coauthor: Nitro Zeus

Professor Oak's Lab

After everyone had left, Professor Oak sat in his chair and began skimming through his emails. Eventually, he heard someone knocking at his door and moved to answer it. When he opened the door, Oak found Wes Orre standing outside.

Wes had spiky, silver hair, hazel eyes, and tan complexion. His attire consists of silver shades currently on his head, black pants with matching boots and gloves, and a long sleeved, blue trench coat.

"Wes, what are you doing here?" Oak inquired.

"I'm here on business." Wes stated. "May I come in?"

"Of course." Oak stepped aside. "Please do." The champion stepped inside, and the professor closed the door. "What is this about?"

"First, tell me about the new group of trainers you've sent off today." Lance requested. "Counting my brother, I believe there were five."

"Yes." Oak nodded. "Three of them are aiming for the Indigo League. Ash Ketchum, Cross Halter, and my grandson Gary. Your brother is aiming to complete the pokedex. Then, there's Serena Yvonne. To begin with, most people see Gary or Cross as the most capable."

Wes crossed his arms. "Most people but not you."

Oak nodded. "Both of them are capable; however, they are quite arrogant. To top it off, Gary believes all it takes is to catch as many pokemon as possible while Cross thinks all you need are the strong ones."

"Well, I wouldn't worry about them." Wes stated. "A journey has its way of changing people."

"If they do change their attitudes, I have no doubt they'll go far." Oak replied with a friendly smile. "Much like another young man. True, he wasn't arrogant, but he was a rather lost soul."

"If not for Rui, I do not believe I would be where I am today." Wes nodded in agreement. "Anyways, please continue."

"As I said, Michael aims to complete the pokedex, and I believe he's got a good shot at it. That boy is adventurous and energetic. Thanks to you, he's got a good head on his shoulder." Oak explained.

Wes was always more battle focused, but he respected the direction his little brother wished to take. "The other two?"

"There's Serena who honestly worries me the most." Oak frowned. "The poor girl has no goal in mind and merely set out because her friends did."

"Again, I wouldn't worry." Wes stated. "As we've discussed, a journey can help one discover a lot about themselves." Oak nodded in agreement. "Now what about Ash?"

"Ash may not have the knowledge Gary or Cross have, but he has heart." Oak explained. "Heart much like yours. While that may be where your similarities end, I think it is enough."

"Really now?" Wes nodded. "Now, I'm hoping to meet him at some point in his journey. Even if I don't see him until the end, I'll be interested to witness what he can do."

"While I'm certain you are curious about the five trainers, I get the feeling there's more to this meeting than you're letting on." Oak stated. "What's this visit really about Wes?"

"I came to warn you that Team Rocket's been active the past two years." Wes stated.

"Team Rocket?" Oak asked. "I thought you managed to dismantle the group after leaving them."

"I did." Wes stated. "Madame Boss is still sitting behind bars, but someone else has taken up the helm. From there, they dragged the group back into prominence. Unfortunately, you, Rui, and the Elite Four are the only ones I can trust not to be working for them."

"I can understand your hesitation around the random trainer, but you honestly think the Gym Leaders may be working for them?" Oak asked skeptically.

"It is a possibility I can't ignore." Wes stated. "At this point, my trust can only lie with the people I've listed. Just be on the lookout for suspicious behavior."

"Well, you would have a better idea about Team Rocket than anyone else." Oak nodded. "I'll make sure to be on the lookout."

"Good to hear." Wes nodded. "Now, Rui is at my mother's home, and I promised to head over to visit with her once I was done here." He walked towards the door. "Good-bye professor."

"Good-bye Wes." Oak stated.

Fields

Ash and Serena set of on the road to Viridian City. Other than a light breeze, the day was very peaceful. The pair spotted a couple Rattata packs, and a few flocks of Pidgey's flying around. For the time being, the new trainers decided to leave them be and cover ground.

Ash's stomach eventually growled which made Serena giggle. "Sorry Serena. Guess it's lunch time."

"It's okay Ash." Serena smiled brightly. "I'm actually a little tired as well. Hey, at least we have a way to tell the time."

Ash was confused. "What do you mean?"

"I mean that your stomach always growls like that three times a day at the same time each day." Serena replied. "It's like you're own personal alarm clock."

"Huh, I guess you're right." Ash looked around a bit and spotted a big oak tree. "Hey, how about we take a break over there.

Serena looked towards the tree. "It is nice and shady."

