The Tale of a Trainer- Chapter 3: Change in Plans
Setting: Current Time: Cherrygrove City
Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon in any way shape or form. I DO own the character Alex Dugman, his parents, Chad, and the personalities I give the Pokemon. Don't steal them. Alex has been my creation since I thought him up in 2000. I have proof, don't make me use it. Fear me, just don't sue me.
Author's Note: Terribly sorry for the delayed update! I've had softball games and school work coming out of my ears. I know, not a very good excuse… but still, I couldn't help it much. Kind of a filler chapter, but it's necessary. Oh, and like I said in the previous chapter, if anyone would like to be turned into a trainer, please comment and say which Pokémon you want (remember, this is the Johto region) and appearance/personality/etc. You'll be credited and I need more characters! Lol, I hope you enjoy this chapter!
The Tale of a Trainer
Chapter Three: Change in Plans
Alex strode casually into the city, his mind lost in another place. The event that had occurred a few days before still bothered him, and he feared it was going to eat him alive if he didn't work it out. How could his Pokémon have recovered like that? What was that feeling he'd felt? Never before had the wave of emotion passed over him. Would it happen again? Could he use it to his advantage? Just what was it?
Since leaving Green Wood, he'd made several attempts to connect with his two Pokemon, but each time, as he grew further away from his home, their messages had been more gargled than before. He could still feel them just fine, but any worded or pictured messages remained blurred, and it took a great deal of stress to receive and interpret them. Standing still helped him concentrate, but trying to understand a message when he was walking proved to be impossible. Closing his eyes didn't work either. Every time he did, he saw Chad's piercing eyes stabbing right into his own.
Chad. His name sent chills down his spine. Angered by his loss, Chad had stormed off, bragging about how he'd do anything to beat Alex, no matter the cost. Alex had then been overcome by lightheadedness and was unable to fight back. Would he try to get rid of Mewtwo before he could get to him? But wait, how was he to know who Mewtwo was anyway? Alex was the only one who seemed to recall what happened, his parents had no recollection of the event. They only believed that he wasn't losing his mind because of the pictures their security cameras had taken, his own Polaroid shot, and the fact that the land was parched and dry all time. Oh, and they couldn't neglect that he could communicate with his two Pokémon.
He had left on his journey the next day; just a little after Chad had departed, partnered by his Eevee, Chikorita, and an unsure path. Greenwood rested under the loom of Mount Silver, right at the point where the foothills smoothed out and later rose again into a twisted roller coaster of more mountains. He'd walked half of Route 28 and then cut through a valley to get to New Bark Town. With no reason to stop, Alex had continued on to the next path.
For the past two days he had been wandering Route 29, taking out the various Pidgey and Sentret that he'd come upon. He had ignored many trainers who had tried to challenge him, his mind so focused on the events of the battle he'd won. Battling sounded like an impossible idea all of a sudden. What would happen if he was in another fight with a trainer? Would he nearly pass out like he did before?
He could see the first town as he came over a large hill. Cherrygrove was beautiful. Small and homey looking, the closer Alex grew, the heavier the smell of sweet fruit hung in the air. He let out Chikorita and Eevee about a mile outside the town limits, allowing them to play around the fresh air. He was too troubled to play along, but within a few minutes, he felt his depression slowly melting away. A strange yearn to run took over him, and he took off after his Pokémon in play.
They wandered into Cherrygrove an hour or so later, Alex's mood oddly better. Why he was so cheerful, he wasn't sure, but he found no reason to question it. The town was quiet, but not in an eerie way, but more in a relaxing sense. An unfamiliarly moist breeze whipped gently in-between the houses, licking the parched travelers with its refreshing tongue. This is nothing like home… For a moment, Alex thought he felt one of his Pokémon's thoughts brush against his mind, but it faded in an instant, leaving only a feeling of agreement wading in his conscious. Can they still hear me?
The size of the town was a bit intimidating, especially considering the small desolate landscape they'd called home for their entire lives. It was soothing to them to realize that the streets weren't packed with residents; it was enough for Alex not to feel anxious from the presence of a crowd. The few people that were on the streets weren't hustling, but rather strolling to the destinations, a calm mood hung in the air. It was just the mood that Alex needed.
It was only a few minutes later that Alex noticed the Pokémon Center rising proudly in front of them with its red domed roof gleaming in the middle of the city. Tired from the long walk from home, the trio headed towards their refuge.
The doors of the Pokemon Center slid up with a low swoosh when Eevee approached it. Not familiar with the automatic sensor, Eevee jumped back, landing in a crouched battle position, snarling at the open doorway. Alex chuckled as he walked past his startled white Pokemon and into the Center, followed close behind by his snickering Chikorita. Looking pitifully at Alex, who'd turned around, hands on his hips, to observe his Pokemon's reaction, Eevee darted towards the door, which had begun its process of closing. With a yelp, he shot through the glass jaws, leaving a small tuff of white tail fur smashed in the seam of the two doors.
Alex picked him up and placed him on the cool surface of the help counter. Within a second, a young woman stepped out from a doorway and took her position behind the counter. Her face was framed in orange bunned-up hair, and she wore a white dress. With gentle hands, she touched the tip of Eevee's tail and smiled. Her voice was a sweet and caring tone "Welcome to the Cherrygrove Pokemon Center. You can call me Nurse Joy. I'll be glad to fix up this cute little Eevee of yours!" – She lifted Eevee up and looked at it more carefully- "What a lovely coat! I don't think I've ever seen one with this coloration before. If you don't mind me asking, where'd you get it?"
"He hatched from an egg a few years back; I've had him since he was born."
"Since he was an egg? Wow! You don't come across Pokemon eggs all too often! You're very lucky!"
