[Pokémon] Sharing Dreams

[Tora]

Author's Ramblings:

Spoiler:

Hello and welcome to this story! While this is not the first story I've written, it is the first story I post in English. So, I'm super excited whether I manage to pull it off or I fail completely. On that note, let me just say this: English is not my mother tongue. But I try to do the best I can, even if I'm still unsure about some stuff at some points. Therefore, if you stumble across mistakes, I'd be really grateful if you'd point them out instead of just moving on. After all, I don't want to go on making the exact same mistakes over and over again without ever realizing it. So that'd be really helpful. :) Of course, that also applies to mistakes in the story, not just grammar and spelling.

This story is actually based on my play through of Alpha Sapphire, spiked up with a couple of rules, that are mostly inspired by the Nuzlocke challenge, but look still a bit different:

Spoiler:

1. Fainted Pokémon cannot be used anymore. (The reason for this will be given in the story, so it will not always be dying.)
2. I can only catch the first Pokémon per route/area.
3. If the first one is of the same evolution line as another one I've caught before, I can search for a second Pokémon. However, no tries beyond that. Also, I can catch the duplicate, if I really want to, but of course that means no second try.
4. No healing items can be used while fighting, except for berries. Apart from that, the team can only be healed in pokémon centers and outside of battles.
5. The team I use has to make sense and correspond to where I currently am. That means, I cannot use a Slugma to fight in the middle of the ocean or a Carvanha to fight on land. I also cannot fly on a Taillow or other small birds, ect. You get the idea.
6. HM moves cannot be used when the Pokémon has fainted. The only exception of this would be if I could not proceed otherwise. (Also, no HM slaves are allowed.)
7. No backtracking, unless it's game relevant or I have a good reason for it in the story. "I forgot to catch a pokémon on one route" is not a good reason. Once I leave the area, the routes where I didn't catch anything are lost.
8. These rules are not set in stone. They can be bent a little in case I'd get stuck in the game otherwise. (I don't actually expect that to happen, but you never know. I'm not going to abandon the story because of the game being mean to me.)
(9. Nicknaming everything still applies, but not at first.)

The rules are all determined by the plot, so they'll probably be self-explanatory as the story goes on.

The story is being written as I progress through the game, so hopefully that'll be an incentive for me to write faster, as I'm only going to continue playing once I've caught up with writing. Also, I have no clue what to expect, yet. I played the original Sapphire version, but this is my first play through the remake and I have avoided actually looking into this game beforehand, so this should be interesting.
Obviously the actual plot will differ from the one in the game, because it's a completely different protagonist who's going to go on this journey for her very own reasons. Just the general directions, key elements and natually the Pokémon I catch will be the same.
That said, apart from me having fun interpreting the plot of the game in a completely different way, I obviously hope to create an interesting story as well and maybe entertain some of you. Now, enjoy. :)

Summary & Table of Contents:

Spoiler:

Summary: The problem with most dreams was the fact that they were often idealistic and nonsensical. Children wanted to reach impossible goals with no effort at all. Reality looked different. There was no chosen one who could achieve anything with a snap of their fingers while saving the world along the way. Every little success had to be earned through hard work and nothing came for free. Jenny knew that and she had set her goals accordingly. She didn't want to be a hero. She just wanted to become champion. So, when she gets an opportunity to go on a journey to become a Pokémon trainer, she obviously takes it. That it involved stealing from a professor couldn't be helped, really.

Table of Contents:
Prologue - Making a New Start
Chapter 1 - At Any Price
Chapter 2 - First Fights

Sharing Dreams

Prologue - Making a New Start
​

The low rumbling of a truck was audible long before the vehicle even came to view. When it finally turned around the last trees that blocked it from the village, it lumbered onwards slowly on the bumpy road, carefully maneuvering on the narrow lanes, barely grazing the lower hanging branches. The sigh it let out as it came to a halt in front of a neat house at the edge of the forest may as well have been one of relief.

People stood watching from behind their windows, and those on the streets stopped to take a look at the new neighbors. It wasn't an everyday occurrence that someone moved to Littleroot Town, after all. Secrets usually were not kept secret for very long in such a close community. Everybody knew everything about everyone else. That was how things worked around here. And of course, new neighbors meant new faces and new information.

Jenny glanced at her soon-to-be home with narrowed eyes. Everything, from the tiny flower beds beneath the front windows to the pale painted outer walls and the simple wooden door, suggested that there was a stereotypical, happy family living in it. Why did her mother have to decide to move to a stupid little dump like this? Jenny had wanted to stay at their real home.

With a scowl etched deeply into her face, she opened the passenger door and jumped out, leaving her mother on the middle seat alone with the driver of the moving van. She looked around the sleepy village, frowning as she saw all the passengers staring at her. As if they had never seen a fourteen year old girl before. Oh, she could already imagine that they would have a field day gossiping about them. Not that there was much to gossip. It was only her and her mother. Boring.

She noticed light steps behind her. Apparently her mother had finished talking to the move helper. "So, what do you say, dear?"

"What do you want me to say?" Jenny retorted without looking at her.

