Chapter 6

Leaf had played the scenario several times in her head. Red and Blue had just lost a battle, either to a high-level trainer or a Gym Leader or even a member of the Elite Four. Red was not pleased, but still gracious with his defeat. Blue was grumbling something about "letting" the other trainer win. Then, they would hear, My turn. They'd turn and see Leaf approaching them, all cool and confident. She would battle the other trainer, unleashing a force never seen before, and win within seconds. Red would be amazed and so proud of her while Blue would begrudgingly acknowledge her talent.

That was how Leaf had imagined her reunion with her childhood friends. She didn't expect to bump into any of them right here, in the Cerulean Pokemon Center, tired and aching from her trek through Mount Moon. It didn't help that the boy standing in front of her was not the one she had been really hoping to see and that he, as usual, was smirking as if he were god's gift to mankind. There were so many witty and clever things Leaf had wanted to say, but what came out of her mouth was, "W-What are you doing here?"

Amusement flickered in Blue's eyes. "What do you think? I am a Pokemon trainer now. Really, I should be the one asking that question, Miss Jumped-Out-A-Window." When Leaf's mouth fell open, Blue sniggered and explained, "Of course I know all about it. Gramps told me. He didn't mention that your mom changed her mind, though."

"Guess it's been some time since you two last talked. I started my journey three days ago," Leaf replied hotly.

This time, it was Blue's turn to be surprised, though it only showed on his face for a brief moment. "You left Pallet Town only three days ago?"

Regaining her confidence, Leaf said brightly, "Yup! Beat Brock just this morning. How long have you been traveling, again? A week-and-a-half?"

Blue was unphased by her quip. "Yeah, that's right. Gramps said that since a Pokemon journey is a once-in-a-lifetime experience, I should be sure to see as much as I can. That's why I've been spending a few days in each city. What did you think of the Pewter Museum, by the way? I loved the fossil collection."

It hadn't crossed her mind to even walk up the museum's steps. Leaf desperately searched through her memory for a significant thing she did outside of battling and was weirdly embarrassed that she couldn't find anything. She was not about to let Blue know that, though. She'd rather die than give him any sort of satisfaction.

Straightening herself, Leaf said, "It's nice you're able to relax. Since I'm going to be the Indigo League Champion one day, I have to train all the time. I can't go to museums and whatnot."

Blue cocked his head at her. "Honestly, I figured you weren't doing much else just by looking at you."

Leaf flushed as she realized how she must look right now. Thanks to her fall at Mount Moon, she was covered in bruises, scrapes, and grime. And when was the last time she showered? Blue, on the other hand, was perfectly polished. There was not a single wrinkle in his clothes and she could smell his cologne. Of course he packed that.

"Anyways, Champion, huh?" Blue chuckled. "What a coincidence, I've been thinking about that too." He raised an eyebrow. "Guess that makes us rivals then."

Leaf met his gaze unflinchingly. "I guess so."

"Well, rival, since you've been training so hard, you must be pretty strong. How about a battle some time later today?"

Leaf hesitated. She had told herself that she would take a break. She was exhausted and she was certain Ivysaur and Spearow were, too. But a battle against Blue was too tempting to turn down.

"Let's do tomorrow morning," Leaf suggested.

"Works for me," Blue said. "I was invited to a party tonight anyway."

"A party?"

Blue grinned lazily. "This girl I met earlier invited me to her friend's party. I can't say I have a burning desire to go, but the girl was pretty cute."

Leaf rolled her eyes. For reasons she would never understand, Blue was a hit with the girls at school. It was unfortunate that Blue's popularity extended beyond Pallet Town.

"Well, I'm off now. It was nice to catch up, Leaf. I'm looking forward to our battle tomorrow." Blue began to walk away. After a few steps, he stopped and added over his shoulder, "By the way, your boyfriend's in town, too. He went to Bill McIntyre's house."

Blue left Leaf standing in a daze. Red was here! Red was in Cerulean! A giant smile spread across her face.

