The office was very normal. It was like one of the student resource offices from his campus. There were some differences though. A Geodude carried a stack of paper across the office and as he watched, placed the stack down by a Caterpie. The Caterpie warbled something to it, noting the latest addition to the mountain of paper surrounding it. White strings burst out of the Caterpie and a sheet of paper was raised to its eyes before being sorted into piles around it.

"NEEEXt". A voice called out. David glanced away to see someone leaving one of two booths in the office and the only booth with someone on the other side. David glanced around but no one else was waiting. He moved into the booth and sat down in the chair. A glass screen separated him from the person behind the desk.

"Hello, could I please have your TL number and home branch name?" The woman behind the desk asked, giving David a cursory glance with a friendly smile before looking back at the clunky computer on her desk.

"I don't have one." David said. He didn't know what a TL number was but he had nothing. Heat rose to his face. Hopefully this would go better than the Pokecenter had. The woman behind the desk gave off the aura of a teacher and David was in no mood to be scolded.

"Can you tell me your name and home branch?" She asked, closing something on her computer and scrolling to open something else up. "I should be able to find it from that."

"My name is David Smith and I don't have a home branch" David said softly. This was really driving home how little he had. His phone was gone. His apartment was gone. His friends and family were gone. Something in his response caused the woman to pause and she looked up and a little closer at David, spotting the stains on his clothes and maybe something in his face.

"Oh. My name is Beth. There are a few things I need to know before I can figure out how we can help you alright?"

"Alright" David replied, choking up a bit.

Beth spent the next few minutes patiently going through a list of questions that covered everything from David's education to home town and allergies. David was unable to answer far too many questions but aside from a sympathetic smile, Beth continued on. The final question was the hardest.

"What do you want to do? You aren't in a great state but you've made the first step by coming here. There are several things the league can help with but you will need to commit."

This was easy enough to answer. David wanted pokemon and strong enough pokemon to find and fight Legendaries. Besides he didn't know what else he could do.

"I want to become a pokemon trainer"

Beth nodded at him before turning and calling out to the nest of paperwork that David had seen a Caterpie in earlier.

"Fuzzy, could I have a copy of Form LR3 and the standard test?"

A shrill "Piiiii" was heard before some the sound of shuffling of papers and then a thump rang out. The Geodude from earlier came by the desk and handed over a small booklet and a sheet of paper with a grunt of "Geo" before turning away again.

"Thank you Geodude" Beth said before turning to address David. "Now your best option is to sign up for the League Recovery program. It was created after the war and while it fell out of favour about a decade ago, due to recent rises in criminal activity it has been started up again."

'War?' David thought. All he could remember of a war in Pokemon was something about an Electric type gym leader. While the games had historical lore, it was mostly about Legendary pokemon and David was glad he could remember what he did about that seeing as he needed to find them. He couldn't remember reading anything about historical events in the world. Criminal activity was another story though. Crime was central to all of the games. Was he here for the start of Team Rocket?

"The program will provide you with a pokemon based on your STATs and a probationary trainers licence. The licence will give you enough time to prepare and make a gym challenge. You will also receive what used to be standard issue military kit." Beth continued before clarifying upon seeing David's confusion. "STATs are the Standard Trainer Assessment Tests and don't worry, you won't receive a Venomoth ridden kit. The kit is based on the old kits but with less war propaganda." Beth gave a quick look around the room before whispering to David. "The old kit was the main reason why the program was shut down. You can see why. Twitchy trainers finding what looked like Johto military camps in Kanto after the war… and vice versa of course. It was bad for the unity agreement."

David was reeling from the information. Military? And more importantly, Kanto. David was fairly sure that was the first pokemon region or game. Which meant he was in the Bulbasaur, Squirtle and Charmander region. David latched onto the only familiar part of what she said. Tests. As nerve racking as he usually found them, the idea of standardised tests gave him comfort. Here was normality. David had been studying for standard tests for years.

"What's in the standard.. The STATs you called them?" David asked.

Beth gave him a smile before replying. "It's been a while since I took mine but don't worry, it's a good system. Each test contains a random selection of questions about basic pokemon biology, pokemon care, outdoor education and regional pokemon data. You will have an hour to complete the test and you can do so in any League Administrative Office."

David racked his brain, trying to remember anything he could about types and Kanto Pokemon. From what he had seen on the street, pokemon biology was not like what was in the games. His only hope was that types were the same. He remembered all the types. Well he couldn't remember forgetting any. 'Oh god I am screwed.'

"Can I study for it? Is there a library around here?" David questioned. A few hours with some textbooks should jog his memory. He had dedicated more hours to Pokemon than he had to math during his childhood. Once he got a book and was able to practise, David would be ready for any question. A library would also give him a chance to find out more about the war and any other changes from the games. Beth gave him a guilty look.

"Yes you can and there is a library in the city but access is only for licensed trainers or paying members. Unless you own the study materials or have someone to teach you, there isn't any way of preparing." Beth sighed before continuing. "And that's for the best. You are assigned Pokemon options that you will be capable of handling and caring for. Rote learning would put you and the Pokemon in danger. Learning alongside a Pokemon is the tried and tested way. Besides, the lack of your background information has disqualified you from the Region Key Starter Lotto."

This caused a sinking feeling in David's gut. He hadn't seen a single Bulbasaur, Charmander, Squirtle or any of their evolutions on the street. But it was hard to think that he was here, in this world and yet wouldn't have what he spent his childhood dreaming of. Beth read him like a book and she gave him a warm smile.

"Listen it might not seem like much but people have achieved great things out of this program. There have been several Veteran trainers sitting in your same shoes right now. And who knows." her smile turned to a grin at this, "You may be lucky enough to get your very own Fuzzy. It's one of the common 11 you know."

A shrill "Caaa-ter-Piiiiiii-e" rang out at this from the nest of paper in the corner. David couldn't help but smile back at Beth. Her help was proving invaluable. So what if he wouldn't get a regional starter, there were plenty of strong pokemon out there.

"Okay. Where do I take the test?" He asked.

David was directed over to a desk in the opposite corner of the room from the paper nest and given a pen. He wasn't sure if he was placed away from the counters for quiet and privacy or for the smell of his clothes but it didn't seem like anyone was worried about him cheating.

59 minutes later David was flicking his pen back and forth as he nervously read through his paper for the last time. The tests were good quality as Beth had said. The questions were multiple choice, clear and easily understood. A short paragraph on the front of the booklet credited Professor Oak for the questions which gave David an overwhelming sense of comfort. Maybe this world wasn't so different after all.

David's only issue was the subject matter of the questions. Recommended berry to carbohydrate ratios for Pokemon food? Brushing frequency required for Pokemon fur upkeep? Survival priorities in an emergency? At least David could make guesses. The pokemon typing and evolution questions were much easier than he expected. In fact the type and evolution questions were so easy it had gotten him questioning. As he closed the book and passed it to the Geodude which had been waiting by his arm, he had a startling revelation. The Pokedex. He hadn't seen one yet. If he was in Kanto and team Rocket was just getting started, maybe Professor Oak was still developing it.

"David" Beth called from behind him. "This should be marked in 10 minutes if you want to go for a walk." His legs were a bit cramped actually. He could try asking someone about the Pokedex. It was such an essential thing that anyone with a Pokemon should know about it. He got up and with a distracted wave to Beth, made his way outside.