Pokémon Legends: Kanto Saga

[The black Vulpix]

Chapter 1: Leaf Green

"The number of new trainers registered in the pokémon league has more than doubled in the past week. This is attributed to the recent announcement by the Elite 4's champion that he would be resigning. No trainers were available to take the champion's place, so the Elite 4 have issued a challenge to all trainers. The next trainer to successfully acquire all eight Kanto league badges and defeat the Elite 4 will become the next champion!"

The news broadcast was enough for just about eligible boy and girl in Pallet Town to leave home and become a trainer. Included among them was the teenage girl lying on her bed watching the news broadcast. Tomorrow would be her turn to get her first pokémon from Professor Oak. The girl wasn't interested in challenging the Elite 4, however. She wanted to become a pokémon photographer.

"Ashley are you still up?" Ashley's mother, Maria, was standing in the doorway of Ashley's bedroom.

"Its past midnight...you should get some sleep so you'll be up in time to get your pokemon tomorrow..."

"I can't sleep, I'm just too excited." Ashley replied, smiling.

Ashley was a fourteen year old girl, a good four years past old enough to become a trainer. She had been putting it off year after year, but since everyone seemed to be leaving Pallet Town all of a sudden she decided it was her time to go as well. She also had to be at least thirteen years of age to send in photos to the Kanto Times.

She was a slender girl with well toned legs, she made a habit to go for a walk every morning in preparation for becoming a trainer. She had a modest bust for her age, though her most notable feature was her hair. Her brown hair was very long, falling to her waist in the back while only being shoulder-length on the sides. Her hair colour matched her eyes as well. As Ashley was ready for bed, she was barefoot and wearing her blue pajamas.

"Well you'll have to manage then." Her mother stated irritably. "You won't even make it to Viridian if you don't get to sleep soon."

"Fine..." Ashley sighed in defeat, sitting up on her bed and turning off her tv with the remote. Her mother switched off the lights in Ashley's room before going to her room to go to sleep herself.

"Well, a girl does need her beauty sleep." Ashley crawled under the sheets and almost instantly fell asleep.

"Ashley, get up already!" Ashley woke up startled hearing her mother holler to her. She glanced over at the clock on her nightstand and saw that it was a few minutes past nine in the morning. She was supposed to be at Professor Oak's laboratory by nine.

"Guess I'm late..." Ashley muttered sleepily, rubbing her eyes. She wasn't too concerned about it though. She already packed all her stuff the night before anyway.

"Oh well." Ashley yawned. "I doubt I'm the first person to ever be late getting their first pokemon. The only other trainers getting pokémon today are Gary and Red anyway."

Gary, Red, and Ashley had been friends since they were kids. That seemed to change as they got older though. Gary became more of a jerk and Red kept mostly to himself. Ashley believed she was the only one who hadn't drastically changed, although that wasn't true at all. When she was young, Ashley didn't really care about her appearance and would even go playing in the dirt with her friends. Now, however...

"EEK! My hair is a total mess!" Ashley shrieked as she got a look at herself in her dresser mirror. She had a particularly bad case of bed head, and quickly took a brush from her dresser to fix the problem. She had packed a brush in her travel bag as well.

Once her hair problem had been taken care of, Ashley quickly changed out of her pajamas and into the outfit she had picked out the night before. She was very meticulous in choosing what to wear since she was going to be wearing the same outfit almost all the time.

The outfit she chose consisted of a light blue tank top with a black trim, a short red skirt that would hang down just past her thighs, a pair of long light blue socks and white running shoes with a red strap, and topped it all off with a white hat with a red pokeball emblem on the top. Around her waist she also wore a typical black belt worn by trainers with six clips for pokéballs. Her travel bag, which looked much like a really large purse with a lot of pockets, also had a special clip on it for the pokédex she'd receive.

Once Ashley was finished changing, she looked herself over in the mirror. Thinking something was missing, she remembered her watch and strapped it around her wrist.

"There! Good to go!" Ashley picked up her travel bag and slung it over her shoulder, then went downstairs to meet her mother in the kitchen.

"Well what do you think?" Ashley asked her mother, gesturing to her outfit.

"I take it you didn't have a shorter skirt?" Her mother asked jokingly, clearly in disapproval of Ashley's outfit.

"Typical answer..." Ashley said with a 'hmph'. "What would you know about fashion anyway?"

"Fashion? You're going on a journey across Kanto and through the wilderness, not out clubbing with your friends." Her mother stated firmly. She walked over to the table to set out a plate with two slices of toast, two fried eggs, and six strips of bacon. There was already a bowl of cereal, a tall glass of orange juice, and several multivitamins laid out. Ashley's eyes went wide when she finally noticed the meal set out for her.

"Mom! I can't eat all that!" She whined.

"Well with all the trouble I went through to make it all you had better eat it missy." Her mother shot back.

"Because I can't trust you to watch what you eat when you're on the road. Speaking of which, I want you to take a bottle of multivitamins with you and take them everyday to make up for the nutrition you probably won't be getting."

"Mom..."

Ashley quickly ate the large meal her mother set out for her, starting with the cereal so it wouldn't get soggy. Her mother stood over her the entire time, making sure she ate every bite of it including the vitamins. As per her mother's orders, she also packed a bottle of them.

The items stuffed into Ashley's travel bag included soap, a towel, pokémon food, an empty TM case, her trainer's license, a cellphone, and a camera with extra film. Everything she thought she might be needing at least until she got to Viridian. Like most trainers, her plan was to make sure she had what she'd need to go from town to town.

Once Ashley had finished eating, she said goodbye to her mother and her mother wished her good luck before she left the house. Ashley walked from her place to Professor Oak's laboratory, which was down the street. When she arrived at the lab, one of Professor Oak's aides was waiting outside for her.

"Ah, Ashley...its about time you showed up. The professor has been waiting for you." The aide stated indignantly.

"Sorry..." Ashley apologized. The aide said nothing else, but lead Ashley into the lab.

A narrow corridor went through the inside of the lab. Branching off from the corridor were many large laboratories filled with various machines as well as many computers. At the end of the hall was a fairly large office, which was where the aide took her too. Professor Oak was in the office, typing away on his computer when Ashley entered. The aide bowed respectfully to Oak and quickly left.

"Ah, good! I was worried you weren't going to show! Ash and Gary were both already here to get their pokémon and left already. Though I suppose you're not all that late, and I do have one pokémon remaining." Professor Oak got up from his computer and walked across the room to a small table with a pokéball on it, then motioned for Ashley to follow.

"Ash?" She wondered as she walked over to the table. "Oh right, Red's real name. I've been calling him Red for so long I forgot..."

"This is my last pokémon." Professor Oak stated, gesturing to the pokéball on the table. "Bulbasaur."

"Bulbasaur's the grass type, right?" Ashley asked. Professor Oak nodded.

"Indeed it is, I see you've done your homework. My grandson, Gary, took Squirtle and Ash took..."

"Charmander?" Ashley asked, cutting Professor Oak off.

"Yes, Charmander..." Oak coughed to clear his throat. "Anyway, this Bulbasaur is your's. You may get acquainted with it while I set everything up. Of course, I'll need to see your trainer id."

Ashley took out her id card then handed it to Professor Oak. The professor quickly scanned her trainer id in a machine setup on the end of the table, then set it to register Bulbasaur as her pokemon. Ashley, meanwhile, took Bulbasaur's pokéball from the table and turned around to release it where there'd be more space.

"Bulbasaur, come on out!" Ashley pressed the button on Bulbasaur's pokéball then lightly tossed it to the floor. The pokéball split open down the middle and a red beam shot out onto the floor, forming into a short blue-ish green pokémon with a bulb on its back. Bulbasaur gave a yawn as it was finally released from its pokéball, then looked up at its trainer.

"Hey Bulbasaur! My name's Ashley!" Ashley greeted her pokémon enthusiastically.

"-Oh wonderful.-" Bulbasaur grumbled. "-I get the only girl trainer to come by today. Judging by the look of her I'd say she couldn't battle to save a life. Lucky me.-"

"Sounds like you two are friends already." Professor Oak commented, approaching Ashley with a red pokédex in one hand and five pokeballs in the other.

"-Friends...right...-" Bulbasaur rolled its eyes.

"This is a pokédex." Professor Oak explained to Ashley, handing her the small red device. "It will automatically record information on any pokémon you see or catch. It can also tell you what techniques your own pokémon knows and has many other functions. Its an indispensable tool for any pokémon trainer."

Ashley took the pokédex from Professor Oak and attached it to the clip on her travel bag's strap.

"Now, this is just a personal request, however I would like it if you could catch as many pokemon as possible to fill the pages of that pokédex. I asked the same of both Ash and my grandson. Ash told me he only planned to catch pokémon he intended to raise. I can understand that completely."

"Don't worry about a thing, professor! I'll help you fill this pokédex!" Ashley said reassuringly.

"Thank you, Ashley. Also, you may take these..." Professor Oak held out the five empty pokéballs for her. Ashley quickly clipped each to her belt, even though there were no pokémon in them.

"-I don't much care for this Ashley girl.-" Bulbasaur stated stiffly, although no one could understand it. "-I'll definitely make sure she helps you out though, Professor Oak.-"

"So is that all I need then?" Ashley asked the professor.

"Well, you might be wanting this back..." Professor Oak held out Ashley's trainer license to her.

"Oh...right..." Ashley replied sheepishly, taking her card back.

After receiving her Bulbasaur from Professor Oak, Ashley left the lab and continued north out of Pallet Town towards Viridian City. Bulbasaur walked alongside her, still being kept out of its pokéball by Ashley.

"-You know, most trainers keep their pokemon in pokéballs.-" Bulbasaur commented idly as the two of them continued north through Route 1.

"-Speaking of typical trainers, you seem to be a bit old to just be getting your first pokémon...-"

"Look! Pidgey!" Ashley spotted a flock of Pidgey nearby pecking at the ground. Ashley got down on the ground and quietly crawled closer to them through the tall grass.

"-Ah, silly me. Humans are stupid and don't understand a word we say. Forgot about that.-" Bulbasaur grumbled to itself before following Ashley.

"This is the perfect opportunity for me to take some pictures!" Ashley whispered excitedly. She reached into her travel bag to take out her camera. The camera had a wide view finder and used film that would instantly print out the pictures she took.

"-What?! You should be catching them in a pokéball! Not on film!-"

"Bulbasaur, be quiet!" Ashley whispered to it. "You'll scare the Pidgey!"

"-Scare the Pidgey?! Why I oughta...-" Bulbasaur remembered the empty pokéballs attached to Ashley's belt and suddenly had an idea.

"Well if she's not going to catch a Pidgey then I think I will!" Bulbasaur thought to himself, extending its vines towards Ashley's belt and carefully plucking a pokéball without making a sound. Ashley was trying to line up a good shot to take a picture of the Pidgey and remained unaware of Bulbasaur's activities.

"Got it!" Bulbasaur pulled the pokéball back, placing it on the top of its bulb for safe keeping.

"Perfect!" Ashley whispered to herself as she was finally satisfied she had the shot lined up perfectly. She clicked a button on her camera to take the picture. Almost simultaneously, she could hear the startled cries of the Pidgey and the flapping of wings as they tried to escape.

"-Oh no you don't!-" Bulbasaur extended its two vines again, reaching to grab one of the Pidgey's as they all tried to fly away. One of its vines wrapped around each of the Pidgey's wings and Bulbasaur slammed the small bird into the ground.

"What IS he doing?" Ashley wondered, taking her newly printed picture out of her camera. At first it was nothing but black film so she watched it for a moment as the picture began to develop. Meanwhile, Bulbasaur was still locked in combat with the wild Pidgey. Its opponent was having trouble fighting back, though, with Bulbasaur's vines wrapped around its wings.

"-Let go of me!-" The Pidgey demanded.

"-Not a chance!-" Bulbasaur launched a Leech Seed from the bulb on its back, carrying the pokeball along with it. Both the seed and the pokéball struck Pidgey simultaneously. The seed latched itself onto the Pidgey, but then fell off as the pokeball opened up and fired a red beam into Pidgey. The Pidgey was converted into the energy beam and pulled inside the pokéball.

As the pokéball began shaking on the ground, the result of Pidgey's attempts to escape, the picture Ashley took fully developed. The picture showed the group of Pidgeys, six in total, starting to take off as Bulbasaur dashed towards them.

"BULBASAUR! You ruined my picture!" Ashley shouted angrily, not noticing the click from the pokéball as it locked shut with the wild Pidgey inside.

"-Ruined your picture?! I just caught you a-ack!-" Bulbasaur wasn't watching Ashley, and as he turned around to face her his face was met by Ashley's foot, knocking it on its back. Bulbasaur got up and glared at its trainer.

"-The heck was that for?!-" Bulbasaur growled at her.

"That's for ruining my shot!" Ashley scolded Bulbasaur before picking up the pokéball now containing the wild Pidgey. She held up the pokéball and pointed it at the ground, then pressed the button on the front of it. The pokéball split open, releasing a red beam of energy that formed into the captured Pidgey. The Pidgey looked around cautiously, spotting Ashley but then fixing its gaze on Bulbasaur.

"-You're just lucky you got the drop on me.-" Pidgey said to Bulbasaur.

"-Like I'd need luck or the element of surprise to beat a lousy Pidgey.-" Bulbasaur shot back.

"Are you ok?" Ashley asked Pidgey, interrupting the pokémon's bickering before they could even start.

"-Well, I suppose all things considered I'm doing fine.-" Pidgey replied, nodding to Ashley since it knew she wouldn't understand it.

"Good, because otherwise SOMEONE would have gotten another kick!" Ashley said to Pidgey, though speaking loudly for Bulbasaur to hear as well.

"-Yeah, your welcome for catching you that Pidgey by the way.-" Bulbasaur shot back. "-I swear of all the trainers I could have been stuck with you are by FAR the worse.-"

"-She doesn't seem that bad to me.-" Pidgey said to Bulbasaur, shrugging with its wings.

"Just whats your problem anyway?" Ashley asked Bulbasaur, glaring at him.

"-My problem? It might be that pokédex you're supposed to...why the heck am I explaining this to you? You can't even understand me...-" Bulbasaur reached out with one of its vines to point to the pokédex clipped to Ashley's bag strap.

"That's what all this is about?" Bulbasaur nodded. "Hmph...well I haven't forgotten about Professor Oak. I can catch pokémon after I take pictures of them."

"-I can already see you two get along just great.-" Pidgey commented sarcastically.

"-Can it, bird brain...-" Bulbasaur grumbled.

"Alright Pidgey, you can return to your pokéball now." Ashley stated calmly, holding up Pidgey's pokéball. She pressed the button on the front of it and the pokéball split open, firing a red beam towards Pidgey and recalling it inside.

"Come on, lets go Bulbasaur...maybe we'll find a Rattata or something to catch to satisfy you for a while..."

"-Rattata are definitely not on my menu. Oh wait, you meant catch one so I wouldn't bother you about catching pokémon. Which you should be doing for your own sake as well as Professor Oak's. As powerful as I am you won't get through the gyms with just me alone...-" Bulbasaur's comments went unnoticed, not that it was really expecting a response of any sort from Ashley.

