"Okay Buneary, this is just a practice match. Try not to go overboard, okay?" Dylan was on his knees talking to his companion. Buneary nodded in understanding and began to hop happily onto the battlefield. It was the small battlefield that sat behind the Pokémon centre, which was only used for small scale battles. Alex stood opposite him, giving reassurance to the Pokémon stood at her feet.
"Alright Mareep, this is your moment." she bent down to Mareep's eye level. "You just go out there and do your best. Got it?" The Pokémon nodded, turned, and began to walk out onto the battlefield. A few trainers gathered around the field as the Pokémon took their places.
"Ready?!" Dylan called.
"Always!" Alex replied confidently.
"Okay then! You two get the first move!"
"Alright then! Mareep! Thunder Shock!" she called to her Pokémon. The small orb at the tip of Mareep's tail suddenly began to glow a bright yellow. The glow soon spread and covered its whole body. As the Pokémon cried out, a small bolt of electricity shot out from its body towards Buneary. It hit, shocking Buneary, who stumbled backwards slightly.
"Nice one!" Dylan called to Mareep. "You okay Buneary?" His partner steadied itself and nodded to him confidently. "Okay then, use Quick Attack!" Buneary suddenly sprung forward and ran quickly towards Mareep.
"Mareep! Try to dodge." Alex called out. Mareep held its ground as Buneary approached. One it was close enough, Mareep rolled quickly to the side, springing itself back to its feet as Buneary rushed past. "Now use Tackle." Alex called quickly as Buneary struggled to slow down. In an instant, Mareep had tackled Buneary from behind, sending flying forward, where it landed with a thud.
"Buneary!" its trainer called from across the battlefield. "You okay?"
"Neary!" the Pokémon called back as it pushed itself to its feet.
"Not too shabby." Dylan called to Alex. "But stop this! Dizzy Punch!" The tips of Buneary's ear began to glow. As it ran towards Mareep, it curled up its ears, getting ready to deal a heavy blow.
"Mareep! Look out!" Mareep jumped backwards, but Buneary continued to approach. Buneary jumped forward, quickly uncurling one of its ears. Buneary barely dodged the blow, only to be hit but the second ear as it extended. Mareep stumbled backwards. "Mareep, are you good?" Alex called. Mareep began to stagger slightly. "Oh dear." Alex said quietly.
"Alright Buneary, now use Jump Kick!" Dylan called, seizing the opportunity. Buneary suddenly sprang high into the air, before beginning to speed back towards the ground with its leg outstretched.
"Mareep!" Alex called to the still confused Pokémon. "Mareep! Please!" she called desperately. Buneary was closing in. "Come one Mareep! Pull yourself together!" Alex's scream suddenly snapped Mareep back to reality. It looked up, and swiftly rolled to the side. Buneary crashed to the ground. "Yes! Now, use Thunder Shock." Mareep sent another bolt flying towards Buneary, hitting it while it was still trying to stand back up. Buneary let out a small cry before collapsing. There was silence for a few moments, before the gathered trainers broke into polite applause. "We won?" Alex said in shock. "We won!" She yelled a second later. She began to run towards Mareep, who in turn began to run towards her. Mareep leaped into Alex's arms, who began to hug it tightly. "We did it! We won! I'm so proud of you!" Mareep replied with a joyous cry.
"You okay, buddy?" Dylan had walked over to his partner, who was still lying on the floor. It responded with a feeble reply. He bent down and picked it up in his arms. "You did good. Now let's get you inside." He walked over to Alex. "Congrats." He said.
"Thanks." she replied. "But it's not me you should be congratulating." she said, looking down at Mareep. "And you two were great as well. Is Buneary okay?"
"Nothing a bit of rest won't fix. Shall we take these two inside?"
"That's a good idea." Alex replied. The pair continued praising each other as they left the battlefield and headed inside.
"I'm honestly amazed." Dylan said to Alex. "You two are going places with skill like that."
