Escape to Hearth

[Charzeon]

Jenna Garland groaned as an alarms clock suddenly started to beam loudly in her ear. She turned in her bed and flopped her arm about, trying to find the clock and shut it up. But her efforts gave no results and she tried to reach out more to press something. But, when she still found nothing, she reached her hand out even more and feel out of her bed.

Jenna groaned from the floor in annoyance and slowly opened her eyes. It took her a while to take in the appearance of her colorless room. But, when she did realize where she was, she sat up very quickly and looked about her in a panic.

"Whoa...where am I!? What am I doing here!?" Jenna asked no one, feeling her panic raising as she saw that no one was there. "Where, where is everyone!? What's-"

The girl finally stopped her miniature panic attack when the door to her grey room opened and a Chansey and Nurse Joy walked in. Jenna could feel her jaw drop, yet she couldn't bring herself to close her mouth. The Nurse smiled kindly at Jenna before gesturing towards a trolley that the Chansey was pushing.

"I've been told that this is going to be very strange to you," the Nurse said kindly, "that you're from a different world then our own. I've also been told to give you the equipment on this trolley and that, after you have dressed properly, that you are to report to Prof. Rowan to get your starter and, from there, the board room. Have a good day."

Saying what she need to say, Nurse Joy left the room with the Chansey, leaving the trolley. Jenna stared after them for a little bit before turning to the trolley. She then slowly got up and looked to see what was even on the movable table. There was a dark blue back-pack with a black pokeball design on it and some clothes beside it. Jenna stared at the things the nurse had given her before taking the clothes and, after going to a bath room, quickly replaced her nightgown with them.

Once that was done, Jenna walked back to the trolley and picked up her new back pack. She looked around the room before sighing to herself and walking out of it. As she walked down the hallway, she started to talk to herself.

"A Nurse Joy…and a Chansey…those two things only exists in the Pokemon world…" Jenna muttered to herself. "Not to mention this building, these clothes…everything is just so Pokemon related. Am I dreaming? I have to be there's no way, ow!" Jenna had pinched herself by the end of the last sentence, but she was still there.

"Okay…so I am here…in the Pokemon world…" Jenna continued to mutter to herself. "But, how did I get here? What am I doing here? How am I supposed to get back?"

"All of those questions will be answered shortly," an old, male voice said in front of her.

Jenna gasped and jumped back, not expecting anyone to answer her questions. She looked up at the person who had talked and her eyes widen. There, standing before her was none other the Prof. Rowan himself. Jenna instinctively stood up straighter and tried to look more confident then she was. Rowan smiled slightly at the girl before saying, "Sorry for startling you. Would you mind if you gave me your name?"

"Jenna…Jenna Garland…" Jenna answered nervously.

"Ah yes, Jenna Garland, I believe I have you're starter right here," Rowan said as he turned to the table behind him and picked up a Pokeball. He then turned back to the girl and held the ball out to her.

Jenna blinked and stared at the little red and white ball before looking back up at Rowan. "A-A starter? You mean my…very own…Pokemon?" She asked, unbelieving.

"Yes, of course that's what I'm saying," Rowan said, holding the ball out more. "Go on, take it and open it. See who your first partner is."

Jenna stared at Rowan some more before slowly picking up the Pokeball he held out to her. She looked at the ball for a while be, taking a deep breath, she clicked the button in the middle of the ball. The Pokeball opened and a flash of light burst from it. When the light faded, a small, dark blue sea horse creature appeared. It opened its purple eyes and looked around itself. Jenna gasped when she saw the creature.

"A…a Horsea!" Jenna said, bending down so that she was more at the Dragon Pokemon's level. "Oh man…is she really my starter?"

"Yes, she is," Rowan said with a nod. "She is one of many starters that we have for you and the others who share you predicament."

"Others?" Jenna asked, looking up at the Pokemon Prof. "You mean…there are others who have entered the Pokemon World?"

"Yes, there are," Rowan said. "They are down that all a bit, on the third door to your left. Though, before you go, would you like to nickname your Horsea?"

"Yeah…I would…" Jenna said, looking at the Horsea. "Hey little girl, what do you think of…Sedna?"

The Horsea titled her head at her new trainer, before letting out a happy cry. Jenna smiled too and picked the now named Sedna up into her arms.

"Sedna it is then!" Jenna said happily, then walked to the hallway Rowan pointed out earlier. "Well, lets see who the others are Sedna."

"Horsea!" Sedna called out happily.

Jenna smiled once more to herself as she found the door Rowan told her about before and opened it. She looked in to see that a few other people were already there. Jenna took a deep breath before taking a seat a bit away from the others. She set Sedna on the table in front of her and just waited for this meeting to get started. She really wanted answers to her questions, but she would wait.

 

[Strikit]

Life had a way of turning upon itself, twisting its very reality, changing everything a person knew about who and what they were in an instant. Dante had never been fond of that much change that quickly. Though he could not stand for things to be exactly the same for extended periods of time he also would not stand for them being outside of his control. Perhaps that was partially why he had enjoyed the Pokemon games: all elements were inside his control, there were no real surprises, and he could change the fabric of reality with a trip to a Pokemon Center. Nothing could have prepared him to have that safety ripped out from under him, like a rug tugged on by a trickster.

Dante awoke quite some time before the sun had even risen. This procedure, he was used to, for he often liked to rise early so that he could go feed and check on Hoofs, his aging paint gelding. As he'd grown older he seemed to have discomfort in his shoulders, and he knew his time was coming. Therefore he wanted to be the first out every morning, to make sure everything was alright. The schedule had become ingrained in his psyche so that he rose around the same time every morning. On this particular morning he was more confused than he had ever been in his life. Where was he? Why was he here? Had he perhaps been kidnapped for ransom? That made no sense. His parents weren't rich, but then again, nor were they poor. Perhaps it could have happened.

As he paced the room he had found himself in he began to recognize things. The pattern of the carpet, the maps on the walls, it all led to a way of life he knew very well, though he had never imagined would be so real and tangible before him. There was a large sphere in the middle of the carpet, bisected by a straight line with a smaller circle in the very center. It was a Pokeball. The maps on the walls were of the various regions he had only heard of in games, though instead of being animated they were photographs of the areas, taken from several hundred feet above the highest point. Magnificent though they were, fear began to gnaw at his internal organs, making his heart beat faster and adrenaline course through his veins, despite the fact that what he needed was not a surge of energy. He needed information, to know and understand why he had come here, and how he was to leave. As extraordinary as this experience was he did not belong here, and instantly his fear began to accelerate as he realized he knew nothing of this world and had absolutely no control over his own fate.

The thought was disconcerting. He desperately needed something to occupy himself with. Mind reeling he went to the dresser to find a change of clothes, for his own had become unpleasant to the eye and were beginning to offend the nose, as well. The elegance of his black vest and matching tie were overruled when the scarlet shirt had begun to wrinkle, and his black slacks took on slight dirt stains. He would not be seen in such a state. When he rummaged through the drawers he found a soft shirt and pants, apparently both made "from geniune Spinarak silk."

'I would have settled for cotton, but this will do,' Dante thought with a hint of amusement. He had to give credit to the little spider Pokemon, their silk was very soft. It could perhaps compete with China's best silk. If he ever got his bearings he may have to take a Spinarak home, his own little secret, and manufacture silk. That would be a way to make a sizable living. The introduction of new thoughts had managed to calm him somewhat. He changed in favor of the new clothes quickly, intent on finding out what had happened, exactly, and why. He knew Joy wanted to speak to him, as well as a few other individuals who had been affected by this. What for he was not sure, but hopefully she could offer some information.

Nearby he found a backpack with several changes of clothes already in it. Dante glared at the backpack, feeling almost insulted. He had never carried a bag on his back in his entire life, for he was not a mule. He would not ask as much of any of the Gallo family's horses, so it should not be asked of him. But he did need a storage device to hold onto his preferred clothing, as well as the changes. So he grabbed onto the loop on top with one hand, choosing to carry it like an oddly shaped briefcase instead of what it was. That was all he could imagine needing, so he exited the room. As he did he heard a loud male's voice proclaim that it was time to awaken. Dante scoffed, trying not to roll his eyes. He had already been up for at least an hour, who was this young man to tell others when they ought to rise? Did he have something about him that made him special, or different in some way?

Whatever the case it would do him no good to dwell on it. The young man did not concern him, and certainly offered no explanation as to what had happened to him. Thus he continued down the stairs to the front desk, where Nurse Joy awaited him.

"Good morning ma'am, I was informed that you were the one to ask about why I am here and where I ought to go next." As always, the slightest hint of an Italian accent lay under his words, a result of hearing his father and grandfather speak the language frequently in the stables, at dinner, and in social situations. Raymond Gallo stayed with English when with Diana, for she did not speak Italian. But he wished his son to learn the language of their heritage. Therefore he not only knew it as well as a child born in the country, but he was well acquainted with the culture, used to taking wine with meals and giving away his upbringing with the Latin influence in his syllables. Joy seemed slightly amused by the accent, likely because she had never heard such before.

"The same to you. Yes, I can direct you to your next destination. You should go see Professor Rowan. He can give you what other supplies you need, and a Pokemon for protection and partnership."

Dante opened his mouth to argue that he did not want protection and partnership, he wanted to be reinserted into a situation he understood, that he could control. But there would be no use arguing. Besides, there was supposed to be a meeting about that soon. He might as well do as she said. For now, at least, the best thing he could do was follow orders and keep his head down.

He thanked her and promptly left the Center. Unwilling to ask directions, Dante instead kept his eye on signs and landmarks, completely unsure of his surroundings. He had never played a game set in the Sinnoh region, and even if he had he had not played Pokemon for several years. It would take some effort to remember exactly how to do everything, especially if it was no longer as simple as mashing buttons. In due time, far less than he had expected, he came upon a building larger than its fellows with cardboard boxes scattered around the outside. It looked like it had a fair chance of being a laboratory. It was probable that the excess boxes were the result of frequent mail coming in and out, as he imagined would be necessary in a field of work like Pokemon research. Thus he steeled his resolve and entered the building, immediately certain that his assumptions had been correct. He saw many unusual machines and people in labcoats going about their business. Most noticable was an older man, perhaps in his fifties, standing with his arms behind his back. Dante did not recognize him, but he could tell he was the professor due to his stance and the wisdom that seemed to radiate from him.

The older man caught sight of him and beckoned him near. "Good day, young sir. I presume you are here about a partner?"

Dante nodded in affirmation, unsure how else to react.

"Oh, forgive me. That was impolite. I am Professor Rowan. I study Pokemon evolution here in Sinnoh. My associates in neighboring regions have recently supplied me with a surplus of Pokemon for new trainers. At first I feared never being able to give them all away, but now I see that was foolish." He held out a hand to shake.

Dante took the hand and shook firmly. "My name is Dante Gallo. I was directed here by the nurse at the Center. She informed me you are the man to speak to for a partner, supplies, and directions on what my next action should be."

Rowan gestured to the boxes behind him. "She told you correctly. These boxes each hold necessary supplies and a ball with your partner. Choose wisely, as there is no return."

Though he knew Rowan meant he could not exchange boxes his words unnerved him. Nevertheless he passed him and surveyed the boxes carefully. There were no marks on the outside that made any unique, except for one. Its flaps seemed as though they had been bitten briefly by canine jaws. Normally Dante was not a fan of dogs, but he needed some direction, and perhaps that was what he had found here.

