Chapter 2 – The First Step
The air was crisp first thing in the morning. Frost had lined some of the more exposed trees and low lying bushes. Winter was truly approaching, something most people hated. The cold, snow and ice were never fun to deal with. However, the beauty that came along with it was unsurpassed. This was the scene that greeted both Barry and Jill as they looked down the trail/road.
"Beautiful isn't it?" Barry said breathless.
"Yeah it really is." The two were silent taking in the splendor.
"You know, we could probably just walk there" Barry said after a moment.
"I hope you realize you're talking out loud" Jill countered, nudging her friend in the ribs.
"I mean it!"
"And how do you propose we avoid wild Pokemon?" Barry's face lit up like a child at Christmas.
"Why it's simple really! We simply jump out of the way!" Jill looked at her friend, whom she was quickly reconsidering calling a friend, deadpanned.
"Are you completely off your rocker? Or just insane?"
"That's it, you're getting fined! And I'll show you!" Taking a deep breath, Barry looked out at the path and was about to take a step when a gruff voice met them.
"And just what precisely do you think you are doing?" the voice asked. Barry visibly flinched alongside Jill as they turned around. "No packs, no equipment… and no discernible Pokemon between the two of you. What are you thinking wandering out onto this trail?" The voice was coming from a stern faced elder. The man stood close to six feet tall and was well built. Somewhat heavier in the midsection perhaps as was evidenced by the large vest and travelling coat the man was wearing. His face was creased, but much was obscured by the overlong sideburns and large bushy mustache covering his upper lip. Short, untidy grey hair was exposed as the glacial blue eyes peered down at the two wannabe trainers.
"I'm sorry sir, we just came out here to look, we're not actually going to be travelling… What I mean to say is…" Barry was flustered and getting ahead of himself in front of the stern and intimidating presence. Jill composed herself much faster however.
"What my friend is trying to say, is we just came out to check out the view before catching the coach to Sandgem." The elder looked between the two of them.
"And what business do you have in Sandgem?" he asked.
"We're going to get our first Pokemon!" Barry exclaimed. The man raised an eyebrow at the remark.
"Two people who would recklessly put their lives at risk? It worries me what people such as yourselves would do with Pokemon." Both Barry and Jillian looked crestfallen at the remark. Barry puffed up however.
"Actually sir it was just me who was going to be foolish enough to walk along the path without a Pokemon. Jill here was telling me it was dumb and irresponsible, but I was just being brave and putting on a show. Or at least I thought I was. She isn't at fault at all!"
"How very courageous of you to admit young man." The elder studied the two of them for some time. "Do you two love Pokemon?" he finally asked. The question caught the pair off guard, both exchanging a look with each other.
"Of course we do!" Jill asserted. Barry's head was nodding so fast it was amazing that his neck could withstand it.
"Very well then! I apologize for putting you through that exercise, but these days, it is very difficult to find the proper trainers. People who recklessly endanger themselves are typically not fit to own or train Pokemon. However, you two seem to care very deeply." Neither Barry nor Jill asked how the man came to this conclusion, but due to his upper class attire, they decided to let it ride.
"I will entrust you both with your first Pokemon, but only if you promise not to recklessly endanger yourselves ever again. This bond that you will forge is important and comes at a high cost. Can you accept those terms?" The stern look made the elation that both young adults felt much more tempered. Both agreed though. "Excellent. Now where is…"
"Professor!" a young male voice called out. Barry and Jill looked at one another, Barry mouthing the word professor with a questioning look. Jill's eyes were twinkling as she nodded. How lucky could one get?
"Ah! Lucas! Well done my boy. I was just looking for that" the professor said, holding his hand out for the briefcase the young man, Lucas, was holding. "These two are about to be entrusted with their first Pokemon!"
"Oh!" the boy Lucas stopped, and still breathing heavily, appraised the two from Twinleaf. Barry seemed keenly interested in the young man. He didn't cast too much of an impression on Jill. Easy enough on the eyes to be sure and he seemed nice, but the red oversized hat was a bit much, especially when coupled with the scarf. But oh, would it be fun to tease Barry about him later!
"Nice to meet you both! My name is Lucas." He stuck out his hand.
"Jill and this is Barry" the young woman said as both she and Barry shook hands. Jill was using all the will power she had not to laugh at her childhood friend who was still openly gawking at the new guy.
"It's pretty exciting to be getting your first Pokemon hey?" Lucas asked grinning. He obviously hadn't noticed Barry's interest.
