Author's Note:

Here were are with another chapter of Bonnie's adventure. For those who read the original, this is somewhat similar to the first one, but I've definitely changed some things. Rotom's presence changes Bonnie's approach to things a little, and there was also a bit of a chance for some reflection on the battle with Max. I suppose you'll see. Hope you enjoy!

Chapter 4: To Catch Them is My Real Test

Bonnie stayed over at Professor Birch's lab the night after her battle with Max, deciding that her first full day of travel would go much better with a good night's sleep. She was anxious to get started of course, especially when Max was quick to leave not long after the battle, seeming like he was in quite the rush to get to Petalburg City. However, Bonnie knew she needed to give Dedenne a chance to recover, even if it was a brief fight, and that after flying over from Kalos, it was better not to rush things.

It was a fairly quiet night, with her dreams filled with what she hoped would happen throughout her journey. She dreamed of setting out the next day, Dedenne and Rotom at her side, seeing all the sights of Hoenn as they travelled throughout the region. She dreamed of meeting fellow trainers, battling them and defeating them, including the gym leaders of Hoenn, proving herself worthy against them in order to compete in the Hoenn League.

When her dreams brought her to the opening ceremonies of the Hoenn League, she and Dedenne preparing to battle their way to the top, Bonnie was awoken by a sharp pain in the middle of her nose. It was almost like it was being pinched by a Krabby. Her eyes shot open and she whipped up in the bed, the culprit jumping back as she did so.

"Chic! Torchic chic!" the Chick Pokemon chirped out, hopping a bit from where it landed at the foot of Bonnie's bed, a small one in a guest room that Professor Birch had set up.

"What was that for, Torchic?" Bonnie asked angrily, rubbing the spot on her nose, still feeling the stinging pain from what she assumed must have been a Peck attack. "And what are you doing in here? Shouldn't you be with Treecko and Mudkip?"

Torchic just continued to stare at her, but Bonnie's question was answered a moment later when she looked up, noticing the door to the room was opened, Rotom floating in ahead of Dedenne. A moment later, Professor Birch entered as well, knocking first before Bonnie told him to come in. "Torchic!" he said, upon seeing the small fire type. "We've been looking for you. Go on out to the field. Treecko and Mudkip are playing with the Zigzagoon. You should join them."

"Torchic..." it muttered, not looking pleased, but hopping off the bed regardless, before making its way out of the room. It gave one last look to Bonnie, before hopping away out of sight.

"Zzt, what did Torchic do to you, Bonnie?" Rotom asked, apparently seeing the anger in Bonnie's eyes as she rubbed her nose, Dedenne peering at her closely in concern.

"It pecked me," Bonnie answered, yawning as she stretched her arms. "Oh well, I guess it's time to get up anyways."

Birch nodded at that, checking a watch on his wrist. "Indeed, it's still early, but if you get up now and have your breakfast, you can get a full day of travel in. You could make some good time on Route 101, and within a couple days, you should be in Oldale Town."

Bonnie smiled at that, knowing that perhaps even within an hour, she was really going to be on a journey, with just Rotom and Dedenne at her side. There was no way of knowing what was in store, and while that did make her a little nervous, the thoughts of all the cool Pokemon she would see just made her even more excited. Just from what she'd seen in Littleroot Town and at Professor Birch's lab, she knew Hoenn was full of some amazing Pokemon.

"Are there lots of Pokemon on Route 101?" Bonnie asked hopefully. She really wanted to catch one after seeing some of the new ones around here. And, if she wanted to be a successful trainer, and beat the gym leaders and other trainers like Max, there was no way she could go around with just Dedenne, as much as she loved him.

Birch laughed, presumably expecting that question. "Indeed there are. I've done plenty of research on Route 101, and I can tell you, there are lots of Pokemon who would make a fine addition to your team. In fact, lots of beginner trainers catch Pokemon around here. You'll meet some tougher ones as you get further along on your journey. Although, that's not to say these ones won't be challenging. It's never as easy to catch a Pokemon as it looks when watching someone else do it."

"I've got Dedenne and Rotom with me," Bonnie said confidently. "I know that we'll be able to do it."

"I'm sure you'll all do a great job," Birch told her, smiling before starting to make his way back out the door. "I've already given Dedenne some food and let Rotom go over some of my maps, so once you're ready, you can join me for some breakfast before setting off. Sound good?"

