Kira's Pokemon Adventure

It was finally happening. After countless months of tracking down the perfect team, grueling hours of training and many adventures in between, I was finally moments away from realizing my lifelong dream. I'd defeated all of the gym leaders, slugged my way through Victory Road and fought my way to the finals of the Pokemon League. My team was battered and exhausted but so was the opponent's group. All I needed was a single moment and after what seemed like eternity, that moment finally came.

"Now Ninetales! Fire Blast!"

My Ninetales, which had just leapt from a large boulder to hit the enemy Electabuzz from above, fired her fire blast attack and landed gracefully while the enemy was engulfed in flames. Once the attack was finished, the charred Electabuzz collapsed onto it's back and the crowd erupted into cheers. I'd finally realized my goal. I was the Pokemon League Champion!

"Kira! Lunch is ready so come downstairs after you wash your hands!"

I let out a groan before I set my Gamestation controller beside me on the floor and called back to let my mom know I'd heard her. Mom had a sixth sense for horrible timing and this was a perfect example of her putting the power to bad use. She couldn't even wait for the credits to go by. Thankfully, I was able to save my progress before the credits rolled. I really didn't need to see them, so I turned my gamestation off and headed to the bathroom.

After I washed my hands and face thoroughly with soap and water, I turned the water off, dried myself with a towel and went downstairs into the kitchen, where my mom was waiting with my favorite meal of macaroni and cheese with a glass of milk. I was a growing girl, so naturally my bowl was filled to overflowing with cheesy goodness. I needed it too. At only 3' 10" and 44 pounds, I was by far the shortest of my fellow eight year olds and it seemed no matter how much I ate or drank, I barely kept up with my steadily growing peers.

I blamed my dad, of course. He was a member of the Fighting Dojo in town and he delighted in making me exercise with him and his pokemon. It was fun, but obviously all of the energy that would have made me taller was instead turned into energy for working out. Not that the energy was wasted. I was by far the most athletic girl in my class and I could outrun most of the boys as well. The only boy that really gave me trouble was my lifetime rival Koji, and that was because he had eight inches on me. He was a monster on the track and he even gave a lot of the 10 and 11 year olds pause for thought. On the soccer field though we were true rivals, we were on the same team so we competed through goals made against the other team. Sometimes I won in sometimes I lost. If it were one sided, we wouldn't be rivals after all.

As I dug into my lunch, my mom said as she filled a basket, "Your father is training outside the city again, so could you take this to him after you're done eating? He should be at his usual spot."

I loved any excuse to get out of the city, so I smiled and replied, "Sure! It's a Meadow just to the West, right? Right above the woods?"

Mom nodded, "That's the one period as you know, wild Pokémon congregate in the tall grass outside of the city, so stick to the trails and you won't be in any danger."

She gave this warning every time, so I felt I it was obligatory to reply with beaming eyes, "You know, if I had a Pokémon of my own I'd be much safer."

She grinned, "And you know that having a Pokémon is a great responsibility. Once you show that you're ready for such a responsibility, will let you have one."

I swallowed my latest taste of paradise in grumbled, " How am I supposed to show I'm ready if I never get the chance to prove myself?"

Mom just smiled mysteriously and said, "I wonder. Now eat your mac and get dressed. You're not leaving the house in your pajamas like you did last time."

I blushed and stammered, "I-I overslept and would have been late if I'd done otherwise. Besides, we won our game that day so everyone calls them my lucky PJ's now."

Mom chuckled, "Well, lucky or not you're changing."

I muttered In affirmative before I focused on my meal. I really, really wanted a Pokémon to call my own but whenever I asked for one I was either outright denied where I was told that I had to prove I could handle one period dad always seemed to allude towards that time being closer than I thought but no matter how patient I was or how helpful I was with dads Pokémon, I never saw any proof of his words. Rather than get frustrated, I simply reminded myself that the wait was worth it in the end. My patience would pay off and I'd be able to call myself a real Pokémon trainer. Not even stupid Koji could say that much.

After I finished eating and washed my bowl and glass, I thanked mom for the meal and hurried upstairs to my room to change into my adventuring outfit, which mom mistakenly called my 'play clothes'. My pajamas went into my clothes hamper and out of my dresser I pulled out a pair of blue skorts and a baby blue t-shirt with an ultra ball on the front. My skorts came with belt loops that I could clip not only my poke gear too, but any eventual pokeballs I got as well period from my closet, I pulled out my red traveling jacket, which had four pockets in the front for any storage needs and a Charizard in the back. My white sneakers finished the outfit off.

Now that I was fully dressed, I took my hair brush from the top of my dresser and used the mirror behind my closet door to brush my strawberry blonde hair. I kept my hair in a pixie bob, so it was long enough that nobody could confuse me for a boy but short enough to be out of the way without needing to be tied. Over my bangs, I put on a turquoise berret that nicely matched my same – colored eyes.

I turned this way and that to make sure that everything was in place before I closed my closet and made sure my room was up to my parents standard. My bed was made, my Pokémon dolls were asleep on my pillow, my electronics were turned off and my floor was clean. What more could parents expect from their child? I gave it a nod of approval and headed downstairs.

Mom waited for me at the bottom with dad's lunch basket. I knew from experience that the food within was for both my dad and his two Pokémon, a super strong machoke and a titanium tough graveller. It was the food for the latter two that made up the bulk of the weight of the basket. Those two could eat even more than I could.

As I settled the basket around my shoulder, mom gave me a kiss on the forehead and told me to be careful. Not that I needed the warning. I knew Saffron City like the back of my hand and even though I didn't get out too much, I knew the outskirts pretty well too. After Team Rocket had been done away with, the dangers in town dropped to pretty much nothing. The worst that's ever happened was a wild Pokémon sneaking in and causing mischief now and then and even that occurred so infrequently that nobody cared to take extra measures to prevent it. The fences and gate houses were enough.

I returned moms kiss goodbye and told her I'd be as safe as a withdrawn Squirtle before I went through our front door. My family and I lived on the southwest side of town so I took a north going road that followed the fence line. Way up above me, the warm spring sun worked hard to give us a beautiful day that didn't have a cloud in the sky. Today was on the warmer side so I knew all of the fire type Pokémon were loving it, as were the grass types. Ice types were probably miserable but I didn't think there were any in this area. They much preferred the Seafoam Islands and other cold places. Me, I was a fire type and loved hot weather. Well, maybe I was a fire/fighting type mix. A firefighter!

