Removing The Shield

Written by: Kris Rice

Chapter One: A New Journey

Galar Region. Wedgehurst.

In the small town of Wedgehurst, the sun shines brightly into a bedroom. Eyes blink open, and a yawn slips from the mouth of a young woman. Eighteen year old Kris wakes up, and sits up from her bed. She rubs her eyes, and she turns to her night stand. Grabbing her glasses, she puts them on, and thinks to herself, "Today's the day. I begin my Pokemon journey."

She gets out of bed, and walks to her closet. Looking inside, she pulls out a light green t-shirt, featuring a Pokémon egg in front of a heart. Also, she grabs a light blue skirt, and then walks to her dresser. She pulls out a pair of dark blue leggings, as well as a pair of simple white underwear, with the panties featuring pink ribbons on the sides. Kris takes off her pajamas, and looks at herself in the mirror. "I wonder if I look like a normal woman at all?" she thinks to herself.

Kris cups her breasts, which are starting to grow in, a little late for most women her age. But, there's a reason for that. Reaching down, she rubs her genitals. There on her, is an average sized penis. "Would a guy like me?" she thinks to herself.

Kris thinks back to three years ago, when her current self began…

*

When she was fifteen, Kris was a very different person. She was born a male, and had her birthday a week ago.

Kris was walking around the town, and he stopped by the local Boutique. "Hello there, sir," the woman greeting customers says, "Can I help you?"

Kris shyly nods no, saying, "N-No thanks. I'm just l-looking…"

" Well, let me know if you need anything."

Kris walks ahead, looking at all the clothing that fits him. "None of these look nice," he thinks to himself, "I mean, they would fit, but I want to look good in them."

For the past few months, Kris began to lose interests in his current clothes. His mother was getting confused by this, but he didn't know how to explain it to her. And now, he didn't want any clothes that fit him. He looks over, and then, he can't believe what he sees. He sees a dress there, and is amazed by it. He walks up to it, and examines the beauty. "It's perfect," he thinks, until he gasps.

" What am I thinking?! I'm a guy! I can't wear a dress! Can I…?" he thinks to himself.

*

Kris smiles to herself, and thinks, "That's when I began to feel different. Different from guys I knew."

She gets herself dressed within a few minutes, and she poses in the mirror. "You go, girl," she mutters to herself, a smile on her face.

" You look cute, sweetie," a voice calls out, causing Kris to jump back.

Looking to her bedroom door, there stands a woman in her late thirties. She has black hair, tied up in a bun. "M-Mom…," Kris mutters, "Are you sure?"

Kris' mom, Fay, lived here after moving from the Johto region. She soon met Kris' father, Rich, and they soon got married, with Kris being born a year later. After Kris' dysphoria set in, Fay did her best to help her angel become the woman she wanted to be. Fay hugs her daughter, and responds, "Of course, Kris. You don't have to be so focused on appearance."

" But, mom, my appearance determines if people see me as a woman," Kris says, "If I can't pull it off, I can't possibly believe it myself."

" Honey," she says, "You're a girl. Inside and out. Don't worry about it."

Kris sighs, and tears up a little. She wipes her eyes, and says, "Thanks, mom."

She hugs her mother tightly, and pulls away after a few seconds. "Make sure to video call me often, okay?" Fay asks, and Kris nods in agreement.

"Of course," she responds.

Kris runs out of her house, and makes her way to the Pokémon Research Lab. As she travels there, she receives greetings from people around town. "Hi there, Kris!" a boutique greeter calls out.

" Hi, Kate!" Kris responds, and Kate asks, "What are you doing out at this time of the morning?"

" Oh,... I'm… uh… starting my Pokémon journey today," she answers.

Kate smiles at this answer. "Really?!" she says, "I'm SO happy for you!"

Kris blushes, and stutters. "Th-Th-Thank you…!" she mutters, and she bows.

Kate chuckles to herself. "No problem. You've got this, girl! Go get 'em!"

" Thank you," Kris replies, and she runs off, waving at Kate.

Kate sighs to herself, and thinks, "Wow, she's come so far since I first helped her…"

*

Back when Kris examined that dress, a voice spoke up. "Hello there, sir! May I help you?"

Kris jumps in shock, and turns around. There, standing before him, was Kate. The employee smiles at him, and he blushes in embarrassment to be caught. "N-No,... I'm okay. Just looking…," he mutters, looking down.

" Are you looking at that dress?" the employee asks, "It's pretty. I think you'd look nice in it…"

" B-But,... I'm a-"

" A girl, right?" she asks, "You're just… confused, aren't you?"

