"PLEASE! SOMEONE! HELP!"

Griff was scared. In panic even. A unknow beast! Sure, it was small but for all he knew that was only so he would lower his guard and then be attacked by it! Or maybe it had another form? Or maybe it was a hivemind like Stakataka and it was going to combine with others like them and attack him!?

"Weird way of saying hi, you have there." The white and blue beast said sarcastically. Wait… Said!?

"Y-you can speak!? A beast that speaks?"

His eyes widened as he said that.

"Of course I can speak! And don't call me a beast, dude! Would you like me to call you a purple lizard thing? No you would not! So call me a Oshawott!" The, now identified, Oshawott said while pointing at Griff.

This was weird… And confusing… A talking beast called an "Oshawott"? These weird plants all around? And why his body felt different? For example, there was feeling on the back of his pelvis… Maybe this weird beast… No not weird beast Oshawott… Maybe this Oshawott in front of him could help answer that… So far they did not seem aggressive…

"S-Sorry. I just had never met a Oshawott before. Uh can you help me with a question thought? I feel this sensation right on the back of my pelvis… Like there was something there? I know it sounds weird… But it's almost like I could feel a … limb there or something." He explained somewhat embarrassedly. Although his confusion was winning over his embarrassment. Just what was going on…

The Oshawott simply looked at him confused before saying in a deadpan tone.
"Dude…That's your tail. Did you just evolve and did not have one before or something?"

At those words Griff entered in utter confusion. What? Tail? Wait before they had called him purple… Was this some sort of joke from the talking beast? Yeah it had to be. So he pointed at the Oshawott and said

"Sorry but you must be lying. I'm human. Humans don't have tails. Or are purple for th- "

His arm was purple… The arm he was pointing at the oshawott was purple… But not any purple…A purple he recognized… The purple of a poipole's chitin! And he did not seem to have fingers on said arm… Like a poipole… NONONONONONONO! IT COULDN'T BE! THERE HAD TO BE ANOTHER EXPLANATION! Yeah… He would just look himself at something that could reflect, and he would see himself as a human…

"Reflection! Please! Now!"

The Oshawott looked confused on what to do for a moment before shooting water at a small hole on the floor, making a small puddle. Griff was surprised at seeing that. He knew some beasts could do things like that but he had never seen it in person. But that was not what mattered! What mattered was his reflection. He ran towards the puddle, realizing that walking was without a doubt harder at the moment, something that only became more obvious when he got to the puddle and fell head on into it. But quickly he got their head up from the pond and looked at his own reflection that slowly became clearer as the water stopped moving from the impact of his head.

And his reflection was not the ,white as quartz, human face he was accustomed to see. It was instead the pink face of a poipole. With the purple chitin on the top of the head and those glowing eyes and mouth… But that was not possible right? It had to be just some really vivid hallucination or dream! But it was there. The proof that it was real... After all he would have woke up when hit the face on the water if it was a dream.

"I'm… I'm not human… Not anymore… How? Why? The voice! Does this have to do with it?"
He closed his eyes and tried to remember what happened before he ended up here. He remembered a odd voice… Asking him questions before green light and then waking up like this… But that was, admittedly, quite vague still! He could not even be sure that was not just his mind somehow hiding the truth from him.

And then he heard the oshawott's voice coming from behind.

"You know I was going to call you a liar or a prankster but… Wow this reaction… You're… You're the real deal right!? A human turned Pokemon! This has not happened in decades!"

He immediately turned around. Nearly losing his balance as he did that. He tilted his head a bit.

"Pokemon? What is a- Wait! Something like this has happened before!?"

"Yeah! Thought not in a long while. And well… They normally were smart enough to know what Pokemon are." The oshawott gave a smile although one that seemed almost mockingly in expression. Was he… Making fun of him?

"Hey I'm not dumb! I just never heard about that before, back home!" Griff said. Arms crossed as he defended himself.

"Relax! Just joking with you. I don't really think you are dumb, dude. Look a Pokemon is… What me and others you will meet are. The talking and smart inhabitants of this world that can do cool things like shoot water or fire! And when you ended up here… You turned into a Pokemon. Like how it happened to the others in the past! Seriously dude you have no idea how cool this is from my perspective! To meet a real Human!" The Oshawott smiled again. This time a genuine smile and his tail wagged slightly. Apparently not realizing this was far from cool for Griff.

But wait… If that was what a Pokemon was… Then all beasts of this world were Pokemon! Wait this Oshawott had called him a Pokemon…

"Uh… You are actually wrong on something then… I have not turned into a Pokemon. But into what my people call beasts. Specifically, a Poipole."

"Hmmm…. Nah! Good point but that would mean that where all other humans turned into Pokemon, you didn't. So clearly beasts is just how your people call pokemon. And Poipole huh? That's a cool species name! Not as cool as Oshawott but still cool!" The oshawott replied with confidence.

That… Was not exactly a bad argument… And the beasts did have similar moves to the shooting water and fire examples this oshawott had gave him of "cool things" Pokemon could do… Could it be that all the things his people called beasts were Pokemon? Did those beasts call themselves Pokemon all this time and they just never knew or is Pokemon a unique term to whatever place they are right now!?

"Uh hey… Hello? Are you daydreaming or something?" The white and blue pokemon asked waving a paw. Oh right! He was in a conversation. He could worry about the implications of beasts being possibly pokemon, later.

