It's Always You

AN: Alright, I've been working on this several weeks, and I figured if I was going to post it, it was now or never. Not to mention it's my birthday so I can hope for more reviews. This is the first chapter of my first story here. It follows the basic gist of the Emerald story line, but hopefully I can spice it up a little. So, on we go.

Chapter One

Arceus. When I had volunteered to stay in the back of the moving truck, I hadn't ever imagined it to be this uncomfortable. I had probably had the same box fall on my head three times. I had been thrown against the walls, and I had to stay in the corner in fear the door would slide open of its own will.

Finally, finally, finally, we stopped. Ready to hurl, I stepped out of the truck and took a few moments to stabilize myself. After swallowing down some bile and shaking my head to clear it, I looked around before curling my upper lip in distaste. It was a town, with cute little cottages and a river and a clean, innocent smell.

I despised it. Growing up in Goldenrod City in Johto for thirteen years had branded me as a city girl, through and through. I wanted the exhaust, the noise, the buildings. Where was the concrete sidewalk? And I missed the radio tower already…

I grumbled as my mother came around to the back of the truck to make sure I had gotten out alive.

"May, dear," I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. "How was the ride?"

It took every ounce of my willpower to not reply with a sarcastic, "Jim dandy, Mom!"
I settled for, "Fine, Mom."

She didn't seem to believe me, seeing as my face was probably a delicate shade of green, but continued speaking anyways. "Well, May!" she exclaimed, turning towards the woods and inhaling dramatically. "Welcome to Littleroot Town! Sure, it isn't Goldenrod, but at least we can go see your father without taking a boat."

I didn't respond, instead choosing to grab the box with my few personal effects before trooping inside. "I'm going to unpack," I said gruffly.

I heard her sigh, but I couldn't bother to apologize for my behavior. I felt a little bad, actually. It wasn't as if it was her fault. My father couldn't wait for Whitney to move out, no. He had to jump at the new Hoenn job. I scoffed as I trudged up the stairs before turning into the nearest room on the right. I eyed the plain, bare space with mild interest—the movers had already brought up my bed and desk, at least. I tried not to damage anything out of anger as I unpacked. I ignored the Machoke as they each trooped up with a new box. I continued unpacking before finally setting the clock my dad had gotten me as a gift.

Because every girl wants a clock. Dad was lucky that I didn't smash the glass and break the Slakoth hands. I trudged downstairs, hands in my pockets, when my mother looked up from the TV. "May! Your dad's on TV--come look!" She practically got behind me and shoved me towards the television in front of the kitchen table.

"… and that wraps up our report on the Petalburg Gym."

"Oh," my mother sounded defeated. "I guess you missed him… Well! One of dad's friend's lives next door—the Pokémon Professor. Birch, I think it was. Why don't you go introduce yourself?"

I sighed. Did she really think I wanted to go see dad's friends? But I didn't complain; it wasn't as if I had anything else to do. I had no friends in this region, and my brother was somewhere in Kanto by now. He had gone off to New Bark town at ten years old to get his Pokémon and promptly left to conquer all of Johto and the Silver Conference. I had been eight as I watched him finally fall in the quarterfinals. Of course, he visited home for a few days before setting off for Kanto.

I had tried not to hate him and seem appropriately sad he was leaving. But I was only envious; I was stuck in Johto with Mom while Dad was in Hoenn setting up his precious gym.

So, before knocking the door of the Birch residence, I tried to put a decent face on. I knocked twice, and a woman around my mother's age answered with a smile. Great. More happy people.

"Hi! You must be May," she assumed. "Come on in."

I couldn't help but admire the house as I stepped in, noting the worn carpet under the dining room table and the lumpy couch in the living room. It reminded me of back home, where everything was used very thoroughly. I almost didn't notice Mrs. Birch had continued speaking.

"…we have a son around your age, actually." Suddenly, I was a little more interested. Maybe I wasn't totally hopeless when it came to friends in this town. "His room is upstairs—I'll send him up when he gets back."

I took the stairs two at a time and came up on a room about the size of my new one. There was a bed, PC, game system… I frowned at the Poke Ball lying conspicuously on the desk before heading towards it. I was about to pick it up to examine it when I heard the front door swing shut with a slam. I heard voices—one distinctly male—before footsteps coming up the stairs.

