Theme Song

One door has closed, another swings (Owen stares into the camera and fades out along with Brooklyn, Molly, and Charizard)
You must grow accustomed to new things (Gray, Durus, Chase, Leviculus, and another Pokemon replace the others)
It might feel strange, there might be hate (A person in black armor looks at Cerulean Cave, followed by a split screen of them wearing a laughing mask and crying mask)
But you do not want to tempt fate (Gray stares at the sky and eight badges pass by)
Fight back(2x)! Let it go! (Meowth and two other Pokemon charge towards the camera at the same time)
Be strong(2x), put on a show! (Chase and Audino sprint away from a herd of Tauros)
Keep training, you'll be put to the test (Gray has a flashback of losing to Trentavious)
Now is not the time to rest... Pokemon! (Gray, smiles at the camera with Leviculus and another Pokemon by her side and Durus resting on her head)

NOTE: EMBOAR-MAN, READ MY RESPONSE TO YOUR REVIEW

What's going on, people? Time for another chapter, and this one's going to be about Gray bonding with Durus and Leviculus, both of whom were nicknamed last chapter. As you can tell by the team listing, Gray caught a Poliwag last chapter after he helped her and Durus (Meowth) fend off a wild group of Mankey. Now, let's get going!

Shion Rasenka: Thank you! Sammy's a bit of a goofball, and I think there has only been one story I've read where someone caught a Poliwag. And the similarities with this and Ash's trek through Kanto will kind of (unintentionally) run through the first arc, but it'll stop as soon as I get to the Cerulean Arc. And I hope you post your story on this site!

Defender31415: Yeah, Leviculus will most likely be the strongest member for quite a while until (according to the outline) Celadon City, where Gray's Pokemon will start to evolve. Thankfully, with Gray only having six Pokemon, none of them are going to suffer through massive droughts of not leveling up, or losing a ton of battles

ShadowDragon9000: Haha, he will make fun of the names, but that'll only fuel the fire for Gray trying to kick his ass. There will be one Pokemon he picks on, in particular, but that'll end up biting him in the bud. And all of the nicknames (I don't take latin, so blame the interwebs if they're off) will apply to the Pokemon, one way or another

MCMXCV: Lol, I can see where that confused you. And he will fall a lot in battles, but it'll be too his advantage. His battling style is going to be completely different from the other Pokemon Gray gets ;)

Elodus: You would be correct, sir :P And the names will basically be the personality of the Pokemon, though the next one's personality won't fit his nickname for a while. I figured it'd be a good way to remind myself who acts like what and how their personalities mesh

Emboar-Man: This is the last time I'll say this. Gray will only catch one Pokemon per region! She already has Kanto and Johto (Politoed) covered, so she will not catch anything from either of those regions. And thank you! I really like giving the Pokemon nicknames because it makes them feel more like characters. And given Gray only having 6 (maybe a seventh) Pokemon, they'll be very important characters

Gray's team

Durus, (f), level 8, Scratch, Growl, Bite - (Meowth)

Leviculus, (m), level 11, Water Gun, Hypnosis, Bubble - (Poliwag)

"How much further is it?" Leviculus inquired as he waddled down the road with Gray and Durus. The threesome had been traveling in relative silence for the majority of their trip, and it felt weird to talk.

"According to Dex," Gray started while pulling out her Pokedex. "The forest is right through that tunnel." The girl looked over at her Poliwag and smiled at the dumb Pokemon, who tripped over a root and smacked his face against the ground. Durus rolled her eyes as she helped Leviculus back on his feet, and the group walked into the tunnel. After passing through, the group of three looked around at the forest in awe. Thousands of trees were clustered together, but somehow grew in lines, which made clear paths for trainers to pass through. All of the trees were at least twenty feet tall, and the tops of the trees were ruled by Pidgeot and Fearow, both of whom were not Pokemon to be messed with if you were a rookie trainer.

"This place is giving me the chills," Durus muttered as she, Leviculus, and Gray began walking around in an attempt to find the way out. Several other people were also looking for their ways out, but no one bothered asking for help. It was a tradition for every beginning trainer to try and navigate their way through the woods without any assistance from other trainers, unless of course, they were both rookies.

