The Arrival in Petalburg

"Miranda, use Ember!" May called out to start the match. Torchic shot out a stream of small balls of fire at Clint.

"Dodge that Clint, then use Pound!" Brendan said. Treecko leapt into the air, moving away from the incoming attack. That was when he fell toward Torchic, spinning as he hit the fire chick with his tail, sending Miranda stumbling back.

"Don't let him get away with that! Use Scratch!" May called out. Miranda ran at Clint quickly. Just as she got within a few inches of the grass-type, she leapt a few inches vertically, scratching Clint across the face with her talons.

"Clint, use Leer!" Brendan said. Clint began to glare at Miranda, causing the fire chick to cower away in fear. "Now use another Pound!" Clint sprinted at Miranda once again, leaping into the air and swung his tail around. He hit Miranda across the face with it, sending her sprawling once more.

Keep going Clint, you can win this! Gwen cheered, raising her fist as she cheered for her friend.

"Miranda, use Ember again! I know you can do it!" May called out. Miranda stood up, shaking off the dust from her fall, and she unleashed a stream of little fireballs toward Treecko once more. This time, however, Treecko couldn't dodge in time. He was overwhelmed with the small flames. Luckily, Clint was sturdy for a Treecko. He managed to struggle to his feet after the attack was over.

"Alright, this last attack will probably decide this. Clint, use Quick Attack!" Brendan called out. Clint then sprinted at Miranda, a streak of white light extending behind the Pokémon as he ran.

"Counter that with Ember!" May said. Miranda let loose another stream of fire toward Clint. This time, however, Clint had time to dodge, and he did so with grace. He leapt over the flames acrobatically, doing a mid-air flip without trouble, before continuing on and hitting Miranda with a lariat. The collision sent Miranda tumbling back once again. This time, however, she stayed down. Clint fell to one knee, but he stayed up nonetheless. May sighed as she knelt down and picked up Miranda. "Hey, you fought really well. I'm proud of you. Now, get some rest," May said as she had Miranda return to her Pokéball.

"Clint, that was a great battle. I can tell that we'll go far together," Brendan said as he gave the little gecko a high five. "Now, get some rest. You've earned it." With that, Brendan recalled Clint to his Pokéball and walked over to May, extending his hand to her.

"Well Brendan, you're impressive to say the least. If I didn't know better, I'd say you could be the protagonist of a video game," May said as she grabbed Brendan's hand

"Thanks, May," Brendan said as he helped her to her feet. "You were pretty strong too."

"Well, I have been training for about a day now," she said. "I guess you do have Norman's knack for battling in you after all." Brendan just laughed at what was said. "Anyway, we should probably head back to Littleroot Town," May said.

"Of course, lead the way," Brendan said. May smiled and began to walk.

Hey May, mind if I rode on your shoulders on the way back? Brendan's are getting a bit dull, Gwen said, which earned a laugh from May.

"Of course, you can," May said. "You and I are friends after all, aren't we?"

Yes we are! Gwen replied as she teleported the short distance to May's shoulder. Brendan just chuckled at the display.

At this point, they had just returned to Oldale Town, and Brendan could see the man in the distance, still sketching his own footprints. "What's that man doing?" May asked.

Brendan and Gwen just laughed lightly. He's drawing his own boot prints because he thinks they are from a rare Pokémon. Gwen explained.

"Really?" May asked, sounding like she was about to burst with laughter.

"Yeah, Gwen's not exaggerating in the slightest," Brendan said. They passed by the Pokémon Center, and continued on their way toward home.

May just laughed about what the man was doing, but tried to keep it in check so as to not get strange looks. They continued to pass the time with small talk as they walked through Route 101, using the ledges to avoid the grass before arriving in Littleroot Town. The sun was setting by this point and night had almost fallen.

"Hey, before we head home, we should stop by Dad's lab. He will love to hear about the battle," May said.

