Gregory Johnson's Johto Adventure

[Benny Resto]

Author's Note:

First off with the obligatory, I don't own Pokemon, duh.

This is my first attempt at posting a fanfic, however, I will try to deliver a story that I hope you all will enjoy!

If you find any errors or if you have any general critiques about the story please let me know in the comment. Thanks to everyone who took the time to read this!

---

Gregory Johnson couldn't help the excitement that built in his chest as he gazed at the thick envelope in his hands. His eyes tracked back and forth over the elegant script inscribed upon its back.

The Pokemon League Association.

Fingers jittery with anticipation, Gregory slid his thumb under the envelope's lip and, with a quick flick of his wrist, popped open the wax seal, embossed with a depiction of a Pokeball, grabbing the bundle of papers and an ID card. With his lips in a grin that split his cheeks wide, he inspected his new trainer ID. Staring back at him is a portrait of himself along with some personal information such as his birthday, address, and Trainer number. Satisfied, he slid the card into his back pocket and opened up the papers.

Gregory,

We extend our sincerest congratulations on your recent graduation from the Pokemon Trainer Academy. With this accomplishment, you are now one step closer to embarking on a grand adventure into the world of Pokemon. You will experience many hardships upon your journey, but you will also find many moments of joy as you encounter different types of people and Pokemon. Enclosed, you will find your new Trainer ID, allowing you to participate in all league-sponsored tournaments and events, most notably this year's Annual Silver Conference. It will also allow you access to medical, lodging, and transfer services provided by Pokemon Centers free of charge. Speaking of charges, please be sure to link any existing bank accounts to your trainer number so that any winnings or wagers you accrue are transferred to the appropriate account.

However, you will need a Pokemon partner to do any of that! Enclosed, you will also find a voucher, which you may take to your closest league-affiliated Pokemon research center or Gym to claim a starter Pokemon. We wish you the best of luck as you learn and grow with your Pokemon!

-Mr. Charles Goodshow,

President, Pokemon League Association

Gregory read over the letter a few more times, letting the words sink in. With reverence, he folded up the letter and slipped it back into its envelope. Which he then placed into the backpack, sitting on his bed.

'It's finally time! I wonder what type of Pokemon will be waiting for me at the research center?' he thought to himself as he began gathering the things he needed together. He did one more check of all the gear inside his pack: camping gear, fire starters, cooking supplies, berry pouch, first aid kit for himself, Flashlight, a few potions, antidotes, winter jacket, boots, and finally, a few changes of clothes. He grabbed his pokegear from the nightstand and slung his pack over a shoulder as he left his bedroom. Gregory's steps thudded loudly down the stairs, the sound echoing throughout the house as he took them two at a time.

"Gregory! How many times do I need to tell you not to run in the house!" his mother's shout greeted him when he reached the bottom and headed to the kitchen.

"Sorry, Mom!" he said. "It's just I finally heard back from the PLA! I can finally begin my Pokemon journey!" he said, running up to her and flashing his newly acquired trainer ID.

His mother, Sasha, was an average-sized woman in her mid-30s. Her long brown hair was in a braid that ended at her lower back, and she had sun-kissed skin that matched his own. As she turned to face him as he entered the kitchen, her hands on her hips, Sasha's green eyes locked onto him. They had a severe set to them that matched her slight frown. The stern look on his mother's face melts to reveal a brilliant smile.

"Oh! Gregory, I'm so happy for you!" she said as she took his ID and inspected it. Once she returned it, she placed her hands on either side of his face and said, "I'm so proud of you!" A little embarrassed by his mother's compliment, he quickly shook off her hands.

"Jeez, Mom, stop it. I'm 16 now, not a little kid," then a second later added, "But thanks."

"Myles! Get in here. Come look at what Gregory got in the mail," she said as she smiled softly at her son's bashful response.

"what is all the fuss about in here," Gregory's father said as he entered the kitchen.

Myles was a tall man, reaching about 6', with an athletic build that he maintained despite nearing his 40's. His dark black hair, which Gregory inherited, was cut short and had slight streaks of gray appearing on the sides. His slight resting smile and faint laugh lines bespoke his easygoing nature and proclivity for merriment. "Dad, Look! The PLA sent me my trainer ID and Pokemon Voucher! I can finally start my Pokemon Journey!" He said as he grabbed the letter from his backpack, shoving it and his ID in his father's hands.

"Oh?" he replied, taking the letter and ID from his son. He looked over the note and ID for a few moments. After a moment's consideration, his mouth turned up in a slight smirk.

I don't know, Greg, this ID can't possibly be yours; the boy in this picture is much too old to be my son," he finished with a wink, snaring Gregory in an iron-clad side hug.

Gregory was indignant despite knowing his dad was teasing and tried and failed to break out of his dad's grip.

"ha-ha, hilarious, Dad..." he said while still trying to wiggle out of the hug when his dad, with a rare sincere expression on his face, cut in and said, "I'm so happy for you, son; I know that you will be able to achieve whatever you set out to accomplish."

As soon as he finished saying that, a playful smile took over his expression, and with a wink, Myles released his arm from around his son.

"When do you plan on going to get your Pokemon?" his mother asked.

"Right now," Gregory replied before his stomach betrayed him by unleashing a churning gurgle that seemed more a monstrous roar than an indication of hunger.

"Woah there, son, hold your Ponyta! Let me whip you up some breakfast before you go dashing away!" his dad said.

'I-I suppose I could go for some food,' Gregory replied sheepishly.

Gregory sat at the table and waited for his dad to finish making him breakfast; by what he smelled, it was eggs and bacon. His mother placed a plate of toasted bread in front of him as she took a seat across from him.

"Did you pack the winter clothes we bought you?" his mom asked, taking a bite of her piece of toast.

"yup, sure did," Gregory said, crumbs of toast showering down on his plate like rain whenever he took a bite. He washed the dry bites down with a sip from the glass of oranberry juice his father just placed in front of him.

"How about the your pokegear? Did you remember to charge it up last night?" At this point, his mom was starting to fret over him, pacing worriedly around the kitchen.

"Sasha, sweetheart, here, sit down and have some breakfast," Myles said, a steaming plate full of bacon and eggs, thin streams of steam rising from the food, balanced in one hand. He gently guided his wife back to her chair with his free hand. "I'm sure Greg made sure to pack everything he will need," He shot Gregory a sly wink as he deposited the food onto the table.

"Yeah, Mom, don't worry I made a list of all that I would need and double-checked everything this morning," his dad sat next to his mom, rubbing his hand up and down her back in comforting motions.

"I know. I'm sorry, I'm just worried about you, dear," Sasha said, letting out a full-body sigh.

"Of course, sweetheart, there's no need to worry. I'm sure our son will be calling us whenever he gets a chance to," He said the last part with a very pointed stare in his direction.

"y-yeah, I'll be sure to call every couple wee-" At the slight tightening of his dad's stare, he quickly corrected what he was saying, "I mean, every other day?"

"Stop threatening our son," Sasha said, laughing lightly, swatting Myles softly on the arm. He just shot Gregory another wink.

"Just promise you'll call whenever you can," She said.

"will do, mom."

Having satiated his hunger and with a promise to come to show his parents his new Pokemon before leaving, he started making his way toward New Bark town's Pokemon research center.

---

AN #2

If you have any Ideas for OC trainers and their pokemon teams please PM me. If you do send in an OC Just give me some character quirks/ flaws that give me a gist of what they are like. Pokemon teams should be reasonable (no full teams of legendaries, or all shiny pokemon.) I'll be sure to give credit in an AN if i end up using any of your submitions.

 

[Benny Resto]

Author's Note:

I still don't own Pokemon, duh.

Please let me know if you find any mistakes, or if you have any general feedback about the story!

---

New Bark Town is a small town of about 5000 people, a sleepy little borough near the border between the Kanto and Johto regions. Looming large to the northeast was the silver mountain range. This extensive range served as a natural barrier between the two regions, and at its heart sat Mt. Silver. The namesake of the range, it was also the seat of power for the PLA and where both the Silver and Indigo League conferences took place.

Gregory exited his house and began to walk toward Professor Elm's Research center in the northwestern part of the town. The morning sun had just started to climb into the sky as he made it to main street. The cobblestone road was a pedestrian-only road that cut the town in half horizontally. Most of the streets in town were pedestrian-only, actually. The exceptions were the small port in the south part of the town and a few essential road connections that allowed people to ship things through the town. Besides him, there were few people out and about yet. He saw a few shop owners opening up for the day. He gave Mr. Bo Vine a wave as he passed; he owned the MrMoo's dairy bar, which sold the best Miltank products around. The milkshakes they made were his favorite. The town's pokemart was the next thing he passed as he walked. Its iconic blue roof with a white Pokeball symbol and its stark white walls were well known throughout the region. Its front windows had an electronic display with a list of ongoing sales and specials that flashed across it. Pokemarts were all owned by the PLA and were the place to go for anything Pokemon-related, whether special Pokemon food or Pokeballs.

At about the halfway point of the road, he saw the Pokemon Center on the left side of the street. The building itself took up a whole block. It was four stories tall and, like a pokemart, had a white Pokeball symbol affixed to the roof but painted a bright red instead of blue. The bottom floor was where they healed injured Pokemon, which partially explained why it had such a large footprint. However, it also had a cafeteria, lounge area, and small rooms for traveling trainers to use. These were on the second through fourth floors, respectively.

As he continued down the road, he saw a few joggers out running with their Pokemon. They mainly consisted of Growlithe, the small red-furred canine that was a favorite among people to keep as family Pokemon.

About 15 minutes later, he arrived at Professor Elm's Lab. The lab itself was two stories with a teal-colored metal roof and a white brick facade. Behind the building is the Pokemon Lab's ranch, acres and acres of land owned by the lab for use by the Pokemon sent by Lab-affiliated trainers and for the Lab's own Pokemon that they have assisting them in their research.

As Gregory tried the door, he found it locked.

"Looks like you beat me here!" a feminine voice called out from behind him. As he turned around, he saw a young woman approaching him who looked to be about his age. She looked only to be a couple of inches shorter than him. Her long, chestnut brown hair was put into a ponyta-tail threaded through the ball cap she wore. Her light green eyes had a glimmer of excitement reflecting from their depths.

Slung over her back, she had the same brand of backpack as him; hers was a pink color to his green. Her short-sleeved shirt and jeans looked to prioritize function over aesthetics, while her hiking boots looked worn but still serviceable.

"Yeah, I suppose I did." He chuckled, "Looks like I was in such a hurry to get here I didn't check to see when the lab would be open."

"My name is Gregory, by the way!" he continued, reaching a hand out for a shake. "Are you also here to receive a starter Pokemon?"

Taking his hand, she replies, "Yeah, I am. I just got in from Cherrygrove; my name's Nora! It's a pleasure to meet you!"

Before either one could continue speaking, the door behind them opened. As they both turned towards the door, a man with a lab coat, black hair, and glasses stepped out.

"Oh! Hello there, I didn't expect visitors here so early; how can I help you, kids?" he said. The flash of surprise on his face faded quickly, replaced by a warm smile.

"Hello, sir, we both are here to get a starter Pokemon!" Nora said both kids brought out their vouchers to show the man.

"Ah, I should've guessed here this way," he said after he looked over both and handed them back. He stepped into the doorway, holding the door as he beckoned them in. Both Nora and Gregory follow the man inside the lab.

As Gregory looked around, he found that the front half of the lab was an office space with a small assortment of cubicle desks off to the right, where a few more people dressed in lab coats were typing away at their computers. The left-hand side had a decent-sized meeting room; next to that, there was a small library that took up the rest of the space.

"My name is Dave, by the way; I work here as one of Professor Elm's research aids," Dave continued, snapping Gregory's wandering eyes back to him. "you both must be very excited to be getting your own Pokemon today!"

"Yes, sir! I could hardly sleep last night," Nora chimed in.

"I have been waiting for a long time for this!" Gregory added.

"Well then, we better not dally! Here through this doorway."

Dave led them into what had to be the central part of the lab. All around them, they saw various machines and equipment that Gregory could only begin to guess at the purpose of. They then made it to the very back of the room where a large table sat, atop which sat a few red square devices.

"Please wait here while I go grab Prof. Elm," Dave said as he made his way to a door off to the right, which opened to reveal a staircase that led to a basement floor.

"Wow, look at all this equipment!" Nora said as she gazed around the lab. "It must be so much fun to work with Pokemon all day."

"Yeah, I bet," Gregory replied.

"So, do you plan on challenging the gym circuit once you get your Pokemon?" Gregory asked.

"Hmm, you know, I'm not sure. Honestly, I just want to travel around and meet as many different Pokemon as I can," she replied, and then, after a short pause, added, "What about you? Are you aiming to compete in the silver league?"

"You bet! I'm aiming to be the best trainer I can!"

"Well, you're going to have to settle for second-best because that's all you'll ever be while I'm around!" a voice said behind them.

Turning around, Nora and Gregory spotted a boy around their age with Blond hair cut short and sported a hat emblazoned with the Pokemon leagues symbol, walking up to them from the same door they had just entered.

"The name's Alexander, and you better remember it because I'm going to be the next Champion!" he continued as he walked over to them.

"Well, we'll see about that!" Gregory replied, turning to him. He extended his hand for a shake with the new boy, "I'm Gregory, and this is Nora."

Alexander just looked at his hand, seemingly deciding if he wanted to return the greeting; he scoffed, took Gregory's hand, and gave a brief shake.

Before the interaction could get any more tense, the door Dave had gone down opened again, revealing a new man wearing a lab coat who entered the room. The man had rounded glasses, and his light brown hair was cut short with a longer, messy tangle of hair on top.

"Welcome! Welcome! I've been told you kids are here to get your starter Pokemon," the man, who could be none other than Prof. Elm, began.

"However, before we begin, there are a few things that I have to go over with you!" He said this as he strode from the doorway and stopped facing them from behind the large table with the mysterious devices on it.

"First, I'll need to see the vouchers you should've received from the League." all three kids began digging through their bags as he said this, each producing their voucher. The Professor then went around to each, taking the offered paper, and quickly looked over it before he moved back to his spot behind the table, where he said, "Excellent. Now that that's out of the way, we can move on. As some of you might have noticed, here in front of me on the table are quite a few machines that you probably haven't seen before. These are the fruits of a project my peers from the various regions and I have been collaborating on. We are calling it a Pokedex. Think of it as an electronic encyclopedia of all known Pokemon. However, it is incomplete; its entries were taken from written sources that themselves were sourced from myths, legends, and rumors. Many of my colleagues have already begun updating entries as we collect more data, but it has been quite an undertaking. Which brings me to the request I wish to make of you!" As he said all this, he had begun pacing back and forth, his tall, lithe frame filled with an almost manic energy, his enthusiasm about this topic unmistakable. "That request is for each of you to take this pokedex with you on your journeys and help us fill it with more accurate information."

"I would be happy to help, professor, but how would I do that?" Nora, being the first to answer, said

Both Alexander and Gregory nod their heads in silent agreement to the question.

"A great question! I'm glad you asked!" The Professor exclaimed, stopping his pacing briefly to point his finger at her, only to immediately resume as he answered, "There are a few ways you can help us. First, you can simply scan any Pokemon you see; this will give you some basic information on the species in question and will also send us data on its size, markings, and other various metrics. Secondly, and this is the main way that you will be helping us, is catching Pokemon; when you catch a Pokemon with any Pokeballs you have linked to your Pokedex, besides all the previous things I mentioned, we will receive more in-depth biometric data that a visual scan could not provide. Lastly, on your Pokedex, you can make notes of any observations you may have, which will automatically be sent to my staff and me for review." He seemed to have to stop himself from going into an entire lecture; Professor Elm took a moment to collect himself before he finished, "so what do you say? Will you three accept my request?"

"Of course, I'll help!" Nora states without hesitation. As the professor spoke, Gregory could almost see the excitement radiating off her like steam from a pot of boiling water.

Gregory took a bit longer to make a decision. The idea of helping out the Professor certainly appealed to him, but he had decided he wanted to really take a shot at winning the silver conference this year. Gregory wanted to focus on catching and training a team to help him achieve that end. However, information was a powerful tool, and if he could learn more about as many Pokemon as possible, that could only benefit him. He came to a decision.

"Sure, I'll help you!" he said as he met the Professor's eyes. "Though I don't know if I'll be catching that many Pokemon."

"Not to worry, just scanning any Pokemon you see is immensely helpful to our project!" Professor Elm said.

"Can we get our Pokemon now or what?" Alexander asked, just nodding in reply to the Professor's request.

"Of course! Sorry, I know you all must be excited to meet your future partners."

He quickly picked up three of the small red devices and handed them out.

"Now, how to decide who chooses first," He mumbled, as his hand rubbed his chin in thought, "How about we just go by who was here first?" He asked, bringing the hand down in a fist to impact against the palm of his other hand as if he had just received a grand epiphany.

