catches been seen around 'ere for a long time…I should know, I've been fishin' here for twenty odd years."

"So…the Pokemon here aren't that good?" I asked, feeling what little enthusiasm I had left slip away with that devastating news.

"Not unless yer content wi' hundreds o' Krabby or Magikarp or Horsea!" he said.

I didn't know what a Krabby or a Horsea was, but I did know what a Magikarp was. Possibly the weakest Pokemon in the world that evolved into the probably one of the strongest. If this was other circumstances, I would be tempted to catch a Magikarp and train it up into Gyarados. But I didn't have that kind of time. I needed a Pokemon that would get strong quickly!

"So…there really aren't any strong Water type Pokemon around here?" I asked the old man as I walked over to him, Meloi keeping to my heels.

"None." The old man said. He then looked at me. Now that I was closer, I saw this old man in a new light. His eyes were a brilliant sea blue, and just by looking at them, I could tell they were eyes that had seen many things, been through many experiences, both good and bad, in his many years. His face had the texture of leather, like it had been weather beaten by many years at sea…

"Why ye so keen on gettin' a water Pokemon anyway?" he asked.

"I only have one Pokemon," I indicated Meloi next to me. "I need a Pokemon that's strong against the types she's weak to."

The old man nodded. He then looked at Meloi, who was backing away slightly in the (scary) face of this new stranger. "A Mareep, eh? Ye don't see many of them 'round this region…" He reached his hand out to touch her.

"No! No!" I gasped. "Don't do that!"

I was too late. Meloi didn't like strangers at the best of times and for whatever reason, she definitely did not like this old man. The poor old guy got the best of her thundershock ability whilst I stood there in shame.

"Meloi!" I scolded her, trying to drag her away from the old man, forgetting all the static that had built up in her body and getting myself paralyzed in the process.

The old man didn't look too bothered by receiving an electric shock and just laughed it off. "Don't worry about it. I've been shocked by electric types more times than I can count. Haha! Ye know, kiddo? If ye get another Pokemon ye'll want to watch in case that ol' Mareep o' yer's don't get jealous!"

"I don't think it'll really matter," I said sadly, finally recovering from Meloi's paralysis attack. "I don't think I'll ever catch a Pokemon of my own."

"Ah, don't take that attitude kiddo," the old man laughed. "Catchin' Pokemon ain't rocket science."

"Hmph…" I snorted. "I can't just catch any old Pokemon and raise it; I need something that gets strong fast! I don't have time to train up a baby water Pokemon for months and months."

He laughed again. "Ah, kid. Ye remind me o' me when I was yer age."

"Eh?" I looked up at the old man.

"Yeah. When I was a kid, that's all I wanted to do. Catch strong Pokemon, win battles, get strong…all that stuff. Course, when ye look back on yer life afterwards, ye realise just how much o' yer life ye wasted doin' just that."

I frowned. "What do you mean?"

"Well, ye catch Pokemon, ye battle 'em, ye train 'em, you spend all that time doin' all those worthless thing's that ye forget what life's all about."

"Which is?"

The old man shrugged. "I can't tell ye the meaning o' life, lass. But, see me? I found what my life's all about. I was a hotshot trainer back in my day…but now I sail the seas with my water Pokemon. And I love it."

I gasped. "You're a water Pokemon trainer?"

"Got it in one, lass. That's how I know all about the water Pokemon 'ere." He indicated the rippling waters in front of us. "I'll tell ye somethin', lass. Ye should get one of them "baby Pokemon" as ye described 'em. I think it'd do ye good. It's a humblin' thing, raising a Pokemon from when it's a little 'un."

"But…but I don't have the time!"

"Kid, you got a whole year till the next championships."

"It's not the championships I'm aiming for!" I insisted. "I have a totally different reason for wanting to train Pokemon. Heh. I didn't even want to be a trainer."

"I see…" the old man observed. "So what're ye doing all the way out here then if you didn't wanna be a trainer?"

I sighed. Why did everyone want to know my business? I eventually settled for "I'm looking for someone."

A hint of a smile came over the old man's weather beaten face. "Lookin' for someone. Got it, lass."

I let out a long sigh. "Listen, could I borrow your fishing rod?"

"My fishin' rod? Now what would you want a lend o' that for?"

"I'm thinking…that maybe you're right…." I said. "Maybe I should raise one of these baby Pokemon."

The old man smiled. "Attagirl. But, don't be concernin' yerself with the ones that live round 'ere. What you need is something a little more challengin'. Come wi' me, lass. I'll show ye somethin'."