Not wanting to make it look like I had been snooping, I slipped over to the bed before sitting gingerly on the edge, trying not to disturb the room in any way. A figure suddenly appeared in the doorway, and paused before coming into the room. I gave him a quick once-over as I stood, trying to smile.

He was a little taller than I was, and wore matching traveling garb of black and green. I wondered for a moment what color his hair was underneath the white hat…
He gave me a critical eye before seeming to shrug. "I'm guessing you're the new neighbor then, huh?" he assumed. "Dad said you were a Gym Leader's kid, so I kind of figured you'd be a guy…"

I grit my teeth, trying to resist the urge to put my hand on my face in exasperation. So apparently there were sexist pigs even in the nice little towns of Hoenn. It was almost comforting to know it wasn't so different here. "Maybe girls can be just as good as guys, kid," I commented. He probably wasn't any older than I was, but still. Something about him ground my nerves.

He smirked. "If you say so," he shrugged. "But what's your name, anyways?"

I paused. "May. You?"

"Brendan," he nodded to me. He suddenly gave me a curious look. "Hey—do you have any Pokémon?"

I sighed. Mom hadn't let me go off to New Bark town, claiming she needed help around the house for the first year Dad was gone. Then, she claimed she needed the company. And the year next, we started making preparations to move, so of course I had to stay and follow Mom to Hoenn. "Nah. I never really got the chance…"

He seemed thoughtful. "Huh, I guess I could—oh, wait, no," he suddenly broke off from his original thought. "I told Dad I would help him out later." He looked up at me regretfully. "Maybe some other time I can help you catch a Pokémon?"

His earnestness surprised me. He would really go out of his way to help me? I blinked. "Sure," I said.

Brendan smiled and moved to the computer, hooking up a green device to the console. I realized I had been dismissed and headed back downstairs, a little more optimistic. I waved goodbye to Mrs. Birch and was headed back home when I heard a shout from beyond the sign that read "Route 201."

I bit my lip. I knew wild Pokémon were out on the routes, and I had none of my own to fend them off.

But I wasn't going to let someone get hurt because I had been too cowardly. So I ran into the route, through the foliage and into a small clearing. I bit back a yell when I saw a man backed up against the tree, a black Pokémon growling at him, looking ready to pounce.

He suddenly saw me. "Hey! Can you help me!?"

"I don't have any Pokémon!" I called back, feeling incredibly helpless.

"In the briefcase! There should be two Pokémon; pick one and call it out!"

I looked around before finding the open briefcase. Lying on top of a mess of papers were two Poke Balls. I hastily snatched one up and called whatever Pokémon it was out. After the white light had receded, I saw a four-legged, blue Pokémon with a fin sticking out of his head and two orange… things on its cheeks. After looking at it, I figured out something with that type of body had to know Tackle.

"Alright… whatever you are, use Tackle on that… other Pokémon!" I was totally at a loss when it came to these Hoenn Pokémon. The only Pokémon I had ever known were those native to Johto and a few to Kanto.

Thankfully, my Pokémon did know Tackle and immediately launched himself at the attacking Pokémon. The attack landed, and I felt a small rush as the wild Pokémon turned to the both of us, settling into a threatening crouch before throwing himself at my Pokémon.

"Dodge it and use Tackle again!" I cried out, the adrenaline beginning to pump through my body.

I let the two of them have at it for a little while, calling out commands every few seconds, before the attacker finally ran off, tail between its legs. I returned the Pokémon and walked up to the man before handing it back to him.

He sighed in relief before pocketing the ball. "Thanks; I don't know what would have happened if you hadn't shown up."

All of a sudden, before I could reply, we heard a rustle and yips. The man suddenly looked worried again. "Maybe we should head back to my lab."

I felt inclined to agree, so we both went back to town. Branching off from the main town there was a well-worn path that I assumed led to the lab. Sure enough, we came to an older-looking building, made of simple stone and wood. But, despite the outside's outdated appearance, the interior looked like it had stepped out of a science magazine. Computers, monitors, and machines I had never heard of all beeped and blinked with multicolor lights as aides ran around in a rush, their arms full of papers and folders. Though they all seemed incredibly busy, they each nodded to the man in respect, and some gave jovial greetings. I realized this must be Professor Birch.