"That would be me, sir!" Gregory said as he took a step forward.

"Excellent! Then please follow me." The Professor began walking back towards the door he came in from, with Gregory hurrying to catch up.

"Well, Gregory, you're sure spoiled for choice! My colleagues provided us with some rare Pokemon from their respective regions!" Prof. Elm quipped as they started making their way down the steps.

The room is open at the bottom of the stairs, with three colossal glass habitats occupying most of the space. However, there is a huge vault door to the room's left. The door itself was already open, and inside, Gregory could see Dave with a scanner going down row upon row of Pokeballs, making annotations on a clipboard every now and again.

"That is where we keep all the Pokemon from trainers that have stabling rights with us. When they have met their carry limit, they send them to us for safekeeping." The Professor chimed in, having noticed the angle of his gaze.

"Wow, there sure are a lot of Pokemon in there," Gregory muttered in awe.

"oh yes, we have a lot of trainers that utilize our ranch; now let me go over all the Pokemon you have to choose from."

Elm led him over to the glass habitats, stopping in front of one that seemed to be a facsimile of grasslands with a bit of a forest-like edge made up of small trees and bushes. The UV Lighting above it acted as a pseudo-sun. In the middle, there is a pond where seven Pokemon are gathered. Some were relaxing by the small body of water, while others played around it.

"So in here, you will find all the grass-type Pokemon. Those being Bulbasaur, Chikorita, Treeko, Turtwig, Snivy, Chespin, and Grookey." He said, his manner of speech reminding Gregory of a museum curator giving a tour.

He then moved on to the next enclosure. This one looked much like the last, which also had a pond in the middle where the Pokemon gathered around, but this one also had some rocky outcroppings in the back of the habitat.

"This one is home to all the fire-type Pokemon, which includes Charmander, Cyndaquil, Torchic, Chimchar, Tepig, Fennekin, and Scorbunny."

Of the three habitats, the last one is the most drastically different. Fifty percent of the habitat is water, with a central piece of land with grass, sand, and mud patches.

"Finally, this is where we have the water-type Pokemon. You will find a Squirtle, Totodile, Mudkip, Piplup, Oshwott, Froakie, and Sobble here. Like I said, we have a lot to choose from; take your time and let me know which one you want." The professor said as he stopped in front of the last enclosure.

Gregory perused each habitat carefully; some of the Pokemon noticed his gaze on them, though most chose to ignore him, apparently uninterested in his attention. However, a few showed a little interest in him and walked up to the glass for a closer look.

The first one was the Turtwig from the grass-type habitat. The small quadruped, which couldn't have reached higher than his ankles, had a yellow lower jaw and yellow eyes and feet. On the top of its head, it also had a tiny seedling sprouting out. It stops a few feet from the glass and looks Gregory in the eyes. With a slight tilt of its head, it let out a curious-sounding "twig." They locked eyes, Gregory giving it a warm, inviting smile and a wave of his hand, and then it scampered back to the other Pokemon. Its curiosity had apparently been satisfied.

The second Pokemon was the Squirtle from the water-type habitat. Though the Squirtle hadn't walked up as far as the Turtwig, it still took a few steps forward, gave him a happy-sounding "squirt!" and waved to him. After he gave a smile and a wave back to it, the Squirtle turned away and jumped into the water, splashing a few of the other Pokemon.

The final Pokemon was the Fire-type Fennekin; the little fox came bounding all the way up to the glass, where it sat down and looked up at him expectantly. The soft-looking fur of its body was yellow with bright red eyes that matched the tip of its fluffy tail and the tufts of hair that extended from its pointed ears. The bottom half of its face and short snout was pure white like spent ashes in bright sunlight.

"Do you want to come with me on my journey, Fennekin?" Gregory asked as he crouched down to be more on its level, putting a steadying hand upon the glass.

The little vixen tilted her head to the side as it considered his question, then it reached up and placed her fore paws onto the glass. Her right paw landed precisely where his hand was; simultaneously, she yipped a happy, "Fen, Fennekin!"

Gregory didn't know precisely what the Fennekin was saying, but he had learned that as trainers, or people in general, spent more time with a specific Pokemon, it was easier to decipher their body language and the various tones in their calls. So, while he didn't know exactly how it replied to his question, he would have sworn that there was a hopeful expression in its red-eyed gaze and an excited twitch to its tail as it swayed back and forth in little jerks.

"Professor! I've made my decision!" He called back over his shoulder, A smile spreading across his face, his eyes not leaving the fox in front of him. Professor Elm made his way over and stood behind him.

"So you're choosing Fennekin? Alright then, let me grab her Pokeball for you." With that, the Professor goes into the vault and, a few moments later, returns with the spherical red and white device in his hands.

"You know, one of the areas of my studies is the bonds between humans and Pokemon, and I've found that letting your Pokemon travel with you outside its ball can help to form such a bond. Maybe you should consider letting your new friend travel with you in such a way. Well, the choice is yours," He told Gregory as he handed over the Pokeball. The professor opened the door to the habitat, letting the little fire-fox out. "Please send the next person in when you head upstairs!"

He gave Prof. Elm a quick smile and a nod. Gregory then knelt in front of Fennekin. "So what do you say, girl? Wanna walk with me?" he asked.

"Fen, Fen!" came the excited reply as the Fox Pokemon quickly wagged its fluffy tail.

"Alright then! Let's go!" he said, standing up and making his way up the stairs.

"Oh, I have one more thing to speak with you all about, so please wait for me upstairs!" the Professor called out when he had made it halfway up.

As Gregory and Fennekin returned to the other two teenagers, a gasp of excitement greeted them. "Oh my gosh! She is sooo cute." Nora gushed once she caught sight of Gregory's new partner. At the sound of her exuberance, Fennekin hid behind Gregory's legs. Her head peeked out from the side.

"So you decided to go with a Fennekin, huh? That's certainly an interesting choice," Alexander said with an air of consideration; his eyes lingered over the Pokemon, full of judgment as if they were weighing all her flaws and merits.

"The professor said you're good to go down there now," Gregory told Nora. He chose to ignore Alexander's remark.

Nora took off down the stairs with a pump of her fist and a megawatt grin.

Pulling out his Pokedex, Gregory aims toward the little fox sitting at his feet. After hitting the scan button, a picture of Fennekin was pulled up on the dex's screen, along with some information on her species. Then a computerized voice began speaking, "Fennekin, The Fox Pokemon, found in Forrest, chaparrals, and deserts. These Pokémon have a curious diet—they subsist primarily on dry twigs, which they seek out constantly, even chewing on them while walking about. They combust the sticks they eat within their bodies to create fire." Hitting another button, the Pokedex shows him the list of moves she knows.

-Scratch

-Charm

-Howl

-Ember

He slipped the Pokedex back into his pocket, then knelt to be more on her level. He slowly brings a hand towards her, stroking the soft fur between her ears. "Remind me to get you some sticks later, okay girl?" he said. Her reply was to, using his knee as a springboard, jump to his shoulder and give a lick to his cheek with her warm tongue.

As he got back to his feet, fox still on his shoulder, Nora returned through the door. In her arms was a small blue amphibian; on its cheek, it had orange spikes, three prongs to each cheek, with a fin atop its head and one for a tail.

"The Professor said you're good to come down now, Alexander." She said with a satisfied smile as she took her place next to the two boys.

"Finally, you both took forever," Alexander replied as he all but sprinted down the stairs.

"He sure has an attitude problem, huh?" Nora quips as the other boy shuts the door behind him.

Gregory shrugged in return, careful not to cause his little hitchhiker to lose her balance.

"So, are you going to give Fennekin a nickname?" Nora asked after a moment,

"I never considered it before; what do you say, Fennekin? Would you like a nickname?" he said, turning to the vixen on his shoulder.

Head tilted to the right, she considered the proposition and a moment later shook her head. "Well, there you have it, though I might give any future Pokemon I catch nicknames if they want them."

Gregory was just about to ask Nora if she would give her Mudkip a nickname when Alexander returned, with a Cyndaquil and Professor Elm following behind him. The little fire-type Pokemon had dark blue-green fur on top and a cream-colored coat on its lower half; it also had a long, thin snout and four red circles on its back.

Professor Elm resumed his earlier spot behind the table as Alexander fell back in next to Nora and Gregory.

"Thank you for sticking around. I know you are excited to begin your journeys now that you have your Pokemon, but I just had one more thing to review with you three before you head out." The Professor begins. "Since all of you have agreed to help me with my research, I will update your trainer ID to reflect that you are Lab researchers affiliated with me. You will also receive some monetary compensation from the Lab for your contributions. The payment should hit your accounts every two weeks." As he said this, he grabbed each teenager's ID. He then headed over to his computer on the room's left side and entered their information. After a few minutes, he handed them back their trainer card. "Well, that's all from me; if you have any questions, let me know. Otherwise, good luck on your journeys, and I can't wait to see the data you collect!"

No sooner had the last words left the Professor's mouth than Alexander turned and walked out of the lab. His new Cyndaquil hopped after him, trying to match the pace of his long strides. Nora and Gregory both thanked the Professor and began walking out shortly after.

"So what will you be doing now?" Nora asked. They had just exited the lab and stood by the sidewalk facing each other.

"Well, first, I will be heading back to my house; I promised my folks that I wouldn't leave without checking in with them one last time. After that, though," he paused as he considered, "I think I'll start making my way to Violet City. Since that's where the closest Gym is." he replied.

"What about you? You mentioned you just wanted to travel around a bit, right?"

"I'm also going to be heading to Violet City. I've heard about the Sprout Tower there and wanted to check it out." Nora said, then hesitantly added, "Do you want to travel together? I'm Still a little nervous about traveling by myself," she said with a brief look to the little blue amphibian still in her arms, "I know I'll have Mudkip with me, but you know, safety in numbers and all that."

"Sure!" Gregory said after sharing a quick look with Fennekin. The little fox gave her the best approximation of a shrug. "The more the merrier!"

---

AN #2
Thanks again for all who took the time to read this!
Just wanted to shout out a cool website, https://www.theworldofpokemon.com/ - I will be using a lot of the information here for the pokedex entries
I am thinking of trying to release a chapter every week, hopefully on Sundays, but don't hold me too that. Still working out the balance of writing and work.
If you have any Ideas for OC trainers and their pokemon teams please PM me. If you do send in an OC Just give me some character quirks/ flaws that give me a gist of what they are like. Pokemon teams should be reasonable (no full teams of legendaries, or all shiny pokemon.) I'll be sure to give credit in an AN if i end up using any of your submitions.
As always I appreciate any feed back that you can give that would make this story better!

 

[Benny Resto]

Author's Note:

I still don't own Pokemon, duh.

Please let me know if you find any mistakes, or if you have any general feedback about the story!

---

Having decided to travel together, Nora and Gregory returned to Gregory's house. It was a small two-story home in the northeastern part of town; the walls were made of light brown brick, and the roof had a darker blue shingling. A small fence enclosed their home's front yard, where his mother's vegetable garden took up most of its space. All of the plant life inside the fence was vibrant and absolutely massive compared to the average for their type. The berry bushes that lined one side of the yard had Oran berries that could fill the palms of both his hands.

When they drew closer to his house, an overwhelming sweet scent hit their senses, instantly causing them to relax. As they entered through the front gate, a grumbling noise drew their attention to one of the only bare corners of the yard. Laying down sunning herself in the mid-morning light was his mother's Meganium, the gate's creaking noise having woken her up. It was a quadruped with a long neck, a large flower with pink and white petals wreathed its base, a stubby tail, and two thin antennae atop its head. If she was standing up, Gregory knew she would be a couple of inches taller than his height of 5'8''. She opened a singular eyelid, its yellow iris giving them an aggrieved look.

"Sorry, Meganium didn't mean to disturb you," Gregory called out as they made their way to the front door; another good-natured grumble was her only reply. From the corner of his eye, he saw Nora had pulled out her Pokedex and scanned the sleeping grass type. The same computerized voice spoke a second later, "Meganium, The Herb Pokemon, there is seldom fighting near Meganium, as their fragrance can calm even the most aggressive of foes. They hate conflict and prefer to placate enemies with their aroma. Their breaths can revive dead flora; the grasslands, in which these Pokémon are rarely found in the wild, are beautifully vibrant as a result. They communicate by releasing various scents and waving the stamens on their heads."

Unlocking the door, he let Nora enter first. "Mom! Dad! I'm back!" he called out as he shut the door behind him.

"In the kitchen, son!" his mom called back.

The two teens made their way to the kitchen. Both of Gregory's parents were sitting at the kitchen table. His father had his nose buried in the paper, the bold black lettering on the front page catching Gregory's eye; Elite 4 Will defeats the Silver Conference winner 6-1. Sasha watched them enter the kitchen, a cup of coffee being nursed between her hands.

"Oh, and who is this?" she asked as her eyes landed on Nora. Her question caused Myles to fold his paper and place it on the table.

"This is Nora. She was at the Lab trying to get her starter at the same time as me, and we decided to head to Cherrygrove together."

"Hello, it's nice to meet you!" Nora chimed in with. Her Mudkip, still with her arms around his belly, raised a foreleg and gave a croaking "Kip Mudkip!" in greeting.

"It's nice to meet you too, dear, and my, what a cute little Pokemon you have there," She replied, giving them a gentle smile. She looked as if she was going to say something else, but Myles said, "Well, Son, don't keep us in suspense; introduce us to your new partner."

Nora and Gregory sat at the kitchen table, their chairs making a soft scraping noise as the teens dragged them across the dark, hardwood kitchen floor. The mid-morning sun softly illuminated the space with its gentle light. Fennekin, who up until now had been perched upon Gregory's backpack, hidden behind his head, jumped down to the kitchen tabletop with a back-arching stretch and a jaw-popping yawn, taking a seat.

"Mom, Dad, this is my new partner Fennekin." He said, bringing his hand down softly upon the fox Pokemon's head, gently caressing the fur down along her back. "Fennekin, these are my parents," he continued. With a tilt of her head, the little vixen locked eyes with both adults.

"Fen fenne kin," she said a moment later, with as close to a smile as a snout can manage. The atmosphere in the kitchen was relaxed as Sasha and Myles continued to exchange greetings and pleasantries with Nora and the two Pokemon. The latter were spoiled for choice in who to receive affectionate pets and scratches from. Afterward, Gregory told his parents about Professor Elm's Request and sponsorship offer.

"Wow, Greg, This is some fancy technology," Myles said after Gregory recounted their time at the lab. Myles held Gregory's Pokedex, inspecting it and fiddling with the various features. "So all you do is point it at a Pokemon, and it tells you all about them?" he said, impressed by the new technology. "Sure beats having to hit a library and memorize entries from a paper encyclopedia like I had to do." he chuckled as he handed the device over to Sasha. His mother nodded in agreement as she took a turn, looking it over.

"Here, let me show you guys," Gregory said when she returned the device to him. He then pointed the device at Nora's Mudkip, hitting the scan button.

After a moment, a computerized voice said, "Mudkip, the Mud Fish Pokemon, it is known to inhabit the Marshes, estuaries, and beaches of the Hoenn Region. Deceptively strong for their size, they are able to lift large boulders out of the water and crush them by planting themselves into the ground and heaving. The orange growths on the sides of their heads are actually gills, allowing Mudkip to breathe underwater. They spend roughly equal time on land and in the water but must keep their skin moist to not dry out and become lethargic."

From the corner of his eye, Gregory thought he noticed the little blue amphibian nodding in agreement, which brought a slight smile to his lips.

"Well, Honey, it certainly seems that the professor has put a lot of trust into you two," Sasha said after a few moments of silence.

They fielded a few more curious questions from his parents, but he was eager to go. He also noticed that Nora occasionally glanced at the clock on the wall, her leg bouncing under the table.

"Well, Mom, Dad, I think it's time for us to be off. We have a lot of walking to do today. I'd like to get as far as possible before we have to make camp," Gregory said, standing up from his chair, scooping Fennekin up from the table where she was a puddle of fur, belly up with her tongue lolling out the side of her mouth, due to the belly scratches she received from his dad. Nora seemed to jump out of her chair with how fast she got up, her Mudkip jumping to the floor to stand beside her.

"Oh! I nearly forgot!" his mom exclaimed as she jumped up and left the room. A minute later, she re-entered the room carrying what looked like a leather-bound book and a small wrapped box. "I was going to give this to you so you could make a journal of your adventures, but maybe you could use this to help out with the professor's research," she said as she handed both items to him.