After a bit over half an hour of walking, with no sign of any Rattata, the trainer and pokemon duo reached the outskirts of Viridian City.

"Viridian City...its been so long since I've been here! This is the first time I actually walked all the way here." Ashley commented as she glanced around the city. "I guess since I'm a trainer now the pokémon center should be my first stop."

"-How does one travel without walking? Surely one would not use a 'car' as they are merely a myth!-" Bulbasaur commented sarcastically. At that moment a red sports car drove down the street before them, driving through a puddle directly in front of Bulbasaur and splashing the grass pokemon with water.

"HEY! YOU COULD HAVE AT LEAST SLOWED DOWN!" Ashley called out after the driver, despite the water missing her completely.

"-Ah...the irony...-" Bulbasaur muttered.

As planned, Ashley made a quick trip to the city's pokémon center to heal her pokémon. She had to put Bulbasaur in its pokéball briefly when she handed her pokemon over to the pokémon center staff, but when she got it back she quickly released it again. Bulbasaur still didn't really understand why Ashley was intent on keeping it out of its pokéball, especially since the two of them didn't seem to get along so well.

After healing her two pokemon at the pokémon center, Ashley headed west of Viridian to the route that lead up to the Indigo Plateau. Home of the Elite Four. Of course, Ashley had no intention of going there. She was just looking for pokémon.

"You know, I'm not entirely sure what pokémon show up around here..." Ashley commented idly, looking around the grassy plain around her. There were a few clusters of trees and a steep hill nearby.

"-Probably just more Pidgey and Rattata. In other words, a waste of our time.-"

"Ah! A Spearow! And its all alone!" Ashley pointed out excitedly as she noticed a Spearow hiding in the grass further ahead. She kneeled down and got out her camera, focusing the lens to zoom in. Bulbasaur rolled its eyes in disgust.

"You know, I've heard Spearow and their evolved form are stronger than Pidgeys and their evolved forms..." Ashley commented as she lined up the shot.

"-Great. Catch it and toss out that Pidgey then.-"

Ashley finally got the shot lined up and the camera focused just right and took the picture. When the picture printed off, though, she found she had a picture of the Spearow as it was flying away.

"Stupid Spearow..." Ashley grumbled, crumpling up the picture and tossing it into the grass.

"Guess I'll have to keep looking..."

Ashley wandered further into the route, sticking a bit closer to the trees now. She didn't have to go much further, though, before noticing three pig-like monkeys with brown fur hanging around in a large tree.

"Aha! Here we go!" Ashley quickly set up, kneeling down on the grass to line up a shot of the Mankey's.

"-More pictures...-" Bulbasaur rolled its eyes. "-Hey, here's an idea. Catch the pokémon...THEN take pictures of it!-"

"This time I've got you..." Ashley quickly snapped a picture of the Mankey, the flash from the camera capturing their attention. The three of them started jumping up and down on the tree branches while screeching and yelling while Ashley's picture printed out.

"Whats with those three?" Ashley wondered, taking out her pokédex to check them out. "I'm not even sure what pokémon they are honestly..."

"Mankey, the pig monkey pokémon." The pokédex read out. "Extremely quick to anger. It could be docile one moment, then thrashing around the next instant."

"That doesn't sound good..." Ashley whimpered. Bulbasaur tapped her on the shoulder with a vine.

"-Catch one, darn it...-"

"Let me guess, you want me to catch one?" Ashley muttered. Bulbasaur nodded in response.

"Fine then...but first we need to separate one of them from the other two."

"-Easy enough...-" Bulbasaur extended its vines towards the tree and wrapped around one of the Mankey's legs. It pulled the pokémon out of the tree then let go, letting the pokémon fall to the ground. The other two Mankey's stopped jumping around and looked at their friend, who now laid on the ground in a daze. The fallen Mankey quickly jumped up on its feet and glared at Bulbasaur and Ashley angrily.

"I don't think its too happy!" Ashley began backing away slowly, but Bulbasaur stood its ground.

"-Well how would you feel if you just got pulled out of your tree?-" Bulbasaur commented, extending its vines towards the pokémon to whack it in the face. The Mankey stumbled backwards as it was struck, falling back against the trunk of the tree. It quickly recovered though and began charging towards Bulbasaur.

"-About as intelligent as a...well...Mankey.-" Bulbasaur fired a seed out of the bulb on its back, hitting Mankey directly on the nose with it. The pokémon stopped in its tracks for a moment, looking at the seed curiously. It screeched in pain when the seed sprouted vines that latched onto it and began draining its energy.

"I guess this would be a good time to try a pokéball..." Ashley took an empty pokéball from her belt and gave it a hard. The pokéball struck the pokémon in the head and captured it inside. The pokéball began shaking for a moment, before it clicked and confirmed a successful capture.

"Alright! We caught another pokémon!" Ashley scooped up the pokéball and clipped it back onto her belt.

"-WE? Excuse me, but I did all the work.-" Bulbasaur growled. "-What are you so excited for this time anyway? You KICKED ME last time 'we' caught a pokémon...-"

"Hmph...there's just no pleasing-OW!" Ashley found herself being hit in the back of the head with a nut. When she turned around to see who attacked her, she got another nut in the face. The remaining two Mankey's weren't too happy that their friend was caught and were throwing nuts at her now.

"STUPID MANKEY'S!" Ashley called out to them as she retreated from the trees. Bulbasaur followed behind, walking slowly since the Mankey's were only really targeting Ashley.

"That was pathetic..." Ashley looked up towards the sound of the voice and saw her old childhood friend, Gary, standing nearby. Gary was a brown-haired boy the same age as Ashley, wearing a black shirt and a pair of purple jeans. He was also the grandson of Professor Oak from Pallet Town.

"Gary..." Ashley growled through gritted teeth.

"Oh yeah?! Well I'd like to see you catch one!" Ashley growled back.

"Hmph..." Gary drew a pokéball, approaching the tree where the two Mankey were still perched.

"-My money's on Gary.-" Bulbasaur commented, sitting back on its hind legs to watch. It had more faith in Gary, a trainer he hardly knew, than Ashley as far as catching pokémon went.

"Spearow, go!" Gary called out, releasing a small red and brown feathered bird to battle.

"Spearow, attack one of those Mankey with Peck!" Spearow quickly flew up into the tree towards the Mankey. The two of them threw nuts at Spearow but the bird remained undeterred. Spearow flew into one of the Mankey and struck it with its beak, the force of the impact knocking it off the branch and to the ground below. The remaining Mankey quickly fled into another tree when it realized it was alone.

"That should do it." Gary took an empty pokéball from his pocket and lobbed it at the wild Mankey as it was getting up off the ground. The pokéball struck the Mankey and pulled it inside. It rolled around on the ground for a moment before locking shut, sealing the Mankey inside. Without a word, Gary recalled his Spearow and calmly approached the pokéball to pick it up.

"Hmph...too easy." Gary stated as he placed the pokéball on his belt and turned to Ashley, four pokéballs now clipped to his belt.

"A wild Mankey is nothing to catch...not that I actually plan to use it." Gary stated stiffly.

"Show off..." Ashley muttered. "Well if you're so great a trainer then why don't you prove it in a battle!"

"Maybe I will!" Gary shot back, already reaching for his first pokéball. "We'll use two pokémon each."

"I'm afraid I'm going to have to interrupt your battle kids..." Ashley and Gary both looked to the side to see a yellow-haired man wearing black sunglasses. He wore a pair of brown khaki shorts, a white shirt, brown vest, and a wide brimmed hat. On the right side of his vest were the letters 'GH' in gold and the number five. Standing next to him was an electric dog-like pokémon called Jolteon wearing a strange collar around its neck.

"According to my data, you two recently received pokémon from Professor Oak..." The yellow-haired man stated in a deep accent.

"So what if we did?" Gary asked indignantly.

"I'll be relieving you of those pokémon, kids. A Bulbasaur and a Squirtle would fetch a pretty price on the black market."

"There's no way I'm handing over Bulbasaur!" Ashley growled defiantly.

"-I don't like Ashley much, but I like the sound of that even less.-" Bulbasaur added.

"You don't seem to realize who you're dealing with, kids." The man stated, laughing quietly. "The name's Shocks, Grand Hunter number five."

"The Grand Hunters?" Ashley thought. "I heard of them...they're as bad as Team Rocket, only they work in smaller numbers and are very skilled trainers. They steal and poach rare pokémon to sell to other criminals on the black market. The last group of officers trying to track down their leader turned up dead and their pokémon missing. Only the highest members have their own pokémon, the rest use slave collars like the one on that Jolteon."

"Even if you are one of the Grand Hunters there's no way I'm giving up Squirtle!" Gary shot back, reaching for a pokéball.

"Heh...if you honestly think you can take down my Jolteon, just go ahead and try it..." Shocks folded his arms and chuckled to himself. "Jolteon, just dodge whatever comes your way for now. These kids couldn't hurt you if they tried."

"Oh yeah? Bulbasaur, Leech Seed!" Bulbasaur fired a seed from the bulb on its back. Jolteon didn't move from its spot, though, and instead opted to destroy the seed with a short blast of electricity. The charred remains of the seed fell to the ground.

"Attacking a pokémon straight out when its focusing solely on defense won't work." Gary chided Ashley. "That Mankey I just caught seems to know an attack to remedy that though. Mankey, go! Use Taunt!"

Gary released the newly caught Mankey from its pokéball. The monkey pokémon hesitated for a moment when it appeared, as if unsure of whether or not it should obey its new trainer, but in the end it started hollering at Jolteon and jumping around.

"-Comeon!Comeon! You gonna stand there all day or are you going to fight?-" Mankey's taunting seemed to go unnoticed by Shocks Jolteon though. Shocks just snickered.

"Even if you taunt it, Jolteon will only do what I tell it to do. But since you want it to attack so badly..." Shocks snickered again. "Jolteon, use Thunderbolt on Mankey!"

Jolteon's fur stood on end and sparked with electricity. The charge gathered and a powerful lightning bolt was fired at Mankey. Mankey tried to get out of the way but the attack was too fast for it. Electricity coursed through the pokémon's body as the attack hit it and Mankey was instantly out, collapsing to the ground with smoke rising from its charred body.

"Bulbasaur, Vine Whip!"
"Jolteon, dodge it and use Thunderbolt again." Bulbasaur reached out towards Jolteon with a pair of vines to attack, but the electric pokémon easily evaded the attack and fired another bolt of electricity at Bulbasaur. Bulbasaur cried out in pain as the Thunderbolt struck and electricity flowed through its body. Bulbasaur slumped forward as the electricity finally faded, nearly collapsing but catching itself as the last moment and struggling back to its feet.

"Still standing...I'm impressed..." Shocks grinned widely. "That just means it'll be worth even more."

"-Darn...that things strong...-" Bulbasaur muttered. "-Well I'm still not going down...without a fight...-"

"You're not taking my Bulbasaur!" Ashley stepped in front of Bulbasaur defensively.

"Squirtle was given to me by my grandfather, there's no way I'm handing it over..." Gary also stated his defiance, recalling the fallen Mankey.

"Have it your way, kids. Taking those pokémon from your cold, dead hands will be much easier." Ashley's eyes went wide with fear as she realized he intended to kill her and Gary. There was nowhere for either trainer to run.

"Dragonite, Brick Break!" A beige pokémon looking a lot like a dragon out of a children's cartoon came barreling down out of the sky towards Jolteon before Shocks even had a chance to issue an attack. The Dragonite slammed its fist into Jolteon with crushing power, hammering Jolteon into the ground then hopping back to put itself between the Grand Hunter and the trainers.

"Darn it! Retreat!" Shocks quickly dropped a small black ball that released a cloud of smoke, concealing himself and Jolteon within.

"Dragonite, don't let them escape! Twister!" Dragonite began flapping its tiny wings, whipping up a visible vortex around the cloud of smoke. The smoke was sucked up by the Twister attack and sent up into the air. When the smoke was cleared, however, Shocks and Jolteon seemed to be gone.

"Darn it...he got away..." Ashley and Gary finally turned around to see who had saved them. Standing behind them was a red haired man with a cape draped about him. Both trainers immediately recognized him.

"Lance!" Ashley and Gary both shouted in surprise.

"Are you two alright?" The dragon trainer asked them. Noticing the condition Ashley's Bulbasaur was in he fished a small potion bottle filled with a green liquid from his pocket and tossed it to Ashley.

"Use that on your Bulbasaur." Lance instructed her. "Its a full restore. It'll sting a bit but Bulbasaur will be back in fighting shape."

"Not to sound ungrateful, but what are you doing out here anyway?" Gary asked Lance as Ashley applied the full restore to Bulbasaur. After a few quick squirts Bulbasaur seemed to regain its energy and was fully restored.

"-Damn, I feel as good as new!-" Bulbasaur looked up at the Dragonite standing in front of him. "-Hey, you! Care to go a round?-"

"-You wouldn't last five seconds...-" Dragonite replied, its voice dull as if bored.

"When I heard there were three new trainers leaving Pallet Town I thought I'd patrol the area." Lance explained. "I had a feeling the so-called 'Grand' Hunters would try something like stealing pokémon from new trainers."

"Well I'm glad you showed up when you did! I thought we were goners for sure!" Ashley said to Lance. "Thanks for the full restore too..."


"You two should keep an eye out for the Grand Hunters." Lance cautioned them. "Their pokémon, although enslaved, are well trained. They only keep the strongest for themselves."

"Right, whatever..." Gary grumbled, reaching for a pokéball and turning to Ashley. "Now weren't we about to battle?"

"What?! How can you think about that after nearly getting killed?!" Ashley asked in surprise.

"-Honestly, I'm with this guy.-" Bulbasaur commented. "-I need a real battle! All the battles I've had so far were either too hard or too easy!-"

"Actually I wouldn't mind watching you two battle." Lance commented, a slight smirk forming on his lips. "I'm always curious to see the new competition, so to speak."

"-Oh please...-" Lance's Dragonite rolled its eyes. "-They'll be just like any other trainer...no skill at all.-"

"-I don't know about that.-" Bulbasaur commented in response. "-Gary's the grandson of Professor Oak, I'm sure he has some talent for battling unlike this pathetic trainer I got paired with.-"

"Fine..." Ashley muttered, drawing a pokeball. "Two pokémon each?"
"Two pokémon each." Gary replied, nodding affirmatively as he also reached for a pokéball.

"Go, Pidgey!" Both trainers called out simultaneously, each releasing a Pidgey as their first pokémon. Dragonite quickly flew past the two trainers to stand next to Lance on the sidelines.

"They're both starting with the same pokémon." Lance commented to Dragonite. "This should be an interesting match, we'll certainly see which trainer has more skill here."

"-Oh, I'm sure it will...-" Dragonite commented idly. "-I'd watch, but I'm pretty sure this here grass is growing...-"

"Pidgey, use Air Cutter!" Ashley commanded. Her Pidgey quickly brought its wings together, creating a v-shaped blade of air and firing it at its opponent.

"Pidgey, counter with Steel Wing." The wings of Gary's Pidgey took on a metallic appearance. The pokémon then raised one of its wings to block the incoming Air Cutter attack.

"Is that the best you've got, Ashley?" Gary taunted her. Ashley gritted her teeth, silently fuming. "Pidgey, attack now!"

