002 – Birthday Surprise

Landon ran home to his mother, who was shocked when he burst through the doorway so early. She had been busying herself about preparing the house and backyard for Landon's party that evening, but agreed to take a break to listen to the story of Landon's spectacular adventure around Pallet Town.

She brewed them some tea and they sat together in the kitchen as Landon spoke animatedly, replaying the events of the day and gushing with excitement that he got to have his first real Pokémon battle. Well, maybe it wasn't very official, and maybe none of the Pokémon were really his, but it was a battle nonetheless, and Landon was overjoyed.

After listening to his tale and agreeing that it was exciting and heroic of him, his mother suggested that he change out of his dirty clothes, take a shower, and get ready for the party that evening. Landon told her that Professor Oak would be attending and ran off to jump in the shower.

It wasn't until he found himself in the bathroom alone, the water pouring over him and steam filling the air, that Landon finally calmed down. Today had felt like a dream, and Landon had to pinch himself to make sure it was real.

"Ow!" he said, giggling a little bit, before breaking into a fit of giddy laughter. He couldn't believe it! The day had started as the biggest, most stressful crisis of his time as Oak's assistant, but it had led to him getting to have the closest experience he'd had yet to being a real Pokémon trainer.

After the shower Landon got dressed and went to help his mother put up party decorations despite her protests that she could do it herself. They worked for several hours as the afternoon wore on, preparing their little house for Landon's big day.

As the sun began to set, the guests began to arrive. The party was fairly modest, just a few of Landon's friends from around the small neighborhood, and some older members of the community who were particularly fond of Landon. The backyard to Landon's home was strung with paper lanterns of numerous festive colors and they'd hung a banner from the back of the house that read, "Happy Birthday!"

Several of the adults at the party came to Landon to congratulate him on the good work he'd done capturing the escaped Pokémon earlier that day, as news had spread around the small community of Pallet Town. Landon took it upon himself to perform a dramatic retelling for all of his friends in attendance, which was received with cheers and applause, as well as envious looks from his peers.

Professor Oak had not yet arrived when his mother announced that dinner was served. The guests filed into the kitchen to help themselves to a buffet of delicious foods. His mom was known around the community for being an excellent cook, and it was possible that several of the guests had come more for the food than the celebration.

Landon sat eating happily with his friends, though he was a little concerned that Oak hadn't shown up. It wouldn't have been a big deal or a disappointment, but the Professor had said so himself that he would be coming to the party tonight. Landon shrugged it off; Professor Oak had a tendency to be absent-minded, and he often got distracted at the drop of a hat by one discovery or another. Plus he often made trips across the mountains to the Johto region to work on a radio show there, and sometimes would devote hours of the night working on material for it.

The party continued with everyone eating and drinking merrily and then it was time for cake. Landon's mother brought out an enormous and delectable-looking chocolate cake, with a red and white icing PokéBall design on the top, ringed in ten candles. Everyone was awed at the beautiful cake and Landon eagerly ran toward it. He tried not to look too embarrassed while everyone sang the birthday song, and clapped along with everyone else when it was finished.

He turned to his cake, eyeing it hungrily, and began to take a deep breath to blow out the candles.

"Remember to make a wish!" his mother reminded him.

"Yes, they say that your tenth birthday wish is particularly special," said a familiar voice. Landon looked up excitedly to see that Professor Oak had arrived and joined in the mass of people crowded around.

"Professor Oak!" Landon cried happily. "You made it!" Several of the younger kids let out gasps of awe. Professor Oak was well known in the world, almost a legend himself, and was so busy that he was rarely seen by any except those who worked directly with him. It was a special treat for him to make an appearance.

"Of course I made it," Oak said, smiling. "I promised I'd be here. Now make a wish! Go on!"

Landon thought for only a few seconds before wishing silently to himself: I wish to be a Pokémon master! He took a huge breath and blew as hard as he could, and everyone who was gathered around cheered and clapped. Landon looked up at all the smiling faces around him and felt overwhelmed by how lucky he was to have so many people who cared for him.

