"Ee...vee..." Came the weak cry of a Pokemon unknown to the small white-haired girl, her brows furrowed in confusion as she stopped in the middle of the meadow of pink wildflowers. The small girl found herself poking her head around, searching for the source of the noise. Her small hands reached up to her mouth, gasping as she saw the injured creature curled up in a ball, trying to protect itself from a group of older kids who were taunting it, kicking at it, throwing rocks at it.
Whimpering lightly, the eight year old looked around for anyone who could help. An adult, a trainer, , she took a deep breath and sprinted towards the ruckus, bowling over one of the older kids before scooping the Eevee into her arms, high-tailing it back into town. She heard the frail Pokemon cry weakly into her pink shirt, feeling it squirm within her arms as she was chased by the unruly kids.
"You can trust me...I won't hurt you..." The small, meek voice came from the girl, looking back every now and then to make sure the pack wasn't gaining on them while gently rubbing the head of the Pokemon cradled affectionately within her arms. The gentle scratches against its fur seemed to calm the nerves of the affected Pokemon as the small girl raced to the large building with the red roof and the pokeball logo.
"Miss Joy! Miss Joy!" She yelled out, nearly running headfirst into the midsection of a young man and woman. Panting softly, she gently lifted the Eevee up towards the counter.
"C-Can you help it? I-It was getting attacked by th-these really mean kids..." She whimpered, tears beginning to roll down her cheeks as the pink-haired nurse crouched down to her level.
"I'll see what I can do, Ellie...but you really shouldn't run into wild Pokemon like that. It's very dangerous." She gently scolded the little girl.
"B-But I couldn't just leave it! I'm not going to leave a defenseless Pokemon to fend for itself! I-I want to be friends with every Pokemon! Even the meanie ones!" The white-haired frenzy shouted through her sobs, gently rubbing the back of her hand against her cheek to wipe away tears as the Eevee labored for breath, gazing down at the little girl who had just risked her life to save its own and knowing that the human was very much telling the truth to it earlier.
"It was very brave of you to help out, Ellie. But your mom would be worried sick if she knew what you did to save it..."
It was hard for Ellie to get out of bed. Even on this, her first day as a Pokemon trainer, she still couldn't really find the motivation to get herself up and at 'em. But it was hard for her to get out of bed most days.
"Ee?" came a small confused noise from beside her, the short-haired teen's eyes fluttering open to reveal her beloved Eevee sniffing at her curiously, its large ears perked up as it attempted to communicate with the girl who befriended it.
"Mmn...just a couple more minutes, Eevee..." The silver haired teen mumbled, her eyes shutting once more. However, instead of falling back asleep, she soothingly rubbed Eevee's belly, causing the brown Pokemon to smile with joy. Finally, she heard a loud banging at her door.
"Eleanor! Get up! You're going to be late for your meeting with the Professor!" She heard a shrill voice call behind the closed door.
"Mmn...both of you really love to make sure I don't get any sleep, huh pal?" Ellie muttered groggily, her best buddy simply wagging its fluffy, paint brush-like tail with a small smile on his face.
"Don't you grin at me like that, you..." She chided playfully, gently ruffling the fur on her pal's head before slowly sitting up, stretching her stiff limbs and letting out a yawn as Eevee trotted into her lap. Taking a few moments to pet her pal, she cradled him into her arms, shuffling off the bed. Eevee shifted slightly to allow Ellie to open the door.
"I expected you to wake her up, you!" Her mom gently teased the Eevee in her daughter's arms, still feeding it a freshly picked Oran Berry which the brown furball eagerly gobbled up with glee.
"What, no berries for your loving, growing daughter?" Ellie mumbled, sitting at the island while Eevee settled into her lap.
"That reminds me...when you get Pokeballs, are you going to catch him?" Her mom asked over the sounds of her preparing breakfast.
"...Why? He shouldn't be cooped up in a Pokeball. Or do you not remember that I've spent the last ten years taking care of him without the need of a Pokeball?" Ellie muttered, scratching Eevee's ear idly.
"Hop keeps that Wooloo of his in a ball." Was the reply from her mom.
"...That's because Hop's Wooloo is a menace to society." Ellie mumbled, recalling the many times she's had to scoop her pal out of the way of Wooloo's non-stop rolling antics. A soft sigh leaving her lips as she seemed to instantly be calmed by Eevee's mere presence, giving a small grin towards her little buddy as he gently nuzzled his soft head against her exposed belly.
"I know, pal. But you know I'll always be here to make sure you're okay." She whispered softly, rubbing her buddy's head, causing the Eevee to let out a happy cry.
"You know, it scares me that you've known Eevee long enough that you two can basically communicate like Gardevoirs." Her mom chuckled softly, placing a plate of pancakes and a glass of Moo-Moo Milk in front of Ellie on the island, sighing as she placed a small bowl of treats down next to Ellie's plate, causing Eevee to spring up onto the island and dig in happily.
"He's my best friend, of course I can use Psychic with him." Ellie spoke as if it wasn't slightly off-putting that her best friend was a Pokemon that technically wasn't officially hers. She'd never bothered to attempt to make Eevee officially her Pokemon, but they both still shared a bond that practically matched Leon and his Charizard.
"Maybe you'll meet a human best friend on your journeys, my future Pokemon Trainer...or maybe someone who's more than a friend." She'd add right as Ellie bit into her pancakes...causing her to also accidentally bite on her tongue, causing the teen to yelp.
"Maaaaaaaaaaawm!" She whined, Eevee jumping at the sudden yell.
"S-Sorry, buddy…" Ellie mumbled softly, lifting a fork full of the syrupy treat up to Eevee, who gently shook his head before returning himself to a face full of treats.
"Your loss, man." Ellie would tease, finishing off her breakfast and waiting on Eevee to finish before collecting him in her arms. "I'm off to the Professor now, Mom." She announced, her black combat boots thumping on the tile floor as she kissed her mother on the cheek before exiting the house...and nearly being bowled over by an all too familiar Wooloo.
"HOOOOOOOOOOP!"