" Confused?" Kris thinks to himself, "I mean, I never felt that much like a boy. I mean, I liked some guy things, like superheroes, but I never liked sports or vehicles…"

Kris' face is bright red, and he is sweating. "I… um… Well,..."

Kate grabs Kris' hands, and looks at him. "Let me help you."

She smiles, and Kris is surprised by the smile. She tears up, and mutters, "Thank you…"

*

Kris skids to a stop, and looks at the building in front of her. It has a purple roof, and above the door, is a Pokèball symbol. Kris gulps, nervous. "This is it, Kris… Your Pokemon journey begins now! Just knock on the door and wait for the Professor!"

" Excuse me? Who are you, young lady?" an eldery voice asks.

Kris turns around, and there, standing before her, is an elderly woman, with brown hair and green eyes. She's holding onto a cane, which features a Corviknight on it. And she's wearing a lab coat. Next to her, is a woman who is younger than her, appearing to be a woman around her 20s. She has peach hair and aqua eyes, and is wearing a brown jacket over a aqua blouse. "P-Professor Magnolia! S-Sorry! I'm Kris… I'm here to receive my Starter Pokémon and begin my journey."

The elderly woman, Professor Magnolia, eyes Kris up and down. "Ah, yes. Kris, I remember now. Sorry about that, dearie," she says, "As the Galar region's professor, I tend to get many random people barging in, demanding a Pokémon without setting an appointment."

The girl next to the Professor twirls her finger around her hair, and says, "Hi there, I'm Sonia. I'm the professor's granddaughter, and her assistant. Nice to meet you."

" Same to you," Kris mutters in response.

Magnolia walks to the door, and opens it, saying, "Give me just a second, while I grab the three Starters…"

Kris nods nervously, and Magnolia walks inside, closing the door. Kris stands there, looking around. Whenever she makes eye contact with Sonia, she turns away quickly. "Are you okay? You look really nervous," Sonia asks.

" U-Um, yeah. I'm just… shy around new people," Kris explains.

" So, why did you wait to start your journey? Was it because your parents wanted you to grow up first?"

" N-No… I just… had some issues to sort out…"

" Okay," Sonia says, "I won't butt into your past. I'm sure you'll be a great Trainer."

Kris smiles at this comment, and tears up. She wipes the tears away, and mutters, "Thank you."

Magnolia then appears with three Pokéballs. "Okay then, Kris," she says, "Here are the three choices you have for your Starter Pokémon."

She throws the Pokéballs, and out of them, pop three Pokémon. The first of them is a green monkey with a twig in its fur, with bits of brown and orange on it, including its tail. "This is Grookey, the Grass Starter," Magnolia says.

The second one is a rabbit with a bandage on its nose. Its fur is mainly white, with shades of red, orange, and yellow. It's bouncing around, like a soccer player. "This is Scorbunny, the Fire Starter."

The third and final one is a lizard, which has tears appearing from its eyes. It is different shades of blue, with a yellow part on its head. It is going in and out of camouflage. "And finally, this is Sobble, the Water Starter."

Kris looks at the three Pokémon, and thinks to herself. "Which one should I choose? They're all so cute, and they each have different strengths and weaknesses."

As Kris looks at the three, thinking about her choices, something happens. The Scorbunny walks up to her, and it looks up and down at her. Kris is surprised by this. "Wh-What? What is it doing?" Kris thinks to herself.

The bunny smiles, and pats her right leg. "Baan!" it yells, happy and excited.

" This Scorbunny… is smiling at me…? Does it like me?!" Kris thinks to herself, tears welling up in her eyes, "I can't believe it!"

Kris wipes the tears away from her eyes, and she looks down at Scorbunny. "Do you wanna be my first Pokémon, Scorbunny?"

The Scorbunny bounces around excitedly, clapping its hands together. Kris picks up the rabbit, and chuckles. "Then I choose you, Scorbunny! Thank you!" she shouts, hugging the rabbit.

" Ba-Bann!" it says, returning the hug warmingly.

" Well then, if that's settled," Sonia says, "Could I see your Rotom phone then, Kris?"

Kris is scared by this, and clutches her phone to her chest. "It's alright," Sonia says, "I just want to install the Pokédex app onto it."

" O-Oh,... okay…"

Kris hands over her phone reluctantly, and within a few seconds, the phone is returned to her. Looking at the phone, she points it at Scorbunny, who is then scanned by it.

Scorbunny

Rabbit Pokémon

It has special pads on the backs of its feet, and one on its nose. Once it's raring to fight, these pads radiate tremendous heat.

Looking at the phone, Kris can see the gender of the Scorbunny: male. "So, are you gonna name your Scorbunny?" Sonia asks.