His mother cut him a piece of cake and he ran to sit and start enjoying the rich, chocolaty goodness. The rest of the guests got their cake as well and everyone resumed their various conversations. Professor Oak worked his way through the crowd toward Landon.

"I'm sorry I was late," apologized Oak. "I got a little caught up in my work and lost track of time."

"It's okay," Landon said. "I'm just glad you made it."

"Me too. You didn't happen to have already opened your presents, did you?"

Landon shook his head. "Not yet."

Oak smiled. "Oh, good!" He patted Landon affectionately on the head and wandered off to mingle. Landon saw that Oak had gone to speak with Landon's mother, who was looking pensive, but then Landon took another bite of the delicious cake and a friend told a funny joke, and soon enough he was paying them no heed.

Everyone enjoyed the cake – some people, including Landon, enjoyed more than one piece of it – and chatted until Landon's mother declared that it was time to open presents. Most of the people from town had brought Landon gifts, which they'd placed in a big stack near the back door of the house. Landon ran excitedly to the tower of presents and began tearing into them. Many of the attendees, who owned shops nearby, had gotten him something fun or useful from the stock in their stores. His friends had gotten him cool Pokémon merchandise and books. Finally, his mother brought out a box for him to open.

"From me," she said, smiling deeply.

Landon tore through the wrapping paper and opened the box to find a heavy-duty backpack. It was forest green with orange lining around the seams and zippers, and looked like it was perfect for tough hiking treks.

"Thanks mom!" Landon cried. "This is awesome!"

"I'm glad you like it!" She turned to the gathered crowd. "I think we have just one more present to give."

Landon was surprised. The table was empty of unopened presents, and his mom traditionally saved her gift for last. He wondered what the present could be as Professor Oak stepped forward from the crowd. Landon looked quizzically at the Professor, who came to stand beside Landon before turning to address the crowd.

"Landon is a wonderful friend to me," Oak began. "He has worked as my assistant for some time now, and through that relationship I have known him to be a responsible and smart young lad with a bright future. As most of you have undoubtedly heard by now, several rare Pokémon escaped from my lab earlier today and were in danger of running away into the wild. Landon bravely took up the challenge to capture these three young Pokémon and was able to return them to me safe and sound. This was truly an impressive feat and I am forever grateful to him.

"The Pokémon are the three traditionally given away in the Kanto region to young Pallet Town trainers starting a Pokémon journey. This is a tradition that I started many years ago, and Landon has saved me a great deal of trouble and embarrassment by helping me solve this problem. I was so grateful, in fact, that I contacted my grandson, who was responsible for getting me these Pokémon in the first place, and asked him what he thought of Landon's heroics.

"I came here tonight to celebrate the birthday of a dear friend, like you all did. But I also came with something else in mind, and I have spoken with my grandson and Landon's mother about this gift. We've all agreed that Landon's help, both today and during his entire time working with me, has been invaluable and has more than warranted this present."

Landon, who could barely stand the tension any longer, looked to his mother for a clue, but all she gave was a smile, which seemed strangely both sad and proud at once.

Oak continued. "That is why my grandson, Landon's mother, and I have decided to bestow upon him the three Pokémon which he helped to rescue earlier today!"

A cry of surprise and excitement erupted from the crowd at the unprecedented news, but Landon heard none of it. To him, it was as if the world had stopped. He felt like he was suddenly in slow motion. It was impossible. Sure, Landon was turning ten today, the age many traditionally began their own Pokémon journeys. And sure, Professor Oak was known for giving away a Pokémon to beginning trainers leaving Pallet Town. But Landon had, for some reason, not thought that he would be so lucky as to leave home to start his own journey, much less receive a rare Pokémon from the Professor. To receive all three was unheard of.

Landon was shaken from his trance by Professor Oak, who leaned down to face him.

"Landon," he said, "I am truly grateful for the help you've given me, and I'll be sad to see you go, but I know it's time, and I couldn't be happier to be giving you this gift to start you on your way."

Oak held out the three gleaming, perfect PokéBalls, containing the shy Charmander, the lazy Squirtle, and the tough Bulbasaur. Landon looked uncertainly at Professor Oak, thinking that perhaps it really was all a dream, but the Professor just nodded encouragingly and smiled, and Landon slowly and shakily took the three PokéBalls in his hands and stared at them in awe and disbelief.

