John's Journey
A/N: I want to thank TopazSoarhire for her rather humbling reviews. All I can say is that I have my moments. And thank you for the constructive criticism. I will keep your comments in mind. Thanks again.
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Chapter 3
Gregg and his father exchanged worried looks behind John's back. John couldn't fail this, not now, not when he needed it the most. And Gregg knew he couldn't make the journey alone; if John wasn't going, then he wasn't either.
John's head swam, making him dizzy as he thought of all the possibilities. Without this chance to become a Pokemon Trainer, he had no chance to save his mother! Tears formed in his eyes, blurring his vision as he silently berated himself. Stupid, stupid, stupid, he thought morosely. If only I had done better.
He was so busy rebuking himself that he almost missed Oak's next words. He looked up in time to see a smile flit across the old Professor's face. He rocked back, hurt and confused by the seeming amusement that Oak had for John's misfortunes.
"You misunderstand me, John," Oak said gently. "You passed, with the highest score that I have ever seen. When I said that I was mistaken in my judgment of you, I meant that I didn't think you would do as well as you did."
Shocked, John just stared at the man. "You old fart," he finally said, his face breaking into a wide grin. "So are you saying that you thought I was stupid?"
"Not at all," Oak laughed. "You have a certain air about you that told me you would do well. But no one has ever scored a perfect paper before."
With that, he handed John his paper back, free of any of the blemishes that came with wrong answers. Oak was right, it was a perfect paper. John stared in astonishment at it, realizing that with this paper came his chance to be a real Pokemon Trainer.
And the chance to save my mom, he thought, surprised to discover that, in the joy of the moment, he had completely forgotten about her.
Gregg and John turned as one to face the Professor. The old man beckoned them to follow him down a long hallway that had dozens of doors on either side branching off in both directions. He stopped in front of one near the end of the hallway that a bronze plaque above it with the words 'Pokemon Storage' stenciled upon it in raised letters. He turned to face the teens with a grave look on his face.
"Now that you both have passed the official Pokemon League Trainers License test," he said, "I am pleased to present you with several different items. First, you each receive a Pokedex, an electronic device that automatically records information on Pokemon that you have seen or caught. It is a valuable tool that has information for beginning trainers on battle tips, catching Pokemon, and raising them. You will find a very handy item to have with you on your quests, so keep them with you at all times. They also contain your license, another reason to have it around."
He handed them both a small, red device that had the word 'Pokedex' written across it.. Gregg ad John tool them with smiles on their faces.
"Next, you get Pokegears, another helpful tool. It has a map of Kanto Island, and can show you where each and every gym is. It also acts a communications device. Just type the phone number of the person that you are trying to call in using these buttons-" he pointed to several small buttons on the watch-like device, "-and you can instantly connect with them from anywhere in the world using sophisticated satellite technology. And as an added bonus, it tells the time! Hence, the watch-like appearance." He handed the Pokegears to the teens, who eagerly accepted these gifts too.
In addition to the Pokedex and Pokegears, Gregg and John received small backpacks for storing items, as well as several tiny red and white balls used for catching wild Pokemon, known as Pokeballs, some small Potions and Antidotes to restore health, and a variety of other equipment that would come in handy. The boys thanked the old Professor profusely, but he waved it off.
"Don't worry about it," he said with a smile. Besides, it's all paid for."
At this, John stiffened. He slowly turned to face Gregg's father, who stood with a sheepish look on his face.
"I told you not to tell them, Oak!" he said angrily. "You don't know how he gets around money..."
His voice trailed off as he caught sight of John's determined expression. "Now look here, John, I don't expect nor want you to pay me back. This is a gift, just like the tickets to the Pokemon Championship Match were. Okay?"
John shook his head. No, I'm going to pay you back, sir. I don't take gifts."
Gregg's father began to grow angry. "Now listen here, son, any money you give me, I'm just going to throw away. Got it? Besides, you need all of it to help your mother. I thought that was why you were going on this "quest" to begin with?"
John nodded reluctantly. "Fine," he grumbled. "I'll think of it as your contribution to my mother getting well."
