I'm aware the chapter is the same as the first, I replaced the first chapter with a little disclaimer/prologue/timeline.

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The Adventure Saga, Part Four;

The Art of Progression

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Start Date: August 20th, X018

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May let out a yelp, snarling to herself as a box landed on her head. Shoving the cardboard back into its stack, her hands hovered, just in case it fell again.

Slowly, her hands drifted back down, but the truck hit another bump.

"Gah-! No…!"

With a crash and a tumble, May was suddenly buried in boxes. Annoyed, she pushed them off her, scrambling to the top.

"Hey, you guys, can't you-!" she let out another shriek as the truck hit another bump, sending her slamming into the back.

Shoulder throbbing, May, rubbing her arm as she lowered her head. What kind of hack movers did her father hire?! Was he trying to kill her via blunt force trauma?!

Curling up and trying to get comfortable, May pouted. Sometimes she felt like her father had some sort of personal vendetta against her or something. While her mother got a first class-ticket to Hoenn, she got some third-rate ticket. Where, might May add, she had some brat kicking her seat the entire time, a woman gabbing impossibly loud into her phone, and a man who not only snored, but leaned on her during the flight. Oh, and it was a week later than her moms flight, which was three days after they had to have their apartment vacated.

Thank Ho-oh the pokémon center let me sleep on their benches in the lobby…

And as if it couldn't get worse, instead of there being a seat for her in the moving truck, she had to be packed into the back. Like a piece of luggage. Her father didn't even bother to answer her calls when she frantically called over and over on her pokénav, so it was either that, or trying to walk all the way to Littleroot in an unfamiliar region and a pokémon that, as far as she knew, was still a baby.

She couldn't even hail a taxi or ask for a ride because, apparently, in this backwards place, environmental laws prevent gas vehicles. All of them are electric powered, and very few people actually own them since, apparently, no one ever went anywhere they couldn't walk, and if they did, they could rent. When she inquired about renting, well she couldn't do that, she wasn't old enough.

So here she was. In the back of the moving van.

Truth be told, May was incredibly upset with all of this, but mostly upset with Dad. If he just answered her calls, he could've zoomed on over her on his jeep to pick her up. It wasn't as if she wasn't aware he had one, Mom had told her about it.

Swiping sweat off her forehead, her arms lashed out as they hit another bump. Stabilized, she exhaled.

"I didn't mean to May, it was an accident May, I'm sorry May." May muttered to herself. "I suppose it always is, Dad. I wonder how he will- Gah!"

May suddenly slammed against the back door, frustrated, sweaty, and in pain, she lifted her head.

"Please! I'm back here, remember! Try to look out for bu-"

She suddenly felt a small breeze, and glancing back, she blinked, seeing the door was slightly cracked open. Her face morphed to a grimace as she reached out for the handle.

What kind of hack movers did Dad hire?!

As this thought of frustration crossed her mind, the truck jerked again, and the door flung open, taking her with it. Letting out a startled yelp as she lost her grip, she tumbled onto the dirt path. Rolling to stop with scraped legs and bruised palms, May slowly pushed herself up to her hands and knees.

"You've got to be…" she trailed off, watching the truck speed away without her. "Wait…!"

As if to mock her, the door slammed shut as the truck crested a hill and out of sight. May blinked. Once. Twice. Then she let out a groan and ran a hand down her face.

"Of course something like this had to happen," May muttered as she brought out her pokénav and tried to call Mom.

No answer.

She tried the movers.

"Did they just pick up and hang up?!" May stared at the pokénav in shock. Biting her lip, she tried one more number. "Oh, your voicemail box is full. Just like it was this morning. Thanks, Dad."

Groaning, she opted to send a message about her circumstances to her mother, then stood. All around her was nothing but trees. Trees and bushes and it was hot and humid and she hated it.

Brushing off her shorts and wiping her brow, she decided to let common sense dictate her next actions. If she just followed the tracks of the moving truck, then she would surely be able to find her way to Littleroot Town. Then, she could curl up on her bed and forget she had to move to this region… Maybe she could convince Mom to let her go home to Goldenrod.

"Hey, you!"