Bonnie was agreeable to that, and when Birch left the room, she was out of bed in an instant, grabbing all of her things and getting dressed within a couple of minutes. The Professor looked stunned when she was at his table not too long after, but laughed it off fairly quickly as he put their breakfast out, handing Dedenne an extra Oran Berry to keep his strength up.

While they ate, Bonnie eagerly asked for all the information she could get about what lay ahead of her the next few days, and if there were any cute Pokemon she should be looking out for. Birch told her what he could, but he did seem to be a bit confused about what Pokemon Bonnie considered cute, after she told him she thought the Salamence Serena had shown her from her PokeDex was cute.

By the time they were done eating, though, he had definitely provided Bonnie with plenty of information, as well as giving her a few extra items, such as potions, antidotes and berries, as she made her final preparations to leave. He'd even allowed Rotom to download some extra data on the Pokemon in the Hoenn region that he would download to the PokeDexes that he gave to knew trainers. This, of course, made Rotom quite happy, and Birch was declared to be an excellent rival to Professor Sycamore.

Then, when breakfast had been cleaned up, and preparations for Bonnie to finally set off had finally been made, she and Professor Birch made their way out of his lab and to the small road she would use to find Route 101. As she looked at the small watch her father had given her, Bonnie realized she definitely still had plenty of daylight to make use of, and was almost glad that Torchic had woken her up. She had more than enough time to look for Pokemon and get a good amount of walking in.

She almost laughed as the Chick Pokemon, along with the other starters, came out of the lab after her and Birch, just as she thought of the rough awakening earlier. Torchic gave her a bit of an apologetic look as it hopped over to her, head bowed slightly, but Bonnie was definitely not going to hold a grudge, and bent down to give it a small hug. The warmth she felt gave her that little bit of extra encouragement as she stood back up to look at Birch.

"All ready to go then?" he asked, smiling as he looked at her. "Ready to set off as a Pokemon trainer for real now?"

"Yeah!" Bonnie cheered, looking up at Dedenne, who smiled proudly from her shoulder. She then looked to Rotom, who floated over to her other side. "We're ready to become Pokemon Masters together!"

"Zzt, I am getting excited!" Rotom cried out, a big smiley face on his screen. "I can't wait to call Pokemon trainer Bonnie a Pokemon Master."

"Well, just be patient. You can't accomplish everything at once," Professor Birch warned, chuckling in amusement at the trio. "I wish you the best of luck, though, Bonnie. I can tell you have quite the future ahead of you. You and Max should make interesting rivals, I'm sure."

Bonnie frowned at that, not really interested in hearing about Max at the moment, but she quickly shook it off, clenching her fists as she turned around. "Dedenne. Rotom. Route 101 is ahead. That's where our journey together really begins."

"Nenene!" Dedenne cheered, Rotom snapping a picture of the road ahead, before taking a quick one of Bonnie and Dedenne as well, to mark the occasion.

Bonnie then turned her head back to Professor Birch one last time. "Thanks for all your help, Professor Birch."

"No problem, Bonnie," he said, smiling. "Next time I see you, I'm sure you'll be quite the trainer already. Now go on, and get your journey started."

Bonnie smiled at that, turning back around and taking a deep breath. She looked once more to Dedenne, and then Rotom, before finally starting to walk ahead. When she finally looked back in the direction of Professor Birch's lab, he was just barely visible, giving her one last wave, along with Torchic and the other starters. She returned it, before setting her eyes on the road ahead, refusing to look back until she reached the beginning of Route 101.

She looked up as she noticed a small sign in front of the dirt road, bushes, trees and tall grass on either side. It wasn't much different than some of the paths she took while travelling with Clemont, Ash and Serena, but Bonnie knew it would seem a tougher trek now that it was just her. Even though she had Dedenne and Rotom with her, this would be a big test for her. It was her journey. It was her path. The next step, was her choice.

"Here we go," she whispered, before putting one foot forward, leaving Littleroot Town, and beginning their journey towards Oldale Town, and the rest of Hoenn. "Hoenn alone."

For the first couple of hours, Bonnie felt on top of the world. She had a spring in her step as she walked along Route 101, breathing in the fresh air, pointing out the tall trees to Dedenne and chatting with Rotom about some of the data he'd received from Professor Birch. It was only as the sun reached its peak, the heat beating down on the trio, that a little bit of frustration worked its way into her.