I giggled at my own joke before I let curiosity get the better of me and opened the lid to the basket. Dad's meals were always full of proteins and other good stuff for exercising and this one proved no different. Mom had made him two sandwiches packed the max with synthetic meats and real cheese and to drink she gave him a bottle of Moo Moo Milk imported from the Johto region. She really spoiled Dad. All I ever got were the local milks.

With my curiosity sated, I closed the lid just in time to hear a voice that raised the hackles that I didn't have. It was Koji, my eternal rival! With a turn, I saw that he was running up the road to catch up. Despite being the same age, he was like a giant beside me. He was 4' 6" and a whopping 77 pounds despite looking like a track runner, which he pretty much was. He had spiky black hair that was closer to bed head than proper spikes and green eyes that most of the girls said look pretty but I just thought they look stupid. Maybe I was biased. He wore tan cargo shorts that fell just past his knees and a camo pattern T shirt with a Squirtle gang Squirtle on the front.

As he got closer, I growled and said, "I don't have time to play with you Koji! I'm running an errand and no boys are allowed. Especially boys named Koji!"

Koji just smiled and replied, "That's fine. I didn't wanna join you anyways, Kira. I just wanted to let you know that my birthday is tomorrow and my parents are dropping very subtle hints that I might be getting my very first Pokémon. Since we're neighbors, you can come to the party too. It starts at noon."

My jaw dropped. Koji was going to become a Pokémon trainer before me? That wasn't fair at all! If he got a Pokémon and decided to take the Pokemon League Challenge, I wouldn't have a rival anymore. Who knew how long it would be before I got a Pokémon of my own to counter his? He'd have a huge head start.

With tears threatening to come out of my eyes, I stuck my tongue out and shouted, "Who would want to go to any stinky party of yours! I hope you get an abra!"

I turned and left him in my dust, hoping he didn't see me wiping my eyes. To tell the truth, I didn't have many friends. Just a girl a few blocks away who liked to mimic people and a boy and girl on our soccer team that love the same shows that I did. If Koji left, the excitement in my life would drop dramatically. He was annoying, stupid and ugly but he was still my rival. How could I stay his rival if he had a Pokémon and I didn't?

By the time I got to the gatehouse, I'd calmed down a little bit. It wasn't the end of the world but things certainly had changed. I had planned on being patient and waiting for my parents to give me my first Pokémon but now I had to resort to desperate measures. Nothing that would put me over dads lap of course, but I wasn't above begging and pleading. Surely they would understand that I just couldn't let Koji get ahead of me. I was going to be a Pokémon League Champion long before Koji would. I had to be.

Normally unescorted kids weren't allowed outside of the fence but because my dad was pretty well known and I have rarely got into trouble, some of the guards looked the other way for me. If I had my own Pokémon I wouldn't have to worry about an escort at all but that was just another point to be made in my next discussion with my parents. Thankfully the guard on shift was nice and let me through with nothing more than a good afternoon.

The difference between the tight streets of Saffron and the open fields outside the fence were like night and day. Besides a road, there were a few signs of human civilization in people unescorted by strong Pokémon ran the risk of getting hurt on their way to Celadon city. Most Pokémon were nice and left people alone but somewhere extra territorial and attacked anybody and everything that's trespassed into their land, regardless of how weak or powerful the target was. That was the reason why most kids had to be escorted and why I had to stay out of the tall grass that grew everywhere. Even a little pidgey could be dangerous.

Despite knowing this, I stil found it hard to believe that the beautiful meadow before me held danger of any kind. The tall grass that hid wild Pokémon was filled with blooming wildflowers and I knew from experience that there were quite a few blue and blackberry bushes just on the other side of the distant trees. Spring was in full swing and it painted a masterpiece of a picture. Even when I saw a Pokémon or two darting from one patch of grass to another, I didn't feel a sense of danger.

All was peaceful until I had to push through a patch of tall grass to get to my dad's usual training spot. After I nudged a giant sunflower out of my way I heard the sounds of grass parting, followed by a high, pained yelp close to me. A small, red furred Pokémon landed in a heap in front of me and I could immediately tell that it was very injured. My knowledge that came from playing Pokémon Red allowed me to identify it as a vulpix, a fox pokemon. All of the information used in Pokémon Red was gathered from the completed pokedex of the Pokémon League Champion of the same name, so I knew much more about Pokémon from playing the game than I ever learned in school.

I was frozen in place just as the fox struggled to get to its feet. It would have done just that had two rattatas not come out to tackle it to the ground again. Numerous instances of my parents telling me to stay out of the battles of wild Pokémon came to my mind, but a fierce anger overrode those memories and before I could think twice about it, I was moving.

"Hey you stupid rats, why don't you to pick on someone who can fight back!"

I shouted this just before I hit one of the two with a swift kick that sent the rat Pokémon flying deeper into the tall grass.

The other Pokémon hissed at me and I growled back, "Bring it on! I'll beat you really good!"

Obviously intimidated, the rat turned tail to where I'd punted its partner and I called triumphantly, "Yeah, that's what I thought you big bull-"

My voice got trapped in my throat when the rat Pokémon came back with its partner, as well as a dozen of its friends, including a couple of raticate's. All of them looked pretty upset, but the one I'd kicked looked especially so. I guess I could understand. I'd hate being kicked too but at the moment I was more worried about their huge teeth, which was said to be strong enough to bite through branches without trouble.

I chuckled nervously and said, "N-now now. We can talk this out righ- What's that!?"

I pointed behind the group of rats into my eternal amazement, my ploy actually worked. As one they turned to look where I was pointing and after a second to realize my trick had really distracted them, I picked up the vulpix without thinking and sprinted as fast as I could out of the grass. A quick look behind me told me that the group was in fast pursuit, which meant my butt was in big trouble. I had a lot of pride in my little legs but I didn't know how long I would be able to outrun the group.

I was trying to think of a way out of this mess I had gotten myself into when, from out of a nearby patch of tall grass rolled a huge boulder that crashed into the rat pack. A second later, another object came down and scattered a cloud of dust that obscured the area. There were a lot of snarls and blows in the seconds that followed but when the dust finally settled, I was both relieved and dismayed to see that my two saviors had been a machoke and a graveller.

