Z

I shook Jamie's hand warmly, sensing great disappointment; I probably should have taken it easy on her. She said softly and with tones of defeat, "Yeah we should. I was too overconfident; your Tesla blew me away." Our hands released each other, and I gathered my Luxray in a flash of red. Jamie spoke again, "Hey, um, where were you planning to stay tonight?"

In all honesty, I had not thought that through at all; I had some Pokedollars left over from victories and tips and whatnot, so I could probably book a hotel room in Vermillion, but with my new companion, asking if we could "get a room" might be a bit…creepy. So I leveled with her, "I don't really know! I mean, cities like this typically have lodging, and I've got some money on me. But whatever you want to do, I'd plan accordingly." Wow, Zed. Way to not be creepy.

J

"Well…" I return Sableye to it's Pokeball and place the ball back in my pack. "To be honest, I don't have any money…Technically I wasn't even supposed to be on the Anne."

You idiot! Why would you say something like that? Are you asking for trouble? I bit my tongue. During my escape, money had been the last thing on my mind. I'd taken a few pieces of clothing from various clotheslines, and I filched the backpack at a flea market, but I was against stealing money. Sneaking aboard a ship, however was another thing.

Z

I turned toward the park gate's to find the Pokemon Center with my friend, when I heard her say, "To be honest, I don't have any money…Technically I wasn't even supposed to be on the Anne." That's curious…I quickly replied "Ah, I can cover you for money…" then paused. She wasn't supposed to be on the Anne? Very odd…was she a fugitive? A runaway? Criminal? Maybe her and the ex-Rocket thug I verbally trounced were connected somehow…but as far as I was concerned, she had my trust. It's not my business to pry, so I tried to avoid that statement. "Yeah, I'm not sure I was supposed to be there either…I don't know where I'm supposed to go, but here I am, so I'll just work with what I have, I suppose." I grinned a little bit; my curiosity was still present, but in time I'm sure I'd learn more about her. We continued on for the Pokemon Center.

J

The walk to the Pokemon Center was fairly quiet. I was sure Zed hadn't missed my earlier slip up, but he was being cool about it. I didn't quite understand what he meant when he said he wasn't sure he was supposed to be on the Anne, but he was respecting my privacy, so I'd respect his. And for tonight at least I'd have a place to stay. So far so good.

Once we arrived, a cheerful Nurse Joy took our Pokeballs and several Chancy waddled off to the back with them, off to do whatever one does in a Pokemon Center. I didn't say much to Joy, anyone who could stand so much pink had to be off her rocker. Zed and I took our seats in some comfy looking arm chairs.

I gently nudged him and whispered, "I wonder if you could shoot baskets into Nurse Joy's ringlets."

Z

I was nearly dozing off in the comfortable Pokemon Center chairs when I felt her elbow bump mine and heard her whisper, "I wonder if you could shoot baskets into Nurse Joy's ringlets." I lost it; I was gasping for air with laughter. How did I not notice that before? Jamie laughed too, but not nearly as hard…I must have embarrassed her a little bit. Who cares? Not I!

We received our Pokeballs back, filled with fully healed Pokemon, and set out for a place to stay. Well, not quite yet…"Hey, wanna see the town before we settle in somewhere?" Sightseeing was one thing that blocked out the loneliness; if I don't find my family, at least I can find some pretty scenery (very, very pretty in this case).

When we stepped out of the PC, a foreboding building loomed just a block or so to the southwest; this structure looked like it was fashioned out of a military fort of some kind. I'm sure it was the Vermillion City Gym, where Lt. Surge waited to accept, and probably crush, any challenge. I was…almost ready.

J

I was so relieved to have my Pokemon back. As we walked, I could feel the reassuring pressure of the balls in my pack pressing against my back. Zed had suggested seeing the sights—though I wasn't sure what those were exactly—before calling it a night. One thing I did notice though was a certain building he kept glancing at. But he hadn't mentioned it yet. It wasn't the most glamorous of structures, slightly old and rugged looking, like it was made to withstand anything.

There weren't too many people out and about, and it was quiet for the most part. Almost too quiet. I felt awkward in the silence, but what would I say to him anyway? Instead every so often I'd glance at him out of the corner of my eye. I thought I'd been pretty sneaky about it, until he glanced back over at me. I snapped my eyes back in front of me and felt warmth rushing across my face. Dummy! Think of something to say so it's not awkward!