"Sure, let's go. My mom won't be too worried in the meantime. She's probably expecting me to be out late anyway," Brendan said with a smile.

Five minutes later, Brendan and May were entering Professor Birch's laboratory. It was Brendan's first time inside the building, and it was much different than expected. It was mostly white with pristine cleanliness. There were some cluttered research materials, but nothing too major. At a computer in the back was Professor Birch himself.

"Hey Dad! Brendan and I are back!" May called out, getting her father's attention immediately.

"Hey, it's nice to see both of you back here safely. So, how'd the battle go?" the professor asked.

"Brendan won by a hair," May said with some frustration in her voice.

"I see, so Brendan has Norman's genes for battling in him after all," Birch said.

Brendan just chuckled. Arceus above, while he loved his father, Brendan wanted to get out of his shadow. It was fun at first to be known as Norman's son, but he was ready to make a name for himself. "True, but it was your Treecko who helped me out," he said, trying to be modest.

The professor noticed the attempt at modesty, but he decided to let it slide. "Well, I think you two are ready now. I have something here for both of you," he said. He opened his desk drawer and pulled out two orange devices with a screen in the center and a circular control pad on the left side. To Brendan, it looked a lot like a Gameboy Advanced. "These are the most recent version of the Pokédex. They will serve as your ID, and your source of information on all the Pokémon you encounter," the Professor said with pride.

Brendan had heard about the now-famous gimmick that was pulled by the famous Professor Oak, on Red and, his own grandson, Blue. The trick was that Professor Oak had given each of those two trainers their own Pokédex, but the devices were both devoid of information. So, the lazy professor stuck them with the task of filling it for him. So, to be on the safe side, Brendan had to ask.

"Those have the data already in them, right?" he asked.

"Of course," Birch said. "No professor in their right mind would give new trainers an empty Pokédex. Trainers are supposed to be raising the Pokémon as they see fit, not concerning themselves with catching so many Pokémon that the storage systems overflow."

Brendan breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank Arceus, I am so happy to hear that." This earned a bout of laughter from everybody in the room.

"Anyway, here are four Pokéballs for you, Brendan," the Professor said as he pulled out a bundle of four Pokéballs from a separate drawer in his desk, then a separate bundle of five. "And here are five for May."

"Thank you, Professor," Brendan said.

"Yeah, thanks so much, Dad," May said as well.

"You're welcome. But, since it's late, why don't you two head home and prepare to start your journeys tomorrow," the professor said. Neither of the teenagers needed to be told twice, leaving quickly, with smiles on their faces.

As they walked to their houses, Brendan got an idea. "Hey May," he said.

"What's up?" she responded, slightly intrigued.

"Uh, s-since we're both starting our journeys tomorrow…w-would you want to travel together with me?" Brendan asked, a slight blush forming on his face as his nervousness showed. He was just glad it was too dark for May to see his face.

May seemed to think about it for a while. As they got to their two homes, May did something completely unexpected: she gave Brendan a very light kiss on the cheek. "I'll see you at the start of Route 101 at 10:00 am. Don't be late," she said. With that, she left and ran to her own house.

Brendan was stunned momentarily, until Gwen waved her arm in front of his face. You awake in there? She asked.

Brendan shook himself out of his daze. "Yeah, I am. Now, come on, let's get some sleep before tomorrow."

Sure enough, at 9:50 am, Brendan was on his way out of the house, with Gwen comfortably on his shoulder. Just before he opened the door of the house, he heard Caroline come up behind him.

"Hey Brendan, I want to give you something for your journey," she said. Brendan turned around and saw that his mother had a small amulet on a chain in her hand. He recognized it as the necklace she usually wore while they lived in Johto. "This was your grandfather's," she said as she passed it to Brendan. "He gave it to me on the day I started as a trainer, and although I didn't make it very far, I know he would want you to have it now. I know it will bring you luck."

Brendan hugged his mother tightly. "Thank you, Mom. I promise I will make both you and Dad proud," he said before letting go and leaving the house.