"Good."
Oak watched this exchange with a curious expression on his face. However, he knew it wasn't his place to ask, so he let it go and continued on with his speech.
"Erhem. Well, anyway, those aren't your only gifts. I have one of my own, for each of you. It's rather essential for the beginning trainer."
With that, Professor Oak opened the door behind him. John and Gregg stared in amazement over his shoulder as they stumbled after him into the room. It was filled with shiny, stainless steel shelves from one wall to the other. And lined up side by side on these shelves were placed dozens of the red and white Pokeballs that Gregg and John and just received from the Professor.
From behind them, he said, "My gift, as you can see, is your very own starting Pokemon."
He led them over to a computer in the corner, hidden by the huge shelves. He sat down in a chair before the computer and swiveled it around to face the two youngsters. "We have about twenty different types of Pokemon for you to choose from. Lately, the most popular choice has been Eevee, most likely because of the wide range of possible evolutions that it can take. I'm going to run through the list now, so stop me when you see the one you want."
Gregg and John stared over the Professor's shoulder at the screen as images began to scroll by. Gregg tapped his shoulder as the screen showed the picture of a small brown dog-like Pokemon. The name Eevee read across the top of the image.
"So that's the Eevee you were talking about, huh? Looks pretty strong..." His voice trailed off as he mused over the possibilities.
Oak continued down the list, new Pokemon appearing every few seconds. He waited just long enough for the new trainers to get a glimpse of the Pokemon and think it over. Charmander flashed by, then Squirtle and Bulbasaur. Cyndaquil, Totodile, and Chikorita appeared as well. John hesitated at Mankey, as if unsure whether he wanted it or not. He shook his head at Abra, Meowth, Pichu, and Eevee. They were nearing the end of the list now, and John still hadn't chosen his Pokemon.
Suddenly, John's hand flashed out and grabbed Oak's shoulder. "Stop," he commanded.
Startled, Oak did as he was told. He glanced from the screen to John's face to confirm his choice. He was startled again at the intense look John wore. He was obviously determined to have this Pokemon. Oak looked back at the screen.
Dratini's face stared back at him.
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Ten minutes later, John and Gregg emerged from the building into the bright, sunlit afternoon, each sporting a Pokeball clipped to a new Trainer belt. John had received his Dratini, while Gregg had gone with the popular choice and taken Eevee. They both retrieved the balls from their belts and tossed them onto the ground.
Two brilliant red flashes seared John's eyes, reminding him of the tournament match that he saw yesterday. The beams of light solidified into two different shapes, one, a small, brown dog with a ring of white fur around its neck, and the other, a short, blue snake that had a red crystal set in its forehead.
"Dratini, huh?" said Gregg, looking at the snake. "Good choice. But I definitely think that Eevee is the stronger. Plus, its got a lot of cool evolutions."
John snorted. "So? Draco and I can easily crush you."
Gregg looked up in surprise. "Draco?" he asked.
"Yeah," responded John. "That's what I'm calling him. Is that okay with you?" The last bit he directed toward the Dratini.
Draco nodded his head viorously. "Dratini, dratiniiiiiii!" it called.
"Well, it definitely looks happy," laughed Gregg. He grew quiet suddenly. "Hey, John," he said in a cocky tone, "I bet my Eevee could beat your Dratini."
"What!? No way! You're on pal!"
Excitedly, the two friends both drew back about twenty paces. With a snap of his fingers, John ordered his Dratini forward. "Let's go get him, pal."
The Dratini gave him a rather disdainful look, then slithered forward to engage the Eevee in battle. John looked hurt at first, then shook it off.
"Okay, let's do this, Draco!" he shouted. He was about to issue an attack, when it occurred to him that he didn't know what he was doing. What were Dratini's attacks? Eagerly, he consulted his Pokedex.
"Dratini," a monotonous voice said. "The dragon Pokemon. Thought to be a mythicial Pokemon until a few years ago, this Pokemon is extremely hard to raise. A proud and independent race, Dratini rarely submits to a human's will. The only exceptions to this are very powerful trainers, the most noticeable being the Blackthorn Gym Leader, Claire, and the Elite Four member, Lance."