The pair moved over to the tree with Ash and Serena putting their backpacks down. Serena let her Eevee. The evolution pokemon and Pikachu began chatting with each other. That quickly came to an end as their respective trainers poured them pokefood.

Eevee sniffed the food before finding that it was extremely plain. Despite being a normal type, plain foods were uninteresting to her. Still, food was food, so she reluctantly ate it. Ash knew his Pikachu loved ketchup, so he had pokefood imbued with that taste.

The trainers then dug into their packed lunches with Ash speaking to his friend. "Serena, you never did tell me what you wanted to do on your journey."

Serena knew she had to tell him, and now was as good as a time as any. "Ash, the truth is that I really don't have a goal or dream."

"You don't?" Ash asked. "Then, why did you leave Pallet Town?"

"Well, I didn't want to be left behind. With you and Michael going on a journey, plus Gary and Cross, I'd have felt alone back home." Serena looked at the ground sadly. "You probably think I was being selfish and stupid."

"Hey, I don't think that at all." Ash rubbed her back in comfort. "It's only natural that you'd want to be with your friends. Honestly, if I didn't know what I wanted to do, I'd probably have done the same."

Serena blushed at Ash's words. He truly was the nicest boy she ever met.

Later…

With the chowing down and resting done, Ash decided he should see if there were any pokemon he could capture for his team.

Ash took out his pokedex and tried to find out what pokemon were in the area. "There's the typical stuff like Magikarps, Pidgeys, Rattatas, Mankeys, and Spearow. Oh, there's also rare instances of Nidoran and Nidoran ."

A wild Nidoran came out of the brush and started sniffing the air. "Nid. Nidoran."

"Cool! It's a Nidoran ." Ash was excited. "One of them would make an awesome teammate." He took out a pokeball. "Go, Pokeball!" He threw it at the Nidoran and it was sucked inside. "Alright, I caught a..." Ash stopped when the pokeball started wiggling. "What's it doing?"

Serena knew where her crush went wrong. "Ash, unless a pokemon willingly goes in the pokeball, it needs to be weakened before an attempt to catch it is made."

The ball continued to wiggle until it burst open prompting Ash to turn to his partner. "What do you say Pikachu? Up for a battle?"

"Pikachu!" Pikachu exclaimed.

Pikachu came to stand before Ash, the guy flipped his hat, and the Poison Pin Pokemon was looking around confused. "Pikachu use Thunder Shock on Nidoran !"

Pikachu sparked with electricity before firing it at the Nidoran . The pokemon finally realized what was happening, but it reacted far too late. The electric attack struck him momentarily stunning Nidoran .

"Alright Ash, try it now!" Serena shouted.

"Right!" Ash threw the pokeball. "This time, you're mine Nidoran !"

The poison pin pokemon was once again sucked into a pokeball. The two trainers watched with baited breath as the ball wiggled. When it stopped and dinged, Ash was bursting with joy.

"Yes!" Ash ran over to it. "I did it!" He scooped up the ball and held it out. "I caught Nidoran !" He ran over to Serena and showed her his pokeball. "Look, I caught my first pokemon." He suddenly hugged her. "I may have failed without your advice so thank you!"

Ash had no idea why he hugged the girl, but it seemed like the right thing to do. As for Serena, she was now blushing madly. At this point, she couldn't even muster a word. Ash eventually let go and suddenly felt invigorated to get back on the road.

That didn't mean the guy wasn't going to show his pokeball to his buddy. "Look, we have a new friend Pikachu."

Pikachu sniffed the pokeball and was clearly happy. "Pika!"

"I'm glad you like him." Ash declared. "That reminds me, I should check him out."

Ash let the pokemon out, and the Nidoran now recognized Ash as his trainer. The little guy seemed to have a lot of energy as he began running around the area.

"Alright, let's get a look at you." Ash crouched down and his new pokemon stopped before him. "Let's see what the pokedeck can tell me about you little guy."

Ash brought out his dex and got the run down:

Nidoran, the Poison Pin Pokémon. A Poison type. The male Nidoran first evolves into Nidorino, then Nidoking. The less aggressive female Nidoran first evolves into Nidorina, then Nidoqueen.

Type: Poison

Ability: Poison Point

Sex: Male

Current Moves: Poison Sting, Leer, Peck

"So, you're supposed to more aggressive than your female counterpart." Ash looked at his new friend and smiled. "Maybe I lucked out because you don't seem aggressive." He pet Nidoran which seemed to enjoy the attention. "Yeah, I can tell you're a great first catch."

