AUTHOR'S NOTE: Greetings, readers! Here is chapter 8 of the continuing adventures of Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu as they continue their journey through the Johto region. The Guide Gent from the Gold, Silver, and Crystal version games makes an appearance in this chapter. "You may recall the episode "Pokémon Food Fight" where Ash accidentally damages Snorlax's Pokéball. Now normally, when a Pokéball is broken into pieces, the Pokémon is relieved from the Trainer's ownership, but since it was accidentally destroyed, that won't be the case this time. This chapter will be shorter than most, but don't worry, there will be longer chapters ahead. Anyway, please feel free to read and review at your leisure.

TEASER: Tristan accidentally breaks one of his Pokéballs when he trips on a rock! Now he must take part in a treasure hunt with Hillary to find a new Pokéball and a new home for Chikorita, and only an elderly gentleman can help them find it! But will they accept his grand tour of Cherrygrove City and his help?

Chapter 10: ADVENTURES IN CHERRYGROVE CITY

(Music Cue: Opening 1999-2001 (as heard at the end of "A Shadow of a Drought"))

Today, our heroes are running toward the entrance to Cherrygrove City. But little do they know that an accident is bound to happen.

Tristan and Pikachu were running excitedly toward the city limits. "Come on, Hillary!" he called. "This fresh air is wonderful!"

"I'm coming, Tristan!" Hillary, holding Togepi in her arms, did her best to catch up, but suddenly, she spotted a big rock in the road a short distance from Tristan. "Tristan, watch out!"

But it was too late, for he tripped on the rock, causing him to yell out and hit the ground hard.

(Music Cue: Freeing Charizard (starting at 4:11 to the end))

There was worse to come, for one of his Pokéballs flew off his belt high into the air. Down and down it fell at a high rate of speed until finally, it smashed into an even bigger rock on the side of the road, causing it to break into pieces.

An instant later, Chikorita emerged from the white light that shot out of the broken Pokéball. It saw Tristan lying on the ground and quickly rushed to him followed by Pikachu, Hillary, and Togepi.

"Are you okay, Tristan?" asked Hillary.

Tristan slowly got up and dusted himself off. "I'm okay. Nothing's broken." But then he saw the broken Pokéball and gasped in horror. "My Pokéball! Oh, what should I do?"

"Don't worry, Tristan," said Hillary. "We'll get that Pokéball fixed. Let's get to the Pokémon Center and get some help from Nurse Joy."

"Okay," agreed Tristan.

Tristan and Hillary wasted no time getting to the Pokémon Center, but unfortunately, they were in for some bad news.

"This is terrible," said Nurse Joy as she looked at the broken pieces. "I'm afraid this Pokéball is damaged beyond repair."

"Beyond repair?" said Tristan in disbelief. "But what about Chikorita? Where will its home be?"

"Tristan, please take it easy!" implored Hillary. "We'll figure something out."

"Don't worry, Tristan," Nurse Joy assured him. "I'm sure you didn't break that Pokéball on purpose. And Chikorita still likes you. Now what you need to do is to find an Apricorn Tree. It has very special fruits that can be made into custom Pokéballs."

"Pokéballs made from Apricorns?" said Hillary. "I've never heard of that before."

"For centuries, namely between four and seven of them, the only Pokéballs that existed were made from Apricorns," explained Nurse Joy. "Kurt from Azalea Town is an expert on making them, but I've recently started taking lessons from him on how to make high-quality Apricorn Pokéballs. And the extra clear water here in Cherrygrove City makes the Pokéball extra special."

"Where can we find the Apricorn Tree, Nurse Joy?" asked Tristan.

"You can find one just outside the city limits," answered Nurse Joy. "It shouldn't be too tough to get one, and they just ripened, but I strongly advise that you don't pick too many at once. Doing so can cause harm to the tree itself."

"I don't need a lot of Apricorns," said Tristan. "I'd be happy if I could get just one."

"Me, too," added Hillary. "Picking one Apricorn or two a day shouldn't do any harm to the tree."

"However," continued Nurse Joy. "There is a rumor going around that there is a treasure hunt going on right now."