After asking one of the nurses, Leaf learned that Bill McIntyre, inventor of the PC, lived on the Cerulean Cape. To get there, she would have to cross Nugget Bridge. Nugget Bridge was Cerulean City's most famous landmark. It was a beautiful bridge, with the color and shine of gold, that stretched across a river north of the city. From it, Leaf could see a large cave in the distance. She passed by a group of trainers as well, in the middle of a heated discussion.

"That dude was insane," One of them said. "He beat all of us so quickly."

As the rest murmured in agreement, Leaf suddenly thought of the mystery trainer Joey mentioned, the one who was apparently different from anyone he ever faced.

Leaf turned to them. "Excuse me?" All of them looked at her. "Sorry to interrupt, I just overheard you all and was wondering who you were talking about?"

The trainer who had first spoken, a boy who looked to be a few years older, shrugged. "We didn't get his name. He just took off."

"Took off?"

He nodded. "We're the Nugget Bridge Trainers. We do this challenge where if a trainer can beat all of us in battle, they win a nugget. This guy steamrolled us and our leader, Frank. But for some reason, both him and Frank ran off somewhere after battling each other."

Well, that wasn't exactly helpful. Still, as Leaf finished crossing the bridge, she had the nagging feeling that Joey's trainer and the Nugget Bridge trainer were the same person. For some reason, it troubled her a bit.

Leaf turned right onto Route 25, a maze of trees and shrubs. At the end of it was the Cerulean Cape. It greeted her with a pleasant breeze.

Leaf had expected a tycoon like Bill McIntyre to live in a mansion. To her surprise, his house was a simple cottage. There was a short cobble-stone path that connected the cottage to a pond south of it and a hill east of it that overlooked the sea.

The door was half-open. Leaf hadn't meant to look inside, but she noticed a boy standing not too far from the entrance. He wore a red t-shirt with black sleeves and a white collar, jeans, and red-and-black sneakers. Over his messy, jet-black hair was a red cap.

His back was facing her, but Leaf knew who he was. She had seen that back countless times whenever they raced each other and he proved to be the faster runner.

"Red!" Leaf called out. Forgetting her manners, she barged into the house.

Red Woods turned at the sound of her voice, brown eyes wide. "L-Leaf?"

Leaf threw her arms around her best friend. He patted her back. Red had always been awkward about physical contact. Other than his mom, Leaf was the only person who he let touch him.

Leaf pulled away, grinning from ear to ear. "I can't believe we're both in Cerulean City."

"Uh yeah, me neither." Red scratched the back of his head. "Sorry, Leaf. I'm happy to see you, but I'm kind of in the middle of something."

"Who's there?" A muffled voice asked. That was when Leaf saw where she was.

What was supposed to be a house was more like a laboratory, with monitors and other technology hooked up everywhere. Red was standing by a desk with a PC on top. The PC's screen glowed green. Boxes and papers were strewn all over the floor. But what really caught Leaf's eyes were up ahead, against the wall: two metal silos, connected to each other by a thick green tube.

Red was looking at the silo on the right when he answered, "My friend."

"OK, well, can you please catch up with your friend after you hit the switch like I asked?"

Leaf watched in awe as Red pressed a button on the PC and the right silo suddenly began to glow. It made a pulsing sound a few times before blue light shot through the tube to the left silo. As if the right silo had given its light to its companion, it calmed down while the left silo glowed and pulsed.

After a few moments, the left silo went silent. Its door opened and a young, lanky man with curly brown hair stepped out.

Bill McIntyre quickly dusted his shirt and khakis before smiling at Red. "Yeehah! Thanks, bud! I owe you one!"

Red simply nodded. Bill continued, "We haven't properly introduced each other. I'm Bill, who are you guys?"

"Red."

"I'm Leaf. We're both trainers from Pallet Town."

Bill smiled. "I figured you two were trainers. I'm guessing you came to see my Pokemon collection?" He chuckled when Leaf and Red nodded eagerly.