But I'd never been the most social of people. "Soooo…um….is your heart being tugged to that building in general?" I nodded to the old building. Heart being tugged? I obviously needed sleep. Or food. Or both.

Z

"Soooo…um….is your heart being tugged to that building in general?" Jamie must have noticed my being enticed by the Gym. "Not so much that building, as it's kind of ugly. That's the Vermillion City Gym; before boarding the Anne, I set myself a little goal to try and beat all of Kanto's gyms…but I don't think I'm quite ready." Especially since my best Pokemon is an electric-type, and from what I'd read, Lt. Surge specializes in electric-types. Maybe Thoreau would be a good wall…

My thoughts suddenly hit a wall built by my id. Sleep. Food. Shower. Legs hurt. My superego takes over, telling my childish id to shut up in front of the guest. Meanwhile, my ego is confused as to why I'm tossing Freudian terms around, and minutes of awkward silence and walking pass. I try to break the silence; "So, umm…tell me about yourself?" …really?

J

"So, umm…tell me about yourself?" The question caught me off guard. What exactly could I tell him? More importantly, what was safe to tell him? I studied my feet as we walked and tried to think of something.

"Well, my goal is to catch and evolve every type of Pokemon. Er I have a TouchKey that I play every now and then, and I used to skateboard a ton, but I haven't been able to find any lately." There. Nothing too personal, just general knowledge. Being so cautious all the time was starting to hurt my head. This was why I'd traveled alone, people ask too many questions. "What about you? You want to challenge the Kanto gym leaders, does that make you an aspiring Pokemon Master of sorts?"

Not even I could delude myself in thinking I could face gym leaders. Battling was obviously not my strong suit. But if Zed ended up challenging the Vermillion gym, maybe I'd be able to learn a bit more about battling. That, and I could study his battle style a little more intently. One day, when I would be strong enough, I'd challenge him again.

Z

She stared at the ground a bit, in thought. Maybe for fear of letting something slip, maybe to create a lie…no, I trust her. "Well, my goal is to catch and evolve every type of Pokemon. Er I have a TouchKey that I play every now and then, and I used to skateboard a ton, but I haven't been able to find any lately. What about you? You want to challenge the Kanto gym leaders, does that make you an aspiring Pokemon Master of sorts?"

I went through each of her interest, expressing my own genuine fascination at each of her goals; she is so ambitious, and probably very coordinated, unlike my wandering, clumsy ass. "Honestly, my foremost goal is to…" I paused. Should I disclose my real purpose of all this wandering? "…find my family. They've got to be somewhere on this world…but battling, music, and philosophy also hold my interest. So I guess my journey has a four-fold purpose…but that's about it. I was in school for the first sixteen years of my life, pretty much alone, then travelled for the last five…pretty much alone." Wow, I'm a downer…time to change the subject. I released Tesla from his Pokeball give him a bit of a walk; the electric lion greeted my with his big paws on my shoulder and a dorky lick on the face. "Hey, easy!" I turned my head back to Jamie and asked with a smile, "Anything in Vermillion catching your eye yet?"

J

Of all things, I wasn't expecting that. For a moment I could only gaze at Zed. He was looking for his family? Why were they missing? A twinge of guilt stirred in my heart. Here he was trying to find his family, and I had ran away from mine. Not only had I been evasive in answering his question, but he went further and even opened to me about his past. Sixteen years of loneliness…add five…If my math skills were correct—which they rarely were—he'd be about four years older than me. No wonder he'd beaten me in a battle. I had so many questions.

While I was mulling over what Zed told me, he let his Luxray out of its Pokeball. The lion must've been appreciative because he gave Zed a huge lick on the face. I giggled. Despite its fierceness in battle, it almost looked like an overgrown blue kitty. Feeling a bit left out, I sent Teddiursa out of his Pokeball. He greeted me with a happy "Ur!" and I picked him up and cuddled him .

"Anything in Vermillion catching your eye yet?" Zed smiled at me, and I instinctively smiled back. I had to admit, the guy was starting to grow on me. "Well…." My eyes scanned the buildings in front of us, finally landing on one with bright lights and some catchy tune playing inside. The sign above the building read, "Pokemon Fanclub." I pointed to that one. "That might be worth checking out. Y'know, maybe meet some other trainers?"

I looked down at Teddi. "You're cute enough to get us in, aren't you?" My little bear smiled nodded enthusiastically. "Ur urrrrr!"