"Treasure hunt?" said Hillary. "What's the treasure?"

"I've heard through the grapevine that a Friend Ball is somewhere in Cherrygrove City," answered Nurse Joy. "Someone must not have liked it and just threw it away. But maybe it could use a happy home with a good Trainer."

"Well, then, what are we waiting for?" said Tristan. "Let's go find them!" And he and Hillary ran out of the Pokémon Center.

"Good luck, you guys!" called Nurse Joy. "And be careful out there!"

(Music Cue: Pikachu Appears!)

Tristan and Hillary were enjoying the sights of Cherrygrove City as they looked for an Apricorn Tree.

"This water looks like it's incredibly clean and clear," remarked Tristan.

"The people who live here must take very good care of it," agreed Hillary.

Presently, a light-blue amphibious Pokémon swam by in the water. It had a round and broad head, a wide mouth, and tiny blue eyes.

"I wonder what that Pokémon is," said Tristan as he scanned it with his Pokédex.

"Quagsire: The Water Fish Pokémon," identified Dexter. "The Quagsire makes its home in clean freshwater lakes. The Quagsire is covered by a slippery layer of skin, making this Pokémon especially difficult to handle."

"We wouldn't want to slip up with this Pokémon," said Tristan.

"I have to catch one," said Hillary.

But presently, she and Tristan noticed a sign.

WARNING

QUAGSIRE PRESERVATION RESTRICTIONS ARE IN EFFECT UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE

NO CAPTURING OR BATTLING ALLOWED

ANYONE WHO VIOLATES THESE RESTRICTIONS WILL BE PROSECUTED TO THE FULLEST EXTENT OF THE LAW!

"On second thought, I don't want to be arrested right now," said Hillary. She didn't want to be prosecuted by the law.

Neither did Tristan. "Going to jail is the last thing on my mind. Besides, we have to find an Apricorn to replace the Pokébball that broke."

And so they continued on, leaving the Quagsire alone.

They came to a tree a short time later, but to their disappointment, it was empty.

"That's too bad," said Tristan. "No Apricorns there."

"Well, maybe those Apricorns aren't ripe yet," replied Hillary. "I guess our only chance is to find that Friend Ball that Nurse Joy was talking about."

"Do you think it could be made from Apricorns?" asked Tristan.

"Maybe," replied Hillary. "But we're not going to find it just standing here all day. Let's keep going."

And they started off again, but not for long, for just then, an elderly gentleman appeared.

(Music Cue: Today's Johto Pokémon Curiosity)

"Hello, young whippersnappers," he said. "And welcome to Cherrygrove City."

Tristan and his friends were taken aback by the gentleman.

"Who are you?" asked Hillary.

"I'm just an elderly gentleman," answered the elderly gentleman. "But you may call me Guide Gent."

"Guide Gent?" said Tristan. "That's a weird name. What do you do?"

"Well, as my name suggests, young man," replied Guide Gent, "I'm a tour guide that gives tours to new visitors in Cherrygrove City. And I can tell you two are quite inexperienced yourselves. So please allow me to show you all around Cherrygrove City."

"That's awfully nice of you, but we have things to do, like..." Hillary began.

"Maybe you'd rather get lost instead, fine with me," Guide Gent teased.

"No, no, we'd love to have you show us around," said Tristan. "Right, sis?"

"Yeah, that's right!" agreed Hillary doubtfully.

"That's the spirit!" said Guide Gent. "I knew you'd see my way of thinking!"

We're stuck now, thought Hillary.

Now we'll never find that Friend Ball, thought Tristan.

"Now be lively and follow me for the grand tour," smiled Guide Gent as he led Tristan and his friends through the streets of town. "Now this is a Pokémon Center. I'm sure you know at least that much. And right next to that is the Poké Mart. That's where Trainers like you can buy all kinds of Pokémon merchandise for all kinds of needs."

This is boring, thought Tristan. When are we ever going to get to the treasure hunt?

Maybe we should just leave and grab a bite to eat, thought Hillary. Then again, this tour could be fun.

Pikachu, Chikorita, and Togepi yawned.