Opening the box first, he carefully unwrapped the colored paper. He removed the lid, revealing five empty Pokeballs, shrunken to their travel size, resting atop a velvet cushion. Taking them out of the container, he put each one on a magnetic slot in his belt designed just for that purpose. He then took the journal, running his hand across the smooth leather cover, off the table where he had placed it while he had opened the box. He could tell it was brand new by the slight creaking from the spine as he opened it up, revealing the blank white pages inside. He dragged his thumb across the paper, the fwip, fwip, fwip of the pages as they smacked back into each other, filling the air.

"Thanks, this is such a nice gift. I'll be sure to put them to good use," Gregory said as he put his new prize into a side pocket of his bag and turned back to his mom.

"I know you will, dear," The unwavering confidence in his mom's eyes made him squirm a bit.

"Alright, son, we won't hold you here any longer." his dad says, getting up and walking over to him.

Gregory was nearly suffocated as both his parents wrapped their arms around him, their grip like Iron bands, in a hug. After a minute or two, they let him go, his mom leaning in to say, "We will miss you, dear. Be safe out there." His face began to heat up in embarrassment as he raised a hand to rub the back of his head. "I-I'll miss you guys too." He mumbled in reply.

Their farewells having been said, Nora and Gregory made their way to route 29 to officially start their journey.

---

AN #2

Thanks again for all who took the time to read this!
Just wanted to shout out a cool website, https://www.theworldofpokemon.com/ - I will be using a lot of the information here for the pokedex entries
I am thinking of trying to release a chapter every week, hopefully on Sundays, but don't hold me too that. Still working out the balance of writing and work.
If you have any Ideas for OC trainers and their pokemon teams please PM me. If you do send in an OC Just give me some character quirks/ flaws that give me a gist of what they are like. Pokemon teams should be reasonable (no full teams of legendaries, or all shiny pokemon.) I'll be sure to give credit in an AN if i end up using any of your submitions.
As always I appreciate any feed back that you can give that would make this story better!

 

[Benny Resto]

Author's Note:

I still don't own Pokemon, duh.

If you find any errors or if you have any general critiques about the story please let me know in the comments!

---

The route between New Bark Town and Cherrygrove City was mainly forested with pockets of open grassy fields. Gregory himself has never actually left the town limits before. Of course, he had gone on the various survival hikes and overnight camping trips hosted by his academy in the surrounding forests and mountains, but the teachers and their Pokemon always accompanied him and the other students. So he couldn't help the tickle of anxiety and nerves that bubbled up as they began making their way down the compacted dirt road that was Route 29. A warm touch to his cheek made him turn. Fiery red eyes met his brown ones in a question. Fennekin had her head cocked at an angle as she perched on his right shoulder; she must have picked up on his feelings of apprehension.

"Just a little nervous, is all; I'm fine," he said, giving her a soft smile. She gave his cheek another nuzzle and jumped from his shoulder to the ground to walk under her own power.

"I'm glad I'm not the only one feeling nervous," Nora chuckled from beside him. She had just taken a sip of water from a water bottle. Closing the cap, she put it back in the pouch on the side of her backpack.

"Yeah, it's just a little surreal to think I'm finally starting my journey," Gregory said. "We would always have the teachers of the school and their Pokemon with us on our field trips, so it's weird not to have them here," He continued after taking a drink from his own water bottle.

"My school never took us on field trips like that, though every summer, the local Rangers would host a summer camp by the river that leads to Blue Moon Falls," she replies.

"What's Blue Moon Falls?" Gregory asked.

"Oh? You've never heard of it," she said as her eyes widened in apparent surprise, then continued after a moment. "That's where the local Quagsire Preserve is. You actually aren't allowed to catch them in Cherrygrove. They're a protected species there."

"Huh, interesting. I never knew that." He mused. The conversation died after that, both seemingly content to walk on in silence.

The sun was still high in the sky, with no cloud in sight. It had been relatively early in the morning when they had left, and while the temperature was still mild, they had been walking for about two hours now. They were walking through one of the more forested areas of the route. The trees on either side of the road were tall with thick trunks and cast shadows along the path. From within the forest, they heard the calls of many different Pokemon as they fluttered through the branches and scrambled through the dense underbrush. Most would stay clear of the road, but occasionally, they would catch glimpses of Pidgey or Caterpie that were curious enough to stray a little closer to the road. Nora and Gregory would pull out their Pokedex and scan them every time.

Eventually, the morning came and went well into the afternoon, and they decided to stop and have lunch. Ahead, they found an indent in the tree line along the side of the road that would make a perfect place to rest.

Before they had left New Bark town, they had stopped by a Pokemart. Gregory had found a bundle of small untreated branches and a few other things he thought Fennekin might enjoy. He got a few different types of wood to see which ones she preferred. Setting down his pack, he grabbed one of each type of wood and then called his little Firefox over.

"Hey girl, I got you some branches like I promised."

He proffered them up for inspection and watched as she sniffed at each. Her brow scrunched up in contemplation until she finally grabbed one with her teeth. Having secured her prize, she found a nearby patch of grass and lay down, where she began tearing bits of bark and dried wood off leisurely.

"Huh, so it looks like you prefer hickory wood."

As he watched her eat, he began to notice what looked like wisps of embers coming out of the fur of her ears. He quickly took out his Pokedex, snapped a quick video, and then noted what he saw.

Their Pokemon having been fed, they sat down in the cool shade of a tree to enjoy their lunch. Gregory pulled out a bag of trail mix and a few granola bars. Nora, however, had what looked like an egg sandwich. A few minutes later, having finished his food and disposing of the trash, he catches Nora's eye and points a finger her way.

"I challenge you to a battle!" he says enthusiastically, a determined look in his eye. Fennekin, who had also finished eating her branch, strode over and sat before her trainer with a similar glint in her eye.

Nora's eyes widened in a brief show of surprise before she gave an almost exasperated eye roll. "Couldn't even wait for your food to finish digesting?" She said with an eyebrow raised. Despite that, she still rose and dusted off her jeans. Gregory just shrugged in return.

"Well, you know what they say about two trainers locking eyes," He said, an electric feeling of excitement jolting through him, causing him to trail off when their eyes met.

She just laughed and called her Mudkip back to her side. "Fine, but the loser has to set up both tents tonight!"

They both backed up to give plenty of room for their Pokemon to maneuver. He found a stray rock on the ground and picked it up. "We start when the rock hits the ground?" he called out, holding it out in front of his chest. Nora gives him a sharp nod of her head. He lobs the rock up into the air, their eyes locked on its lazy arc through the air. It was like time was moving in slow motion; his heart pumped, the blood surging through his veins, filled with adrenaline from the anticipation and excitement. His mind raced, trying to seemingly recall every lesson he had ever been taught at the academy. With the soft thud of the rock on the grass, time snapped back into gear. Both trainers called their moves out at the same time.

"Fennekin, Howl." "Mudkip, tackle!"

Fennekin threw her head back and let loose a fierce howl, though admittedly, it was still rather cute. Mudkip hesitated slightly, then threw himself forward in a charge, head lowered with a croaking bellow, towards the little fox Pokemon. "Quick, dodge it!" Gregory called; Fennekin just barely jumped clear as the little amphibian rushed through her previously occupied spot. Mudkip dug his legs in, halting his momentum so that he could turn and face his opponent. "Watergun, Mudkip!" Nora ordered. "Dodge it, then hit him with scratch," Gregory called in response. Mudkip's Cheeks started to expand outward as he tilted his head back as if taking a deep breath, the pressure building, until he threw his head forward, releasing a jet of water that streaked towards Fennekin. The vixen tried to jump to the side again, but she wasn't fast enough this time. The jet of water clipped the side of her body and caused her to get pushed back, and a surprised yelp of pain burst from her snout. She recovered quickly and charged in towards the mud fish Pokemon, pouncing forward with one of her fore paws extended. The water gun seemed to have tired Mudkip out a bit; he was taking a few deep breaths, so he couldn't respond in time to Nora's call to move. Fennekin's short claws impacted the side of his head, causing him to stumble back slightly. "Tackle, quick while she's close to you," Nora snapped out. "Charm him Fennekin!" Gregory quickly ordered. Mudkip's Muscles bunched, preparing to leap bodily into Fennekin, and when their eyes met, the vixen's whole demeanor shifted. Her body relaxed, and her face lost its stern expression. Her eyes had a slight pink glow as she gave him a cute wink. Just as he began to jump, his muscles relaxed, and what would have hit like a falling boulder became more like a forceful shove. She was still pushed back, and a wince of pain flashed across her face. She was, however, still able to respond in time to the following command. "Scratch him again!" Gregory called, her paw flashing forward again to impact the other side of Mudkip's face. With a loud groan, he fell to the ground, no longer able to battle.

"YES! You did it, girl!" Gregory exclaimed as he rushed over to his little fox and knelt beside her. Her sides were heaving, and her legs were wobbly. It looked like she was barely hanging on, but she could still give a happy, if very tired, yip at his praise. As he scooped her into his arms and began walking with her back to his bag, he noticed Nora kneeling beside her downed partner. She was spraying some potion onto a rag and gently rubbing it into the wounds on his face, whispering soft praises that he couldn't make out. He then pulled out his own potion from his bag and did the same for Fennekin.

"You did awesome out there, girl; I'm proud of you." he said softly to his exhausted partner, "Here, take a rest inside your Pokeball; I'll let you walk with us again in a bit."

After applying the potion, he pulled her ball from his belt and clicked the button. With that, she disappeared in a flash of red light. Returning her ball back to his belt, he stood up, shouldering his backpack. He turned around and noticed Mudkip also being returned as Nora began packing up her stuff.

"Your Mudkip almost had us there for a second," Gregory said as he approached her. She turned and let out a large sigh, her cheeks puffing out with the large air volume, her disappointment evident.

"Yeah, he sure did; we will get you next time!" she said. The frustrated expression on her face vanished, only to be replaced with a small smile as she gave her partner's Pokeball a slight caress. She began making her way back to the dirt road of Route 29.

"I guess we will have to wait and see," he said, with a laugh following after her. "Don't worry though, I'll still help set up the tents tonight."

Since their battle at lunch, they've been on the road for about another 4 hours. The walk was primarily uneventful; however, there were a few occasions when some wild Pokemon had jumped out at them from the tall grass bordering the road. The first time was a couple of Rattata. Thankfully, they had decided to let their Pokemon out to walk beside them again an hour before so they could respond to them before the mouse Pokemon could harm them. With a couple of water guns and embers, their Pokemon were quickly able to scare them away. The next occurrence, Gregory had just been able to duck out of the way of an angry Spearow that had dive-bombed him from a tree. He and Fennekin were able to take it down, though they had a more challenging time with it due to it being airborne for most of the flight. After they had managed to get its attention on Fennekin, they had to carefully lead it into swooping at her while she was just in front of a tree. Then, at the last second, dodge so that it ran into its trunk. Once the Spearow was dazed from its head-on collision, the vixen could close with it and knock it out with a few well-placed scratch attacks.

The sun was beginning to set, the sky turning a gorgeous mixture of blues, oranges, and pinks. The mild heat of the day had started to cool as the shadows of the trees began to merge into one the closer the sun fell toward the horizon. Up ahead, they could see a fork in the road, the point of convergence between Route 46 and Route 29. Around what appeared to be a rest stop was a large open field cleared of trees and with the grass carefully trimmed low. Dotting the area were pre-built fire pits, medium-sized circles made out of rocks; the grass immediately around had been removed, so all that remained was bare dirt. They also had logs arrayed around for the travel-weary trainers to use when they visited the campsite.

Gregory knew from his classes that many of these stops were located along the regional routes. The Pokemon Rangers employed by the PLA maintained all these campgrounds as part of their responsibilities. As well as tracking migratory patterns for local Pokemon and stopping any would-be poachers.

Nora and Gregory wasted no time, quickly claiming one of the fire pits for themselves. After each set their tents up, Gregory offered to collect some firewood while Nora prepared the ingredients for their dinner. About fifteen minutes later, a fire was roaring below a pot full of stew. As they sat waiting for the food to finish cooking, Nora getting up every few minutes to stir the pot, Gregory grabbed the grooming kit he had bought early this morning. He beckoned Fennekin over, setting her across his lap as he used the various combs and brushes within the kit to remove all the dirt and dust from her fur that accumulated from all the walking and battling she had done today. The contented noises she made during his ministrations let him know she enjoyed it. All the while, the aroma wafting out of their cook pot was causing his mouth to water and his stomach to gurgle.

"wow, Nora, that smells great! Where did you learn to cook like that?" He asked as she handed him a bowl of the stew, light wisps of steam rising out of it. She then set down a bowl of food for Mudkip, only answering after grabbing her own bowl of the stew.

"Thanks, though I'm nowhere near as good as my mom." she paused to take a bite of the stew, gently blowing on it to cool it off before putting it in her mouth. "She was the one who taught me. She said it would be an important skill on my journey," she continued after swallowing her bite of food.

Gregory saw her lips twitch into a smile as her eyes darted down to Fennekin, still in his lap. The vixen had fallen asleep during the grooming. Every now and then, her ears would twitch, or a leg would spasm.

'Now that is adorable,' Gregory thought to himself. Slowly, so as not to wake her, he pulls out his pokegear and snaps a picture of her.

They quickly finish eating the stew. Nora enlists Mudkip to help clean out all the dirty bowls and pots. The little amphibian used low-pressure blasts of water to scour out any leftover food. After the dishes were cleaned and put away, the two teens sat around the fire; Gregory had gone back out to grab some more firewood, enjoying the relaxing ambiance of the night. The campfire cast a flickering orange and red light across their faces, its flickering warmth chasing away the slight chill of the night air. The stars were shining unimpeded here in the forest, none of the light pollution from the city's lights to dim them, their light like a shimmering tapestry filling the sky. Off in the distance, they could hear the soft chatter of a few other groups sitting around their own gently glowing campfires and the occasional calls of the nocturnal Pokemon as they awakened and began moving around the shadowy undergrowth of the forest. Gregory and Nora sat in companionable silence as they took it all in, their Pokemon both nestled up to their respective trainer, breathing quietly in sleep. Finally, Gregory wasn't sure how much time had passed; with a yawn, he bade Nora a good night and gently, so as not to wake her up, picked Fennekin up and headed into his tent. Despite the hard ground beneath it, sleep took him as soon as he got into his sleeping bag.

---

AN #2

Thanks again for all who took the time to read this!
Just wanted to shout out a cool website, https://www.theworldofpokemon.com/ - I will be using a lot of the information here for the pokedex entries
I am thinking of trying to release a chapter every week, hopefully on Sundays, but don't hold me too that. Still working out the balance of writing and work.
If you have any Ideas for OC trainers and their pokemon teams please PM me. If you do send in an OC Just give me some character quirks/ flaws that give me a gist of what they are like. Pokemon teams should be reasonable (no full teams of legendaries, or all shiny pokemon.) I'll be sure to give credit in an AN if i end up using any of your submitions.
As always I appreciate any feed back that you can give that would make this story better!

 

[Benny Resto]

I still don't own Pokemon, duh.
If you find any errors or if you have any general critiques about the story please let me know in the comments!

---

Gregory awoke to a mouth full of a fluffy tail the following day. The vixen was asleep on his chest, her tail flicking back and forth in random intervals in response to unknowable situations in a dream. He spluttered once more, getting a face full of fluff. With a wave of his hand, he swatted the offending limb away, causing a grumble from Fennekin as she got up and tried to fall asleep in a different spot. With a stretch, he rose from the sleeping bag, changing into a new set of clean clothes.

"Come on, girl, it's time to wake up," he said as he went over to his still-sleeping Pokemon, knelt, and gently shook her awake.

Her only response was to crack one red eye open and give him a wholly unimpressed look before shutting it closed again. Giving the lazy fox a sly smile, he turned to leave the tent, calling back over his shoulder, "Oh well, I was going to see if you wanted to go see if there were any berries around the campsite, but if you'd rather sleep some more, I guess that will just leave more for me." Before he was out of the tent, a yellow streak shot out ahead of him, and when he exited, he saw her sitting in front of the tent, giving him a look as if he was the one keeping her waiting. Gregory just laughed and motioned for her to follow him into the surrounding woods.

After about 30 minutes of searching the surrounding area, they found several varieties of berries. With the help of Fennekin's keener senses, they had found some Oran, Pecha, Cheri, Razz, and Bluk berry bushes. They took a few handfuls of each, carefully leaving some for the native Pokemon, Gregory placed the ones they didn't eat into his berry pouch.

The pouch itself was a medium size. However, just like his backpack, it used a unique technology that allowed it to store way more than what one would think based on its size.
Of all the Berries she tried, Gregory noticed that the Bluk berry seemed to be Fennekin's favorite. Trying one himself, he noticed that it had a primarily dry flavor.

"Not a fan of sweet things are you?" Gregory commented as they continued to walk through the surrounding woods.

Their berry hunt had been a success, and the two returned to the camp. As they walked up, Gregory noticed that a small gathering of trainers had formed over in an open field at the far side of the campground. Curious, he made his way over. Closing in on the group, he heard the sounds of a Pokemon battle.