"Oh, stop." Alex said, blushing slightly. "It was just beginners' luck." The pair were sat on one of the many large sofas scattered about the Pokémon Centre. Opposite them, a large TV was showing an intense Pokémon battle. The pair were both to engrossed in their conversation to watch. "So, about tomorrow." Alex said, changing the subject. "What time were you thinking of leaving?"
"Probably best we leave sometime in the morning. My parents said I'm only allowed to stay out there for one night. I want to make the most of it."
"That sounds good. Do you want to stick together? Or shall we split up and explore a bit?"
"I say we stick together for the first few hours, and then split up. We could even split up overnight if you really wanna get dangerous." He said with a dark smile.
"Don't be stupid, it's a forest, it's not that dangerous. If we stay close enough to the main road, we shouldn't run into anything too bad. Plus, this is my way to prove to my mom that I can survive out there on my own. If I come back hurt, I don't think she'll ever let me leave the house again." She chuckled.
"Don't worry. You'll have Mareep to keep you safe, won't you?"
"Of course, but I don't think he'll be able to do much against horde of enraged Vigoroth charging towards us."
"I've told you before, there's not any enraged Vigoroth near that area." he paused for a moment. "There might be a mildly annoyed Murkrow or two, but that's about it." The pair chuckled. "Hang on." Dylan said, his attention suddenly drawn to the TV. "Isn't that Damien?"
"What?" Alex said.
"There, look." he nodded towards the screen. Alex stared at the screen for a moment until she spotted the small figure at one end of the battlefield. It was hard to make out clearly, but she could tell it was a tall man with the same brown hair as her and her mother. He was wearing a long dark cape, obscuring most of his body. As the feed switched to a different camera, she was able to make out his face. She saw a familiar set of eyes. They were a cold grey, with no emotion behind them.
"That's him." Alex said suddenly. "He's changed a bit, but I'd know those eyes anywhere." Dylan shifted awkwardly.
"Shall I go ask if we can change the channel?" He asked.
"No." Alex replied firmly. "I want to watch." She squinted at the screen. "Who's that he's fighting?" She pointed at another figure stood opposite him. Dylan leaned in closer to the screen.
"Caitlin maybe?" the camera suddenly shifted to focus on the figure. It was a young woman, with masses of blonde hair that seemed to float around her. "Definitely Cailtin." Dylan said with a nod. The pair now focused their attention on the two Pokémon that were battling fiercely between them. One was a large grey creature, with a flat body and four large legs jutting out from its sides. The other was much smaller. A slender black creature with a pain of large horns protruding from its head.
"So, he's taking those guys on already, huh?" Alex said. "That would explain why he couldn't stay for my birthday." she scoffed. "Nice to see he has his priorities straight." she said bitterly. As she spoke, the larger Pokémon shot forward suddenly, flying towards its opponent with its front two legs flailing wildly. Damien seemed to issue a command, and the smaller Pokémon dodged effortlessly by leaping over its foe. As it landed, it turned and sent a jet of flames spewing from its mouth towards the other creature, who turned just in time to see the flames as it was scorched by them. A large cloud of smoke soon surrounded it. Suddenly, Caitlin called out a command, and the Pokémon came charging out of the smoke, with one of its legs glowing brightly. Damien once again issued a command, but his partner could not react in time. It was struck by a mighty blow and sent flying across the battlefield, skidding slightly as it landed.
"Ouch." Dylan said. "I don't think he's getting up from that."
"He will." Alex replied. "His Pokémon are stupidly strong." As she spoke, the creature slowly pushed itself back onto its feet. "Told you." Damien shouted another command, and his Pokémon suddenly rushed towards it opponent, clamping its jaw onto one of its legs. The larger creature began shaking its leg desperately to get it off, but to no avail. With one last command, Damien's Pokémon released a stream of dark energy from its mouth, completely overwhelming its opponent. The large creature stopped struggling and collapsed to the floor.
"Damn." Dylan said in amazement. "Snarl at such close range? Risky move."