He opened the box and peered within. There was a collection of things, including an outfit far more elegant than he'd hoped for and six Pokeballs. Five were simply white and red, common as anything. But one was primarily a dark grey with a black band and red button.

"Do you mind, sir, if I release it in the building?" he asked politely. After all, if the Professor wanted to keep a Pokemon-free workspace he would understand.

"No, not at all. I prefer that you do it here so that I can explain anything that you do not understand."

What could you possibly not understand about your starter? Dante could think of nothing. Then again, people always amused him with the mindless questions they came up with. He touched the button in the center and braced himself. A white ball of light shot out and materialized into a shape he recognized. His heart leapt as the light faded, leaving what else, but a Poochyena in its place.

"Ahh, you're a lucky young man," Professor Rowan said with a nod of approval. "This young female is very bright. She'll take more looking after than most, however, because of her eyes. If you look closely you'll see that they're blue, not red. That's a result of a deficiency. She cannot see for large or short distances. Her sight is sorely limited to a patch a few feet away. You'll have to train her to rely on her other scents and instruct her well, for your voice is what shall keep her safe."

Dante knelt down and stroked her surprisingly soft fur, marveling at how similar she felt to any other animal. "I promise to take good care of her. She's simply stunning." He did not pick her up, for she did not look like the sort of creature that would enjoy such a thing. When he straightened up she moved closer to his legs, not necessarily from fear, but so that she would be better able to navigate.

"Where do I go from here?" he asked uncertainly. Rowan explained to him that he should go back to the Center and wait in the conference room. With thanks Dante left the lab, organizing the contents of the box as he went. Though it took some juggling he managed to get the balls in the front compartment of the backpack he still carried like a briefcase, save for the Poochyena's, which went into his pocket. He'd received a Pokedex as well, grey, with black accents. Along with that came a ridiculously large watch, which he could only assume was the Poketch he'd heard about from the Sinnoh region games.

"You must be kidding me," he grumbled. Instead of strapping the laughable device onto his wrist he attached it to the loop atop the backpack, where he could still easily see it but he didn't have to wear it. It would take some serious pride deflation for him to be able to wear any of this.

As he continued on the path back to the Center he glanced down at his partner, who walked at a measured pace next to him with her head held high. He'd been training a Mightyena on Sapphire before he lost it, one he had caught at the very beginning of the game. Her name had been Shetani, meaning she-demon, which he had felt was fitting for a female dark type Pokemon. The name rose to mind now.

"Would you like to be called Shetani?" he asked her. She glanced up at him with strikingly blue eyes and yipped, more canine in her movements than he had thought. But despite the fact that he did not like dogs he was smitten anyway. She was a gorgeous thing, simply amazing, and he was glad she agreed that Shetani would be a good name for her. "Alright, then. That works perfectly."

Dante and Shetani arrived at the Center by the time the sun had begun to climb higher. He knew he was supposed to go to the conference room, but he went to the front desk instead.

"Excuse me, I was hoping you would give a quick examination to the Pokemon I received. I want to make sure she is in good health."

Joy smiled brightly. "Of course. I'll return in a moment." She took Shetani back to one of the examination rooms. That gave Dante enough time to change into the new clothes. He dashed to the nearest lavatory and was finished in a matter of seconds. The overall scheme was deep grey and black, with the long pants being simply black, and the short-sleeved shirt grey with black hemming. Though he would not have chosen to wear it himself he liked the way the colors contrasted with his skin. But he couldn't just stare at his reflection all day, so he folded the Spinarak silk clothes, placed them back in his bag, and returned to the desk, where Joy was waiting with Shetani.

"She's perfectly healthy, despite some sight problems. But I'm sure Professor Rowan explained about all that."

He nodded and picked Shetani up only long enough to set her on the floor, so that she did not jump and hurt herself. "Thank you. Can you direct me to the conference room?"

She gave him instructions that led him down the hall to the last door on the right. He turned the knob and entered to discover that several others had already reached their destination. He passed them all, seating himself along the far wall. Shetani jumped up into the chair next to him and sat as well. He stroked her for something to do while he glanced at the others. It didn't take him long to decide that he had chosen the best starter. While the others were nice, he had a special fondness for Dark types that could be rivaled only by his fascination to fire types. In fact, the Houndour family may have been his favorite, were they not so obviously dogs.

 

[Dragon Song]

Annamarie's eyes blinked open and she glanced at the clock nervously - 6:15, on the dot. Where was Marcus? He usually rose around 5:30 and started making a racket. Did he possibly sleep in past six? My early riser? Well, whatever. Maybe he's being quiet this morning. Or possibly Mom got a day off of work and he woke her up. Oh, goodness I hope he didn't wake her up! She's so grouchy in the mornings when she doesn't sleep in. Or if he woke Naru up...I'm going to kill him if he woke Naru up. Annamarie quickly rose from the grey bed, and gave the room a once-over. There was no color. Only Clarissa would bother with something like this, and was she ever going to get a talking to!

The next thing Annamarie did was make sure she still had her messenger bag - she did. And her clothes were clean. It was a good thing she had changed after getting back from the pond. Despite this, she looked in the drawers of the nearby dresser - this looked nothing like her dresser! She found a gray outfit in the drab drawers with a tag intact 'Made from real Spinarak silk'. Spinarak. She'd heard that name before... was it a Pokemon? At this thought, Annamarie rifled through her messenger bag for her Nintendo DS - gone. Hadn't she been playing it? She was sure she had. So where was it now?

Annamarie decided that it didn't really matter - the thing was broken anyway. Kay had completely mutilated the Touch screen, the battery was going out from being charged so often, and it had been dropped too many times to count. Sometimes it didn't even turn on, but it was her refuge from her daily life - Pokemon. There was no mathematical way to judge how many times someone would break a jar (this was mostly Annamarie), lick an icy pole, steal extra dessert or do anything else at home. But her Pokemon game was always exactly the way she left it.

This is about the time that Annamarie noticed something else in the desolate drawer - a backpack. She despised the things, and usually their contents as well, but she'd take what she could get. She shoved the Spinarak silk outfit into the backpack and flung it over her shoulder. She checked the clock - 6:23. Annamarie decided to head out and find out what kind of disaster her siblings had caused.

The hallway floor was lined with light yellow tiles, and once the long hallway came to a stop, there was a pattern on the floor- a giant Pokeball. There was a PC in the corner on a stand, with a screen and a telephone, exactly as it could be seen in the anime. It was green, a welcome burst of color. Annamarie scratched her head and noticed that her hair was still straight down, she hadn't put it up yet. She decided to leave it be, perhaps she would even brush it in an hour or so. When she figured out what had happened.

"Marcus?" she called insistently. No reply. This whole building looked strangely familiar. At the counter was a woman, quite a bit taller than Annamarie, with a garish pink hairdo. Exactly like Nurse Joy, again from the anime. None of her siblings quite fit that height, not even her older brother. She nervously made her way to the wide counter, and gulped. "Ah...hell...o?" she asked the woman, most likely Nurse Joy if they were really trying to pull this off. The woman looked at Annamarie immediately.

"Are you a trainer? Where did you get that outfit? You know you look a bit young..."
Annamarie mustered her courage and cut her off. "Fourteen."
"What? You are? You look quite a bit younger than that, you know." Annamarie nodded curtly. She knew. She was sorely incapable of forgetting.
"Where...?" she asked, hoping the 'Nurse Joy' would understand her question.
"Oh, you must be one of the other trainers from the other world. Hon, you're in the Sandgem Town Pokemon Center, and there's a message someone left for you, here." The pink-haired woman handed Annamarie a slip of paper.

The message confused Annamarie, but she tried not to let it bother her. Whatever happened, she had at least a half-hour of time to kill. There was a beach in Sandgem Town. For now, she decided she would enjoy the peace and quiet. She missed her siblings already. I hope I'm not stuck here long. Dad's going to have a fit. She shook her head. She was on vacation! She walked slowly to the door of the Pokemon center, it was warm and balmy outside.

The beach was easily visible from the exit of the Pokemon Center, and Annamarie headed there immediately. She took off her old gym shoes and left them up on the beach, and rolled up her jeans. She dropped both bags before walking much closer to the water, hoping the tide wouldn't come in before she could collect them. She waded into the water a short distance, being careful not to let her pants get wet. She felt something strange on her foot and yanked it out of the water, only to lose her balance and fall into the water. Thankfully, she caught herself on her hands and managed to keep her shirt dry. Her jeans ended up in a much more sorry state than her T-shirt, completely soaked.

This is about when Annamarie noticed that there was still something there where her foot had been. It was a clear almost fluorescent blue and had just bobbed up to the surface of the water. It looked shockingly like the top of a gigantic jellyfish. "Oh. My…" Annamarie cut off because the thing bobbed up farther. Annamarie, being her classic idiot self, tackled it. It continued floating out towards the deeper waters. Annamarie screamed. Loudly. Her own eardrums rang as she went underwater temporarily. "Um…hello?" she asked. The thing seemed to bob extra in response to her speaking. "Uh…can you…ah…go back? Like, to the shore?" The thing bobbed up and down again, and turned around. Annamarie screamed again, and was silenced by going back under. Uh….right. No screaming. No screaming. What would you do if…Oh G_d I hope they're okay. she thought. When the thing finally got close enough to the beach for Annamarie to be able to walk to shore, she said, "Um…so… thanks" quietly. The thing let out a fleeting cry of
"Tenta! Tentacool!" Annamarie shrieked and fell backwards. Underwater. Thankfully, she could swim somewhat well and managed to get back to the shore.

Annamarie quickly decided to sit on the beach for a little while and played with the sand while her clothes dried. After about fifteen minutes, Annamarie grabbed her bags and her shoes and ran back up to the Pokemon Center, dropping her shoes every few dozen steps. It was an easy jog for her, used to chasing her siblings around all day. She returned to the room she had been in before, and switched her jeans for the Spinarak silk pants. While she was there, she checked the clock – 6:55. She had five minutes. She smiled, this was hardly crunch time; she could get everyone out of the house, in shoes and clothes, in fifteen.

Annamarie decided to take a breather. She slipped her gym shoes back onto her still-wet feet, and braided her hair in a single braid, rapidly, with practiced fingers. She pulled a scrunchy from her messenger bag and fastened the braid, then sat down on the floor. Her messenger bag fit easily into the gray backpack, and she put her soaked jeans in a separate pocket. That was everything, she figured, but she glanced under the bed – just in case. Yep. That was everything, she thought. She set out, walking slowly and calmly to the building next door to the Pokemon Center – Professor Rowan's famous laboratory. That was how Annamarie thought of it, anyway. So far as she knew, it didn't exist outside of the video game and the anime. Well, and here. Wherever 'here' was.

Annamarie examined the carvings on the large wooden door of the laboratory with interest. They were so intricate! She was still staring intently at the door when it opened. A tall man, most likely six feet even, opened the door. He had wavy dark brown hair cropped short and an even tan. His clothes were fairly drab, and his brown eyes lingered shortly on her still-soaked shirt, which bore the phrase "Quit staring at my chest" Annamarie stood slowly, as the man, Rowan, presumably, examined her.

