Chapter 2: Cold Comfort

Hey howdy hey hello, welcome to the show!

Enigma's back, I know I've been gone a while, sorry about that! Should have quite a few chapters for you over the next few days, but that's not set in stone just yet.

Anyways, I won't take up much more of your time, enjoy!

(Feel free to review, but don't just rip into me! I'm doing this for fun, not excessive criticism.)

Rowan held up his own Pokedex, a folded, red electronic device like a game system, and gestured to two new ones on the table.

"Here are your Pokedexes, not only will they catalogue any Pokémon you come across, but they'll also serve as your IDs as trainer, and your maps, so don't lose them!" He advised, "These are cutting edge models, you know."

Blair flipped open her Pokedex and powered it on, it projected a 3D, holographic image of herself in midair, rotating in slow circles.

"This is great! Thanks, professor!" Bo grinned, darting out of the lab before the professor could interject, "I'll fill it up in no time, so you just sit back and wait."

"Well… he's certainly energetic." Rowan nodded, "You've already got your starter, so I'll let you be on your way."

"Th-Thank you professor!" Blair bowed her head and hurried out, pausing only to take a few Pokeballs offered to her by an assistant, thanking them profusely.

Once she was outside, Blair let out a long sigh and turned her eyes to Route 202.

"Ready, Sol?"

"Chim-Chim!"

Route 202 was a winding, grassy route, bordered by trees. Many young trainers enjoyed testing their skills there, but Blair had no interest in that.

"Hey!" Blair jumped as someone called out, quickly hiding behind a tree and peering out to see who had shouted.

A young boy in shorts was yelling at a tall figure in a long coat, pokeball in hand.

"Come on, battle me!"

"Okay, okay. Cool your jets, kid." The figure nodded and stepped back, "I'll battle you, just calm down."

"Fine!" The boy waited impatiently as the man strolled over to Blair's tree, calmly selecting one of his Pokémon, "Starly, go!"

A small grey bird burst forth from the Pokeball, raring to go as it screeched out a challenge.

"Rotom, would you lend me a hand?" The man calmly tossed out his Ultra Ball, an orange fridge bursting forth and slamming into the ground, kicking up some dust.

Now that he was closer, Blair could have a proper look at the man. He was roughly 5'11", and wearing a long black coat. On his head was a black beanie, and he had a white scarf wrapped around his neck. Underneath, he wore a long sleeved, white shirt and a pair of dark blue jeans. His short hair was a lovely orange, and his eyes were a deep blue.

"Now, Starly! Quick Attack!"

Starly took flight as a white aura surrounded it, hurtling towards the orange fridge still sitting on the ground. The move impacted directly, kicking up dust as the fridge was pushed back.

"Rotom, why don't we slow this down to our pace? Use Blizzard." The man shoved his hands in his pockets.

"Roto!"

A purple, electric aura surrounded the fridge and its doors opened, sending forth a wave of frigid air that froze the poor Starly solid. Starly crashed into the ground in front of its trainer, unconscious.

"Dang it! Starly, return!" The trainer called his Pokémon back, "We aren't done yet! Growlithe, use Ember!"

An orange dog with black markings snapped out of the Pokeball, baring its teeth. It opened its mouth and let loose a hail of small, burning embers.

"Rotom, wrap this up with Thunderbolt, would you?"

"Rotorotoroto!" Crackling with electricity, Rotom released a bolt of lightning that tore through the Ember, shocking Growlithe and knocking it out in a single blow.

"Dang it! Alright, I'll-"

"That's enough." The man held his hand up, walking towards the boy, "Don't throw your Pokémon into a fight they can't win, just get them to the Pokémon Center."

"Grr… fine! But you better wait right here, I'm gonna show you!" The boy withdrew his Growlithe and rushed off towards Sandgem town. Blair jumped a little as he passed by, glaring at the ground.

"Hm?" The man turned in Blair's direction, noticing her for the first time, "Would you like to battle as well?"

"O-Oh, no sir!" Blair shook her head furiously.

"Chim!" Sol leapt from her shoulder, glaring up at the man and challenging him.

The man just smiled and knelt down, shaking Sol's paw.

"Nice to meet you, I'm Aspen. And you are?"

"W-Well, I'm Blair, a-and this is Sol." Blair hurriedly picked Sol up before she could attack Aspen.

"Well, Blair. Mind if I walk with you?" Aspen stood up, withdrawing his Rotom, "A journey's more fun together, after all."

"Um, I, uh…"

"It's settled then." Aspen nodded and set off in the direction of Jubilife. Blair panicked a little and hurried after him.

"Wh-Why…?"

"Why am I walking with you? I'm not sure myself."

"Um…"

"Sorry, that's not a good answer, is it?"

"N-Not really…"

"Oh well." Aspen shrugged, "Do you mind if I ask you a favor?"

"W-We just met…"

"Then there's no time like the present!" Aspen laughed, reaching into his bag and taking out an incubator. Inside it was an egg, "I found this a while back, but I don't think I could look after it properly."

"So… you want me to?"

"Yep! You're just starting out, so you're looking to build a team anyways, right?"

"W-Well, yes…" Blair paused to consider, and Aspen politely stopped next to her, "A-Alright… I'll take it."

"Excellent! Here you are." Aspen handed her the incubator with a smile, "Make sure you stop into a Center when you can, to check its status."

"I will." Blair nodded, gently placing the incubator in her bag.

"And here, I'll exchange my number with you, so you can call me if anything goes wrong, okay?"

"A-Alright! Thank you!" Blair bowed her head as the pair arrived at a fork in the road.

"Oops! Looks like I'm headed this way." Aspen grinned, jerking his thumb to the right, "I'll see you around though!"

"Y-Yeah." Blair nodded, making her way down the left path.

Aspen casually placed his hands behind his head and strolled down the right path, humming a song to himself as he went. Blair could hear him in the distance as he got farther away.

"What a strange guy…"

And there you have it! What'd you think?

Aspen's a fun guy to write for, he'll be a recurring character with some good plot relevance, so keep an eye on him!

Enigma, signing off.