His Curiosity only doubled, and he picked up the pace. On one side of the makeshift battlefield, he saw that Nora and Mudkip were one of the ones battling. Their opponent was a man who looked to be in his early 20s.

He had the look of someone who had been on the road a long time; his clothes were dusty and worn, with a few spots that looked to have been patched. Peeking out below a ballcap that should probably have been retired long ago was a shock of black hair. The man's dark brown eyes were laser-focused on the action before him. Out on the field, he had sent out an Ivysaur.

If it had been standing next to Gregory, it would have come up to his waist, which included the sizeable red bulb that sprouted from its back. The bulb looked like a closed flower that hadn't yet bloomed, with four large frond-like leaves sticking out from every cardinal direction. It had light teal-colored skin with darker blue spotting peppered around its body and face. The Ivysaur's face was determined, its dark red irises locked onto its opponent. It had four squat legs spread out, giving it a stable foundation to respond to its trainer's commands.

Gregory whipped out his pokedex and aimed it at the Pokemon as Fennekin jumped up to his shoulder so she could get a better view of the battle. The scan was completed, and he listened as his dex read the Pokemon's entry.

"Ivysaur, the Seed Pokemon. Upon evolution from Bulbasaur, Ivysaur become larger and more powerful. However, as a trade-off for their bulk, they also lose their ability to stand on their hind legs due to the mass of the bulbs on their backs. Ivysaur are able to naturally learn the powerful Grass-type attack Solar Beam, a move whose execution time depends largely upon the weather. The bulbs on their backs must receive ample sunlight to photosynthesize and develop. When Ivysaur are preparing to evolve into Venusaur, they will spend more time sunbathing, and their bulbs will emanate a sweet, pleasant aroma."

Closing the device, he returned it to his pocket so he could focus on the fight. Though a novice battler himself, even he could tell that this was not going to go well for Nora. Her Mudkip was still young, and Nora wasn't any more experienced than he was. Her opponent's Pokemon looked well-trained and cared for; and if its trainer was as old as he looked, he was most likely an Ace trainer.

The Ace league was for the professional battlers, and only those who had made it to at least the top 8 in one of the various regional conferences could compete. Those who compete try to rise up the rankings by defeating other ace trainers; winning or losing will either net you or cause you to lose points. Every year, the top-ranked trainer in the ace league, or those who place 1st in the silver or indigo conference, may challenge the Elite Four.

"Mudkip, dodge right!" Nora Ordered, the command snapping Gregory's focus back to the fight. The little amphibian was just able to roll out of the way as a long, thin green vine that the Ivysaur extended out from below the bulb on its back slammed down in the spot he was just standing in. The force of its impact was enough to cause clods of earth to spray out.

The tension of the battle had Nora's brows drawn down in a frown, her jaw muscles clenched in what looked to Gregory as frustration. Her eyes darted all around the field, trying to glean any advantage.

"Charge in for a tackle, Mudkip!" she demanded.

Mudkip looked spent; its body littered with micro cuts, and there was a large bruise in the middle of its head, as its lungs heaved like a bellows. However, the little guy released one of its croaking bellows and pushed through its injuries to follow her order.

The man she faced just stood there as Mudkip charged, not yet verbalizing an attack or an order to move. Gregory could've sworn he saw the Ivysaur's eyes flick back to him, but he couldn't be sure. Just then, Mudkip connected bodily with the other Pokemon, and a bursting cloud of off-yellow dust exploded from the Ivysaur.

"No, Mudkip! Get out of there," she ordered, but it was too late. As soon as he inhaled some of the powder, his body locked up, causing him to collapse into the dirt. The Ivysaur was extending its vines again towards the downed mud fish Pokemon, but before he could finish off Mudkip, a thin beam of red light engulfed his body, sucking him back into his Pokeball.

Gregory saw her bring the Pokeball close to her mouth and whispered something he couldn't make out before she clipped the ball back to her belt. Once Nora secured the ball to her belt, she let off a deep sigh, the tension her body held in until that second was finally released.

The man began walking across the field toward Nora, his Ivysaur falling in beside him as he passed it. When he finally made it to her, they began to converse, talking too quietly for Gregory to have heard what they said.

Nora looked to have asked him a question, though. Gregory thought that she had a hopeful expression on her face. The man shared a look with his Pokemon, then shrugged and nodded. At that time, two other trainers had started making their way to either end of the impromptu battlefield, a new challenge having been issued. Nora and the man started making their way back to the campsite they had used the previous night. Gregory followed after the pair.

They had just sat around the used-up ashes of last night's fire when Gregory caught up with them.

"Hey Gregory, where were you this morning?" Nora said, having finally spotted him.

"Fennekin and I were looking for some berries out in the forest," he said, then trying to be subtle, he flicked his eyes to the man sitting in their camp. He raised an eyebrow in a silent question.

"S-sorry, Gregory, this is Brian," She began nervously, " I had challenged him to a battle and, well, I lost pretty decisively," she said that last part with a hint of embarrassment coloring her cheeks.

"Yeah, I did catch the tail end of your battle, but you know we have only ever had one battle up until now. We just got our Pokemon yesterday." He said, giving her a sympathetic look, as he attempted to cheer her up.

Her shoulders lifted in a half-hearted shrug, as her green eyes flicked away briefly, momentarily unable to maintain eye contact with him. Gregory thought that he had been successful because when her eye did finally meet his she had a small smile gently curling her lips.

"That is true, I suppose. Anyway, after the battle, he was kind enough to offer me a few tips to help Mudkip and me get stronger," She said after a moment.

Brian, who had up until this point been pulling out cooking implements and various different food items, finally turned to look at Gregory, giving him a grin and a nod of acknowledgment.

"Nice to meet you, Mr. Brian. My name is Gregory." Gregory said, Returning his smile and nod before he continued, rather excitedly, " Your Ivysaur looked super strong out there. What other Pokemon do you have? Are you an Ace trainer? Would you mind giving me some tips, too?"

Gregory wanted to be the best trainer he could be, and this was an opportunity he just couldn't let pass him by.

"Slow down there, kid, one question at a time," Brian chuckled as he raised his arms palms out as if to ward off the rapid-fire assault of questions.

"First off, just call me Brian; the Mister just makes me feel old. To answer your second question, yes, I am an Ace trainer, but I just debuted in the circuit a month ago," The older trainer answered. He took a second to rummage into his pack again, bringing out four large-sized bowls. He set them beside the cookware he had placed down earlier.

Gregory noticed that while his attire was roughed up and travel-worn, his backpack, and equipment were all brand new. All of them had the same small decal engraved onto their surfaces.

"I don't mind giving you some tips too. I was mostly just going to give Nora a rundown of some of the basics. So you both should be able to benefit from it. As far as my other team members, it will be easier to show you. I was just about to get their breakfast ready anyway." He said as he stood up and walked a few feet from the firepit. With a practiced ease, he ran his hand over the remaining five pokeballs on his belt, his fingers hitting all the release buttons in rapid succession of each other.

Gregory and Nora had to briefly look away as five consecutive bright flashes of light filled the area. Turning back around, the two teenagers could now see the rest of Brian's team flanking him. Each Pokemon cried a greeting before finding a place to sit around the campsite.

Gregory and Nora both took out their Pokedex, scanning each new Pokemon. The first one Gregory noticed looked like a large boulder, but if the boulder had a face, four arms, and two legs. Its body was rugged looking, covered in bumps and groves like a rock with bits eroded away. All four of its arms had three thick, stubby fingers, two of which were shorter and kept tucked close to the front of its rounded body.

"Graveler," the Pokedex recited in its computerized monotone, "the rock Pokemon, though carefree and not at all aggressive Pokémon, they are one of the main dangers trainers face while hiking in the mountains. They roll down mountainsides carelessly, smashing trees, boulders, and anything else standing in the way--including unwary travelers--until they reach the bottom. They are tough to stop once they pick up momentum from their tumbles and can appear almost out of nowhere due to the high speeds they can reach. Graveler actively enjoy rolling down mountains and will climb to their peaks simply to tumble back down. When not rolling down mountains, Graveler consumes rocks, especially enjoying those covered in moss. They rarely walk and are pretty slow when lumbering around on their feet. They can be observed clinging to cavern walls while asleep using their bulky arms."

The rock pokemon slowly trudged over to where Brian's Ivysaur lay, napping and catching the rays from the mid-morning sun, where it joined it in taking a nap.

The next Pokemon that drew his gaze was bounding over to the fire pit. It was small, covered in short pink fur, and had a tail bound into a swirl pattern, above which sat a pair of small wing-like growths resting above its tail. An odd quirk Gregory noticed was that it seemed to move like one would expect to move on a planet with a lower gravitational force. This time, Nora was the one to scan the Pokemon.

"Clefairy," once again the computerized voice intoned, "the Fairy Pokemon, are mysterious Pokémon. Believed to have extraterrestrial origins, they make their earthly homes on mountains like Mt. Moon in Kanto and Mt. Coronet in Sinnoh. They can also be found in the Giant Chasm of Unova, a mysterious site with ties to outer space. Their habitats tend to have odd magnetic activity, and some even say Clefairy themselves warp the surrounding electromagnetic field. Many theories have formed regarding these popular Pokémon. One explains their tendencies to steal things as gathering materials to build spaceships to take them back home. They also are very strongly connected to the moon. They worship Moon Stones, the trigger for their evolution, and allegedly store moonlight in the wings on their backs to float in midair. Despite their rarity, their cute appearance and voice have made Clefairy popular symbols in media and merchandising."

As he listened to the Pokedex rattle off the information it had on Clefairy he noticed that the fairy Pokemon had jumped up on the log beside Nora and was listening along. Once the Pokemon heard the Pokedex mention Moon stones, it visibly perked up, looking around at each human hopefully.

"Sorry, Clefairy, we don't have a moonstone for you," Brian said as he sat beside the now crestfallen Pokemon. He placed a comforting hand on it, trying to assuage the Pokemon's disappointment.

While they were scanning the first two Pokemon, Brian had restarted a fire in the ashes of the one from last night. He then started hanging some of the various pots he had pulled out over the fire. Gregory sat on one of the logs around the fire, Fennekin jumping up to claim her spot on his lap. She spun a single circle, apparently getting comfortable, before promptly curling up atop his thighs. He just chuckled at his Pokemon's antics, pulling out a branch for her to chew on, using the hand not holding his Pokedex to stroke the soft yellow fur of her back.

Just then, a tiny, if Gregory had to guess, about two feet or so, human-like Pokemon came twirling into view. It looked like a little ballerina with thin, green legs, a white upper body with a Tutu-like frill around its waist, and two red horns coming off the sides of its head.

Gregory and Nora both cracked smiles as the little Pokemon pirouetted around the camp. Its dance routine seemed explicitly designed to lighten their mood. The Pokedex entry for this Pokemon confirmed Gregory's hunch as he listened.

"Kirlia, the Emotion Pokemon, draw their power from positive emotions. Because of this, only cheerful, optimistic trainers can raise strong Kirlia. It is said that they become more graceful and powerful the more often they are exposed to positive feelings. When happy, they will dance and twirl to amuse those around them. This, in turn, makes onlookers happier, giving Kirlia more energy to dance, and so on. Kirlia are highly intelligent, with well-developed brains capable of harnessing respectable psychokinetic powers from the emotions around them. The horns on their heads concentrate their powers, allowing them to distort the space around them and create visual mirages."

Gregory watched the Kirlia dance around for a moment longer until a chuffing noise of annoyance from his lap reminded him that he had stopped stroking Fennekin's fur.

"Those are some useful devices you got there. Where did you come by them?" Brian said, now standing over the largest of the pots on the fire, adding large quantities of meats, vegetables, and berries and stirring them together. The other pot looked to have rice cooking, steam wafting through a small valve in the pot's lid.

"Professor Elm from New Bark Town gave these to us. He asked us to help him collect data on any Pokemon we see," Nora answered; she had released Mudkip earlier and was now rubbing him down with a rag sprayed with some potion. After every swipe of the rag, his cuts and bruises seemed to get smaller and smaller until they finally disappeared altogether. The amphibian looked way better already, though he was still exhausted.

"Well, maybe I'll have to go give him a visit. Those things look damn convenient," Brian said, staring at the devices in their hands with open interest and maybe a little bit of envy.

Nora and Brian made small talk while Brian finished cooking his Pokemon's breakfast. Meanwhile, Gregory had finished scanning the two remaining Pokemon of Brian's team Pupitar and a Gabite.
The former was a large cocoon-like Pokemon, and its shell was silver blue with four spiky protrusions that made up a face plate on either side of its eye holes. Above this sat a crest of three more spikes. It had yet to move from the spot it was released from. The Pupitar maintained a silent watch over the camp and its inhabitants.

The latter was a squat bipedal Pokemon. The Gabite's body was covered in rough purple scales with a red underbelly. Its two arms were thin and only had one giant claw each. However, sticking out from either arm was a small fin-like appendage. It had two additional fins sticking out from its mid back and stubby tail. Protruding out the side of its head were two torpedo-like horns set slightly up and behind its two striking yellow eyes.

The Gabite initially gave Nora and Gregory a hard stare as he paced around the camp. However, a sharp word from Brian caused the dragon-type Pokemon to ignore them the rest of the time.

Setting out all their bowls, Brian measured out their portions of the food, topping them all with additional berries. Each one is suited to the specific Pokemon's unique tastes. The food had been set out, and with a nod of Brain's head, all the Pokemon rushed to their bowls and began eating happily and with much gusto.

"Is your Pupitar not going to eat?" Nora asked, a concerned look on her face as she noticed that the hard-shell Pokemon had remained in its previous position.

"Pupitar doesn't need to eat, actually. He has all he needs stored inside his body from when he was a Larvitar," Brian said; he briefly glanced over at the Pokemon in question before returning to cleaning up all the dirty pots from cooking the food.

---

"Ok! Now that they have gotten their food, we can start going over some of the basics of Pokemon training," Brian said as he sat next to Gregory, all his cooking equipment cleaned and returned to his bag. All around them, Brian's Pokemon team was relaxing, letting their full bellies digest the food.

"Now, you both got your Pokemon yesterday, right?" Brian asked, pausing to give each of them a glance as they nodded in the affirmative.

"That's what I thought. The good news is that since you just got your Pokemon, they will improve exponentially because of how young they are. It will also let you build up a good foundation for them."

"So what do we need to do to set up a good foundation?" Gregory cut in. He had grabbed the journal his mother had gifted him and had it open to the first blank page, his pen poised above it, ready to take notes. His complete focus was on the older trainer before him, much to Fennekin's dismay. As Gregory was no longer giving her attention, the little vixen huffed and went to find a new spot to nap.

"Well, there are three things I would recommend you do," he began holding up a finger as he listed each thing, "First is nutrition; if you aren't giving your Pokemon the correct amount of calories or nutrients they require, then they just won't be able to perform. No matter how determined they might be."

"Now, the pre-packaged food they sell at the pokemart isn't the worst, but if your goal is to reach the pinnacles of Pokemon battling, then you will need to either buy specially blended mixes made specifically for your Pokemon or you will need to make it yourself," He said the latter part motioning to the now empty bowls he had used to feed his pokemon.

"Second," he punctuated this by holding a second finger up, "You need to condition your Pokemon."

"Your Mudkip couldn't do nearly as much as he could've because he got gassed way too early," Brian said as he turned his gaze to Nora. Mudkip, who had been listening to the conversation, let loose a grumbling croak as he turned his head away in a pout. Nora just ran a comforting hand down his back, Accepting the critique for the truth that it was with a slight nod of her head.

"Just like a human would lift weights or go on a run to grow their muscle or gain endurance, pokemon also need to do the same. I can show you a few starting routines you can use." He chuckled as he noticed the almost pleading looks on the teens' faces as he said the latter part.

"Now, the last thing is that you must work with your Pokemon to help them master their moves. Now I know what you're thinking; that is pretty obvious," Brian said with an eyebrow raised as he looked at Gregory, who had, in fact, just been thinking that.

"You'd be surprised how many new trainers don't actually do that, but the main reason I bring this up is that besides being able to be more accurate or more powerful with their moves. They will be able to use them in more creative ways."

"Is that why your Ivysaur was able to release that stun spore so fast?" Gregory asked, thinking back to the earlier battle.

"Yes and no," Brian stated, shaking his hand in a so-so manner, "in that instance, I had given him a signal to prepare it and wait for Nora's Mudkip to get closer, but it was due to his mastery of the technique that let him release it at the correct time."

Nora and Gregory asked him a few more questions about the tips he gave them. Nora focused her questions more on Pokemon nutrition. She had also pulled out a notebook to write down the answers. Gregory, however, was more focused on the ins and outs of Pokemon conditioning and move training.