"Tenth birthday, huh?" he said. "Follow me." Annamarie shook her head vigorously at this statement, she was fourteen! It wasn't her fault she was small. Either way, he was her only ticket to a Pokemon and no serious injury. Well, maybe not so much that second one. Either way, she followed him through the lab, watching the man intently and not really paying attention to the rest of the lab. She found herself with the fairly large man in a room most likely closer to the back of the laboratory. There was a table with a neat row of boxes on it, one with a row of what must be the Pokemon Watches from the video game. The Watches came in virtually every color, not simply the blue or pink from Diamond. Annamarie giggled thinking about it, she had never gotten much use out of hers, what with her touch screen being broken. At this point there was a gaping hole in the DS where the screen once was, which admittedly made battling difficult, but Annamarie had all of her Pokemon's movesets memorized. And someone had tried to fill the hole with a saltine. Anyway, on a third table there was a neat row of backpacks, much more colorful than the drab gray one over Annamarie's shoulder now. There were several gaps on each table where, presumably, other trainers had picked up their supplies.

The man, Rowan, cleared his throat, and began to speak.
"Ah, hello. I'm Professor Rowan, and every new trainer here is supposed to be getting…wait…are you from the other world? I'm not supposed to be getting trainers from around here until." At this point Annamarie nodded. She didn't bother talking, this man was too intimidating for her to get much of a word out, she knew. "Oh. Good. Well then, there's a Pokeball under each box. You also get a bag with three potions, five Pokeballs, a trainer ID – which you can customize at any Pokemon center – and a trainer uniform." Once Rowan had finished speaking, Annamarie had decided which box she would turn over. The one on the far end – Naru would've already knocked it off the table by now. Oh! She missed her siblings so much already. She hoped they were doing alright… They were strong, and resourceful, she knew, but they were also most likely going to burn down the house or something like that. Maybe tear down the neighbor's bushes or something, too.

Annamarie grabbed the box the moment Rowan stopped talking and lifted the gold-colored Pokeball. She had tucked the box under one arm, but she promptly dropped it. then the Pokeball also slipped from her grasp. Annamarie made a dive for it, but it had fallen on the circular white button in the center. As Annamarie rose slowly to her knees, a ray of red light burst from the Pokeball, then dissipated as suddenly as it came, leaving a Flaffy in its place. Annamarie smiled. "A…Flaffy." she whispered.

"Flaffy!" The wooly Pokemon confirmed excitedly. "Eep! Eep!" The Pokemon continued, and, chattering excitedly, made her way over to Annamarie. Annamarie shyly reached upward to touch the Pokemon's head. She was somewhat frightened – she knew electric Pokemon were dangerous, and if water could make your feet cold in this world, could electric shock kill you? Annamarie didn't want to find out. She scratched gently behind the Flaffy's ears, to which the Pokemon responded positively, with a loud, contented, "Reeeep!" Annamarie smiled at this, and said quietly,
"Would you mind too much if I named you after my sister?" she asked. The Flaffy didn't reply, so Annamarie shyly continued. "Do you like the name Naru-Naru?" she asked, and the Flaffy cried
"Flaffy!" excitedly. Annamarie smiled, and awkwardly sidled around Naru-Naru to collect the Pokemon's Pokeball, successfully. Then, Professor Rowan handed her a lime green – Marcus's favorite color – Poketch and a black backpack. The Morgue's favorite. Crap. Annamarie didn't have the heart to ask for a different color, but she figured there were tears in her eyes. She put her head down while she fastened the Poketch on her wrist. Surprisingly, it fit. She grinned for just a second. Then, she shouldered the second and newer backpack. She stood slowly and backed towards the door. To her incredible relief, Naru-Naru followed. "Thanks…" she said quietly. She left the lab the way she had come in, and held her hand on Naru-Naru's head the entire time. They quickly made it back to the Pokemon Center.

When Annamarie returned to the Pokemon center, Nurse Joy immediately directed her to the conference room. Annamarie decided to first return to her room one last time to change her pants again. While the Spinarak silk pants were nice, she honestly considered them drab. She pressed the button on Naru-Naru's Pokeball, as she would rather not have the Pokemon watch while she changed her clothes. She changed into the official trainer's pants quickly, and put them in the backpack Professor Rowan had given her. She transferred all of her things from the gray backpack to the black one, and found a Pokedex, which she put in a pocket. Then, she went to the room where supposedly all of the other normal people were. Before opening the door, Annamarie decided to let Naru-Naru out of her Pokeball. She pressed a button on her Pokedex to find out more about the Flaffy.

Flaffy​

Electric Sheep Pokemon​

Ability: Static​

Moves:
Tackle
Growl
Shock Wave​

Annamarie smiled and nodded. "Okay Naru-Naru, ready to meet everyone else?" she asked quietly. Naru-naru nodded, and thus Annamarie shoved her Pokedex into a side pocket of her backpack and opened the door. Inside, there were several people already seated, and Annamarie took a seat in the corner. Naru-Naru followed her.

 

[Legendarian Mistress]

As an early bird, Lindsay had been active in her free Pokémon Centre room since 5:45 AM. It was true that she'd mentally questioned where she was when she woke up here three days ago, but she'd quickly gotten used to the fact that she was stuck in the region of Sinnoh. The young adult looked at her watch and was surprised to learn that it was now 6:30 AM.

She hurriedly showered herself, dressing herself in pathetically plain clothes which she had no liking for whatsoever, before glancing at her usual matching outfit of a purple short-sleeved shirt and shorts. Feeling sad that she couldn't wear them, she stuffed them into a bright yellow backpack with the imprint of a Poké Ball on the side that she'd obtained from Professor Rowan yesterday.

By the time she stared at her watch again, it was 6:48 AM. Just as she started eating her breakfast, she heard someone yell "FOR ALL OF THOSE THAT WANT TO GO HOME, THIS IS YOUR WAKE-UP CALL!" from the hallway outside. Lindsay shook her head in dismay and rolled her eyes before continuing to eat her much needed second bowl of cereal.

Finishing her breakfast a few minutes later, she washed it up in the undersized kitchen, placed it on the rack to dry and left her room. She entered the lobby, handed the room key back to Nurse Joy and exited the Centre. Sandgem Town is aptly named, Lindsay thought as she weaved across the footpath, dodging the piles of sand that were apparently just dumped there. Within minutes, she arrived at Professor Rowan's lab and went straight in, finding that the door was strangely ajar.

"Another one? Oh, it's you? Lindsay wasn't it?" a brusque voice questioned. It was Professor Rowan. "Come in, come in. Choose a box, which has a Poké Ball underneath it, a Pokétch and a pack – which you obtained yesterday – that contains 3 Potions, 5 Poké Balls, 1 Pokédex, trainer's clothes and one trainer card that can be formatted to your liking at any Pokémon Centre."

"Yes, Professor, I'm Lindsay." I answered. I reached the second box and immediately sensed that the Pokémon hidden in the ball was my partner. Having lifted up the cardboard, the sphere sitting in the middle of the box's bottom half had the colours of black, yellow and red on it. I tapped the centre button with my finger, which enlarged the orb, and released the Pokémon.

With a flash of red light, the Pokémon appeared. It had two legs, was black with yellow stripes and its eyes were red. I knew from experience that if an animal had red eyes, it signified blindness. The Pokémon looked unseeingly around. Over on one of the other tables, Lindsay heard a Pokétch activate and a Pokédex say "Elekid, the Electric Pokémon – a Pokémon of the Electric type.

"Gender?" I asked.

"She's a female," the Professor answered.

"I see. Why don't I call you Aiyana? Do you like that?" I questioned the Elekid.

A crackle of static was all I got as my reply, so I returned Aiyana to her sphere, before turning around to see Rowan holding the Pokétch. Its colours matched that of Aiyana's.

"The trainer clothes are crimson with a yellow trim," the researcher stated, referring to the clothes that were stashed away in the backpack.

"Oh thanks so much, I was worried that they'd be dull grey again." I replied.

I placed my Pokétch on my wrist, pulled on my backpack, nodded to Rowan, before saying a brief farewell and left.

I slowly headed back to the Pokémon Centre. When I entered the lobby, I heard Nurse Joy almost squeal. "What Pokémon did you receive?"

"An Elekid," I said.

"Male or female?"

"Female," came my response.

"Lindsay, you have to let me see her later!"

I nodded. "Okay Nurse Joy, I will."

I walked in the opposite direction of the free rooms, towards the conference room. When I entered, I saw that I was not the first to arrive there. I sat down at the far end of the large U-shaped table, released Aiyana and put her on top, smiling at her once before I began staring at the door, waiting for the others.

 

[Ryu-kun]

When Reed woke up, he was feeling like someone just stroke his head with a tree stump.
He tossed the blanket aside and rolled out of the lousy free bed, taking a while for him to remember, what had just happened.
The sun was already shining and the Pidgey were singing.
Reed had seen some Pokémon already, but was nothing like the games; some Pokémon were happy, some agressive, and some... Well, just didn't care about the humans... At all.
As he got up, he grabbed his dusty glasses and took his black t-shirt from the ground.
There were no shower included in the free room, so Reed just had to refresh himself by drinking some non-caffeine, Chesto berry filled coffee.

The coffee machine took forever to work, so Reed fell deep into his thoughts, leaning to the filthy counter; He had just been somehow teleported to his Pokémon game!
"How is that even possible...?" He thought, as the coffee machine let out an ear shattering beep, informing the user, that there is some "delicous" chesto coffee ready.
He swiftly took a cupfull and walked downstairs pf the Pokémon center, dragging his feet lazily.
He looked around the full Pokécenter, thinking that even the centers were completely different from the games; the place was full of people, Joy was arguing with Blissey twins, and the whole place was bigger, overall.

Reed took a sip of his coffee as he noticed the full billboard.
One poster looked new, and it was just in the middle of the billboard, telling:
"If you wan't to find your way to home, that is now possible!" Reed's eyes widened as he continued to read.
"Just come to my, the Sinnoh's proffessor's, lab, to get your first Pokémon. We might need some help from the Elite 4, but we'll discuss that once all the people get here."
Reed almost choke on his coffee, when he realized, that there were more people who shared his fate, and that the professor of Sinnoh knew about them.
He placed his empty cup onto a table and began to dig his pockets; he usually forgot something there, like candy or... Money! He swiftly took his hand out, pulling a handfull of coins.
He checked them; they weren't dollars, and they had a weird curve on them.
They were Pokédollars!
Reed quickly ran to his room, to check the condition of the room.
It was just like it was, when he first checked in; a dusty old counter, a broken table, curving walls and a weird, tube like bed.
Reed turned the coffee machine off, checked everything one last time, and turned off the lights.

Reed left the pokécenter, giving the Joy a pokédollar on his way out.
He looked around and remembered, how much bigger Sandgem town was, than in the games.
There were so much more buildings and Rowan's laboratory was the last of the row, and the huge blue building of Pokémart was in the other direction.
Reed decided to head to the mart, as he still had some shiny pokédollars at the bottom of his pocket.
When he was about to enter the baby-blue automatic doors, he was greeted by a weird salesman in a brown vest.
"Greetings customer, would you like a free sample of our newest invention; the Potion! It is a sprayable medicine for both Pokémon and humans."
Reed was about to open his mouth, but decided not to, and took a sample, as a crowd a beginning to gather to the place.