May assumed whoever it was wasn't talking to her, and she kept going. However, she stopped when the same voice shouted, but tacked on a delightful "lady with the stupid bow!"

May heaved out a sigh. This was tiresome and she didn't even make it far along the path. Giving a disinterested glance over her shoulder, she saw some random kid with a huge sunhat, a net, and loose clothing that made May envious.

"I don't have time, kid." May turned on her heel and kept walking.

"What do you mean you don't have time?!" the kid ran after her, surprisingly keeping with her stride. "You made eye contact, you have to battle!"

"I'm not a trainer."

"Then what's that pokéball on your belt."

"Not mine." May answered, ignoring the kid.

"You have to battle!" he darted in front of her. "It's the unspoken law!"

"Bug off, kid." May snapped at him. "You need to be… fifteen, if I remember, to be a trainer, right? You're like, seven. You can't even battle."

At that, the boy snorted, nose shriveling up in an unattractive manner as he held back his laughter.

"Pfft, what kinda city slicker are you?" the boy laughed in her face. "Yeah, you need to be fifteen to compete in the league, but you can be any age to battle! Age doesn't matter, it transcends the laws of pokémon and human interaction!"

"I'm not getting out of this, am I?" May heaved out a sigh. Her temple was throbbing, perhaps from annoyance at this brat, but maybe because she was stuck in this awful humid weather. "How bothersome…"

In Johto, since it was so adjacent to Kanto, had adopted similar laws. A prospective trainer, in order to leave home and go past the area routes that were within their perimeters to train, catch, and battle pokémon, had to be at least fourteen years old. Otherwise, they could only travel with an adult or licensed trainer. Since May had zero interest in pokémon or battling, she was fine with living out her days in Goldenrod. But apparently in Hoenn, the rules were so lackadaisical that trainers can do whatever they want, run amok as they please.

Fine, then. She would put the child in his place and move on.

Stepping back, she grabbed the pokéball and tossed it in the air. As the Cyndaquil appeared, the boys eyes shone bright. May couldn't tell if it was because Cyndaquil wasn't native to Hoenn, or if it was because it was shiny.

Why on earth did Ethan give this to me…?

"You must be really special to have a pokémon like that…" the boy seemed awestruck. "… But I'm not gonna go down just because some city girl has a fancy pokémon! Lets go!"

A pink, bug-looking-thing appeared, and May sighed. This was wasting her time…

"I don't know, knock it aside or something." May waved her hand flippantly in front of her. Cyndaquil, full of vigor, let out a cry.

"What kind of battle commands are those?!" the kid lectured her. May felt her shoulders sag as she turned her gaze upwards. "You better not be underestimating me-"

He was cut off as Cyndaquil was engulfed in flames, rolling towards the bug. Slamming it out of the way, Cyndaquil turned around and hopped back in front of May.

"I think we're done." May spoke simply, waiting for Cyndaquil to extinguish his flames, then picking him up and turning on her heel.

"Hey, you can't run away-!"

May ignored him.

"Gah! Wait! Hey!"

May continued walking, until suddenly, she ran into a whole group of kids. Some of them were sporting similar outfits to the kid she just pummeled, while others seemed to have school-like uniforms. They all jus… appeared, like a flock of annoying pests.

"There's no law on this route," the leader of the kids spoke, holding the brim of his hat over his eyes. May gave them a dead stare. Are they… reenacting something? "It's up to us to solve our own problems."

May quirked an eyebrow as all of the kids tossed pokéballs in the air.

"ROUTE 102 JUSTICE!"

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"I want to go home…" May gasped under her breath, collapsing to her knees as she hugged Cyndaquil to her chest. "I want to go hoooome…!"

Panting and gasping, she realized, little by little, that she absolutely hated it here. The laws she could understand, but the people were insane! Justice? Because she beat some kid in a battle?! And they only got more indignant as Cyndaquil knocked aside their bug-types and other miscellaneous pokémon that May didn't know. They were aiming to attack her, what was she supposed to do?! Wasn't she supposed to get a reward for beating them off?!