"Don't you like it? Just take a look around. The houses, the forest, and do you hear all those birds? Littleroot Town is really peaceful, isn't it?"

"You mean boring."

Her mother sighed. "Come on, don't be like that, already. We haven't been here for more than five minutes. Why don't you at least try to enjoy it?"

"And what exactly am I supposed to enjoy? The house that looks like it came straight out of a cheesy family movie? Or the new neighbors that apparently don't have anything else to do but to stare at us, as if we're the newest attraction in a zoo?"

From a sideways glance, Jenny saw her mother furrow her brow, as she was about to reply. Probably some more sugar-coating she could really go without. Just to get away from her only living parent, Jenny fled to her new 'home' and decided to inspect the interior.

A luminous living room that showed off a pair of unexpectedly large windows, a small kitchen with a stove, a refrigerator and a couple of cabinets, a bathroom, her mother's bedroom... ah! She found her new bedroom upstairs, right on the other side of her mother's. Like the rest of the house, it was still barren, just a few cardboard boxes with her name on them in her mother's elaborate writing. What was she trying to win, anyway? Some calligraphy prize?

She ripped open one of the boxes with quite a bit of effort. She could have used some scissors, but then again she would have had to get them from downstairs, where her mother was most likely to be. Now that she had taken refugee in her new room, she really didn't have any intention of leaving anytime soon. It wasn't her room at home, but right now everything was better than being with other people.

She was lucky. The box she had managed to open was the one containing her books. Exactly what she had been looking for. Ever since her dad had died, Jenny had taken to reading a lot more. It gave her an excuse to avoid conversation with other people and an opportunity to escape reality.

The books she owned were nothing new to her, but right now, they would do. Although she couldn't wait to buy new ones. She couldn't see herself getting too friendly with the townspeople. Without checking which one she'd gotten, she picked up the first book on the stack, sat down on a slightly taller box and opened it. She had read this one before, but it was one of her old favorites and she would readily read it again. It was about an orphan boy who started working for a farmer after a weird dream had led him to the farm. He finally found out that his master was actually a dark wizard and he was taught to transform into a Murkrow, just like the other boys working there. However, each year one of the boys had to be sacrificed to a ghostly, legendary monster living in a different dimension, so the master could survive. The protagonist then met a girl with a voice more beautiful than any Jigglypuff's and fell in love with her. With her help, he tried to break the spell that kept them all from leaving.

She hadn't gotten far, when there was a knock on the door. As she looked up, her mother entered her room with an insecure smile. "So, what do you think? Your room here is much bigger than your old one, hm?"

So, she was still trying to force her to like it. Fantastic. And 'much bigger' was a blatant exaggeration. It was only minimally wider, but that was about it. Jenny just shrugged her shoulders with a bored expression on her face. Her mother didn't get the hint.

"Well, I suppose it'll be much better once everything is at its proper place. Just wait until it's finished!" she said, beaming. Jenny suppressed the urge to roll her eyes. "By the way, wouldn't you like to explore the village a bit? I bet you could find something interesting. Who knows, maybe you'll even get to know a few kids your age you get along with."

Nope, looking impassive obviously didn't do the trick. She tried the scowl again. "I'm fine, Mom. I don't want to 'explore the village' and I don't want to befriend anyone either."

Her mother looked a bit nervous again. "Well, it's just that the Pokémon helping us with the move are finished downstairs. They are supposed to furnish your room now. I guess it would be better, if you weren't here then. It would get a bit cramped in here..." She trailed off.

Jenny sighed. It wasn't because of the space. Both of them knew this. That was just her mother trying to avoid actually naming the issue. It was because of the Pokémon. She had seen them, when they had moved out of their old home. Tall, powerful Machoke who could easily crush a human with their strength. She hated to admit it, but she was scared of them.

When she was younger, she used to think that Pokémon were awesome creatures that could be friends with humans. That changed when she saw her father's own Pokémon killing two people she loved. Ever since then she had thought of them as monsters. Emotionless, violent beasts with superpowers, only made for fighting. The smaller ones were alright. Pokémon like Pidgey or Meowth were pretty docile and perfect pets. But the huge battlers... They made her uncomfortable. She didn't want to be too near them.

Sure, she knew that this would probably be a problem when she set out on a journey. Which she would one day, no matter what her mother told her. After all, she had made a promise she was going to honor, and if it was the last thing she did.

She used to have a friend, Sarah, who she had shared everything with. Sometimes they could have passed off as twins. Perhaps not by their looks, Sarah had been a good bit smaller than her and her black hair had contrasted greatly with Jenny's dark blonde, but they had been so close, people started suspecting them of being psychic. They were not, of course, but it always made them grin. They loved being told how alike they were. Not surprisingly, they had also shared the exact same dream. They had sworn to themselves that they would challenge the various gym leaders, and one day even the elite four. And then they would become champion together. They would be the first ones to share that position, because none of them would be stronger than the other.