When he entered, he felt a cool, happy breeze running through his body, and he started to look around the vast maze of shelves full of things like: Pokémon food, berries, meat and even something as surprising as gold nuggets.
Reed took a good looking peace of meat from a nearby shelf, weighted it and fought his way through the crowd.
When he reached the counter, he was facing a bald, sturdy looking man, with a brown vest, just like the one outside had.
He carefully said hello and handed the peace of meat over for a price check.
While the slow looking man was struggling to check the price, Reed decided to look around.
The place was two stories tall and completely azure colored. There were some security cameras and even a Slaking was sitting in the corner, waiting for someone to start a fight.
"That would be 2,50 Pokédollars, please." Said the clerk with a funny accent.
"Umm… Thank you," said Reed and gave the clerk three of the weird looking coins.
The clerk gave him the change and he decided to quickly head to the lab.

Reed quickly fell back into his thoughts as the grass rattled under his feet, and the distance was actually really short, compared to what Reed remembered.
As he was about to enter through the funky wooden door, it slammed straight into his face, dropping his glasses.
As he picked them up, he noticed that the rammer was none other than Professor Rowan.
"I'm sorry, come quickly. Others are waiting for you!" He announced and grabbed Reed by his shoulder. They rushed to a container room, full of Pokéballs.
"Oh, Pokémon…" He thought as he began to investigate the round capsules.
He took on his old attitude and threw a red and white capsule after another behind him; there were Onix, Geodude, Hippopotas, and all sorts of other slow Pokémon. He kept searching, until he found one he liked.
It was Growlithe, the fire Pokémon. Reed remembered that this was a very fast Pokémon, when it finally evolved into the mighty Arcanine.
He quickly glanced at the old, beardy professor, who nodded.
Reed then stuffed the Pokéball in his pocket, as Rowan told him to go back to the Pokécenter for further information.

A red beam of light rushed from the pokéball and a little Pokémon appeared; it was a Growlithe.
It quickly began to walk at Reed's pace, as they were already halfway towards the Pokécenter.
The Growlithe took on a weird, silly face and started to bark loudly.
Reed checked the Pokémon and saw it was a female.
He started to run, to test this Pokémon's speed.
The Growlithe was easily faster than Reed and he quickly began to smile, seeing the dog Pokémon tangling on her own feet.
"I think I'm going to call you Flare", he said and raised his speed to get to the center faster.

Inside the building, Joy quickly noticed him and asked him a question.
"Are you one of them too"...? She said and pointed to the poster with her head.
Reed nodded and rushed to the direction that Joy pointed.
He walked along a long hallway and passed a lot of simple, gray doors.
When he finally came to the end of the hallway, there was a door, which had a sign on it, reading: Conference Room.
Reed entered and saw a lot of people with little Pokémon, just like him.
He felt awkward, as he went to the furthest corner and sat on a chair, took Flare on his lap and started to wait for further information.

 

[Fuyu]

Awareness came slowly to Katie. That was strange. Did she sleep through her alarm again? Aw great, that meant that she had to hurry and get dressed... wait. She didn't remember falling asleep.

Where am I? Katie bolted up and glanced around warily. She was surrounded in grey, which made her eyes ache. This place... she wasn't sure how, but it felt different. Not like a new place did, but like a whole new reality entirely. Okay I need to calm down. Time for exploration and observation. Panicking would only make things worse. Sighing, she examined her current outfit. It was plain clothing, slightly dirty but not too big a deal. Unfortunately, it itched, so she quickly looked around for a change of clothes.

Lucky for Katie, one sat on what looked like a pine chest of drawers. Standing up, she walked over to take a look. Picking up the soft shirt, she read, "Made by Spinarak Silk." Well, she had never worn silk before so she had no clue on what to expect. Wait did that say Spinarak? Spinarak was a Pokemon, specifically from the Johto region, and there was no way this could exist unless...

this was the Pokemon world.

That's right. I remember now. Katie groaned softly and fell back onto the floor, landing hard on her butt. She ignored it, trying to analyze the facts. Days before, she had woken up in Sandgem, along with many others, in this world. It baffled her to say the least, and Katie had no clue how children from their world had crossed dimensions, if that was even it at all.

Hmph, there's probably some hard science to it but it's way too early to philosophize. That much was true, she surmised, reading the clock on the wall. It was 6:45 AM. Deciding that there was nothing to do but explore, she slipped into the silky clothes. Before she could leave the room however, a shout rang,

"FOR ALL OF THOSE THAT WANT TO GO HOME, THIS IS YOUR WAKE-UP CALL!"

Katie laughed, opening her door. "Time to start acting," she mumbled wryly. Stepping outside, she walked out into white hallways. Turning left, Katie made her way down twists and turns, eventually coming across the entrance where a Nurse Joy sat at the front desk. The woman glanced up from her work and smiled.

"Hello there!" the woman exclaimed warmly. "You must be one of the new "arrivals", am I right?"

Almost anybody else would have returned the smile and nodded cheerfully. Katie, shy as a mute, barely managed to nod. "I-I guess," she muttered. Glancing in the woman's direction, she spoke, voice as quiet as always,"I'm rather confused right now. Do you by any chance know where I'm supposed to go?"

The nurse's smile widened. Either she was not offended by the distant gaze, or was used to such things. "Why yes, you are to go visit Professor Rowan's lab and get your Pokemon. His lab is not too far west from here. When you get your Pokemon, bring it back here. I can tell you where to go next."

"Um... alright," Katie managed a small smile. "Thanks so much." She quickly left the Pokemon Center. Turning to the left, Katie coughed slightly as the wind blew sand into her mouth. Spitting, she covered her eyes and glimpsed a metallic-looking building with boxes just outside the entrance. Guessing it was where she needed to be, she knocked on the door. Surprisingly, it opened, revealing a strict-looking man with spiky white hair and mustache. His stare was incredibly intimidating. She shrank slightly.

"Are you from that world?" he asked quietly, still gazing firmly at her. Katie bobbed her head quickly. Professor Rowan had been scary in the game, but meeting him made it worse. The old man nodded and and stepped inside, gesturing for her to follow. The teen obeyed quickly, shutting the door behind her.

Inside the lab, people in lab coats were already bustling around, preparing for who knew what. Rowan stood in the back, in front of a shelf with black boxes on it in a row. Some were missing, due to the holes in the rows. Katie joined him.

Rowan stated calmly, "Pick a box. Each contains one Pokemon, a Pokedex, a backpack with three potions, some money, a trainer's outfit, a trainer's card, along with a Poketch. Now make your choice carefully as you cannot take it back." Katie swallowed and nodded. She walked over to one on the left, which felt right somehow. Opening it, she took out an orange Pokeball with red-yellow flames all over.

Tossing it lightly, the Pokeball opened and revealed a echidna-like creature. Katie's eyes brightened. She recognized this Pokemon at once. It had been her starter in Crystal, a Cyndaquil. The colors of its fur were slightly altered, but she could still see it. The shrew yawned and looked around before glancing up at her. Katie had three seconds before it pounced, knocking the teen to the floor yet again. Rowan chuckled and Katie smiled as she was nuzzled almost painfully by the affectionate Pokemon.

"Hello there," she greeted gently. The Pokemon leaped off, bouncing up and down on her hind legs. Pulling a red-yellow Pokedex from her box, Katie flipped it open, noting the generation IV version. It immediately analyzed Cyndaquil.

Cyndaquil
Fire Mouse Pokemon
Gender: Female
It has a timid nature. If startled, the flames on its back burn more vigorously.​

Looking at the hyper ball of fur, Katie had some doubts about timid. Smiling again, she stood back up. "I think you need a name." Cyndaquil glanced up at her in curiosity. "How about Rishi?" The newly named Rishi leapt into her arms in reply. Katie laughed. "That settles it." Turning to Professor Rowan, she bowed slightly. "Thank you so much. I'll take my leave now."

Grabbing the box in one hand, she backpedaled out of the room. Katie walked back to the Pokemon Center and presented the Pokemon to the nurse. She was pointed toward the conference room. Nervous, she entered. Others were already inside. Meekly she sat down at one end, unable to say anything. Rishi squirmed in her arms but Katie kept herself firm. No way was she going to let Rishi get in trouble for her hyper bouncing.

 

[Cyndaquasher]

((It's a little late, or maybe it's on time. Whatever, here comes a post!))

"FOR ALL OF THOSE THAT WANT TO GO HOME, THIS IS YOUR WAKE-UP CALL!"


When Roan heard those words, he rolled over. "But I don't wanna go to school," he mumbled as he pulled the covers over his head and fell back to sleep. Granted, he had been in the pokemon world for about half a day now, but he was TIRED. Sooner or later, he'd have to get up, but right now, it was time for sleep...


Quite a while later, a Chansey came into his room to make the bed. As she noticed the very still, quiet lump in the bed, she did what any self-respecting pokemon would do-poke it. The lump moved! So, the chansey took a step back and called out to the lump-thing.


"Chan-seeey!"


"Wha?" "Aaak!" Roan exclaimed as he tossed the sheets off of himself and looked in shock at the creature before him. There was no WAY that he was looking at a chansey! No way at all, unless...yeah, the previous day came back to him. As he got out of bed and threw on the 100% spinarak silk clothing that had been provided for him, as well as his favourite green jacket, he began to recall what happened.


"Let's see...I was at home, just after school. I got home early because of the heat, then I was playing pokemon...then I was somehow staring nurse joy in the face...wow, it sounds wierd when I say it like that, doesn't it? Did you come to wake me up? Thanks chansey," he said as he patted the round pink creature on the head. Suddenly, he realised what time it was! He'd overslept!


"Oh no, I'm late I'm late I'm late!" he exclaimed as he rushed out, pretty much threw down a bowl of cereal and dashed out the door, faster than he'd ever run before in his life! He ran and ran and ran...until he realised that he'd completely overshot Professor Rowan's lab! He did his best to calm down and walked back to the surprisingly intricate building. It was nothing like the way it was portrayed on his friend's games...man, they'd be so jealous if they could see him now...still, he had to get in there and claim his pokemon.


With the greatest care, Roan knocked on the door. He hoped that the professor wasn't busy, or that he'd at least be a nice guy. Soon enough, the doors slid open to reveal a man who was very unlike what he was expecting.


"Yes?" Asked Rowan as he looked down with a very analytical gaze.


"Uh...h-hello sir, I'm Roan and I...I was sent here to get a pokemon, but I can come back later if that's okay..." Roan said as he tried to make eye contact without fainting. If he could, that'd at least be a step in the right direction for him.


"Nonsense, there's no time like the present! Come in, come in! I'll get you sorted out with not just your pokemon, but a pokedex, five pokeballs, a trainer's card, some money, clothes and a poketech. That should be enough to get you started on your journey, wouldn't you agree?" Rowan asked. Roan could do nothing else but nod and follow him to a room that had several boxes.

"Well, go ahead. Your partner is waiting for you in one of those boxes," Rowan said as he gestured to the boxes that Roan had already started looking at with much 'hmm'ing and 'aah'ing. Choosing a starter was no easy task for him. After all, it would be the backbone of his team! Soon enough however, he picked a box that contained a lot of grey things, even a grey hat!

"Well, here goes. Come on out-" but before he could throw his pokeball, Rowan stopped him. "WAIT A MINUTE! Er...perhaps you should call that particular pokemon outside of my laboratory..."