"Pidgey, fly up a bit and use Gust!" Ashley's Pidgey quickly flapped its wings to fly off the ground a few feet and began flapping harder to create gusts of wind as its opponent drew closer with its wings still ready for a Steel Wing attack. Gary's Pidgey ended up eating a beak full of dirt, however, as the Gust attack forced it into the ground.

"Now land and use Air-Cutter!" Pidgey quickly landed in front of Gary's Pidgey and launched an Air-Cutter at pointblank range as the pokémon was trying to get back on its feet. The blade of air slashed across the side of Gary's Pidgey and sent it rolling back a few feet.

"Whats the matter, Gary? Don't look so smug now!" Ashley taunted, now having the upper hand

"Grr...Pidgey, don't let that loser beat you! Tackle attack!" Gary commanded his Pidgey.

"Pidgey, Tackle attack!" Ashley likewise commanded.

"Seems to be a heated rivalry between these two already..." Lance thought to himself, observing the trainers. "Rivalry among trainers is always a good thing. It means having someone who forces you to give it your best and constantly pushes you to become a better trainer."

The two Pidgeys took off towards each other, seemingly on a collision course. Ashley was watching closely, however, as she had other plans.

"Pidgey, now! Up!" Ashley's Pidgey angled upwards at the last second, soaring straight up into the air as Gary's Pidgey flew underneath it. Ashley's Pidgey continued to climb while Gary's was trying to regain its bearings.

"Pidgey, up! After that coward and use Steel Wing again!" Gary's Pidgey spread its wings, which again took on a metallic appearance as it took off into the air after its opponent. Ashley was waiting for this, however.

"Now, down again! Air Cutter!" Ashley's Pidgey dove down again, facing its rival as it brought its wings together to fire off another Air Cutter attack. The attack struck Gary's Pidgey head on and sent it spiraling down towards the ground again. Ashley's Pidgey was quickly catching up to it in its dive however.

"Now lets finish this!" Ashley began, pointing her finger towards Gary's Pidgey. "Tackle attack!"

Ashley's Pidgey quickly caught up with its falling opponent and slammed into it with a Tackle attack, pushing into Gary's Pidgey to send it into the ground faster and pulling up at the last second so it wouldn't crash as well. Gary's Pidgey hit the ground with a tremendous impact for such a small bird and the dazed expression on its face showed that it was knocked out by the impact. Gary gritted his teeth as he begrudgingly recalled his pokémon.

"Ok, maybe I was wrong about this kid..." Bulbasaur thought. "She actually handled herself pretty good...not that I'll ever admit that to anyone.."

"Seems this battle's been decided..." Lance quietly said to himself with a smirk. "The more skilled trainer has come out of the battle victorious and with barely a scratch."

"-Well she was a bit more interesting than the grass I guess...-" Dragonite said, giving a loud yawn.

"You shouldn't be so relaxed, my friend." Lance said to his Dragonite, chuckling mildly. "You may find yourself losing to one of these trainers someday."

"-I don't think I'd mind the loss.-" Dragonite replied with a shrug. "-A good challenge would be nice for a change...-"

"Well looks like my next pokémon's just going to have to make up for lost ground..." Gary commented bitterly, taking out another pokeball. "Squirtle, come on out!"

Gary held out the pokéball as he pressed the button on the front of it, releasing a blue turtle pokémon with an orange shell to battle. It was Squirtle, the pokémon he had received from Professor Oak.

"Alright, Pidgey, you can sit this one out!" Ashley said to her pokémon, not bothering to recall it. Pidgey got the message though and flew over to land next to Ashley. "Bulbasaur, this ones all your's!"

"-Alright, you better put up a good fight pal.-" Bulbasaur said to Squirtle as he took up position for battle.

"-Hmph. Try not to lose too badly.-" Squirtle shot back, surprising Bulbasaur with his attitude.

"Geez...its as if Squirtle's become a bit like his trainer..." Bulbasaur thought to itself. "Well that won't happen to me, no way am I going to become like Ashley." Bulbasaur shuddered at the thought.

"Squirtle, start off with Yawn!"

"Bulbasaur, Leech Seed!"

Bulbasaur fired a seed from its back while Squirtle breathed out a cloud of white gas. Almost simultaneously, the seed reached Squirtle and sprouted vines to latch onto its stomach and the gas reached Bulbasaur and was inadvertently breathed in.

"Yawn? What does that attack do?" Ashley wondered, taking out her pokédex to check. "So its a delayed sleep technique...Bulbasaur should still have time for one more attack though!"

"Bulbasaur, use Bullet Seed!"
"Squirtle, Withdraw!" Gary's Squirtle immediately withdraw its head, arms, and legs into its shell to protect itself from the incoming attack. Bulbasaur spat out seeds like a popgun, three in total, each hitting Squirtle and bouncing off its shell. Shortly after firing the attack Bulbasaur fell asleep and Squirtle came out of its shell again.

"Bulbasaur may be asleep now..." Ashley thought. "But Leech Seed will still keep draining Squirtle's energy, and it won't be able to hurt Bulbasaur much with its water attacks. Even less since the energy drained from Squirtle will heal Bulbasaur. This pokédex really comes in handy!"


"Now hit it with a Tackle attack while its asleep!" Gary commanded. Squirtle rushed forward and slammed into Bulbasaur with a Tackle, knocking the grass pokemon onto its back. Surprisingly, though, this failed to wake it up.

"Tackle it again!" Squirtle once again slammed its body into Bulbasaur, this second attack causing him to land upright as well as finally waking Bulbasaur up.

"- Ok, I'm just slightly mad now.-" Bulbasaur muttered, staring down Squirtle.

"Bulbasaur, attack Squirtle with Vine Whip!" Bulbasaur gladly extended a pair of vines from the base of his bulb, striking Squirtle in the chest with both of them and knocking him to the ground. Squirtle slowly got back to its feet, appearing to be quite exhausted by this point. For a moment it still seemed capable of continuing, but the Leech Seed sapped its remaining strength and Squirtle collapsed. Gary scoffed as he recalled his Squirtle.

"You just got lucky, that's all." Gary grumbled. "I'm out of here.

"Alright, we did it! We won our first trainer battle!" Ashley shouted in excitement, jumping for joy while her Pidgey chimed in.

"-Tch, that was nothing...-" Bulbasaur muttered. Gary ignored Ashley's cheering as he slowly walked towards Viridian City.

"Well congratulations, Ashley." Lance said to her, interrupting her celebrations. "I look forward to one day seeing you at the plateau."

"Huh?" Ashley blinked and paused for a moment. "Thanks but...I'm not planning on challenging the Elite Four..."

"I see..." Lance replied remorsefully. "A shame, someone with your talent could go quite far I'm sure. In any case, I should be off. It was a pleasure meeting you, Ashley."

Lance hopped on Dragonite's back. He gave a final wave to Ashley before Dragonite took off northwest towards the Indigo Plateau.

"Well I guess I'm finished here then..." Ashley said to herself. "Back to Viridian City, then to the forest next."

"Ashley doesn't plan on challenging the Elite Four?" Bulbasaur thought to itself, frowning slightly. "Well we'll just see about that..."

Finish​

 

[The black Vulpix]

Chapter 2: Thunder Yellow?

"So the more Mankey gets hurt in battle the stronger that technique gets...that could be good for turning a battle around..." Ashley read her pokédex out loud to herself while walking through Viridian forest, taking the time to familiarize herself with the pokémon she caught as well as the techniques they know. While doing so, she wasn't paying much attention to what was ahead of her and looked up from her pokédex just as she walked into a tree.

"Most pokémon probably would have steered their trainer in the right direction in a situation like this." Bulbasaur thought to itself, still following Ashley outside its pokeball and finding amusement in its trainer's clumsiness. "Then again, I'm hardly most pokémon."

"I should pay more attention to where I'm going I guess..." Ashley said to herself, putting her pokédex away. "SOMEONE could have warned me though..."

"-Could have, but didn't.-" Bulbasaur replied cheekily.

"Huh? Whats that?" Ashley wondered, noticing something in a small clearing past the tree she just hit. "Is that...cheese?" Ashley moved into the clearing to take a closer look at what seemed to be a plate of Swiss cheese sitting on the ground.

"-Call me crazy, but I think this setup has 'trap' written all over it.-" Bulbasaur stated, sitting back to watch his trainer once again get into trouble. Sure enough, as Ashley moved closer to the cheese she hit an unseen tripwire that caused a net hidden below her feet to raise up. She was wrapped up in the net and hoisted off the ground.

"HEY! This isn't funny!" Ashley called out to no one, struggling with the net. "Bulbasaur, get me down from here!"

"-Whats the magic word?-" Bulbasaur taunted her, knowing full well Ashley couldn't understand what he was saying.

"Please?" Another girl's voice answered instead. Bulbasaur blinked in surprise and looked back to see who it was.

Standing behind Bulbasaur was a girl who looked old enough to be a trainer yet still noticeably younger than Ashley. Her hair was a shade of blonde that looked more like yellow and was tied back into a long ponytail. Her hands were folded behind her back and she was smiling at Bulbasaur, her green eyes looking down at him.

For an outfit, the girl was wearing a simple yellow tunic over a black long-sleeved shirt and a pair of black pants. She had a black sash tied around her waist that looked like it could hold pokéballs and a pair of purple boots on her feet. The girl certainly looked more ready for an adventure than Ashley did, even though she didn't appear to have any pokéballs with her.

"-Uh...sure...-" Bulbasaur stammered, not sure whether the girl understood him or if her request was merely a coincidence. Bulbasaur quickly turned around and fired a single well-aimed Bullet Seed that cut through the rope holding Ashley up and sent her plummeting to the ground.

"Oww..." Ashley muttered, rubbing her backside. "Couldn't you let me down slower?" Ashley turned to address Bulbasaur but found herself facing the girl instead, who was holding out a hand to help her up.

"Sorry about that! That was kinda my trap..." The girl said apologetically, still smiling. "I'm trying to catch a Pikachu!"

"Catch a Pikachu? That'll never work!" Ashley said to her, getting back to her feet. "Pikachu are way too smart for that..."

"I know..." The girl replied with a sigh. "I've been trying for over a year now!"

"What? Why?!" Ashley asked in surprise.

"Well when I turned ten and got my trainer's license I decided I wanted my first pokemon to be a Pikachu." The girl explained. "I'm no good at catching pokémon though and I don't even have a pokémon of my own to help me..."

"Well why would you waste so much time trying to catch one like this then?" Ashley asked her. "I mean, couldn't you get someone else to catch one for you?"

"I...never thought of that actually." The girl replied, blushing in embarrassment.

"Well today's your lucky day, because I'm going to catch one for you!" Ashley said to her, grinning widely. "Catching a Pikachu will be a piece of cake!"

"-Ashley? Catch a pokémon?-" Bulbasaur snorted, rolling his eyes. "-That's charitable.-"

"Really?! Thank you, thank you, thank you Ashley!" The girl replied excitedly, wrapping her arms tightly around a surprised Ashley.

"Wait, I didn't even tell you my name..." Ashley stammered in confusion.

"Oh, your Bulbasaur just said your name..." The girl explained, releasing Ashley. "By the way, my name's Rina!"

"You can understand pokémon?!" Ashley and Bulbasaur both shouted in unison.

"Yep! I've been able to understand pokémon as long as I can remember." Rina replied

to the two. "I hope to become a pokémon researcher someday and use my ability to further that goal!"

"-Well I suppose that's more noble than a photographer at least.-" Bulbasaur commented, rolling his eyes.

"Oh, so are you a photographer then?" Rina asked Ashley curiously. "I guess that makes sense, you don't really look like a trainer..."

"Hmph! Whats that supposed to mean?" Ashley shot back, glaring at Rina.

"N-nothing!" Rina replied, taking a step back and holding her arms in front of her defensively. "You just don't look like you're dressed for an adventure!"

"You sound just like my mother..." Ashley muttered. "Lets just go find you a Pikachu already..." Ashley said to Rina before stomping off further into the forest.

"She's scary when she's angry..." Rina quietly said to Bulbasaur.

"-Only because you're human.-" Bulbasaur replied before starting off after Ashley.

"Hey! Wait for me!" Rina called out, running to catch up with the two.

"...So, yeah, not much interesting to say about me really." Ashley said, ending her description of herself and her life to Rina as they continued through the forest. "I only left home because everyone else my age did. I'm not interested in challenging the Elite Four though. What about you?"

"Oh...well...umm..." Rina rubbed the back of her head, not sure how to respond. "Well I'm from Pewter City..." She began. "Brock, the gym leader, kinda looks after me there though I live by myself..."

"Huh? So where are your parents then?" Ashley asked. Bulbasaur struck her in the back of the head with his vine for it. "Ow! Bulbasaur!" Ashley growled, rubbing the back of her head and casting a glare at her pokémon.

"-Isn't it obvious?-" Bulbasaur growled back. "-Her parents are...-"

"They're gone..." Rina replied quietly, interrupting Bulbasaur. "My parents were investigators assigned to track down the leader of the Grand Hunters. They were getting close, apparently too close. They were found dead...their pokémon missing, probably enslaved and sold on the black market..."

"Oh..." Ashley said solemnly. "I'm sorry, I had no idea..."

"Its ok..." Rina replied, shaking her head slightly. "My parents wouldn't want me to be sad...not for them anyway..."

"What do you mean 'not for them'?" Ashley asked curiously.

"My parents loved pokémon above everything, and they taught me to love pokémon too..." Rina explained. "That's why they were going after the Grand Hunters. What they're doing is wrong!"

"I ran into one of them outside Viridian City..." Ashley said quietly. "He tried to take Bulbasaur...he was even planning to kill me and Gary...I'm just lucky Lance showed up when he did or I'd probably be a goner..."

"-Yeah, that would have been a tragedy.-" Bulbasaur commented, grinning to itself.

"Wow! THE Lance?" Rina asked in surprise. "You ARE lucky! He's a member of the Elite 4 and a trainer of dragon pokémon. He was friends with my father and kinda took me in when my parents died, though he hasn't really had time to look after me. That's why its always been Brock..."

"She really has it rough..." Ashley thought. "How can she be so upbeat like that? The poor girl must have gone insane or something..."

"So why go through so much trouble for a Pikachu?" Ashley asked her, changing the subject. "I mean, if you just went to Pallet Town and got a pokémon from Professor Oak you could be a pretty strong trainer by now. Maybe even ask Brock or Lance for help getting your first pokémon..."

"I want a Pikachu though!" Rina replied, smiling brightly. "I've wanted one ever since I was little. I didn't want to bother Brock though because he's busy enough already, and Lance has been divided between the league and trying to track down members of the Grand Hunters."

"Yeah, he'll probably be especially busy once all those new trainers start getting badges and look to become the new champion..." Ashley added in agreement.

"Yeah, too bad..." Rina sighed. "I was so hoping he'd catch those hunters but they always run from strong trainers like Lance. They only pick on trainers they think they can beat."

"Like a trainer who's just starting out..." Ashley commented bitterly.

"By the way, you and your Bulbasaur don't really get along do you?" Rina asked curiously.

"What makes you think that?" Ashley asked in confusion. "Did he say something about me?"