"Nid. Nidoran." Nidoran stated happily.

Serena smiled. "Ash is going to be a great trainer with the care he shows his pokemon."

"Alright." Ash stood and held out his new pokemon's pokeball. "I think it's time we hit the road, so return Nidoran ." Once the pokemon was safely inside, the trainer turned to his other companions. "Let's move straight to Viridian City."

Pikachu jumped onto his shoulder before Ash took off and Serena followed.

Viridian City

The sky was orange with the sun barely visible. Ash and Serena were walking along a dirt road. The pair were in high spirits considering their journey seemed to be going well so far. While pushing forward, they heard an announcement throughout the entire town.

"Citizens of Viridian City, be on the lookout for pokemon thieves in the area."

As the group passed through on through, they saw a police station ahead. A female police officer stood there. She has turquoise blue hair covered by a dark blue police hat, a short sleeve dark blue top with a name badge which read 'Officer Jenny', and a matching skirt.

The officer flagged the trainers down. "Hold it!" The trainers stopped before her. "I'm sorry for doing this, but Viridian is in a state of emergency. Where are you two heading this late into the day?"

"We were heading to the Pokemon Center because I heard registered trainers can rest there for free." Ash replied.

Officer Jenny studied the kids for a good couple of moments before deciding they were being honest. After all, the reports say the pokemon thieves are in their early twenties while these kids were ten.

"Alright, I believe you." Jenny stated. "Just show me your ID's, and you can go."

"Serena, do you know if we have ID's on us?" Ash asked uncertainly.

"I think she means our pokedexes Ash." Serena stated.

So, they pulled out the red devices. Without a word, Officer Jenny took them and opened both up. She pressed a few buttons causing the pokedex's to confirm their story.

Officer Jenny smiled. "Okay kids…" She gave the devices back. "…you're free to go. If you continue down this road, you'll hit the pokemon center. In my opinion, you can't miss it, but if you do, come on back to me."

"Thank you, Officer Jenny." The two replied in unison.

Ash and Serena took note of six wanted posters as they passed on by. The first five depicted four people and a pokemon while the last was an image of the usual grunts you hear about. The first person was Butch who has brown eyes and short green hair.

He wore the usual Team Rocket attire. Next there was Cassidy who has purple eyes and golden hair worn in pigtails. She also wore a pair of triangular pink earrings and the usual Team Rocket attire. Then, there was Jessie.

She has long, dark red with sapphire blue eyes. She wore a white version of the Team Rocket attire. The last person was James who has shoulder length lavender hair and green eyes. He to wears the white Team Rocket attire. The pokemon was a Meowth.

Pokemon Center, Night…

Ash and Serena walked into the center and got rooms for the night. Before turning in, they decided to relax a bit in the lobby. While Ash found somewhere to sit, Serena went over to a vending machine to get them drinks. She brought to sodas pops and stood only for a couple of posters to catch her attention. The first one was for the Indigo League Challenge.

"Ash is likely going to sign up for it while we're here." Serena thought before noticing the second poster. "What's this? Do you like Fashion? Do you like Battles? Combine the two with the new Battle Chateau Challenge. Dress up and compete in a knockout tournament. Raise your rank up to the Grand Duke or Duchess… The Battle Chateau could be interesting."

"Hey Serena." Ash stated as he approached. "What are you looking at?"

"Oh Ash." Serena hadn't realized she'd been standing there for a while. "I was just looking at these posters."

"Oh, that's right. I should register for the Indigo League while I'm here." Ash commented as he looked at the first poster.

"While that is important, I was actually more fixated on the second one." Serena stated.

"The Battle Chateau." Ash questioned.

"Yeah." Serena smiled as it sounded up her ally. "I thought it would be good to check out."

"I could see it." Ash nodded. "You're really great with fashion."

Serena blushed at his words of praise. "Thanks Ash."

"Anyways, since we're here, we should probably call home." Ash suggested. "I bet our moms would like to know we arrived safely."

Serena nodded. "Do you mind if I call my mom first?"

"Not at all." Ash stated.

They walked over to the video phones with Serena handing Ash one of the sodas before sitting down and calling her mom.

Grace appeared on screen and her face lit up. "Oh, hello Serena."

"Hi mom." Serena cheerfully replied. "Ash and I are travelling together, and we've made it to Viridian City."

Grace was surprised Serena got to travel with Ash and impressed her daughter already made it to Viridian. "Well, it's good to see you've arrived safely. I knew you could do it." Serena blushed since she knew her mother was referring to asking to travel with Ash. "Is Ash with you now?"