Bill opened the door to the right silo and to Leaf's surprise, a Clefairy jumped out. Bill pet the Clefairy on its pink head. "Sorry about that scare earlier. Now we know to never do that again." He turned to Leaf. "I was doing an experiment on Pokemon teleportation. It went totally haywire and I was fused with my poor Clefairy. Red was helping me return to my body."

Leaf had no idea how to respond to that. As Bill led them through his surprisingly plain house, Leaf snuck glances at the esteemed inventor. This man was one of the most influential people of all time. His face was regularly on TV. Seeing him in real life, though, Leaf found she wasn't as impressed with him as she expected to be. Despite his crazy experiment, something about him seemed so normal. As if he could be a guy she passed by on the streets. Leaf found that she liked that.

Bill opened the door to his backyard and Leaf gasped. Chasing and wrestling each other around the grassy area were an assortment of cat-like creatures. One was a burnt-orange color with fluffy yellow fur on its head and around its neck. It had a bushy yellow tail. Another was blue and incredibly sleek. It had fins around its head and neck and a long tail that looked like that of a mermaid. A third was yellow and spiky with a white collar. A fourth was lilac, with a red gem between its dazzling purple eyes. A fifth was black with yellow ring markings on its ears, forehead, legs, and tail. It had piercing red eyes. The rest––Leaf couldn't quite count how many there were––were small and brown with bushy tails and cream-colored fluff around their necks.

"The brown ones are called Eeevee," Bill said proudly. "The others are its evolutions, or as I like to call them, eeveelutions." He chuckled at his joke.

Leaf blinked. "Eevee evolves into all of them?"

Bill nodded. "Eevee is a unique Pokemon. It evolves under special circumstances, and those circumstances determine what it evolves into. For example, Eevee becomes that fluffy orange one over there, Flareon, if given a Fire Stone."

"Fire Stone?"

"There are rare stones out there that some Pokemon need in order to evolve. For Flareon, it's the Fire Stone. The blue one, Vaporeon, a Water Stone. The yellow one, Jolteon, a Thunder Stone."

Leaf was fascinated. "What about the lilac and black ones?"

"Oh, they're different. I haven't quite figured out what triggered their evolutions, other than for the lilac one, Espeon, it happened during the day and for the black one, Umbreon, it happened at night."

Leaf pulled out her Pokedex. "Do you mind if I scan them?"

Bill leaned forward to look at the Pokedex more closely. "What is that?"

Leaf was pleased about knowing something Bill didn't. "It's Professor Oak's newest invention. It records all the Pokemon I've seen."

Bill's eyes widened. "His newest invention? How did you get that?"

"We know him personally." Leaf always felt a flicker of pride when she remembered how close she was to the professor. Though he was friendly to everyone, his celebrity status created some distance between him and other Pallet Town residents. Many of their peers envied Leaf and Red growing up for being able to stop by his place whenever.

Bill opened his mouth, then closed it, then said, "There are so many questions I want to ask but I don't want to keep you here forever. I have a lot of work to do, too. After you scan everyone, I'm going to have to ask you to leave."

Leaf and Red scanned the Eevee and their evolutions. They even got to pet some of them. Once they were done, Bill led them back to the front of his house.

At the door, Bill stuck his hand into his pocket and fished out two tickets. "These are tickets for the S.S. Anne, a cruise ship in Vermilion City. I was invited to their party, but I don't like large crowds, so you guys can have them. I hear there are tons of trainers on board, too."

Bill handed the tickets to them and smiled. "Good luck. I hope we meet again."

Leaf was bursting with excitement as she thanked Bill and left with Red. She couldn't wait to tell her parents and Professor Oak that she met the Bill McIntyre. A few steps later, though, Leaf found herself excited by something else.

She turned to Red and pointed at him. "You and I need to catch up. Let's go to the Pokemon Center. I need to check up on my Pokemon."

Red smiled his usual soft smile. When was the last time Leaf had seen that smile? Too long, she decided. "Race ya?"