Brian was patient in answering their questions and demonstrated a few exercise routines they could use. However, after about thirty minutes, he finally got up, returned all his Pokemon except for his Ivysaur, and slung his pack over his shoulder. Then he departed, bidding them a happy farewell.

"Brian sure was a nice guy, huh?" Nora said offhandedly as they watched as Brian made his way down the road, waving merrily at his retreating form.

"Yeah, he sure was," Gregory replied before turning his head down to look at Fennekin, sitting beside him, "So, are you ready to train, girl?"

A wide grin stretched across Gregory's face as she gave him a determined nod.

---

Gabite are highly territorial, viciously defending their domains against intruders. Unlike Gible, Gabite are very swift, allowing them to actually chase prey instead of waiting for their approach. The two protrusions on either side of their heads emit ultrasonic waves that help them navigate dark caverns. They enjoy collecting sparkly items, particularly gemstones. They will dig into cave walls in search of jewels (and Carbink), hoarding them in large piles in their nests. They will remain motionless for hours at a time keeping an eye on their hoards. Gabite scales are thought to have medicinal properties. Some people believe that grinding the scales and then consuming the resulting powder will cure any illness. Though illegal to sell, the difficulty of obtaining these scales makes them very valuable on the black market in many regions. Gabite shed their scales along with their skins periodically as they grow, but these shed scales are regarded as lower quality in traditional medicine than "fresh" ones.

Pupitar are limbless (discounting the growing arms and legs within their shells), but they are not immobile. When threatened, they will thrash about violently in hopes of bludgeoning or piercing foes with various parts of their bodies. Even if they fail to make contact, their sudden movements often topple unstable portions of their mountainous homes, trapping foes in rockslides. Such occurrences don't harm Pupitar; their shells are as hard as sheet rock. Additionally, the carapaces of these Pokémon contain highly pressurized gas. By venting this gas out of their shells in a controlled manner, they can propel themselves at high speeds toward attackers. The force of these launches can dent solid steel without even scratching their shells. They can also use this gas to find new places to hide. However, Pupitar cannot replenish this gas once released, so they do not practice this method of defense and locomotion often. Pupitar do not eat, relying on the energy they had stored as Larvitar for survival. Even when not in danger, these Pokémon will thrash about in order to relieve themselves of stored gases, leading to the common belief that they are temperamental and impatient for evolution.

---

Question for readers, would you prefer that I post all of the Pokedex entries that Gregory and Nora come across at the end of the chapter like i did with Pupitar and Gabite? or do you like it better as I've been doing?

Thanks again for all who took the time to read this!

Just wanted to shout out a cool website, https://www.theworldofpokemon.com/ - I will be using a lot of the information here for the Pokedex entries

Sundays are still my planned release day for new chapters, however, as you know sometimes life gets in the way.

If you have any ideas for OC trainers and their Pokemon teams, please PM me. If you send in an OC Just give me some character quirks/ flaws that give me a gist of what they are like. Pokemon teams should be reasonable (no full teams of legendaries, or all shiny Pokemon.) I'll be sure to give credit in an AN if I end up using any of your submissions.
As always I appreciate any feedback that you can give that would make this story better!

 

[Benny Resto]

Author's Note:

This will be the last chapter on Route 29, I promise, lol

If there are any mistakes or if you have any critics about my writing, please let me know in the comments below!

Enjoy the chapter.

---

They had decided to stay at the campsite for another night, using the rest of the morning and afternoon to try and work on some of Brian's tips. The two teens had claimed a small corner of the field to do their training in. Scattered around the flat grassy area, a few other trainers were out and about, also running their pokemon through their own training routines. The two trainers closest to them were having a mock battle, their Pidey and Spearow flying through the air, taking turns dodging as the other whipped their wings, kicking up unnaturally strong winds to try and knock the other out of the air.

Gregory and Nora started with some of the conditioning routines Brian had shown them. They began by having Mudkip and Fennekin do three laps around the entirety of the campground. Despite their diminutive sizes, both pokemon could run faster than you would think. Gregory thought that he would have trouble keeping up with them even if he was riding a bike.

However, their speed was short-lived, though still relatively fast compared to humans. After the first lap, they were noticeably slower. Then, when they finished the second, they were going maybe half the speed they started at. By the time they finished the final lap, Fennekin was panting, tongue lolling out the side of her mouth. Poor Mudkip, however, wasn't able to complete the last lap, and Nora had to carry him back to the finish.

'Brian was right, they really don't have much stamina at this point,' Gregory thought as he watched Mudkip gasp for air. The blue amphibian had a disappointed look on his face, upset that he couldn't finish all three laps.

"Don't let this get you down, Mudkip," Nora said encouragingly, laying a hand comfortingly on the back of his head, near the large fin that juts up from the top of his head. " You just have to keep it up. It takes time to improve yourself."

"Kip!" he said, giving her a determined nod as he absorbed the words of his trainer.

After the run, they stopped for a lunch break. Gregory had grabbed some of the oran berries from his bag and shared them with the two pokemon. The two pokemon had collapsed in a shady patch of grass. He recalled that Oran berries were supposed to be beneficial in helping pokemon recover.

"We should keep an eye out for Oran berry bushes. I think they will come in handy in the future," Gregory said as he sat across from Nora; she was scribbling something down in her journal. She only gave him a vague hum in response to his comment.

"What are you writing there?" he asked a few moments later. His curiosity had gotten the better of him.

"I'm making a list of things I need to get when we get to Cherrygrove," she said, looking up at him briefly as she spoke before returning her attention to the page she was on, jotting a few more things down.

"Really? Like what?"

"I've just been thinking a lot about the advice Brian gave us, so I figured I'd try to learn more about Pokemon nutrition by getting some books." She looked over to where her Pokemon sat, eating the food she had given him earlier. Her whole demeanor shifted as her gaze softened, and her lips twitched a grin.

"I just want to be the best trainer I can for him, you know?"

"Yeah, you and me both," Gregory replied, matching her grin with his own.

They were both done eating their lunch and were relaxing a bit more before they began running their pokemon through some more training. About fifteen minutes had passed since he had given them the oran berries, and both pokemon had already bounced back. The berries had refilled them with energy.

Though they still had a few more conditioning drills they could work on, Gregory thought that it would be better to work up to them slowly. So, instead, they decided to work on perfecting some of their partner's moves.

Gregory and Nora had set up a few makeshift targets using fallen logs and other debris they found in the woods around them. Gregory used a knife to score the log's bark with rough, as they were by no means perfect, concentric circles so that they could see where the moves landed. Nora then had Mudkip shoot water guns at them, focusing on accuracy and endurance. After every couple of shots, she would have him move back a few feet, then repeat.

She had Mudkip keep this up for as long as he could. Eventually, he could do no more. The continuous water guns had caused him to dry out. At that point, Nora had called a rest, taking him over to the camp's water pump, where he could take big gulps of water to replenish his internal stores.

Gregory was having Fennekin work on her ember attack. Like Mudkip, he had her begin firing her ember attacks at one of the upright logs they had set up as a target. The little fox gathered up a huge breath of air, her chest swelling with its volume, then threw her head forward, mouth agape. A torrent of small embers shot toward the log.

He had started her about twenty feet away from the target, and though most of them hit, they were mainly at the edges of the log, the flames charring the bark where they impacted black. Only one or two hit closer to the center, but almost none were within four inches of each other.

"That was a great first try girl," Gregory cheered as he knelt down to give her a congratulatory scratch behind one of her ears, "Now let's try that again, but this time try to make them hit a little closer together."

Gregory and Fennekin carried on practicing like this for another hour. Slowly, over that course of time, the embers that Fennekin released would start to impact in a tighter and tighter grouping. When they finally stopped at the end of the hour, the projectiles Fennekin sent out would impact the log. However, they were still a few inches apart.

Like with Mudkip, at the end of the hour her embers, already relatively small to begin with, were little more than tendrils of smoke that could not even reach the target. She was heaving air, clearly exhausted. When he went to give her another encouraging pat on the head, he noticed that she seemed nearly cold to the touch.

"Fennekin, you're cold. Are you okay?" he said, a slight panic beginning to creep into his voice. Before his concern could prevent him from thinking clearly, he remembered something from the pokedex entry.

'They combust the sticks they eat within their bodies to create fire.'

He put his exhausted fox down. Gregory quickly removed his pack and rummaged through it, pulling out the hickory branches he had purchased in New Bark town. Though still clearly spent, Fennekin perked up just a bit at the sight of the wood.

"Note to self: make sure she has plenty of wood to eat," Gregory thought to himself. He was able to calm down after he could see the little sparks of flame popping off the vixen's fur when she devoured all of the hickory he gave her.

Gregory and Nora let their Pokemon rest for a spell before running them through the same drill. They spent the rest of the afternoon this way, cycling between target practice and small rest breaks.

As the sun descended towards the horizon, the light blue sky darkened to bursts of oranges, pinks, and reds of a sunset. Most trainers from earlier in the day had already returned to their campsites. All that remained were Gregory and Nora, standing on opposite ends of the field, their pokemon facing each other in a defensive stance. They wanted to end the day with a battle, so as he did for their first battle, Gregory tossed a rock in the air to signal its start.

"Water gun, just like you've been practicing," ordered Nora, able to get it out just a second earlier than him.

"Ember, Fennekin!"

The stream of water burst forth from Mudkip's mouth, his cheeks quickly expanding with liquid before giving way from the built-up pressure. Fennekin was just inhaling the air into her chest to release her attack when the water impacted her head-on, Gregory not having enough time to call for her to dodge. The water attack's force was significant enough to break her concentration, which caused her ember to fail. It also caused her to lose her footing, the water pushing her across the ground for a few feet.

That opening attack hurt her, Mudkip's quick reflexes catching her off guard. The Little Vixen struggled back to her feet, shaking off the excess water from her coat. The high heat of her fur caused little whisps of steam to float off her body.

"Nice recovery, girl. Get in close and scratch him," Gregory called out, punching his fist toward the other Pokemon.

Fennekin gave off a howl, not quite as intimidating as she probably hoped, and shot off toward Mudkip.

"Another water gun. You got this!"

The blue amphibian released another jet of water at the fast-approaching fox. However, she was ready for it this time and was just barely able to sidestep the attack, the high-pressure water ripping the grass apart when it hit the ground.

Having closed the distance, Fennekin pounced, her right paw raised with claws extended, and a thud echoed from where her attack connected. Despite the clean hit, Mudkip pushed through, releasing another water gun point-blank into Fennekin. Unable to move out of the way, she had no choice but to take the hit. Once again, she was thrown across the ground from the force of the blow.

Despite her determination, the two type-advantaged hits overpowered her, and she was unable to get back up.

As Nora and Mudkip celebrated their first victory, Gregory sighed and went to take care of his Pokemon. Fennekin was soaked and muddy from the fight but quickly regained consciousness. Her only injury was her pride.

Gregory pulled a towel from his backpack and whipped as much water off her as he could. The distinctly displeased look on her face caused him to chuckle.

The rocks and logs they had used for targets have either been burned down to charcoal or eroded to dust by the elemental attacks of their pokemon. Their Pokemon's attacks had covered the field itself in black spots and mud pits from the round of sparring they did before the battle they ended the day with.

As he turned to leave, movement out of the corner of his eye caught his attention, drawing his gaze to a tree near where they had been training. He only saw a small piece of silk thread gleaming in the last vestiges of sunlight from the setting sun. He shrugged and continued forward back to their camp.

Despite the loss to Nora, Gregory was feeling more confident about himself. Though he had gone to a trainer academy, most of his lessons around pokemon battles did not apply to the actual training of pokemon. Sure, he knew all the different types of pokemon and how the types interacted with each other. He had memorized many of the typical moves and how they worked, and he knew about the rules and regulations for owning and battling pokemon, but until Brian gave them the basics this morning, he had been winging it. The loss had proved that, but he would make sure to learn from this.

They returned to their campsite and deposited their snoozing pokemon into their tents. Gregory and Nora went about what was quickly becoming their respective camp duties. Gregory went and collected more firewood, building up and once again restarting the fire in their pit. He also refilled both of their water bottles from the water pump. Nora took out her cooking pots and utensils and began preparing the ingredients for another stew.

By the time she had finished the food, the sun had fully set, and the stars were out. Under the shimmering light of the Cresent moon hanging high in the night sky, Gregory could make out the shadowy shapes of various Pokemon as they fluttered through the air. He thought he could see Murkrow and Zubat, but when he brought his pokedex up to scan them, they were too far away, or there wasn't enough light for the scanner to pick them out.

The weight of Fennekin's light body brought his attention to the fox in his lap.

"So that's what you want, huh?" Gregory chuckled as he took in the pleading look Fennekin was giving him, the grooming kit hanging from her mouth.

"How did you even manage to get this from my bag?"

Taking it from her, he began running the various brushes and combs through her fur. The mud, dust, and dirt from the day's happenings fell free with each run of the brush. Gregory worked with slow diligence, returning her fur to the same glossy softness that it had at the beginning of the day.

While he was grooming Fennekin's fur, an alien feeling settled in the back of his mind, it was brief; he almost didn't notice it, and before he could even really examine it, it was gone. He thought there was a warmness to it, but it happened too fast to be sure.

He looked around the campsite, trying to see if he could find its source. Nothing immediately stuck out to him. All he could see was the soft glow of the campfires around them and the shadowy darkness of the surrounding wood. Fennekin was passed out in his lap again, which allowed him to relax slightly. If she was asleep, it was probably nothing. Her senses were way more acute than his.

"Are you alright? You look a little spooked," Nora said, her brows scrunched in concern as her mouth tilted down in a slight frown. She also started scanning the surrounding area, her eyes flicking back and forth for any signs of danger.

"It's nothing, I just got this weird feeling." Gregory haltingly said as he continued to gaze around, "I think I just imagined it. It's been a long day. I'm probably just tired."

As if to punctuate his point, he let out a jaw-cracking yawn.

I'm going to turn in for the night," he said, still yawning as his words came out a little muffled.

"Yeah, today has been pretty hectic," she said. She still had a slight look of concern but replaced it with a smile after a moment. "Have a good night."

Gregory carefully got up from the log seat to ensure he didn't jostle his little fox awake from her slumber. He returned Nora's smile and bade her a good night. The fire's flickering glow cast her face in bright orange light and shadow as Gregory turned and entered his tent. Sleep's sweet embrace took him shortly after he slipped into his sleeping bag.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"I hope this isn't going to become a trend," Gregory sighs, again batting the fluffy tail away from his face. The soft fur of Fennekin's tail as it gently twitched across his nose, causing him to wake up.

Deciding that he had slept enough, Gregory got up, gathered his pack, and put on his boots. After bribing his fox with more Bluk berries, she got up with a long stretch. The muscles of her back rippled as she loosened them up.

It was still early in the morning, the moon and stars still bright in the night air, when they exited the tent. The ashes of last night's fire still had a few tiny embers giving off a slight warmth, though it was nowhere near enough to combat the crisp morning air of the fall day.

Gregory decided to gather some more berries. On the way to the forest's edge, he passed by Nora's tent, where he could just make out the soft, even breaths coming from within. The rest of the campground was silent like a serene cloud of peace had settled over everything. He almost regretted disturbing it with the wet stomps of his hiking boots on the dew-slicked grass.

The canopy of the trees that made up the forest was thin enough to let in most of the light from the stars—allowing Gregory to navigate, albeit slowly, through the underbrush with relative ease.

Gregory focused mainly on the placement of his feet as they walked towards the berry grove they visited yesterday morning. He only occasionally looked up to ensure he still walked in the correct direction. Ahead of him, the berry grove came into view. The teen looked down once more to step over a large tree root. He glanced up once more, just beginning to set his foot down on the other side of the root, when suddenly, a large green object that looked to have a frowning face was hanging a foot away from his nose.

The sudden appearance caused him a jolt of fright, adrenaline flooding his system.

"What the-!" Gregory said, alarmed.

He flinched away from the object, the heel of the foot he was just about to place down, catching on the tree root. He pinwheeled his arms through the air, trying to catch his balance, but it was too late. Gravity already held him, and he fell backward, crashing to the forest's leaf-strewn ground.

Fennekin, who had been riding on Gregory's shoulder at the time, faired better than her trainer. Her reflexes allowed her to jump clear from it safely to the ground.

"What the heck was that," He breathed out, rubbing his tailbone from where it impacted the ground.

Looking toward the object he almost ran into, he found it was a Pokemon. It was small, and its whole body was about the size of Gregory's head. The six legs that jutted out from between its abdomen and head were yellow with a thick black stripe across the leg's joint. Its head had a horn jutting out from the top. The two large eyes stared at him, all black except for a small white pupil in the middle, below which sat a pair of red mandibles.