They were my dad's Pokémon and I knew instinctively that he'd likely heard my shouting and taunting. If that was the case, my butt was still in danger. Quite literally, too. I had been warned once already about not provoking wild Pokémon and in my family, there was only one warning before bottoms were scorched. I gulped and looked around as I hugged the vulpix close. This with both to protect it and reassure myself that I'd had good reason for my actions.

Just as I had feared, the tall grass next to me parted in out stepped my dad. Also as I'd feared, he was frowning with disapproval, but the silver lining was that he didn't seem angry. An angry dad was impossible to reason with but with an upset one I had a small chance to turn things in my favor. I just had to explain my actions and convince him that I'd done what I felt was right.

I took a small step back and said, "I- I know what you're gonna say Daddy. I know that Pokémon all over the world get into fights each and every day in that battling, win or lose, is a fact of life even for wild Pokémon. I know sometimes odds aren't fair for some Pokémon, but that doesn't mean I should turn my back on a hurt Pokémon right in front of me, does it? How could I ever call myself on Pokémon trainer, or even a Pokémon lover, if I ignored an obvious Pokémon in need? I couldn't, and if that makes me wrong then I'll accept my punishment, but please help this vulpix first!"

I took a few deep breaths to recover from my rapid fire explanation while dad continued to frown down at me with his arms crossed. I always hated this part. He would keep his face locked in a disapproving frown as he thought about my words. There was no reading his thoughts and this could go on for at least half a minute but I once endured his stone hard gaze for 45 seconds! Even then he'd ruled against me and I'd had to accept my due.

This time he only took 15 seconds for his face to change, into a smile no less! It was a good sign but it sure didn't mean I was out of the woods yet. What sealed it was what he said after he smiled.

He said, "No sweetie, you're not wrong. It's foolish for anybody to think they can help everyone in the world, but if an individual helped each person in need that he met, then he would be much better loved. I know we've talked already about not provoking wild Pokémon but in these circumstances, I believe I'll forget what I had heard you say. After all, everybody knows that the best fight fight is a fight avoided."

My eyes went wide and I took another step back, "Who are you and what did you do to my battle maniac daddy?"

His frown returned and he looked away as he scowled defensively, "I'm your father first and foremost and a father is supposed to say things like that. I'd be the one in the wrong if I told you that you should have pounded both those rats before they could call for their friends period now let's see what we can do for that vulpix of yours."

Dad took off his backpack and rummaged through it until he pulled out a blue spray bottle that I knew was a super potion. He held it out for me to take and I gently set the injured vulpix on the grass before I took the bottle. I'd treated dads Pokémon enough times to know what to do with the bottle, so I crouched down, pointed the nozzle at the vulpix and sprayed a fine mist over its body. The feel good medicine in the potion worked immediately and before my eyes, the foxes cuts and bruises vanished under healthy skin.

Once the potion ran out of juice, I set it beside me and watched as the vulpix stirred back into consciousness.

With a smile on my face, I said, "There you go. How are you feeling, vulpix? Much better, huh?"

The confused vulpix looked from myself to my dad and his Pokémon, then back to me in the Super potion next to me. It must have connected its newfound health to me and the potion because it let out a happy vul before pouncing onto my chest. I fell backwards in surprise but the vulpix just nuzzled its head against mine while making happy sounds.

I laughed and said while stroking its silky smooth fur, "I'm glad you're feeling better. My daddy and I took care of those meanie rattata for you so there's nothing at all to worry about."

Dad didn't say anything to the contrary and the vulpix hopped off my chest, allowing me to stand up. Once I was up, the vulpix immediately went back to nuzzling me and I happily scratched between it's ears. Of all the Pokémon I'd collected in my game, my favorite by far had been the vulpix that I'd evolved into a ninetales with a fire stone after many battles. Being so close to a real live vulpix was definitely one of the coolest moments of my life so far.

Which made what I knew to be an inevitable goodbye so hard. No doubt dad would never let me keep the fluffy vulpix, so I had to stall that moment for as long as I could. I knew the perfect way to do it, too.

I gestured to the basket around my shoulder and said to dad, "Mommy sent me to bring you your lunch and there's food for machoke and graveller too. Do you think I could share a little bit to vulpix? You're always complaining that mommy feeds them too much, right?"

Dad chuckled and said, "That's certainly true enough. Alright, hand the basket over and let's see what we have to work with."

I passed the basket over to him and after he divided most of the Pokémon food between his two and took the sandwiches out, he returned the basket with what was left. It was a good amount, so I knew the vulpix would be getting a nice meal. Assuming it approved of the homemade food, of course.

I took a small ball of food out and held it before the vulpix, "Are you hungry? Mommy cooks the best Pokémon food in our house. Go on, give it a try."

The vulpix sniffed the brown ball of food before gently taking it from my hand and chewing it with what I perceived as a look of curiosity. After swallowing the red fox beamed happily and gave what I thought was a vul of approval.

I giggled and said, "You like it, huh? Well, here's some more."

I continued to feed the vulpix while dad ate his sandwiches and stared at us with a complicated look on his face. He seemed unsure of something. Confused, I just kept feeding vulpix slowly but surely.

Finally, dad scowled and grumbled, "Oh man, your mother is going to kill me."

Vulpix and I both watched my dad curiously as he opened his bag and went through its contents. When he found what he was looking for, he took it out and tossed it to me without a word. I caught it in to my amazement, it was an empty pokeball.

My jaw dropped in a stammered, "D-does this mean what I think it means?"

Dad nodded, "A blind man could see that you two are meant for each other. Just wait until I talk with your mom before you decide to show your vulpix off to her."

My happiness levels threatened to explode until I remembered it was really up to vulpix.

I showed it the pokeball and said, "Do you know what this is, vulpix? It's a pokeball. If you let me catch you in this, I'll be able to take you everywhere with me. We'll be best friends and I promise you'll grow really strong with me. What do you think?"

Vulpix's answer was to run circles around my feet before stopping a few feet ahead of me. Its eyes were filled with determination and I took its actions as approval. Still amazed that this was happening, I tossed the pokeball in my hands a few times before I was 100% sure of myself. I wound up in tossed the pokeball at the wild vulpix, just as I had practiced many times at home. My aim was true and as soon as the ball touched vulpix, the fox turned into red light and was sucked into the pokeball, which closed with a glowing red center. It wobbled once, twice, three times before the ball settled and the glow faded away.