Of course, that could never happen anymore. Sarah had been killed in the accident, along with Jenny's father. After that, her mother had put a ban on everything Pokémon-related. She would never let her go on a journey with only Pokémon around her. But her mother didn't understand that she had to go. Not only for her own sake, but also for Sarah. Jenny had to fulfill her promise and somehow she felt that she had to pursue their mutual goal. That her best friend would not find peace until she did. So often, Jenny had cried and screamed and begged and yelled, but it made no difference. Her mother stood her ground. And Jenny decided to hate her, just for that. The things she hated generally outnumbered the ones he loved. And this place was definitely not going to be among these few.

Maybe she would just run away to get what she wanted. But then again, she didn't own any Pokémon... And there was still the terror that paralyzed her, whenever she came face to face with one of these creatures towering over her. When the time came that she had Pokémon of her own, she would definitely have to overcome that fear. She would tame them, train them to never attack her and to follow her every command without exception. She would never be entirely comfortable around them, but they were only means to an end.

Besides, she would just keep them in their Poké Balls for most of the time, only letting them out when they had to battle, and then immediately returning them again. It was actually quite laughable. Creatures with elemental powers and abilities that greatly surpassed humans' could be contained in a small orb, like some bug in a glass. But if it worked, she wouldn't complain. For now though, she really didn't want to deal with this. She could just get used to them when the time came.

Reluctantly she got up, placed her book back in the box and went to leave the house. As she passed the living room, she saw one of the Machoke looking at her and she quickly turned her head and picked up her step. She made sure not to turn her head again and return the Pokémon's stare she was sure she could feel burning into the back of her head. The room suddenly seemed much larger than when she had crossed it before. Only when she was finally outside, did she heave out the breath she hadn't even noticed she was holding. At last she was out of those creatures' range. But now that she was here, she had to actually go and 'explore the village', if she didn't want to wait for the Pokémon to finish.

Jenny decided to start off in a random direction. It was dull. There was nothing that picked her interest. The houses all looked the same to her, similar to their own, and the forest surrounded the village evenly on all sides, save for the small dirt road the truck had taken to get here. She passed a few people on the streets, all greeting her amicably. Reluctantly she muttered a greeting back. No need to get on anyone's bad side yet.

After some time, she heard someone call out "Hey, you, wait up!", not actually thinking much of it. However, when a boy with–wait, was that white hair?–caught up to her, it became clear that he had meant her.

"Hi, I'm Brendan," he greeted with a smile. At closer inspection she could see that, no, it was not hair. He was just wearing a weird looking white hat, with brown hair sticking out from beneath it. He looked to be around her age.

"Jenny," she introduced herself, having been caught a little off-guard.

"You've got to be the one who just moved here today, huh?"

"Uh, yeah..."

"That's cool! I'm kinda glad we're around the same age. Before, May was the only one my age, but she went off to become a Pokémon trainer about a year ago. And the other kids here are all either younger or older than me." He chuckled slightly. Before she could even begin to think about what she was supposed to answer to that, however, he continued. "Do you have any Pokémon yet?"

"No," she said curtly. He didn't need to know that she wasn't allowed to have one.

"Oh, you don't? Well, if you want, I could catch you one! I've only just gotten my first one from my father recently. He's a Pokémon professor, so he's got some cool Pokémon. Hey, we could ask him, if you could have one of his rare ones as well! He probably wouldn't mind, though we'd have to wait, 'till he gets back. He's away on a field study right now. He prefers field work, so he's usually away somewhere."

Jenny blinked at him. Damn, how she wanted to beg him to catch her a Pokémon. But that would be showing weakness, and that was unacceptable. A future champ did not show any weaknesses, ever. Especially if it would be no good anyway. She bit her tongue to keep herself from blurting out something stupid. "We'll see," she answered eventually.

"Yeah, I guess we'd have to wait for him to get back first, anyway."

Speaking quickly, so he couldn't ramble on, she said, "Well, it was nice meeting you, but I've got to go now."

He looked slightly put out at that. "Oh, okay... See you around, I guess."

"Yeah, see ya," she replied, heading back the way she had come, while calm fury began to rise inside of her. What on earth was that idiot thinking? Just offering her a Pokémon like that, when she couldn't have one anyway. Sure, he couldn't know that, but still. It felt like he was mocking her. Her hands clenched into fists and she had to restrain herself from turning around to punch him in the face. She took a different route back to the new house, just to distract herself from the thoughts.

By the time she returned, the move helpers had thankfully already left–along with their Pokémon. She escaped her mother's questions by storming past her into her newly furnished room and threw herself on the bed. Life just wasn't fair.

 

[Tora]

Chapter 1 - At Any Price
​

Littleroot Town was mind-numbingly boring. There was literally nothing to do but wait for time to tick by. Jenny kicked at a stone that had the guts to lie in her way, as she slowly walked at the edge of the village around noon a few weeks after the move. Why did it have to be this place? Why did they have to move at all? She still had no idea. Well, her mother probably thought she would do her a favor. Letting her escape from the memories or some such nonsense. Like that would make everything better. That incident had happened four years ago. She had long since accepted it and gotten over it. So, why now?