And she was pretty certain she ran through a small town on the way here. But instead of helping her, who was clearly a victim of a mob attack, the adults clapped their hands and cheered. Cheered! Was she a spectacle on display while she was fighting for her life?!

This is exactly why she hated battling. People get so caught up in the nonsense that they become senseless jerks out for victory! Or more specifically 'It's what your parents did, everyone else likes it, so you should be great at it!'.

Cyndaquil stirred in her lap, but remained unconscious. May sighed, shoulders slumping. What was Ethan thinking, what was he seriously thinking, giving a pokémon like this to her? The little guy was spunky, eager to please and enthusiastic, but May… just couldn't care less about battling, or anything with pokémon.

Averting her gaze from Cyndaquil, May felt something bubbling deep within her heart. She brought out the pokéball to return the fire type. To an extent, she felt bad for Cyndaquil. When Ethan gave him to her, May was certain he was expecting her to take after her parents and raise it well and strong. But May had no interest in battles or being anything like her parents. She just wanted to live her own life, do her own thing, and not be reminded every day of her so-called potential. Yet still…

She stared at the resting pokémon through the red top of the pokéball.

Even if she didn't like pokémon, it doesn't mean that she couldn't feel empathy for the thing… Cyndaquil tried his best to battle and make her proud, but battling… just wasn't something she could take pride in.

Tucking the pokéball away, she lifted her head. Pursing her lips, May found herself rather surprised by the scenery.

In her mad dash to get away from the hooligans that decided she had to face 'justice', May neglected to do the one thing she liked most; take in pretty surroundings. She was sitting by a pond that was surprisingly clear, almost like glass. The grass was green and healthy, and the trees stretched high to the soft-blue sky, filled with berries and flowers. The breeze seemed to rustle the surroundings, lifting the scent of the nature around her.

"Well…" May crossed her arms slightly, gaze doing another once over, committing the scene to memory. "… Even if it's hot, I'm sweating, the residents here are less than sane, and I'm lost… At least Hoenn is pretty."

May fell back, laying down in the grass with her arms behind her head. Maybe she could commit to living here. She'd never have to worry about annoying kids, her parents wouldn't pester her about doing something with her life, and she could live a relaxing, long life. Somehow it even seemed cooler here, than when she was thrown out of the moving truck.

Suddenly, a growling echoed in the clearing. May's eyes snapped open. She didn't dare to move, but the growling continued.

Grass rustled.

Slowly, she got to her elbows and looked over her shoulder.

Her heart leapt to her through.

A pack of large pokémon approached her, gray in color with long black manes and piercing yellow eyes. Baring their teeth, they snarled at her, barking every time she dared to move. She was on her knees, looking back and forth between the pokémon, unsure what to do or how to calm this situation. These ones… were aggressive. Territorial.

Slowly, she got to her feet, arms out as she prayed they took it as a sign that she meant no harm.

Cyndaquil was out cold from his fights with the kids, no way he could fight them off. Slowly, she began to back away, until she felt water lapping at her ankles. Maybe the pond…? But even if it was crystal clear, she had no clue what was in the pond, nor did she know if this type of pokémon could swim.

Should she run? But if the native pokémon are at all like the humans here, would they chase her and attack? She could easily outrun a bunch of children, but she wasn't exactly the most athletic of people… No way she could outrun a pack of whatever these guys were!

"Oh Lugia…" May murmured, glancing back and forth as their snarling got louder. What was she supposed to do?! Where was she supposed to go? She was backed in a corner…!

Suddenly, one leapt forward, tackling her into the pond. May thrashed, water splashing as she flailed her arms trying to get the pokémon away. She screamed, gargling water as it bit into her arm, twisting its head back and fort as if trying to tear her arm off.

Between the howling, barking, and her own terrified screaming and splashing, May heard something else. An… odd howl, more like a bellow. Then a splash.

Oh Ho-oh, something jumped in the water…!

As her head popped up for air, through her own tears and the water rolling down her face, a blur of tan suddenly emerged from the water. As May's eyesight cleared, she saw a young man, maybe fifteen or sixteen, with his hands wrapped tight around the neck of the pokémon. He continued to choke it until it let go of her arm. Then, he picked it up and threw it so far it hit another one. The two pokémon tumbled, then got up and bolted away.