I done it! I'd captured my very first Pokémon! I was officially an unofficial Pokémon trainer! I knew it was only the first step on a very long road ahead but I was going to savor this moment for the rest of my life. I was sure of it! I jumped up and down, squealing with happiness until I remembered to pick up my newly captured vulpix. Inside of the pokeballs clear, red tinted top, a teeny tiny vulpix looked up at me with what looked like happiness in its eyes.

Despite looking happy, I thought the vulpix would be pretty cramped in that little pokeball, so I tossed the ball into the air before me and watched as it opened to release the vulpix. The pokeball returned to my hand like magic and vulpix bounded around our group, muzzling everything it met with a happy vul. Machoke and graveller looked happy to have a new member of the family around while daddy looked half amused and half dismayed. I didn't know what kind of deal my parents had made regarding my first Pokémon but my guess was that dad had broken it pretty bad.

Still filled with a happy giddiness, I ran to my dad and jumped into his arms before I said, "Thank you thank you a billion times, daddy! I don't know if you'll be in trouble or not with mommy but if you are banished to the couch, you can sleep in my bed with me. I'm sure you'll fit."

Dad chuckled and rubbed my back as he replied, "I might have to take you up on that sweetie. That couch does a number on my back."

I grinned and replied cheekily, "You'd think you'd get used to it by now away seeing how often you sleep on it."

In reply, he gave me a painless pop on the butt and said, "That's because I'm always taking your side in an argument. If I had any sense at all I would just take your mother's side and save my poor back from being tortured."

I giggled and hugged him around the neck, "Well I'm grateful you always take the side of justice and reason."

Dad just laughed and set me on the ground so my vulpix could nuzzle my legs again. I was really happy to be able to call the vulpix my own but at the same time, I knew that I'd just accepted a huge responsibility. I would have to work hard to ensure the two of us could work as a team in the battle and beyond that, I knew I would have to feed it, wash it and pick up its vulpoops. It would be more than fun and games.

Knowing all of this, I didn't have a single regret. The knowledge I had from Pokémon Red would serve me well in the real world. For instance, I knew that vulpix was a fire type Pokémon in that fire types were strong against grass, ice, bug in steel types but were weak against water, ground and rock attacks. Vulpix also had a special ability called flash fire, which made it immune to fire type attacks. As long as I was smart, vulpix would do well in most Pokémon battles.

Thinking of Pokémon battles made me think of my rival for life Koji. If it was true that he would be getting his own Pokémon tomorrow, we could have our first battle together right there at the party. Depending on the Pokémon he got, I might be at a advantage, disadvantage or even with him. I really hoped it would be the former. Nothing would satisfy me more than to squash Koji like the bug that he was.

Now that I had a Pokémon of my own, I really didn't care if Koji got his own or not. In fact, I hope he did get one so we could train against another until we set off to take the Pokémon League Challenge. I knew we were a little young to be traveling the region on our own but as long as our parents gave the OK we would be fine. Well, Koji might run home crying but I sure wouldn't. Thanks to our family camping tricks each summer, I knew all of the necessary skills for outdoor survival. I could start a fire with a few sticks, I knew how to fish with nothing but a stick and even if I ran out of food, most towns were so close together that I rarely even had to camp at all.

Money might be a problem, though. I'd saved enough of my allowance to have a nice nest egg for emergencies but if I wanted to be able to afford pokeballs in potions to take care of my team, I needed to make an income of my own. Prize money from winning Pokémon battles was good, but with only vulpix by my side I didn't foresee winning too many battles early on unless we agreed beforehand on a 1 versus 1 battle. I also had to keep a loss fund for my own losses against other trainers period since I was just starting out, I knew to expect quite a few losses until I got my feet on the ground.

I didn't have to go out into the world completely green, of course. Dad was just as dedicated to training his Pokémon as he was to training his body, which was why he was a force to be reckoned with in the Dojo. If I asked, I was sure that he would agree to teach me a few things about battling that I couldn't learn from my game. I'd be at a huge disadvantage against graveller but I could probably give machoke a run for his money with vulpix.

Dad must have seen the appraising looks I was giving his Pokémon because he grinned and said, "Now Kira, don't go thinking that you can take on my team. We'd pound your little spitfire into the ground before you could decide on your first move. However, if you ask nicely I'll be happy to take you out here every weekend so you can train against the local Pokémon. They will be much closer to your level."

I clasp my hands behind my back, blinked a few sparkles into my eyes and fidgeted cutely as I asked, "Daddy? Won't you pretty please teach me how to train my vulpix for battle?"

Dad blinked and then cleared his throat, "You're going to be a dangerous girl when you grow up. Anyways, I'll train you if your mother doesn't kill me first. I'll wake you up in the morning, so be ready. There is more to battling than just issuing orders singly like you do in that game of yours. You have to think two, sometimes even three moves ahead of the other guy. A good battler can even make his opponents act in his favor without the opponent even realizing until it's too late. It takes years to become a truly experienced trainer. It'll be tough, but I'll teach you how to work towards that level."

I smiled and said,"Thank you, daddy! I'll do my best to learn all I can from you. Oh yeah, speaking of growing up, Koji invited me to his birthday party tomorrow. Is it alright if I go?"

Dad nodded and said, "I don't have a problem with it. Koji's a nice kid and you two get along great. Just make sure you get your mother's OK, too. I have a feeling that after this, I'll be deferring to your mother for quite a long time."

I frowned and replied, "We don't get along at all! I just want to go so I can brag about being a Pokémon trainer before him. He'll be really jealous!"

Dad grinned and teased, "You know Kira, they say that the boy you can't stand as a child will usually be the man you can't live without as a grown up."

My eyes widened and I blanched, "Koji and me together? No way! That's really gross! Once I grow up in become the Pokémon league champion, I'm gonna marry Red. He's not much older than I am and he's super strong and smart and cute. Everything that stupid Koji isn't."

Dad just rolled his eyes, "Yeah yeah. You're not the only girl that idolizes that kid. Sure, he saved the world from team rocket with his friends but to me he's just a brat. Now then, let's go home and thank your mother for her delicious lunch. I know you're excited about your new friend but please keep it hidden until I've had a chance to talk with her. Something like this has to be handled slowly and carefully, like a minefield."