The old man was up and on his feet before I could even contemplate what had just happened. I quickly got up and chased after him, finding him alarmingly fast on his feet for an old man. Meloi trotted along behind me, totally oblivious to what was going on.

The old man led us to a little house at the outskirts of Cerulean City. It looked like any normal house apart from the fact there was a huge, deep pool, practically taking up the entire of his back garden. I wasn't sure what I was here for. The old man had been so insistent I had come to his house for something, and the closer I got to his house, the more I was beginning to convince myself that this was a bad idea.

I needn't have worried though. When I came in to his house, I felt instantly at home. The place was lovely and cool and refreshing, the décor light and airy, mostly blue, though and lots of pictures of seafarers and also, some gold medals hanging on the wall. But the first thing I saw was the Pokemon.

His house was full of Pokemon. And not just any Pokemon. Water Pokemon! Most of them I didn't know, but the ones I did recognise, I was in awe of! He had the tiny turtle Pokemon Squirtle, also known as one of the three Kanto starters! There was a Pokemon that looked suspiciously like an orange octopus, a yellowy starfish like Pokemon sat in the kitchen sink, a rounded blue Pokemon that resembled a tadpole, a fat yellow duck Pokemon waddled around the living room carpet, holding its head in its paws. And there were so many more! I was completely taken aback! Meloi was too, and she was making a steady growling noise. I quietened her by tossing a few berries and then turned to the old man.

"Wow! You have so many Pokemon, sir!"

"I've been to every corner of this region and almost every corner o' the other regions too!" he chuckled. "But this isn't what I wanted to show ye. Come out the back."

I followed him out the back, whilst muttering furious threats to Meloi that if she even so much as touched one of the old man's Pokemon, she would be confined to her Pokeball for the rest of the day. Of course, she didn't find that an attractive idea and shocked me instead. Grimacing in the face of my "spirited" Pokemon's attitude, we went outside to be faced with even more Pokemon.

"Wow…" I breathed out in the face of these very unusual Pokemon.

What looked like two giant walruses were facing me and Meloi. The Pokemon were mostly blue in colour, with a blubbery body and two long yellow tusks. Their rounded heads were accented by what looked like sea foam around their thick necks in a strange mane-like formation. I flipped open my Pokedex and pointed the scanner at one of them.

"Walrein, the Ice Break Pokemon. The two well-developed fangs can break a 10-ton iceberg with one hit. It can survive well in temperatures well below zero degrees with its thick layer of fat."

"Awesome…" I said, looking up at the old man.

"Yup! Caught myself a pair of Sealeo when I was sailing around Sinnoh, brought 'em home and whaddya know? They evolved and I soon got mysel' a couple of cutie baby Spheals!" He whistled loudly and all of a sudden three tiny Pokemon leapt out of the pool. They looked like round baby seals.

My heart melted. They were so cute! Which is unusual for me, as I'm not normally one of those girls who scream "cuuuuuute!" at every little thing they see. They had powder blue fur, and were oddly rounded, had stubby ears, small tusks, beige flippers and a little flat tail. They rolled around comically, reminding me of balls, and they clapped their tiny little flippers appreciatively every now and again.

I pointed my Pokedex scanner at one of the rounded baby seals.

"Spheal, the Clap Pokemon. Spheal moves more quickly by rolling than by walking. They are sometimes known to cross oceans atop icebergs."

"They're so cute!" I squealed, despite myself. Meloi frowned at me and thought about shocking me for my sudden display of affection, but thought better of it. The threat of Pokeball confinement still weighed on her mind, I reckoned.

"Aren't they just?" the old man grinned. "And this, lass, is what I wanted ye to see."

"Aww, I want one!" I grinned as one of the Spheals came rolling up to me to investigate, not even frightened by the presence of a stranger and a potentially hostile Mareep. "Where did you say you got them?"

"Sinnoh."

"Where's that?"

"Another region."

"Oh, GOD!" I called out dramatically, sending a squeaking Spheal rolling back to its parents. "Thank you very much, Fate!" I shouted to the sky. "You just looooove screwing me over, don't you?"

The old man smirked at my antics. "Listen, lass. I didn't bring you here just to show you them."

"Eh?" I was distracted from my "I defy you, stars!" Romeo and Juliet-esque moment. "You didn't?"

"Nope. I brought you here so ye can catch one."

"CATCH!" I gaped at him. "Are you serious?"