Staying in Viridian City had been just fine. It was still the home she had fond memories of, even after everything that had happened there. And if it really had been necessary to move, they could have just chosen a different place in Kanto. Surely, Cerulean City would have been far enough away? Jenny still did not see the need to move to a completely different region. She had no acquaintances here and didn't know what kind of Pokémon lived here. She had seen a weird pink cat Pokémon and one with zigzag-striped fur, both owned by people in Littleroot, and caught glimpses of a black, vaguely dog-like looking one, when she had been looking through the trees of the forest from behind her window. That one had startled her a little. It hadn't looked very friendly.

However, more important than all this was the fact that she knew nothing about the gyms and Elite Four in this region. At home, she had spent hours and days obsessing over battle strategies against the various gym leaders. She would have used an electric or grass type Pokémon against Misty and a ground type against Surge. Maybe a Sandshrew or a fast Diglett that could keep up with his Raichu. The only one she hadn't been quite sure about was Green, the newest gym leader in Viridian. He was the only one not sticking to one type, after all. But even this obstacle probably wouldn't have posed a problem once she had a couple of decent fighters. In Hoenn, she had no clue what type of Pokémon the gym leaders were using in the first place. Heck, she didn't even know where the gyms were located! She would have to find out about that first. It was annoying.

Well, the first step was still getting a Pokémon and convincing her mother to let her go, but it couldn't hurt to be prepared. The earlier she got out of this little excuse of a town, the better. There was nothing special here that would get her anywhere. Oh, sure, they had a Pokémon laboratory, that stood apparently abandoned half the time. She had seen the professor exactly once, while he was rushing past her into the forest with a bag clutched under his arm. Weird guy. She guessed this was what you called a workaholic.

Brendan had more or less confirmed this, when she had asked him about it the second time he met her outside and insisted on talking to her. She usually avoided him, but she couldn't have her eyes everywhere, so he managed to catch her off guard that one time. Apparently, he also helped his father with his studies and was allowed to leave Littleroot Town on his own sometimes. She had tried not to look too envious, but he didn't notice anything anyway.

Just as she decided that her mother would probably be satisfied, if she came back now, since she had just thrown her out to get some fresh air and not spend all freaking day outside, a loud noise caught her attention. She looked up, to see if she could find the source. She couldn't see anything unusual around, but the sounds seemed to come from the forest. She ran over to where a small girl was standing next to a tree, peering into the woods right by the path.

"What's going on?" Jenny asked as she arrived next to her.

The girl turned to her, looking terrified. "I don't know! I think I heard someone cry for help!"

Jenny tried to look through the trees, but couldn't make out anything from where she was. "Well, go back into town and find someone to help!" she instructed the girl, who bolted the second she heard it. Jenny looked after her for a moment, and then turned back to the forest. She knew this was probably a stupid thing to do, but curiosity got the best of her. As quietly as she could, she went ahead, looking for the source of the noise.

She found it not far in. As she stepped around a large hedge, she saw a familiar brown haired man with a beard, wearing a lab coat. It was the professor, trying to hold one of the black-grey dog Pokémon off with a long stick. His right sleeve was torn and a little bloody. Apparently, the Pokémon had already managed to bite him. The second he saw her, he waved his free hand that had been gripping at the tree behind him, before pointing to his bag lying quite a distance away from him, behind the Pokémon.

"Thank God, you found me. You've got to help me! Quick, look through my bag, there are a few Pokémon in there. Use them to chase this Poochyena off!" he cried out to her.

She could feel herself shaking. This growling Pokémon – a Poochyena apparently – hardly looked harmless with its bared teeth and bristled fur. But this was not the time to think about something like that. She forced herself to move stiffly and go over to the bag to open it, trying to ignore the pounding of her heart and the paranoia that the feral thing would attack her as well and rip her to shreds. Sure enough, there were three Poké Balls, each one containing a Pokémon. Not only that; lying on top of a stack of papers and a clipboard, there was also a Pokédex. She had seen one of those before. Her father had owned an old model and let her browse through all the entries he had collected himself back when he was a trainer. It was one of the most useful devices, when you wanted to travel through the countryside; because it could provide you with information on every kind of Pokémon you saw and caught. It would be especially helpful, if you had no clue about the region and the Pokémon inhabiting it...

"What are you doing? Hurry!" the professor urged her on, as the Poochyena managed to sink its teeth into the stick, shaking its head from side to side, so the professor had a hard time holding on to it.

Jenny's mind worked feverishly. She could use these Pokémon to fight the wild one off and feel like a real trainer for a minute. But if she took one and ran... That would be stealing. On the other hand, that guy was a professor. He probably had loads of Pokémon. Losing one would not hurt him. But that Poochyena might. If she did nothing, the professor would- No, there was the girl. She would probably be back with a real trainer in a second. Someone who could actually do something to help. It wasn't like Jenny had ever fought a single battle. There was nothing she could do anyway. She would just lose spectacularly and be torn apart as well or make everything even worse by accidentally injuring the professor in the process.

The decision was made in a split second. She grabbed one of the Poké Balls as well as the Pokédex and bolted.