The Guide Gent continued on and on. "This is the route Trainers take out of Cherrygrove City. There's a huge apple orchard not too far from here. And there's the river over there." He then led them towards a small house. "And here...is my house! Thank you so much for letting me give you the grand tour."

"You're welcome, I think," said Tristan.

"Please come in," said Guide Gent as he led Tristan and Hillary inside the house.

(Music Cue: My Friend, Pokémon)

"We heard there's a treasure hunt going on somewhere in Cherrygrove City," said Hillary. "Do you know anything about it?"

"Oh, of course," smiled Guide Gent. "Trainers who say they don't need grand tours of a city this size are never able to find what they're looking for."

"What are you saying?" asked Tristan. He was a little puzzled.

"What I mean is it's always okay to ask for a tour," answered Guide Gent. "Because you never know. With someone who knows the city, they just might give you clues. Eventually, you'll learn where your answers are. When you see an old man at first glance, people always tend to look away because he's lacking on experience like they did in the old days, but when people stop and accept things from old folks like me, it makes us very happy to learn from young people as well."

Tristan and Hillary smiled. They now felt happy that they accepted Guide Gent's offer to take them around Cherrygrove City considering they were bored with him just moments earlier.

"As a token of my appreciation, please take this." And he handed Tristan a Pokéball. However, this Pokéball was green on the top with four red dots slanting toward the center and a gold dot at the top of the top half.

"Could this be the Friend Ball that Nurse Joy was talking about?" asked Tristan.

"It's the one and only," answered Guide Gent. "This was made from Green Apricorns. Kurt, a good friend of mine, has made good quality Pokéballs from Apricorns for many years. I've had this in my possession since I was your age. And now, since I'm retired, I figured it was time to pass it on to a young Trainer like yourself."

"Wow, Tristan, that's so great!" said Hillary.

"So this is what an Apricorn Pokéball looks like," said Tristan. "I can't wait to show Nurse Joy!"

"She will be very pleased, I'm sure," smiled Guide Gent.

"Thank you so much, sir," said Tristan.

"You're very welcome," smiled Guide Gent as he led them to the front door. "Good luck, young Trainers, and take good care!"

(Music Cue: OK! (Orchestra Arrangement)

At the Pokémon Center, Tristan and Hillary explained everything to Nurse Joy.

"Wow, that's awesome!" smiled Nurse Joy. "I can't believe you found the Friend Ball!"

"Neither can we, Nurse Joy," said Tristan. "I guess it is fun to get the grand tour. Even if the grand tour was hosted by an old expert."

Everyone laughed.

"I guess it's safe to say that you had a fun and successful treasure hunt," smiled Nurse Joy.

"We sure did," replied Tristan.

"Hey, Tristan, maybe you can use that Friend Ball and give Chikorita a new home," suggested Hillary.

"That's a great idea, Hillary," agreed Nurse Joy. "Any Pokémon that gets caught in the Friend Ball increases their friendship with their Trainer."

Tristan looked at Chikorita. "Well, Chikorita, what do you think?"

Chikorita's face glowed with excitement as it hopped off of his shoulder and touched the button on the Friend Ball, which promptly absorbed Chikorita in a red light, which quickly went inside it.

Seconds later, the Friend Ball emitted a tone, signifying that Chikorita had been caught.

Tristan gently picked up the Friend Ball. "Welcome to your new home, Chikorita."

Pikachu nodded in agreement.

"Are you kids hoping to get to the Johto League?" asked Nurse Joy.

"I am, anyway," said Tristan. "We're going to Violet City so I can compete for my first Johto League Badge."

"In that case, you should take the route that's north of Cherrygrove City," suggested Nurse Joy. "It's got wonderful places, including that famous apple orchard."

"I can't wait to see that," said Hillary. "Well, Tristan, are you ready?"

"As ready as I'll ever be," answered Tristan.

Pikachu and Togepi eagerly nodded in agreement.

And so, after a rocky start, Chikorita has a new home inside its new Friend Ball that Tristan acquired from the old man named Guide Gent. Now it's on to Violet City and Tristan's first Johto League Gym match!

► TO BE CONTINUED