"My Pokémon," he whispered to himself. "These are my Pokémon!"

Then his mother was there, wrapping her arms around him. "I'm so proud of you," she said into his shoulder, and Landon could hear a slight waver in her voice and feel moisture on her cheeks.

She released him as he was swarmed by his friends, who were eager to see the three rare Pokémon. Landon suddenly shifted from feeling surreal to feeling full of determined excitement.

"Of course I'll show you my Pokémon," he laughed. "They're awesome. Come on out, guys!" He tossed the three PokéBalls in the air, and they each popped open in a brilliant flash of light, revealing the Pokémon within.

Squirtle, Charmander, and Bulbasaur appeared in the crowd of kids, who went insane at their arrival. Kids swarmed around whichever Pokémon was nearest. Squirtle was knocked a little off balance and seemed confused. Charmander started running around, holding his tail before him and trailed by a small train of kids. Bulbasaur growled at the kids around him but softened slightly as they began petting him and talking about how awesome he was. Bulbasaur looked through the crush of kids to Landon and their eyes met before Bulbasaur nodded approvingly.

The Pokémon got used to the attention and everyone played with them for a while before Landon returned them to their PokéBalls and the party slowly dispersed. Everyone wished Landon the best, and there were more than a few tearful farewells as people realized that this might be the last time in a long time that Landon would be home. Finally, Landon was left with his mother and Professor Oak.

"Professor, this is amazing," stuttered Landon. "How can I accept this gift?"

"You must," smiled Oak. "I called my grandson and told him that I had the idea to give them to you, and he agreed. I asked your mother when I arrived at the party and she said she'd known you would be leaving soon enough and would love for you to have strong Pokémon to take with you to protect you and keep you company. I even asked Charmander, Bulbasaur, and Squirtle individually what they thought of going on a journey with you and they all loved the idea."

Landon gaped. "Really?"

"Really," nodded Professor Oak. "We all see that you have talent, that you have a bright future, that you're someone we can trust. Perhaps we see something in you that you don't yet see in yourself, but I assure you, Landon, you have earned this."

Landon wiped at the tears that welled up in his eyes, threatening to fall. It was all so overwhelming and unbelievable, truly a dream come true. He couldn't think of any words, so he ran to Professor Oak and gave him a big hug.

"Thank you so much!" Landon cried. "I won't let you down!"

Oak smiled. "I know you won't. And we'll be in touch all the time. You can call me from any Pokémon Center and I will be happy to keep any Pokémon you catch beyond six on my ranch."

"Really?!" Landon beamed.

"Of course. It will be my pleasure, and in that way you'll be able to continue to help me with my research even if you're not around."

"That's very generous," Landon's mother said.

"Oh, no," Oak waved dismissively. "It's the least I can do for a friend. Now, I must be getting on. I'll miss you, Landon. I look forward to hearing of all your many victories to come." He patted Landon affectionately on the head yet again and strode away, fading into the night as he left the warm yellow light of the lanterns that illuminated the back yard.

Landon looked at his mom. They were alone for the first time since the party had begun, during which they'd both found out that Landon would be able to leave on his journey first thing in the morning.

"Mom . . ." Landon said uncertainly.

"Did you have a nice party?" asked his mother, almost as though she hadn't heard him. Landon nodded. "I'm glad. But you'd better hurry up and get to bed. You'll want to be all rested for your big day tomorrow."

Landon couldn't believe it. She hadn't said that he would be leaving, nor had he, but they both knew it and in that moment she had acknowledged that it would really be happening. Landon sniffed and wiped away more tears before running to give her a huge hug.

"I love you," he said.

"I love you too, sweetie."

Landon looked out over Route 1. It was a grassy expanse, with gentle sloping hills and a few trees dotted about. He glanced behind him, at Pallet Town; his home, where he'd spent his childhood, where he'd learned about Pokémon with Professor Oak, and where his journey as a trainer had truly begun. Now he stood on the edge of adventure, at the beginning of it all.

