As darkness pours over Varidian Forest, the sleeping Pokemon (barring noctornal creatures such as Hoothoot) are disturbed by the muffled clamouring of a human being, specifically a certain woman...

Said woman normally wouldn't be caught dead in the bug-ridden filth-hole known as Varidian Forest.

But then again, she thought bitterly, I guess the so-called "Crazy Old Meowth Lady" would never exactly be known for her sanity...

Marissa Benson had concluded long ago that it didn't matter what those people called her. Since she lost husband Nathan, she had been determined to protect her son at every cost from anything that had the slightest chance of causing him harm.

Her mind flickered to what she had run from. That broadcast had never left her mind. After everything she'd done to keep him as far from anything that those thugs would be interested in, he still wound up in the cross hairs of Team Rocket.

She honestly didn't know who to be angrier at. Was it the Rockets for obvious reasons, or at that Professor for coming to her home and seeking to lecture her about how she should feel about her son.

"You should be proud of him for his bravery."

"He did admirably considering that he was in a situation he couldn't control..."

"You can't seal him in a bubble forever."

Just watch me.

The woman was so deep in her own thoughts that she didn't see the tree she was about to plow into until it was too late.

The tree happened to have some Kakuna attached to it.

The second she felt the stringy substance that the yellowish pupae had been hanging from, she flung them away and ran screaming towards the exit. Unfortunately for her, she didn't think about the parents of those Kakuna.

Her eyes widened and heart sank as buzzing noises reverberated throughout the forest. Soon, a swarm of Beedrill surrounded their human prey, glaring menacingly at it.

Instinctively, she dug into her abnormally large bag and dug out a Repel...or at least, that's what she would've done if she hadn't forgotten it.

Her breath caught in her throat. How could she of all people forget? The one whose slogan was, "the best way to be prepared is to be over-prepared"? Every time Freddie left the house, to this day, she personally ensured that he would be prepared even if a tornado hit.

Her fear quickly hardened into white-hot rage upon thinking of her son. No stupid bugs were going to keep her away from him!

Taking up her bag and a nearby stick like a sword and shield , she screamed, "You want a piece of me, you buzzing freaks?! Well come at me, then! You won't beat Marissa Benson!"

She attempted to swat at them, with no luck, until she heard a cry come from a Pokémon that it took her a second to place.

Marissa managed to barely evade a brownish bird Pokémon that swept past her and harassed the Beedrill until they went away.

"Thank you..." The woman tilted her head in confusion. "...but where's your Trainer? Your kind don't live in this forest."

"That'd be me!"

The woman turned towards the voice that was now chuckling. It was a dark-skinned boy with a ponytail sporting a black shirt and yellow shorts.

"Alola!"

Spreading out his hands in a rainbow-esque motion, he greeted her. She waved nervously in response.

"Ha, ha! That's not how you do it!"

He grabbed on to her arms from behind to make her do the pose correctly. She turned around to lecture him on his violation of personal space, and the importance of not meddling with strangers, but for some reason she couldn't quite place, the words died in her throat.

Was it because she was just tired from her little adventure, or because there was something about that smile on the boy's that made the thought of wiping it off his face horrible to her?

Regardless, she got free of his grip. Unsure of what to say, she decided to ask for the young man's name.

"Oh, yeah, the name's Hau. Nice to meet you, lady!"

"It's..." She almost said "Mrs. Benson", but stopped and looked back at the boy. He clearly wasn't from here. Did she really want him to know her as the crazy old Zubat that the rest of Kanto saw her as? "...Marissa."

"Anyway, know how I can get to Pewter from here?"

Sbe considered simply pointing him to the exit and leaving it at that. After all, it wasn't up to a parent to take care of other kids (even if said parent knows what they're doing and it's for their own good), but her legs wouldn't obey. In fact, her stomach churned at the thought of going back to Pallet with no Freddie to greet her.

"I'm guessing you're going for your first gym badge, right?"

"Right!"

"What Pokémon did you start out with?"

"Charmander. Check it out!" The boy sent out the orange bipedal lizard with a flaming tail. It seemed pretty happy.

"It won't last," Marissa observed. "You would need a Mankey to beat Brock's Rock-types in a straight fight, or at least, that's one of your options..."

The boy looked befuddled for an incident before his usual smile returned.

"Why didn't I think of that? Wow, you're really smart, Marissa!"

Even as she shook her head, she found herself genuinely smiling, something she thought she'd never do again. She never would have expected anyone to call her smart. For her part, at least, she'd always considered the males of the Benson household to be the smart ones...

"Let's get you out of here so your team can get some rest, first."

The two walk off into the nearby building as the Forest returns to its peaceful state...

An adventure in the natural maze known as Varidian Forest forms the most unexpected of bonds. Only time will tell whether Marissa will actually learn what her son's been up to lately, but you just know that we're going to follow it all...as the journey continues.TO BE CONTINUED...