She heard a startled "Hey, where are you going? Come back!", but just kept on running. It was a stupid idea, something inside of her said. Another part of her screamed at her to go back and help the professor. Jenny ignored both. As fast as she could, she raced through the forest, dodging trees and jumping over roots sticking out of the ground, until she had to stop and catch her breath. Her lungs were burning, her legs shaking and her hands slick with sweat. It was a miracle she hadn't lost Poké Ball and Pokédex on the way.

Only then, leaning against the rough bark of a tree and trying to calm her heart that threatened to break right out of her chest, did she think about what she just did. She stole a Pokémon from a professor and left him behind, defenseless against a wild monster. Panic was trying to claw its way into her consciousness, but she battled it down with great effort. Calm down. She couldn't effort to freak out now. The girl had gotten someone to save him. She must have. What was done couldn't be changed anymore anyway. She had to make the best of the current situation.

Yes, her mother would be furious, but that would probably be her smallest problem. Technically, she was a criminal for not helping someone in danger and even robbing him. There would most likely be people looking for her, so she would have to leave immediately and not come back. If they caught her, she would never be able to leave this prison of a town ever again. Maybe they would even imprison her for real. Not a very pleasant thought. Well, the upside was, she finally had a Pokémon, even though she had no idea what kind, yet.

Jenny raised the red and white capsule to look at it. There was no indication about what it contained. Well, that didn't matter, did it? She had a Pokémon. She could finally go on a journey to fulfill her dream. Hers and Sarah's. She never expected this to happen, but who was she to complain about a once in a lifetime chance like that? If she had been one of the more simple minded, she would have called it fate. As it was, Jenny did not believe in fate and everyone who did was an idiot. Nothing happened for a specific reason and every lucky opportunity was just that. Luck. You either took it or you wasted it. Nothing in this world came for free, so you had to take it onto yourself to make the best of your life. And that was just what she had done. Nothing more, nothing less.

It was unfortunate that the professor had drawn the short straw, but this was just his own bad luck. If she hadn't been there, nobody would have stolen his stuff, but nobody would have sent the girl to get help, either. So, that probably evened things out a bit. With her guilty conscience calmed a little, she turned her attention to the Poké Ball in her hand. Well, before she could go on, she had to find out what kind of Pokémon she actually had. It was time to reveal its secret.

She gripped the round object tightly, preparing herself for what was to come, before throwing it to the ground. A bright light appeared that took the shape of a bipedal creature a moment later. She watched as the light dimmed, revealing a green reptilian creature with a red belly and a thick, leafy tail that was parted down the middle. It looked around at its surroundings for a second, before its huge yellow eyes with the slitted pupils settled on her, gazing at her calmly, maybe a little curiously.

Jenny had never seen a Pokémon like this before, but from its appearance and color, she estimated it to be a grass type. That was okay, she guessed. Most grass types were not very scary, but either cute, elegant or just plain beautiful. At the very least, it was smaller than she was, so that was a plus. How it did in battle would remain to be seen. Just as it tilted its head a bit, still holding eye contact with her, she remembered the other object still in her hand.

Quickly she opened up the Pokédex, which immediately sprang to action. A small light lit up on the upper half, while the screen provided her with information about the creature in front of her. "A Treecko, huh?" she asked, reading its name. She had been right with her guess. Treecko, the Wood Gecko Pokémon, was indeed a grass type. This one was male and it even knew the attack Absorb on top of the normal moves Pound and Leer. The Pokédex also showed a short description of the species: Treecko is cool, calm, and collected – it never panics under any situation. If a bigger foe were to glare at this Pokémon, it would glare right back without conceding an inch of ground.

"Perfect," she mumbled. It really was her lucky day. This Pokémon – this Treecko – would surely prove to be useful. Her quest could begin.

 

[Tora]

Hi! Wow, it's not every day you see a long, in-depth review such as this. I definitely appreciate the time and thought that went into it, so thank you very much. I'd like to answer a few of your remarks.

The bad news is, this is a very weak sentence to start with. Small village, large truck, and thick forest are all very vague descriptions that provide no sensory detail. Try this instead.
Branches scraped across the rooftop of the truck's trailer storage as it lumbered through the forest road. Up ahead, in a clearing in the trees, rested a small, spread out cluster of boxy white houses, neatly trimmed lawns, and rigid geometric streets.

And you immediately hit my weak spot. Both the first sentence of any story as well as descriptions of landscapes are things I always have trouble with. I usually don't even notice, but when you point it out like that... yeah, that sentence is pretty horrible. I really have to work on that... and on other stuff you pointed out.

The book's interesting, but judging by Jenny's character and age, I doubt she would want to read anything like this. It could be a contradiction within her character, and if so, very well done! Be sure to capitalize on this quirk later in the story. But at the moment, it just strikes me as very weird. Something to keep in mind.

Okay, I didn't quite expect that reaction. I'm curious. Why do you think she wouldn't read something like that?

I'm getting an overload of the 'angsty teenager' vibe coming from her.

Well, she is an angsty teenager. But I see where you're coming from.

Ah yes. You also should've waited on the 'Jenny's nervousness around pokemon' card. Would've worked as a great plot point when a pokemon of hers evolved and she became terrified of it.

