Big thanks to Sakura fields for the helpful review. I'll try to keep dialogues to a minimum and not too rambly. Anyway, I don't own Pokemon, which still sucks. Read on...

Chapter 2: Tough Choice

Cade took a deep breath as he walked past the fence while his mother was calling out words of encouragement. He knew the fact that it was going to be a long time before he was going to come back to this house. Nonetheless, the adrenaline that was surging in his veins was taking over and excitement was all he felt at this point. The Pokemon Lab was situated just a stone's throw away from his house, which was convenient. He was about to walk in when he heard a voice behind him.

"What are you doing here?" it said. The voice was coming from the girl he had met earlier.

"Hey, Cathy, right?" he asked her back.

"Whatever," she replied, clearly annoyed. "Just get out of my way. Professor Oak asked me to come to the lab to get a Pokemon so that I can..."

"Wait, you're gonna get a Pokemon?!" he interrupted her mid-sentence, which most probably didn't sit well with her. Not wanting to explain more, Cathy pushed him aside and called for the Pokemon Professor.

"Looking for someone?" both of them were startled to find someone behind them. It was a teenage boy, probably 18 or 19. He had spiky hair and wore a black, long-sleeved shirt together with brown pants. He talked with a cocky tone in his voice.

"And you are..?" Cade started because the teenager's face was unfamiliar, and even through his short stay in Pallet Town, he'd already seen a lot of faces. This guy wasn't among them.

"Name's Blue," he said followed by a mocking bow. "What about you two?"

"I'm Cathy," she said, interrupting Cade who was about to speak first. "Where's the Professor?"

"Oh, Gramps is out in Viridian City, I'm sure he'll be back any time now," he explained. As if on cue, the Professor arrived at the lab immediately after Blue finished his sentence. "Never mind, he's here!"

The trio looked behind them to see the Professor. He looked worn but didn't seem to show any signs of age. On his right hand was a briefcase, on his left was a fancy-looking device with a Poke Ball design on it.

"Blue, what a pleasant surprise! I was just examining the recent rise in wild Pokemon activities on Route 22," his gaze shifted to Cathy. "So, you must be Cathy,"

"Yeah, Professor. I am," she replied.

"Splendid!" the Professor exclaimed. Then, he noticed the other person with them. "And who are you, young man?"

"I'm Cade," he said in response. "I wanted to go on a journey with Pokemon, but I guess it seems..."

"Oh no, don't be ridiculous! I have three with me, so you can have one as well. Just make sure you take care of it," he warned. "Come in. Everything else I'll explain later," And with that, they entered the lab.

Once inside the lab, Professor Oak opened the case and tipped it. Rolling out of the case and onto the table were three Poke Balls containing three Pokemon that were almost impossible to find anywhere else.

"Inside these Poke Balls are three very important Pokemon," the Professor said. A screen then lit up behind him, displaying the Pokemons' different types and characteristics. "The grass type, Bulbasaur!" The screen showed a four-legged Pokemon with a kind of flower bulb on its back. "The fire type, Charmander!" The screen now showed an orange lizard with a flame on the tip of its tail. "And, finally, the water type, Squirtle!" On the screen was a blue tortoise-like creature on two legs. "So, who wants first pick?" Cade was waiting for Cathy to pick first, but surprisingly, she allowed him to have first pick.

Cade hesitated for a moment before making the decision. He wasn't really someone who was educated enough to know about advantages or disadvantages in battle. He just had to go with his gut on this one.

"I pick..." his eyes wandered around again before finally making his choice. "I pick Squirtle!" he said.

"Excellent choice, Cade!" said the Professor and handed the Poke Ball over to its new owner. "Sorry you had to pick last, Cathy. I know I approached you first..."

"It's fine, Professor," she interrupted and immediately took Bulbasaur without a moment's hesitation. "I already have a Pokedex, Professor. Might as well explain it to that kid," she said while pointing at Cade. "I'm outta here," she finished and exited the lab.

"She kind of reminds me of... me!" Blue said with a smirk. "Well, Cade, was it? I'm sure we'll meet again, or not. I'm heading back to Route 22. Smell ya later, gramps!" he said as he left.