Without thinking, Gregory brought out his Pokedex, scanning it quickly as Fennekin took a defensive stance between him and the little spider Pokemon.

"Spinarak, The String Spit Pokemon. Spinarak silk, by weight, is one of the strongest materials known to earth. Webs of it can support the weight of stones that fall into them without snapping. Spinarak weave intricate silk webs and then wait for prey to come by. They are very patient and can wait motionless for days or weeks for prey to arrive. When victims get tangled in their webs, they can detect the movements and even tell what was captured by the vibrations they create. Spinarak always wait for night to fall before investigating their catches. Though their venom is not particularly strong, it is more than enough to incapacitate smaller prey. They can survive for weeks at a time on a good meal. Spinarak and Ariados are often maligned and portrayed as villains and aggressive hunters in popular culture. In reality, Spinarak are playful Pokémon who only bite when threatened, and Ariados, while territorial, will also not attack unless provoked."

The pokedex's mechanical monotone was the only noise as both parties maintained their stares. Spinarak's head tilted to the side as the entry finished playing. It maintained its neutral stance, hanging from the silk thread attaching its abdomen to the tree branch above.

"It's okay, Fennekin, I don't think it-He, intends to hurt us," Gregory corrected as he saw that the Pokedex said that this Spinarak was a male.

Fennekin hesitated just a moment before relaxing her stance. She dropped down to a sitting position, still acting as a barrier between the insect and her human. Her red eyes locked onto the stationary bug.

As he slowly got back to his feet and whipped his hands on the back of his pants, Gregory maintained eye contact with the Spinarak. He waited to see what their unexpected visitor would do next.

And waited.

'Okay, this is getting a little awkward,' he thought to himself

"Was there something I can help you with?" he said aloud

"Spinarak, Spin spin, arak."

Gregory had absolutely no idea what it had said. The confusion must have been apparent on his face because the little insect repeated himself, but he began to gesture with his legs this time. Spinarak made vague gestures towards Fennekin, then his pokeball belt, then himself, and finally at Gregory.

After the impromptu game of charades, Gregory thought he finally understood the gist of what the little bug-type was trying to say.

"So you want me to help you get stronger?" He questioned, wanting to ensure he was on the right track.

"narak," Spinarak chirped happily as he nodded his head.

Gregory hadn't thought much about what he wanted his Pokemon team to look like yet. However, he was immensely flattered that the Spinarak wished to join his team. What really decided it for him, though, was when he remembered the match he had watched last year between Elite 4 Koga and Elite 4 Bruno. Koga had an Ariados that had wreaked havoc on Bruno's Fighting types. He had used it to control the battlefield, setting up traps and interrupting Bruno's Pokemon before they could build momentum.

While Gregory didn't believe that there were 'Strong' or 'Weak' pokemon, he could admit that learning how to utilize Spinarak like Koga would undoubtedly help him win this year's Silver Conference.

Reaching into one of the side pockets of his bag, he pulled out one of the empty pokeballs his mother had gifted him. With a click of the button, the capsule expanded to fill the palm of his hand. He extended the ball out towards the Spinarak, a sharp grin on his lips.

"In that case, welcome to the team buddy. Go ahead and touch the button to make it official," Gregory said.

"Narak!" Came another happy chirp as the little spider rocked his body forward, tapping the button on his forehead. A flash of red light momentarily brightened the dim surroundings as Spinarak entered the red and white sphere, a single click denoting the successful capture. The only thing left behind was the silk webbing he had been hanging from.

Gregory released him immediately after, as he sunk to a knee to be closer to his level.

"Some trainers like to give their pokemon names. Is that something you think you would be interested in?" He asked.

"Spin, Narak," nodded happily, his red mandibles clicked together to punctuate the gesture.

"Alright, let's see if I can come up with something you'll like,"

Gregory sat there for a moment as he considered what kind of name would fit the little green Pokemon. He immediately rejected some of the more cliche names like Webby or Webster.

"How about Ari?" He eventually suggested.

Spinarak tilted his head, seeming to weigh the name's merits. Eventually, he decided he liked it and gave Gregory a nod to show his agreement.

"Well then, Ari, Fennekin, and I were going to pick some berries and then do some training. Do you want to walk with us or stay in your pokeball?"

In answer to his question, the tiny green Spider scuttled up his leg until he eventually rested atop his hat. Gregory just chuckled as he got back to his feet and continued onward to the berry patch.

---

AN #2

Thanks again for all who took the time to read this!

Just wanted to shout out a cool website, https://www.theworldofpokemon.com/ - I will be using a lot of the information here for the Pokedex entries.

Sundays are still my planned release day for new chapters. However, as you know, sometimes life gets in the way.

If you have any ideas for OC trainers and their Pokemon teams, please PM me. If you send in an OC Just give me some character quirks/ flaws that give me a gist of what they are like. Pokemon teams should be reasonable (no full teams of legendaries or all shiny Pokemon.) I'll be sure to give credit in an AN if I end up using any of your submissions.

As always, I appreciate any feedback that you can give that would make this story better!

 

[Benny Resto]

I do not own Pokemon, if I did, I wouldn't be posting fiction to QQ, lol.

I was able to finish this one a bit early.

If you see any errors or if there are any critiques you may have, please leave them in a comment below! Enjoy the chapter!

---

About two and a half hours later, Gregory and Nora finally started down the road to Cherrygrove. The Sun's warming light began chasing away the lingering chill of the night as the campground slowly faded from view behind them.

After they had returned from their berry hunt, Gregory and his team started to train. They kept it short, as Nora and He were eager to be on their way. So, after they did a few conditioning exercises and ate breakfast, the campsite was packed up, and they headed out.

Ari had been a little disappointed about the early end of the session but was mollified when Gregory promised they would do more tonight. During the short sparring session, though, he had learned what moves his new Pokemon knew: poison sting, String shot, Leech life, and bug bite. Gregory was already thinking of ways to utilize Ari's web-spinning ability. One thing he did learn from the Trainer school was not to underestimate the power of utility moves.

The morning and afternoon had passed by much the same way their first day on the route had. Watching the trees as they walked, catching glimpses of Rattata, Pidgey, and the occasional Sentret who would peek out from the tree tops and bushes as the teens passed.

Around noon, they came across a meadow. The tall trees that encircled it on all sides except the one adjacent to the road cast its edges in a cool shade. They stopped only to eat a quick lunch of trail mix and some of the berries Gregory had scavenged for at the campsite. Soon, they were back on the road. Mudkip and Fennekin had climbed onto their respective trainers' shoulders, enjoying the clear skies and the crisp breeze that followed them down the road.

As the hours passed, Gregory noticed that the forest became less dense until it finally gave way to large swaths of grass and rolling hills. The route they walked weaved through the thick growth like a river. Far in the distance, they could just make out another dense wall of trees, and just above the green boughs, a flash of light reflected off a glass structure.

"We are getting close. The city is just beyond those trees in the distance," Nora said, her hand up, shading her eyes as she pointed out at the tree line with the other.

Off to their right, on a far-off hill, they could see a large herd of Mareep grazing off the tall grass. The small sheep-like Pokemon had blue skin on their exposed face and feet. Even from this distance, Gregory and Nora could see the flashes of light from the orbs on the ends of the yellow and black striped tails, which matched the conical horns that adorned the sides of their heads. Their fluffy yellow-white coats were bright in the mid-afternoon sun.
Interspersed among them were a small number of Flaffy. The evolved Pokemon had pink skin and less wool, which only grew around their neck and heads. Gregory watched as they slowly moved among the Mareep, walking on two legs rather than four. Similarly to their pre-evolutions, their tails would also light up periodically from the blue orb on their pink and black striped tails.

Watching them filled Gregory with a sense of enjoyment, a slight grin touching the corners of his lips. Ari, who had made himself comfortable on top of his head, only briefly watched the grazing Pokemon with little interest. Earlier in the day, Fennekin had asked to be put back into her Pokeball, her short legs unable to keep up with Nora and Gregory's long-legged stride.

Suddenly, Ari made loud chittering noises, trying to direct Gregory's attention away from the distant Mareep. He pointed his gaze to where the little spider was pointing with a single leg. Gregory was alarmed to see a flock of Spearow taking turns to dive bomb something he could not see through the tall grass. Occasionally, there would be small bursts of fiery pellets, which he recognized as an ember attack, that would arc up toward the small flying types, trying to ward them away. The return fire was hardly adequate. The few Spearow that were hit were able to shrug off the damage and keep diving at their target.

The fighting was finally audible to them as the Spearow steadily approached the two teens' location. Angry caws filled the air as the Spearow continued their harassing orbit, punctuated by yelps of pain from the unseen defender.

Nora and Gregory stopped, sharing a brief look—no words needed to be said. Gregory reached for the Pokeball at his belt, Fennekin appearing in a flash of bright light. Meanwhile, Mudkip, who had been in Nora's arms until this point, jumped down to join the fox.

By this time, the circling attackers had reached them. Bursting out through the grass was a tiny vulpine Pokemon. Its vermillion fur was in tatters. Gashes and bald spots covered its body. The six tails that trailed behind it flared out. Though its chest heaved and its legs trembled, it was still trying to dodge the incoming birds, shooting bursts of embers when it could.

Without hesitation, the two trainers jumped in to help.

"Mudkip, water gun!" "Ari, string shot, aim for the wings. Fennekin ember!" They both ordered simultaneously

Ari was the first to react, a focused gleam in his black eyes. He spat out short bursts of sticky webbing toward the small brown feathered birds. The shouted commands caught both the vermilion-furred Pokemon and the Spearow off guard. All of them turned to look at the new arrivals. This pause allowed some of the webbing to connect with Ari's targets, and two Spearow crashed to the ground, one of their wings effectively glued to their bodies. This attack was followed by Mudkip and Fennekin, who released their respective elemental projectiles. Their attacks clipped two more of the flying types, knocking them from the air. The accuracy drills from the other day have visibly affected their skills.

The trainers weren't the only ones quick to take advantage of the surprise; the exhausted fox pounced on one of the webbed Spearow. Its body blurred away, only for it to reappear, tackling the grounded bird. The hit was enough to knock it unconscious, leaving only six more of the flying types to deal with.

"Mudkip, keep those spearow away from that vulpix with water gun." Nora called out

"Ari, keep up the string shots. Fennekin target the ones he hits with embers," Gregory ordered.

The element of surprise gone, the Spearow resumed their attack. Some sent gusts of wind, while others dived bombed them with beaks glowing with sky blue energy. Three peeled off to make passes at Fennekin and Ari, who jumped off Gregory's head so as not to put him in danger.

Fennekin was able to dodge most of their attacks, but when they dived at her from two different angles, she could not move out of the way fast enough. A glowing beak slammed into her side, the impact causing her to slide across the packed dirt road. She was able to get back up and into the fight quickly—a barrage of embers paying back that one that just hit her.

Ari fared much better. Though unable to run in the same manner as the more mammalian Pokemon, he could jump with great power and dexterity. Gregory supposed he would have had much experience fighting flying types, seeing as they are a natural predator of his species.

The Spearow that dived at him weren't able to hit him at all. He would just jump over them as they swooped at him—one of the unlucky birds getting a point-blank string shot in the exchange. The sticky webbing hit it in the face, blinding it and causing it to stumble around on its legs, desperately trying to clear his eye.

However, Ari's luck ran out as when he jumped to dodge another swooping bird, one of its flock-mates buffeted him with a burst of air from the powerful flaps of its wings. The gust knocked him off course, and he impacted the ground on his back. The green spider Pokemon righted himself quickly and fired off a few more string shots, tying up another of the attackers.

With two of the three webbed down by Ari, Fennekin and he could team up and quickly knock the final one unconscious. Fennekin first distracted it with a charm-powered wink, the pink glow of her eyes causing it to pause mid-air briefly. Ari then hit in with his web, causing it to drop from the air. Fennekin finished it with a decisive scratch attack to its brown feather head.

The remaining three had resumed their attack on the wounded Vulpix, one of the birds diving down to finish it off. Just as it made to knock out its prey, Mudkip tackled it bodily out of the way. Squawking as it bounced off the road like a rock skipping along the surface of a pond, it did not get up after the final bounce. Nora Cheered on her partner as he shot off more water guns to keep the two remaining birds away from the injured Pokemon.

The last remaining Spearow looked around and saw that all their allies had been knocked out. With one last parting angry squawk from each of them, they turned and flew off.

"Good job you guys!" Gregory called out to his Pokemon, walking over to them and checking them over to see the extent of their wounds. Both had only suffered very minimal scraps and cuts. Gregory pulled out his potion bottle, sprayed it on a rag, and dabbed at the wounds.

Nora walked cautiously over to the Vulpix, who was still on edge after the ordeal. It was still trembling like a leaf in a breeze, eyeing the two humans and their Pokemon warily. Suddenly, Its legs gave out, the adrenaline that had been keeping it going wearing off, and it collapsed to the floor.

Nora rushed over, bundling it up into her arms. She quickly returned Mudkip to his ball with a few words of praise.

"We need to get it to a Pokemon center soon. These wounds look bad." She said, turning to Gregory. There was blood from a deep cut on its flank that had already begun bleeding onto her shirt. She sprayed potion onto some of the worst lacerations, but their multitude was too much for the medicine.
Gregory returned his Pokemon to their balls. The bright smile from their victory fell to one of concern. With a nod, they both took off down the dirt road. The thuds of boots echoed out into the expanse of the grassland that surrounded them.

About ten minutes later, they had made it to the tree line on the other side of the rolling hills. As they entered, off in the distance, the tall glass buildings of Cherrygrove's city center could be seen poking out.

"I d-dont t-think we, jeez, are ga-going to make it," Gregory gasped, having to pant and gulp down air between words as Nora and he kept running down the road. "Ma-Maybe you should Ca-capture it with a Pa-pokeball."

Nora stopped running and then gasped for air. She looked down at the Pokemon in her arms. The wounds the potion couldn't close were still seeping blood, and its breaths seemed to have slowed down.

"You're right. I should've just done that earlier," she said, a frustrated look on her face as she knelt, slinging her backpack off one shoulder. She adjusted her grip to ensure she wouldn't drop her charge and reached into one of her pockets with the other hand, pulling out a Pokeball.

"I'm sorry about this. I'll release you once you've been healed," she promised, tapping the Vulpix with the ball. The device shook once in her hand before the click of a successful capture rang out.

Now that it was in a Pokeball, the Vulpix would be in stasis, which gave them time to make it to the Pokemon Center in Cherrygrove.

"Don't beat yourself up about it, it was a hectic moment." Gregory said. He had finally been able to catch his breath a bit so that he could speak without gasping.

"well, we should get going. I don't want to waste any more time." Nora sighed. Then she settled her pack back over her shoulder and started running down the road again. Gregory was quick to follow behind her.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

About 40 minutes later, the dirt road they had been running on suddenly changed to pavement. The trees, which up until now had been wild growing wherever there was room, became much more orderly, surrounded by flowers and other aesthetically pleasing flora. Occasionally, the woods would give way to a suburban house, denoting that they had made it into the city's outskirts. The glass buildings that before had looked small were now high above them, towering into the sky.

While New Bark town was a small settlement, Cherrygrove was anything but. The road they followed winded through the suburban neighborhood. The sidewalks they were now walking down had cherry trees spaced evenly down their length. Many houses they passed had gardens or tasteful flower bushes landscaping their front yards. There were also many people, and Pokemon shared the sidewalks with them. Pidgey and Ledyba were above them, resting amongst the tree branches, while Yanma and Buterfree fluttered amongst the flowers.

As they moved deeper into the city, the single houses gave way to more urban-style buildings; apartment buildings, and commercial plazas. In one such plaza, they found a Pokemon center. It looked much the same as the one from New Bark Town. The same Red roof and white Pokeball symbol made it immediately recognizable.

Nora led the way into the bottom floor of the building, making her way to the nurse manning the front desk.

"Hello! How can I help you two?" The nurse said. She had looked up from the computer screen she was typing away at when they reached the front desk.

"We ran into a Vulpix on the road that was being attacked by a flock of Spearow. It had gotten really hurt, too much for a normal potion. I had to catch it just to make sure we could get it here." Nora said in a rush, placing the Pokeball containing the hurt fox Pokemon on the counter. Her eyes were pleading, beseeching them to save the poor Pokemon.

The nurse's welcoming smile immediately became severe as she pressed a button they couldn't see, causing a faint alarm to go off in the room behind the desk.

"Don't worry, miss, we will do all we can for it," The nurse said as she took the Pokeball from Nora's Hand. She turned just as a door to the back room opened, letting out a Chansey. The squat pink Pokemon waddled out of the door at a rapid pace. Atop its head sat a white nursing cap with a red cross on its center, similar to the woman who greeted them. A large white egg sat within a pouch situated on its stomach. The ordinarily happy expression on its face was determined as it approached, and the human nurse handed it the vulpix's Pokeball. "Chanse," it said with a nod before rushing back through the door it came out of.