"That's how he fights." Alex replied. "He'll try anything if he thinks it'll get him the win." She turned to Dylan. "I was there for his first ever gym battle. In fact, he used that same Houndoom." she said nodding towards the screen. "Of course, back then it was still just a little Houndour. He got it to clamp onto Burgh's Heracross. Poor thing didn't stand a chance after that." She was silent for a few moments. "It kinda scared me honestly. The way he acted during that battle; I'd never heard him talk that way before." She looked away from Dylan and began staring at the floor. "He was normally so relaxed and gentle, but the second he touched that battlefield, he was a different person. And he's been like that ever since, really." She looked back up to Dylan, who looked concerned. Alex shook her head. "Sorry about that, you really don't need to hear all of that. Sorry if I made you uncomfortable."
"No. No it's fine." Dylan replied. "Look." he said after a pause. "I know things are difficult right now between you and him, but if you do ever need to talk about it, I'm here." Alex smiled sweetly.
"Thanks, I appreciate it. But right now, I want to focus on getting to be just a strong as he is. Or maybe even stronger." She said with a smirk.
"As if." A harsh voice said from behind them. The pair turned around quickly. Veronica stood behind them, with her two 'friends' stood either side of her. "The pair of you are still horridly weak compared to just about every other trainer in the city."
"Nice to see you too, Veronica." Dylan said sarcastically. "Jason." he said nodding to the boy. "And hello to you, Heather." he said to the other girl. He quickly glanced at their outfits. All three were dressed in dark clothes, and all wearing identical leather jackets. "Still trying out that whole 'gang' thing, are we?"
"Shut up." Veronica snapped. She leaned in towards Dylan. "Y'know, we were watching that little battle you two had earlier, and I have to say it was kinda sad. Watching that poor Buneary get beaten by a completely unexperienced trainer was awfully painful to watch."
"Why don't you go bother someone else for a change?" Alex said.
"She wasn't speaking to you." Jason sneered. Veronica held up her hand.
"Jason. I'm speaking." she said coldly. She turned back to Dylan. "So, when was the last time you actually won a battle, huh?"
"I beat Burgh a few days ago." he replied.
"That was your first badge, pal. Everyone knows gym leaders go easy on you if it's your first time."
"Did you come here to make a point or just to make me feel bad about myself?" Dylan asked. "Because if it's the latter, I'm perfectly capable of doing that by myself." Veronica grunted.
"Look, I just came to say that it's clear you aren't the best trainer. I just want to help you."
"Really?" Dylan said. "A few days ago, you wanted to kill me because I knocked out your Woobat. And suddenly you want to help me?"
"People can change, you know." the other girl behind Veronica joined in. Veronica turned and scowled at her.
"Heather, please." Heather stopped talking and took a few steps backwards. "Dylan, I just want to say that there's a group of people who can help your get stronger. But you don't seem interested." She turned and began to walk away. "If you change your mind and actually want to get stronger, come and find me."
"You didn't tell them where to find you…" Heather said meekly as Veronica passed her.
"Then they'll have to look around, won't they?" she snapped in response. She didn't say another word as she walked briskly out of the door. Her 'friends' looked at each other a moment, before following her out. Alex and Dylan stared at each other for a few moments.
"What was that about?" Alex finally asked.
"About two minutes of our lives we won't be getting back."
"She came over here and insulted you, and then tried to recruit you. Do you have any idea what she was talking about?"
"Not a clue." Dylan replied.
"You gonna find her and ask?"
"Not a chance. Last time I followed up on a mysterious invitation I ended up with seventeen Magikarp I didn't know what to do with." Alex laughed loudly.
"Now that was a crazy weekend."
"Excuse me." a polite voice called from behind them. They turned around to see the nurse approaching them. "These two are feeling much better now." As she spoke, Mareep and Buneary appeared from behind her, and each ran excitedly to their trainers.
"Hey buddy!" Dylan said as his partner hopped into his lap. "Thanks." he said to the nurse, who responded with a polite nod before walking away. "Alright, now you two are feeling better, we should get home and get packing."
