The following morning started very awkwardly. Chance remained quiet and stuck to himself for the most part. Cassandra seemed to be a bit annoyed at the entire situation. While Adrian kept trying to get Chance to break out of his funk a bit more, hoping to get him to not let his past dictate his future.
They packed up their belongings and started their walk once more. They planned to exit the forest within the first half of the day, exiting onto route 34. Cassandra and Adrian led the group for the majority of the morning, while Chance remained a few paces behind his friends, only really paying attention to the snivy on his shoulder.
After a few hours of walking like this Adrian fell back to walk beside his friend.
"You okay?" His face showed the concern he had for his friend.
"I'll be fine, just thinking about what you said last night." A small smile crossed his face.
"I might have been a bit harsh… I mean, it is good to have a goal and everything, I just want you to live for yourself, not for your mom."
"I know… It is just something I have never thought about. I grew up being the son of a champion. My sister and I were raised with pokemon, and we were always kind of prodigies when it came to anything involving pokemon. I never thought about whether or not I wanted to be a champion, or if I was just working towards that goal because it's all I have ever known." He looked up into the branches, eyes wandering through them as if the answer was hidden within.
"Well, whatever you decide, I support you. I mean, either way, it sucks that your first pokemon rebelling so hard when it evolved, but you were a kid… You couldn't have known better back then. I am sure once you return home it will be different. Just look forward to that rather than letting that bad experience haunt you."
A genuine smile crossed the redhead's face this time. "Thanks. You're right. I have some thinking to do, but I can't let that single experience keep me from doing my best. I will get better and get my friend back." Snivy stood on her trainer's shoulder and patted his cheek lightly. "Thanks, Snivy. I know I can always count on you." He reached up and scratched his pokemon's back.
Adrian shifted the egg in his arms and patted his friend on the back before trotting back up to walk beside Cassandra, leaving his friend to think on things a bit more.
"So, how long until you think we are out of this forest?" Adrian asked the girl beside him.
"Should be about two or three more hours, I think. Then it is just another day or so until we reach my parent's house." Cassandra replied happily. She currently had her pichu in her arms, letting the baby pokemon nap as she walked.
"And Goldenrod City is just a few more hours past that, right?"
"Yup! And then you get to face one of the strongest gym leader's Johto has to offer! Well, at least, when she is in the right mood."
"Is Whitney really that bad? And the right mood?"
"Well, most trainers that challenge her already have a few badges, so she is okay with using her star pokemon. Her miltank has crushed a lot of foes. But, Whitney is known for also being kind of… Unique when it comes to gym leaders. She doesn't really like to lose, and often gets bored. So she makes up random rules whenever she battles, which she will sometimes not even do if she thinks it won't be fun."
"Random rules? Like what?"
"Well, the trainer before me had a full 6-on-6 battle with her, though he didn't get past her miltank. I followed and it was a double battle. Two of her pokemon at the same time against two of mine. I only managed to win because she forfeited the moment I defeated her clefairy. Her miltank probably could have still won the battle, but she was crying so hard that her clefairy had gotten hurt that she just couldn't continue… It was an interesting experience." The girl mused.
"How is somebody like that actually allowed to remain a gym leader?" Adrian questioned with a look of annoyance.
"Well, gym leaders are chosen based on a lot of things." The redhead said from behind, finally rejoining his friends. "Some inherit their gyms from family, some are former champions, and some are just kind of town heroes. It is rare that the league steps in and removes a gym leader. I mean, there is even a gym back in Unova that has three gym leaders. Triplets." He explained.
"That is crazy. I guess it does keep things interesting though…" Adrian replied.
The group continued to chat about Goldenrod City and the upcoming gym for the next few hours before they finally saw a break in the trees ahead. The moment they saw the trees starting to thin they broke into a run, wanting to feel the open world once again. The small group of travelers broke through the tree line and took in the wonderful sights before them. They saw fields that stretched off into the horizon, the bright blue sky, and a shimmering ocean off in the distance in the west. It was definitely refreshing for the group.
"Wow. Everything seems so beautiful." Chance marveled as he took in the sights.
"Well, anything would be after spending several days looking at trees." Cassandra laughed as she walked by. The boys slowly broke their gazes away from the world around them and trotted after their new companion.
The group continued their walk over the open fields, each allowing several of their pokemon to accompany them on the walk. The day remained rather uneventful. They passed a few groups of trainers who were headed different directions or training with their pokemon. Eventually, the sun began to descend in the sky, so they found a small cluster of trees to camp by for the night. Chance immediately called out his onix when they stopped for the night.
"Hey buddy." He greeted the large pokemon. "Sorry you've been cooped up for so long. Not much room to stretch in the forest." The rock snake stretched out and let out a low moan as its trainer patted its side.