"Was there anything else that I could help you with?" the nurse said as she turned back to Nora and Gregory, smiling reassuringly.

"We could use a room, and we have other pokemon that could use a checkup," Gregory said as he put a comforting hand on Nora's shoulder. She was still giving the back room door worried glances, but when he mentioned having the nurse check out other Pokemon, she looked away.

"yes, please give me Mudkip a look over," she added.

"Certainly! I can help you with both of those things. If I could please just see your trainer IDs, and if you would put your Pokeballs into this tray, I can take care of them." She said as she sat back down at her computer after putting two trays in front of them. They both had six spherical slots in them for Pokeballs to slot into.

Gregory and Nora placed their Pokemon in the trays and handed her their Trainer IDs. She took both with a smile, sliding the trays into a small conveyor belt that stuck out from the wall directly behind her. After a few minutes of typing at her computer, she returned the IDs.

"I synched your cards to your rooms, just swipe them on the doors card reader and the will unlock. Here are your room numbers," She said as she handed them a small slip of paper with the room number on it.

They both gave her a thankful smile and headed to find their rooms. Taking the elevator on the right side of the lobby, they ascended to the third floor, where the rooms were located.

"I'll meet you down at the Lounge?" Gregory asked as he paused in front of the door to the room. Thanks to them having run the last stretch of road to the Pokemon Center, it wasn't that late. The sun had another hour or two before it descended below the horizon.

"Sure, but first, I need to shower. I feel gross," Nora said with a faint look of disgust. The run had left them hot, sweaty, and sore.

"yeah, you and me both," he agreed readily. With a smile and a nod, Gregory swiped his card across the door's key reader, the small LED light flashing a bright green as the thunk of the lock disengaging rang out into the hallway.

Closing the heavy door behind him, he turned and took in the room in front of him. Immediately to his right was a bathroom, complete with a toilet, sink, and a decent-sized shower. The room opened up past the bathroom into a large room that combined a kitchenette, living room, and bedroom. The leftmost side of the room had a small fridge next to a countertop with another sink and a few gas burners for cooking. Along the far wall, there was a TV screen mounted to it. Across from it sat a single recliner seat. A full-sized bed was pushed against the wall on the other side of the room, and a crisp bedspread with a generic floral design rested atop the mattress. Gregory saw that around the floor of the room, there were cushions of various designs suitable for Pokemon on the smaller side of the spectrum to relax. He even saw a perch mounted into the wall for flying-type Pokemon.

The clean and orderly room instantly put him at ease. He bent down and untied his hiking boots, kicking them off with a groan of relief, the constraining ache from wearing them all day receding away. Slipping his pack off his shoulders, he set it on the floor by the bed and headed straight into the bathroom to shower. As the pleasantly warm water cascaded over him, he felt the road's stress and grime melt away, flowing down the drain with the used water from the wash. Feeling refreshed, Gregory changed into a clean pair of clothes and left his room.

He exited the elevator onto the second floor, the shiny metal doors gliding noiselessly closed behind him. The room he entered was a vast open space. It looked to take up most of the second floor's footprint. The center's cafeteria took up the back quarter of the room, which was to his right, was taken up by the Center's cafeteria. Menus were hanging from the ceiling above a counter manned by a bored-looking man who was currently sitting down reading a book. Spread out in front of the counter were a handful of tables for patrons to sit and eat their food.

The rest of the room, not taken up by the cafeteria, was a lounge area for trainers to enjoy. Multiple TVs were hanging from the walls, all of which were tuned to a different channel. Placed around the room were couches and tables. Each was set so a person could see a few TVs at once. A line of video phones was set up at the back wall.

Many of the seats and couches were full of people, the sounds of their quiet conversations causing a low murmur to fill the air. As Gregory made his way to an open couch, he noticed that he didn't recognize many of the Pokemon that accompanied their trainers.

Over on the cafeteria side of the room, a girl was eating at one of the tables. Her maroon hair was a messy tangle, but the most striking feature about her was the three raised lines that cut vertically across the right of her face. The first line missed her amber eye by a hair. On her shoulder sat a tiny bird Pokemon with deep blue feathers on its back and wings. Its front, however, was a golden yellow outlined with a dark black that went up around its red eyes and small, sharp-looking beak. He raised his Pokedex to scan the mysterious Pokemon.

"Rookidee," The Pokedex intoned, " The Tiny Bird Pokemon. It is a Pokemon known to inhabit the Galar region. Rookidee despite their small stature, are feisty Pokémon that are always ready for a fight. The size or strength of the opponents does not matter; Rookidee will spar with any foe, and will try to learn from both victories and defeats. By practicing against all sorts of opponents, these Pokémon learn to adapt their fighting styles to different situations. They can be a bit too eager when they see supposed openings however, and will often fall for feints."

He had looked down to look at the picture of the Pokemon as the Pokedex read off its entry, so Gregory was surprised when he looked up to find that the maroon-haired trainer was now standing in front of him.

"Oh, Jeeze. You scared the heck outta me," Gregory said, his heart rate spiking as he flinched back in surprise. Bringing his hand up to his chest as if he could physically suppress the surging adrenaline.

"Sorry about that," she said. Gregory could hear a slight accent to her words as she spoke, "I just noticed you pointing that thing at me and was curious what it was."

That last part was said with a hint of accusation as she pointed at the red device in his hand. The Rookidee on her shoulder was also giving him a very intense stair. It took a second for Gregory to process the words that she had said, but then he realized, much too late, how it might've looked when he scanned her Pokemon with his Pokedex, especially since they were still not widespread.

"S-sorry, I wasn't pointing this at you-" She just raised an eyebrow at that, "I mean yes It was aimed in your direction, but i wasn't taking a picture or anything." Gregory hastily amended.

"With this, I can scan Pokemon, which will give me all sorts of information on them. I was actually scanning your Rookidee there since I've never seen one before," he said, giving her an apologetic smile.

"Seriously?" She said, her brow raised in disbelief. She hurriedly sat next to him to try and get a closer look at the device.

"yeah, here look," Gregory showed her the entry on Rookidee that he still had up. The little flying type still on her shoulder also leaned forward to try and get a peek.

"Man, that's so cool. Where did you even get this?" She asked excitedly. Gregory took the next few minutes to explain the task that Professor Elm had asked of them.

"I just realized I never introduced myself. My name is Leona," the now-named Leona said after a while.

"Nice to meet you, Leona. I'm Gregory. Sorry again about that whole misunderstanding."

"water under the bridge," she said, waving a hand through the air as if to ward away his apology. "So, are you going to be entering the tournament that's happening in the next few days?"

Before he could reply, Nora walked up, Mudkip following behind her. In her hand, Gregory could see that she was holding his Pokeballs.

"Hey Gregory, here are your Pokemon. They were done with their check-up right as I went to get Mudkip, so I told the nurse I would bring them to you. Hope you don't mind." Nora said as she passed the two red and white orbs to him.

"I don't mind; thanks for bringing them to me," Gregory said as he clipped them both back to his belt. Behind them was a loud cheer from a group of people watching an ACE trainer battle. The three of them briefly looked over at the group before turning back around.

Nora sat on the other side of him, then placed Mudkip onto her lap so she could stroke his slick back. Her eyes briefly flicked over to Leona; they seemed to focus on the girl's scars before she quickly looked away.

"Leona this is Nora, she has been traveling with me since we left New Bark Town," Gregory said.

"Hey, nice to meet you," the scarred girl said.

"Likewise," Nora said, giving her a smile and a nod.

"So you were saying something about a tournament?" Gregory said, picking up where they left off. He had to raise his voice just a bit. The room's noise level had increased as more trainers entered the lounge area. Most of them started queuing up at the cafeteria's counter.

"Yeah, here I still have the flyer," Leona said, pulling out a folded-up piece of paper. Unfolding it, she handed it over to Gregory. As he began to read, Nora leaned over to get a look at it too.

The big, bold lettering at the top of the paper said, "Cherrygrove City's first Annual Beginners Cup." Taking up most of the page was a graphic of two poke balls impacting each other with sparks flying from the contact point. Below are the address, date, and time of the event. The grand prize, also in big and bold lettering, for the winner was a 5000 credit prize and a portable Pokeblock maker.
Gregory's brow raised, his interest was peeked. Pokeblocks were condensed blocks of food that possessed high nutrient and caloric density. They were handy for Pokemon that required huge amounts of food. Right now, Gregory's Pokemon required relatively small amounts of food, but that would change as they evolved and he added more members to his team.

Looking back at the flier, Gregory saw a line of smaller print near the bottom.

Trainers interested in participating may not have any badges and can only use a maximum of two Pokemon. All who are interested can register at your nearest pokecenter or pokemart.'

"Well, we had planned to head to Violet City tomorrow. What do you think Nora?" Gregory asked as he turned to face her. He noticed, much to his amusement, that Nora was staring rather intensely at the line about the Pokeblock maker. Her desire was evident in her features.

"I think it'd be fine if we stayed a bit longer and compete," she said, the words gushing out of her mouth in her haste.

"I guess we will be entering the tournament then," Gregory chuckled to Leona, handing back the crumpled flier as he looked back at her. She had a bemused look on her face, though the tightness of her skin around the scars made the right side of her face appear pinched.

"I suppose we will have to go register then," he continued as he got up from the couch, stretching his arms above his head. Mudkip croaked a low sound filled with dismay as Nora put him onto the floor, getting up to follow Gregory out.

"We will see you around!" they both called to Leona as they made their way back to the elevator.

---

Here are the Pokedex entries for some of the Pokemon Gregory and Nora have encountered in this chapter:

Spearow can fly very high and fast but expend a lot of energy flapping their tiny wings to do so. Because of this, they can only fly for short distances. They flush out bugs by flapping their wings in tall grass to create gusts, like their relatives Pidgey. Spearow are highly aggressive and territorial, closely observing their land and letting out high-pitched shrieks that can be heard from over a half-mile (a kilometer) away to alert fellow Spearow of potential dangers. Though territorial against other Pokémon, Spearow are not solitary and will coexist with others of their kind. Their calls signal nearby Spearow to flock together and attack. Because they almost always attack in large flocks, Spearow can be very formidable foes despite their small size and individual weakness. Lone Spearow can be reckless when facing large foes, however. Flocks can be dangerous to unwary travelers, so trainers must always be cautious of Spearow cries while traveling through their territory. Farmers appreciate them, though, for clearing fields of pests.

Chansey are rare Pokémon whose eggs are greatly sought after, both because they have medicinal properties as well as because they are delicious. Chansey lay eggs every day and always carries one in their pouches. If they come across injured Pokémon or people, they will share their eggs with them and nurse them back to health. Because of their amazing abilities to heal Pokémon, it is most common to see Chansey working in Pokémon Centers; their eggs are sometimes called 'doctor's doubles.' Chansey treated with affection are said to lay more nutritious and tasty eggs. Their eggs are believed to bring happiness to consumers and restore the appetites of those who lost them in sickness. Though very kind and generous, Chansey will refuse to share their eggs with those with pure malice in their hearts. They are forgiving, however, and will gladly share with those who prove that they have changed their ways. Catching these elusive Pokémon is said to grant eternal happiness. Chansey normally walk slowly to protect their eggs but can dash surprisingly quickly when spooked. Chansey are endangered due to past overharvesting of their eggs; some scientists even believe that modern Chansey have evolved to be even faster at fleeing due to this selective pressure.

Mareep are a common sight on farms, raised for their soft, fluffy wool. Their wool is used to make various different articles of clothing like jackets and sweaters, though it must first be treated to reduce its static-generating properties. Their coats grow continuously but are shed periodically every summer. If sheared, this wool can grow back within a week. Their fur stores pockets of air that insulate them, keeping Mareep warm during colder months and cool during hotter ones. As they wander about, their wool, which generates static very easily, rubs together and begins storing electricity. Their coats will double in size once fully charged. Because touching their wool in this state would lead to a nasty shock, it is necessary for ranch hands to don rubber gloves while shearing or otherwise handling flocks of Mareep. The small orbs at the end of their tails will glow more brightly depending on how much static electricity they have charged up in their wool. Experienced trainers and farm workers will know on sight whether or not a Mareep is safe to touch, depending on the intensity of its bulb.

Upon evolution, Flaaffy develop sections of skin in which wool no longer grows. Their skin, which is bare in these areas, feels like rubber and is nonconductive. Scientists have theorized that this adaptation developed to prevent these Pokémon from harming themselves with their own electricity, which, as Mareep, they were prone to do (the reason why Mareep shed so often is to protect themselves from their own static). Flaaffy will also begin to grow bald in patches where static generation is abnormally high. To make up for the smaller quantities of wool on their bodies, Flaaffy wool is much higher in quality and can store more electricity. Because it is softer, this wool is more prized; it is harder to come by and more pricey, though, because Flaaffy don't shed as often as Mareep. Because of its texture and price tag, Flaaffy wool is very popular among those following cutting-edge fashion. Flaaffy can fire strands of their wool at opponents to electrocute them. They produce static by rubbing their wool together. When they are fully charged, the bulbs at the end of their tails will glow brightly.

Vulpix are born with only a single, white tail. As they mature, their tails split and turn a shade of vermillion that deepens the more affection the Pokémon receive. Vulpix have internal flames that never die out, radiating heat throughout their fur. They may release flames from their mouths to expel excess heat and cool themselves down on hot days. They often attack foes with Fire-type techniques such as Flamethrower and Ember but also have control over a few Ghost-type moves like Confuse Ray, Hex, and Grudge. Vulpix are often associated with the attack Will-O-Wisp, which they use to chase down prey. To escape from foes, they may feign injury to buy themselves time to flee. Though they generally make their homes in grassy plains, as Fire-types, Vulpix also can be found near volcanoes in large populations—and curiously enough, also near cemeteries such as Mt. Pyre in Hoenn. Vulpix can spew fires that are said to resemble lost souls, leading many to believe that they have a very close tie with the spirit world. Young Vulpix grow quite attached to their trainers, much like their relatives Growlithe.

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Thanks again to everyone who took the time to read this!

Just wanted to give a special shoutout to Lunag at Artistree.com, who drew this story's wonderful new cover art.

Also wanted to give a shoutout to the person who submitted Leona to me. They wanted to remain anonymous, but regardless, I still appreciate the contribution.

If you have any ideas for OC trainers and their Pokemon teams, leave them in the comments below. If you send in an OC, Just give me some character quirks/ flaws that give me a gist of what they are like. Pokemon teams should be reasonable (no full teams of legendaries or all shiny Pokemon.) I'll be sure to give credit in an AN if I end up using any of your submissions.

As always, I appreciate any feedback that can help make this story better!

 

[Benny Resto]

Surprise! I finished this chapter way early and decided not to wait till Sunday.

I still don't own Pokemon, duh.

If you find any errors or if you have any general critiques about the story, please let me know in the comments!

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The elevator dinged as its sleek chrome-plated doors slid open, allowing Nora and Gregory to step out into the center's bottom floor. They returned to the counter, still manned by the same nurse who had helped them earlier.

She looked up just as they stopped in front of her workstation.

"Oh, I was actually just about to call you miss," The nurse said to Nora, giving them both a bright smile, "Your Vulpix has just finished his treatment. It was a good thing you brought him to us when you did. His wounds were severe, and with him being so young, I feared the worst."

"I'm so glad that he is okay, but he's not actually my Pokemon. I just caught him to make sure he made it here in time," Nora said. Her voice became hesitant near the end, and her eyes flicked away, no longer meeting the nurse's gaze.

"If you say so," The nurse said. She lifted an eyebrow at the shy teenager. "In that case, the Center can take over from here and release him back into the wild for you." She reached into a drawer beside her computer and withdrew a sheet of paper, which she then attached to a clipboard. Placing it in front of Nora and then, with a click, held out a pen for her to take. "We will just need you to fill out this form here."

When she said this, Nora's eyes snapped up to the woman before they fell to the form in front of her. She slowly raised her fingers to grasp the pen from the nurse's outstretched hand. Gregory watched as Nora hesitated, a myriad of emotions playing out across her face, the pen hovering about the sheet. She eventually released a sigh and placed the pen flat on top of the clipboard, a side of the internal struggle playing out inside her having won out.

"A-actually, could I, uh, see him first before I sign this," She said nervously, one of her hands coming up to rub at her opposite shoulder.

"Of course! I'll go grab him," the nurse said, amusement dancing in her eyes as she turned and walked through the door.

Gregory chose not to comment on Nora's behavior, instead choosing to release Fennekin from her ball. The little vixen appeared in a flash of light by his feet, a wide yawn causing her jaws to pop and her eyes to scrunch up cutely.