"Do you have a Pokemon already?" Barry blurted out at warp speed. Jill laughed at Lucas' confused expression as he attempted to decipher what the cheery blonde had just asked. She took it easy and repeated the question, albeit at a much slower pace.
"Yeah I just got mine yesterday! Here I'll show you!" He grabbed a red and white sphere and pressed the centre button, releasing one of the three starter Pokemon native to Sinnoh, a Piplup. The tiny penguin yawned upon release, staring up at the two new faces. It stood only two feet high and its beak was still rather small, but its pride was on full display.
"Oh he's so cute!" Jill practically squealed. Lucas and Barry laughed at her enthusiasm, and even the professor seemed somewhat enchanted.
"Well then, why don't we get you two your Pokemon as well?" The professor held out the briefcase which contained two more of the red and white balls. One contained a flame etching on the cover and the other a leaf. Jill stared at the case suddenly feeling a peculiar tug, as if something was pulling her to one in particular. She stared down at the Pokeball with the leaf on the front.
"Let's go here Slowpoke! Are you going to pick sometime this century?" Barry asked loudly in her ear. Jill barely heard him though, reaching down to grab the sphere. The ball was cool to the touch and seemingly was letting off an earthly smell. Pressing the button Jill released her choice.
A small quadruped Pokemon blinked in the morning sun. A small stem with two leaves sprouted from the top of its green head. The lower mandibles were rather well developed and yellow in colour. Jill could tell that the jaws were strong enough to break bone if they clamped down hard enough. Its smaller green body was covered by a brown shell for added protection against attack. The tiny Pokemon only came to about Jill's mid-calf, but what it lacked in height it seemed to make up for in weight and length as compared to Lucas' water type. Something about this Pokemon though drew Jill to him. Without a word, the grass type walked over and stared up at its new trainer with bright yellow eyes, before bumping into her crouched down leg in an affectionate gesture.
"Hmph, it would seem that he likes you already. I'm impressed! So you'll take Turtwig, the grass type Pokemon?" Professor Rowan asked of Jill.
"I will!"
"Perfect that means this little guy is mine!" Barry exclaimed excitedly. Grabbing the remaining Pokeball, he released a Chimchar. The small monkey like Pokemon was immediately scampering around. It seemed like Barry had picked a partner almost as excitable and hyper as he was!
"Excellent! Well now that this is taken care of, I must be off. If you end up in Sandgem, please come to my lab" the professor said, setting off to the bus station where the coach had just pulled up. Lucas returned his Piplup and bid the pair farewell, following the professor to the coach.
"How awesome is this?" Barry said jumping up and thrusting a fist into the air. Jill picked up her Turtwig hugging him tight. The grass type nuzzled up tight against Jill's chest in comfort. Carrying her partner, Barry and Jill made their way back in to town. At the entrance Barry stopped, causing Jill to take a startled look back when she realized he wasn't beside her anymore.
"Barry?" she asked staring at her friend whose face was contorted in some weird expression.
"I just can't wait anymore!" he burst out, surprising both Jill and Turtwig.
"What in Shaymin's green earth are you talking about?" she said in annoyance at being surprised like that.
"I've been waiting so long for this moment!" the young man said, his eyes sparkling. Jill raised an eyebrow in question, while her Turtwig tilted his head in confusion. "I challenge you to a Pokemon battle Jillian Heart! I want you to be my first challenge on this journey!" Jill was taken aback, but that was quickly replaced with excitement. Yes a Pokemon battle, after all these years of dreaming about them. Finally she could pursue her goal of becoming one of the trainers of legend. And how fitting that it would start against her childhood friend.
"I accept!" The two stood a few paces apart and both their partners sprung into the space between the two trainers. A few townsfolk who were close by stopped to come and watch. They knew that these two were still beginners, but both held such promise that everyone in the tiny village was excited for them.
They're still so young, I'm guessing that they only know a few attacks… Jill thought as she looked down at her grass type. This meant that Barry having the type advantage shouldn't be too much of a problem for this battle.
"We'll start this off then! Chimchar use scratch!" Barry called out. "Oh that's so exciting! I've wanted to do that for so long!" Jill smiled as her adrenaline spiked. Thinking quick and hard she came up with a counter.
"Protect yourself against it Turtwig!" The grass type looked back at her then at the rushing fire type. The tiny monkey was fast and closed the gap within seconds, but its tiny claws were met by the hard shell of the grass type, leaving not a single mark. Chimchar looked confused.
"Now counter with tackle!" Jill called out. Turtwig who had withdrawn somewhat to protect itself, now bounded up and with surprising speed, slammed into the fire type with a full body tackle. Jill could hear the air leave the small lungs of the monkey as it was sent sprawling back to Barry's side of the field.
