The Collected Writings of Ash Ketchum, from the history section in the public library.
My story begins at the beginning of my life, really. I have been interested in Pokémon since birth. I became a prodigy student, graduating from Professor Oak's school at the age of ten instead of thirteen. My Pikachu… we first met when I was less than a year old. He was the pet that Dad kept, and then the pet that Mom kept as a memory of my late father, who was a Pokémon Trainer of very high reputation. He died eight years ago, and Pikachu has been at my side ever since.
It was finally the day. I had been sitting in my room for five months, waiting. Waiting for the paperwork to be processed, waiting for the selection committee to make their choice, worrying that I wouldn't be picked and this would all come to nothing, and then the letter came in the mail. I was accepted to the Pokémon Academy in Mesagosa City, Paldea. I was packing my things before I walked out the door. There wasn't much, really. Many Trainers buy Pokétches when they graduate from Trainer's school. My mom said I was too young to have one. The only thing that is precious to me, really, is Pikachu. My suitcase was therefore very small. He hopped on my back, and I left home to start my journey.
It was a very long walk up Route 1 to get to Viridian City. Mom did not want me starting my journey that way; I also had to get to the airport on time. So she called a Gogoat Shuttle and we sat there chatting as we were pulled down the Route, at an incredibly fast speed.
We were dropped off at the airport. It was finally time to say good-bye to Mom. The parting was surprisingly tearless; Mom knew that this was the life that her late husband, my father, would have wanted. Were he still down here with us, he would be so proud.
I had never traveled via airplane before. I had to wait in a line, and then when I got to the head of the queue I was asked to show a man in a police uniform all my Pokéballs. I explained to him I didn't have any. The only Pokémon I had was my Pikachu, and I had known him since I was a baby. He was unconvinced, and searched my suitcase for any hidden Pokéballs. But seeing as he found none, he sheepishly thanked me for my time and I moved on.
Past the security checkpoint was a large open space with a number of restaurants. One business was called a "Poké Mart." It had this very specific-looking façade, so it was clearly a chain store. I wandered inside. There I found items like Potions and Full Heals. If I needed to heal my Pokémon before the long voyage, I would buy the products here. The prices were astronomical. I had no need for any of that (in fact, I had no money on me at all), so I left the Poké Mart, found a bench to sit on in front of the gate I needed to use.
While we were waiting Pikachu did a little dance on the ground to entertain me during the long wait. I remember this clearly because a security official walked by, saw what he was doing, and gave me a disapproving stare. I was worried that I was doing something wrong, so I flagged to the security man so I ask if I was in trouble. His only complaint was that Pikachu was dancing out in the public area, causing what he called a "nuisance." He said he would never would have taken any action against me, and regulations say he can't. I explained that this was my first time at an airport, and the security guard then reassured me that I am doing nothing wrong and that Pikachu was just in his way. That's all.
I was taught as a child to always be afraid of police officers. They don't care about anything and would lock me up in a heartbeat if I were to somehow interfere with their work. I had the same reaction to this security officer, but I noted that she didn't have any handcuffs, and only one Pokéball. Like she said, I was doing nothing wrong.
Pikachu started dancing again, this time looking for anyone coming close. When someone did, he would jump onto my back again until they passed. When other passengers saw this, they smiled.
Eventually my plane came (it was an hour behind schedule), and I boarded the plane. The flight to Paldea was a long one. The person in the seat next to me remarked to me that Pikachu should have been put away in a Pokéball. I told him how Pikachu doesn't have one, and he was agreeable. Nothing more happened until the end of the flight.
By the time we landed in Paldea, it was late at night. After I passed the security checkpoint I remarked that I had no idea what to do. Then I saw someone with a sign saying "Pokémon Academy Inductee from Kanto." I walked over to him, and he introduced himself and said it was his job to get me the rest of the way to the Academy. We rode another Gogoat Shuttle, although this one was much slower. Soon enough, we were there.