Caroline smiled softly. "Brendan, you've already made both of us proud. Just do your best," she said before going to make herself a cup of tea.

May checked her watch as she stood near Route 101. It was 9:55, almost time for Brendan to meet her for their journey. She had Miranda's Pokéball on her waist and her PokeNav as well. She also had a couple Potions in her fanny pack for safety's sake. May knew it wasn't going to be long before she and Brendan spent nearly every hour of the day together.

May, we're here! Gwen called out.

May just grinned as she turned around. "Brendan! Gwen!" she said with a wave.

"Hey, how are you today?" Brendan asked politely.

"I'm excited, how else would I be feeling?" May giggled.

"Nervous, maybe?" Brendan said with a charming smile.

"Don't get smart, Goldenrod!" May said, trying out a new nickname for him.

"Goldenrod? Really?" Brendan said, sounding a bit annoyed.

I like that nickname, I 'm gonna use that more often! Gwen said, laughing to herself.

"Let's not make that nickname a permanent thing," Brendan said.

"Fine," May said.

Nope, it's staying, Gwen said.

"Damn it," Brendan said, already knowing Gwen would keep using the nickname no matter what he said. "Well, let's get moving. We should get to Petalburg City first, what do you think?"

"Actually, we have to go there for the first contest of the year," May said.

"Sounds good, just remember to practice your routine as much as possible before we get there," Brendan said as they left Littleroot.

"I've actually been practicing since I got Miranda," May said. "But, I still need to find the rest of my team for the sake of double contests."

"Well, what about a Bug-type Pokémon?" Brendan said.

Yeah, a Beautifly or Dustox would do great! Gwen said. They both have some beautiful attacks.

"In that case, I guess I need a Wurmple," May said as they got about halfway to Oldale Town. Then, as if fate heard them, a Wurmple crawled out in front of their path.

"That was…really convenient," Brendan said.

"Yeah, but I don't care," May said. "I'm going to catch it right now!" She said as she threw the Pokéball at the worm Pokémon, which was captured almost too easily, without the ball shaking more than once. May ran and picked up the Pokéball and raised it in triumph. "YAY! I just caught my first Pokémon!" she called out.

"Nice job May, why don't you let that Pokémon out of its Pokéball so we could introduce ourselves," Brendan said, but May was one step ahead of him as she released the confused Pokémon.

"Hi Wurmple, I'm May, your new trainer!" she said with a warming smile. Gwen then leapt down from Brendan's shoulder as the Wurmple spoke in the Pokémon language.

Gwen nodded knowingly, then began to translate. This is Lily. She actually wanted to be captured. Strange coincidence, isn't it?

"Well I am glad to meet you Lily. I'm glad you wanted to be with a trainer, but what about a coordinator?" May said as she stroked the bug-type's back. Lily cooed happily, rubbing up against her hand.

Lily says that she'd love to be on a coordinator's team. She really just wants to make as many friends as she can. Gwen translated.

Brendan knelt next to May and the two Pokémon. "Well, Lily, I'm glad to meet you too. I'm Brendan!" he said.

And I'm Gwen! she said with enthusiasm.

Lily seemed to relax more with the introductions finishing, until Clint and Miranda came out of their, who simply began to speak to Lily excitedly. May was concerned that Lily would be scared by the sudden flux of new faces, but there seemed to be nothing to be concerned about. Lily was conversing with Clint, Miranda, and Gwen as if they were old friends.

"Well May, are you ready to continue?" Brendan asked as he stood back up.

"Yeah, Lily and Miranda, come on into your Pokéballs!" she said as she stood up.

"You too, Clint!" Brendan said. With that, all of the Pokémon except Gwen were back in their Pokéballs. Gwen then returned to Brendan's shoulder, and the trio continued to walk to Oldale.