"Agreed." Alex said as she stood up. "Let's head out." she said to Mareep. Dylan stood up as well and the pair made for the exit.
"Wow, I didn't realise how late it was getting." Dylan noted and the walked out onto the street that was now cloaked in twilight.
"Yeah, we should both probably be getting back." Alex said. "So, Thumb Pier tomorrow at about ten?"
"Sound like a plan to me. I'll see you tomorrow then." he said as he walked away.
"See ya." Alex replied with a wave as she walked in the opposite direction, flashing a quick smile as she turned a corner and disappeared.
Alex stood right on the edge of the pier, looking out across the water. Mareep stood by her side, staring down at its reflection in the water below. Alex was smiling widely as her hair fluttered in the wind. "This is really nice." she said to her partner. "We really should come down here more often." She suddenly heard footsteps behind her. "Would you relax?" She said, turning to her mother who was pacing restlessly a few steps away from her.
"How can I relax?" she replied. "My only daughter's heading off into a perilous forest, leaving her poor mother here all on her own."
"Oh, don't be so dramatic." Alex said as she walked over to her. "It's only one night, I'll be fine. Plus, you've got those two to keep you company." She nodded towards Spoink and Hariyama who were further along the pier. Hariyama sat on the edge, its legs dangling just above the surface of the water. Spoink was bouncing happily across the length of the pier, racing any water Pokémon it spotted swimming alongside the pier.
"Those two aren't exactly the best for conversation. Promise you'll call me before you go to sleep?"
"Of course, mom. Don't worry, Dylan's checked every source he could find and there aren't any particularly dangerous Pokémon in the area. I'm probably more likely to get hurt by a falling branch or something."
"You're really not making me feel any better." her mother said with concern. "I'm going to check your bag one more time." She said as she hurried over to the large backpack that was sat a few feet away from them.
"Please don't put anything else in there." she said with a sigh. "That thing weighs just as much as me at this point."
"You never know what you're going to need."
"Do you honestly expect me to carry my own body weight across the entire region." Her mother was rummaging through the bag.
"Of course not. This is just practice, and next time you can just leave behind anything you didn't use. But for now, it's both helpful and excellent for your core." she said as she zipped the backpack tightly shut. She and Alex laughed. They were quiet for a moment before she spoke again. "So, when is Dylan supposed to be getting here?" Alex checked her watch.
"Right about now." she said. She turned to look at the place where the pier met the rest of the city and started scanning the crowd. Her attention was suddenly caught by a figure breaking from the crowd and heading down a small flight of steps, which led to a small opening in the wall just below the street. "Someone's going into the sewers?" Alex said without thinking.
"What?" her mother replied as she hoisted the backpack off the floor.
"Hmm? Oh, nothing." Alex said. Her attention was drawn away from the figure as she caught sight of Dylan, running along the pier towards her. Behind him Buneary, hopping along happily. His Blitzle soon emerged from the crowd as well, with small bags attached to its sides.
"Ahoy there!" he called as he neared Alex.
"Hey." She replied as she stepped forward to meet him. As they pair met, they gave each other a high-five. Dylan glanced behind Alex and saw Mareep approaching. "And how is my little Mareep doing today?" he said as he bent to greet it. Mareep continued walking past him and headed towards the Pokémon behind him. "Rude." he said as he straightened himself. His and Alex Pokémon greeted each other happily. As they did, two more figures appeared at the end of the pier. One was a very large man, and the other was a very slight woman. Both had the same fiery red hair as Dylan.
"Dylan, honey!" the woman called as she approached. "You forgot Mimey!" she shouted as she waved a small toy in the air.
"Mom!" Dylan replied as he tried to cover Alex's eyes. "I told you, I don't need him anymore."
"But Dylan, look at his little face!" she said as she neared him. She held it up to him. It was a toy of a small pink Pokémon, with a large grin fixed on its face. "You can't leave him behind." She pushed it into his hands, where it laid limply.
"Mom, I'm old enough to survive one night without him. But if you insist. Blitzle!" His Pokémon ran over to him. Dylan opened one of its pouches and shoved the doll in. "Happy now?"