Roan nodded and after placing his new gear into his new grey and white bag, he stepped outside, with his pokeball in hand. It must be big, for the professor to worry about it, Roan thought as he stepped outside. He pressed the button in the center of the ball and tossed it with all his might to the ground. As the light dispersed, he looked up in shock at-an Onix! He opened his pokedex to look up his new friend. In a clearly digital voice, it produced the required information.


"Onix, the rock snake pokemon. It burrows through the ground at a speed of 50 mph while feeding on large boulders. Known moves: Tackle, Harden and Bind."

"That particular onix was found abandoned by its parents. Despite our best efforts, we were unable to make his parents take him back. It's rather sad, really," Rowan said as the Onix looked away from the both of them. It was pretty obvious that it was only there because it didn't have a choice, but Roan decided to try talking to it. Slowly and carefully, he walked around it.


"H-hi there, I bet you're feelin' outta place, bein' in a new world that you don't really get...I am too. Y'wanna travel with me?" He asked in a tiny voice, barely as loud as a whismur. The Onix seemed to listen, but he just turned away again. Roan sighed as he realised that this was going to be harder than he thought.


Suddenly, a cry came out from nearby-a little wurmple had gotten stuck in a wire fence! Without even thinking about the consequences, Roan ran over and helped the small pokemon free. "There you go, now be more careful in the future, okay?" he asked the wurmple as he placed it in a leafy bush. It 'smiled' as best as it could before going back to eating, as it had done before.

Both Rowan and the Onix had watched this and were impressed. The Onix came over to Roan and nudged at him, with a big smile on his face.

"You...you wanna come with me? Great!" Roan said as he pulled out the Onix's pokeball. "I think I'm gonna call you Rocky Road, 'cos you've had it tough so far and it's one of my favourite foods," Roan said as he looked up at the Onix, who nodded in agreement, along with a low growl. "I've gotta go back in the pokemon center, so you'd better hang out in your pokeball for now," Roan said as he pointed the pokeball towards Rocky Road and caused the creature to vanish.

"That was quite impressive young man. I believe you'll do fine in this world, so long as you keep that compassionate attitude towards pokemon on your mind, now, you'd best go back to pokemon center, as I believe that you all are having a meeting today," Rowan said with a genuine smile on his lips. It really lightened his heart to see someone who cared about pokemon like that.

"Y-yes sir!" Roan said as he ran back to the conference room. Unfortunately, even though he managed to weave through the various trainers and chansey that were starting to fill up the center, he tripped at the last moment and literally flew through the door to the conference room! After he crashed to the ground, he quickly picked himself up and sat down. With any luck, that wouldn't count as his first impression...

 

[pikakip]

(I'm sorry to say that Kyuu chan has dropped out of the RP)

In Your second post, a NPC named Jax will come in to the conference room and issue further instructions. He will choose random* people to join together in groups if you responded to the PM I sent you, and chose a partner, then I shall partner you on that basis. But if you did not respond in time, then Jax shall just pair you randomly. I will allow trading partners at Pokemon centers for those of you who get disappointed.

The man felt the sand crumble underneath his feet as he walked through the small town. He was dressed in a solid black shirt with a black leather jacket. He had thick jeans with lots of pockets. He had a trainer belt around his waist with 8 pokeballs. He had on a pair of black leather boots that were covered in dings and scratches. His face was hidden by a large dark scarf and only his left eye was visible. He stopped in front of the pokemon center and he pulled out a list. He then spoke with a deep growling voice. "Only eleven. Plus me… so twelve total. One gets to be a group of three. I travel solo…always." The man walked into the building. Joy stared at the man when he came in. "J-jax! OMIGAWD! The whole world thought you were dead! I can't belie-" Jax silenced her with a wave of his hand. "Yes joy, and the world that those kids are from thinks the same thing for them. Joy, it's going to be nearly impossible to get them back, and they need all the help they can get." Jax stepped past Joy and into the hall towards the conference room. He opened the door and stepped in, and what he saw made his heart sink. Almost all of them were teenagers. If he was going to get them home, they would need to get much, much stronger.

Jax sighed before he began speaking. "So…out of all the people that are stuck here the only ones that truly want to get home are you guys? Okay never mind that. My name is Jax. I am the one that called this meeting and sent you the message. Don't bug me with names because I DON'T CARE. I have a list here from Professor Rowan. It contains all of your names from the time you visited him to receive your pokemon. I shall now pair you in groups of two, and one unlucky group of three. You will meet your partner and immediately head for Jubilife. So make off for route 202 with your partner or partners and meet up in the pokemon center there. I will now read you the names. Dante, you are paired with… Annmarie. Roan, Jenna. Lyle, Jordan. Jackie, Dave. That leaves Raydin and I. I will travel solo and I leave Raydin with…Dante and Annmarie. That should be…Oh! I almost forgot, I need to give you this." Jax held out something that looked like a miniature USB flash drive. "Within this USB there is a Poketch app that I made myself. It will allow any of us to communicate with one another. And some information on the Pokemon found on Route 202. You may be shocked to know this, but your games are very wrong when it comes to Pokemon that can be found on routes." Jax pulled out a piece of paper from his shirt "The Pokemon that can be found on Route 202 are bidoof, Sandshrew, Zigzagoon, starly, pidgey and Shinx. Here are the rarely seen Pokemon. Houndour, Tailow, jigglypuff, bellsprout, oddish, Abra, Spearow, Sentret, Nidoran male, and Nidoran female. There have also been reported sightings of Pokemon such as Aipom and Munchlax, but they only live in honey trees." Jax put away the sheet of paper before looking back up at the table. "Officer Jenny has asked me to warn you about team Galactic. If they realize who you are and capture you, they will undoubtedly run tests on you to find out how you made it into this dimension. They have been sighted on this route, but they are only grunts. There have been increased sightings of them near Lake Valor, so DO NOT head back to route 201. If you do get intercepted by a galactic member, rely on your partner's ability as a trainer to help you out. I expect all of you to make it to Jubilife in one piece. Now, GO! You need to get home don't you?" With his last comment, Jax smiled and left the room. He walked out of the pokemon center and he threw out one of his Pokeballs. "Mince, fly."

By the time anyone came out of the pokemon center, Jax was already a smudge in the sky.

Raydin stared at Jax as he left the room. He looked at Mar before saying, "Well that was interesting, to say the least." Raydin placed Mar on his head and walked to the door. "Uhm..Dante and Annmarie? I'm going to head to route 202, I'll see you guys there."

Raydin walked down the hall and into the main lobby. He hadn't made two steps when he heard, "Raydin! Let's see that Mudkip of yours!"

Raydin smiled and turned around, looking straight into the eyes of Nurse Joy. He pulled Mar off of his head and handed him to her. Mar disliked this, and he snapped at Joy's fingers. Raydin scolded him. "MAR! Don't bite her!" The little Lavender pokemon bowed its head shamefully when he said this.

Nurse Joy shook her head. "It's okay Raydin, it happens all of the time. I guess it's like a natural reaction!" Joy smiled and began examining Mar, poking him in places that really seemed demeaning to the Mudkip. But, it kept its head down, afraid to upset his master again. Joy bent all of his legs slowly before she finished her examination and gave Mar a treat. Mar's personality shifted immediately after that and he seemed slightly disappointed when Raydin scooped him up in his arms and left the Pokemon center.

When they made it outside, Raydin looked around for Jax. When he saw that Jax wasn't there, he placed Mar on the ground, and began heading to Route 202.

Raydin paused at the beginning of route 202 mildly annoyed. In the game, it took 20 seconds to walk to the end. Raydin couldn't even see the end of it now. He sat down against the route 202 sign and started to wait when he heard a sound rustle in the grass behind him. Raydin jumped up and did a 180. Standing behind him was a black dog with what looked like its skull covering its face. The small dog growled at Raydin when he jumped up, causing Raydin to gulp. Raydin's brain whirred. "This..this..okay, this will be my first captured pokemon. Now, how would I go about catching it?" Raydin looked at Mar who was standing to his right, with a drip of spittle hanging from his mouth. Raydin just stared at him. "Uhh Mar? will you keep the houndour busy for a minute? I have to change."

The small four-legged fish just stared at him. It continued staring until it saw Raydin narrowly dodge an ember. Mar freaked out, and he tackled the houndour. The black dog quickly retaliated in the form of a bite. Raydin seemed satisfied as he ran behind a tree and began to change.

When Raydin came back into the battle, he smiled. Rowan had lied. The clothes consisted of a long sleeve black shirt with a white slash that divided the shirt diagonally. The pants resembled jeans in a way, only they were dark grey. They ended with a pair of running shoes, which were just regular ol sneakers in grey with black soles. His outfit had a bandanna, and he wore it around his neck.

Raydin smiled. The battle could officially start now.

Raydin looked at the current battle scene, shocked. Mar was spinning around rapidly, with a stream of water flowing from its mouth. The water gathered in a large cone above his head, and it continued to grow larger. When it got to a considerable size, Raydin yelled, "Mar, now!" The Mudkip stopped spinning, and it whipped its head towards the black dog, who was now shaking. The stream of water that was holding the whirlpool snapped, and it crashed into the houndour, who began getting whipped around in it. The whirlpool dissipated and sent the small dog crashing into a tree. As the small dog fell, Raydin threw his first pokeball…and missed. He sighed and tried again, throwing the ball with a bit more oomph. The houndour was surrounded by a bright red light, and it was sucked up in to the pokeball. "Woah…that was cool." Raydin bit his lower lip as he watched the ball shake. 1…2…3…click.

Raydin began cheering and jumping, which scared a few zigzagoons out of the nearby bushes. He retrieved his empty pokeball, and then he retrieved the one with the houndour. He mumbled to himself, "So I guess I'll call you-wait, what gender are you?" Raydin pulled out his pokedex and he scanned the ball. It spoke to him in a robotic female voice. "Houndour, The dark dog Pokemon. When it gets scared it blows flames at its foes. Gender, Female. Known moves are Ember and bite." Raydin smiled. "I'm going to call you Blaire." Raydin sat down and stood back up immediately, wiping off his wet pants. He leaned against a nearby tree and waited for his partners to come.


(In regards to catching pokemon: Pokemon under the rare category must have a fairly good capture post. I know that my post above was mediocre, but I was pressed for time and I was not able to make it a truly good post. I will fix it within a few days, but for now I'll leave it. I wish for you only to catch 1 pokemon per route, two maximum. I shall bring up the PC system in Jubilife, and I hope to see you all there. Don't get captured by team galactic!)

 

[Yuukihime]

Cherubi if onix is taken then I guess *shrug*

 

[ShadowYashi]

Jackie had been sitting boredly in the conference room, drumming her fingers on the table as she watched teens and pre-teens file into the room, each of them taking a seat with their starter, or at least those that had their starters out, which was just about all of them except for a select few, she mentally counted a total of eleven people in the room, including herself. "I wonder who's gonna come and speak to us. Maybe one of the Elite Four or a Gym Leader?" Jackie's eyes lit up at the thought of an Elite Trainer coming to speak to them "Duuude, what if it's Will! Or like Steven or something!? That'd be soooo awesome!" Jacqueline couldn't help the large smile that practically split her face as she thought about some of her favorite Pokémon Characters, a small giggle left her and Niko cracked open one of its eyes and lifted his floppy ear as he listened to Jackie giggling, curious Niko yawned and sat up, bending over slightly to stare her directly in the eye "Minun?"