"Have you noticed even one Pokemon around here?" Bonnie asked Rotom, sitting down under a tree for some shade, and a brief break. "We've been walking almost two hours and we haven't even seen a Zigzagoon."

"Zzt, it seems it might be a bit too hot out," Rotom suggested, an image of the sun on his screen. "Pokemon are likely seeking shade for the day."

"It wasn't that hot earlier," Bonnie pointed out, remembering that it had been reasonably cool when they'd first set off on Route 101. "We didn't see anything then."

A question mark appeared on the PokeDex's screen as he seemed to think about that a moment, before an answer came to him. "Perhaps we were too close to the city, zzt. Any Pokemon in that area would probably be at Professor Birch's lab, or nearby."

Bonnie sighed in frustration upon hearing that, exchanging a despairing look with Dedenne. What bad luck to start her journey. No Pokemon were around, and she'd missed a good time to find any that might've been. It had never seemed this hard for Ash. He was almost like a Pokemon magnet.

"Nene?" Dedenne suddenly squeaked out, tapping Bonnie's shoulder and pointing to her pocket. "Denene."

Bonnie stared blankly at where he'd pointed for a moment, before suddenly realizing what he'd been referring to. "Oh yeah! You're a genius, Dedenne!" She quickly reached into her pocket, Rotom watching curiously as she pulled her PokeNav out of it. "We can see if any Pokemon are around by using this!"

"Zzt! An excellent idea!" Rotom cheered, floating over for Bonnie to connect the device to him. "Updating data...Dedenne is an intelligent Pokemon, that can help his trainer when she is confused."

Bonnie didn't know how to respond to that, but let it slide as she watched Rotom use the PokeNav to scan their surroundings. She supposed he was probably using some of the map information that Professor Birch had given him, as the image on screen was a little more detailed than she'd expected. She was more surprised, however, by the dark shapes that appeared to be moving around near a small body of water, likely a pond, not too far from where they were currently.

"Zzt, it appears there may be Pokemon nearby!" Rotom said excitedly, the map vanishing as Bonnie took the PokeNav back. "Is Pokemon trainer Bonnie going to catch one?"

"You bet she is!" Bonnie told him excitedly, Dedenne tensing up excitedly on her shoulder. "Let's go see!"

Heading towards the location they'd found on the PokeNav involved leaving the main path, but Bonnie made sure to remember roughly where they were, so that when they returned, it would be easier to get back on the road. Of course, it did make things a little rougher as they had to make their way through some thick bushes and tall grass in order to get to the pond they were searching for. Rotom was able to just float above, but Bonnie and Dedenne were scratched up a bit by the time they were nearing the area they were looking for.

"Zzt, according to my data, we are at the desired location," Rotom told Bonnie, spinning around and taking a few pictures, presumably updating his data about the area. "I do not see any Pokemon, though. Perhaps they have left."

Bonnie groaned at that, knowing those bushes would seem a lot more prickly and frustrating to go through if she didn't head back without at least coming close to catching a Pokemon. Now that she was out here, she really wanted to find one. What kind of Pokemon trainer couldn't catch a Pokemon? Or even find one, she thought to herself.

She decided there was no point going back if they didn't at least search around for a bit, so Bonnie sent Rotom out to search a bit near some more thick bushes, while she and Dedenne moved closer to the pond. She knew it was easier for Rotom to search from above, and she was hoping that she and Dedenne might be able to spot something around the pond, searching for water. However, after about ten minutes, she and Dedenne reunited with Rotom at their starting point, the PokeDex looking flustered.

"My data indicates that there is a seventy percent chance of a Pokemon encounter in this area!" Rotom cried out, flailing his arms wildly. "I do not understand!"

"Maybe there's something wrong with the PokeNav?" Bonnie suggested, giving the PokeDex a concerned look as some sort of panicked face appeared on his screen. "I don't think you have an error, Rotom."

"Zzt! Scanning system data!"

She sighed as she looked up at Dedenne, the Antenna Pokemon looking as down as she felt about the situation. Maybe it wasn't the end of the world if they couldn't find a Pokemon right now, but she definitely wished they could. It would make the start of their journey that much more special. Also, she couldn't help but wonder if Max had already caught one, hating the thought of being even further behind the boy. She didn't care if he was already a little more experienced. It was his first journey as well, so she knew she could catch up if she worked hard enough.