There was a bypass beyond Bill's pond that led back to Cerulean City. Leaf and Red sprinted down it. As always, Red surged ahead, way out of Leaf's reach.

Ivysaur and Spearow were ready for Leaf when she and Red arrived at the Pokemon Center. They sat on a bench outside and Leaf introduced her Pokemon to Red, who in turn introduced her to his. Like her, he only had two. His starter, initially a Charmander, was now a Charmeleon, a red reptile with a cream underside and a burning flame on the tip of its tail. The other Pokemon was a yellow mouse with red cheeks, pointy black-tipped ears, and a lightning-shaped tail.

"This is Pikachu," Red said, petting it between its ears. Pikachu squeaked in delight. "I caught him in Viridian Forest. He likes to ride on my shoulder a lot, but I put him in his PokeBall before I went inside Bill's house."

Leaf smiled as Red picked up Pikachu and began to bounce him. Red wasn't typically a playful guy. In fact, he was the most solemn person Leaf had ever met. He was more open with Leaf, but to others, he was a silent stone wall. People, including her parents, had asked Leaf why she was friends with someone so inexpressive. The truth was that Leaf appreciated his stoic, quiet demeanor. It always made her feel calm and grounded.

Plus, there was the vulnerable side that he rarely showed. His gentleness towards the Pokemon that came into his house, which his former Pokemon Center nurse mom had partially turned into a clinic. His sensitivity which, as a kid, made him an easy target for bullies that Leaf and Blue had to fend off. They didn't pick on him anymore, but Red's doubts and insecurities had stayed with him and every now and then, he would confide in Leaf about them. How he wished he could connect with people better. How a part of him regretted falling out with Blue, even though he was a major tool now. How he had never met his dad, a traveling trainer whose only form of contact was the money he sent home every year.

Leaf had no doubt that Red still thought about these things, but watching him play with his Pokemon, hearing him begin to talk about his journey, she felt that he had changed. He seemed more confident, surer of himself. There was a sparkle in his eyes and lightness in his voice as he spoke about how Blue challenged him to a battle right after they picked their starters, how Pikachu came up to him in the forest after smelling the food in his backpack, how Brock had been his toughest opponent so far because Charmeleon, a fire-type, and Pikachu, an electric-type, were weak against his team. Leaf's heart warmed. She liked this version of Red a lot.

Once Red began talking about Mount Moon, his gaze darkened. "Hey, Leaf," he said. "By any chance, have you heard of Team Rocket before?"

Leaf flinched. "You know them? I caught them trying to steal some Clefairy from Mount Moon."

"They were still at Mount Moon? How many?" When Leaf answered, "Two," Red shook his head. "There were a dozen when I was there a couple of days ago. They were searching for fossils, which is normal, but they were being weird about it. Like they couldn't let anyone know. I battled and beat all of them and they left. I guess two of them returned, or they were a part of a different mission." He paused. "Be careful, Leaf. Even here, I saw one of them. This guy named Frank. I battled him at Nugget Bridge earlier today."

Leaf felt as if she had been struck by lightning. This guy steamrolled us and our leader, Frank. "Wait, you're the mystery trainer?"

Red blinked. "The what?"

"When I crossed Nugget Bridge, I met the Nugget Bridge Trainers. They said some guy defeated all of them and their leader Frank. They said that guy and Frank took off after battling. You're that guy?"

Red looked confused by Leaf's shock. "Uh yeah? It turned out Frank was using the Nugget Bridge challenge to recruit potential members for Team Rocket. He wanted me to join, I declined, and we battled. He ran away after he lost. I went after him but ended up losing him."

Leaf barely heard him. "At Viridian City, did you destroy a kid named Joey?"

"I'd rather not say it like that, but sure. Why?"

Leaf's mind was all over the place. The mystery trainer, who was apparently so strong, much stronger than anyone else, was none other than her best friend Red Woods. She didn't know how to feel about that. This whole time, she hadn't considered the possibility that she knew who this trainer was. She remembered the strange feeling she had at Nugget Bridge and suddenly, it made sense. This mystery trainer had started his journey the same time Red did, had been last seen going in the direction Red was going. Deep down, Leaf had realized it might not have been a coincidence. But it was still hard for her to wrap her mind around.