Ehem. Well, it is definitely going to come up again, but as I only know about five of her Pokémon by now, there's not much I can plan in advance. Besides, she's got this all under control... Or so she'd like you to believe.

Your biggest problem at this point is the tension. You've killed it by providing the entire backstory in one neat package. Readers don't need to understand the characters' backstories to understand them.

Ah, yes, the backstory. I do realize that I could have turned it all into a secret and only reveal it later. The thing is, I don't want to. It's not supposed to be a huge mystery and it's not the focus of this story. Sure, it's going to influence the rest of it heavily, but the main point of this story is not her past, but how she comes to terms with it. So, this bit of information is something I purposely wanted to give right away in the prologue.
It's actually also supposed to be part of the characterization. On that note, I didn't give away all of her secrets, even if it may have seemed like that. In fact, I don't consider these secrets at all, because that's an huge part of Jenny's life and an integral part of her. She always thinks about the consequences of that day, because to her, it's some sort of life lesson. She also believes that it doesn't bother her anymore and she's come to terms with it. Well, she obviously hasn't and there is actually more to it. Things she's blocked out. Though, those will come up later.
Even so, I guess I shouldn't have crammed that all in a few paragraphs right at the beginning. That was probably too much exposition.

But yeah, all in all, I should really go over a lot of things you pointed out. I guess I'll rewrite the most problematic parts some time this week. Since I wrote the beginning of this story about a year ago, that's probably what I should have done in the first place, instead of just changing minor details.

Anyway, I'm really grateful for your tips. Again, thanks a lot! =)

 

[Tora]

Well, I'm back with this story. I never planned on abandoning it, but before I posted the next chapter, I wanted to go over the prologue and the first chapter and rewrite some of the worst bits Bardothren pointed out in his helpful review. It's basically still the same, but just a bit better now, or so I hope. ^^ Unfortunately, I also had to take a break from writing in general for a while, so it took a bit longer than I wanted it to. And I'm still looking for a better title... Anyway, here's the next chapter.

Chapter 2 - First Fights
​

Jenny didn't allow herself to bask in the feeling of finally getting what she had wanted for too long. There was a chance that people were already looking for her, so she had no time to waste. She returned the Treecko to its Poké Ball, pushed off the tree she had been leaning against to catch her breath and walked on in the opposite direction of where she knew the town to be. She had no idea where the small path would take her, but anything was better than getting caught immediately. Something else she hadn't thought about in the heat of the moment was that she was all alone in the forest. When she finally noticed that fact, it was a bit eerie.

For all of her life, she had been told to stay in the towns, that is was unsafe in the woods. She had always been inclined to think that the adults were right, so she had listened to them… most of the time. Now that she really was on her own, all the warnings were flooding her thoughts again. Sure, things were different now. Unlike before, she had a Pokémon to protect her. That should have been all she needed to feel safe. It didn't work quite like that. There were shadows everywhere, cast by the trees and bushes. Wild Pokémon could be anywhere. She even thought that if was weird not to have encountered one already. However, the snapping sticks and other rustling noises she heard even when she stood very still and just listened, proved that she was not alone. The forest was alive, even if its inhabitants hid from her sight. Jenny almost expected something to jump her any minute, but nothing happened.

She had to be more confident, she told herself. She was a trainer with a Pokémon of her own, now. If she had to defend herself against a wild Pokémon, she was not helpless anymore. So caught up in her attempt to calm herself, she almost missed the shadow that slowly descended down in front of her, until it almost landed on top of her head. Only at the last second did she notice it and jumped back with a startled cry.

It was a worm. Some sort of red caterpillar with a cream-colored belly and three yellow spikes, two on its rear and a single one on its head. It lowered itself from one of the branches above on a thin thread of silk, watching her. With a superior grin, she collected herself and threw her newly acquired Poké Ball. "Alright, then. You shall be my first opponent! Go, Treecko!"

She knew that grass types were weak against bugs, and this was obviously a bug Pokémon, but she doubted that this thing would pose a thread. It would probably be one of the weaker kind, like Caterpie and Weedle. Both of them were very common in Viridian Forest, but people rarely worried about them. Okay, Weedle was a bit more dangerous with its poisonous stinger, but even children could outrun them, if they had to. This Pokémon would be a perfect first test for her Treecko. Not much could go wrong here, after all.

"Treecko, use Pound!" she yelled her command to the waiting Pokémon. It reacted immediately by dashing forwards and jumping high into the air, knocking the bug off its thread in mid-air. Treecko landed elegantly, spinning around as soon as its feet touched the ground to face his opponent again. Damn, Jenny had not expected it to be so fast! The bug on the other hand tumbled to the ground, where it had to struggle to get back to its feet. But it wasn't quite defeated, yet.

"Pound it again!" Treecko ran towards the wild Pokémon once more, but this time, it tried to defend itself. At the last moment, it spewed a string of silk at Treecko's feet. At this short distance, Treecko couldn't dodge anymore and stumbled a bit, as it was hit by the attack. However, it still managed to spin around and hit the bug with its tail, sending it flying once more. This time, the wild Pokémon took its time getting back to its feet. Throwing one cautious look at the grass type standing casually where it had managed to catch its balance, the caterpillar Pokémon slowly crawled back into the brush. It obviously had no strength left to fight.