"A Pokemon has to be nearby," Bonnie said after a moment, Rotom's data scan finished, no error found much to his delight, but also confusion. "Should we go back to-"

It might've been missed if she'd been looking just a few inches either side, but Bonnie's eyes immediately locked onto the sight of black fur sneaking through some bushes ahead, a Pokemon making its way towards the pond. She signalled for Rotom and Dedenne to keep quiet, before slowly moving forward and poking her head over the bushes to see as the Pokemon emerged, padding forward and lowering its head to drink. She looked to Rotom questioningly, wondering what the Pokemon was, not remembering the name of the black hyena-like Pokemon ahead of them.

"Zzt, Poochyena, the Bite Pokemon," Rotom said in a surprisingly low volume, which Bonnie was thankful for. "It is the pre-evolved form of Mightyena. Its biting strength is superior to most, and it has the endurance to chase opponents down until they are exhausted."

"It's so cute!" Bonnie couldn't help but say it, watching as the Poochyena lapped at the water, rubbing its nose with its paws as it sat back. It sounded somewhat vicious according to Rotom's description, but Bonnie was sure not all of them were that way. Besides, with a bit of training, she was sure it would be loyal, and a useful battler. "Let's catch it, Dedenne," she whispered, starting to move forward, before Rotom could protest.

They moved slowly, managing to sneak around the side and hide behind some tall grass before getting within a few feet of Poochyena, the Bite Pokemon's ears perking up, presumably noticing something. Bonnie decided there was no point in doing a sneak attack, and she stepped out of the bushes before it figured out they were there, Dedenne hopping down in front of her, ready to battle. Poochyena turned at the noise, staring curiously at the Antenna Pokemon, and then Bonnie.

"Poochyena, I want to catch you!" Bonnie declared, pointing at the black canine. "Ready for a battle?" She supposed it might not have been the best thing to tell it her intentions, but she hoped for the best as it tilted its head, studying her. Then, it stood, growling, but not about to run away.

"Zzt, be careful, Bonnie," Rotom warned. "Poochyena can be quite strong."

"Do I have any advantages?" Bonnie asked quickly, hoping she had something she could use to help her and Dedenne.

"Dedenne should be at an advantage, being part fairy type, while Poochyena is a dark type," Rotom acknowledged, making Bonnie perk up a bit. "However, Dedenne knows no fairy type moves."

"Good, then Dedenne, use Tackle!" she shouted, deciding she wouldn't let Poochyena get the first move, and hoping that even without a fairy move, the type advantage would protect Dedenne from any dark type attacks. And, the quicker she acted, the less time Poochyena would have to use any attacks that could take away from her advantage. Unfortunately, this Poochyena proved too quick, and too clever, for her quick action to be successful.

The Bite Pokemon howled loudly as Dedenne charged forward, Rotom warning that it had raised its attack power, before kicking up a pile of dirt into Dedenne's face, causing the Antenna Pokemon to skid to a stop, rubbing at his eyes. Meanwhile, Poochyena acted swiftly, darting to the side while Dedenne shook his head, before charging forward, slamming its head into the electric and fairy type, sending him flying into the pond, where he landed with a splash.

"Dedenne!" Bonnie cried out in concern, running to the edge of the pond, while the Poochyena howled once more, and then ran off.

Luckily, her partner Pokemon seemed fine as he managed to get himself back to the edge of the pond, Bonnie quickly drying him off. He didn't seem too hurt, but he glared in the direction that Poochyena had run off too, clearly embarrassed about the very short battle. Bonnie wasn't exactly pleased either, knowing that Ash would probably have beaten that Poochyena within the time it had taken her to call her first order.

"That did not go well," Rotom said after a moment, as Bonnie stood up, placing Dedenne on her shoulder, the Antenna Pokemon looking upset at the less than stellar performance.

"Nene…" Dedenne growled, glaring at the PokeDex.

"Zzt! I did warn you!" Rotom pointed out, backing away quickly.

Bonnie just groaned as she looked around once again. "Now what are we going to do?" she asked, feeling like she might never catch a Pokemon at this point. "It took us forever to find that Poochyena, and it beat us within a few seconds."

"We should return to the main road!" Rotom suggested, looking like he wanted to encourage Bonnie and Dedenne as he folded his arms. "I will find a Pokemon for Dedenne to battle, and he will win! We will attack more carefully this time."