"Now, now, there's no need to be like that." The large man said. "Your mother is just trying to make you feel comfortable."
"I know, I know. Sorry."
Alex mother suddenly joined the group with a sigh. "Kids." The adults all shared a chuckle as Alex and Dylan began to talk amongst themselves.
"They have to grow up sometimes I suppose." the man said. He noticed that large backpack that Alex's mother was still holding. "Damn Trace, how much stuff you got in there?"
"Just enough to get her through the night."
"How long are the nights where you come from?" the woman added as she stared dumbfounded at the bag.
"I'm her mother, I'm supposed to be overly prepared for everything. Out of anyone you two must get that. Come on, Jen, you must be worried about Dylan a bit at least."
"Of course I am." the woman replied. "But I trust him. I think he's old enough and mature enough to handle himself now. See those?" She said pointing to the small bags attached to Blitzle. "He made those himself." Alex mother looked down at the backpack.
"I suppose having a Pokémon would help with carrying things."
"Even a Mudsdale would struggle with that thing." the man said before laughing heartily.
"Don't be silly, she can manage this. Alex! Catch!" she yelled as she began to swing the backpack. Alex turned around as she threw it. It flew briefly before landing in her arms. Alex stumbled backwards slight, but just about managed to remain upright. "See?" she said to the other parents.
"You two are crazy." Jen said after a pause.
"Not crazy, just tough." Alex replied as she swung the bag onto her back, swaying slightly.
"Look at you two." Dylan's father said proudly. "Off to see the world."
"We're crossing a river, dad, I've done it before."
"Not on your own, you haven't. It may not seem like much, but this is your first step into a grand adventure! Think of all the new experiences that await you." he said excitedly.
"You gonna start singing or something?" Alex mother said. She turned to the kids. "But he does have a point, this is a pretty major milestone for the pair of you, so don't waste it." Jen stepped forward.
"We'll see you to the bridge if you'd like." she said. Dylan and Alex both turned to look at the large bridge that stretched across the water near them.
"I think we'll be alright." Dylan said confidently. "Well then, we should be going. Alex?"
"Ready." she replied. Her mother walked over to her and hugged her tightly.
"You take care out there, Alex. And don't be afraid to come back home if it gets too much, okay?" she said.
"Mom, I'll be fine." Alex said as she pulled away from the hug. She looked over to Dylan who had finished saying goodbye to his parents. "I gotta go." she said as she began to walk away. The pair were soon walking along the shore, heading to the bridge, waving behind them as they went.
"Can we take a minute?" Alex said between deep breaths. The pair were now about two thirds of the way across the bridge. The city behind them had begun to shrink, while the forest ahead of them seemed to grow larger by the minute.
"Yeah, sure." Dylan replied. Alex instantly dropped her backpack to the floor and staggered over to the railings, staring down at the water far below.
"Sorry about this. This is a bit harder than I was expecting."
"It's okay. It is kinda hot today." Dylan said as he leaned against the railing next to her. "Plus, that bag probably doesn't make it any easier."
"You don't say." Alex replied. She turned and looked for moment at the road a few paces away from them, following cars as they sped past. "We could have gotten your parents to drive us over there."
"Yeah, we could have. But where's the fun in that?" he said with a shrug. He suddenly started waving to the water below them.
"What are you doing?" Alex asked as she looked down. Below them, a large boat was passing under the bridge. On the top deck, many people were gathered, all crowding one side to get a good look at the large city near them. A lone child stood apart from the group, waving excitedly to anyone she spotted on the bridge.
"Ahoy there!" Dylan called to her. The girl began to jump up and down excitedly. Alex smiled and gave a small wave. The continued until the girl's attention was caught by another person further down the bridge.
"See? Genuine human interaction. You wouldn't get that in a car, would you?"
"Fine. You win." Alex said with a sigh. "That was pretty cute."
"That's the sort of stuff we're missing out on when we're cooped up in Castelia."
"I've seen boats before." Alex said as she picked her backpack up again.