I was amazed by how worried add was about mom finding out I had my own Pokémon. It really told me a lot about what mom had wanted regarding me being a trainer. Looking back, anytime I brought up being a trainer around her she seemed oddly noncommittal, as if she didn't expect it to happen anytime soon. How long had she planned on waiting until she let me be a trainer? Did she even want me to be one? She had said I'd get one when I proved I was ready, but was that just a delaying tactic?

Dad seemed to read my mind because he said, "Your mother has her reasons for wanting to wait, sweetie. She believes that, like her brother when she was your age, you'll go off and never come back, or get hurt or any number of tragic events. That's why I want you to promise that you won't leave to challenge the Pokémon league until your next birthday. That gives you eight months to train with me and show your mother that you're ready. Do you understand?"

I didn't even have to think about it, "I understand, daddy. I promise I won't ask to leave until I'm nine. Is that true about her brother? Did he really just vanish into thin air?"

Dad laughed, "I never said he vanished. Only that he left and never came back home. Your uncle just loves exploring and it's no sooner after he finishes one job that he's off to the next. The last letter we got from him says he's over in the Johto region right now, studying some ancient ruins. I'll show you the picture he sent when we get home."

Hearing that, I better understood why mom was so hesitant to let me leave on my own. I'd never even known I had an uncle until now and while his life certainly sounded exciting, I was on mom side and thinking he should come back home every now and then. Even after I left it challenged the Pokémon league, I still plan on coming home periodically. It really helped that Saffron City was the hub of the Kanto region. To the north lay Cerulean City, to the east lay Lavender Town, the west held Celadon city and to the south was Vermillion city and the legendary S.S. Anne. Those were the direct links to Saffron, so I had a ton of options to choose from for my first challenge.

Naturally, I had no intention of hitting Cerulean city first. That gym used water Pokémon that would blast us out the door before we could even lay down our challenge. I'd need a team of strong Pokémon of the grass or electric types to challenge them. Most likely I would challenge Erica of celadon city. Her grassy Pokémon would be at a great disadvantage against vulpix. Plus, I'd actually been to Celadon city in real life and could get around better. I might not be able to get much at the department store but nothing kept a girl from browsing and planning for the future.

I had enough time to do a lot of planning period thanks to my promise, I had at least eight months to train vulpix, gather a basic team from the local area and plan for the future. With dad's permission, I might even be allowed to challenge the many Pokémon trainers that came to and from Saffron now and then. After all, I couldn't spar against Koji all of the time. Beating him nonstop would just get boring.

Saffron had its own gym, but I'd have to be a registered trainer before I could take it on. I wouldn't be one until I sent in my application with my parents consent, so I had to wait. Plus, the place creeped me out. Sabrina, the gym leader, put teleportation tiles everywhere and once, I'd snuck in and had gotten so lost I'd cried until a trainer found me and helped me to the exit. I never set foot in there since.

Dad and I made small talk as we returned to town. Dad had recalled his Pokémon when we set off while vulpix trotted happily beside me. Unfortunately, dad made me return vulpix when we got to the gate house since mom could have gone out since my leaving. I promised vulpix we'd play later and after it was snugly tucked into the pokeball, I hid it in the pocket of my skorts. The pockets were in the shorts part of this set, so there was no bulge on the outside thanks to the skirt. Mom would never see a thing. There were pockets in the skirt as well, but the added weight made it obvious in the skirts movement that something was holding it down. I didn't want to take any chances against moms eagle eyes.

We took the scenic route through the city to get home and we did more than a little bit of window shopping along the way. I did spotted a nice traveling backpack that wasn't too expensive and best of all, I could argue that I needed it for school to carry my books. Mom would be none the wiser to its true purpose of supporting me on my Pokémon adventure. Unfortunately, I would have to save up a few months allowance, so I'd have to go without getting new games for a little. Oh well, there was always the park to keep me entertained.

Saffron City had everything, which made sense given its location. Whether you were starting from Vermilion, Lavender or Cerulean City, you had to pass through Saffron if you wanted to get to Celedon City. That meant a lot of businesses and shops that catered to travelers. There was also a nice park where parents could take their kids or trainers could take their Pokémon to relax. I loved going there to play and meet other peoples Pokémon. Now, I could let vulpix play in the park as well.

The crown jewel of Saffron City was without a doubt the Silph Co building. It stood like a giant above all the other buildings and the high tech products they made were one of a kind. Team rocket had even taken over the town to get to the Silph Co's secrets. That was a scary time, but thanks to Red and his friends, the evil rockets had been demolished in the city was peaceful once more. Rumor had it that they developed a pokeball that could capture any wild Pokémon without fail, but I didn't know if it was true or not. Ultra balls were already super expensive but a pokeball that could catch anything would be super super expensive. If they put it on the market, I knew I would never be able to afford it. That would even be more expensive than a bike!

Thankfully, I didn't need a bike to get around town. Any place that was worth going to was an easy walk away, even if it was on the other side of town. Walking was good for the legs and running was even better period if it were up to me, I would turn the cycling road into the runners road. Anybody could run but only a few people could afford bikes. Once I left Saffron to go on my Pokémon adventure, I knew I would hoof it the entire way. Well, most of the way. I couldn't walk on water after all, so I would need to take a ferry or a large water Pokémon to get to cinnabar island.

I snapped out of my musings when I recognized my street in our house. It was a modest two story home with everything a family could want. We had a small front yard with mom's flower garden nestled against the front porch and our backyard was pretty small but made up for its size with a treehouse that included a tire swing on one branch and a normal swing on the other. Koji's house was right next door and was practically a mirror of our own, minus the treehouse. In its place with a soccer goal and a large pool that totally didn't make me jealous. My small wading pool was perfect for me in the summer. Who cared if Koji could swim whole laps for hours on end? Not that I spied on him for my treehouse, of course.

Once we reached our house, I bounded up the steps to our porch two at a time and opened the door to call out , "Mommy, I'm home! Mission accomplished!"

Mom called back from upstairs, "That sure took you awhile. Did you have any trouble finding your dad?"