Trying to sound casual, Leaf replied, "You're starting to build quite the reputation." She smiled. "Let's battle some time. I want to see how strong you are."

Red chuckled and scratched the back of his head. "Sure, but not now. I'm challenging Cerulean's Gym Leader today and then leaving tomorrow."

"When? I'd like to see you battle. Also, I'm battling Blue tomorrow morning so don't leave until after!"

"After dinner. And I guess you've seen Blue already." Red smiled. "You'll be fine. I've battled him three times so far and won every time."

Leaf laughed. "I bet his ego couldn't handle that. He's still a jerk. He kept judging me about my journey."

"About that," Red said carefully. "My mom said you jumped out a window?"

Leaf flushed. "I guess it's my turn to talk now."

Leaf woke the next morning, freshly showered and rejuvenated. After their big catch-up, Leaf and Red got dinner together at a restaurant and then went to the Cerulean Gym, which was essentially a swimming facility. The Gym Leader, Misty Waterflower, was an energetic young woman with orange hair and water-type Pokemon. Red had the advantage with Pikachu, but Leaf could tell as she watched from the bleachers that Red would've won even if that weren't the case. Joey had said there was something different about Red and Leaf agreed. The way he directed Pikachu looked so natural, as if Pikachu was an extension of him. Leaf was a good trainer, but she knew she didn't look like that when battling. She wanted to look like that.

Now she was standing on one end of the dirt battlefield behind the Pokemon Center. Facing her on the opposite side was Blue. Trainers, including Red, had gathered around to watch their battle. Some of the trainers were talking quietly, but animatedly, to each other. Isn't that guy Professor Oak's grandson? Yes, it is. Let's see if he lives up to the Oak name. From the corner of her eye, Leaf saw someone pull out a camera.

"Ready to battle, rival?" Blue called out.

Leaf straightened. "I've been ready."

Blue smirked and sent out his first Pokemon: a large brown-and-cream bird with long pink feathers on its head and red and yellow feathers on its tail. The Pokedex told Leaf it was a Pidgeotto, which evolved from Pidgey.

"The evolved version of your worst nightmare," Blue said smugly. He had been there for the Pidgey debacle and would never let Leaf live it down.

Leaf sent out Spearow. She was much smaller than her opponent, but Leaf trusted that Spearow could win.

"I'm feeling generous today," Blue said. "You can have the first move."

"Spearow, use Fury Attack!" Spearow flew at the Pidgeotto.

"Pidgeotto, use Gust!"

Leaf's mouth fell open as the Pidgeotto flew up and violently flapped its wings, creating a strong wind that Spearow couldn't fly against. Spearow hit the ground, pinned down by the Gust.

"Now, keep using Wing Attack!" The Pidgeotto dived at Spearow and began knocking her around with its wings. Leaf tried getting Spearow to dodge, or retaliate with a Fury Attack, but the Pidgeotto was too fast and strong.

"Alright Pidgeotto, now use Peck," Blue ordered.

Spearow was lying on the ground, feathers ruffled and covered in dirt. She was fighting to stay conscious. Leaf pulled out Spearow's PokeBall, guilt washing over her. The least she could do was save Spearow from another attack.

She couldn't even do that. The Pidgeotto was faster and sharply pecked at Spearow. Leaf's blood froze when Spearow's eyes closed and did not open.

Leaf's hand shook as she returned her. Spearow fainted. Her Pokemon fainted. But the battle wasn't over yet and Leaf found she didn't have time to dwell on it. Maybe that was how the trainers on TV were so nonchalant. They saved their emotions for after the battle.

Leaf sent out Ivysaur. Blue ordered Pidgeotto to use Wing Attack again.