"-Oh believe me, I've been saying plenty about you.-" Bulbasaur commented dryly. "-I just happen to have someone listening to me now.-"

"Umm...something like that..." Rina said cautiously, not wanting to invoke Ashley's anger again.

"Well he better not be saying anything about my..." Ashley was cut off as a large net dropped onto the group followed by the thud of four pieces of wood hitting the ground, tied to the net and acting as weights.

"What the?! Rina is this another one of your traps?!" Ashley demanded, yelling at the younger girl.

"N-no! I didn't set up any traps here!" Rina replied timidly. "Besides, I always use cheese for bait!"

Then who's trap is it?!" Ashley demanded again. She got her answer as two young boys and a girl, all looking just barely old enough to be a trainer, came out through the bushes brandishing nets and yelling in excitement. They all looked dismayed when they saw Ashley, Rina, and Bulbasaur.

"You're not bug pokémon..." One of the boys commented.

"WELL WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST CLUE?!" Ashley shouted angrily.

"Wow...she's really scary when she's mad..." Rina commented quietly.

"S-sorry..." Another boy replied timidly. The three of them quickly removed the pieces of wood holding the net down and pulled the net off the group.

"Whats with people in this forest using traps to catch pokémon anyway!?" Ashley demanded of the three kids once they got the net off her.

"We don't know how to catch pokémon..." The girl among the three replied. Ashley slapped her palm against her forehead.

"Doesn't ANYONE around here know how to catch pokémon?!" Ashley asked no one in particular. Only Rina took notice of Bulbasaur raising his vine. "Hmph, I'm just going to have to teach you all then..."

With that, Ashley stomped off through the trees. The group of bug catchers shrugged and followed behind her, and Rina and Bulbasaur took up the rear.

"-I suppose this will be the part where I do all the work, then you throw the little ball and get all the credit.-" Bulbasaur grumbled to itself.

"That pokémon will do!" Ashley suddenly declared, the group stopping in their tracks and looking ahead to see the pokemon Ashley was pointing to. Lying against a nearby tree was a yellow cocoon-like pokémon known as Kakuna.

"Umm...wouldn't that be pretty easy to catch though?" Rina asked her. "Its just a Kakuna..."

"I'm sure it can still fight back!" Ashley replied quickly. "Bulbasaur, lets go!" Bulbasaur slowly walked past the group, stopping to stand in front of Ashley.

"-Lets get this over with.-" Bulbasaur growled as it got into position to battle Kakuna. "-A pokémon like Kakuna will just be a waste of my time...-"

"Alright, Bulbasaur! Vine Whip!" Ashley called out the attack, and Bulbasaur responded by extending two vines from the base of its bulb. The vines shot out, both lashing against Kakuna's body. In response to the attack, Kakuna started to glow.

"Ashley, look out!" Rina called out to her. "Its evolving into a Beedrill!"

"That'll just make things more interesting then!" Ashley replied, a smirk forming on her lips. "Bulbasaur, get read with a Leech Seed and hit it when it hatches!"

Ashley and Bulbasaur watched with anticipation as the Kakuna began to hatch, and the three bug catchers looked on in amazement. A split formed down the middle of the Kakuna's body, and two cone-shaped stingers emerged. Soon, a fully developed Beedrill pulled itself free of the Kakuna and shed its cocoon shell.

Bulbasaur, having prepared for this, launched a seed from its bulb and hit the Beedrill in the abdomen. The seed sprouted tiny vines and latched onto the newly hatched bug pokémon.

"Oh shoot! I should have taken a picture!" Ashley said in dismay, snapping her fingers. "Getting a picture of a Beedrill as it hatched would have been great!"

"-HEY! How about focusing more on the battle!-" Bulbasaur shouted to Ashley as the Beedrill flew towards it. Beedrill aimed its main stinger at Bulbasaur as it moved in to attack. Bulbasaur tried to use its vines to move up out of the way of the attack, but Beedrill was too quick and went up with it to strike Bulbasaur in the underbelly with its stinger.

"-YEOWCH!-" Bulbasaur cried out in pain, the force of the impact knocking it back towards the tree the Kakuna was resting against before. Bulbasaur quickly got back on its feet and glared at Beedrill. The effects of the bug's attack on Bulbasaur were felt only briefly, the energy drained from Beedrill by Leech Seed quickly restored Bulbasaur to full strength from the minor attack.

"Oh right...Bulbasaur, Bullet Seed! Aim for its face!" Bulbasaur fired two green seeds, striking Beedrill with one of the seeds in the face and the other hitting hit a bit lower. The blow to the face seemed as though it stunned Beedrill briefly.

"Now, Tackle it!" Bulbasaur quickly dashed forward, jumping towards Beedrill and hitting it in the chest. Bulbasaur brought Beedrill to the ground and tried to hold it there by staying on top of it, but Beedrill began swiping at him with its foreleg-stingers in a Fury Attack and knocked Bulbasaur off of it.

"That Fury Attack won't do much to Bulbasaur..." Ashley thought, smiling to herself. "And Leech Seed keeps draining Beedrill's strength, so we just have to keep this up..."

Beedrill charged towards Bulbasaur again, stinger positioned to hit Bulbasaur with a Poison Sting attack. Ashley already had a pretty good idea of what to do though.

"Bulbasaur, quick! Jump and use Vine Whip!" Bulbasaur jumped up over Beedrill, wrapping its vines around it as the bug pokemon flew under Bulbasaur. Bulbasaur then used its vines to throw Beedrill straight forward. Beedrill found itself unable to stop and crashed into the tree it had been leaning against as a Kakuna. Bulbasaur immediately fixed its gaze on Beedrill when it landed. Beedrill was in a daze when it pulled back from the tree, and obviously getting weak.

"Now's my chance..." Ashley grabbed one of the pokeballs given to her by Professor Oak and threw it at Beedrill. The pokéball hit Beedrill and pulled it inside, then fell to the ground under the tree. The pokéball shook for several tense moments before making an audible click, locking Beedrill inside. Ashley quickly rushed over to pick up the pokéball.

"And that's how you catch a pokemon!" Ashley declared, holding up the pokéball for everyone to see. "Weaken it with your own pokemon, then catch it with a pokéball." The group gathered stared blankly for a moment before the bug catchers came to their own conclusions.

"Lets go find a defenseless Metapod and catch that!" One of them shouted. The other two agreed, and the three of them ran off in search of a Metapod to catch.

But you still need to...weaken it..." Ashley stared in silence for a moment before giving an exasperated sigh.

"-I still don't hear any recognition for that.-" Bulbasaur grumbled.

"That was a really great battle, Ashley! You too, Bulbasaur!" Rina said, applauding the two. "You're good at battling!"

"-Correction, I'm good.-" Bulbasaur replied, holding its head high. "-I did all the actual work after all.-"

"But it was Ashley who told you what to do and when." Rina said to him, smiling and folding her hands behind her back.

"I feel like I'm completely out of the loop here..." Ashley said, looking between the two. "Anyway...lets go find that Pikachu now!"

"Right!" Rina agreed excitedly. Ashley, Rina, and Bulbasaur once again started off on their trek through the forest in search of a wild Pikachu.

"Ugh! I'm beginning to wonder if there's even any Pikachu's around here!" Ashley growled in frustration.

"-The Pallet Town trainers couldn't have caught them all could they?-" Bulbasaur wondered aloud. "-Tch. Figures. All after an easy electric type...-"

"Its hopeless...I'm never going to get a Pikachu now..." Rina sniffed sadly, but tried to put a smile on her face as she addressed Ashley. "Thanks for your help, even if we couldn't find one..."

"HEY! We're not quitting just yet!" Ashley shouted back, startling Rina. "We're not leaving this forest until we've either found a Pikachu or we've proven without a doubt that there aren't any, now keep looking!"

"Y-y-yes mam!" Rina stammered in response.

"-Sheesh...if only you had this much dedication for catching your own pokémon...-" Bulbasaur grumbled. "-You know, without even giving it much thought, I can name at least three species you've skipped catching now...-"

The three of them started walking again, their eyes scanning the forest around them for any signs of a Pikachu. Eventually, Bulbasaur came to a stop as it caught sight of a yellow flash of movement out of the corner of its eyes.

"-I think I spotted one...-" Bulbasaur whispered before taking off into the bushes.

"Bulbasaur! You get back here right now!" Ashley called out after it. Bulbasaur did come back out from the bushes, only now it was dragging a Pikachu behind it in its vines.

"-Hey, look what I found.-" Bulbasaur brought the Pikachu over its head, plopping it down on the ground in front of it and holding it down with its vines. The wild Pikachu continually squirmed to try to break free.

"Oh WOW! Its a Pikachu! You've really found a..." Rina paused for a moment then glared at Bulbasaur. "BULBASAUR! Stop being so mean to it!" She cried out, flailing her arms.

"-Hey, I have to restrain it somehow.-" Bulbasaur replied with a shrug. "-Anyway, if you're planning on catching this thing hurry up before it actually decides to use its tiny brain and...-"

Before Bulbasaur could finish, a second Pikachu dropped down from the trees and smashed Bulbasaur on the head with its seemingly metallic tail. Its tail returned to normal as it did a back flip off Bulbasaur and landed on the ground further down the path. The attack dazed Bulbasaur, loosening his grip on the first Pikachu and allowing it to run off into the bushes to escape.

"-Good...night...mommy...-" Bulbasaur grunted in a daze before falling forward on its face, knocked out by the Pikachu's attack.

"That was an Iron Tail attack!" Ashley shouted in surprise, quickly turning to face the wild Pikachu. "It knocked Bulbasaur out in one attack too...just whats your problem anyway?!" Ashley angrily demanded.

"-My problem?-" The wild Pikachu replied sourly with a determined expression on its face. "-You humans have hunted my kind nearly to extinction. We used to live peacefully in this forest until you came along and started shoving them all in those pokéballs. That won't happen anymore, I won't let another Pikachu be caught!-"

"Umm...I think we might have hit a stumbling block..." Rina said nervously as she backed away from the angry Pikachu. Ashley, not knowing what it said, wasn't at all intimidated.

"No way! This one isn't running, so we'll just catch it!" Ashley held up Bulbasaur's pokéball to recall it, since Bulbasaur was clearly knocked out by the attack. She held up another pokéball, smirking to herself as she released the pokémon from inside it. "Alright, Mankey! This ones your's! Go!" The pokéball split open as Ashley pressed the button on it, releasing Mankey to confront the wild Pikachu.

"-Go ahead and bring out your pokémon against me, I'll crush them!-" The wild Pikachu cried out, sparks emitting from the red electric sacs on its cheeks before firing out a bolt of electricity. Mankey cried out, its eyes bulging as the bolt struck it and electricity flowed through it. Its charred body then fell to the ground in an unconscious

"EEK! Mankey!" Ashley cried out in surprise as Mankey fell in one attack. "Can a wild Pikachu really be that strong?" Ashley wondered as she recalled Mankey. "I don't think I even stand a chance, but I don't want to give up..." Ashley looked back, seeing the shocked expression on Rina's face.

"Then again, maybe she wouldn't mind if I let this one slide. She looks scared..."

"-I'll be keeping a close eye on you two...-" The wild Pikachu warned them, running off into the forest again.

"How could a wild Pikachu be that strong?!" Ashley yelled in frustration once Pikachu was out of sight.

"It said it'd be keeping an eye on us..." Rina said to her in a disheartened tone. "I don't think its going to let us catch a Pikachu..."

"Maybe I can't get you a Pikachu today...but someday..." Ashley turned to Rina, a grim look of determination on her face. "Even if I have to train my pokemon to be able to fight that wild Pikachu..."

"But...why?" Rina asked her in surprise. "Why would you go through so much trouble for me? We just met!"

"All those trainers coming through here lately were probably from Pallet Town..." Ashley replied, clenching a fist. "I don't think its right that you waited around for a year just for all those newbie trainers to ruin your chances of getting the one pokémon you've had your heart set on for so long. It makes me feel even worse to know that many of them were probably friends of mine..."

"Ashley..." Rina had to fight back tears, she was moved by Ashley's speech. "I didn't do anything to deserve this kindness from you...is this what its like to have a friend?" Rina thought quietly for a moment, she smiled brightly as she quickly got up and grabbed Ashley's hand.

"Come on! We have to hurry to Pewter! I want to show you my place and introduce you to Brock!" Before Ashley even had a chance to respond, Rina was dragging her through the forest towards Pewter City.

"H-hey! Slow down a bit! Pewter City isn't going anywhere!" Ashley said to her, trying to hold her back. It was no use though, Rina's sudden burst of energy was too much for Ashley and she was helplessly pulled along by the eccentric girl.

Rina did eventually stop, but not because Ashley asked her to. Wandering onto the path in front of them was a pokémon that resembled a Pikachu, only slightly smaller. Its body especially was smaller in comparison to its head. It had a black ring around its neck and its small tail was black at the tip as well. The pokémon looked as though it had been crying. Noticing the two trainers, it immediately turned to face them.

"-My...my mommy...-" The small pokemon whimpered. "-I can't find my mommy...-"

"I bet another trainer caught her..." Rina whispered so the pokemon wouldn't hear her. She slowly approached it and kneeled in front of it. "How long has your mommy been gone for?" She asked it.

"-I...I don't know...-" It replied, then began waving its arms frantically. "-Mommy always comes home when its dark out and brings me food b-but last night...she didn't!-"

"That's an odd looking Pikachu..." Ashley thought, taking out a pokédex to check it out.

"Pichu, the tiny mouse pokemon." The pokédex read out. "It is not yet skilled at storing electricity. It may send out a jolt if amused or startled."

Rina carefully took the wild Pichu in her arms, holding it against her gently and rubbing its back. "Its ok...I'm sure your mother is fine..." Rina said to her soothingly. "Poor thing...you probably haven't eaten in a while now, I bet you're hungry huh?" Rina held up Pichu to look it in the eye and the pokémon slowly nodded.

"I have some pokémon food you could try..." Rina set Pichu down on the ground then reached into her pocket, taking out a few pellets of pokémon food then placing them on the ground. Pichu sniffed at them curiously, then popped one in its mouth and quickly ate it.

"-Mmm! Kinda yummy!-" Pichu happily gobbled down the remaining few pellets.

"You know...your mommy was probably caught by another trainer..." Rina said to Pichu. She looked at Rina curiously, not quite understanding. "If you want to come with me though I'd gladly take care of you. Who knows? We may even meet her someday!"

"-Ok!-" Pichu hardly gave it even a moment's thought before leaping up into Rina's arms. Rina giggled happily, hugging Pichu tightly against her. Pichu's cheeks sparked briefly as it was barely able to contain its excitement.

"You two look so cute together..." Ashley commented after having been watching the two quietly. She took her camera from her backpack then held it up to take a picture of the two. "Say cheese, you two!" Rina and Pichu looked into the camera, both of them smiling brightly.

"Cheese!" Rina and Pichu said in unison. Ashley quickly snapped the picture then waited for it to print out. It was a perfect shot.

"Hmm...we need a nickname for you!" Rina suddenly declared to Pichu. "How about...Pippi?"