"We're not done yet!" the blonde called out. Jill grinned. Battling was so much fun already! Chimchar bounced back to its feet and stared down Turtwig who seemed completely indifferent. Growling in annoyance, the fire type launched itself at the grass type once more.
"Use tackle again!" Jill called out. Her partner seemed to have the weight behind him to do some real damage to the small monkey. Once more the fire type was sent sprawling back, this time unconscious.
"Yes!" the young woman cried out, scooping up her partner. Her first victory as a trainer! The feeling of euphoria was intoxicating. "You were amazing Turtwig!" The grass type smiled cozy in its trainer's arms.
"That was so much fun!" Barry exclaimed, even though he'd lost. He was helping his woozy Chimchar back to its feet, but his excitement was shining through. "I'd better be getting home though! Lots of packing to do now!" Jill laughed agreeing. Both raced home, excited to be underway as soon as possible.
"Well this is nice," a distinctly deep, calm male voice said as Jill got home. Her mother was just as excited for her daughter as Jill was getting her first Pokemon. Turtwig had spent some time exploring around, before settling on Jill's bed while she packed.
"I'm sorry?" Jill asked. She could have sworn her Turtwig had just spoken. But that was impossible. Humans weren't able to understand Pokemon. However there weren't any males living with Jill and her mother…
"I said this is nice!" Turtwig repeated before stopping and looking shocked. Jill was standing there, mouth open staring at her partner and clothes in both hands. "Can you understand me?" the grass type asked incredulously.
"I don't believe it! You are talking!" Jill said.
"Well of course I am! How can you understand me? I've tried talking to the old man so many times but he never says anything back!"
"I don't know! I've never been able to understand Pokemon before." Jill's heart was hammering hard and fast in her chest. Her Pokemon was actually speaking to her! It was as if everything she could have dreamed of was coming true.
"But you can understand me?" Turtwig asked.
"Yes, yes I can!"
"That's so cool!" Jill rushed over and fell to her knees in front of the smaller Pokemon still on her bed.
"How is this possible?" Jill wondered aloud as she stroked Turwig's shell.
"Never heard of a human being able to understand us before. Pretty cool though."
"Neither have I. Well at least not like this. I hear there are some people out there who have some sort of telepathic link between their Pokemon and themselves, but to actually be able to speak to them…" Her thought trailed off. "Well I suppose I should ask the obvious then, but do you have a name other than your species name?"
"My name is Caladan!" the grass type said proudly. Jill smiled down at her partner.
"Well Caladan, my name is Jillian but just call me Jill. I guess you and I are going to be partners from now on then hey?"
"Sounds good to me!" The two spent the entire night talking, getting to know one another. Jill was already learning so much, like the fact that Cal, as she started calling him for short, wanted desperately to grow bigger and stronger and to evolve into the giant Torterra. Jill had pulled up a picture of the massive Pokemon on her computer and was seriously impressed. That kind of power would be a killer addition to her team.
At some point during the night, Cal had discovered the TV and saw a battle from a couple months ago from another region. The pair had watched the rerun of an Elite battle with the new Johto champion, a young man not much older than Jill in fact. Caladan was awed by the power the young trainer had and the battle technique which barely had him breaking a sweat as he crushed the four Elite's.
"Who is that?" he asked at one point.
"That's Arthur. He recently became champion, though he isn't the acting champion. He just has that title now because he defeated the previous reigning champion of that region."
"He's good" Cal noted. He's good looking too Jill thought privately as she watched the battles again.
"We'll get to that point someday. But first we'll have to do some serious training and take on the gyms in this region. And make a team."
"Well I'm here and ready to go!" Caladan said attempting to make himself appear bigger as the image on TV froze on a shot of Arthur standing beside his Typhlosion. Jill smiled, picturing herself standing there across from her cousin, Caladan beside her, newly crowned champions.
Two weeks later Barry and Jill were once more standing at the entrance to Twinleaf. That morning had been hectic as Jill packed away the last of her goods. Then there was Barry coming over to check if she was ready and announcing that her wardrobe needed an overhaul if they were going to be seen together at all. Sometimes it paid to have Barry around, as that was one aspect of girly-ness that Jill had considered herself somewhat a lost cause in. The road was relatively sparse, and Barry's mom was crying slightly. Johanna's face was sad and happy all at once, fierce pride in her daughter showing through.