Dad close the door behind me as I replied, "No trouble at all! I just ran into stupid Koji and I had to listen to him babble about nothing. Oh, he's having a birthday party tomorrow. Is it OK if I go? Daddy says I should ask you."

I smiled as dad started to sneak up the stairs while mom took a moment before answering, "Koji is the boy next door, right? I don't see any reason not to let you go. He's a good kid and -eek! Don't sneak up on me like that!"

I didn't hear exactly what dad said back to her but it sounded lovey dovey, so I blanched instead, "Thanks mommy! I'll be back at the fort if you need me!"

Without waiting for an answer, I ran through the living room, past the kitchen and went through the back door. My tree fort was my home away from home, my second room where I could relax and keep an eye on the world at the same time. It was also where I went when I wanted some privacy. Nobody could sneak up on me in my fort, which made it the perfect place to play with vulpix.

Fort Kira was nestled roughly 20 feet above the ground, safely tucked into the arms of our resident oak tree. Dad had made it for me last year and I'd even helped by holding his nails in fetching this tool or that. It had been the best birthday present ever and I took good care of it in turn. I kept the inside clean and free of leaves and I never brought up any juices or soda that could stain the carpet. I'd wanted a full wood floor but dad didn't want me to get any splinters, so he did put in the carpet to keep me safe. There were only two entrances into Fort Kira: A rope ladder or a firefighters pole. The ladder was a little awkward as an entrance but it was the best exit ever. The only thing that would have been better was a helical slide that looped around the tree trunk but dad had said it would have been too tough to put up. The pole had been my next choice.

I use the ladder this time and as soon as I settled onto my forest green carpet, I pulled out vulpix's pokeball and let my first Pokémon out. It gave me a happy vul of greeting before it started to explore my Fort. Under the window that faced koji's house was a pair of hoothoot style binoculars, which I didn't use to spy on were for bird watching. Posted next to my north facing window was my region map, which I looked at and imagined traveling to each and every point of interest on the map. Scattered on the floor were my Pokémon toys and I giggled as vulpix sniffed a life sized doll of its same kind.

My ceiling held posters of my dream team, the team I had collected in my game and had used to secure victory in the Pokémon league. Blastoise, ninetales, rhydon, machamp, dragonite and pidgeot. All work together to earn my position as the Pokémon League Champion. Naturally, had captured other Pokémon along the way but that was my team of elites.

A lot of trainers, including gym leaders tended to stick to only one type of Pokémon but I thought that was dangerous. As soon as people figured out what type you preferred, they could exploit its weaknesses. That was why my team consisted of a variety of types. It allowed me to take advantage of all kinds of weaknesses and let me switch out to a better type if they tried the same on me.

As I looked up at my posters, I promised each one that I would capture or evolve a real team just like it. I looked from the ninetales to my vulpix, knowing that I had already taken the first step towards that goal. The rest would be tough. In order to preserve the mystery of finding Pokémon in the real world, a lot of the Pokémon locations in the game were randomized, so you never knew which cave held that Paras you wanted, or which lake had your goldeen. It made sense, but it also made collecting my dream team that much tougher. I had no idea where I could find a squirtle or a dratini, Let alone the rare rhyhorn. Luckily, not all was lost. Pidgey and even pidgeotto were common outside of Saffron and I could just ask dad where I could find a wild machop.

With luck and mom's approval, I could have two or three of my dream team before I even hit my birthday. Then, I would be in good shape to go out and collect the rest of them. It would take awhile, but all of the time and effort would be worth it to have my championship belt around my waist. Then, I would be worthy of the even greater honor of being Reds wife. We traveled the world together, saving the day and making important discoveries all of the time.

A nudge on my leg popped me out of my daydream. Vulpix looked up at me with a confused look on its face.

I smiled and crouched down, "This is Fort Kira, my secret base. Up here, we can play and talk with each other without worrying about mommy finding out about you before daddy can talk with her. She's probably going to be reeeally mad at daddy at first but after she's calmed down, I'm sure you'll be allowed to stay. Even if she says you can't, will just flee up here until she changes her mind. I'll pull up the rope ladder and put grease on the firefighters pole so nobody will get to you."

Vulpix looked worried at that and I giggled, "Oh, don't worry. I doubt it would ever come to that. Mommy is pretty understanding what she's had time to think something through. Just in case though, maybe we should start collecting canned foods that won't go bad so we'll be able to last up here awhile."

Vulpix gave a vul of agreement before I heard a door open nearby. Going over to my bird watching window, I looked out to see that Koji was home. Thinking there was a bird on his head, I picked up my binoculars and confirmed that it was just his stupid spiky hair. He had a soccer ball under his arm, which he dropped on the grass and started to kick goals against an invisible team. If I were at the goal, none of his weak shots would have gotten through.

Vulpix nudged my leg again, so I picked it up and showed it what was out the window, "See that dumb looking kid down there being bad at soccer? That's my lifelong rival, Koji. He's our sworn nemesis and if we ever have a battle with whatever dumb Pokémon he gets tomorrow, I want you to do your best to beat him. Understand?"

My Pokémon nodded with a determined look in its eyes. I knew a lot of vulpix's basic moves so if we did get into a Pokémon battle, I wouldn't be at a complete loss. I might have been green as a real life trainer but I was a veteran in my game. The two couldn't have been all that different.

Looking at the toys scattered on the floor, an idea came to my mind that made me smile, "Hey vulpix, let's do some training."

Using the toys as dummies, I had vulpix go through a variety of movements and attacks that I thought would be useful in a real battle. Obviously we couldn't practice fire attacks but we could practice our team work well enough. Because of the limited space, I could only use close range attacks such as tackle or leer but even so, it was a lot of fun and our training ate up time like ramen.

I'd just thrown a pidgey at vulpix to practice its ability to dodge when I heard my mom call from the back door, "Kira! It's time to come in for dinner, dear. Come down and don't forget to wash your hands."

She always reminded me to wash my hands as if I'd suddenly break the habit if she didn't tell me. I was panting almost as hard as vulpix was and I smiled before telling it that we'd had a good training session today. I gave vulpix a kiss on the forehead before I returned it to its pokeball and slipped the pokeball into the pocket of my shorts. Once my pokeball with secure, I cheered happily as I slid down my escape pole.

Inside, I washed my hands at the kitchen sink while mom joked, "You were sure playing hard up there, sweetie. If I didn't know better, I'd have thought you were really with a Pokémon."