He smiled, thinking of the delicious and hearty breakfast his mother had prepared that morning. The way she'd hugged him too tight and turned away to hide her tears. Her support was so incredible, and Landon could barely bring himself to take that step beyond the town limits. He chuckled gratefully to himself, thankful for the support of the entire town, including his mother and the Professor, and turned once more to look ahead of him. Feeling the weight of the three PokéBalls secured at his belt, he took his first step into the wilds.

He walked for a while before his feet began to hurt. The sky was clear and blue, with white, puffy clouds drifting lazily in the sky. The sun was bright and brought out the vibrant green of the grass. It hadn't taken long for the grass around Route 1's sparse dirt path to thicken and grow taller. Landon had walked along the dirt path for a while, and then switched to trudging through the grass, which proved a bit too tiring and drove him back to the path.

It was a beautiful day and Landon's excitement at finally being on his journey hadn't subsided, but he was getting a little tired. Perhaps a break was in order. He felt like he'd been walking forever, and the road was a quiet and lonely place as he travelled in solitude – much different from home. He looked at his watch and was dismayed to see that he'd only been walking for about forty minutes.

This was certainly not the heroic and exciting start to his Pokémon journey that he'd imagined. Forty minutes in and he already felt like he'd been walking for hours. He had put some distance between himself and home, but had quite a ways to go before making it to Viridian City on the other side of the route. His feet were hurting, he was lonely, and honestly a little grumpy. Perhaps worst of all, nothing had happened.

Landon decided to stop right there. He saw a nearby rock that looked like he could use to sit comfortably for a few minutes and went to it. He sighed as he sat, the dull ache which had slowly been building in his feet at the forefront of his thoughts.

He looked around Route 1. Yes, it was a gorgeous day, but there were no people around and, aside from some far-off bird, no Pokémon to be seen either. Was this how Pokémon trainers the world over did it? Was it uneventful days of trudging along, feet aching, lonely, bored? Is this how a Pokémon master was born?

Landon was starting to wonder if this was such a good idea at all when he suddenly heard a rustling in the grass nearby. He looked to his left and saw something shaking the leaves about – and then a Pokémon burst forth.

It was very small, quadripedal, and covered in purple fur all over except for its underside, which had white fur. It had small, clawed feet, a long tail poised above its head, large round ears on either side of its face, big, angry red eyes, and a large gaping mouth with a giant pair of front teeth.

"A Rattata!" Landon cried. Rattata was a fairly common sight in the area around Pallet Town and were sometimes spotted in the town itself. It was also a popular Pokémon for beginner trainers in Kanto, and Landon had seen a few at Oak's lab, though he wasn't very familiar with them.

This particular Rattata did not seem happy to see Landon. It snarled at him and looked like it was ready to attack. Landon stood up and began to back away, wondering what exactly he'd done to provoke the Pokémon, when he stopped. Wait a second! I'm a beginner trainer. I should catch this Rattata!

Landon had a small cache of empty PokéBalls for just such an occasion, and he readied himself for his first capture. He snagged a PokéBall from his bag.

"All right, Rattata," he said. "You're mine!" Landon lobbed the PokéBall, remembering his failure with Bulbasaur just the previous day. This time, Rattata wasn't running around, but standing its ground, staring at Landon. The ball flew expertly at its target, but before contact, Rattata spun quickly around and knocked it to the ground with its tail. Landon gritted his teeth and reached for another PokéBall –

Then he remembered that it was best to weaken wild Pokémon in battle before attempting a capture. So instead of going for one of the PokéBalls in his bag, he reached to his belt loop.

"Okay, Rattata," Landon said, smiling. "You wanna play? Well here we go. Charmander! I choose you!"

In a flash, Charmander appeared before Landon. Rattata bared its fangs, ready for a fight, and Landon prepared to give his Pokémon a command in his first real battle.

Okay, Landon thought to himself. I'll have my first real Pokémon battle and I'll get to catch my very first Pokémon! Get ready, Rattata: Here we come!

Who's That Pokémon?

#019 Rattata

Normal Type

Mouse Pokémon

1'00", 7.7lbs

Pokédex: Cautious in the extreme, its hardy vitality lets it live in any environment.