"You two be careful now you hear?" Johanna said. "Yes people can befriend Pokemon, but that doesn't mean that wild Pokemon aren't dangerous."
"We know mom, don't worry. We'll be fine."
"Yeah miss Heart! You're looking at the next champion! And his bouncing, bubbly, beautiful friend!" Jill rolled her eyes as she jabbed her friends exposed ribs. He doubled over laughing, and even his mother broke out a laugh. One last hug was exchanged before the two young adults set out on their adventure.
"This is so exciting!" Jill said more to herself than anyone else, but Caladan nodded along in agreement. Barry silent for once, happily watching his Chimchar swing from tree to tree. The tiny fire type seemed to have boundless amounts of energy within himself.
"Hey, we should go to the lake!" Barry suddenly exclaimed. They had come to the fork in the road, one way leading to Lake Verity, the other which lead to Sandgem. Jill looked longingly down the road, knowing that going to the lake first would add a day to the trip. On the other hand, this could be the last time in a while that she could see the massive body of water in some time. It was the final goodbye before she truly started her adventure.
"Why not?"
"What's so special about the lake?" Caladan asked. Jill wondered whether Barry was able to communicate with Chimchar or not like she was with Cal. Due to the young man's lack of response however, she guessed not.
"This lake isn't really all that special," she began when Barry turned around and interrupted her.
"Who are you talking to?" he asked.
"I'm just telling Cal here why we're going to the lake to start!" Barry's face lit up with that beaming smile he was so famous for and began whistling a tune as they walked. "But yeah, it's sort of like a second home. We used to come here all the time as kids and play for hours in the water. It's mostly Magikarp in there, but the water is amazing! There is a local myth however, that Lake Verity is one of three lakes around the region where a guardian resides!"
"Well that's cool. Which guardian?"
"Good question" Jill replied under her breath. "Hey Barry, which guardian is at Lake Verity again?" Barry stopped his whistling as he tried to remember.
"I think it's Mesprit. Azelf guards Lake Valour, and Uxie is in Lake Acuity."
"Right the being of emotion" Jill commented. Barry nodded along.
"Sounds like your kind of Pokemon!" he said laughing.
"Oh ha ha very funny skinny pants. By the way, how's Lucas doing?" she replied with a smirk. The blonde went beet red as he sputtered some incoherent reply. Jill laughed lightheartedly at her friend's flustered state. "I'm just messing around with you Barry."
"Remind me to fine you when we get to Sandgem!" Both laughed at that as they got to the entrance to the lake. The day was cloudless and already Jill was only wearing her dark blue tank top, her coat safely tucked away in her bag. Barry was similarly wearing only a yellow t-shirt as they made their way down to the banks of the lake.
"Who's that?" Barry asked pointing to a man not far away from them. The slight crest before the slope down to the water had initially obscured him from view, but Jill could tell he was saying something.
"No idea…"
Cyrus stared down into the lake depths taking no notice of the two rookie trainers who had come to the lake as well. Somewhere down there was the true guardian he hoped to possess. Oh to be sure, this world still required change. But what if he could truly rid himself of all emotion? Imagine the possibilities.
"The flowing time… the expanding space…" he mumbled to himself. "Someday I will make it all mine. Remember my words guardian of emotion, for one day soon you too shall be mine. Remember the name Cyrus as you slumber, for I am the one who shall change the world." With that, Cyrus turned away and began the trek back to his next stop. This stop was not strictly speaking, necessary. But it was something Cyrus felt needed to be done. The world would soon know what his power was.
Deep within the lake, an ancient guardian slumbered. However, words of malice, fear, anger and longing reached down through the depths to trouble the poor being. Due to its nature, such strong feelings disturbed the peaceful sleep the guardian had obtained. But those negative emotions were soon cleansed from the guardians mind as other emotions swept them aside. Happiness, excitement and love pushed away the troubling words and once more relaxed the tiny being. Slowly, a small smile came across the guardians face.
Jillian's Pokemon:
Caladan (Turtwig) - level 6, ability: Overgrow, nature: Bashful
And so Michele and Barry set out upon their adventure, after receiving their first Pokemon. You'll notice that Michele can speak with Caladan, due to her bond with her partner. This will be more fleshed out in the coming chapters. As for Turtwig's name, it comes from a character in my favourite fantasy series, Malazan Book of the Fallen. The character's full name is Caladan Brood.
Please leave a review and let me know what you thought!
NOTICE: I have changed the main protagonists name. My original characters are inspired by real people I know and because of this I've decided on a new name for our heroine. She is still the same character, however just a new name. This is the update for this chapter. Thank you.