-Pippi?-" Pichu thought it over and smiled happily. "-Ok! I'm Pippi then!-"

"Ok! Pippi it is!" Rina agreed. "Hey, Ashley! Lets get going already! I have two new friends to introduce to Brock now!" Rina placed her new Pichu, Pippi, on her shoulder then ran off towards Pewter.

"Hey! Wait up!" Ashley called out, chasing after them. Once Rina and Ashley were out of sight, a Pikachu dropped down out of the trees.

"-I'll let this one slide.-" Pikachu said to itself. "-That Pichu needed someone to take care of it anyway...-" Pikachu shrugged, then walked down the path in the opposite direction.

Finish

 

[The black Vulpix]

Chapter 3: Changing directions.

Ashley and Rina arrived in Pewter City near the middle of the afternoon. Their first stop, like for any trainer, was the city's pokémon center. Ashley handed over her pokémon to be healed, and Rina handed over her newly caught Pichu for a checkup as well. Ashley's pokémon were returned to her, fully restored, and Rina's Pichu was determined to be fully healthy after an examination. Both girls released their pokémon when they received them.

"-Ooooh I swear! The next Pikachu I see is getting vine whipped so hard they'll...-" Bulbasaur began, but then noticed the Pichu. "-Ok, who's the new kid?-"

"-Hiya! I'm Pippi!-" Pippi the Pichu replied, waving her tiny hand happily.

"-How nice, she even gets a nickname...-" Bulbasaur grumbled, looking up at Ashley. "-Where's my nickname, wench?-"

"Umm...I think Bulbasaur wants a nickname..." Rina hesitantly said to Ashley.

"A nickname huh?" Ashley tapped her index finger against her chin and thought for a moment. "Aha! How about Rose then?"

"-Bleh! If that's the best she can come up with, never mind...-" Bulbasaur grumbled. "-I'm a guy, darn it...-"

"He... uh... said never mind..." Rina once again informed Ashley. "Anyway! Lets get going!"

"Right!" Ashley quickly agreed. "I want to drop off some pictures at the Kanto Times first though."

"Well it looks like we're in Pewter City now..." Bulbasaur thought, following Ashley, Rina, and Pippi out of the pokémon center. "In that case, time for me to challenge Brock..." Once they were outside the pokémon center, Bulbasaur took off running.

"Bulbasaur! Get back here!" Ashley called out after him. The girls all gave chase, with the exception of Pippi. The young Pichu seemed confused at first, watching as everyone took off running. Thinking it to be a game, she soon took off as well, smiling gleefully as she charged past Ashley and Rina.

"-Heyyyyyyy! Wait for me!-" Pippi called out eagerly, soon catching up with Bulbasaur and jumping up on its bulb. The sudden weight brought Bulbasaur to a halt.

"-Hey! Get off!-" Bulbasaur cried out, desperately trying to shake Pippi off of it before Rina and Ashley caught up with them. Bulbasaur didn't put much distance between them, however. Though it was able to throw the Pichu off of it, it was too late. Ashley and Rina had caught up with it, and Ashley was blocking its path and holding a pokéball.

"-Darn it! Get out of my way!-" Bulbasaur angrily demanded, glaring up at the girl and not backing down an inch from her. "-I'm challenging Brock whether you like it or not!-"

"We're going to see Brock anyway..." Rina quietly stated. Bulbasaur's jaw dropped and he quickly turned to Rina.

"-Say WHAT?! No one told me this!-"

"I just did!" Rina replied, smiling brightly. This seemed to take all the steam out of Bulbasaur's rage, only managing to mutter quietly in frustration.

"-I'm confused...-" Pippi stated, quietly observing Bulbasaur.

"What was that all about...?" Ashley asked Rina.

"Bulbasaur wants to challenge the gym leader, Brock." Rina explained to her. "He didn't know we were going to visit him anyway. He seemed pretty anxious though..."

"-Well duh!-" Bulbasaur added in angrily. "-Of all the trainers I ended up getting paired up with the one that doesn't want to challenge the Elite Four!-" Rina thought this over for a moment while Ashley looked at her expectantly.

"Ashley...why don't you just challenge the gym leaders anyway?" Rina suggested, smiling as she continued. "Its not like its going to hurt your progress as a photographer any, and I bet it'll make all your pokémon happy and not just Bulbasaur!"

"Well..." Ashley sighed, staring off into the distance while thinking it over. She nodded slightly as she came to a decision. "Alright...I'll think about it I guess. If we challenge Brock and beat him I'll challenge the rest of the gym leaders as well."

"Great! I can't wait to see you and Brock battle!" Rina replied happily. Bulbasaur was also grinning, but said nothing, thinking only about how it knew its victory against Brock was assured.

"Well first we're going to the Kanto times, remember?"

"Oh right..." Rina rubbed the back of her head sheepishly. Rina picked up Pippi and placed her on her shoulder before the three of them started on their way again.

After about ten minutes of walking, the group arrived at the Kanto Times office. Ashley went in alone and handed over her pictures to one of the publishers when she met with him. He went through them all, one by one, tossing them to the side as they were all rejected. Ashley felt her heart sink as each of her pictures were rejected, but the man finally stopped when he came to the last picture.

"Hm...this one is actually pretty good. We could use it for our trainer of the day section if we could get a brief interview with her." The picture the publisher was referring to was the most recent picture she had taken, the picture of Rina and her newly caught Pichu.

"You want that one?" Ashley asked, blinking in surprise. "But...but what about the rest?" The publisher sighed in frustration.

"Look, miss..." He began, leaning back in his chair and folding his hands over his stomach. "Anyone could bring in pictures like that. There's nothing special about a picture of a flock of Pidgey, or a bunch of Mankey. If you want to get a picture in our paper it needs to be something...I don't know...special, or rare. Like a picture of a legendary pokémon, or pictures of pokémon engaging in rarely-seen behaviors, that kind of thing..."

"Oh..." Ashley replied dejectedly. She brightened up a bit when she remembered what he said about the picture of Rina. "So wait...if I could get that girl in here for an interview you could take that last one?"

"Sure could." Ashley bolted out of the office almost as soon as he had replied, returning moments later dragging in a reluctant Rina with Pippi on her shoulder.

"A-Ashley! Whats all this about?!" Rina cried out in confusion. Ashley finally let go of her as she was brought to stand in front of the publishers desk. Rina greeted him timidly. "Umm...h-hi?"

"Ah! You're the girl from the photo! A pleasure to meet you!" The publisher smiled and stood up, extending his hand to Rina.

"Um...thanks..." Rina replied, timidly shaking the man's hand. Pippi suddenly jumped down off Rina's shoulder and onto the man's desk. Pippi growled, and sparks danced across its cheeks causing her to cry out in pain. She jumped back up on Rina's shoulder, hugging her face and sobbing quietly.

"-Rina! I shocked myself!-" Pippi sobbed into Rina's face. Rina reached over with her opposite hand and patted Pippi on the head.

"Its ok Pippi, just calm down and you'll be fine...it'll just happen again if you get too excited like that." Pippi stopped sobbing and nodded quietly, though there were still tears welling up in the corner of her eyes. Rina carefully wiped Pippi's eyes with her hands.

"Wow...Rina really cares about Pippi..." Ashley thought as she watched the two.

"Well now, I can see you and your Pichu really are close!" The man behind the desk commented. "Would you mind if I asked you a few questions for our trainer of the day section?"

"Oh, that's what this is for?" Rina blinked in surprise, then smiled as she nodded affirmatively. "Sure! Ask away!"

"Ok then, first question. Where did you meet Pichu?"

"We met in Viridian Forest." Rina replied with a nod. Pichu looked on curiously from Rina's shoulder, taking an interest in the interview.

"Next question, how long have you two known each other?"

"Umm..." Rina put her finger to her lip, staring off at the ceiling for a moment as she thought about it. "An hour or two I guess..." She eventually replied. The publisher stared at her blankly for a moment.

"Ok...then..." The man coughed to clear his throat. "Alright, last question. On a scale of one to ten, how well would you say you get along with your Pichu?"

"Definitely 10!" Rina replied quickly with a noticeably enthusiasm in her voice. Pichu cheered loudly in agreement. The man chuckled lightly as he wrote down Rina's answers.

"Alright, that's all. Thank you for your time." The man reached into his desk, producing two white envelopes. He handed one each to Rina and Ashley. "There you go, five hundred each for the interview and the picture. You'll probably see it in the paper soon."
"Thank you!" Both girls replied, receiving their envelopes and leaving the building. Just outside, Bulbasaur was waiting impatiently for them.

"-Now what the heck was that all about? We're losing precious battle time here!-" Bulbasaur demanded of the three once they were outside.

"Five hundred...well if nothing else, that's two pokéballs with a hundred leftover." Ashley said, ignoring Bulbasaur. She took her bag in hand and opened it to place the envelope inside.

"They wanted to interview me." Rina replied to Bulbasaur, giggling quietly.

"-Yeah! That was fun!-" Pippi added in, hopping up and down on Rina's shoulder. "-He was asking about how we're such good friends!-"

"-Yeah. Sure. Whatever. Can we go already!-" Bulbasaur growled loudly.

"Well sounds like someone is getting a bit impatient." Ashley said, rolling her eyes. "Guess we better go over to Brock's gym before Bulbasaur manages to evolve into a fire-type..."

"-Oh, haha. So the wench can make a joke.-" Bulbasaur grumbled quietly. With their business at the Kanto Times finished the group headed off to the Pewter City gym.

"I'm here to challenge the gym leader!" Ashley declared dramatically as she flung open the gym doors.

"That wasn't necessary..." Rina said to her, looking down to hide her embarrassment.

"Hmph! Well that's how they do it on tv!" Ashley replied, folding her arms.

"Do you know her, Rina?" Brock asked, peering at the two from the other side of the gym. Or at least, he looked like he was peering at them. Brock was a brown-haired teen, looking to be about Ashley's age, wearing a black shirt with an orange stripe and a pair of green pants. He was sitting on the other side of the gym, on the gym leader's platform, and stood up when Ashley and Rina entered the gym.

"Hi Brock!" Rina called out to him, smiling brightly and waving to him. "This is Ashley, her and Bulbasaur want to battle you. She helped me catch a Pichu too!" Rina took Pippy from her shoulder and held her up for Brock to see.

"-Hiya!-" Pippy called out happily, waving to Brock.

"Actually I kinda just tried to catch a Pikachu and failed..." Ashley admitted quietly.

"-Blah blah blah! Less talking more battling!-" Bulbasaur growled.

"Well, you have my gratitude for being so kind to Rina." Brock said to Ashley. "If you want to battle me, then I accept! Don't think I'll go easy on you though. My rock-hard pokémon will withstand any attack you throw at them!"

"Well we'll see about that!" Ashley called back, running to the trainer's spot marked out on the floor with Bulbasaur beside her. Rina went over to a bench near the wall of the gym to sit down and watch the match. Brock's battlefield consisted of a rock terrain built into the gym floor. The entire ground of the battlefield was made of rock with stalagmites and boulders jutting up from the field.

"This will be a two on two battle." Brock said to her, taking a pokéball in his hand. "My first pokémon will be Geodude!" Brock released Geodude from its pokéball and onto the battlefield. Geodude appeared on the rocky ground, its rocky body nothing more than two arms directly attached to its head.

"In that case, I'll start off with Mankey!" Ashley replied, taking Mankey's pokeball from her belt. "Mankey, go!" Ashley released Mankey and the monkey-like fighting pokemon appeared in front of her on the battlefield. It hopped around and cried out loudly.

"-H-hey! What gives?!-" Bulbasaur growled at Ashley.

"Brock's known for having a strong Onix." Ashley informed Bulbasaur, a smile crossing her lips. "Onix is a ground and rock type, meaning you have twice the advantage against it. So I'm holding you back to fight it once Geodude's out of the way."

"-...Alright then. At least I get to fight the big one.-" Bulbasaur grumbled.

"Plus this gives me a chance to figure out Brock's battle style..." Ashley thought to herself. "Ok, Mankey! Go! Low Kick!" Mankey cried out loudly and rushed forward in a mad dash towards Geodude.

"Geodude, slow it down with Rock Throw!" Geodude threw its hands out, sending out a pile of small rocks towards Mankey. Mankey furiously clawed them aside and moved in to attack, delivering a kick at what would be considered Geodude's chin. Geodude rolled back once, landing upside down, then flipped back up again.

"Geodude, get out of there! Use Dig, then Tackle!" Geodude began quickly clawing at the ground, easily digging it up in chunks and digging its way under the battlefield.

"Mankey, careful! It could come up anywhere now!" Ashley warned it. Mankey turned to her and started hopping around and squealing.

"-IknowIknowIknow!-" It called back furiously. Its head darted back and forth, peering all around the battlefield. Geodude eventually dug up out of a stalagmite behind Mankey and used the rock to throw itself towards Mankey with a tackle attack. Mankey turned around just as Geodude was attacking and was struck in the face by the attack. Mankey cried out as it was sent rolling across the ground until it landed on its back. It didn't waste time lying around, though, and was quickly back up on its feet.

"You know, this is actually the first time I watched Brock battle..." Rina said to Pippi with a smile on her face. "I can see why he's a gym leader, he's really good! His Geodude doesn't look like it was slowed down by Mankey's Low Kick attack at all!"

"-Yeah! This is exciting!-" Pippi cried out, excitedly nodding to Rina. She yelped in surprise when sparks shot out of the electric sacs on her cheeks.

"Mankey, use Low Kick again!" Mankey got up and started running towards Brock's Geodude to attack it again.

"Low Kick isn't doing much to Brock's Geodude, despite the type advantage." Ashley thought to herself, though a smile crossed her lips. "But the more damage Mankey takes..."

"Geodude, stop it with Rock Tomb!" Geodude slammed its fists into the ground, causing a pillar of rocks to come up around Mankey like a mouth and close down around it. Mankey seemed trapped for a moment but gave a scream of primal rage and burst through the rock nearest Geodude, leaping out at it and landing another kick on the lower half of Geodude's face. Once again, the attack seemed to have little effect on Geodude.

"I don't think Ashley can win this battle..." Rina quietly said to Rina. "Not with Mankey at least, it has the type advantage but it's attacks aren't doing much to Brock's Geodude. Brock's pokémon are really tough..."

"-Bulbasaur can beat him though!-" Pippi replied enthusiastically. "-Bulbasaur is really strong!-"

"Maybe..." Rina wasn't really convinced, especially having witnessed Bulbasaur's defeat at the hands of a wild Pikachu.

"Geodude Tackle attack!" Geodude propped itself up on its hands then flung its body at Mankey again, knocking it back and sending it tumbling to the ground. Mankey growled and quickly jumped back to its feet. It didn't make a loud fuss this time, it was beginning to show signs of fatigue.

"Seems like your Mankey can't hold its own in battle." Brock said to Ashley. "Though it has the type advantage, it lacks an attack strong enough to even dent my Geodude."

"That's where you're wrong! I wasn't relying on Low Kick to begin with!" Ashley replied with a smirk. Brock looked on curiously. "Mankey! Now! Reversal!" Brock gasped in surprise as Mankey let out a primal scream of rage, its injuries pushing it to increase its strength for an attack.