Professor Birch led me through the maze of halls and doors into one somewhat secluded from the rest of the building. There, he seemed to sigh. "Finally. Peace and quiet." He turned to me. "May, thank you for saving me, really. I wish I could offer better thanks, but I'm not sure…"
I had an idea what he could do to repay me, but I held my tongue and just stared at the Poke Ball that he still held. With another sigh, Professor Birch put the Poke Ball into the briefcase. "Between my son and all of the aids, it seems I can't get away from questions and just get a moment of peace."

I felt for him. People could be annoying, for sure. I'm sure it didn't help that in the one place Birch was able to escape, he had been attacked by wild Pokémon. I shrugged and made my way to the door. "Thanks for showing me the lab, Professor. I'll just head on home now."

Birch suddenly looked up. "Could you do me a favor, May? Drop this briefcase off on the shelf near the front door. I have a habit of leaving it in the lab if I don't put it there…"

I nodded and took the case into my hands before slipping out the door. After a few moments thinking, I remembered the way out. As I began to put the case on the shelf, I hesitated. I knew that the Pokémon I had used earlier was in here… and it had been amazing, that feeling. The Pokémon and I had been… connected, almost. It had understood my fervor for the battle and lived it out for me.

But I sighed and put up the briefcase before stepping out the door and heading back home. My mother looked up from the TV as I shut the front door behind me. That was all she did these days…

"Hey, sweetie, ready for some dinner?"

For once, my smile was genuine. Sad, maybe, but sincere as I sat across the table from her. I tucked into my ravioli as she spoke, taking large bites—I hadn't realized how hungry I was. "So, sweetie," she talked over my loud munching. "I was thinking we could go and see your father tomorrow."

I about choked on my milk. Go see Dad? "Does he know about this?"

"Well… no. I thought we could surprise him, you know?"

I blinked, and suddenly a memory flashed back to me from last year, when Mom and I were still in Johto.

"Hey Dad!" I said earnestly, smiling at the phone's monitor.

He didn't smile like he used to. It was strained, as if he didn't want to talk to me.

I ignored this as I continued to speak. "How's training and everything going?"

"Great, sweetheart."

"So I was thinking maybe I could ask Jason to send over Pidgeot and I could come visit you, you know?" I said earnestly, sure he would love the chance to just talk with me like we used to, face-to-face.

My father's smile suddenly evaporated. "Look, sweetie, I don't think it would be best if you came down right now. Things are busy, and I don't know how long it will take before the final touches with construction are done. It would be best if you waited until you and your Mom moved down, so you could both come together."

"But, Dad, why—"

He suddenly looked up from the phone. "Look, May, I'm sorry, but I gotta get back to the Gym. I'll talk to you later."

And just like that, he had hung up. I sat speechless. My father, my idol, had just shut down his twelve-year old daughter down. My knuckles went white as I clenched my hands into fists. Why? was all I could think. Why was he forbidding me to see him? Why did he seem so distant and strained? And why had he seemed relieved as he hung up?

So I said nothing to my mother. "Sounds great, Mom. I'm sure he'll be very surprised…"

She had no idea.


AN: So ends chapter one. Any sort of constructive criticism is appreciated; don't be afraid to be brutal. I may grimace, but I have to learn somehow. Good reviews would be the best birthday present, so no sugarcoating please.

I intend to update when this story is about to get knocked off the first page (though if it starts to be a while, I'll update before that).

This is a nice start, really. You've given the silent protagonist (which May is if you pick her in Emerald) a personality, which isn't that hard, but she isn't as happy-go-lucky as the plot of Emerald would make her seem. You also gave extra support to the fact that May is supposed to be strangely talented as a Pokemon Trainer.

However, you could have given more depth to May's talent. Yes, winning the first battle in the game doesn't take much more than spamming Tackle. But if May is really that much more talented than the average Trainer, you could have taken some liberties and had her issue some more complex maneuvers than "Tackle! Dodge it! Tackle again!". It might have been easier to do that had you let her pick Treecko, which is a very maneuverable Pokemon. Then you could have her strategies evolve over time as she gets more experienced; maybe have her get completely destroyed at the hands of Wattson and his impervious Magneton, forcing her to stop using her starter so much and develop a more balanced team.

Battle tactics aside, May seems rather infuriating if you know her thoughts, but comes off as a decent person to others. MAKE ABSOLUTELY SURE that she undergoes character development; that is, have her get an attitude adjustment. You were probably planning on doing this, but not doing it would be such a horrible crime that I needed to mention it.