"What was wrong with that attack?" Bonnie asked, not really sure if she wanted an answer, but knowing that since Rotom was meant to help her, he probably had some sort of information that could help her if she had another chance.

"Poochyena was given time to use a Howl attack," Rotom answered, an 'X' on his screen showing his feelings on that. "Its attack power was raised, so that when it used Tackle, it was able to overpower Dedenne."

Bonnie frowned at that, knowing that it probably made sense, but wondering if it was really all her fault. "How was I supposed to stop that?" she asked, Rotom's screen showing a picture of Dedenne and Poochyena side by side as he attempted to find an answer.

"It would have been best for Pokemon trainer Bonnie to assess the situation before starting the battle so quickly," Rotom finally said, backing away a bit more. "Poochyena was simply too quick and too strong to fight without a plan."

That deflated Bonnie even more, Dedenne sagging along with her as they began making their way back to the main road. Poochyena definitely seemed strong, but she knew that it was far from being the type of Pokemon that should be giving her problems. Professor Birch had even said most of the Pokemon around here were good targets for beginner trainers. Dedenne knew how to fight, even if he had limited experience, so these Pokemon shouldn't be overpowering him. Although...she supposed that rushing in with no defence like that could leave any Pokemon vulnerable.

"That was how Max beat me too," she finally spoke as they finally made it back to the main road, the sun no longer beating down as hot as before, some clouds passing over it. "I had Dedenne attack too quickly, just like with Poochyena. I guess I was trying to be like Ash and Pikachu."

"Zzt, Dedenne is not experienced enough to attack as quickly as Pikachu," Rotom said, floating in front of Bonnie as they began walking along Route 101 once more.

"Nenene," Dedenne said sadly, tail drooping over Bonnie's shoulder as he looked down.

"We'll keep training, Dedenne," Bonnie said encouragingly. "Then you'll be as fast as anyone!"

"Zzt, but if Dedenne is not fast enough, Dedenne should attack more carefully," Rotom said, Dedenne's image coming onto his screen once more. "Dedenne knows the move Nuzzle. It will paralyze opposing Pokemon and make them slower, while also making them easier to catch. Pokemon trainer Bonnie should use this for the next Pokemon she wishes to catch."

Bonnie smiled at that, looking at Dedenne with a hopeful expression. "Nuzzle is one of your best moves, Dedenne! We should be able to do that, don't you think?"

"Dene nenene!" Dedenne agreed excitedly, nodding as he stood up straighter. He looked more than ready to fight whenever the next Pokemon arrived.

Now that she had a plan, even if it wasn't that much, Bonnie was sure they would have a much better chance of catching their next target. Rotom and Dedenne seemed just as excited, each of them looking around, just as focused as Bonnie. And, with things cooling down a little, there appeared to be a bit more activity as they approached a stretch where the trees were much taller on either side of the path, like a mini forest.

They spotted a few more Pokemon as they walked, a Taillow flying over their heads and disappearing too quickly for Bonnie to even react. Another Poochyena also appeared, running across the path in front of them, but again, disappearing too quickly. Finally, though, there was a small, light red caterpillar-like Pokemon that came across their path that Bonnie was able to grab the attention of.

Making sure to think things out a little more carefully, Bonnie ordered Dedenne to attack from a distance to start, calling for a Thunder Shock against the bug type. Rotom didn't seem to have anything specific to warn Bonnie about with this Pokemon, so she just had to hope she could rely on what she had.

"Neneneee!" Dedenne cried out as he sent the electricity outwards, the attack striking the Worm Pokemon head on, making it cry out in pain. Bonnie couldn't help but pump her fist in excitement, already feeling like she had this in the bag.

"Now, use Tackle!" she ordered, deciding she needed to weaken Wurmple a little more before paralyzing it. Rotom didn't seem pleased by the order, though.

"Zzt! Don't do tha-"

"Nene!" Dedenne was already charging forward, too late for Bonnie to call him back. She was sure it was going to work, though, seeing no sign of Wurmple fighting back.

That was where she was wrong, though.

"Wurrrmple!" the bug type cried out, suddenly unleashing a thick white rope of web that struck Dedenne in the middle of the face as he ran. The Antenna Pokemon fell over as Wurmple trapped him, pulling on the web before unleashing more, wrapping the electric and fairy type up. Then, it bowed its own head, charging forward and slamming hard into Dedenne with the point on its head glowing purple, Rotom crying out in concern over that.