The boy stood tall in the pond, blue-gray eyes staring daggers at the rest of the pack. To May, he appeared to be a couple inches taller than her, with sun-tanned skin and brown hair that fell far past his shoulders, knotted and matted in some places. He only had two things on his body in terms of clothing. One was an old and dirty set of khaki shorts that were frayed along the edges, a belt of rope tied around his waist. Over his shoulder was a much newer-looking bag.

While she clamored onto the bank, the boy lunged at the other pokémon. He was growling and snarling like some sort of rabid beast, but crazily enough… the pokémon were responding, or so it seemed.

Praying he proved an ample distraction, May cradled her injured arm and got to her feet, prepared to run.

"Oh Ho-oh…!" May scrambled back as poke pokémon came from the bushes, right until she bumped into wild boy that saved her. She nearly gagged, he smelled awful…!

He glanced at her, blinking curiously. She shuddered. He looked and smelled like he's been living in the forest…!

The pokémon suddenly growled louder, seemingly more heightened to fight at the prospect of not just two opponents, but one that seemed like a strong opponent.

Again, they lunged, and May screamed. What else was she supposed to do?

"No! What are you doing?!" May yelped as the boy suddenly scooped her up over his shoulder. Pounding her fist onto his back, she shrieked as he sprinted"No, no, put me down! Put me down! Don't-!"

May glanced up, seeing the pack was chasing after them, yet somehow, the young man was outrunning them. Who… What on earth was this boy?!

She shrieked as he suddenly leapt up, clamoring up a tree.

"Hold on lady!" the boy, his voice somehow… chipper, given their circumstances. "The ride's about to get bumpy!"

"Bumpy?!" May was still reeling from the fact this animalistic person could even talk. "What do you-"

She nearly screamed as he suddenly latched on a vine, then swung like a caveman through the forest. Expertly, he switched back and forth between holding her legs and using the other arm to latch onto another vine. May's fingernails dug into his back, not sure what else to grab onto.

Even though they were now off the ground, the pokémon kept up with them, right until he latched onto a particularly large tree and began to clamor up. Below them, May could see the pokémon trying to claw their way up after them, but they apparently lacked the ability.

"We should be okay here," the boy said, setting her down on a large branch as he stretched his arm out. "This is a good tree. It grows apples, so we can stay here a few days at least."

"I can't live in a tree!" May exclaimed, trying to stand. As she did, though, she slipped, stumbling back. The jungle boy suddenly appeared, grabbing her wrist. His gaze was sympathetic as the Mightyena seemed to yap at the thought of their snack falling right into them.

"Well, would'cha rather be down there, with those guys?"

May couldn't tell if he was mocking her or not, but when she didn't answer, he steadied her and pushed her down into a sitting position. His voice drifted away as he clamored up the tree. She was utterly petrified, hugged the trunk with her arms, despite one of them throbbing from being bitten, trying to see if it was possible to edge herself down. She slowly brought up on of her legs…

"Wah!" May let out a yelp as the jungle-boy suddenly appeared, upside down. In one hand was an apple, his mouth full of a bite. He blinked at her, then grinned with a full mouth, extending the apple to him.

"Want a bite?"

"No!" May smacked the apple out of his grasp. His gaze followed it as it bounced from branch to branch and hit one of the pokémon on the head. It barked in annoyance.

"… My apple…" he pouted.

"I thought you said this tree was full of them!" May snapped back. Burying her face in her hands, she could feel her throat closing up. "I need to get home! To my bed and to my air conditioning! I can't stay in a tree!"

"It's actually pretty comfortable, once you're used to it." the boy shrugged. "Oh, hey! Why don't you just battle them off with that pokémon?"

"How did you-"

"I saw you battling those kids on Route 102! They're pretty stubborn, aren't they?"

"You followed me?"

"Well, after you fell outta the truck, I was gonna help, but then you started running. You're pretty fast you know!" he laughed, reaching to the branch he was hanging on, then twisting around and sitting across from her. "Sorry I lost track of ya. Those Mightyena are all annoyed about somethin' and I was tryin' to figure out what it was. Maybe it was the moving truck?"