"Why not?" the old man looked at the three Spheals rolling around and playing with each other. "Once they evolve into Walrein, it'll be hell, lass. In the wild they live in packs, with the dominant male ruling them. Since two of the little 'un's here are boys, it'll cause some stress when they get bigger. I was gonna sell them off, but if one of them can go and help ye on your quest or whatever, I'd be happier. They're a dual Water and Ice type, so that should tide ye over!"

I was in total shock. I could barely speak. "M…mister…this is…"

"I know, lass, I know." He grinned.

"You're so generous! Thank you so much!"

"You're not getting 'em free, mind ye." He added. "I want ye to battle the one ye want. So I can see if yer a worthy trainer."

"Of…of course!" I said, almost bubbling with excitement. I was getting a Pokemon! A totally cute Pokemon that would evolve into something that looked as monstrous and as powerful as the Walrein! "B…but is it okay to separate them from their parents?" I asked him, a thought striking me.

"Yeah. They're young, but they're old enough to get out in the world. Go on, lass." He recalled the two Walrein in strange, blue Pokeballs, leaving the three baby Spheals still rolling around the garden.

I watched their movement patterns for a moment, trying to deduce which one would be better to attack. One of the Spheals rolled away from the pack, preferring to be on its own, often stopping to clap randomly at something unseen. I decided it would be much easier to take on the one separate from the other two. I mean, they were baby Pokemon, but they could still have some wicked attacks.

All the same, I didn't want to be too rough on the baby Spheals. "Meloi!" I said, calling her to action. "Use Thunder Wave on that baby Spheal there!" I made sure to put extra emphasis on the "wave" to make sure Meloi knew the distinction.

"Mareep!" She obliged with firing a weak thunder attack at the baby Spheal.

"Spheal?" the baby Spheal said in surprise when it suddenly couldn't move. "Spheal! Spheal!"

The other baby Spheals looked at their sibling in distress, but made no move to help it.

The baby Spheal caught in the paralysis attempted to hit Meloi with a Water Gun attack, but the water came out in a weak dribble.

"Meloi! Use tackle attack now!" I ordered her.

"Ma!" Meloi took off at a run and slammed her head into the baby Spheal's blubbery body. It didn't seem to have too much of an effect, so solid was the baby Pokemon's body and Meloi staggered backwards, looking dazed.

At that moment I cursed the fact Meloi hadn't learned any new moves for the duration we had been travelling together. Faced with little choice, I turned to Meloi, who had eventually recovered from her sore head. "Meloi! Use Thunder Shock! Gently!"

However, Meloi had a different idea. Visibly angered at the Spheal's refusal to go down from her tackle attack, and probably annoyed at being forced to battle with a gentler approach, she blasted the baby Spheal with a vicious bolt of electricity.

"MELOI!" I gasped in shock at my Pokemon's complete disregard to my orders. She didn't look bothered and instead sat on her backside and began licking her paws. Shaking my head in disgust at her behaviour, I looked at the baby Spheal and felt instantly sorry for it. It was lying, obviously completely knocked out, not even responding to the frantic cries of its siblings.

"Go ahead, lass." The old man behind me said.

I unhooked a Pokeball from my belt and tossed it at the Spheal. This didn't really feel as much of a victory or an achievement as I thought it would. The ball bounced off Spheal's motionless body and it disappeared in a beam of red light. The Pokeball shook for a few moments, before it too became motionless.

"Well done," The old man said.

"Funny…" I said, eyeing Meloi as I picked up the Pokeball. "It doesn't really feel that good…I thought I'd be happier…"

The old man laughed. "Ye sometimes can have mixed emotions 'bout that kinda thing. Especially when you're not used to battling other Pokemon. Yer Mareep's not to blame, she was just doin' her job, tryin' ta please ye."

"I guess so," I sighed, looking down at the Pokeball which contained a Pokemon. My Pokemon. My Pokemon. My baby Spheal. The water Pokemon I so desired. It was exciting to finally hold a Pokemon of my own in my hands…

But whatever excitement I had was tainted with disappointment. I looked at Meloi, who was licking her paws nonchalantly, not even aware I was so angry with her...

Author's Note

I felt so bad about not giving two chapters a day I've been writing all afternoon to finish this!

Thanks to MagikarpMaster for pointing out a little mistake I made in a couple of the chapters! And also, thanks to The Warrior of Many Faces for the lovely review AND who also figured out something important to do with Elliot! That was the direction I was hoping to take, but there's a few more twists in the tale yet!

Anyway, please review! Things should be getting a little more interesting now that Sienna has the baby Spheal on her team!

Also I forgot the disclaimer up till now! Ooops! So yeah, I don't own Pokemon! Only thing I own here are the OC's! Please don't sue me!