"I don't like it either," Leviculus added as he looked around at the trees. An enormous Beedrill glared daggers at the water type, who sweat dropped nervously before waddling after his trainer and teammate.

"Can't you use your Pokedex to find the way out of here?" Durus asked in annoyance while glaring at Gray, who shook her head adamantly. "Let me guess, it's something about the tradition?" the feline assumed, which made Gray nod. Durus angrily put her paws against her face and groaned loud enough for her trainer to hear, but Gray didn't react.

"Well, I guess it isn't this way," Gray said under her breath as she and her Pokemon reached a dead-end. "Here, let's cut through these trees." What Gray and her Pokemon didn't notice was a bright yellow sign with a black picture of a Beedrill, which was a warning sign for attacking Pokemon. "Well, this isn't too bad." As they continued to maneuver through the narrow passage, a slight buzzing rang in Gray's ears, prompting her to turn around.

"What's the matter?" Leviculus inquired before a Beedrill suddenly swooped down and buzzed as loudly as it could. "AAAAGH!" Leviculus screamed before waddling past the bee and hiding behind his trainer and Durus, who looked terrified of the fully evolved Pokemon.

"Leviculus, use Bubble!" Gray commanded. The water type, however, was too scared to do anything, but Durus was quick to act. Without a command, the Meowth lunged forward while her claws extended and began to glow white, and she slashed the large Pokemon.

"Nice shot, Durus!" Gray complimented her starter, who landed on the ground and crossed her arms nonchalantly. The Beedrill got back up with an enraged look in its eyes, and Gray sweat dropped while she picked Leviculus up before slowly walking towards Durus. As soon as the bug type zipped towards her, Gray grabbed Durus' arm and bolted.

"If this is how I die, this sucks!" Leviculus screamed as the Beedrill started gaining on Gray, who kicked it into high-gear. As she did, the girl didn't realize a root of a tree that was sticking out of the ground, and she tripped over it, smacking her face against the dirt in the process. Both Durus and Leviculus were sent flying through the air while their trainer hurriedly rose to her feet, but Gray fell once again.

"Bzzz!" Beedrill cried before rearing its right stinger back. Durus glanced up quickly to see the stinger turn purple, and she dashed towards Gray, knowing the attack could be fatal. As Gray turned to see her attacker jab at her, Durus' body was flung in front of the stinger, and she cried in pain before being slammed into the ground several feet away from Gray.

"Take this!" Leviculus cried as he hopped in the air and opened his mouth. A flurry of blue spheres were fired at the Pokemon, and the Beedrill was hit by all of the bubbles. The bug type, satisfied with its work, decided to fly away from the group, leaving them in silence while Leviculus fell on his face as he ran over to Gray. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, thanks. What about you, Durus?" Gray quizzed as she glanced over at the Meowth. Durus didn't answer, however, and she remained facedown on the ground. Worried about the Pokemon's wellbeing, Gray ran over to her starter's side and knelt down while scooping her into her arms. Durus was suddenly engulfed in a flash of purple energy, and she grimaced in pain, prompting Gray to look over at Leviculus in concern. "We need to get out of here, and fast."

"Okay, let's ask for help." The water type paused while Gray glared at him, and he fell on his face as usual. "Oh, we can't, I forgot." The Poliwag quickly hopped back on his feet, and he smiled goofily before shooting a bubble attack at the ground. He then slid on the water at light speed, which would've been hilarious in any other situation. "Come on! Follow me!" Gray rolled her eyes at the dumb Pokemon and sprinted after him while looking down at Durus, who looked to be in serious pain.

"Don't worry, Durus, we'll get you some help!"

While Gray and Leviculus attempted to find the exit, Chase and Audino were sitting on a log with looks of sadness. The teen suddenly sighed, breaking the silence between himself and his starter, and he looked up at the normal type with a fake smile.

"Don't worry, girl, we'll get out of here sooner or later. Besides, what's a journey without a little adversity?" Audino smiled and nodded at her trainer's words, and the two rose to their feet in unison. "I wonder how Gray and the others are doing?"