"Geodude, quick! Defense Curl!" Geodude quickly curled up into a ball as Mankey charged towards it, slamming Geodude with its hands outstretched. The impact from the attack sent Geodude flying into a nearby stalagmite like a cannonball, smashing it on impact. For a moment, it seemed as though Mankey had won, though when the dust settled Geodude appeared to be still barely conscious.

"Geodude, Dig!" Geodude forced itself to dig at the stalagmite in its weakened state to dig into the ground and disappear beneath the gym.

"No way! It can still fight back?!" Ashley cried out in surprise.

"Wow! Brock's Geodude is really tough!" Rina commented. "To take a Reversal attack head on like that!"

"-Yeah! I thought his pokémon was done for sure!-" Pippy added in agreement.

The ground beneath Mankey's feet ruptured as Geodude popped out, knocking Mankey back and sending it sprawling to the ground while Geodude safely came to a stop on flat ground. When Mankey hit the ground it collapsed onto its back, having been knocked unconscious by the attack. Ashley reluctantly recalled Mankey.

"You shouldn't bank the outcome of an entire match on an attack like Reversal." Brock advised Ashley. "While you made a pretty good dent in my Geodude with it, its an attack best used as a last resort instead of your main strategy."

"For a second there I thought maybe Ashley knew what she was doing..." Rina thought, giggling quietly to herself.

"Umm...heh...good point..." Ashley replied, grinning sheepishly. She then smiled and began to look determined again. "Alright, Bulbasaur! Its your turn now! Get in there!" Bulbasaur nodded quickly and ran out in front of Ashley, taking up its position on the battlefield as it prepared to fight.

"Geodude, quick! Dig!" Brock called out. Geodude quickly began digging its way under the ground.

"Bulbasaur, grab it with Vine Whip!" Bulbasaur ran towards Geodude while stretching out its vines, extending them towards Geodude as it disappeared below the ground. It reached into the hole and, after probing for a short time, pulled out Geodude wrapped in its vines.

"Now! Toss it and use Vine Whip!" Bulbasaur tossed Geodude into the air then struck one of its vines across Geodude's body, sending it crashing into the ground and knocking it unconscious. Brock raised Geodude's pokéball.

"Pretty quick thinking there. Lets see if it'll help you against my next pokémon." Brock took his only remaining pokéball from his belt. "Onix! Go!" Brock held up the pokéball and released Onix. Almost immediately, the giant rock snake appeared on Brock's side of the battlefield. Its massive body took up a lot of space, and Bulbasaur grinned when it saw the size of its opponent.

"-Sweet...now THIS is what I'm talking about!-" Bulbasaur said, voicing its satisfaction.

"-You seem quite pleased...-" Onix began, then roared menacingly at Bulbasaur. "-For someone about to be squished!-"

"-Th-that thing is scary!-" Pippi cried out, hiding behind Rina.

"Don't worry! Its not going to hurt you!" Rina assured Pippi, but then looked out at Bulbasaur with a bit of concern. "I hope Bulbasaur will be ok though..."

"Bulbasaur, lets start this off with Leech Seed!" Ashley called out. Bulbasaur responded by crouching down to aim its bulb at Onix, firing a small seed towards it. The seed struck Onix in the head and latched onto the rock-type pokémon with tiny vines. Brock stood by and did nothing as Bulbasaur attacked.

"Onix, use Dig then follow it up with a Bind attack!" Onix began spinning its head around like a drill then smashed into the ground headfirst, drilling its way into the rocky floor. Its body began to spin likewise, propelling itself into the ground.

"Bulbasaur, be careful!" Ashley warned him. "That Onix could come up anywhere!"

"-You said the exact same thing to Mankey!-" Bulbasaur shot back while turning to face its trainer. "-It was a pointless statement then and its a pointless statement now!-"

Onix burst out of the ground from behind Bulbasaur and almost instantly it circled around the grass pokemon. Bulbasaur tried to jump up on Onix to get out of its grasp, but Onix grabbed it with its body and wrapped tightly around Bulbasaur. Only Bulbasaur's head was still visible from Onix's body being coiled around it. Onix then began to squeeze tightly and Bulbasaur cried out in pain as it was crushed.

"Why would he use Bind?" Ashley wondered to herself. "With Leech Seed on it, Onix will be drained of its energy faster than it can crush..." Ashley suddenly noticed why Brock had made such a seemingly reckless move, the seed was gone.

"That's it then!" She realized. "Brock had Onix use Dig first so it could knock the seed off!"

"Bulbasaur, use Vine Whip! You need to get out of there!" Ashley called out to her pokemon. Bulbasaur grunted with the effort of trying to extend its vines while being bound by Onix, but it was no use. Bulbasaur just couldn't get its vines free.

"You're not the first to challenge my gym with a Bulbasaur." Brock informed Ashley. "Many first time trainers come through here with their Squirtles and Bulbasaur's, and from my battles with them I've learned how to deal with their techniques. With your Bulbasaur bound like that, it won't be able to use its Vine Whip technique. Even if your Bulbasaur happens to know Razor Leaf it won't be able to use that either. Its over..."

"That's what you think!" Ashley replied with a smirk. "My Bulbasaur has a bit more in its arsenal than Leech Seed and Vine Whip! Bulbasaur, show him! Attack Onix with Bullet Seed!"

Bulbasaur opened its mouth and fired a barrage of four seeds, hitting Onix in the face with all four of them. Onix growled in pain as the seeds struck it and loosened its grip on Bulbasaur enough for him to gets its vines free. Bulbasaur extended its vines to wrap around Onix's body just below its head, then pulled itself free of Onix's grip and swung out onto the gym floor before retracting its vines.

"-Wow! I thought Bulbasaur was gonna lose for sure!-" Pippi gleefully shouted."-Go Bulbasaur! Show that big bully whose boss!-"

"I'm still not sure if Bulbasaur can make a comeback..." Rina thought, watching the match intently. "Not unless Ashley really does something to surprise Brock..."

"I'll admit, that one caught me off guard." Brock stated, his face showing a more determined expression now. "I won't make that same mistake again. Onix, Bind it!"

"Bulbasaur, use Vine Whip to dodge!" Bulbasaur extended its vines towards a nearby stalagmite jutting out of the ground, wrapping them around it and reeling itself towards the rock at the last second to escape Onix as it moved to wrap around Bulbasaur. Bulbasaur released the rock and retracted its vines as it came to a stop near the base. Bulbasaur stayed with his back to the rock to prevent Onix from being able to successfully bind it.

"Bulbasaur, use Vine Whip and aim for the head!" Bulbasaur extended its vines towards Onix's head in an attempt to attack it. Brock was already prepared for such an attack however.

"Onix, grab those vines in your mouth!" Onix opened its mouth and moved its head to grab Bulbasaur's vines. Bulbasaur was surprised that its attack had been blocked so easily. "Now! Toss it back!" Onix rose up towards the ceiling with the back end of its body holding it up. It then twisted its head around, pulling Bulbasaur along the ground as it turned to toss it. Ashley immediately saw her opportunity to gain the upper hand.

"Bulbasaur, grab Onix when it tosses you!" Onix raised Bulbasaur in the air and finally let go of his vines, but as per Ashley's orders Bulbasaur wasn't about to let go and instead wrapped its vines around Onix's neck. Bulbasaur grunted as it felt its vines being stretched from the momentum Onix had used in an attempt to toss it.

"Now, reel yourself in fast and use Tackle!" Bulbasaur immediately saw what Ashley was planning and began reeling its vines in, pulling itself towards Onix's head from above. It struck the top of Onix's head with enough force to send its head falling towards the ground from the impact. Bulbasaur quickly jumped back to distance itself from Onix as the two of them fell. Onix hit the ground hard while Bulbasaur managed to land on its feet with little impact. Onix wasn't hurt much by the attack, but it was enough to stun it for a moment.

"Bulbasaur, now! Hit it hard with Bullet Seed and don't let up!" Bulbasaur opened its mouth and began firing seed after seed straight into Onix's face while standing in front of it on the ground, getting in as many hits as it could before Onix finally lifted its head up again and gave a loud bellow in agony.

"Now, quick! Smash it with a Vine Whip before it can attack again!" Bulbasaur quickly shot out one vine to the side of Onix and brought it down hard into the side of Onix's head. Onix roared in agony as it was sent crashing towards the ground again, its head smashing against one of the rocks on the gym floor. After hitting the ground, Onix laid still for several moments before Brock finally recalled it. Onix had been successfully brought down by Bulbasaur's assault.

"Alright! We did it!" Ashley cheered loudly.

"-Heh. No sweat...-" Bulbasaur grinned proudly and turned to walk back towards Ashley, but fell onto its stomach as its feet gave out under it. "-Ok...so maybe every part of my body hurts...-" Bulbasaur grunted in pain. "-But I still won darn it...-"

"Wow! She actually did it!" Rina said in surprise. "She came up with a new tactic on the spot to take down a larger foe..."

"-Yeah! Bulbasaur was awesome!-" Pippi squeaked out happily in agreement. It hopped up excitedly, but was startled when its cheeks sparked and fell back on the bench.

"You have some skill as a trainer, I'll admit that." Brock said to Ashley, a slight smile forming on his lips. "I've never seen anyone use a technique like that before, combining a Bulbasaur's Vine Whip technique with a simple Tackle attack to increase the attack's power. It was strong enough to give your Bulbasaur time enough to gain the upper hand and bring my Onix down..."

"Hmm! Thanks! I think I'd like to try to perfect that technique actually..." Ashley smiled at the praise. She took out Bulbasaur's pokéball and looked down at the weakened pokémon. "Bulbasaur, maybe you should rest in your pokéball until we get to the pokémon center. Return!" Bulbasaur gave no complaints as he was recalled into his pokéball. Ashley placed Bulbasaur's pokéball on her belt, and by then Brock, Rina, and Pippi were all standing with her.

"Here, you've certainly earned this." Brock said to Ashley, holding up the Boulder Badge and a TM. "Its the official Kanto League Boulder Badge, as well as my Rock Tomb technique. Its the perfect technique to use on the kind of terrain in my gym." Ashley took the badge from Brock and put it on the back of her trainer card and took the TM as well, putting it in her bag.

"Well looks like you won!" Rina said to Ashley, grinning widely. "Guess this means you'll be challenging the rest of the gyms now too, huh?"

"Yep, guess so..." Ashley replied, rubbing her head sheepishly. "Well Bulbasaur should be happy for a change..."

"So then this match was to decide whether or not you would challenge the Kanto League?" Brock stroked his chin curiously. "Interesting...but I would say you definitely have the skill for it."

"Well, I'm going to give it my best anyway!"

"In any case, it was nice to meet you Ashley. You as well, Pippi." Brock said, smiling to Pichu.

"-Nice to meet you too mister Brock!-" Pippi responded happily.

"I'm going to show Ashley my place now. See you later Brock!" Rina said to Brock, waving as she turned to leave the gym.

"Alright, I'll probably come by later. See you then." Brock rubbed his chin thoughtfully as he watched the girls leaving. "I think we might have something to discuss..."

"This is your house, Rina?" Ashley asked, looking around inside the small home. It was only a single story house with two bedrooms. Most of the rooms in the house could be accessed from the main hallway which Ashley, Rina, and Pippi, and Bulbasaur were standing in. They had made a stop at the pokémon center on the way, so Bulbasaur was back on his feet.

"I know...its not much..." Rina replied, sheepishly rubbing the back of her head. "Feel free to look around, I'm going to make some dinner."

"Oh...do you want any help then?" Ashley asked her. "I mean, I'm not that good at cooking but I know enough to get by..."

"Nope! I can do it myself!" Rina replied cheerfully. "Brock taught me to cook, so I usually make my own meals anyway."

"Oh, ok." Ashley blinked in surprise. "She's really independent for her age...but then again she's still a year older than most trainers. She just acts childish..."

Rina took Pippi into the kitchen with her, leaving Ashley and Bulbasaur alone to look around the house. Ashley wasn't sure where to start though, or if she even wanted to. Rina's house didn't seem like anything special to her at all, so she contented herself to take a seat on the couch in Rina's living room. Bulbasaur didn't mind that either, as nothing about a person's home really interested it.

"What a day..." Ashley sighed out as she plopped back down on the couch. "I've walked into traps, faced strong wild pokemon, and even battled a gym leader..."

"-Technically, all you did was walk into traps.-" Bulbasaur muttered grumpily. "-Facing wild pokemon? Battling the gym leader's pokemon? That was all us, thank you very much.-"

"You know I don't have a clue what you're saying without Rina, right?" Ashley said, looking over at Bulbasaur. It was then that she noticed a table next to the couch with a picture of Rina's family. Scooting over on the couch she picked up the picture to take a look at it.

"These must be her parents..." The picture had a man and a woman in it, both of whom were wearing outfits similar to a standard police uniform. Their badges were notably different, but Ashley couldn't tell what was on them from the picture. The woman had the same hair color as Rina and the man had brown hair. Both looked like they were in their early thirties at the oldest.

Alongside the two officers in the picture were their pokemon. A purple, feline pokemon with a long tail and a red gem in the center of its forehead stood next to Rina's mother and next to her father was a long purple serpent pokemon with a white underbelly. It had tiny wings on the top of its head and a blue orb under its chin.

"That serpent pokemon is a Dragonair I think...but aren't they usually blue?" Ashley thought out loud. "I don't recognize that other pokemon though..."

"Its an Espeon..." Ashley looked up and saw Rina standing at the entrance to the room. "Sorry...I just wanted to see what you were up to..."

"Don't be! Its your house after all!" Ashley called back. "So they must be your parents then?" Rina nodded her reply and Pippi hopped down off Rina's shoulder, rushing over to Ashley to take a peek at the photo.

"Those were their only pokemon too...their pokemon were partners to them, just as much as my mother and father were partners." Rina added sadly. "They always told me to cherish pokemon above everything...they really loved pokemon..."

"Rina...I'm sorry, I..." Ashley began, but was cut off by Rina.

"No, don't be..." Rina shook her head. "It won't make any difference now...my parents are gone, but their pokemon are still alive somewhere I know they are. I don't know how, but I want to find them and get them back...its what my parents would have wanted..."

"Rina..." Ashley was about to say something, but was once again cut off. This time, by the screeching of a fire alarm.

"Oh no! The food!" Rina cried out and rushed back into the kitchen to take care of things.

"-Rina! Wait for me!-" Pippi cried out, chasing off after her trainer. Ashley stared in disbelief.

"Well at least that sappy scene is over with..." Bulbasaur thought, sticking his tongue out distastefully. "-Bleh!-"

"Still just a kid..." Ashley sighed at Rina's sudden change in attitude. "Still though...Bulbasaur?" Bulbasaur looked up at Ashley expectantly. "We need to get stronger...strong enough to beat guys like Shocks and whatever other Hunters are out there so we can save those pokémon!"

"-Normally I'd disagree with everything you say, but that kid is starting to grow on me and its for the pokemon, so count me in.-" Bulbasaur replied, nodding to Ashley since she couldn't understand him.

"Umm... Ashley and Bulbasaur looked up as Rina appeared in the entrance again, smiling sheepishly. "Dinner's ready..."