"Well, let's get to things, Cade!" Professor Oak then set out to explain about the Pokedex, how to use it, challenging trainers and gyms, et cetera. He ended his lecture by telling Cade that he'll meet him by Route 1 to show him how to catch a Pokemon using a Poke Ball. Cade was going to go back to his home to have a final talk with his mom before he finally sets out on his adventure. Before he was able to do that, he was stopped by Cathy.

"Listen," she started. "I don't know what it means, but Blue told me that we'll be seeing much more of each other, whether I like it or not. You wanted to go on an adventure with your Pokemon, huh? Well, maybe you should focus on training up your Pokemon first so you won't end up being target practice for me," she paused for a minute before continuing. "You know what? Let's just battle now. I want to see how tough you are, and how well I should be preparing for the next time we'll have to fight. Besides, it's been a while since I made someone cry," she finished with a smirk.

"We'll see who's crying after this," he said, confidence suddenly taking over. "Let's go, Squirtle!" he cried as he threw the Poke Ball and revealed the turtle like Pokemon which was in it moments ago.

"Hasty, aren't you? Go, Bulbasaur!" she cried and set her partner Pokemon free from the Poke Ball.

"Bulbasaur, use Growl!" Cathy cried out an order to her Pokemon. The creature fired a roar at its counterpart. Seemingly to have to effect against his Pokemon, Cade started to unleash his inner jerk.

"Are we supposed to be scared?" he mocked. "Squirtle, use Tackle!" The tortoise-like creature charged into the Grass-type starter. Bulbasaur was knocked back, but it was still able to fight.

"Bulbasaur, use Growl again!" she yelled, repeating the same command. Cade also gave the same command and once again sent the Bulbasaur back a few feet. Not wanting to attack yet, Cathy continued to repeat the same command. Cade was also crying out Tackle again, but he's starting to realize the difference. This time, the Bulbasaur held its ground and wasn't knocked back at all. He's starting to figure out that the Bulbasaur's Growl was making his Squirtle's attacks weaker and weaker.

Once again, Bulbasaur used Growl. The Squirtle's face was making a worried expression. Cade is trying to get a feeling of what's happening. Then, without thinking twice, he yelled,

"Tail Whip!" Darn it, what did I just do? He mentally asked himself. The Squirtle wagged it, causing the Bulbasaur to let it's guard down. Now, he was beginning to understand. Battling isn't all about attacking and evasion, he thought, it's also about mind games.

"Use Tail Whip again, Squirtle!" The starter followed it's trainer's command. Cathy, unfortunately for him, knew what he was trying to do. And so, Bulbasaur used Growl again. My attack is being lowered, while her defense is being lowered also. It's a stalemate, he thought to himself. As he was lost in thought, the sharp cry of his Pokemon brought him back to reality. His Squirtle was taken down by the Bulbasaur's Tackle. "Squirtle!" he cried out for his partner. It was still up, but just barely.

"This isn't going to be as hard as I thought," said Cathy. That apparently brought Cade back to his senses. Squirtle once again used Tail Whip, and she decided that the time to finish the job would have to be now. "Bulbasaur, use Tackle!" The Grass-type starter charged at the Water-type starter to finish the job. Then, immediately after that, "Squirtle, use Tackle!" now both starters were charging at each other and collided, both of them falling to the ground after that. The trainers witnessed the scene, shock etched on both their faces. Then, one starter Pokemon started to get up, struggling in the process, but eventually triumphed over the fallen starter. The Squirtle stood tall over the Bulbasaur.

"Yes!" Cade shouted in victory. "Nice work, Squirtle!" The Pokemon then proceeded to embrace its trainer. Their moment was interrupted by the sound of the female trainer.

"So, you're smarter than you look," she said with a pained look on her face. "I guess I shouldn't look at you lightly anymore. Just remember, I won't see this as a loss. I'll see this as an opportunity to get stronger than anyone else,"

"Hey, you did amazing for your first battle. I would have never known you were trying to reduce Squirtle's attack by growling at him. That was pretty smart," he said back to her. Her expression was still the same, but she had a slight blush on her face, which she hid by facing away. "Whatever," she finished. And with that, she went back to her home to rest. What's her deal?

He then remembered that he was supposed to go back to his house. And so, he did. As he was walking, he caught a glimpse of Route 1, a sight that he won't be forgetting anytime soon...

Personally, I think that I could have done better, but what do I know. Please leave a review. :)