Behind my mom, dad looked panicked and he shook his head and made an x with his arms, so I giggled and replied, "Don't I wish. You know how much I'd love to have a Pokémon of my own. I would take really good care of it and I wouldn't even dream of leaving until I had your OK to take on the Pokémon league and even if I did go I would still stop by really often and even when I was away I'd try to call on the video phone all the time!"

The words poured out of my mouth like a broken floodgate and by the time I finished, mom was squinting at me with suspicion.

Luckily, she just turned to dad and said matter of factly, "You told her about Edward."

Dad clear his throat instead, not meeting her eyes, "I thought it was only fair that she understands why you're of averse to her having a Pokémon. Plus, he's another family member for her to keep in contact with period you know how much Ed's wanted to talk with Kira."

The suspicion left her eyes and she let out a sigh, "I suppose you're right. Arcaeus knows neither of our parents right or call near nearly enough. I'll give you his address tonight sweetie, so sit at the table and I'll serve dinner."

I really look forward to learning more about my newfound uncle Ed period from what dad had said about him, he'd been on a ton of adventures since leaving home. I wanted to hear all of them, including his current adventure in johto period from the little I knew about johto, it was an exciting land filled with entirely new Pokémon and gym leaders. Maybe after I won the Kanto Pokémon league, I would go to Johto and do the same there. That would be fun!

Dinner consisted of spaghetti in synth beefy meatballs topped with the garlic in tomato sauce. It was one of my favorite meals, just below Mac and cheese but above synth pork hotdogs. When I was even younger than I was now, I'd asked why all of our meat started with synth and dad had explained that long long ago, people used to actually eat Pokémon for food! As horrifying as that sounded, people had actually liked it! Then, the Pokémon had gotten tired of being food in the most powerful rose up and threatened war against humans if it didn't stop. Humans promised to stop and from then on, humans relied on vegetable based pseudo meats. It was horrible tasting at first but as time went on, science made better and better products, until finally we had to meet sour indistinguishable from the real things. I'd never tasted real meat before but then again, I never wanted to if it meant a Pokémon got killed for it. I loved Pokémon too much to do that.

We made small talk while we ate and I happily told mom about my day, minus getting my very first Pokémon. I think she was amused when I said I'd become the Pokémon league champion in my game and that I intended on gathering that very same championship team in real life once I got the OK. When I listed my team, she laughed and wished me good luck. Dad at least told me that I could find wild machops In the mountains to the north or to the West. It was a start.

Being a slowly growing girl, I ate two servings of spaghetti and drank two glasses of water before I called it quits. My belly was stuffed and I gave it a very satisfied pat as I leaned back in my chair. Machoke and graveller ate their own dinners nearby And I noted that dad had snuck some food away on the sly for my vulpix to eat later period given moms tendencies to over feed the two, the addition of vulpix was perfect for my dad to do something about the extra food. It was another positive towards letting vulpix stay.

It was my turn to do the dishes so while I collected the plates and utensils in brought them to the sink, mom went upstairs to run my bath and put my PJS on the bed. With the exception of the saucepot, spaghetti was easy to clean up and after only a few minutes, I went upstairs to find that not only was my bath ready for me, it was filled with bubbles! I love the bubble baths! The bubbles even smelled like strawberries and cream, my favorite scent. Mom must have gone shopping while I was gone.

I had long since earned the right to a private bath on my own so I felt reasonably safe as I took vulpix's ball out of my pocket and placed it on the lip of the bath. Then I slipped out of my adventuring outfit in tossed each piece into the nearby hamper. Now baby bare, I dipped a toe into the water to ensure it wasn't too hot and once I found it to be nice and warm, I slipped into the bubbly paradise.

All of my muscles seemed to relax at once and I let out a long happy sigh as I leaned back and stretched out my legs in the tub. The water was perfect and the bubbles surrounded me as if in a strawberry scented hug. Besides play time, bath time was my favorite time of day. In the former I could let loose all of my energy and in the latter I could sit back and relax.

I glanced at the pokeball beside me and after I gave myself a moment to think about it, I released my vulpix next to the tub. I didn't know if vulpix was like a charmander, where submergence underwater could mean death, So I was iffy about letting my first Pokémon into the bath. Thankfully, vulpix took care of that concern at its own. With a happy vul, it jumped onto the lip of the bathtub before sliding into the water. I giggled happily and hugged the paddling Pokémon to my chest.

In a whisper, I said, "We have to be quiet, 'kay? Mommy always scolds me when I'm too loud so we can't make a lot of noise."

With a serious expression on its face, vulpix gave a vul of agreement.

Looking back at my thoughts, I frowned and said, "Y'know, I can't keep calling you it in my head. Let's see if you're a boy or a girl."

I lifted the curious vulpix out of the water and looked down at spelling until I found what I was looking for.

Smiling, I put the vulpix back in the water and said, "So you're a girl. As you can see, I'm a girl too. Girls are definitely better than stinky boys. Next, let's think up a name for you. Hmm. Vulpix…Pixy…Ah! Pixie! Let's call you Pixie!"

Pixie nodded her head in happy agreement as a thought crossed my mind.

Grinning, I scooped a handful of bubbles out of the water and said, "Hey Pixie, bubble beam attack!"

I blew the bubbles onto Pixies face, who shook her head and pawed the bubbles off before glaring at me.

I gasped and said, "Oh no! Leer attack! My attacks are useless now!"

Getting into the game now, Pixie crouched on my chest and wagged her tail, which made me groan, "No! Tail whip has completely broken my defenses!"

Finally, Pixie leaned forward and nudged her head against mine, to which I splashed my legs and slid deeper into the water with lethargic limbs, "Oh no! Tackles a critical hit. I'm defeated!"

I feigned unconsciousness until I heard a throat being cleared and a casual voice saying, oh good period now that you're defeated, you can't run away while I demand an explanation.

My eyes shot open and I stifled a scream. Mom stood at the open bathroom door with her arms crossed and a very scary looking arise. It was her you can't lie to me so don't even bother look and I knew from past experience just how effective in true it was. Even dad was cowed by the glare.

I prayed for dad safety as I threw him under the tauros from behind the safety of the bathtub wall, "D-Daddy Said I could have her period he was gonna tell you tonight, I promise!"