"Yeah," Alex gave a sad smile, motioning towards the Grass Pokemon at his heel, "My parents raise Pokemon from eggs and I was lucky enough to get these two."
"Your parents? Are they breeders then?"
"Kind of… they do research too. They breed Pokemon and take down data on the different kinds of Pokemon that result from different mixes." –Alex pointed to his Chikorita- "Chiks was one of their first experimental starter Pokemon. She was bred from my Mom's Venasaur and my Dad's Meganium."
She patted the Eevee's head gently, who tilted his head the side and let her scratch him behind the ear. "So who were the parents of this little guy?"
"Well, we're not too sure. My parents think that it may have been Jolteon and Vaporeon."
"Your parents are trainers then?"
"They were a long time ago. They met in the finals of the Johto League Championships."
"Who won?"
"It was a draw. They both took the title."
"Oh! Was that the year they initiated the seventh Pokemon rule on six-on-six battles?"
"Yeah, it was because of them. Neither of them had a seventh Pokemon prepared, so they agreed on a draw."
Nurse Joy looked the little white Eevee in the eyes, his deep brown orbs taking in her every detail. "What strong parentage you have, little one."
She smiled and turned to Alex, "Why don't I heal your Pokemon up? Then, you can get off to the gym straight away tomorrow morning!"
Alex paused. Gym? That thought had never even dawned on him. He looked at her in slight confusion, repeating his thoughts. "Gym?"
"Um, yes," she shuffled her feet, "I assumed you were traveling to take the Johto League Gym Challenge, right?"
"Well, to be honest, I hadn't even thought about it."
"Really? I'm sorry, I shouldn't have assumed. Most trainers that come through here are preparing to challenge Falcnor, the Gym Leader of this city."
"I don't think doing Gym Challenges is going to help me much. I have to find a certain rare Pokémon and return it to my home town. So my energy will go into training for that battle, not getting badges."
The nurse nodded in an almost sad manner, "I see. Well, think about it this way: If you're looking for a rare Pokémon, trainers you meet through gym battles and official league tournaments can probably provide you with information. Plus, your Pokémon will get stronger from battle experience, you know?"
"I'll get back to you on that," Alex said as he picked up Chikorita and placed her next to Eevee, "My Pokemon and I'll talk about it."
Nurse Joy smiled again, "That sounds good! They'll be all healed up in an hour or so, okay? If you go down the hall a bit, you'll see the trainer rooms. Here, I'll give you a key and you can spend the night here."
She handed him a small key with the number "5" engraved in fancy font on the front and motioned towards the hallway to her left. Alex bid his Pokémon a quick farewell and headed towards the indicated room.
With a quick turn of the key, the door slide smoothly open, a waft of fresh cedar air drifting out from behind it. Alex entered a small room, equipped with a wooden bunk bed to his right, a single bed to the right against the far wall, a large dresser with drawers to the far left, and finally a wooden table set with chairs close to his left. The slowly dying sunlight shown through a large window in the center of the far wall, positioned over the single bed. The smell instantly relaxed him and he suddenly came to realize just how tired he was. Walking nonstop for the past few days had definitely taken its toll and before he knew it, he'd thrown his backpack to the polished wood floor and fallen asleep on the bottom bunk.
A light ping! sounded throughout the room, followed by the illumination of a small green light that was positioned to the side of the door. Alex reacted immediately to the sound, jerking himself instantly out of a deep sleep. Thud. He recoiled back onto the mattress, cradling his temple where it'd slammed into the upper bunk as he cursed under his breath. He shook off the dull pain a minute later and went to examine the source of the noise.
He found the sound coming from a little mailbox like contraption that was ingeniously installed in the wall next to the door. He slid open the little door and his two Pokéballs popped out into his hands. With a flick of his wrist, the balls were opened and his partners had materialized in front of him. They looked refreshed and new. After a short greeting, Alex sat down on one of the beds; Eevee rested next to him while Chiks nuzzled her way into the bed sheets. They looked happy and the feeling seemed to seep into him. He couldn't help smiling as Chiks burrowed playfully.
A moment later, he'd pulled a small town-guide book out of his bag and flipped it open. Eevee looked thoughtfully over his shoulder as he paged through the small book. "Where should we go from here?" Eevee chirped in response. Not being able to connect through telepathy was very awkward for both of them. Alex flipped to the page that detailed Cherrygrove and began studying the routes that trailed out of the city. He ran his finger along the paths. "Look here. We could take Route 30 along the mountains and go to Violet City. That place has a lot of sacred buildings that the townspeople care for. Old stuff, you know, full of ancient powers? Our culprit might be there. But then there's Route 46. It'd be a little bit of regression, since we already came from the mountains, but we would pass an area we couldn't get to from Greenwood. Who knows what's hiding up there."
Eevee cocked his head to the side as he gazed over the colored papered. He placed his small white paw on a side note that was typed into the margins of the page. Alex looked down at it. In bold letters "Johto Gym Challenge" was inscribed with eight colorful badges encircling it. He looked to his little Pokémon, "You really want to do that?"
With a chirp Eevee jumped to Alex's shoulder and nuzzled his neck. Then that's what we'll do. He was slightly confused as to why he hadn't received a response from his companions until reality hit him. With a sad smile, he ruffled Eevee's snow white fur. "We'll start tomorrow then?"
Chiks popped up from under the sheets and chirped along with Eevee. Just as Alex was about to smiled, put away his book, and rested his head on a pillow. A few minutes later, the trio were all dreaming of their upcoming adventure.
Bleh, I know... dull filler chapter x-X; I'm attempting to change my writing style a bit, so please hang in there with me! Your reviews are greatly appreciated! Thanks for reading!