"S-Sorry I uh… Got lost in thought. You know how it is right? You think one thing which leads to another thing and then another thing and the next thing you know you have dozens of questions in your own head… But uh… Y-Yeah… You have a point there so you might be right about the beasts being pokemon things…" He explained while rubbing a arm on his head. As he did that he could feel the chitin on the helmet part of the head.

"It's fine and no I really don't get it. Just... Does not really happen to me often. And look, right or wrong it will just be easier for everyone if you say you're a pokemon called a poipole instead of saying that you are a beast called a poipole because that's just asking for others to ask questions."

"Oh okay… Wait where are we? What is the name of this place I mean." He looked around. Examining the area, these trees were quite different from what he was accustomed to. Their leaves were green instead of blue and purple… And the brown in them was of a tone he had never seen in a tree before. It made sense in a way, he reasoned, after all they were in a completely different world. Something that to be honest was still being processed by him.

"Well, we are in the woods near Gentle town. Talking about Gentle Town… We probably should go there. It is where I live, and I know some people who will be okay with you staying with them as much as needed." The Oshawott gives another smile and finally he noticed how the pokemon's mouth was filled with sharp teeth. Although in a way that did not make it look scary.

"A-Alright. Uh lead the way!" He said while pointing forwards. He had quite a few questions on his head. Such as who exactly would be okay with him staying with them. Why did a town have a name like "Gentle Town". And if he should know anything about the Town's people.i But he thought it was better to not ask them right now. He probably was already testing this Oshawott's patience knowing his luck… Yes… Better ask those questions later.

He nodded and then said.

"Follow me, Poipole!"

Before going ahead at a slightly fast pace.

Griff attempted to follow along, however he quickly learned that Poipoles floated not just because they could but because their pointed feet were not good at walking. Something that only got more pointed out as he tripped and fell on the floor.

"Oof!"

"Hey are you okay?" That voice was the Oshawott's voice. He must have stopped to help him after hearing his grunt at falling on the floor.

"I am it's just… Poipoles really aren't built for walking…" He said in a almost mubling.

"Really? How do Poipoles normally move around?"

He got up again and looked at the Oshawott.

"Normally they move around by floating… But I do not know how I would do that."

Should he… Jump in the air while thinking about floating? Try to run up? Imagine the air as water? What was it?
"Oh I see…"
He put a pawn at his chin and then said.

"Well that's a problem."
He then looked confident.

"But I have a solution! I will help you move until we get to town and then tomorrow, we can find someone to teach you how to float!" He said before going towards Griff and grabbing one of his arms.

"So…Ready to get out of these woods for real?"

He nooded. Griff was surprised at the grabbing, but it made sense. Like helping someone who was blind that had lost their visor or, if they were the type to not use those, a cane.

Slowly the two walked towards the exit, at least the exit if the oshawott was correct… Wait, had he told them his name? No, they had not… And neither had Griff told him his name.

"Thank you for the help so far. It has been truly great…"

"Oh it's no problem, dude. You needed help so I decided to help. And that's like the right thing to do. And also the awesome thing to do but the former matters more then awesome. Although that also matters a lot." He spoke in a tone that showed he was absolutely sure that was how things were.

"I… I am Griff. That's my name.".

"Griff… That's a awesome name. My name is awesome too. Mine is Lucian."

"Heh y-yeah it sounds cool…" He gave a soft smile towards Lucian.

"Haha! I knew you would agree at that!" The oshawott's smil- No. Lucian's smile grew bigger.

The two kept walking until finally the forest ended. The trees stopped and plains of grass and some lakes began. But far more important than that? The first thing Griff noticed when leaving the forest with it's shadow and darkness he was accustomed to? The light. There was light everywhere. Where was the source of it? He looked around confused, making Lucian look at him as if he was going crazy, but then he saw it and Griff could only look wordless at it. Mouth open but unable to know what to say. A circle of light in the sky. That hurt to look at yet felt cozy and nice to know it was there… Was that… Was that a sun? Like the one he had read about in those history books? It was beautiful… The most beautiful thing he had ever seen! Without a doubt!

"Hey uh are you okay dude?" Asked Lucian in a worried tone.

For a moment Griff said nothing. Just stared as much as he could at the sun. Even if it hurt his eyes. But finally, he closed his eyes. Bowed down his head and spoke.
"Yes just... Had never seen the sun before… It's quite amazing. Painful to look at but amazing... Beautifull…"

He smiled as he said that.

"Oh... Wait! You had never seen it before!? How!? I mean it is the sun! Sure, you are from another world, but your world must have one too, right?" He looked at Griff as if Griff had suddenly changed colors.

"… It's complicated. I will explain during our walk to town, I promise. Just… It's a long story and so sorry if I start rambling."

"Alright then. Let's continue it then. And don't worry about rambling. As long as you explain it you can ramble for a entire hour if you want. You can ramble a entire day even!"

Griff's eyes widened.
"It will take a entire day to get to town!?"

"What? No! It was not literal, dude."

"Oh…"

And then they went. Continuing their journey to town. And as they walked, Griff explained the best he could about his people's past. As he finished his explanation, he could see the look of sheer confusion on the oshawott's eyes.

"Okay let me see if I understood this correctly…"

Why did Griff now felt like this meant his explanation would not be the end of the conversation about his home?