I also don't like the mention of Arceus in the first paragraph. One, it seems kind of corny, but that's probably just me. Two, this is based off of Emerald, right? Then why is May invoking a fourth generation Pokemon's name?

Now for the mechanical comments:

I scoffed as I trudged up the stiars

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should be "stairs".

Computers, monitors, and machines I had never heard of all beeped and blinked with multicolor lights as aids ran around in a rush

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should be "aides". AIDS is something you don't want running around.

I had been eight as I watched him finally fall in the quarter finals.

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Word's grammar check wants to merge that into "quarterfinals", but Word's grammar check isn't always right. (A lot of the things it considered errors are not actually erroneous for this informal style of writing, and sometimes it's just plain wrong. In this case, though, it seems right.)


So far, so good. Just keep being this good (or better) for the next few chapters and we'll see how it shapes up.

And happy birthday.

Firstly, thanks for the review to begin with.

This is a nice start, really. You've given the silent protagonist (which May is if you pick her in Emerald) a personality, which isn't that hard, but she isn't as happy-go-lucky as the plot of Emerald would make her seem. You also gave extra support to the fact that May is supposed to be strangely talented as a Pokemon Trainer.

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That was pretty much the intention. I wanted a character that was a bit more frustrating and conflicting than what I've read before. As for your last comment: ... I did? I must have missed that bit.

However, you could have given more depth to May's talent. Yes, winning the first battle in the game doesn't take much more than spamming Tackle. But if May is really that much more talented than the average Trainer, you could have taken some liberties and had her issue some more complex maneuvers than "Tackle! Dodge it! Tackle again!". It might have been easier to do that had you let her pick Treecko, which is a very maneuverable Pokemon. Then you could have her strategies evolve over time as she gets more experienced; maybe have her get completely destroyed at the hands of Wattson and his impervious Magneton, forcing her to stop using her starter so much and develop a more balanced team.

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*sighs* Yeah. That was me trying to move the story along. And I understand where you're coming from, I just wanted to get on with it, and not bore you with a fairly basic battle. And to be honest, I' don't I could have made it very interesting, so I skipped it. And she does get a rather rude awakening, trust me. All in time.

Battle tactics aside, May seems rather infuriating if you know her thoughts, but comes off as a decent person to others. MAKE ABSOLUTELY SURE that she undergoes character development; that is, have her get an attitude adjustment. You were probably planning on doing this, but not doing it would be such a horrible crime that I needed to mention it.

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Glad you did anyways. It lets me know you care. And it comes, I promise.

I also don't like the mention of Arceus in the first paragraph. One, it seems kind of corny, but that's probably just me. Two, this is based off of Emerald, right? Then why is May invoking a fourth generation Pokemon's name?

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Ahh, shoot. I was going to say generations two and four occurred at the same time, but then I realized it was the game events that were linked... And I struggled with that a little myself. First I had 'Arceus,' but then I changed it to 'Jeez,' then I remembered that's based off of Jesus, and I really wanted to avoid that... yeah. I probably got too worried about it. I may end up changing it back to 'jeez,' or to a Hoenn legendary later, but I want to see if anyone else has another opinion.

Thanks for the great review; I'll go fix those mechanical errors now...

AN: Jeez. I disappear for a weekend and I come back to find this halfway down the second page. A little later than promised, but here's Chapter 2.

Chapter 2

After my mother's little 'announcement,' I made my preparations. The travel gear my mother and I had put together before leaving Johto still remained in its box. I took out the gloves and backpack and held them in my hands, staring at them. I took a deep breath, strengthening my resolve.

I slipped the shirt over my white camisole, appreciating the smooth, weighty feeling of the fabric. Though I wasn't exactly a fan of the orange, it would work. I slipped out of my jeans and into the gray biker-like shorts. My favorite pair of jeans wouldn't be sensible for the warm climate of Hoenn, but I packed them anyways.

I slipped on the gloves and clenched my fists, testing them out. Satisfied, I reached in for the last parts of my ensemble. The Running Shoes and Pokénav, surprisingly, had been gifts from my dad. He had sent them from Hoenn with a note saying, "Save these."