Next to me, Pixie gave a vul of agreement from behind the same wall. She was just as afraid as I was, for good reason. She was a smart Pokémon.

Mom was silent for a moment before she turned and closed the door on her exit. I offered up another prayer for dad as I started washing up from the tip of my ears to my toes. I didn't hear anything but the slashing of the water in the popping of bubbles, which may be both worried and relieved. If she yelled at dad, I would have heard and I hated hearing my parents argue. As it was, though, I had no idea how things were being settled. I hated that even more.

I lathered my forest scented shampoo into my hair and washed it out using my gyarados wash bucket. I'd taken my time with all of this and still mom hadn't returned, so I gulped and pulled the plug to drain the bath water and then got out of the tub with Pixie. I dried myself off with a fluffy towel and did the same for Pixie, who left a few stray hairs in both the tub and the towel. I used the latter to clean the former, just to show I was responsible enough to clean after my Pokémon. Finally, I went to the sink to brush my hair and brush and floss my teeth until they sparkled.

There was no putting it off any longer, so after I put the furry towel in the hamper and wrapped myself in a new one, I gulped, opened the bathroom door and peeked out. The hallways clear, so I tiptoed out and made my way to my room with Pixie padding along behind me. I had her pokeball in my right hand.

My door was open, which gave me a bad feeling. Mom usually closed it after setting out my clothes. Sure enough, mom sat at the foot of my bed, between myself in my PJ's. She only sat this way for two reasons: to give a serious talk or a serious bottom scorching. Given my just out of the bath state, I really really hoped it wasn't the latter. Spankings on wet skin hurt twice as much as dry ones. Either way, I wouldn't be allowed to dress until she was done.

She looked my way as I slipped in and gave the space beside her a pat for me to sit. That could be good or bad. Usually I'd have to stand in front of her while she explained why I was being punished, but she could just as easily pull me over her lap from the side. I gulped, crossed the room and sat next to her while Pixie jumped onto my lap. Her fur was silky smooth and warm.

Mom looked at both of us and must have seen both of us as worried, because she sighed and said, "I'll get this out of the way now. You may keep your vulpix provided you take care of her responsibly. I'm angry at your father for going behind my back about this but I'm not going to take that out on you. I know how much you've wanted your own Pokémon and now you have the chance to show you can handle the responsibility that comes with one. Pokémon are more than just tools for battling towards your goal. They are dear friends and your closest allies. As long as you treat them right, they'll stay by your side through thick and thin."

She smiled and scratched behind Pixie's ear as she continued, "Your daddy told me you've promised not to even ask about leaving until you're 9, which I suppose I can agree with. Edward left around that age as well and while I think it's far too young, he proved along with other trainers that he was ready to take on the world. I'll be the judge on whether you're ready or not when the time comes. I promise I'll be fair and impartial. I'm going to have to teach you a lot in the next 8 months, including how to handle growing into the beautiful woman I know you'll become. You're my only daughter, so I'll be lonely when you set off on your adventure."

I was so happy that I wrapped my mom in a hug and squealed, "T)hank you thank you thank you mommy! I promise I'll take good care of Pixie and every other Pokémon I catch in the future. I'll be such a good trainer other moms will wish I was her daughter just so they could be as proud of me as you'll be. Oh, and if you don't want to be lonely then you can always make me some brothers and sisters. It's not that hard, right?"

Mom lifted me up and settled me onto her lap as she asked in an amused tone, "Not that hard huh? Injustice what do you know about how babies are made?"

I grinned smugly and replied, "Please, mommy. I'm eight, not two. I know all about the pidgeys and the beedrills. Everyone knows that when a mommy and daddy wanna baby, the mommy and daddy hug each other in a special way, and then the mommy lays an egg and a few weeks later, the baby is born."

I'd seen just that happened at the Pokémon daycare to the north of Saffron and I knew I'd seen it right, so imagine my surprise when mom burst out laughing.

I flushed indignantly and asked, "W-What did I say? I know I'm right!"

Mom hugged me close and wiped a tear from her eye as she replied, "Sweetie, that's how Pokémon make babies, but people make babies in a much different way."

I puffed my cheek out and grumbled, "And how do people make babies?"

She explained. My eyes grew wide, my faced burst into flames and I unconsciously covered my girl parts. Sorry Red, it's going to be a long long time before I let you do that to me. Why couldn't we lay eggs like Pokémon? It was much easier and a lot less icky. We peed from those parts!

As I wrapped my brain around that revelation, mom giggled and said, "Pretty different, huh? Also in a way the same. Our egg just hatches inside of us and there's no shell. Anyways, your daddy and I are trying to give you a baby brother a sister. Almost every night in fact."

I shook my head and covered my ears, "Don't wanna know! Don't wanna hear that! I'll trust you're trying hard and leave it at that."

Mom just laughed in must up my hair as she said, "If you think that's bad, just wait a few years."

My eyes went wide again, "W-why? What's going to happen in a few years?"

Mom simply gave me an evil smile and set me off her lap before she said, "That'll be a lesson for another night. For now, just get into your jammies and get to bed. If I know your daddy, he's going to want you to go out with him to train you and your vulpix in the morning. You'll need all the sleep you can get."

That was definitely true. Dad's idea of morning was getting up in hour before sunrise to start our daily routine of exercises. I had to admit, the exercises were fun and I was infinitely stronger than other girls (and a lot of boys) My age because of it but I still thought they stunted my growth period normally our routine ended at the exercises while dad went out to train his Pokémon before he left to work at the Dojo. Tomorrow though, I would go with him to the Meadow and dad would let Pixie and train with him. I was so excited I was worried about not being able to sleep period

Mom rose up to leave after I gave her a kiss goodnight and she did the same to me and Pixie. After the door closed behind her, I shed my towel and got into my pajamas, which consisted of white cotton undies and a nightgown with all kinds of Pokémon on it. Once dressed I put Pixie's pokeball onto my night stand, Jumped onto my bed with a pomf and snuggled under my covers with Pixie in my arms.

Her body was nice and warm, which made me think my games pokedex entry about there being an everburning flame in her body was true. That would be handy in the winter.

I closed my eyes and listened to the sound of Pixie breathing period within minutes, the Pokémon was fast asleep in the few moments later I joined her in deep slumber.