"If you were following me," May shot him an accusing glare. "Then you should know Cyndaquil is- What are you doing?"

He glanced up, having opened the bag over his shoulder and digging around inside. With a grin, he pulled out a roll of bandages and rubbing alcohol.

"I was on a little bit of a mission from my dad, and he's always getting nipped at by wild pokemon." he reached out with a cotton ball, gripping her wrist and pulling it towards him. "I can usually look after myself with what's in nature, but I'm actually pretty good at this first aide stuff!"

May gave him a quick once over.

"Are all those scratches and scars supposed to be proof of your skills?" May asked, skeptical. The boy glanced down.

"I don't mind them." he shrugged. "They give me a million stories to tell."

May almost wanted to laugh at the… what was it? Blind optimism? Reckless abandon? Before she could, though, she hissed as the alcohol stung the bite mark.

"So… what's your name?"

"Are you serious?" May glanced at him. His gaze was innocent, glancing between her gaze and the bandages he was wrapping around her arm. "Do you honestly think a girl's going to give her name to you when you trap her in a tree?"

"No? I just assumed that you and I are already stuck here, sooo…"

"I don't give my name to strangers."

"I'm Brendan." he grabbed her hand and shook it vigorously with an innocent, trusting grin. "Welcome to Hoenn, newcomer!"

"Oh, so it's obvious I'm not from around here?" May sighed, desperate to get her hand out of his because he was just… grimy. Subtly trying to swipe her hand on her shorts.

"Yep, I could smell it from a mile away!"

"… I smell." May echoed.

"Yep!" Brendan nodded enthusiastically, standing up, he nimbly. "So can I know your name now that we aren't strangers?"

"No!"

"Guess you really are from a bigger city." Brendan let out a sigh. Quickly, he plastered a smile on his face. "So, do you want an apple? We'll probably be here for a bit, at least until the Mightyena loose interest…"

"No, I don't want an apple!" May snapped at him. "Didn't I tell you? I don't want to stay in this tree, I want to go home. So take me home!"

"Now?" Brendan glanced down at the bag on his hip. Slowly, a grin grew on his face. "Well…"

Brendan suddenly plopped down, causing the entire branch to shake. May yelped, fingers digging into the bark for fear of falling. As Brendan opened the bag, he held it wide to her.

Inside, May saw two rectangular devices colored red. Beside them, there were three pokéballs. May glanced at him, blinking.

"Uh…"

"… Dad said that I could give one of these pokémon and one of these Pokédex's to our new neighbor moving in. Apparently their parents requested it specifically… But yeah, you can have one to, City Girl! A pokémon, not a dex, that's for my new neighbor."

"Oh, no," May waved her hands in front of her. "I'm not a trainer, no aspirations to be one. I'm fine with Cyndaquil, I don't need another pokémon."

"No?" Brendan had already selected his pokémon, grinning. "That's to bad, you could always use an extra friend! But it's okay, I can go and deal with it for you!"

"Brendan, wait-!" May tried to stop him, but like a pokémon himself, he swung down from the tree.

"Let's go Torchic!" Brendan tossed the pokéball in the air as he got down. "We've gotta help our new friends!"

May fell silent, staring at tiny little bird, knowing that there was no way a nugget like that was going to be able to handle all those pokémon. Her gaze trailed back to the remaining two pokéballs.

Closing her eyes, she let out a sigh. She couldn't let a reckless idiot be a reckless idiot, could she? Especially after he went and choked out one of those Mightyena to save her from that pond.

Plucking up a pokéball, she grasped it in her palm. She would borrow the pokéball for this battle then give it back. No need to get overly attached or anything.

Good grief, she wanted to go home. Home-home, not Littleroot. But there was no way for her to even go back to Johto, letalone Goldenrod. So it looks like she was stuck with battling her way through the Mightyena to get to her… not home.

With a dejected sigh, she threw the pokéball in the air.

At least I'll have a bed and air conditioning.

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BABADUUUUM!

New story, new everything! Wooo!

I don't have much to say tho, I've been working on these chapters all week. Sooooooooo thanks for reading! Hope you enjoy!