Viridian Forest was a deep woodland expanding across Route 2, reaching to Pewter City in the north. The trees in the area had grown so dense that light had trouble getting through, making the whole place dark and gloomy. I'd been there countless times, mostly with Eddie and Zack, but I was still edgy about going into the place. Getting through Route 1 and Viridian City had been easy. Flame had taken down any opponent, and I'd learnt his attacks. Scratch and Growl. Hopefully soon, he would learn a useful Fire attack that would help out a bunch in a place infested with bugs.

Since it was only around 1PM by now, I had truckloads of time left to myself. Zack and Mum wouldn't be home for ages, Dad would be back even later. Eddie made his own way home from Saffron by bus. I basically had the entire day to do what I liked and nobody would have missed me. I was 17, after all, and my parents did trust me enough to let me go out and come back late. I would find this Gary dude, and maybe begin training up Flame. I'd had him for about half an hour and already he seemed to adore me - he was reluctant to go back inside his ball, and was much more content with hugging my leg. Cute.

Flame stuck with me as we entered the forest, the light and airy place I knew so well that would evolve into the eerie maze later on. We strolled to the left to do a little bit of training, and I suspected that Flame had gained a few levels by now. He seemed overly happy to be rushing into the grass but it turned out something had caught his eye.

"Char! Charrr!"

"What is it, boy?"

Flame came rushing back to me with another Poké Ball in his mouth, and he dropped it into my hand. It must have been lying around, empty, since nothing came out when I opened it. It was still functional, so I shrugged and placed it into my pocket. I had a bit of an urge to add another Pokémon to my team. On the way to the forest, I had been thinking over whether or not I would leave home and go on some kind of journey. I liked travelling, and if it meant going around with Pokémon, then that was fine in my book. Collecting Gym Badges was just a side challenge. Hell, it would be fun. A way to pass my time. I'd even make money if I won battles, as much as I hated them.

I hated battles so much because I hated seeing the Pokémon get hurt. Believe it or not. Pokémon rarely died in battle, but it still happened, and it was the way people were so used to it. And the fact people actually did it without any mercy. I knew I couldn't let myself become that way, and I never would. The fainting wasn't as bad, but I could still remember my stomach and heart seizing up when a Pokémon on the TV that had tried so hard to win just collapsed out of sheer exhaustion, and promising myself, I would never have let that happen to any of mine if I'd had them.

Now, though, I had Flame. It was my duty and my role to protect him while he was still growing, and raise him into the Pokémon I knew he was capable of being. There was no way I could prevent him fainting in battle, but I would certainly do all I could to avoid it, and most of all, to heal him in time. Already, losing the little guy was a horrible thought.

I began looking through the grass, getting on my knees and parting it, with Flame by my side, ready to attack. I ignored the bugs, knowing for a fact that Pikachu lived in the forest and if I was going to capture anything, it would be something I could use and would be strong. The Bug Pokémon were notoriously weak. The first Gym, in Pewter City ahead, was a Rock-type. A Charmander and a Pikachu both were useless in that situation, but I wasn't thinking about the Gym. I had to focus on the Pokémon being my friend, not a scapegoat for battle.

After about ten minutes of searching, Flame let out a whine of frustration. "Chaaar!"

"Calm down, little dude. We'll find-"

I heard some rustling to my left and Flame perked up, ready to attack, but I gestured at him to hold him back and he did so obediently. Pushing the grass away, expecting to find some bug or maybe even a bird, I found exactly what I wanted. A Pikachu, nibbling away at some sweet-looking, shocking pink berries. It hadn't even appeared to notice us.

"Flame, you ready?"

Flame lunged at the Pikachu and scratched it once; the electric rodent didn't even appear to dodge, just lay there, completely surprised and now in pain. My heart tugged, knowing the little thing was probably still young and still didn't really know how to defend itself. I pulled out the Poké Ball Flame had found for me - knew it'd come in useful - and pressed it against the Pikachu's body, enveloping it in a red light. I held it tight, as it shook in my hands, but was then still.

"Looks like we have another little dude, Flame," I winked at my little fighter, who stomped around, his tail blazing much brighter than usual. My heart began to swell up with pride, and I couldn't help but smile. I was actually beginning to like all this Pokémon stuff. Maybe it was just as good as everybody said it was. Maybe the love they felt for you, and the love you gave back, really was worth everything they went through. Maybe.

It wasn't hard to find Gary. I'd never met him, but I had seen him around when I was growing up and he hadn't changed a little bit. Still donned with a mane of brown hair, still wearing a purple jumper, he was inspecting something in a few trees when I saw him, and walked up to him.

"Hey, bro! I-"

"What the fuck are you doing with that Pokémon? That's my granddad's! You stole it!"

Panic surged through me and my hands flew upwards in surrender. Flame hid behind me, clearly recognising Gary and not liking him. The Pikachu I'd caught was still resting inside his ball, and I didn't want to bring him out in front of such a horrible person.