As Dedenne hit the ground hard in front of Bonnie, she glanced up in frustration as Wurmple shuffled away, disappearing into the trees. They'd lost again, and once more, it was her fault.

"Zzt, we are lucky Dedenne does not seem to be poisoned by that Poison Sting," Rotom said, while Bonnie freed a frustrated Dedenne from the webs that covered him. "Poison is particularly effective against fairy type Pokemon."

"That would've been good to know," Bonnie muttered, glaring at the PokeDex.

"Zzt! I could not predict what move Wurmple could use," Rotom answered, waving his arms, although seeming apologetic. "I will ensure Pokemon trainer Bonnie is aware of threatening moves in her next battle!" he then vowed, bowing to her.

There was no point in staying frustrated, so after giving Dedenne a brief rest, and an Oran Berry, they were off once again, keeping their eyes open for any sign of Pokemon. And, as time went on, there was definitely more activity than earlier in the day. A Zigzagoon walked right towards them as they made their way through the small forest, but Bonnie was too eager this time, shaken from her first couple of attempts, and just threw a pokeball at it. It ran away as soon as the catch failed. She was fairly close to getting Dedenne to use Thunder Shock on Rotom when the PokeDex scolded her for not weakening the Zigzagoon after that.

After a bit more walking, it was another Taillow that flew overhead, landing in a tree above them. Bonnie was quite excited at this opportunity, knowing Dedenne had a good chance against a flying type, and she immediately ordered a Thunder Shock. Unfortunately, despite hitting the Taillow the first time, it proved a little tougher than expected, managing to stay in the fight and avoiding any further electric attacks by staying high in the air, before swooping down and striking Dedenne with a painful looking Peck attack. It flew off immediately afterwards.

It was about an hour later that Bonnie finally sat down on the ground in frustration, the sun beginning to dip in the sky as they emerged from the forest, Route 101 still stretching out well ahead of them. It probably couldn't have been more frustrating for her. After all her time with Clemont, Ash and Serena, she was useless with catching Pokemon. She'd let Dedenne down in every attempt at battling so far, and despite Rotom's advice, she didn't seem to be improving.

"Maybe I should just head back now," she muttered, picking at the dirt in front of her. "I'm a lousy Pokemon trainer."

"Denene," Dedenne tried to console her, placing a paw on her hand.

"Zzt, I think that Pokemon trainer Bonnie is improving quite a bit," Rotom argued, floating out in front of her, showing a video of her battle with the Taillow. "Taillow are notorious for fighting beyond their limits, and Dedenne struck hard with his Thunder Shock. It was the correct approach to battle, but Taillow's unexpected determination allowed it to escape."

"So what am I supposed to do?" Bonnie asked, not exactly feeling better from Rotom's words. "I still lost and I still don't have any Pokemon after all this time."

"Zzt, you must do what Ash Ketchum told you to do!" Rotom said, puffing out his chest, or screen in his case. "You must not give up!"

"Nene!" Dedenne agreed, jumping out in front of Bonnie, cheeks sparking with determination.

Bonnie smiled as she looked at her two companions, thinking of what Rotom had told her on the plane. She wasn't really alone in this, and she knew she could count on them for support. She might not have her brother, or Ash and Serena to help her, but she had what she needed. "Okay," she said, nodding to Rotom and Dedenne, "we'll keep trying!"

It was almost as though the universe had heard her, and wanted to give her the chance she desired right away. Just as Bonnie was standing up, a rustling in the grass ahead of them, to the right of the path, was heard. She, Dedenne and Rotom each looked ahead, watching closely as a Pokemon poked its head out, before it started to shuffle along. It paused as it noticed the three of them watching it, staring curiously as Bonnie's eyes widened in amazement.

"Rotom," she whispered, not taking her eyes off of the Wurmple that had appeared in front of them, "is that Wurmple...supposed to be purple?" She remembered seeing a Phantump of a different colour in Kalos, but she wasn't sure how this kind of thing worked.

"Zzt," Rotom seemed to be searching his data, before floating forward a bit and taking a picture of the Wurmple, who continued to watch them, apparently as curious about them as they were of it. "This appears to be what is called a 'shiny' Pokemon!" the PokeDex called out excitedly. "It is quite rare, but some Pokemon are coloured differently than others of their species. This is one of them."