"Damn. Little warning next time." Cassandra complained. "Scared the hell out of me."
"Sorry." The redhead laughed. "Just a bit impatient to let him out. Onix has been stuck in that ball for a few days now. Only fair to let him relax for a few hours before bed." He smiled as onix lowered his head so his trainer could hug him. Chance brushed his hand over the scar above his left eye.
"Why don't you spend some time with onix? I can set up your stuff while I cook." Adrian offered.
"You don't have to do that. I don't mind helping out." The redhead protested.
"Hey, you need this time as much as onix does. Go have fun." Adrian gently pushed his friend towards his pokemon as he spoke. Chance smiled and thanked his friend as he walked off with onix to train with it a bit and let it blow off some steam.
Cassandra helped her friend set up their camp and prepare their dinner, letting some of her pokemon play while they did. While she was stirring the pot that they had set atop the fire she heard a yelp of surprise from the blonde who had been washing his egg. She turned to see the egg glowing brightly in the boy's arms. Adrian looked up at her with alarm on his face.
"Well, I didn't expect that for a few more days…" She said softly.
"What is happening? Is it okay?" The blonde asked in a panic.
"Yes!" She laughed as she walked over to him. "Don't worry so much! It is hatching!" She reached down and brushed her hand across the egg as the glowing pulsed again. "It looks like we have a little while still. Maybe about fifteen minutes or so."
"Okay… Is there anything we need to do?"
"Just be patient. Relax. It will come in its own time." The girl smiled.
Adrian turned to his pokemon. "Nidoran, can you go get Chance please? I don't want him to miss this." The poison pokemon nodded and ran off towards the onix in the distance.
Several minutes passed while Cassandra spread out a blanket and laid the egg out in the middle. The two sat watching the glow of the egg pulse, Cassandra timing the gap between each pulse. Onix suddenly slithered over to the group, Chance jumping down from its head once it stopped. Nidoran jumped from his arms once he was safely on the ground.
"What's going on?" Chance asked worriedly.
"Don't panic so much! The egg is just hatching." Cassandra smiled at the redhead as he ran over.
"Yeah. I didn't want you to miss it!" Adrian didn't take his eyes off the glowing egg as he spoke to his friend.
The trio gathered around the egg, their pokemon gathering to watch as well. The next few minutes felt like hours to the group as the egg started to have a constant glow that slowly became brighter.
"Are you sure everything is okay? I feel like it shouldn't be taking this long…" Adrian glanced at his female companion for a brief second before his eyes locked on the egg once again.
"Everything is going fine. It should be any second now."
As if on cue the glowing intensified once more, then suddenly subsided. As the blinding glow faded the group stared down at where the egg once was. In its place stood a small yellow and black pokemon with two horns that looked like a plug. The little pokemon looked around at the being that had gathered around it.
"Wow… It's an elekid!" Adrian's eyes showed nothing but joy as he reached one hand out to the baby pokemon. "Hey there, Elekid." He said softly. The electric pokemon reached its own hand out and poked the outstretched hand once before jumping towards the boy's chest. Adrian caught the little pokemon and embraced it in a tight hug. From his arms he introduced the new pokemon to his friends and their teams.
Cassandra and Chance watched the spectacle unfold. Adrian and elekid seemed to instantly click, elekid never wanting to be more than a few feet from the boy.
"Well, I guess I don't get much of a say in whether or not he gets to keep elekid now." Cassandra laughed. She watched elekid run after the blonde boy who trotting across their small camp to grab something from his pack.
"Yeah, elekid seems to want to be close to him at all times." Chance smiled as elekid jumped onto Adrian's back as he knelt over to rummage through his belongings.
"That is kind of normal for freshly hatched pokemon. The first trainer they bond with will generally be stuck with them for a good while." Pichu nuzzled into her chest as she spoke. "See?" She laughed.
Finally, Adrian popped back up from his bag with a brand new pokeball. He walked over to his friends, elekid staying by his leg the entire time.
"Cassandra… I have to ask… Did I prove myself worthy to keep it?" He stared down at the little pokemon as he spoke.
She laughed. "Of course you can keep it. I wouldn't dream of trying to pull it away from you now. I mean, look at it. You're basically its mother now." Adrian thanked her before kneeling down next to the baby pokemon.
"Hey elekid, wanna stay with me?" As he asked he held the pokeball in front of the electric pokemon. Elekid stared at the ball for a minute before poking the center and being absorbed into it. It wiggled briefly before going still. Adrian smiled at the ball for a moment before calling elekid back out to spend more time with everyone.
The group spent the evening playing with elekid and helping elekid bond with their other pokemon. Adrian had a smile on his face the entire evening. Eventually passing out on top of his sleeping bag with elekid asleep on his chest. His excitement for the next leg of their journey now coming to a peak as a new friend joined his team.