"Ivysaur, grab Pidgeotto with your vines!" Ivysaur's vines shot out and wrapped around Pidgeotto's body. The Pidgeotto squawked in surprise.

"Pidgeotto, fly around!" Ivysaur hadn't grabbed onto Pidgeotto's wings. The Pidgeotto flew in circles, dragging Ivysaur along the ground.

"Ivysaur, throw Pidgeotto down!" The Pidgeotto cried out as Ivysaur obeyed Leaf. "Bring it closer to you and use Leech Seed!"

To Leaf's relief, Ivysaur was able to do as she said. The seeds began to steal the Pidgeotto's energy.

"Pidgeotto, shake everything off!"

"Ivysaur, don't let go of Pidgeotto!"

Ivysaur kept the Pidgeotto firmly pinned on the ground, even when it pecked at him. The Leech Seed continued to do its job and the Pidgeotto eventually fainted.

Leaf smiled as Blue returned his Pidgeotto. Defeating the Pidgeotto felt a bit like avenging Spearow.

Blue's next Pokemon was an Abra, a strange yellow and brown Pokemon that looked like it was asleep. The Abra didn't seem to know any move other than "Teleport." It teleported around the battlefield, dodging four of Ivysaur's Vine Whips. The fifth one landed and the Abra was knocked out.

Blue was down to his last Pokemon, his starter. It was called Wartortle and it evolved from Squirtle. It was a blue turtle that stood on its hind legs. It had a brown shell, pale blue feather-like ears, and a wavy pale blue tail. Its smirk looked a lot like its trainer's.

Wartortle was a water-type and Leaf knew Ivysaur had the advantage. It didn't look fast, either. Leaf could taste victory on the tip of her tongue.

"Ivysaur, use Vine Whip!"

"Wartortle, use Rapid Spin!"

The Wartortle retreated into its shell. The shell floated up and began to spin so fast, it made Leaf dizzy looking at it. It flew around Ivysaur's vines and collided into Ivysaur.

It was like a repeat of Spearow and Pidgeotto's battle. The Wartortle kept using Rapid Spin and was too fast for Ivysaur to respond.

"Use Bite!" The Wartortle stopped spinning, fell onto Ivysaur's back, and bit his head. Ivysaur cried out.

Before Leaf could say anything, Blue ordered, "Now use Water Gun!"

A jet of water shot out of the Wartortle's mouth, projecting it upwards and pinning Ivysaur to the ground. When the Wartortle stopped and landed back on its feet, Ivysaur was no longer awake.

Leaf lost.

The world around her seemed to fade away. The other trainers were talking but she couldn't hear what they were saying. The only things she could semi-process were Blue approaching her to collect his prize money, which she gave to him robotically, and Ivysaur lying on the ground unconscious.

"Well, that was fun. Always nice to kick off the morning with a light training session," Blue said. "I'd love to stick around and chat, but I have a busy schedule today. Smell ya, Leaf."

Blue, along with the other trainers, left and Leaf was alone.

Well, not entirely alone.

Leaf felt a hand on her shoulder. Brought back to earth, Leaf looked and saw it was Red. He said nothing, but Leaf knew what to do. She returned Ivysaur to his PokeBall and went inside the Pokemon Center. After handing her Pokemon to a nurse, Leaf slumped down on a bench with Red next to her.

"I can't believe I lost a battle, and to Blue out of all people," Leaf finally said, voice choking up. To her embarrassment, she felt tears pricking her eyes. She angrily wiped them away.

Red was still silent. He put his hand on her back. It was a simple gesture, but Leaf found some comfort in it. She leaned against him and the two waited for her Pokemon to heal.

This is the longest and also my favorite chapter so far. It was actually one of the chapters I was the most excited to start writing about. I hadn't intended for it to be this long, but my fingers were flying. Everything just came out so naturally which I think is one of the best feelings a writer could have :)

Leaf has lost her first battle! A couple of reviewers predicted this last chap. S/O to them and to everyone else who's been reviewing and following my story. Always appreciate the feedback. Thanks again and stay tuned for chap 7!