Kris thinks to herself, taking a look at her Starter Pokémon. "Hmm,... what would be a good nickname for my Scorbunny?"

After a couple seconds, a light bulb goes off in her head. "I've got it!" she thinks.

She leans down, looking at Scorbunny. "How does 'Banpa' sound to you, Scorbunny?" she asks the rabbit Pokémon.

The rabbit tilts its head, surprised by the name. "Ban?"

" Banpa?" Sonia asks, "Where'd you come up with that kind of name?"

Professor Magnolia glares at her granddaughter, and says, "It doesn't really matter, Sonia…"

Sonia gulps in fear, and Kris responds, "Oh, it's okay, Professor! I don't mind explaining…!"

" It's cause he's a cute bunny, with cute paws," Kris explains, "Ban from Bunny, and Pa from Paws."

" Ban? Scor-ban!" Scorbunny says, dancing around in excitement.

Professor Magnolia chuckles, and says, "It seems like Scorbunny loves that name."

" Okay!" Kris says, as she grabs and hugs her starter, "Banpa it is, then!"

" Ban!"

Professor Magnolia hands Kris the Pokéball for Banpa, as well as five empty Pokéballs. Kris then bows to the Professor, saying, "Thank you so much!"

" Oh please!" Magnolia responds, "It was no problem! Now, go on and begin your journey."

Kris nods in agreement, saying, "R-Right! Bye, Professor! Bye, Sonia!"

Kris runs off, waving to the two, who chuckle and wave back at her. "She was a shy one, wasn't she, grandmother?" Sonia says, and Magnolia nods in agreement.

" Yes, but it seems like she's been through some kind of event, so I say we just let it go…"

Minutes Later. On Route 2.

Kris is making her way into Route 2, and slowly approaches a patch of tall grass. "This is it, Kris! This is where your Pokémon adventure officially begins. Once you step into that tall grass, Wild Pokémon will try and attack you, and you have to use Banpa to either catch them, or make them faint…!"

Kris pats her cheeks, psyching herself up. Then, she makes her way into the grass, walking through it. She barely notices anything. "Seems quiet," she thinks to herself, only to hear a small noise, "Never mind."

A small figure appears from the grass, and Kris gets a look at it. It was a maroon fox, with black spots on it, and a white belly. It barks at Kris, a sneaky look on its face. "Oh, you're cute!" Kris says, pulling out a Pokéball, "Let's try and catch them! Right, Banpa?!"

Kris throws the Pokéball, and out comes Banpa. "Ban!" the rabbit cries out, jumping around.

" This is our first test, Banpa! Let's catch a new Pokémon!" Kris says, "Use Tackle!"

The Scorbunny charges at the fox Pokémon, and lands a hit on it. The Fox jumps back, and barks at Banpa. The fox then pummels Banpa, causing the rabbit to fall to the ground. "Banpa!" Kris cries out.

Banpa stands up, and gives a thumbs-up to Kris, which surprises her. She then smiles and nods, and says, "Okay then! Use Ember!"

Banpa nods, and spits out a small fireball, which hits the target. "Nic!" it cries out, laying there.

" Okay! This is our chance!" Kris says, pulling out an empty Pokéball.

She then throws it at the fox, and it is sucked into the ball. It falls to the ground, and begins to shake. Kris and Banpa watch the ball as it shakes, the trainer nervous and the Pokémon excited. After three shakes, the ball has sparks appear from it, signifying a successful capture. Kris' eyes grow wide, and she chuckles excitedly. "I-I did it…!" she mutters, "I caught a Pokémon!"

She runs to the ball, grabbing it tightly and showing it to Banpa. "Look, Banpa! We did it! We have a new friend!"

" Ban Ban!"

" Come on out, new friend!" Kris says, throwing the ball down to the ground. The newly caught fox appears from it, and barks.

"Nickit!"

Kris pulls out her Rotom Phone, and scans the Fox.

Nickit

Fox Pokémon

Cunning and cautious, this Pokémon survives by stealing food from others. It erases its tracks with swipes of its tail as it makes off with its plunder.

" Nickit, huh?" the trainer mutters, "Welcome to the team!"

"Nic!" the fox barks, before cuddling up to its new trainer.

Kris looks at her phone, seeing the gender displayed: male. "I seem to be getting male Pokémon pretty easily," she mutters, before turning to Nickit.

" How does Miles sound?" she asks the fox, and it yelps in excitement.

Kris hugs Banpa and Miles, tears about to stream from her eyes. "I can't wait to have my first Trainer Battle!" she says.

Chapter One - END