About an hour later, Brendan and May were walking toward the western exit of Oldale Town, where they saw a familiar man. This time, he wasn't sketching anything. Instead, he seemed to be crying. The two young Pokémon trainers walked towards him and were about to stop and ask when they heard him whimpering something that sounded like "I'm so stupid. How did I not realize they were my prints?"

Brendan just shook his head and May stifled a giggle as they walked by without trouble this time. Within minutes, after passing a small pond with some tall grass next to it, both of them burst out laughing and clutching their stomachs. While neither of them normally laughed at others, this was a special case.

About an hour later, and after they had each battled five people on the route, the trio had arrived in Petalburg City. "Alright, let's go get a room at the Pokémon Center. After that, I kinda want to go shopping for a while," May said.

"Sounds good, I think I'll go and see my dad at the Gym," Brendan said.

"That's a great idea," May said. "But let's get the room and some food first."

Brendan followed as his stomach growled quietly. Gwen giggled on his shoulder as they entered the red-roofed building and approached the counter, where Brendan rang the bell on the desk.

"Welcome, how may I help you?" the nurse behind the counter asked.

"Could we get a room for two?" Brendan asked.

"Of course," she said, but she got a curious expression on her face as she looked at Brendan.

Does she know you? Gwen said. When nobody reacted to Gwen speaking, Brendan realized that Gwen was only talking to him.

I don't know, really Brendan thought back.

"By the way, young man, you look familiar. I know we've never met before, but I can't shake the feeling that I know you somehow," the nurse said.

She made the connection already? Brendan thought, which Gwen picked up on.

Don't just stand there, respond, Gwen said back.

"I guess…I look more like my dad than my mom, I guess you've met him before," Brendan said.

"Hmmm," the nurse said momentarily as she produced a room key and handed it to May. "I know I've seen a face like yours before, but I'm not entirely sure who has it."

"Need a hint?" Brendan asked playfully.

"Augh, fine," the nurse said. She was clearly annoyed she couldn't figure it out without help.

"My dad just recently came here from Goldenrod City," Brendan said.

"Norman?" the nurse said with a gasp. "You're Norman's son!" She said that last part a bit too loudly, causing the entirety of the population in the Pokémon Center lobby to turn and look at Brendan and begin whispering.

"Yeah, that's me," Brendan said.

"Well, your father is a brilliant gym leader. Not too many trainers can use Normal Types so effectively," the nurse said. "And the fact that he was brought here all the way from the Johto region just speaks volumes about how strong he is."

Brendan chuckled slightly. "Well I will pass on that information when I get the chance," he said. "Thanks for your help."

"No problem at all," the nurse said. "Have a great day, and I hope you and your Pokémon stay healthy."

Brendan turned to May, "That was nice of her to say," he said.

"Well what do you expect her to say? She works at a hospital. Would you rather she said something like 'we hope to see you again'?"

"I suppose you're right. But can you imagine if nurses actually said that?" Brendan said with a laugh. "That would be a horrible thing to say in a Pokémon Center."

"True, but that's why they don't say it," May said. When she said that, they reached their room, which May unlocked, and they saw that it was small, but it was practical. It looked exactly like a hotel room with two beds and a night stand between the two of them.

Yay! I want a bed for myself! Gwen said.

"Gwen, come on, May and I aren't going to be sharing a bed. You know that," Brendan said.

Gwen puffed out her right cheek slightly and began to pout a bit. Fine. Then I will sleep in May's bed if she is okay with that.

"I'm okay with that, but it's only two in the afternoon," May said, going slightly red with embarrassment at Gwen's initial suggestion. "Anyway, I will see you two later tonight. Have fun meeting Norman!"

"Yep, see you later!" Brendan said.

Brendan had his hands in his pockets as he walked toward the Petalburg Gym. It was in the northernmost part of the city next to a large pond. It had really nice scenery, but Brendan was not actually paying too close to the landscape. He was looking at the gym building itself. It was completely different from those Gyms of Johto. The roof was orange and the structure underneath was silver metal. The door looked like polished steel, and they opened automatically.