Dinner for the two girls consisted of pizza, and a bit overcooked at that. Neither pokemon were particularly interested in trying human food. After eating, Ashley helped out with the dishes until there was a knock at the door.

"I'll get it!" Rina rushed out of the kitchen to answer the door, dropping her dishcloth in the sink.

"Probably just Brock..." Ashley picked up Rina's cloth and continued to wash the dishes, cleaning them off one at a time and placing them on a rack next to the sink to dry. She was finished washing what little was left when Rina walked into the kitchen with, as Ashley had guessed, Brock.

"Ashley, I need to talk to you and Rina."

"About what?" Ashley set the dishcloth down and turned her attention to Brock. "What could Brock want to talk to me about?"

"Ashley, I want you to take Rina with you.""You...you want her to what?!" Rina cried out in surprise.

"Rina, you're almost twelve now, and you finally have your own pokémon." Brock stated quietly. "I think its about time you set out as a trainer. If Ashley wouldn't mind you tagging along with her that is..."

"But..."

"I don't mind..." Ashley replied, cutting Rina off. "If Rina wants to go with me, I don't think I could turn her down." Brock gave a slight smile and nod at Ashley's response, as if it was what he expected her to say.

"Well then, what do you say Rina?" Brock asked, looking down at her. Rina looked over at Ashley and thought it over.

"I'll...I'll go then..." Rina replied quietly, smiling at Ashley. "Besides, someone needs to let her know when Bulbasaur is talking about her behind her back!"

"-Oh, so now you're going to rat me out huh?-" Bulbasaur said to Rina, grinning widely. "-Well you can start by telling her I think this is the first good decision she's ever made!-" Rina giggled quietly at Bulbasaur's request.

"Well then what'd he say, Rina?" Ashley asked her curiously. Rina gave her an innocent smile before replying.

"He said this is the first good decision you ever made."

"WHAT?!" Ashley growled menacingly and glared at Bulbasaur. "ARE YOU TRYING TO IMPLY SOMETHING MISTER?!"

"-Imply nothing, I came right out and said it.-" Bulbasaur replied, still grinning from ear to ear.

"Hoo boy...I hope this wasn't a bad idea..." Brock wondered, placing his hand against his forehead in dismay.

Rina spent the rest of the evening gathering various supplies from around her house. Brock didn't stay long after speaking with the two, only long enough to advise Rina on what she'd need on the road. Rina didn't sleep much that night, she was too excited by the prospect of finally becoming a trainer and even the possibility of finding her parent's missing pokemon.

The next day, the two girls set out together from Rina's place and headed towards Mount Moon.

"Don't you think you over packed a bit?" Ashley asked Rina.

"Hmm?" Rina looked over her shoulder at the large travel back strapped to her back. It was much larger than Ashley's and as full as it could get. "Well if we're going through Mount Moon we'll need all of it!"

"Yeah but...you're going to hurt your back carrying all that..."

"You might be right... Hey! Maybe I should have used a shoulder bag too, like your's!" Rina jokingly suggested.

"You'd still be carrying a lot of weight..." Ashley replied with a heavy sigh.

"-You could help her, I'm sure you have plenty of empty space available.-" Bulbasaur suggested mockingly, following along beside Rina and Pippi.

"-Hey! I wanna help too! I can carry stuff!-" Pippi cried out, looking up at Rina tearfully.

"Pippi, you're too small to carry any of this! Sorry!" Pippi sniffed sadly in disappointment.

"Hey, Rina?" Rina stopped and looked up at Ashley, who was grinning mischievously. "Race you to Mount Moon!" Ashley called back to her then took off running, leaving her and the pokemon behind.

"Ashley! That's not fair! Wait up!" Rina called out, taking off after her. The two girls were both well on their way now, traveling together across the Kanto region with their pokemon at their side. First stop, Mount Moon!

Finish

 

[The black Vulpix]

Chapter 4: Clefairy rescue

"I...can't...take...another...step..." Rina said quietly while gasping for breath. She was lying on the ground outside Mount Moon, pinned underneath her own backpack with Bulbasaur, Ashley, and Pippi looking down at her.

"-Rina! You...you're not going to die, r-right?-" Pippi asked her tearfully.

"Wha! Of course not!" Rina bolted upright for a moment, but then collapsed under the weight of her backpack. Pippi let out a frightened cry and started pulling on Rina's arm to get her up.

"I told you you were carrying too much..." Ashley sighed. "We still have to get through Mount Moon, so how about we switch?"

"-Of course, now that she's hindering you, you'll carry her stuff.-" Bulbasaur remarked, rolling his eyes. "-Typical...-"

"I...I guess that would be ok..." Rina mumbled into the dirt. Ashley placed her travel bag on the ground and kneeled down next to Rina to help her remove her backpack. Rina got up and stretched once the weight was removed from her back. Ashley lifted the backpack experimentally.

"This thing weighs a ton! Rina, what did you pack exactly?" Ashley asked before opening it and taking a peek for herself. The items immediately visible to Ashley inside the backpack included a cooking pot and a sleeping bag. "Umm...whats the pot for?"

"Cooking of course!" Rina replied, smiling widely. "We need to eat after all, right?"

"Err...right...but we could have survived without cooked food I think..." After Rina gathered herself up, the group continued on into Mount Moon.

The inside of Mount Moon, for the most part, didn't seem to be anything special. It was a rather ordinary cave in appearance, but rare evolution stones known as Moonstones were found within. Along with the Moonstones were a species of pokemon called Clefairy, which seemed somewhat mystical in nature and only found in Mount Moon.

The inside of the mountain was illuminated well enough by a series of lights that the group could see where they were going. The path was commonly used by trainers and was lighted because of that, but blue lightning was used to avoid disturbing the pokemon living there. The result was that there was enough light for people to see, but it still looked dark.

"I hope we run into a Clefairy, I want to get a picture of one!" Ashley exclaimed while looking around through her camera.

"I think Clefairy are pretty rare though aren't they?" Rina commented thoughtfully.

"Well I won't leave until I get a picture of one!" Ashley declared, letting go of her camera and raising her fist to punctuate her statement. Her camera was strapped around her neck as usual.

"-With that attitude, you'll probably scare them off...-" Bulbasaur commented dryly, rolling his eyes.

"-Bulbasaur, why are you always so mean to your trainer?-" Pippi asked him with a child-like curiosity.

"-I don't really like her much.-" Bulbasaur replied, raising one of its front legs in a sort of a shrug. "-She doesn't really have her priorities straight if you ask me...-"

"Let me guess, I'm better off not knowing?" Ashley asked Rina, noticing Bulbasaur and Pippi talking.

"Its not important!" Rina replied, smiling nervously. Though Rina was capable of translating for Ashley, she often choose not to. She knew the two would just get into a fight.

"-HELP!-" Everyone looked ahead down the darkened path as they heard a pokemon crying out in a distressed voice, which all but Ashley immediately recognized as a cry for help.

"Someone's in trouble!" Rina called out before taking off in the direction of the voice. Ashley, Bulbasaur, and Pippi followed behind her. They came around a bend in the cave and stumbled upon an older man and women standing with their backs to them. In front of the two was a cage full of Clefairy. There was also an evolved Charmeleon next to the man and a Wartortle next to the woman. Both pokémon had slave collars around their necks.

"We're done here. That's all the Clefairy we need." The man informed his partner.

"Yes, and the gas seems to have worked as well. They won't give us any trouble during transport." The woman agreed.

"HEY! Just what do you think you're doing with those Clefairy!" Rina demanded. The two older trainers snickered to themselves and grinned.

"Like an exploding wildfire...I strike..." "Like an unstoppable tide...I crush..." The two of them turned around dramatically to face Rina and Ashley.

"You now face the invincible duo of the Grand Hunters...Yin and Yang!" The two trainers declared as they pointed at Rina and Ashley.

Both trainers looked to be in their early twenties, and both had jet black hair. They wore matching outfits that looked like white jumpsuits with a black belt tied around their waist and black bands around their wrists and ankles. Yang was the male of the two, and Yin the female. Both had the Grand Hunters emblem on their left shoulders.

"Wait...you're the Grand Hunters?" Rina asked in disbelief.

"No way! They're too lame to be serious criminals..." Ashley said to her. "Lets just kick their butts and free those Clefairy!"

"How dare you mock us! Charmeleon, attack! Ember!" The collared Charmeleon quickly jumped out in front of Yang and opened its mouth to attack, but a pair of vines wrapped around its snout and held it shut. A puff of smoke erupted from the side of Charmeleon's mouth as the attack fizzled.

"Wartortle, Tackle attack!" Wartortle joined Charmeleon in the battle and tackled into Bulbasaur while it was still holding Charmeleon's mouth. Bulbasaur lost its gripped and was knocked back, rolling to Ashley's feet.

"-Hey, lady! I'm a bit outnumbered and outgunned here!-" Bulbasaur growled, looking up at Ashley. "-How about a little help?!-" Ashley looked to Rina for an explanation.

"Ashley, send out another pokémon!" Ashley nodded and took a pokéball from her belt.

"Pidgey, go! Help Bulbasaur!" Pidgey emerged from its pokeball and flew straight into the fray, putting itself between Bulbasaur and Wartortle. "Pidgey, hold them back with Gust! Bulbasaur, Sleep Powder!"

Pidgey stopped in midair and began flapping its wings, sending out strong gusts of wind at Charmeleon and Wartortle. Neither of the evolved pokémon seemed to be particularly affected by it. Bulbasaur followed up, sending a blast of powder from the bulb on its back into the gusts. The wind ended up blowing most of the Sleep Powder past its intended targets and the two pokémon remained awake because of it.

"Charmeleon, attack Bulbasaur with Ember!"

"Wartortle, use Water Gun on Pidgey!"

Charmeleon and Wartortle quickly retaliated with ranged attacks, Charmeleon aiming a fireball at Bulbasaur while Wartortle fired a short burst of water at Pidgey. Both attacks were almost completely unaffected by Pidgey's Gust and struck their targets without error, albeit slightly weakened. Pidgey and Bulbasaur grunted in pain as the attacks hit them, forcing Pidgey to stop its attack.

"-Rina! Let me help too!-" Pippi jumped out in front of Rina, ready to fight. Rina quickly picked her up and held her tightly.

"Pippi, I don't think you can..." Rina replied, shaking her head. "Their pokémon are tough, and you're still just a baby pokémon...we should just let Ashley handle this." Pippi frowned disappointingly and kicked at the ground.

"Yang, you see that?" Yin whispered to her partner, pointing at Rina. "Seems like this girl can understand pokémon..."

"Yes, I see it too Yin." Yang replied not so quietly. "I bet she would fetch a good price. Cute too..."

"HEY! You can't talk about Rina that way!" Ashley snapped angrily. "You people are sick! Bulbasaur, Leech Seed! Pidgey, Air Cutter! Concentrate your attacks on Charmeleon!" Bulbasaur positioned itself to fire a seed at Charmeleon on Ashley's command

"Wartortle, block Leech Seed with Water Gun!" Wartortle fired a short blast of water into the oncoming Leech Seed. The sudden blast of water knocked the seed away, protecting Charmeleon from the attack.

"Charmeleon, counter attack with Ember!" Charmeleon opened its mouth and shot out a small fireball. The fireball connected with Pidgey's Air Cutter and the flames scattered on impact, dispersing into the air. Charmeleon's attack was still successful in stopping Pidgey's, however, as the Air Cutter also dispersed from the impact.

"Now, take them both out! Bite attack!" Yang called out to both pokemon. Charmeleon and Wartortle charged towards Pidgey and Bulbasaur respectively. Pidgey let out a shriek of terror as Charmeleon's jaws clamped down around it and tackled it to the ground. Bulbasaur tried to hold Wartortle back with its vines, but Wartortle won out in the end and pushed past the vines to bite Bulbasaur on the back of its neck.

"Not good! I need to shake them off somehow!" Ashley thought desperately. "Bulbasaur, use Bullet Seed on Charmeleon!" Bulbasaur looked over at Charmeleon, barely able to pivot its head to get a good shot. Bulbasaur let loose with several seeds, hitting Charmeleon in the head and forcing it to let go of Pidgey. Pidgey looked like it was in pretty bad shape by then, just barely able to get back on its feet.

"Pidgey, now! Get Wartortle with a Quick Attack!" Pidgey flapped its wings slowly and started moving towards Wartortle. It took it a moment to get up enough strength to launch its attack. When it finally did, Pidgey shot forward and struck Wartortle in the side of the head in a flash of movement. Wartortle let go of Bulbasaur in shock and staggered off to the side. Bulbasaur looked to be as weak as Pidgey when Wartortle was finally knocked off.

"-Guess that makes us even then...-" Bulbasaur commented to Pidgey weakly.

"-Its not over yet...-" Pidgey replied, motioning with its wing towards Charmeleon. Charmeleon and Wartortle recovered quickly from the pokémon's attacks and were already waiting for their next orders.

"Wartortle, weaken them with another Water Gun attack!" Wartortle opened its mouth and fired off a short blast of water, managing to hit both Bulbasaur and Pidgey with one attack due to their proximity. Bulbasaur took the brunt of the attack, but was able to shake it off. Pidgey was able to shake off what little had reached it as well.

"Lets finish them off now! Charmeleon, use Metal Claw!" Charmeleon raised its hand back and its claws took on a metallic appearance. Charmeleon then jumped towards Pidgey and Bulbasaur, striking them from above and sending them rolling to opposite sides. Charmeleon's attack was more than the two pokemon could take. They were both knocked out by the Metal Claw attack, but Ashley wasn't going to get the chance to recall them.

"Charmeleon, don't let that girl send out anymore pokémon." Yang commanded. Charmeleon raised its claws towards Ashley, threatening to strike if she went for a pokéball. Ashley froze in fear.

"What do I do now?!" Ashley thought in a panic. "It can't end like this, can it?!"

"-That's it!-" Pippi let out a quick jolt, startling Rina into dropping her onto the ground. "-I have to protect my new friends!-" Pippi's cheeks sparked again, preparing herself for her first battle.

"Heh, how cute." Yin commented, snickering to herself. "The runt wants to fight now. This shouldn't take long. Wartortle, take it down with Water Gun!"

Wartortle maneuvered around Charmeleon so it could get in a shot against Pippi. Pippi was getting ready to attack as well and distanced herself from Rina while building up electricity for her attack.

"-YAAAAAAAAAA!!-" Pippi cried out in a rage and charged towards Wartortle with electricity crackling around its body. Wartortle finally opened its mouth to attack as well, but it was too slow. Pippi plowed into Wartortle and sent out a blast of electricity upon impact. Both pokemon recoiled from the attack and were knocked to the ground, but only Pippi got back up again.

"What the?! That was a Volt Tackle!" Yin cried out in shock.

"Damn it! Charmeleon, forget the girl and take care of that pesky Pichu! Metal Claw!" Charmeleon turned away from Ashley and quickly charged Pippi. Before she could even react, Charmeleon sideswiped her with its metallic claws. Pippi cried out as she hit the rocky wall of the cave. She slowly tried to get back to her feet, already in pretty bad shape.

"Pippi! No!" Rina cried out and ran to her pokémon, but Ashley put out a hand to stop her. Rina looked up at her with a mixed expression of confusion and anger until Ashley showed her the pokéball in her hand.