"Wait a minute! He sent me here, he gave this one to me, he-"

"Fucking thief! I'm gonna take him back! Come on, let's fight! I win, I get the Charmander! Go, Squirtle!" A flash of white light blinded us all for a second or two and there was a Squirtle, standing in front of Gary, looking completely confused.

"Squirtle, Tackle it!"

"Gary, for fuck's sake!"

He didn't stop, didn't falter. This guy meant business.

"Alright, then! Flame, scratch him!"

I didn't want to hurt the Squirtle. At all. But Flame scratched it and it backed away, holding its bleeding wound, but Gary seemed to have no mercy at all - not on me, or Flame, or his own Pokémon. It was pitiful, really, and the exact reason I hated all of this.

"You brute! You absolute brute!"

"I am not a thief!" I cried back, but he was listening to nothing apart from his own voice. Flame was beginning to take some serious hits so I recalled him before he became dangerously hurt, and with reluctance, sent out my Pikachu, realising the obvious type advantage and hoping it knew an Electric move.

"Pikachu! Thundershock it, and if you can't, Tackle!"

It seemed to understand me well - and thankfully enough, it did know Thundershock as I had hoped. One bolt of lightning sent Squirtle to the ground, close to unconsciousness. Pikachu let out a yip of joy and I found myself hugging my newest team-mate, tougher than I had first made it out to be.

"If you'd just let me finish my goddamn sentence, I wouldn't have had to do that," I looked at Pikachu, who had sustained minimal damage, and picked it up in my arms. "My name is Darrell. Your grandfather wanted to see me, we had a talk, and he gave me that Charmander. Then he said I should go and find you to get some advice, but the only advice I'm going to take is to get myself to a Pokémon Center and heal my guys up. You should, as well."

I turned on my heel and left him alone, not wanting to be burdened with his existence any longer.

"Well then, little dude, you definitely surprised me back there!" I happily laughed. Pikachu and Flame were walking beside me confidently, having been healed at the Center in Viridian City. Flame was probably around level 11 by now and Pikachu at level 7 or 8, so I figured that I would just go home for now and think about what to do with my companions.

The sky was beginning to darken slightly, - I'd been outside longer than I'd realised. My watch told me 4:30PM, meaning that Eddie would be home by now. Part of me yearned to speak to my little brother, so I trudged on through Route 1 again and only until I was outside my house did I realise that Pikachu didn't have a nickname, nor did I know its gender.

Same method. "Pikachu, tell me this and tell me no more. One for boy, two for girl."

"Pika!"

Thinking up a name for Pikachu was going to be even more difficult. I was trying to stray away from obvious type-related names, but Flame was the exception. He seemed like a charismatic, sweet little Pokémon, and definitely a keeper. What in the world was a name that could give him justice?

I thought back to a movie I'd watched with Eddie only yesterday.

"Ace," I grinned, looking down at my electric mouse. "Your name is Ace."

Ace seemed delighted to have a nickname, and I was beginning to really take a shine to him. Opening the front door introduced me to Eddie, on the sofa as he usually was, and I closed the door to alert him of my presence. He jumped, and looked surprised to see me - then even more surprised when he saw who I was with.

"Don't tell me! You got Pokémon!"

"A+ for Edward," I grinned, knowing that usage of his full name would enrage him playfully. "Know how Professor Oak wanted to see me? He just gave me the Charmander. Literally just gave him to me. Not a clue why, but I'm not complaining. His name's Flame, by the way. And I caught this one in the forest, his name's Ace."

Eddie was completely taken with them - he was already bent down to Flame's level, petting him and laughing. Ace seemed interested and was sniffing him all over, which made Eddie laugh. The sky outside was melting down to a inky-blue navy, and it wasn't even 5PM yet. Oh well, that's winter for you. I didn't really like living in so much darkness all the time, but it was just something you had to deal with. Most times nobody even paid much attention to it, but it would mean if I was to go out travelling, I wouldn't exactly be doing it for very long.

"So, what are you going to do?" Eddie asked, getting back up and tilting his head at me in that cute little way he always did. Meant you had to give him what he wanted. Stupid brothers. "Mum will shit bricks when she sees you have an electric mouse and a fire lizard about the house."

"Pardon your French. And I don't even know what I'm going to do yet. Travelling around Kanto seems like fun. I have no real reason for doing it, though."

"Au contraire, lesser mortal," Eddie laughed, raising his arms dramatically like some goddamn Shakespeare play. The use of 'lesser mortal' really indicated his love for his big brother. "You have every reason. It'd be a lot of fun! You'd get to battle people! And you'd make some money, wouldn't you, big boy? Oh, and make sure to become the Champion for me, okay? The boys at school will never hear the end of it from me if you do!"

"Absolutely."

I was allowed to do anything I wanted. As long as I asked my mother first.