After reading this John grew a bit worried. Only really powerful trainers could make great partners out of dragon Pokemon? Trainers like Lance and Claire? John knew that he would never be able to measure up to the likes of them, which was why he worried that e might have made a bad choice with his starting Pokemon.
"Eevee, Tail Whip, now!"
Startled, John looked away from the Pokedex in time to see Gregg's Eevee flip around and whack Draco in the face. Draco yelped and slithered backward, away from Eevee.
"Dang it!" John muttered. In his worry over Draco and his ability as a trainer, he had completely forgotten about the battle! Hurriedly, he shouted a basic attack to Draco.
"Draco! Tackle, now!" Draco gave John another disdainful look, and then deliberately turned his back to him. Instead of a tackle attack, Draco mimicked Eevee's Tail Whip assault. Draco's blue tail slashed across the smaller Pokemon's face. The Eevee fell back, clearly in pain from the force of the attack.
"Hey! That's not what I said, Draco! But...I guess, that works as well." John's anger evaporated when he saw the damage that Draco had inflicted with the Tail Whip. "But could you listen to me next time?"
Draco blatantly ignored him.
Meanwhile, Gregg was mixed between laughter at Jon's dilemma, and concern for his Eevee. The small animal struggled to its feet and glared defiantly at Draco. "Good job, Eevee. Now, try a-" Here, Gregg glanced down at his Pokedex, where a list of Eevee's attacks were shown. Unfortunately, that list was rather short. "Try a Tackle, Eevee!"
Eevee gathered itself together, then sprang wildly towards its opponent. It gathered speed as it raced toward the snake. Draco, who was glaring at its trainer, never saw the attack coming. It took the Tackle head on.
The force of the hit threw Draco high into the air. He soared about twenty feet before roughly hitting the ground and fainting.
Gregg grinned in triumph as John raced for his fallen partner.
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A/N: I want to thank TopazSoarhire for her rather humbling reviews. All I can say is that I have my moments. And thank you for the constructive criticism. I will keep your comments in mind. Thanks again.
------------------------------------------------
Chapter 3
Gregg and his father exchanged worried looks behind John's back. John couldn't fail this, not now, not when he needed it the most. And Gregg knew he couldn't make the journey alone; if John wasn't going, then he wasn't either.
John's head swam, making him dizzy as he thought of all the possibilities. Without this chance to become a Pokemon Trainer, he had no chance to save his mother! Tears formed in his eyes, blurring his vision as he silently berated himself. Stupid, stupid, stupid, he thought morosely. If only I had done better.
He was so busy rebuking himself that he almost missed Oak's next words. He looked up in time to see a smile flit across the old Professor's face. He rocked back, hurt and confused by the seeming amusement that Oak had for John's misfortunes.
"You misunderstand me, John," Oak said gently. "You passed, with the highest score that I have ever seen. When I said that I was mistaken in my judgment of you, I meant that I didn't think you would do as well as you did."
Shocked, John just stared at the man. "You old fart," he finally said, his face breaking into a wide grin. "So are you saying that you thought I was stupid?"
"Not at all," Oak laughed. "You have a certain air about you that told me you would do well. But no one has ever scored a perfect paper before."
With that, he handed John his paper back, free of any of the blemishes that came with wrong answers. Oak was right, it was a perfect paper. John stared in astonishment at it, realizing that with this paper came his chance to be a real Pokemon Trainer.
And the chance to save my mom, he thought, surprised to discover that, in the joy of the moment, he had completely forgotten about her.
Gregg and John turned as one to face the Professor. The old man beckoned them to follow him down a long hallway that had dozens of doors on either side branching off in both directions. He stopped in front of one near the end of the hallway that a bronze plaque above it with the words 'Pokemon Storage' stenciled upon it in raised letters. He turned to face the teens with a grave look on his face.