"Oh its nothing Niko, I'm just thinking about something" she said, the smile never leaving her face. This caused Niko to stare at her weirdly before shaking his head and sitting back on his behind, arms hanging loosely against his tiny sprawled out legs. Humans were weird, he wondered why Pokémon such as himself even tried to begin to understand them, his ears perked up when the door to the room opened up and a man stepped in, even Jackie stopped giggling to herself to study the man. He was wearing a plain black shirt underneath a black leather jacket along with thick jeans filled with pockets, they reminded her of her favorite pair of cargo shorts, a trainer belt was clipped at his waist and he wore a pair of black leather boots, that looked like its seen better days. The most peculiar thing about his entire outfit, was the large dark scarf, that wrapped around his entire face, save for his left eye, she wondered what the scarf was trying to hide and a small voice in the back of her head stated he looked like Kakashi from Naruto, except she had no clue what color his hair was.

"Woah. . . he looks kinda scary" she murmured up to Niko, who nodded mutely and crawled down to stand on her shoulder. The man sighed before beginning to speak "So…out of all the people that are stuck here the only ones that truly want to get home are you guys? Okay never mind that. My name is Jax. I am the one that called this meeting and sent you the message. Don't bug me with names because I DON'T CARE. I have a list here from Professor Rowan. It contains all of your names from the time you visited him to receive your Pokémon. I shall now pair you in groups of two, and one unlucky group of three. You will meet your partner and immediately head for Jubilife. So make off for route 202 with your partner or partners and meet up in the Pokémon center there." Jackie listened as he read the names off the list, she looked around the room briefly and wondered just who the heck Dave was before looking back to Jax, he pulled out a device that reminded her of a Flash Drive "Ugh. Flash Drive's totally hate me" Jackie couldn't help but think sourly, she had a bad history with the mini storage device, her's always seemed to short out or die and she never seemed to think to back up her stuff before something bad happened to them. Jax then began to explain how there was an app on it, that told them about which Pokémon lived on what Routes, he pulled out a slip of paper and began listing off Pokémon that lived on Route 202.

Jackie felt herself perk up at the thought of catching a female Nidoran or Zigzagoon. Nidorina and Linoone were so cool in her opinion, it would be hard to choose which one she'd want to catch "Ehh, I'll flip a coin or something later" Jackie watched as he put away the sheet of paper and began talking about Team Galactic, she was shocked that Team Galactic knew about their predicament and were sick enough to want to use them as live experiments and test subjects "What a bunch of weirdo's" she mumbled to herself as Jax told them to be extremely careful of Team Galactic and work together with her partner should they attack and that they had to all meet up in Jubilife City. "Now, GO! You need to get home don't you?" With that said, Jax exited the room "I guess we should go find this Dave guy huh Niko?" Jackie looked at her Minun who nodded and she glanced around at everyone, excluding that one guy, who she guessed was Raydin, he had left without his other two partners "Cocky kid" she thought before speaking up "So umm, which one of you is Dave?"

 

[FalseSwipe]

Trainers filled the room left and right, and a room of only two became a room of about 10 or 11. Dave sighed as he saw all the other trainers playing with their pokemon, he seemed to be the only one that didn't have his out. But bringing Strike out now would be stupid, seeing as it stands at about 5 feet tall, and it's not a tabletop pokemon like a Pikachu or Bulbasaur. He leaned back in his chair and put his weight on the wall behind him. He rested his feet up on the table and surveyed the room. He didn't like what he saw. Dave never really liked people, his dad would continually criticize him on being "anti-social". Dave shook his head and messed up all his hair before straightening it again. One of Dave's stupid habits. Dave was growing impatient as the time continued to pass as slowly as possible. He reached inside the bag he was given at Professor Rowans lab and pulled out his Lime Green pokeball. Inside this pokeball was his first Pokemon.

Dave held the green pokeball in his fist. Scyther was a great powerhouse from the original 150, and Dave felt strongly for powerhouses. He remembered catching a Scyther in the Pokemon Silver game during the bug contest. He would always win that contest if he caught a Scyther. But something seemed very odd about this Scyther, it felt less powerful. Not in a bad way, no matter how crazy that sounds, but it was actually a good thing. He wasn't really sure why, but Dave knew that it would reveal itself in time. Dave was very tired from waking up so early, so he leaned forward from his original slouched position and rested his head on the U-shaped table and started to doze off. He hoped that no one would make a big deal out of it.

The conference doors opened and a bold man walked into the room. The area that was filled with chatter and pokemon sounds just moments ago was now dead silent. "So…out of all the people that are stuck here the only ones that truly want to get home are you guys...." Dave couldn't bother to pay attention. I mean how could you pay attention in a situation like this, there were so many other things to think about. Dave started to think about his father and how sad he must be. Ever since his mother passed away, Dave and his father were very close. Dave started kicking the chair in front of him mindlessly until he realized that he was bothering someone. He softly whispered "Sorry", to the boy in front of him, who looked about the same age. He probably didn't hear him. Whatever. The mysterious man, who's name was Jax (Dave had figured out by this point), dropped off an portable flash drive near Dave. Dave picked up and pondered aloud "What the heck is going on?" The man left the room in one swift move and another boy followed shortly after. Dave had no idea what the hell was going on, but people seemed to be pairing up in two's and Dave was clueless.

He eyed around the room. Peoples faces showed the emotion of excitement, while others showed the emotion of nervousness. Who wouldn't be nervous right now. Dave scratched his head and looked around for someone who didn't have a partner; that would most likely be his partner. "So umm, which one of you is Dave?" Dave turned 180 degrees around to spot a brown-skinned girl with dark brown hair. She couldn't be taller than 5', and Dave guessed she was about 16, maybe even 17 if she was really short for her age. Dave slowly stood up in grumpy, sleepy state and walked over to the girl. "I'm Dave" he said as he yawned before remembering that his bags were on the table.

He grabbed his bags and walked over to the brown-skinned girl. "I'm gonna be honest here, I didn't hear a word he said, and now I got this weird flash drive thingy and I don't know who you are. I know this may come off as a horrible first impression that I will never get back, but I'm pretty much clueless here." Dave said slowly. It really took him a while to wake up. He eyed her up and down. "Just my luck, one of those girls who changes her favorite song every week, spends 200$ on shoes, and probably thinks she's all that" he thought to himself. "Well, I just hope I'm wrong" He said outloud. Whoops, but atleast she has no idea what he is talking about.

 

[Cyndaquasher]

Even though he was around people in a similar situation to his, Roan was practically shaking in his boots! All of the people in the room looked both older and tougher than he was. Why was he brought here? It just didn't make any sense to him. He wasn't the best battler out of his friends, nor was he the best contest entrant (his inability to win the master rank was evidence of that). He just hoped that he wouldn't get partnered up with someone who was all rough and tough and...

Well, there was no time for thinking like that now, because a newcomer walked in the door. This black-wearing guy seemed to have the ability to silence everyone in the room immediately and given how many pokemon there were there, it was no small feat. As Roan listened intently to Jax go on about who he was and what they'd have to do next, his mind was already spinning with ideas. Hmm, I should probably get an oddish or a shinx on route 202 to counteract Rocky Road's weakness to water...an abra would be awesome, but they're near impossible to catch...wait, games? How did he know about the games? I guess someone must have told him, Roan thought as he listened intently to what he had to do, as well as who he had to do it with.

Wait, I was partnered with...Jenna...THAT'S A GIRL'S NAME! Oh, I'm even more hopeless around girls than I am with guys! Wait, maybe it's just a nickname...a really wierd nickname, but it could still be a nickname... Roan's mind was aflame with nervousness now, but there was no time for that. He needed to upload that 'app' onto his poketch, swallow his nerves and find this Jenna person. He hoped both would be pretty easy.

Uploading the app was pretty easy. All he had to do was stick the little USB in its little hole and after a progress bar filled up, he found that all the names that Jax had said previously were selectable to be called. There was even an 'all' function for conference calling. Jax might be a jerk, but he was thorough and Roan respected that. Now, all he had to do was work out who Jenna was. He walked over to a girl who was sitting a bit away from everyone else. He didn't know how, but there was something about her that just screamed 'Canadian,' not that Roan thought there was anything wrong with that. Still, he had to talk to her at some point, so he took a deep breath, tried to not look like he was fainting and said, "Uh, hi, I'm Roan...are you Jenna?" He really hoped the answer would be yes.

 

[ShadowYashi]

"I'm Dave" a boy with jet black hair said while stretching, Jackie studied him briefly, he looked to be about maybe 14 she assumed, he was of average height, had pale skin and brown eyes, which were slightly clouded, he must've just woken up, considering his state at the moment. Dave picked up his bags and made his way over to her and then he spoke up "I'm gonna be honest here, I didn't hear a word he said, and now I got this weird flash drive thingy and I don't know who you are. I know this may come off as a horrible first impression that I will never get back, but I'm pretty much clueless here." Dave briefly studied Jacqueline's appearance much like she did him and seconds later of looking like he was deep in thought, he spoke up suddenly, confusing her "Well, I just hope I'm wrong" Jackie just blinked and looked to Niko, who shrugged, looking just as confused he hardly understood her, so why would he want to even begin to understand this kid. "Anyway, I'm Jacqueline, but you can call me Jackie and this is Niko!" She motioned to the Minun on her shoulder, who just stared blankly response "Nice to meet you Dave" she gave him a friendly smile and decided to elaborate his question.

"Well, Jax just explained to us, that we'll be set up into pairs of two and one group of three. Me an you are being partnered together obviously and Jax said the flash drive has a little Pokétch app on it, that tells you what Pokémon live on the routes. All we have to do really is make it to Jubilife without being spotted by Team Galactic and if we do get attacked, we should work together and he told us not to head to Lake Valor, cause that's where they've been spotted." She explained while smiling "And uhh since you were sleep I guess you'd wanna know the Pokémon on the Route right? Well, there's Bidoof, Sandshrew, Zigzagoon, Starly, Pidgey and Shinx. Then the rarely seen Pokémon are Houndour, Tailow, Jigglypuff, Bellsprout, Oddish, Abra, Spearow, Sentret, male Nidoran and female Nidoran. He also said, that there was reported sightings of Aipom and Munchlax, but they only live in the honey trees. I was thinking about maybe capturing a Female Nidoran or a Zigzagoon, but I'm leaning towards the Nidoran, what about you? Are there any Pokémon you'd like to capture?" she gave him a curious glance before walking towards the door that lead them out of the conference room, she paused when they walked past the bathroom "Err wait a second, can you hold that thought for a moment, I wanna change into these trainer clothes." Jackie ran inside, leaving Niko to stand outside the bathroom door while she ran in to change her clothes.

Once she finished changing Jackie stepped out the stall and twirled around to show off the outfit to Niko "What do you think. I like it, it's really comfy" Jackie's trainer outfit consisted of some blue jeans and a snug fitting long sleeved green shirt with a Pokéball in the middle and an orange colored vest that had a few pockets here and there, she still wore her same sneakers "Minu Minu." He shrugged uncaringly and Jackie pouted, placing her fists at her hips while Niko hopped onto her shoulder and they exited the bathroom, her bag slung over her shoulder "Well jeeze, you could be a little bit happy or something, gosh you act like such a grouch Niko"

"Minu. Minun." The Minun just scoffed and looked away and Jackie sighed in exasperation "Well I can tell right now that you and I won't be the best of friends that quickly huh?" Niko didn't respond, so Jackie just looked at Dave who was waiting for her, she smiled softly at him and spoke up "Okay, you can answer the question now."