"Haha," Audino giggled as she and Chase began walking around in an attempt to find their way out of the forest. Chase glanced over at the Pokemon and opted to remain silent as she continued to giggle with the help of her translator. While the two continued walking around, a Poliwag zipped by them while sliding on the ground, and he was laughing hysterically, which made Chase and Audino stop walking, and they stared as the Poliwag slammed into a tree. Chase and his starter attempted to refrain from laughing, but they couldn't as they ran over to the Pokemon.

"Hey, are you okay?" the teen asked as the Poliwag rose to his feet and shook his head. "You took quite the hit."

"I'm okay, but my friend isn't. She got poisoned by a Beedrill and now we're trying to find our way out!" Chase and Audino exchanged looks of concern before locking eyes with the Poliwag, who dropped to his stomach and began sliding along the ground again. "There she is!" he shouted as he saw a girl running forward with a Meowth in her arms.

"Leviculus, have you found-" the girl stopped when she saw Chase standing next to Leviculus, and the boy hurriedly ran over to Gray's side while looking down at Durus. "Chase? What are you doing here?"

"We haven't found our way out yet. Here, take this," the teen told Gray as he pulled a bottle out of his bag. It had a yellow bottom and the nozzle was white, which was easily recognizable. Chase then sprayed Durus with the bottle, and the feline instantly looked better, though that wasn't saying much.

"Hey, Durus, are you okay?" Gray quizzed as the normal type slowly opened her eyes. A tiny smile crept across the Meowth's face, and she nodded at her trainer, who let out a sigh of relief. "Thank you so much, Chase. I can't believe I forgot to buy an Antidote at the PokeMart."

"No problem, we're happy to help," Chase replied with a goofy smile. "It looks like you've had quite the day," the teen noted while glancing at Leviculus and the Antidote in his hand. Gray nodded sheepishly at the comment, but she stopped when Durus hopped onto her head and smiled. "And Meowth seems to like you a lot more."

"The name's Durus," the Pokemon snapped, making Chase look at her in fear. "Don't forget it, pretty boy."

"Durus, stop!" Gray scolded, though the normal type rolled her eyes in response. "Sorry, she's kind of sassy. Oh, and that's Leviculus. He joined us earlier today," Gray informed Chase while her Poliwag waddled over to her side.

"Nice to meet you, Leviculus. This is my partner, Audino," Chase greeted while pointing at his starter, who bowed at the water type. Leviculus attempted to do the same, but he fell on his face, making Gray laugh. "So, do you want to try and find a way out of here?"

"Definitely! Let's go, guys!"

000

"Pewter City," a boy muttered as he looked down at the buildings and gym. "Tara, make sure you don't blow it this time, okay? I don't feel like being kicked out of the organization." A Scyther slashed at the air aggressively in defense of his trainer, Tara, but he stopped when the teenager put her hand on his back.

"Don't worry, we've been training extra hard for this. All we have to do is get into the museum at night, take all the fossils, and we're good. It's as easy as that," the blonde stated confidently. "Besides, Rory, you and Riolu are the ones that blew the last mission." The man and his Pokemon tensed up at the reminder of the last time they failed, and they shook their heads simultaneously, trying to forget the repercussions.

"No problem. Soon, Team Purity will cleanse this world of its imbalance, and no one can stop us!"

Well, that's that. So, Gray and Chase met up in the Viridian Forest, and two grunt from a group called Team Purity have appeared! Yeah, that's about it, but hey, not every chapter can be action packed. Also, I have chapters 6 and 7 done, so I'll probably post one of them tomorrow. Till next time, peace out.

1) Predictions for this arc's chapters?

Next Chapter: "Night at the Museum": Upon arriving in Pewter City, Gray and Chase are tasked with guarding the museum from suspicious characters. Eventually, the two are forced into a double battle with members of an apparent crime syndicate lurking in the shadows, who are looking to take all of the fossils! Will Gray and Chase be able to hold them off?

Pewter City Arc

Chapter 7: Revival of the Fittest?
Chapter 8: A Rough Road Ahead
Chapter 9: Paging Doctor Chase
Chapter 10: Rocking Brock