"Yes!" Jenny threw her fist victoriously up into the air. Her first battle and it was already a success. Granted, this was only a small bug, but still. Better than losing against something stronger, right? Come to think of it, she had a Pokédex now, right? With that, she could easily find out what it was, she was fighting against. She really should have thought of this sooner.

Quickly, she opened the red device and pointed it towards the retreating Pokémon. Apparently, she had just beaten a Wurmple. Pure bug, as she had thought. Unfortunately, it didn't show anything else about the thing. She would have had to catch it, if she had wanted a complete entry. That brought up a different issue. Neither did she have more Poké Balls to catch wild Pokémon, nor did she actually bring some kind of bag to store them. And Balls would be necessary. There was no way of her becoming the champion with only one Pokémon. A good team should be well balanced, with different types to cover weaknesses.

Not to mention that she had no food or water for a long journey. She would have to go looking for a town soon, if she really wanted to do this. Well, at least she had her wallet with a bit of money in her jeans pocket. That would be helpful to get some first supplies. Once she won against other trainers, she would get price money from her opponents, so she would be able to afford things with that.

Well, for now, it would probably be best if she just followed the path. It had to lead somewhere, so a town was the most likely. After all, why would the only road out of Littleroot Town lead into the middle of nowhere? She returned the Treecko to its Poké Ball, put the Pokédex into the back pocket of her trousers for a lack of a better place for it and continued walking. She soon had to take off her jacket and knot it around her waist, because she started sweating already, just from walking around here. Hoenn was much warmer than Kanto. Her dark t-shirt was sufficient for this climate. Thankfully, she always wore a hair band on her wrist, so she could tie her long blonde hair up into a high ponytail. At least that way she got some fresh air around the neck. Besides, on top of the already warm weather she also had to pick up the pace a bit, since she lost precious time fighting the Wurmple. She found another one of those on the way, which was just as easily defeated as its congener. Jenny was more satisfied with her Pokémon with every passing second. Who knew what crappy fighter she could have picked, if she had chosen one of the other Poké Balls? Treecko was fast and hit hard. This would be a breeze. Not long and she would win her first trainer battles and then she would face her first gym leader. That one would go down just as fast as-

"Jenny?"

She froze in her tracks. Wide-eyed she turned around. Coming out of the undergrowth came Brendan, bending a low-hanging branch away from him, so it wouldn't hit him in the face as he approached her. Impossible... Had they already found her?

"What're you doing here?" she blurted out.

He scratched his head, finally reaching the path. "That's what I was going to ask. I was just studying some Zigzagoon in their natural habitat to help my father. But didn't you say you don't have any Pokémon?" His gaze fell upon the Ball clutched tightly in her hand. "So, you actually got one, now?"

"Uh, yeah," she said, trying not to show her nervousness. It was okay. He didn't know. He had probably been here all day and had no clue what happened at Littleroot Town. If she didn't give anything away, he wouldn't suspect a thing. She would just pretend that everything was all right.

"That's really cool. Hey, how about a battle, now that you're a trainer as well?"

A battle against Brendan? Well, why not? It would be her very first trainer battle. Time for Treecko to show whether it was really worthy of fighting for her. With a grin, she held its Poké Ball out to its former owner's son. "Alright. But I'm going to win," she promised.

Clicking his own Poké Ball free of its slot at his belt, Brendan replied, "We'll see about that. Go, Basan!"

As she threw her own Ball, Jenny watched closely what kind of Pokémon Brendan possessed. Her confidence fell a little when she saw the small orange chick emerging from the capsule. Its stubby wings were not made for flying, at least not yet, but its claws and beak looked sharp. It chirped merrily as it eyed her, looking between Jenny and her trainer as the three feathers on its head swayed in the slight breeze.

A flying type? Damn, that was probably the worst match-up for her first battle she could have gotten. Grass was weak to flying! How was her Treecko supposed to come out of this on top? She would need a miracle to win this fight. Meanwhile, Brendan looked at her newly acquired Pokémon in surprise.

"Dad gave you a Treecko?" he asked.

The question raised a wave of paranoia. "Why would you assume it's your father's?" she countered immediately.
He blinked at her, before he grinned. "They're pretty rare, you know. It's really unlikely that you'd meet one in the wild. You'd have to find a special breeder to get your hands on one. But I know that my father has one or two."

"Oh." Well, that explained that. It also made her appreciate the Pokémon a bit more. So, not only was it not scary looking and a skilled fighter, but also quite special. That didn't change anything about the chick Pokémon being a less than ideal opponent, but it was definitely a plus. Speaking of the chick... She pulled the Pokédex out of her pocket, but before she could open it, Brendan piped up again.

"He also gave you a Pokédex? Whoa. What exactly did you do to convince him to do that?"

Damn it. That had been a stupid move. Why did she have to show that around near Brendan? Of course, he would know where she had gotten it. Where else? It wasn't like Littleroot Town had a Pokédex shop. The small grocery store didn't even sell Poké Balls. What was she supposed to say now?

