Ash and May call all their Pokemon out as the trio decides to take a break from their journey to Rusboro City. Blastoise, Taillow, and Zigzagoon are introduced to Treecko and Cacnea, two of Ash's newest recruits. May meanwhile played with her Torchic and Azurill.
Max watches the interaction in silence, a little put off by the fact that his sister and Ash both had Pokemon and he did not. It was not like he hadn't asked his father for a Pokemon. He knew everything there was to know about Pokemon, about how to train and raise them. Yet the man had denied him that. It was a hard blow for the boy and kept him lost in his thoughts most of the time.
He was so lost at that moment, that he did not realize until it was too late that Ember and Water Gun were flying over his shoulders, almost kissing his ears.
"What was that for?!" Max shrieked. And in the next moment, he was on his back scurrying towards his sister and Ash when he heard a pained hiss. A Pokemon had snuck up on him and he hadn't even realised it!
"Seviper, the Fang Snake Pokemon. Seviper's swordlike tail serves two purposes - it slashes foes and douses them with secreted poison. This Pokémon will not give up its long-running blood feud with Zangoose."
May took charge of the battle before Ash could, commanding Azurill and Torchic to use Water Gun and Ember respectively. Seviper dodged the Water Gun but Ember rained down on it and pushed it back. It charged with Poison Tail but Azurill jumped out of the way and Torchic ducked under it. Azurill slammed her tail into Seviper's head while Torchic slammed her beak under Sevier's chin. The Pokemon let out a pained cry, shaking them both off before using Haze to obscure their vision. Seviper moved through the Haze, hitting both Azurill and Trchic with consecutive Poison Tails before a sudden glow in the Haze blinded Seviper. The glow grew brighter and brighter before it faded. A stream of bubbles broke through the Haze and Seviper was sent flying out of it. More bubbles appeared, swirling inside the Haze before disintegrating it entirely. Torchic wobbled on the spot and beside her stood not Azurill but a different Pokemon altogether.
Ash helpfully pointed out that her Azurill had evolved.
Torchic used Ember and Marill used Bubblebeam. The attacks combined to form some kind of odd flaming bubble. The attacks hit Seviper, sending it crashing into a tree and knocking it out.
"Catch it!" Max yelled at his sister, who was beginning to look away.
May snapped out of pre-celebrations and threw a Pokeball at the fallen Seviper. Three shakes later the Pokemon was caught.
May went to Max while Marill collected Seviper's Pokeball for her trainer.
"You okay, right?" she asked her little brother.
Max smiled tightly and nodded.
But he wasn't alright. His sister, who did not care about Pokemon much, had not only battled and defeated a strong Pokemon but also caught it and evolved one of her Pokemon in the process.
Max was frankly jealous.
The trio had finally made it out of Petalburg Wood and arrived in a small town called Rinshin Town. The trio decide to split up, May goes window shopping, Ash goes to find something to eat and Max just explores the city to see if he can find any new Pokemon.
It didn't take long for Max to find a Pokemon.
It was near an alleyway that Max saw a black blur dash into. He gave chase and found himself staring at a very unhappy Shroomish. Knowing how sensitive these Pokemon were, Max approached it slowly, making sure to not agitate it in any way, both hands raised and visible. The Shroomish watched Max closely, ready to strike, until it decided not to. The Pokemon walked over to Max and gently bumped its head against his leg. Max took this as a sign and picked the Pokemon up in his arms.
Shroomish looked happy to be carried.
Max caught up with Ash and May, both of whom looked surprised at the Shroomish. Max explained to them where he found the Shroomish. Ash was about to suggest something when the Shroomish jumped from Max's arms and ran off. Max gave it chase and the other two gave chase to Max.
The Shroomish led the trio to an abandoned building called the Green Lodge. Shroomish rushed in and Max followed with the other two. The trio found themselves staring at a herd of Shroomish, none of them looking too happy. The Shroomish Max was carrying bumped into his leg again and gave the rest a meaningful look.
Ash, May and Max share a look before coming to a decision.
The trio had led the Shroomish herd to Petalburg Woods. The woods were the perfect place for these Pokemon according to the Pokedex. The herd happily rushed into the woods.
All but one that is.
The one Max had befriended stuck back, looking at Max meaningfully.
Max understood the look.
"I- I'm not a trainer" Max swallowed thickly. "I can't take you with me."
He wanted to though. He wanted to capture the Shroomish badly. His own Pokemon. His first Pokemon! He was desperate to do it. But he was no trainer. He had nothing to help him with the capture.
A light tap on the shoulder made Max turn. It was Ash, holding out a Pokeball.
"Go on" Ash urged.
"But-" Max swallowed, "my dad said I wasn't ready yet."
"None of us are ready until we take a step forward" Ash smiled, "go on, take the step."
Max stared at Ash for a moment before he took the Pokeball. The boy turned to Shroomish and threw the Pokeball at it. Shroomish was sucked into the Pokeball ad three shakes later it was captured.
Max turned immediately and hugged Ash tightly, profusely thanking him for his help.
It took a lot of convincing but in the end, Ash, May and Max were able to convince Norman to allow Max to start his journey. The duo bought Max his supplies before departing Rinshin Town.
Halfway away from the Town, the trio find themselves surrounded by dark canine Pokemon.
"Mightyena, the Bite Pokemon. Mightyena gives obvious signals when it is preparing to attack. It starts to growl deeply and then flattens its body. This Pokémon will bite savagely with its sharply pointed fangs."
Right about now all three Mightyena were giving some obvious signals.
Ash sent his Blastoise out, May sent her Seviper out and Max sent his Shroomish out to fight. But before they could begin, a girl came rushing forward, demanding to know what was going on.
"We were just passing through to Rustboro when these three began snarling at us!" Max exclaimed.
The girl turns to the three hounds before sighing.
"I'm sorry. They are just very territorial about the Pokemon Preserve" the girl explained.
With the misunderstanding solved, she invites the trio to her office, where she offers them refreshments.
It was where Max saw a depressed little puppy.
"What's wrong with him?" Max asked.
"Poochyena has been having a tough time evolving" Katrina the preserve manager explained. "He was born at the same time as the Mightyena that ambushed you. Those three evolved but this one has not."
"Does he want to evolve?" Ash asked.
"Why wouldn't he?" Max countered. "Evolution is great! You get more powerful!"
"Some Pokemon choose not to evolve. I have a Pikachu back at Professor Oak's Lab that has shown no interest in evolving all through my journey with him through Kanto, Orange Islands and Johto. But it's a very powerful Pokemon already. A very powerful Pokemon does not have to be fully evolved. If you raise a Pokemon well, it can become powerful as it is."
Max and May both took in what Ash said and mulled over the words.
The trio had remained at the preserve for two days, during which time Max had tried to help Poochyena evolve, but the Pokemon showed no inclination towards evolving. Max even helped it train by pitting it against his Shroomish. In the end, Max was not successful in helping the Poochyena evolve.
So with a dejected heart, Max left the Pokemon Preserve. But on the bright side, he'd made a new friend in that Poochyena. It was a shame he could take him with him.