 

[Strikit]

Shetani sat tall in the seat next to Dante, sniffing nonchalantly. At first, Dante was a bit offended; surely he did not smell that bad. Then it occurred to him, scent was currently the only way she could learn about him, due to her bad eyes. It made more sense after that. In order to hopefully help her get acquainted with him he began to stroke her fur, allowing her to get used to his touch. In the games it never really came up, bonding with your Pokemon. You could catch as many as you liked, and they were just numbers, data that could be manipulated or changed. But this was real life. Shetani was not a manifestation of an artit's imagination, brought to life through graphics. She was a living, breathing creature with thoughts, feelings, emotion, and intelligence. Just how much intelligence? It was commonly known that dogs were fairly smart, and horses were smarter, and dolphins were even smarter still. But how smart was a Poochyena? Would she gain or lose IQ points when and if she evolved? What exactly would change? He honestly didn't know; he supposed only time with her could tell.

Then a tall man in black entered. His choice of dress made Dante raise a brow, though he stopped himself quickly. People probably dressed differently in this dimension, and it was not his place to scorn them. After all, he was the alien, he was the oddity.

He soon discovered that the man's name was Jax, he had no tolerance for niceties, and he was quick and to the point, a lone wolf, if you will. Upon the declaration that they would be seperated into groups, Dante scowled. He'd never liked working with others. Then again, it was probably a good idea in this scenario. It was true, here ten year olds left home alone with just a Pokemon to conquer the world. But they had lived in this world for a whole ten years; Dante and the rest had not had that advantage. So perhaps it was wise to make them stay together.

Apparently he was to group with someone named Annemarie, as well as a young man named Raydin. He had not the faintest idea which they were out of the group, but he supposed he would learn that in due time. Next was a list of Pokemon to be found on Route 202, which would be the area connecting Sandgem and Jubilife City. Dante had heard none of these place names before, nor had he heard of some of the aforementioned Pokemon. The idea was daunting. If he did not know what to expect how could he defend himself and Shetani, as well? He would need to add new members to his team, for protection just as much as companionship. Was that what it was always like in this world? Pokemon were not only pets and friends, but bodyguards? It was a strange concept.

Then as quickly as he came, Jax left. He wasn't sorry; he found the man's commanding nature to be abrasive, offensive, even. It seemed as though he would have to dilute his pride considerably when in his presence, or when meant to take instruction from him. Raydin made himself known soon after, bidding himself and Annemarie goodbye in favor of the Route ahead. There was no need to wait behind and wait for Annemarie, then, he figured. She could probably take care of herself, and they would meet up on the Route somewhere.

"I'm going to go as well, Annemarie," he said, though he directed it clearly at no one, for he did not know exactly who she was. Shetani jumped down from her chair and he grabbed his bag. His hand came in contact with the ridiculously large watch-like device, reminding him that he needed to add the contents of the USB-like thing to it. He took it and inserted it into a slot at the bottom of the watch. A menu appeared onscreen with options on what he could do. He was pleased to discover it was almost identical to a computer, which he was familiar with. A few buttons later the app was installed. It asked that he input his name, which he did. Then it changed into an aerial map of the region, like the ones that had been in his room. A dot labeled 'Raydin' was distancing itself away from Sandgem, leaving a cluster of dots behind. He would not be the last to leave; he set the USB where he'd found it and exited the conference room.

Nurse Joy waved him goodbye when she saw him, letting him know he was good to go as she had already examined Shetani. He stepped out into the bright sunlight, glad to be in an element he was at least somewhat familiar with. It was true, he was far from comfortable in Sandgem itself. But the sun, the sky, the grass, the trees were the same. He even thought he heard birds singing, Though he knew it was Flying Pokemon instead of actual birds, it was soothing.

Before he left the town he decided to take a trip to the Mart. Although it was obvious that the games would be of little use here he had always done so before making his new partner brave the wilderness. It was always beneficial to have a wealth of Potions and status healers, to make sure his Pokemon would not be rendered defenseless through weakness or debilitating condition. The building stood out from its fellows for the large sign proclaiming its purpose, as well as the blue roof. Shetani stayed close to his feet as he entered and was greeted by cliche shopping center music and a setting remniscent of a convenience store. There were racks with shelves on either side, forming aisles. The clerk was surrounded by a counter with rotating racks of merchandise placed on it. Her eyes raised momentarily from the book she was reading.

"No Pokemon allowed outside of their balls, it's store policy," she drawled in a monotone. Dante obliged immediately. Though he wanted time to bond with her, he did not want to offend anyone, especially not in a society he was not familiar with. She did not look up again, suggesting she was mollified by the sound of Shetani's ball working. Unsure what to do next, he went straight to the aisle farthest from the counter, where oddly-shaped squirt bottles were lined up in rows. One style in particular caught his eye. Predominantly white with purple accents, it had an entire shelf dedicated to it, and he recognized it immediately. Here was the realistic rendition of a Potion, highly similar to the ones seen in the games. The box Professor Rowan had presented him with contained money as well as five balls, so he determined that he would buy three Potions and a single full heal. Due to the mention of Nidoran and Jigglypuff on the Route there would be a high risk for sleep and poison, assuming it still worked the same way.

Dante carried the bottles to the front desk. The young woman scanned them without taking her eyes off of the book, took his money, and sent him on his way. With the medicines safely stowed in the side pocket of his bag he picked up the pace, leaving the Mart faster than was polite. Not only was he uncomfortable with the woman's lackadaisical attitude towards him, but he was afraid he was falling too far behind, and he did not want to be seperated from the group. His long strides carried him out of Sandgem and onto Route 202. As opposed to the mapping in the games, where almost all Routes could be traveled in under a minute without wild Pokemon or trainers, the Route seemed impossibly long. Trees crowded him on either side and a well-worn dirt path was the only way to navigate which direction was forward, and which was back. The sound of the Flying types in the trees was now deafeningly loud, albeit at intervals. There would be periods of pleasant song, then a savage cacophony of screeches, perhaps over food or mates, would assault his ears. He supposed there was a chance they were not being that loud, that due to living in a less avian-friendly part of Texas he was not used to it. In any case, all he could do was grit his teeth and continue on.

The dirt shifted under Dante's feet as he followed the path. To him it felt more like sand than anything else. His eyes darted from one side to the other, watching the bushes and trees vigilantly. Though he knew truly dangerous Pokemon rarely lived in these parts in the games, he was still on edge. A twig snapped behind him and he whirled around to see a stocky little brown Pokemon lumber across the path to the other side. It looked a lot like a beaver, he thought. That was probably Bidoof. Was it maybe the Rattata of this region? Found almost everywhere, usually caught only for the Pokedex, written off but actually a fairly good Pokemon? For a moment he considered capturing it to see if that was the case, but by the time he'd made up his mind it was already out of sight. With a heavy sigh he turned back around and began again.

As he relaxed he began to fear less and see more. Now that he looked, there were dozen of Bidoof eyes watching him from behind the bushes. He could actually pick out the Pidgey and another short and fluffy bird inside the trees. His interest, however, lay with the Nidoran. As a general rule they started out weak, but once fully evolved were almost undefeatable powerhouses, as long as they didn't oppose a Psychic type. The only question was would he go for a male, or female? Dante generally preferred the male. He liked his color better, and thought Nidoking was far more intimidating than Nidoqueen. But he would take whatever he could get, for he remembered Jax saying they were among the rarest on the Route.

Then a streak of blue flashed across his vision. He jumped, starled by its sudden appearance. But by the time he realized it had happened it was already gone. He was about to go on, but then he realized it could be a female Nidoran. His attentions turned instantly to the direction the blur had gone. Slowly, he parted the bushes to find a small black and blue Pokemon growling up at him. It certainly wasn't Nidoran, so he backed up quickly. It scampered off, surely believing he was chasing it to make his midday meal. Though that was far from true, it wasn't like he could tell it so. He was just about to turn and go when he heard a rodent-like chattering sound from just beyond the bushes. His heart hammering, he peered over them and saw what else, but a light blue Nidoran telling off a Bidoof that had blundered upon her territory. The Bidoof seemed genuinely unaware of its fault, even as it was assaulted with bites and scratches. Dante was forcibly reminded of the attitude of a Slowpoke. But this was not the time to laugh at their antics; it was the time to make his first capture.

At first, he was unsure what to do. But then he remembered he should be sending out Shetani. He extracted her ball from his pocket, enlarged it, and sent her out. She landed gracefully on the dirt, fangs bared and body braced for action.

"Go get her, girl!" he commanded. Relying mostly on her sense of smell, Shetani charged at the pale blue Pokemon. Nidoran noticed her assailant a moment too late and turned to run, but was pounced by Shetani in a Tackle. They then faced each other, various grumbles and growls issuing from the both of them.

"Use a Howl," he commanded. Shetani raised her head and let out a bone-chilling cry. At the same time, even as it gave him chills, adrenaline surged through his veins and Shetani seemed even more powerful. "Follow up with a Tackle." She did so. Her shoulders rammed into the rodent Pokemon, knocking her over. Dante quickly grabbed an empty ball from within his bag and threw it. It hit her and fell to the ground, where it rocked for several seconds. Then at the last second it exploded, leaving the Nidoran in its place. He cursed under his breath. "Shetani, weaken her some more."

Shetani snarled and lunged at her and Tackled her several times in succession. The Nidoran squeaked helplessly, for no matter how hard she tried, Shetani was always a second faster. Finally she managed to ram her with one of the small horns on her back. Shetani squealed and backed up quickly. Unwilling to see her hurt so badly again, he threw another ball, thinking if this one did not keep her he would just walk away. It shook once, twice, a third time, and was still.

Dante sighed with relief as he moved forward and picked the dusty ball up off the ground. He brushed it off and set it in his pocket next to Shetani's ball. He would not let her out here, for he feared she would just run away. He needed to wait until he was in a safe place before becoming acquainted with her. Besides, Shetani was his greatest concern at the moment.

He knelt down and ran a hand over her, examining her body. When he came to the place where she had been rammed she whimpered and withdrew from him, then shuddered violently. At first, he was confused. What was wrong with her? Then it occurred to him. Was this the real-life equivalent of poison?

He decided to try the full heal. After all, if there was a chance it work it was worth it. If it didn't he would run to Jubilife and to the Center there. From the bag he withdrew the yellow and red spraybottle.

"Hold still, Shetani. I'll try to make sure it doesn't hurt," he said in a soft voice. She quivered nonetheless as he sprayed the hole in her side. A heart-wrenching squeal escaped her throat, but after the medicine took effect she relaxed and licked Dante's hand gratefully. "That's a good girl. Do you mind if I carry you the rest of the way?"

She barked her approval and allowed him to hoist her into his arms. She wasn't all that heavy, he wasn't surprised to discover. She felt about the weight of a large chihuahua. In fact, he theorized if her fur was shaved off she might even be about the same size. He laughed lightly as they began walking, the afternoon sun beating down on them. Despite the odd circumstances in which he had met Shetani, he was in good spirits.

Ahead of him he found Raydin leaning against a tree, accompanied by his Mudkip. Relief flooded through him; though he was glad to have caught Nidoran, he thought he'd had more than enough fun for one day. But so would be most of his days, he hypothesized grimly.