And I had. The white of the shoes stood out even in the dimness of my room, the shine broken only by the two orange stripes on either side. My mother must have told him to get that specific color accent to match my shirt…

After making sure everything in my bag was ready (3000 pokédollars, Pokémon food, a spare Potion and Antidote, sandwiches) I was set to go. I grabbed my bandana off of my desk and stuck my head out the door. Hearing gentle snores from my mother's room, I continued out into the hallway, down the stairs, and out the front door.

I was taken aback by the sheer darkness of everything. No streetlights were to be found, and everyone in town was asleep. Even thought the moon was out, I wasn't used to the lack of artificial light. I grumbled as I tried to find my way to the path out onto Route 201.

See, I knew what I was doing was stupid. But the way my mother was acting was worse, and I wasn't going to be a part of the 'desperate family.' So, with the moon at my back, I started down the path, holding an empty Poke Ball in my hand. It was my only defense, and I had to hope that any Pokémon that came at me would stay put in the ball.

A bit of an unconventional reason to catch a Pokémon, but hey: at least I would have something to defend myself with afterward.

So with the moon at my back, I trekked on. But I wasn't expecting to have company.

"What are you doing?" a voice hissed from the bushes next to me. I jumped with a startled yelp before turning to face the speaker. I was met with a bright light, momentarily blinding me. As I blinked to regain vision, I made out the figures of Professor Birch and Brendan. Brendan looked annoyed. "You're going to scare them away!" he hissed again.

I was in the middle of crossing my arms and retorting when Professor Birch cut in. "Now, Brendan, she didn't know."

I was scowling now. "Scare what away?"

Birch waved me over. "Every full and new moon, a swarm of Dustox pass through here," he explained. "So we're watching for them. They're due any minute, actually. Care to join us?"

Brendan looked moderately upset his one-on-one time with his father was being interrupted by some strange girl. I knew the feeling, and I hesitated. I should get moving anyways…

But, then, what harm could it do? So I shrugged and responded, "Sure."

I settled in with them as Brendan switched the flashlight off, grumbling.

We waited in silence. I almost started drumming my fingers on the ground in impatience when the first one passed. Brendan and Birch started jotting things down and glancing at their watches to check the time. I rolled my eyes.

The Dustox were nothing special, even in the bright moonlight. Their wings could have formed a ragged, green, polka dot semi-circle and their bodies were a dusty purple. They had two small yellow appendages on their heads for antenna.

I resisted the urge to yawn. The Butterfree in Johto were a lot nicer looking than the Dustox. They weren't as ragged. And the wings were much prettier, of course.

The last Dustox passed a few minutes after the first, and the two researchers began packing up. I stood and brushed myself off, readying to set off again.

But Birch stopped me. "Wait a moment, May," he said, a puzzled look on his face.

I looked up, hiding my fear of being returned home behind a mask of innocence. "Yes, Professor?"

"What are you doing out so late?" he repeated Brendan's previous question.

And Brendan decided to contribute now. "And with no Pokémon." My glare was lost on him. Birch's eyes widened. "You're out in the wild in the dead of the night with no Pokémon?" he asked in disbelief. I muttered something inaudible in reply. Birch was suddenly upset, and it struck me just how… paternal his voice sounded when he spoke again. "May, does your mother know about this?"

I mumbled again.

Birch's frown increased. "Then I have to take you home, and tell your mother what you've been up to."

I realized Birch didn't really see himself as much of an authority figure, but at least he cared.

"Why are you out here anyways?" Brendan asked as we began walking back to Littleroot.

Ah. The million dollar question. I sighed. "My mother is planning a surprise visit to my dad's gym tomorrow. I want no part of it."

Birch turned to me. "You have hard feelings towards him for making you move, don't you?"

I shrugged. "That, and he really hasn't been acting like much of a real father lately…"

Brendan frowned. "What do you mean?"

I snorted. "He rarely calls, and when he does he's always strained," I shook my head. "You should see his face when he gets an excuse to get off the phone. It's as if he's relieved, almost, to not have to speak with us. The Gym has been the center of his attention for years now."

Brendan looked ahead to where his father walked in front of us. "And I always thought my dad was a workaholic."

"I'm sure," I muttered, only half paying attention to what Brendan said.

We came back into little, but we passed my house. I frowned as we headed to the path that led to the lab. "Professor—"

He cut me off. "I know, May, just follow me."