"Ready to meet my dad?" Brendan asked Gwen.

Yep, she said back. I'm really excited.

"Then let's go," Brendan said. He approached the door, which opened for him immediately.

"Welcome to the Petalburg Gym!" came a very familiar voice. It came from the back of the building, where Brendan saw his father sitting cross-legged with his back to the door.

"I know, your name is Norman, and you use Normal types," Brendan said with a joke as he walked farther into the gym, causing Norman to whip around with a startled expression. That faded when he saw that it was Brendan.

"Brendan, I didn't expect to see you here so soon. How have you and your mom been?" Norman said as he crossed the battlefield, which looked like a martial arts dojo's floor.

"We're both great, Mom and Sylveon are adjusting well, and I've started my journey with May Birch," Brendan said with a smile.

"That's great to hear," Norman said with pride in his voice. Before he went any farther, a certain someone made their presence fully known.

Hi, Mr. Maple, I'm Gwen! I'm Brendan's friend and Pokémon. Gwen said, almost too loudly due to her excitement.

Norman laughed slightly when he noticed Gwen on Brendan's shoulder. "Well, I'm certainly glad to meet you, Gwen. I'm sure you've kept my son safe," he said.

Oh absolutely. Heck, if I wasn't there, he'd be hopeless, she said.

Norman laughed louder this time. It seemed Gwen's relationship with Brendan was a mixture between friendship, that of a Pokémon and trainer, and of siblings. "Well that's good to hear. I'm glad that the two of you are getting along so well," he said. "So, am I correct to assume that you are still going to try to become a Champion?" Norman said.

"Absolutely," Brendan said with a fire in his eyes.

"Well then, in that case, allow me to-" Norman said, but he was cut off when the Gym doors opened and a scrawny, almost sickly boy who looked to be slightly younger than Brendan entered.

"H-hello, Mr. Maple, sir?" the boy said.

"Hmm. Oh, I remember now. You're Wally, right?" Norman said to the newcomer.

"Y-yes. I-I am," he said. "I'm going to Verdanturf to live with my aunt and uncle shortly, but I want to catch a Pokémon before I leave so I have a companion." Brendan smiled slightly. Just by looking at Wally, Brendan could see that the boy had the potential to be a strong trainer. He just lacked the needed confidence.

"Well, I can loan you a Pokémon to help with that, but I expect it back once you've caught your Pokémon," Norman said, handing Wally a Pokéball. "This is my Zigzagoon. I just recently caught him, but you should have no trouble catching a Pokémon with his help."

"Th-Thank you sir," Wally said as he took the Pokéball and turned to leave. Brendan stopped him.

"Hey, Wally," he said. "Would you mind if I came with you to help you out?" Wally's eyes brightened when Brendan said that.

"I-If you want to come, I would love to have an experienced trainer help me out," Wally said. "Let's head to Route 102 to find a Pokémon."

Oh, that's a great idea. I lived on Route 102 for a while, and there are other Ralts living there, Gwen said.

"Wow, thanks!" Wally said. "I think that a Ralts will be the Pokémon I catch."

"That's a good goal," Brendan said. "Gwen has only been with me for a few days, and all the battles she's been in were decisively hers."

Wally smiled, slightly at this, but then the two fell into small talk until they arrived at Route 102. That was when they approached some tall grass.

"Okay Wally, I will be right here if you need help. Go on into the grass and find your Pokémon," Brendan said.

"I-I will do my best," Wally said as he entered the grass. When Wally was five steps in, there was a white robed, green haired Pokémon who appeared before the boy.

There's Wally's Ralts. Now, let's see if Wally can catch him, Gwen said, sounding like she knew the Ralts in front of them.

"Alright Wally, now's the time to battle it and then catch it," Brendan said.

"Got it," Wally said as he threw the Pokéball Norman gave him. "Zigzagoon, I need your help!" Wally's first test as a trainer had begun.