"Now that you both have passed the official Pokemon League Trainers License test," he said, "I am pleased to present you with several different items. First, you each receive a Pokedex, an electronic device that automatically records information on Pokemon that you have seen or caught. It is a valuable tool that has information for beginning trainers on battle tips, catching Pokemon, and raising them. You will find a very handy item to have with you on your quests, so keep them with you at all times. They also contain your license, another reason to have it around."
He handed them both a small, red device that had the word 'Pokedex' written across it.. Gregg ad John tool them with smiles on their faces.
"Next, you get Pokegears, another helpful tool. It has a map of Kanto Island, and can show you where each and every gym is. It also acts a communications device. Just type the phone number of the person that you are trying to call in using these buttons-" he pointed to several small buttons on the watch-like device, "-and you can instantly connect with them from anywhere in the world using sophisticated satellite technology. And as an added bonus, it tells the time! Hence, the watch-like appearance." He handed the Pokegears to the teens, who eagerly accepted these gifts too.
In addition to the Pokedex and Pokegears, Gregg and John received small backpacks for storing items, as well as several tiny red and white balls used for catching wild Pokemon, known as Pokeballs, some small Potions and Antidotes to restore health, and a variety of other equipment that would come in handy. The boys thanked the old Professor profusely, but he waved it off.
"Don't worry about it," he said with a smile. Besides, it's all paid for."
At this, John stiffened. He slowly turned to face Gregg's father, who stood with a sheepish look on his face.
"I told you not to tell them, Oak!" he said angrily. "You don't know how he gets around money..."
His voice trailed off as he caught sight of John's determined expression. "Now look here, John, I don't expect nor want you to pay me back. This is a gift, just like the tickets to the Pokemon Championship Match were. Okay?"
John shook his head. No, I'm going to pay you back, sir. I don't take gifts."
Gregg's father began to grow angry. "Now listen here, son, any money you give me, I'm just going to throw away. Got it? Besides, you need all of it to help your mother. I thought that was why you were going on this "quest" to begin with?"
John nodded reluctantly. "Fine," he grumbled. "I'll think of it as your contribution to my mother getting well."
"Good."
Oak watched this exchange with a curious expression on his face. However, he knew it wasn't his place to ask, so he let it go and continued on with his speech.
"Erhem. Well, anyway, those aren't your only gifts. I have one of my own, for each of you. It's rather essential for the beginning trainer."
With that, Professor Oak opened the door behind him. John and Gregg stared in amazement over his shoulder as they stumbled after him into the room. It was filled with shiny, stainless steel shelves from one wall to the other. And lined up side by side on these shelves were placed dozens of the red and white Pokeballs that Gregg and John and just received from the Professor.
From behind them, he said, "My gift, as you can see, is your very own starting Pokemon."
He led them over to a computer in the corner, hidden by the huge shelves. He sat down in a chair before the computer and swiveled it around to face the two youngsters. "We have about twenty different types of Pokemon for you to choose from. Lately, the most popular choice has been Eevee, most likely because of the wide range of possible evolutions that it can take. I'm going to run through the list now, so stop me when you see the one you want."
Gregg and John stared over the Professor's shoulder at the screen as images began to scroll by. Gregg tapped his shoulder as the screen showed the picture of a small brown dog-like Pokemon. The name Eevee read across the top of the image.
"So that's the Eevee you were talking about, huh? Looks pretty strong..." His voice trailed off as he mused over the possibilities.
Oak continued down the list, new Pokemon appearing every few seconds. He waited just long enough for the new trainers to get a glimpse of the Pokemon and think it over. Charmander flashed by, then Squirtle and Bulbasaur. Cyndaquil, Totodile, and Chikorita appeared as well. John hesitated at Mankey, as if unsure whether he wanted it or not. He shook his head at Abra, Meowth, Pichu, and Eevee. They were nearing the end of the list now, and John still hadn't chosen his Pokemon.
Suddenly, John's hand flashed out and grabbed Oak's shoulder. "Stop," he commanded.
Startled, Oak did as he was told. He glanced from the screen to John's face to confirm his choice. He was startled again at the intense look John wore. He was obviously determined to have this Pokemon. Oak looked back at the screen.