I frowned. "Okay…"

We entered the lab and Birch flipped on the lights before heading over to a lab table. He waved me and Brendan over and opened the same case from earlier this afternoon. Now, though, there were three instead of two.

Birch looked up at us both. "I think it's time that I finally sent out some assistants past Oldale Town."

Brendan sucked in a breath. "You mean…?" he started to ask something, but trailed off.

Birch nodded. "It's time for your journey, Brendan," he turned to me. "And since someone else is a little eager to get out of town, maybe I should let her help me as well."

Over Brendan's disbelieving protests, I frowned and said, "Wait. What are you two talking about?"

From one of the case's interior pockets, Birch produced two devices. One was dark green, the other navy blue. I recognized them instantly. On his visit back to Goldenrod, Jason had flaunted his Pokédex while I looked on in envy. I smirked now. These were updated versions—they were more compact and sleeker than Jason's clunky red one.

Birch handed Brendan the green one. "This one is yours, of course," he said before extending the blue one to me. "And this is now yours."

I held up a hand. "Hold on," I interjected. "What am I signing on for here?"

Birch seemed amused by my wariness. "I'm asking you and Brendan to go and travel around Hoenn and collect data on all Pokémon you find, whether wild or belonging to another trainer. But the most accurate data comes from actually catching the Pokémon."

With that, he withdrew ten Poké Balls from another pocket. Brendan took five, but I paused. "Wait," I objected, "how are we going to get around Hoenn on our own?"

Birch smiled. "You're not," with his free hand he motioned to the Poké Balls remaining in the case. "You'll both take one of the Pokémon. Brendan, Treecko is on the far left, I believe." Brendan nodded and scooped up the Poké Ball as Birch turned to me. "So that leaves Torchic and Mudkip, May."

I paused. "Which one did I battle with earlier today?"

"Mudkip." Birch started rolling the Poké Ball in his hands. "But I have to add one condition. Along with helping me with the Pokédex, I also ask that you wait until morning to leave, and tell your mother what you'll be doing."

I could handle that. No matter what she said, I'd be leaving in the morning. "Agreed."

With a satisfied nod, Birch handed me the Poké Balls, Pokédex, and finally the Poké Ball containing Mudkip.

And so it began. It was with great trepidation I descended the stairs the next morning. I was finally leaving, but there was still the matter of telling my mother. But I was ready to go, so all that was left was explaining to her what I was going to do. But I paused on the bottom step when I noticed Professor Birch sitting at the kitchen table with a cup of coffee, sitting opposite of my mother.

Birch looked up and smiled at me. "I assume you're ready?"

I nodded, but didn't remove my gaze from my mother. She was staring down into the rising steam from her coffee. "You told her, Professor?" I looked back to him, my face blank.

He seemed to realize that I had wanted to tell her myself, and looked slightly sheepish as he replied. "Yes. I'd actually figured you'd be up and gone by now," he said. "But I guess you're a late sleeper."

I half-smiled before turning to my mom. I heard the door close behind me as I sat opposite her.

After several silent moments, she spoke. "So you're finally heading off, then…"

I nodded. "I figured now or never."

My mother finally looked up, a sad smile on her face. "I guess I was holding you back, huh?"

I shrugged. "You certainly weren't pushing me out the door…"

"I'm sure that only made you want to leave more, right?" I shrugged again, not saying anything. My mother stood with her now-cold coffee. "You have everything, then?" she pursed her lips. "No calling me and saying you forgot something."

I smiled. "No worries, Mom," I assured, "I'm all packed."

"Good," my mother faltered now. "I guess I'll visit your father alone…"

I stood now and crossed to my mother. "Mom, you taught me to be a strong, independent woman. Embrace your own teachings. Unpack, go garden, do something other than stare at the TV, please," I stepped away and looked at the floor. "Stick up for yourself, Mom. You don't need Dad to go on."

There was dead silence before my mother enveloped me in a hug. I stood stiff for a moment before returning it.

"You'll be a fantastic trainer, sweetheart," my mother whispered.

When she pulled away, tears glistened in her eyes. I took a deep breath to retain my composure before stepping away. "I'll see you around, Mom."

She followed me out the door, waving when I turned back to smile at her. Then I turned around and faced Route 201. Biting my lip, I took my first step.

Day one.

I loved it. I couldn't find many mistakes in either posts.

So all I can say is, I can't wait for more.