"Uh, you see..." Well, she was already in too deep anyway. One more lie wouldn't make the situation any worse, really. "My mother finally allowed me to go on a journey, on the condition that I don't go unprepared. So I asked your father if I could get a Pokémon from him, because you had already suggested it that one day. I explained to him how important this was for me and well, in the end he gave me this Treecko and a Pokédex on top of that, so I wouldn't be completely clueless about the region." Yeah, that was a decent explanation, wasn't it? Quite believable in her opinion. She mentally gave herself a pat on the back for thinking so quickly.

Sure enough, he seemed to buy it. "Oh, that's great!" he exclaimed. Then he seemed to change his mind and made a face. "But that means you're gonna leave Littleroot as well? Even if you've only just arrived? Man, I should probably ask my father if I could go as well. Everyone's having a great adventure and I just stay at home. I've always wanted to support my father and it is pretty fun, but well... I've been thinking about it for a while now, actually," he admitted.

Apparently reconsidering, he brightened up again. "Hey, would you mind waiting for another day? Then I could go back home really fast and ask Dad immediately. We could just go together! What do you say? I bet that would be even more fun!"

Yeah, most definitely not. Keep dreaming. "Well, I don't want to go back again, after I've just started..." It was only mid-afternoon, so there was still some time before sunset. She had to make use of every minute, to get as far away from Littleroot Town as possible. Going back was the last thing she wanted to do.

"That's no problem. Oldale Town isn't all that far from here anymore. I can show you the way, before I go back. So you could stay there at the Pokémon Center for the night," Brendan tried to convince her. "Come on, what's one more day?"

Oldale Town, huh? That meant she went the right way, after all. But now she had to ponder what to do about him. "Alright, we can do this," she finally conceded. "But if you don't show up tomorrow, I won't wait for you."

"Great!" Brendan exclaimed. "But first, you promised me a battle."

That was right. The chick Pokémon seemed to become impatient, as it gently pecked at its owners shoes, while Treecko was lazily leaning against a nearby tree, waiting for commands. Quickly, she pointed the Pokédex that was still in her hand at the chick to find out what it was. Torchic. So, what Brendan had called it earlier was just a nickname. And it wasn't a flying type at all. It was a fire type. Not that this was any better. In fact, that was just as horrible, if not worse. A fire type that could just as well have some flying type moves and probably got this as an additional type once it evolved. Great. She really couldn't have gotten a worse match-up.

With a sigh, she put the Pokédex away and cast a glance at her Treecko, who took that as a clue that the fight was about to begin and returned to her side. "Well, here goes nothing. This Torchic is a fire type, but I expect you to win anyway," she mentioned to her Pokémon matter-of-factly. Treecko responded by making a low sound in its throat, which she took as a sign that it had understood.

For a second, nobody moved, then Jenny pointed at the Torchic with her outstretched arm and shouted, "Treecko, use pound!" Absorb would be next to useless, so this was her best bet. Treecko didn't waste a second to obey her command and ran ahead. The Torchic seemed startled at the speed of its opponent and it was hit in the side by the attack, even though it tried to dodge at the last second, when Brendan shouted a futile warning. It stumbled backwards a bit, but didn't fall. Instead, it retaliated as Brendan cried out a quick: "Scratch, Basan!" Jumping into the air, it used its claws to scratch at Treecko, who only just managed to bring up the left arm to protect its body, before backing up. They came to a stand a small distance from each other, staring at the other determinedly.

Jenny was confused. Scratch was a normal move. Why hadn't Brendan told it to spit fire at her grass Pokémon? Maybe it didn't know any fire type moves, yet? Well, it didn't matter, she certainly wouldn't object.

"Scratch again!" Brendan's command gave her an idea. She waited until the Torchic had nearly reached her Pokémon, then she gave her own orders.

"Treecko, leer at it and then use Pound!"

The scratch hit properly this time, but as Treecko was directly face to face with the fire chick, its facial expression made the Torchic falter with insecurity. It didn't even know how to react as Treecko countered, hitting it hard with its fist. The Torchic was sent flying backwards and crashed against a nearby tree.

"Basan!" Brendan exclaimed worriedly as he ran to his Pokémon. It tried to stand up on its own, but didn't have the strength left and collapsed again. "Hey, easy," its trainer said as he reached it. He petted its head gently. "You were great, but you should rest now." With that, he called it back into the Poké Ball in his hand. "Well, looks like you managed to beat me."

Jenny looked over to her Treecko, who was looking the worse for wear as it stood with its hand covering the large scrape across its belly from the last Scratch. Nevertheless, it was still standing. It had won against the Torchic against all odds of type advantage. Jenny grinned proudly as she withdrew it into its own Ball. She really was on a roll. "Of course I did."

"Can't say I expected to lose against someone who got her first Pokémon after me, but it was still pretty fun," Brendan admitted. Then he took a glance at his watch. "Okay, let's go. We should hurry so I can make the trip home before it gets too late."

Jenny followed slightly behind him on the path, thanking whatever deity was watching over her. She had the feeling that nothing could happen anymore to ruin this day.