Bonnie's first thought was that its different colouring made it extra cute, but she had to admit, if she could catch a rare Pokemon on her first full day as a trainer, it would make up for all of her struggles. She knew she couldn't let this one get away. "Dedenne," she said, looking down at the Antenna

Pokemon, who glanced back, smiling, before hopping forward, getting into a battle stance. Bonnie then looked at the Wurmple, who seemed to sense now that something was up. "Wurmple, I challenge you to a battle!" she declared, pointing at it. "I want to become a Pokemon Master, and I need to catch more Pokemon if I'm ever going to do that. If I can beat you, will you join me on my journey?"

The Worm Pokemon tilted its head at that, looking at Dedenne, then Rotom and finally Bonnie. As they locked eyes, Bonnie knew she was going to catch this Pokemon. She could just feel it, and when Wurmple nodded its acceptance of her battle request, she took a deep breath, knowing she couldn't let this opportunity slip away.

"Thunder Shock, Dedenne!" she ordered, wanting the quick attack, but knowing she should keep her distance. As Rotom was beginning to say, Wurmple could likely use String Shot and Poison Sting, so she needed to be careful.

"Neneneee!" Dedenne cried out, sending the electric attack outward, striking the bug type head on, causing it to stagger back as it cried out in pain.

Bonnie didn't call for Dedenne to charge in yet, though, knowing that Thunder Shock wouldn't be enough just yet. And sure enough, Wurmple shook it off fairly quickly, sending out a String Shot in Dedenne's direction right away. "Dodge it, and then use another Thunder Shock!" Bonnie ordered, watching closely, and knowing she needed to take her chance when she got it.

"Nene!" Dedenne shouted, sliding to the left as the webs struck the ground where he'd been standing, avoiding the strike. He then sent another blast of electricity towards Wurmple, striking the Worm Pokemon hard, causing it to cry out from the force of the attack then sent it stumbling back.

Bonnie watched it for a moment, noticing its body smoking a bit from Dedenne's Thunder Shock. She wasn't going to rush, though, knowing she needed to be careful of that Poison Sting. However, when Wurmple appeared to attempt another String Shot, before wincing and stumbling forward, she knew she needed to act. "Nuzzle!" she shouted, knowing Dedenne could reach Wurmple before it recovered.

Dedenne acted as quickly as possible, running forward and rubbing his cheeks as they began to spark. Bonnie noticed Wurmple attempt to move, worried for a moment she'd acted too quickly, but luckily, the two Thunder Shock attacks previously had done their job. Dedenne reached the bug type quickly, his cheeks sending out a wave of electricity over it, before he hopped back, watching closely as his opponent sparked and stumbled to the side, barely able to move.

"Zzt, this is a good time to use your pokeball!" Rotom told Bonnie, waving his arms excitedly. "Wurmple is weakened, and you have paralyzed it, so it will be easier to catch!"

"Right!" Bonnie said, excitedly pulling out a pokeball as Dedenne looked back at her, eyes shining. "Wurmple," she cried out, raising her arm in preparation to throw the pokeball, "we're going to be great friends, don't worry!"

With that, she threw the pokeball forward, the bug type watching carefully as the ball approached it, its body sparking from the paralysis. The capture device reached it a moment later, opening up on impact, before enveloping the bug type in red energy and pulling it within. It then landed on the ground, before shaking, Bonnie's fists clenched tightly as she watched it.

They all watched quietly as it shook once, Bonnie sure that it was about to open, and silently cheering as it didn't. Then it shook again, this time Dedenne jumping back a bit, apparently thinking it was about to open. And, finally, it shook a third time, Rotom floating forward as the pokeball stopped, before a red light flashed, and there was a soft, ding.

"Zzt! Pokemon trainer Bonnie has now captured a Wurmple!" he cried out excitedly. "This is the first capture that I get to record in my data!"

"Hooray!" Bonnie shouted, after staring ahead blankly for a moment. She ran forward, Dedenne doing so as well as they all gathered around the pokeball. "Dedenne, we did it!" Bonnie said to her partner Pokemon, smiling brightly at him as he looked proudly at the pokeball, knowing he'd performed well in his battle. "And Rotom, you helped too!" Bonnie told the PokeDex, who bowed at the compliment, before taking a couple of pictures.