"Yes, he is." Serena replied nervously.

Ash made his way over to Serena's side. "Evening Ms. Yvonne."

"Ash!" Grace smiled. "I'm happy Serena won't be out there on her own. Can you promise me that you'll look out for her?"

"Sure." Ash nodded firmly. "I won't let anything bad happen to her."

"Thank you." Grace stated gratefully.

With that out of the way, the mother and daughter chatted generally. After a few minutes, an alarm went off in the Yvonne house prompting Grace to end the call. Ash and Serena changed seats. Once Ash called his home, the image of his living room appeared.

Delia's voice came from off screen. "Evening, Ketchum residence."

"Hi mom." Ash replied. "It's me."

At the sound of Ash's voice, Delia rushed on over and sat down. "Hello dear." She smiled. "I see you arrived at Viridian City. It only took you one day while your father took four."

"Ah mom." Ash stated.

Once the pleasantries were out of the way, they talked for a bit. Then, Delia had to go. After talking with their mothers Ash and Serena got a room with two beds. Considering they had come all the way from Pallet town, it wasn't long before they crashed for the night.

Morning…

Ash wanted to have his first gym battle and knew Viridian City had one. Unfortunately, whoever the leader was only accepts challenges from trainers with seven badges. That meant his next, best option was to head to Pewter City.

Fortunately, Viridian also had Battle Chateau, so Ash was content to go with Serena to that. After walking in silence, it wasn't uncomfortable since the trainers were taking in the sights, the pair made it to a big, castle like building.

Viridian Battle Chateau

The pair approached a big gate where a smartly dressed man stood. He had neatly combed white hair and a thin moustache. He wore a dark blue blazer, which covers his pure white shirt, a black bowtie, dark blue trousers, and black shoes.

"Welcome to the Battle Chateau Madame and Sir." The man spoke. "I am Hennessy, and it is a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

"Um, hello Hennessy." Serena nervously replied. "I'm Serena and this is Ash."

"Is this perhaps your first visit to a Battle Chateau?" Hennessy asked.

"It is." Serena swiftly replied.

"Very well." Hennessy nodded. "All I need is your recommendation, from a person of stature, and I will gladly show you through."

"A recommendation?" Serena asked confused. "I don't think I have one."

"If you have a number I could call, that will suffice." Hennessy explained.

"Oh, I know." Serena lit up. "I'm sure Professor Oak would give me a recommendation.".

"Oh, you know Professor Oak?" Hennessy asked.

"Yes." Serena smiled. "He gave me my pokedex."

"Perfect!" Hennessy exclaimed. "Your pokedex will be proof enough that Professor Oak deems you a worthy trainer."

"That's great!" Serena declared.

She pulled out her pokedex, and Hennessy gladly accepted it. Like Officer Jenny, he pressed a few buttons to confirm her identity.

"Ah, everything is in order." Hennessy handed the pokedex back to her before looking at Ash. "Will you be competing too, sir?"

"Nah." Ash replied. "As tempting as this all sounds, I think I'll leave the Battle Chateau to Serena."

"I see. If you do not go anywhere restricted, we are always happy to house spectators." Hennessy replied. "Would you follow me?"

Hennessy turned around and walked into the castle like structure prompting Ash and Serena to follow.

You'll have noticed that we've had Ash capture a Nidoran. The answer to why is this. Would you honestly be alright with Ash's team being the exact same team he had in canon? Come on... if Nitro and I are going to do a redux, then we're going to do a genuine redux. With the countless material out there on how people would redo Ash's team, you best believe we're going to try and surprise you with a few of their choices.

Does this mean Ash won't catch any pokemon he caught before? Of course not. We're simply going to spice up Ash's teams to hopefully give you guys a different experience. Hopefully, you can understand where we're coming from. Hey, if you want to see Ash's original team in a fanfiction, and then some, Journey of a Pokemon Master: Kanto Arc by Herracross0122 is a great fanfiction.

Martin(Guest): Well, I couldn't imagine Ash without Pikachu, so the least I could do is give them a better relationship off the bat.

Elemental-Aura: That video by five toed sloth was a bit reason I decided to make James part of the trio. Yeah, you make a good point about the lessons Serena can learn. Again, you make a good point about how James could come upon his new dream. I can also tell you seem rather excited to see where James goes once the change is made. At the very least, you're excited about his pokemon. I'll try my best to do him justice in your eyes. Finally, don't apologize for rambling for you did give me great ideas.