Dratini's face stared back at him.
------------------------------------------
Ten minutes later, John and Gregg emerged from the building into the bright, sunlit afternoon, each sporting a Pokeball clipped to a new Trainer belt. John had received his Dratini, while Gregg had gone with the popular choice and taken Eevee. They both retrieved the balls from their belts and tossed them onto the ground.
Two brilliant red flashes seared John's eyes, reminding him of the tournament match that he saw yesterday. The beams of light solidified into two different shapes, one, a small, brown dog with a ring of white fur around its neck, and the other, a short, blue snake that had a red crystal set in its forehead.
"Dratini, huh?" said Gregg, looking at the snake. "Good choice. But I definitely think that Eevee is the stronger. Plus, its got a lot of cool evolutions."
John snorted. "So? Draco and I can easily crush you."
Gregg looked up in surprise. "Draco?" he asked.
"Yeah," responded John. "That's what I'm calling him. Is that okay with you?" The last bit he directed toward the Dratini.
Draco nodded his head viorously. "Dratini, dratiniiiiiii!" it called.
"Well, it definitely looks happy," laughed Gregg. He grew quiet suddenly. "Hey, John," he said in a cocky tone, "I bet my Eevee could beat your Dratini."
"What!? No way! You're on pal!"
Excitedly, the two friends both drew back about twenty paces. With a snap of his fingers, John ordered his Dratini forward. "Let's go get him, pal."
The Dratini gave him a rather disdainful look, then slithered forward to engage the Eevee in battle. John looked hurt at first, then shook it off.
"Okay, let's do this, Draco!" he shouted. He was about to issue an attack, when it occurred to him that he didn't know what he was doing. What were Dratini's attacks? Eagerly, he consulted his Pokedex.
"Dratini," a monotonous voice said. "The dragon Pokemon. Thought to be a mythicial Pokemon until a few years ago, this Pokemon is extremely hard to raise. A proud and independent race, Dratini rarely submits to a human's will. The only exceptions to this are very powerful trainers, the most noticeable being the Blackthorn Gym Leader, Claire, and the Elite Four member, Lance."
After reading this John grew a bit worried. Only really powerful trainers could make great partners out of dragon Pokemon? Trainers like Lance and Claire? John knew that he would never be able to measure up to the likes of them, which was why he worried that e might have made a bad choice with his starting Pokemon.
"Eevee, Tail Whip, now!"
Startled, John looked away from the Pokedex in time to see Gregg's Eevee flip around and whack Draco in the face. Draco yelped and slithered backward, away from Eevee.
"Dang it!" John muttered. In his worry over Draco and his ability as a trainer, he had completely forgotten about the battle! Hurriedly, he shouted a basic attack to Draco.
"Draco! Tackle, now!" Draco gave John another disdainful look, and then deliberately turned his back to him. Instead of a tackle attack, Draco mimicked Eevee's Tail Whip assault. Draco's blue tail slashed across the smaller Pokemon's face. The Eevee fell back, clearly in pain from the force of the attack.
"Hey! That's not what I said, Draco! But...I guess, that works as well." John's anger evaporated when he saw the damage that Draco had inflicted with the Tail Whip. "But could you listen to me next time?"
Draco blatantly ignored him.
Meanwhile, Gregg was mixed between laughter at Jon's dilemma, and concern for his Eevee. The small animal struggled to its feet and glared defiantly at Draco. "Good job, Eevee. Now, try a-" Here, Gregg glanced down at his Pokedex, where a list of Eevee's attacks were shown. Unfortunately, that list was rather short. "Try a Tackle, Eevee!"
Eevee gathered itself together, then sprang wildly towards its opponent. It gathered speed as it raced toward the snake. Draco, who was glaring at its trainer, never saw the attack coming. It took the Tackle head on.
The force of the hit threw Draco high into the air. He soared about twenty feet before roughly hitting the ground and fainting.
Gregg grinned in triumph as John raced for his fallen partner.
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