Bonnie wasn't exactly too sure what to do next, but she supposed it made sense to call out her newest Pokemon, and officially introduce herself. She just hoped that Wurmple would like her, and that it wasn't too badly hurt. She decided to reach into her bag as she thought of that, pulling out a Cheri Berry, remembering that those were good for healing paralysis, before she finally reached forward and picked up the pokeball.

"Wurmple, welcome to the group!" she said happily, opening up the pokeball, a light flashing brightly before the bug type emerged in front of her, breathing heavily. Bonnie quickly held out the Cheri Berry, smiling encouragingly at her new Pokemon. "Here," she said quietly, "it should make you feel better."

"Wurmple," the Worm Pokemon breathed out, inching forward and nibbling on the berry. It seemed to be feeling better as it started to eat, so it quickly ate up the rest of it, immediately perking up as it moved back to look at Bonnie. "Wurmple!" it said in thanks.

Bonnie wanted to scream in excitement at that, but managed to restrain herself, before looking at Dedenne and Rotom. "Hi Wurmple, I'm Bonnie, and these are my friends Dedenne and Rotom. Dedenne was my first Pokemon, and Rotom is my...PokeDex, but he can talk! We're from the Kalos region, but I want to learn everything I can here in Hoenn so that one day, I can become an awesome trainer like my brother, Clemont, and my friends Ash and Serena. Do you...do you think you can help me do that?"

Wurmple studied her a moment, eyes bright with happiness, apparently already taking a liking to her. However, it did look to Dedenne first, the Antenna Pokemon nodding encouragingly, before it looked back at Bonnie, shuffling closer to her, before she picked it up. "Wurrrmple!" it answered finally, nodding.

"Thank you so much, Wurmple!" Bonnie almost shouted, hugging the bug type, careful not to squeeze it too tightly. "We're going to be best friends!" she told it, holding it back out, before setting it down. "We're going to-"

"KTOOO!"

Her head whipped up as a gust of wind buffeted them, knocking Rotom to the ground and into Dedenne, who was barely able to steady the PokeDex, before following Bonnie's gaze. She could barely see it, but in the darkening sky, barely visible above the trees, was something flying. Some kind of Pokemon, going at an extraordinary speed as it did some kind of flip through the air, before shooting off out of sight.

"What was tha-"

"KTOOO!"

This time, she had a slightly better look, if seeing a blurry red and white shape whipping by was considered a better look. Bonnie was sure it was some kind of Pokemon, but she couldn't be sure what it was, only knowing that it definitely wasn't a Taillow, or a Wingull, or any flying type she'd seen in Hoenn so far. She looked over to Rotom, who seemed to be attempting a scan, but was apparently unable to finish it.

"Rotom...any idea what those were?" Bonnie decided to ask, wondering if Rotom had any kind of idea.

"Zzt, I cannot be sure," Rotom admitted, apparently searching through his data. "However, according to the data I received from Professor Birch, there are only a few Pokemon in the Hoenn region that should be able to fly at that speed."

Bonnie looked excitedly at Dedenne upon hearing that, while Wurmple tilted its head curiously as it looked at Rotom. "What was it then?"

"I believe those may have been the legendary Eon Pokemon," Rotom said, a blurry picture on his screen from the moment before, showing two blurry blue and red shapes.

"Eon Pokemon?" Bonnie asked, tilting her head in confusion.

"Zzt, yes," Rotom answered, floating closer. "Latias and Latios!"

Author's Note:

And just like Ash, Bonnie sees a legendary Pokemon on her first day as a trainer...actually...two. Not to mention, she's got herself a shiny Wurmple. I mentioned this back when writing the original version, but the thought behind the shiny is just to give her something special as her first catch, but making sure it's not a super powerful Pokemon. I thought it would be an interesting touch...even though with fanfiction, we can't actually see it.

The chapter with Bonnie's first catch was actually what I considered to be my best chapter of the original version of the story, but I did want to change things up a bit here. As I said before, Rotom changes her approach a bit, giving her advice, but also, it was a bit of a chance for her to see that she was trying to be too much like Ash, leaving Dedenne open to attacks.

As for Latias and Latios...well, I guess we'll see how that goes. Hope you enjoyed. Next time, it's Chapter 5: Bonnie and Clyde.