"That's not what I meant, and you know it." Dylan replied with a chuckle.
"You know I'm joking." she said as she walked past him, elbowing him playfully. "Come on then." She called to Mareep who had been waiting patiently near them. "You too." She said glancing back at Dylan.
"You're lively all of a sudden." Dylan said as he began following her.
"The sooner we get there, the sooner I can get this thing off my back."
"I could see if Blitzle could carry that for you." Blitzle let out a doubtful cry.
"I couldn't do that to the poor little guy. Besides, we're almost there." She nodded towards the forest in front of them.
"Oh yeah, we are!" Dylan began running towards Alex. "Just look at it! Look at the size of it!" he yelled as he reached Alex. "You could get lost for days in there!"
"Don't tell my mother." Alex muttered. Dylan laughed loudly.
"How did you manage to convince her to let you take on the gym challenge when she's so hesitant to let you sleep in a forest?"
"She understands that this is something most kids my age try, and that it's something I've wanted to do for a while." Alex replied. "But you have to understand that once I'm gone, she's in the apartment alone."
"Doesn't Damien leave the Pokémon he isn't using with her?"
"Yeah, but she never really has time to connect with any of them, and she never knows when he's gonna come and take them. I do feel sort of bad about leaving her, in all honesty." she hung her head. "Without dad, it was just her and us kids, and even since Damien left, it's just been the two of us."
"That's going to be hard on her." Dylan said. "But she's a tough woman, I'm sure she'll manage."
"She's been talking about moving back up to Undella for a few weeks while I'm gone, you know, just for some company. My grandma still owns that big house up there."
"Why did you guys ever move down here anyway? The way you talk about it, life seemed pretty good when you all lived up there. Why did you leave?"
"They never really told us why. I'd just assumed that dad had got a nice new job. Don't know why we didn't move back after the accident in all honesty. Mom wouldn't have had to work her ass off, and poor old grandma wouldn't be living alone."
"Didn't your gran have like a tonne of Pokémon living with her? You showed me a picture of you with that giant Meganium she had."
"Meganium passed not long after that was taken. Most of her Pokémon are gone now. Last I saw them it was just her and Herdier."
"Well this is a good opportunity isn't it? I mean if you're heading up to that area anyway, you could go and see her for a while. I'm sure she'd love to see you."
"I suppose so." she replied. "The route I have planned takes me through there anyway. I can spend a few days with her."
"You have a route planned out?" Dylan said in surprise.
"You haven't?"
"Of course not! I much prefer to follow my gut when deciding where to go next!"
"Calling it now, you're gonna get lost before you get to Nimbasa."
"Well maybe I'll head to Virbank first. It'll be harder to get lost if I'm on a boat!"
"I'm sure you'll find a way." Alex said with a giggle. "Speaking of getting lost…" The pair had walked down some steps and left the bridge. The forest stood grandly in front of them, only broken by the road that descended from the bridge. A few feet away from them, a small dirt path stretched into the darkness beneath the trees.
"This place looks a lot bigger close up." Dylan said in awe. "Kinda intimidating isn't it?"
"Neary!" his Pokémon called out suddenly from behind him. It ran towards the woods, stopping a few feet from the path, before turning and flashing a determined grin at its trainer.
"Someone's confident." Dylan said proudly. He glanced over his shoulder at Blitzle. "You ready too?" Blitzle let out a slightly hesitant cry. "Okay then, buddy, I'll walk in front. You two ready?" he said to Alex and Mareep.
"Always." she replied. "Right, Mareep?" the Pokémon looked up at her excitedly, letting out a joyful cry. "He's ready too." Alex said confidently.
"Shall we then?" Dylan said. Alex responded with a nod. The two began to march proudly towards the path. Buneary began to hop into the woods excitedly. Mareep stuck close to Alex's side. Blitzle trailed a few paces behind. The group was silent as they stepped under the canopy of branches. Only Buneary's cheerful cries broke the silence as they slowly began to disappear into the darkness of the forest.