"Charmeleon, finish it off! Ember!" Charmeleon opened its mouth and was about to fire its attack, but suddenly it was struck by an impossibly fast technique. Ashley's Beedrill flew by it in the blink of an eye, using an Aerial Ace technique to slash Charmeleon with one of its claws. In the commotion Pippi caused, Ashley was able to get Beedrill's pokeball and quietly released it and ordered it to attack. Charmeleon recoiled from Beedrill's attack, but was still standing and looked pretty angry now.

"...Retreat for now." Yang grumbled, realizing their odds were starting to look dim. He could see Ashley still had one pokeball on her belt in addition to the Beedrill and Pichu. Yin looked at her partner and hesitated for a moment, but nodded her agreement. They each dropped a small ball onto the floor that exploded to fill the area with smoke, and when the smoke cleared the two Grand Hunters and their enslaved pokemon were gone.

"Pippi! Are you ok?!" Rina asked in a concerned tone, quickly scooping the Pichu into her arms and cradling her gently.

"-I'm...fine...-" Pippi muttered in response, smiling up at Rina. "-I can fight...its what pokemon do...-"

"Pippi..." Rina held Pippi tightly, fighting back tears.

"That Volt Tackle is a pretty powerful technique you know..." Ashley commented after recalling her pokémon. "One of the strongest electric attacks, but learned only by Pichu. Of course, Pichu's evolved forms can use it too if they learned it as a Pichu..."

"I know...I didn't know Pippi knew that technique though..." Rina replied. She smiled softly to herself. "I guess I need to learn these things huh? Just in case..." Pippi looked up at Rina and nodded in agreement.

"-HEY! Let us out!-" One of the Clefairy cried out from within the cage. "-Its cramped in here!-"

"I guess we should let those Clefairy out now that those hunters are gone..." Ashley commented. She and Rina then set to opening the cage to free the Clefairy, which didn't take long as the cage had a simple latch holding it shut instead of a lock. Once the door was open, the Clefairy piled in front of Rina and Ashley and allowed for Ashley to take a picture before they ran off into the cave.

"Well that settles that..." Ashley said as the Clefairy ran off. A few of the Clefairy stopped though and began whispering to each other. Ashley looked to Rina, expecting an explanation.

"I can't hear them." Rina said quickly. All but one of the Clefairy whispering to each other soon took off as well, with the only remaining Clefairy bounding back to the two trainers.

"-Thank you for rescuing us!-" The male Clefairy bowed his head in thanks then turned to face Rina.. "-I overheard that you could understand us and, as thanks for your help, I would like to accompany you!-"

"Well it wouldn't have been right if we ignored your cries for help." Rina replied, smiling slightly. She then informed Ashley of the Clefairy's request.

"So why don't you catch it then?" Ashley suggested. Rina looked surprised and was about to protest, but Ashley cut her off. "I already have four pokemon, but you only have Pippi. It was Pippi that really saved the Clefairy anyway, so its only fair..."

"If you say so...Bulbasaur won't be too happy about this though..." Rina held Pippi against her with one hand and reached back to take a pokeball out of her backpack. She was confused for a moment when she didn't find one. Remembering she switched backups with Ashley she blushed in her embarrassment. Ashley turned around so Rina could get at her own backpack. Rina took a pokeball from a small pocket on the side then turned to Clefairy. She hesitated and looked down at him thoughtfully.

"Well I can't just catch you without giving you a name though. How about...Clefs?"

"-What now?-" The Clefairy blinked in surprise and quickly shook his head. "-No way! That just sounds odd...-"

"Then what about...Clyde?" Rina suggested next. The Clefairy thought about it for a moment then nodded. "Ok then, Clyde it is! Welcome to the team, Clyde!" Rina pressed the button on the front of the pokéball and tossed it down to Clyde. The pokéball opened up and fired out a red beam that dragged the Clefairy into the pokéball. The pokéball closed and locked tight without any fight from the pokémon.

Rina picked up the pokeball once Clyde the Clefairy was inside and held it up for Pippi to see. "Look, Pippi! We made a new friend!" Pippi smiled weakly, still recovering from the previous battle. Rina realized this and frowned, but then remembered the items she packed.

Rina reached into her backpack again while Ashley watched curiously. She took out a small purple and gray spray bottle from her backpack and sprayed Pippi with it. Pippi closed her eyes and winced, at first feeling a stinging sensation. She opened her eyes again in disbelief as she felt her strength quickly returning.

"Feeling better now Pippi?" Rina asked her. Pippi stretched her arms and wiggled her tail to see for herself then nodded in response.

"-I feel a lot better! Thanks Rina!-" Pippi hopped down to the ground from Rina's arms. She still felt like she could use a rest, but she was definitely feeling better overall.

"I guess with all this stuff you have in here I shouldn't be surprised you brought potions..." Ashley commented idly.

"Of course! Always have to be prepared!" Rina replied. "Now! Lets get introduced properly!" Rina held out Clyde's pokéball and pressed the button, releasing her recently caught pokémon. The beam shot out and materialized into a Clefairy standing next to Pippi. Clyde blinked in confusion and took a quick survey of his surroundings.

"-Whats going on?-" Clyde asked.

"I thought we should get to know each other." Rina smiled and said to Clyde. "My name's Rina, and these are my friends Ashley and Pippi..." Rina gestured towards Ashley and Pippi in order. Ashley waved to Clyde when Rina introduced her.

"-We're going to be great friends!-" Pippi said excitedly, grabbing Clyde's hand in both of her's and shaking. As usual, Pippi lost control of her electricity in her excitement and a spark from her cheeks knocked both pokemon to the ground in surprise.

"-Wh-what was that all about?-" Clyde stuttered in shock, he was starting to have second thoughts about Rina and Pippi.

"-Sorry...I can't really control my electricity yet...-" Pippi admitted, rubbing her cheeks in her embarrassment.

"I bet you two will get along just fine once you get to know each other." Rina said to the two. "Hey, Clyde, you know the way around this place right?" Clyde thought for a moment and nodded. "Think you could show us the way to Cerulean? We'd get there much faster with a guide."

"-Oh, sure.-" Clyde hopped back up on his feet. "-Just follow me and uh...-" Clyde cast a nervous glance towards Pippi. "-Keep your distance please?-" Pippi's ears drooped sadly at the request, but she understood why Clyde was asking her that and nodded. Clyde started off into the cave, and everyone followed behind him.

"That was a good idea Rina, having Clyde lead us out." Ashley said to Rina.

"Thanks, Ashley." Rina replied, smiling at the praise. "I figured it would be quicker this way

"-I don't think Clyde likes me much...-" Pippi whimpered sadly, walking alongside Rina. Rina picked up Pippi to speak privately with her.

"I don't think that's it at all." Rina whispered reassuringly. "He's just afraid he'll get shocked, that's all. So you need to learn how to control your power!" Pippi seemed to be convinced by this explanation and nodded. Pippi decided to move onto Rina's shoulder instead of walking at that point.

The two trainers followed Clyde, but they didn't get very far before Clyde stopped and ducked behind a small rock. "-Someone's coming...-" Rina stopped as well and motioned for Ashley to stop. Ahead of them, around a bend in the cave, they could hear heavy footsteps approaching them. Ashley instinctively reached for Beedrill's pokeball, ready to fight if she had to.

The footsteps grew louder and louder, drawing closer to the group. Everyone tensed as a large man rounded the bend, but relaxed when they saw the hiking gear he was wearing and realized he was just a hiker passing through Mount Moon. Clyde was still suspicious of him, though, and remained hidden.

"Whoa, now! You two are awfully edgy for youngsters!" The hiker said in a gruff voice when he saw Ashley and Rina looking ready for a battle.

"S-sorry sir..." Rina said apologetically and bowed to the man. "We just dealt with a pair of criminals..."

"Team Rocket still hanging around, eh?" The hiker replied, rubbing his chin. "Coulda sworn that other trainer scared 'em all off..."

"You mean Team Rocket was here too?" Ashley asked him. She heard of Team Rocket before, everyone in Kanto has. Team Rocket was a notorious criminal organization that even the police has trouble dealing with due to their numbers.

"Yeah, they were here alright." The hiker replied bitterly. "They were trying to steal pokémon fossils! My Onix and I were about to teach them all a lesson but this kid in a red hat beat 'em all with his Charmeleon. I even challenged him myself afterwards, but even after beating up dozens of rockets he still had enough steam to take it down..."

"Charmeleon? A red hat? It couldn't be Red, could it?" Ashley wondered. She shook her head lightly. "No way! Red couldn't have gotten that strong..."

"So who was it you girls ran into if not Team Rocket?" The hiker asked, stroking his chin curiously.

"We beat two Grand Hunters!" Rina responded enthusiastically. "They were trying to capture Clefairy with gas and cages, but we stopped them!"

"Haha! You don't say!" The hiker replied with a hearty laugh. "You two must be quite something to take on those guys."

"We just got lucky, really..." Ashley muttered quietly. She knew well enough that if Pippi hadn't known Volt Tackle, they would have been in trouble. In fact, both times Ashley had run into the Hunters she had gotten lucky. Against Shocks, a timely appearance from Lance saved her.

"With all these criminals about, its just not safe for trainers if you ask me. Anyway, I need to get to the pokémon center and get my Onix fixed up. You girls be careful, you hear?"

"We will, bye mister!" Rina waved to the hiker as he passed by, muttering about the old days. "He seemed like a nice guy..." Rina commented when he was out of earshot.

"He has a point though, we need to be careful." Ashley said to Rina. "We're definitely not strong enough to deal with the Grand Hunters. We just got lucky and caught those two off guard, and they seemed pretty weak compared to that Shocks guy I ran into..."

"Don't worry, we'll get stronger!" Rina said enthusiastically then turned to Pippi and Clyde. "Right guys?"

"-Of course! Just you wait, I'll get them all with my Volt Tackle!-" Pippi exclaimed with just as much enthusiasm.

"-I, too, wouldn't mind taking a shot at these...hunters.-" Clyde responded with a determined nod. "-I owe them that much anyway...-"

"See, Ashley? As long as we keep trying, we'll get strong enough to beat them!" Rina said to Ashley, speaking for the two pokémon. "So don't worry about it! Next time, we'll be ready!"

"Well, I guess you're determined if nothing else." Ashley replied, offering a slight smile. "Maybe she's right though? If I keep challenging gym leaders and training my pokémon to become stronger, I'll be ready to take on the hunters..."

The group continued on their way through Mount Moon again, with Clyde still leading the way.

The girls followed Clyde all the way through the mountain, eventually reaching the exit on the Cerulean side. By that time, however, it was starting to get dark. Rather than camping in the open or trying to make it to the city, the girls decided it would be best to set up camp just inside the mountain.

Unfortunately for Ashley, only Rina thought to bring a sleeping bag. Rina's sleeping bag was too small for both of them, so sharing was out of the question. That left Ashley to sleep on the ground.

"My first night sleeping outside! I can't wait!" Rina exclaimed while pulling various items from her backpack. She got out her pots and some wood she gathered and soon had a small fire going and a pot of soup cooking over it.

Once she had the soup cooking, Rina looked up at Ashley and saw her lying out exhausted on the floor. Carrying Rina's backpack around had taken a toll on her as well. "Are you ok Ashley?"

"Fine..." Ashley mumbled in response. She slowly sat up and looked at the pot. "So what kind?"

"Tomato!" Rina replied with what seemed like too much enthusiasm to Ashley. "By the way, Bulbasaur should be back up by now..."

Ashley blinked a few times and quickly thought it over. She thought Rina might be right and took Bulbasaur's pokéball from her belt. She released Bulbasaur and, sure enough, Bulbasaur was conscious again. Bulbasaur raised his head groggily and looked around.

"Guess you were right, Rina." Ashley said, smiling lightly. "Well, welcome back Bulbasaur."

"-Darn it...how long was I out for? And why aren't we in a pokémon center?-" Bulbasaur's gaze eventually fell upon Clyde, who was still out of his pokéball. "-Don't tell me Ashley actually caught one of the Clefairy? That isn't like her at all, to purposely catch a pokémon without me prodding her to!-"

"-Actually, no, Rina is my new trainer.-" Clyde replied. "-My name is Clyde and, on behalf of the Clefairy, I would like to thank you for saving us.-"

"-Yeah, no problem...-" Bulbasaur grumbled in response. "-So how'd we get out of that bind anyway after I went down?-"

"Well Pippi took down Wartortle with a Volt Tackle, and that distracted them long enough for Ashley to get Beedrill out against them." Rina explained to Bulbasaur while stirring the soup.

"-Yeah! You should have seen me!-" Pippi's body began to spark with electricity. "-They totally weren't expecting it! I came out of nowhere and smashed that Wartortle good!-" Bulbasaur grinned slightly.

"-Heh...well good on ya, kid.-" Pippi smiled at the praise and the sparks went away as she calmed down.

"You know, its funny how Bulbasaur can put up such a fight against Brock yet get beat up the moment we're in trouble." Bulbasaur twitched and turned to Ashley, glaring angrily.

"-So this is supposed to be MY FAULT?-" Bulbasaur growled in frustration. "-If I wasn't taking orders from you I'd have won easily!-" Ashley looked to Rina for a translation.

"I'm not getting involved in your silly arguments." Rina replied in a disinterested tone. Without Ashley knowing what Bulbasaur was saying, their argument became pointless in a hurry. Clyde slowly approached Pippi while watching the two.

"-Whats with those two anyway?-" He asked her.

"-I don't really understand it either, but they don't get along very well...-" Pippi replied, rubbing the back of her head with her paw. "-Its funny to watch though!-"

"-I...see...-" Clyde replied hesitantly. "These trainers certainly are acting much differently now than they were in battle earlier. Interesting..."

"Ashley, you don't have a sleeping bag do you?" Rina asked Ashley out of the blue. "You can use mine if you want and I'll just sleep on the ground..."

"What? No way!" Ashley shot back, shaking her head defiantly. "I'm the teenager here, so its only fair that I make the sacrifices."

"If you say so..." Rina blinked in disbelief at Ashley's response, not really sure what else to say.

After only a few more minutes, Rina declared the soup to be ready. Ashley and Rina had a bowl of soup each and fed their pokémon the usual pokémon food. Rina also poured a bit of the leftover soup over the pokemon food as well, adding a bit of flavor.

After eating, all the pokémon but Bulbasaur and Pippi were returned to their pokéballs. Rina set up her sleeping bag and slept in it with Pippi while Bulbasaur and Ashley slept on the ground.

"-Anyone snores, they get vine whipped...-" Bulbasaur grumbled before finally drifting off to sleep.

FINISH

 

[An-chan]

Whoa, slow down a bit! Your fic is already pretty long and if you keep posting four chapters a day, no-one will ever have the time to read it all and review. You should take a brake for at least, say, four days before you post more. A lot of text might intimidate your readers. So, rest a bit and give people some time to read your fic. Okay? I might read this later on, but I just don't have time right now. It looks pretty decent otherwise, you seem to know your grammar and formatting. I just notices there's a lot of dialogue, which isn't necessarily a bad thing, but remember to add enough description. Good luck on getting reviews and feedback!

 

[pikachu200]

Long posts!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Excellent story though