"I apologize for lagging behind so badly," he said as he came to a stop. "I needed to stop by the Mart, and then was held up by a Nidoran."

 

[FalseSwipe]

Dave started to get back to his senses within each passing moment. As Jackie got changed he looked around the room to see the groups getting to know each other better. He eyed the strange Flash Drive device weirdly before uploading it onto the Poketech located on his wrist. It uploaded in less than a minute and he shoved the Flash Drive deep into his pocket. He was already homesick. Seattle, Washington was a great place to live. Dave loved the rain and the cool weather around the year. "I wonder if it rains everywhere, or just in secluded areas like in the game" He wondered. So far the game had been nothing more than a general idea of what this world was like. It was like a movie based off a novel, they get the major things right but when it comes to the nitty-gritty almost everything is changed. Jackie stepped out of the restroom and showed her pokemon her outfit.

He lost himself deep in thought once again. "She seems really nice, I need to stop judging people so badly" he thought "Whatever. I probably need to catch a pokemon here, because I remember the first time I played Pokemon I never caught anything. My Charizard was at level 79!" Dave chuckled softly out loud. "Anyways, I'm gonna need something to counter Strike's weaknesses. Or at least one of them. Maybe-" Dave was cut off mid thought and snapped back into reality.

"Okay, you can answer the question now" Jackie said in a friendly tone. Dave blinked hard as he came back to reality. "Uhm, I dunno. Maybe a Sandshrew if I run into one" He said. Dave slid his bag back up to the top of his shoulders. "Thanks for being so polite." Dave said. "I'm not really great with people, so excuse me if I come off rude or anything like that." Dave saw that the room started to thin in people. The other groups were getting ready to move out. "We have a long ways to go to Jublife, so we can talk more on the way" Dave smiled for the first time since waking up "Anything you need to do before we move out?" He asked as he made sure nothing was left behind.

 

[ShadowYashi]

"Ohh Sandshrews are cool" Jackie responded while she fiddled with her flash drive, connecting it to her Pokétch "Oh and its no big deal, being polite is in my nature and it won't bother me at all" she said in response to his comment about being rude "I spent my 4 years of high school dealing with rude people everyday, I can handle it." Jackie grinned while winking at him before shaking her head no "Nah, I don't need anything, plus if we're lucky we'll find an item some one dropped or something." Jackie grinned in a sheepish manner while securing the straps on her shoulder, the two of them made it to the entrance of the Pokémon Center, exiting the Center and making their way along Route 202 "Alright, it shouldn't take us too long to get to Jubilife City, this Route is somewhat short so I hope we run into some good Pokémon along the way." She glanced sideways at him placing her arms casually behind her head "So, how old are you Dave?"

 

[FalseSwipe]

Dave turned his head towards Jackie as the two strolled down Route 202 at a slow pace. The game really did not do justice to the scenic routes. The trees were a very lively color of green and the grass was up to the trainers knees as they walked through. From distances you can tell there were patches of grass that were rustling and moving about, but they were all small pokemon who ran at the sight of a trainer. Dave scanned the area for any of the rare kinds of pokemon, because he would jump at an opportunity to catch any of them. Dave looked to see how much longer the route was. They still had a long ways to go, unlike the game where you can get through in under a minute. "To answer your question, I'm 14, nearly 15. I'm guessing your about 16, 17?" Dave asked, taking a guess from her height and her features. Suddenly, before she could answer, there was a loud rustling in the bushes behind them. "What was that!" Dave exclaimed as he turned around, immediatly grabbing his lime green pokeball in hand.

 

[ShadowYashi]

Jackie was going to respond to Dave's question, but a loud rustling alerted both trainers and Niko's attention and Dave grabbed his Pokéball, she noticed it was a lime green color and it made her wonder what his starter was. The rustling got louder in their ears and Niko tensed on her shoulder but instantly relaxed when a tiny brown figure came out of the bushes, stopping at their feet it was Zigzagoon, a brown and white raccoon looking Pokémon with layers of cream and brown bristly fur covered in various zig-zag patterns and jagged lines. It had small ears, black eyes and a brown muzzle with a black 'mask' on its face. "Zigzagoon!" The Zigzagoon had its nose pressed into the ground, it seemed to be sniffing around for something, until it noticed their feet and then glanced up at both of them, blinking and tilting its head to the side curiously "Zigzagoo?"

"Daww, its so cute! Hey there little fella." After realizing it was nothing threatening, Jackie smiled and then crouched down to pet the Zigzagoon, who happily leaned into her touch "Zagoon" it murmured before removing its head and padding over to Dave, staring curiously at his Pokéball, sniffing the air around it "Zigzagoon!" Jackie laughed "Hey, I think it want's your Pokéball, I remember reading these little guys are curious and they like round stuff, or was that Linoone. . ." she trailed off with a thoughtful expression before shrugging it off and standing "Either way, I want one! Zigzagoon was the first shiny I had ever owned in Sapphire and after it evolved, I fell in love with Linoone" she explained with a wide smile " So I think I'm gonna catch this little guy, instead of the Nidoran I wanted, do you mind?" Jackie asked glancing at Dave, she didn't want to hold him up or anything.

 

[rockman0]

Lyle had been sitting at the U-shaped table for what seemed like forever. Everyone was quiet as they waited for the man who summoned them to arrive. Suddenly, everyone could hear someone yelling. It sounded like Nurse Joy. It was so loud that everyone jumped out of their seats and the Pokémon that were out of their Pokeballs stopped doing whatever they were doing.

"OHMIGAWD! I THOUGHT YOU WERE DEAD!" came the noise from the front of the Center. "I CAN'T BELIEVE…" It seemed like Nurse Joy had been cut off. There was silence again. Then a man came into the room. He wore black heavy boots. A scarf covered his entire face except for his head. He wore thick jeans with lots of pockets. Around his waist was a trainer's belt with 8 Pokeballs. He spoke with a deep voice, almost as if he was growling at someone that was invading his territory. He took a deep breath before speaking.

"So…out of all the people that are stuck here the only ones that truly want to get home are you guys? Okay never mind that. My name is Jax. I am the one that called this meeting and sent you the message. Don't bug me with names because I DON'T CARE. I have a list here from Professor Rowan. It contains all of your names from the time you visited him to receive your pokemon. I shall now pair you in groups of two, and one unlucky group of three. You will meet your partner and immediately head for Jubilife. So make off for route 202 with your partner or partners and meet up in the pokemon center there. I will now read you the names. Dante, you are paired with… Annmarie. Roan, Jenna. Lyle, Jordan. Jackie, Dave. That leaves Raydin and I. I will travel solo and I leave Raydin with…Dante and Annmarie. That should be…Oh! I almost forgot, I need to give you this."

In his hand was some sort of device. It looked like it was a jump drive. The man continued to explain what the strange device was. Within this USB there is a Poketch app that I made myself. It will allow any of us to communicate with one another. And some information on the Pokemon found on Route 202. You may be shocked to know this, but your games are very wrong when it comes to Pokemon that can be found on routes." The man continued on to tell everyone what Pokémon were found on Route 202. Lyle heard names such as Jigglypuff, Sandshrew, Nidoran, Houndoor… Wasn't those Pokémon from other regions? Wow, he thought, his games were wrong. First thing he was going to do when he got home was to set the Pokémon video game developers straight. Then, a sudden chill came over his body. What if he never got home. He couldn't bear the thought of staying here. It was pretty cool living in the Pokémon world, but what about his family and his Internet buddies. What about all of the people on the Pokecommunity forums. All he knew was that this man, Jax, was the only hope he had of getting back home. Maybe he should stop all of these wandering thoughts and listen to what the man had to say.

"Officer Jenny has asked me to warn you about team Galactic", the man continued, "if they realize who you are and capture you, they will undoubtedly run tests on you to find out how you made it into this dimension. They have been sighted on this route, but they are only grunts. There have been increased sightings of them near Lake Valor, so DO NOT head back to route 201. If you do get intercepted by a galactic member, rely on your partner's ability as a trainer to help you out. I expect all of you to make it to Jubilife in one piece. Now, GO! You need to get home don't you?" The man left the room.

Lyle looked around. He saw that everyone was already pairing up with their partners. Some kid had left the room without meeting up with his partners. Others had met up with their partners and left with them. Lyle just sat at the table and waited for things to settle down for a little while. Vulpix stared at him impatiently.

"What," he asked. "Is something bothering you?" Vulpix just stared at him. "Man, I thought it would be cool to have a real live Pokémon that I could talk to and have fun with, just like on the anime. But you're no better than the Pokémon from my video game."

"Pix?" the Pokémon replied. Bryce looked at the Pokémon.

"Of course you don't know what I'm talking about. No one knows what I'm talking about. I don't even know what I'm talking about." Again, there was only impatient staring. Lyle pulled out the USB device and plugged it into his Poketch. He watched in amazement as a map popped up on the LCD screen. He also saw a communicator. There were different frequencies with each trainer's name. All he had to do was press one and started talking (which, of course, he tried). From the corner of his eye, he saw Vulprix lie down.

"You're no fun," he said. However, he didn't mean it. "Alright fine, let's go find our partner. Jordan was his name, I think." He got up from his seat and looked around. A lot of people had already left. He looked around to see a kid with a Chikorita in front of him. He looked as if he were in pain. It was probably the fact that the Chikorita was chewing on his arm. Lyle walked over to the kid and introducted himself.

"Hi, I'm Lyle. Is your name by any chance Jordan?"

 

[FalseSwipe]

Dave lowered his shoulders and calmed downafter seeing it was just a harmless Zigzagoon. That scared him, it could have been someone from Team Galactic. He eyed the furry creature carefully. There was really a lot of detail that the games missed out on. Dave put a hand on the back of the pokemon, but it backed away and stuck its face up near Dave's left hand, where his pokeball was. Jackie turned to Dave and told him that Zigzagoons were attracted to round objects, so he put his pokeball away on his belt. The Zigzagoon was curious into where the pokeball had dissaperead. It looked like a racoon, and it acted a lot like one too. Dave thought about when he had a Zigzagoon in Ruby. He remembered that it would always pick up objects off the ground, just like a real scavenger racoon.

The trees around the area were very lively, and once or twice Dave could tell there was an Aipom swinging from one of the trees. He smiled, Aipom was a very cool pokemon in his opinion. Dave refocused on the current situation. Jackie was petting and observing the Zigzagoon, while Dave was surveying the route around them, looking for other trainers or Pokemon. Suddenly, his Poketech started up.

"Zigzagoon. the tinyracoon Pokemon. It walks in a zigzag fashion and is very good at finding objects." The Poketech said in its robotic voice. Dave looked over at Jackie, he knew that she wanted to catch it, because she had mentioned it earlier. Atleast, Dave thinks she did. "Better keep shut till she says something" Dave thought, not wanting to make a fool of himself.

" So I think I'm gonna catch this little guy, instead of the Nidoran I wanted, do you mind?" Jackie turned to Dave, asking politely. Dave nodded in approval and backed away to watch. He had caught thousands of pokemon of the years of playing, but to see a demonstration done in person: Dave didn't really know what to expect. He sat down a couple yards away from Jackie, her pokemon, and the wild Zigzagoon. "Good luck" He said as he got into a relaxed position to watch. The Zigzagoon looked confused as it circled around Jackies ankles in the grass.