"How're you feeling girl?" Gregory said as he knelt, scratching behind her ear. Her soft fur was warm beneath his fingers as they glided across its surface. Fennekin leaned her head into the affection, making a noise in the back of her throat at the pleasant sensations.

At that moment, Gregory felt another strange alien feeling scraping at the back of his mind; it lasted longer than it had the first time. Tendrils of that same warm feeling seeped through his body. As quickly as the feeling came, it was gone just as fast, leaving a coldness in its wake that made him want to shiver. His hand stilled its scratching, causing Fennekin to nudge it in protest as he looked around, surreptitiously moving his eyes around the center's lobby. All he could see were a few trainers sitting in the chairs towards the front half of the building, whispering amongst themselves.

'What on earth is that feeling and where is it coming from?' He thought to himself, once again gliding his fingers through the fur of Fennekin's back in a gentle scratching motion.

The sound of the backroom's door closing caused Gregory to stand back up, Fennekin jumping up to make herself comfortable on his shoulder. The nurse from earlier entered the room, a soft grin on her face, carrying the Pokeball Nora used earlier to bring the Vulpix here.

"Here you go, miss. I'll just take this form back. It'll be here if you change your mind," The Nurse said as she handed the Pokeball to Nora. The sly look on her face made Gregory think she didn't actually expect to be using that form later.

Nora thanked the nurse but still looked a bit nervous as she clipped the ball to her belt.

"we were also trying to register for the Beginners Cup, could you help us with that?" Gregory asked as the nurse took her seat, jiggling the mouse to wake her computer screen back up.

"Sure, I'll need to see your IDs again. Also I'll need to know which Pokemon you'll be using."

The process only took about five minutes as Gregory handed over his ID again. She quickly entered his information into her computer and handed it back.

"Are you not going to sign up?" Gregory asked as he turned and saw that Nora hadn't pulled out her ID.

"Yes, I am. I just wanted to do something first," Nora said, the fingers of her right hand grazing across the surface of the Vulpix's Pokeball.

"Okay," Gregory shrugged, following her as she walked over to one of the vacant sides of the foyer and sat in some of the chairs lined against the wall.

Above them was a Television; its volume had been turned down, from which the low voices of the newscasters filled the silence that had settled over them. Gregory glanced over to the screen, not really interested in the show, but the flash of an image drew his attention. In a small box above the anchor's left shoulder was a picture of a man with a long rectangular face, sharp features, and a strong jawline. The most striking feature was his intense eyes. It was as if his gaze was piercing through the TV into him.

"Today marks the third anniversary of the mysterious disappearance of the former Gym leader of Viridian city-" Having already lost interest, Gregory turned his attention from the droning of the anchorman to the fox snoozing in his lap. She had jumped down to his lap as soon as they had claimed their seats. The warmth radiating off her yellow fur was comforting against the slight chill of the building's air conditioning. Beside him, Nora removed the Pokeball that contained the Vulpix, rolling the red and white sphere around in her palm. Gregory could almost see the nervous energy emitting from her. Mudkip also gave her a worried expression from where he sat in her lap. She bit her lip with her brows furrowed in thought as she kept the Pokeball moving in little circles.

"Okay, what's got you so nervous, Nora? You've been acting weird ever since that nurse told you that Vulpix was done with his treatment," Gregory said, his concern tilting the edges of his mouth downwards.

She flicks her eyes briefly at him before returning them to the ball in her palm. She chewed on her lip some more and remained quiet for a few moments. Gregory was just starting to think she wouldn't answer when she finally broke her silence.

"I-It's just I feel bad about catching him without asking him first. Whenever I thought about going on my journey, I also told myself I wouldn't force a Pokemon to join me," she said slowly, tripping over her words initially as she tried to get her thoughts together. "I know I can just release him, but I admired his determination during that fight against all those Spearow, and I want him to join me on my journey. I'm just afraid that he will resent being forced into a Pokeball and not want to come along." A sad sigh escaped her as she finished, which caused Mudkip to stand up on his hind legs placing his forelegs on her chest so he could nuzzle his head against her—giving her as close to a hug as he could manage.

"Thanks Mudkip. What would I do without you?" She smiled down fondly at the little amphibian, patting his back with her free hand. He gave her a low croaking noise from the back of his throat, its reassuring timbre causing her smile to stretch a bit wider.

"Well all you can do is try," Gregory said, a little lamely, as he tried to reassure her. When all she did was give him a raised brow in response, he rallied himself and tried again.

"What I mean is, try to explain what you just said to me to him. You heard the nurse; if we hadn't put him in a Pokeball, we wouldn't have made it in time. Surely he would be understanding considering the circumstances."

This time, Nora gave a hum of consideration as she looked again at the Pokeball. Then she clicked the release button, the bright light dimming to show the vermillion coat of the Vulpix standing on the laminated floor in front of them.

The Vulpine Pokemon shook his head, blinking his eyes against the harsh fluorescent light that illuminated the center. Vulpix looked around, taking in the unfamiliar sights and sounds. The quiet murmuring of the other trainer's chatting, which was pierced every so often by a quick bark of laughter, and the loud chime of people entering and leaving the pokecenter caused his ears to twitch at each unexpected sound. A wrinkle of confusion, which Gregory thought was rather cute, appeared on Vulpix's brow.

Having finally noticed their presence, the Pokemon took on a more guarded expression. The deep brown pools that were his eyes flicking back and forth between Nora and him. Fennekin cracked open an eye from his lap, keeping the other fox Pokemon in her sight.

"Um, Hi Vulpix, my name is Nora," she said, a hesitant smile twitching at the corner of her lips, "Your wounds had been really bad after that fight, so we had to take you to the Pokemon center to get them fixed."

Her hands started to fidget nervously with the Pokeball, rolling it between both palms. She looked down at the metallic sphere for a few seconds, then returned her eyes to meet Vulpix's chocolate orbs. "I had to catch you in a Pokeball to make sure you got here in time. I'm sorry about that, and I can release you if that's what you want." She seemed to struggle with how to word the next bit, but eventually, she went with, "I would love it if you chose to come with me though, the way that you held your ground against all those Spearow was really admirable, and I think having someone as brave as you on my team would be a good thing," She finished a hopeful look in her eye.

All the while that Nora was talking, the Vulpix relaxed out of his wary stance, head cocked a more curious mein taking its place. He took a seat on the floor, all six of his tails curling forward to wrap around the right side of his body.

"Vul, Vulpix pix vul?" Vulpix asked after Nora had finished speaking. His question caused Fennekin's ears to twitch in interest. Gregory saw Nora's brow crease in concentration as she tried to work through the pokespeech.

"You want to know if I can help you control your fire better?" she asked haltingly after having the Pokemon repeat what it asked a few more times. Thinking back to the battle with the Spearow, Gregory remembered that the ember attacks from Vulpix seemed a little on the weak side.

Vulpix nodded its head to let her know she understood what he was trying to say. Gregory thought the Pokemon had a rather hopeful light in its eyes. A few of its tails twitched eagerly across the floor.

Nora, who had not received an immediate rejection as she feared, was beaming now, with a broad smile and determined eyes replacing her earlier anxious look.

"Of course! I would be honored to help you," She said excitedly.

"I'm still new to being a trainer, but I'll find a way to help you," she added a second later, pumping her right arm once.

Then she held an open hand out toward the young tod, who, with an excited wag of his tails, placed a paw in her waiting palm.

"It's a promise then," she declared, gently giving his paw a single shake before she released it.

Their partnership agreed on, Vulpix jumped up onto the chair next to her, closing his eyes in contentment as Nora ran her fingers through the light red fluff between his ears.

Fennekin was still eyeing Vulpix with interest until Gregory stood up from his seat, causing the little vixen to jump down to the floor lest she tumbles down instead.

"I'm glad you could work it out, Nora!" Gregory said as he watched her Pokemon melt into puddles from the affection she gave them. "I'm going to go find someplace to do some training. I promised Ari we would do some more tonight," he continued as he started walking towards the center's exit, giving her a wave.

"Give me a call if you need anything. Don't forget to sign up for the tournament!"

"I'll see you later," She called out as the sliding glass doors closed behind him.

Gregory stepped out into the dying sunlight, the oranges and reds of the sunset giving way to the dark blue of the burgeoning dusk. The city street in front of the center was illuminated by street lamps just now beginning to turn on. Pulling out his pokegear, he began searching the pokenet for places he and his team could get some training in. After a few taps of some buttons, he got a list of various Pokemon battle clubs, Outdoor Battlefields, and Pokemon Athletic Clubs scattered around the city. Most were closed already; however, a few were open 24 hours. He plugged the address of the nearest one into the Pokegear's GPS and began walking, Fennekin trotting along happily at his side. The little fox had a look of awe in her red eyes as she took in all the tall buildings surrounding them like a concrete jungle.

Their destination was only about three blocks away. They saw it on the right of the road as they turned the corner. The building was nearly half the block in length and only about two stories tall. The Squat building had modern steel architecture, and the whole front portion was made up of glass windows. Just like Gregory hoped, it was still open, the lights from inside illuminating out from the glass.

As he approached, he saw a sign situated above the entrance to the building. In a bold script, it read; Chasaji Sports Club. Next to the lettering was an image of a Machamp with three cups of tea and a massive dumbbell. When he entered the lobby of the sports club, he saw a reception desk in front of the doors. Off to the right was a male and female locker room; to the left of the reception was what looked like a tea shop, the fragrance of many types of teas permeating the whole space.

Behind the desk was a woman; she wore a pink long-sleeved athletic shirt and had her long blonde hair tied in a loose braid. She had a steaming cup of tea in front of her as she flipped casually through a fitness magazine. Sitting next to her was a Machamp; even sitting down, the humanoid Pokemon was massive. The upper two of its four arms held its own fitness magazine, while the lower two were curling two 350 lb dumbbells with barely any effort. Gregory's eyes bulged slightly at the ease at which the Pokemon lifted the weight.

As he walked towards the desk, the blonde-haired woman looked up from her magazine. She gave him and Fennekin a welcoming smile.

"Welcome to the Chasaji sports club, have you been here before?" She asked as she put the magazine she was holding away.

"No we haven't. Fennekin and I just got into the city, we were looking for a place to do some training and saw this place on the net," Gregory said

"Well, welcome to Cherrygrove. My name is Linda. I'm glad you chose to come to us to do some training!" Linda exclaimed as she got up from her seat, "I can give you a tour of the facility if you would just follow me."

Gregory could've sworn he saw a manic glint in her eye when she said training but just chalked it up to a trick of the light. He followed after the muscular woman as she pushed through one of the double doors on either side of the reception desk. The room on the other side was massive; it looked to be about half the length of the building. Arranged throughout the facility were treadmills and other aerobic equipment in all different sizes, from the normal human-sized ones to larger reinforced ones that looked like an Archanine could run on it with no problems.

"So this is the aerobics room, as you can probably tell," the lady said as she swept her arm out across the room like a curator showing you the breadth of his collection as a museum. "We have machines that both humans and pokemon can use, though if you have pokemon on the bigger side please make sure to check the signs on the machines. They'll tell you the maximum weight they can tolerate."

Running on one of the smaller treadmills was a Machop. The small humanoid Pokemon shared the same light blue skin, red eyes, and three head ridges as the Machamp at the front desk. Its diminutive size was at odds with the lithe dense muscle that made up its body.

Gregory raised an eyebrow as Linda walked over and increased the treadmill speed, causing the little fighting type, who was already at a sprint, to have to push even harder to keep up with the increased pace. The machine was letting off a shrill whine, clearly at the limit of its function.

"Great job Machop, dig deep and keep pushing!" she praised as she walked back over to him, that same manic twinkle back in her eye.

"If you'll follow me this way I'll show you the weight room," She began before leaning in close as if to share a secret with him. "Personally that's my favorite room," She whispered, raising a hand to the side of her lips as if to stop someone from overhearing her.

Near the room's back corner was a staircase leading up to the second floor. The woman instead took them through a door on the room's left-hand wall. On the other side was a room similar in size to the previous one, except this one was filled with machines that served an entirely different purpose. One side of the space had classic dumbbells lining the wall in front of mirrors and more traditional free-weight racks like squats and bench presses.

The most oversized boxing bag Gregory had ever seen was in another corner of the room, hanging from the ceiling from a thick chain. It was at least 7 feet tall and had to have weighed over 300 pounds. There was a Pokemon actively hitting it when he looked over at it. It danced around the bag like a human boxer, and its humanoid frame almost made you believe it was a human. However, the blunt, spiky protrusions from its head and the broad, pauldron-like growths from its shoulders quickly broke the illusion. Gregory watched its fists, red and vaguely shaped like boxing gloves, echoing loudly as they impacted the monstrous-sized bag. Each punch was fast and crisp, sounding like cannon blasts against the sturdy material of the bag. Despite its weight, the Hitmonchan still made the extra heavy bag slide effortlessly across the floor as if it was merely filled with air.

On the opposite side of the room from the bag were racks of many colored bands, all varying in size. The center of the room, though, had rows of empty space with tape marking straight lines; between each pair of lines was what looked like a sled with a long pole you could stack weighted plates on.

"Like the last room, we have equipment for both humans and Pokemon here. The sleds in the middle of the room and the bands over that way are useful for Pokemon that don't have limbs or limbs with opposable thumbs," she said, making a gesture at each corner of the room, gesturing last at the side where the Hitmonchan worked the bag. "We also have that bag over there if you have pokemon who enjoy throwing punches."

After pointing out all the main sections of the room, Linda led them up the staircase in the back of the room. Unlike the bottom two rooms, the top floor had large booths, one on either side of the walkway that split the space in half. Stopping in front of one, Linda began to explain their purpose.

"So these are useful in training your Pokemon's accuracy and dodging abilities. Or if you're feeling adventurous your own," She said, giving him a wink. Though Gregory had a sneaking suspicion that she was exactly the kind of person to use them herself.

"You just select what kind of training program you want to use and the difficulty from the monitor here, and voila, the computer takes care of the rest." She explained, giving the protruding monitor a loving pat on the side.

"So that's all there is to show you. If you have any questions or need some help I'll be back at the front desk, have a great workout!" As she began to walk back to the staircase, she suddenly stopped and turned around to face him. "Ah, I almost forgot, I'll need to see your trainer ID. We are a league affiliate, so you don't have to worry about paying, but I do need to scan your card."

"Here you go," Gregory said as he handed over his card.

"I'll come find you to give this back when I'm done with it," Linda called over her shoulder, heading back toward the staircase.

"This place is amazing," He said as he turned to look down at the little fox sitting by his foot. He grabbed Ari's Pokeball, releasing the arachnid Pokemon on the floor. After he had finished materializing, Ari looked around and then up at him expectantly.

"Are you ready to train?" He chuckled as Ari clicked his mandibles together excitedly.

Gregory had decided that he wanted to use the upstairs facilities first. So he had both of his Pokemon enter their own booth as he turned to the kiosks to select the program. There were a few different options but Gregory decided to go with a combination of dodging and target practice on an easier difficulty to start. After he selected the program, there was a whirring noise as the machinery within the walls of the booths started to activate.

"Alright you two, you're going to have to dodge and hit the targets as they appear!" He called out to Fennekin and Ari. They both responded with nods in the affirmative.

He watched panels all around the inside of each room slide open to reveal black cylindrical objects. Every time Fennekin or Ari shifted their bodies, Gregory saw that the cylinders moved to follow them. A panel flipped around at the back of the wall, revealing a classic target- concentric circles with the center one being a filled-in red circle. Before either of his Pokemon could fire their respective attacks at the target, one of the cylinders shot off a rubber ball. The speed of the ball was not very fast, but the surprise caused Fennekin to falter a bit, barely able to get out of the way in time. Ari was able to overcome the surprise in time to dodge out of the projectile's path.

"You can do it Fennekin! Try to maintain your footing so you can react in time," he called out.

And so they spent the next few hours working on firing off attacks and avoiding the soft rubber balls. During that time, Linda returned to give his ID back. She ended up staying to observe, pointing out small mistakes his Pokemon were making in how they landed or the stance they took when shooting off an attack. Instead of just telling him how he should correct it, she asked him what he would do to fix it or why it was wrong in the first place. She used her questions to direct him to discover the answers himself. After she left, he decided to use his Pokedex to make videos so that he could show them how to adjust later. When the program finally stopped, and they exited the machines, Ari and Fennekin were spent.

"You guys did such a good job. I can already tell that you've improved since we started," He praised as he knelt and gave them both scratches on the head. Careful to avoid the pointed horn on Ari's head. There was little friction against Gregory's fingers as they glided across Ari's smooth, hard carapace.

Fennekin especially soaked up the praise, the vixen nudging her head closer into his palm to get his fingers to hit just the right spot.

Gregory ignored Fennekin's whine of protest as he stood back up. He pulled up the videos he took and, crouching back down, had them watch.

"See right there, Ari, your feet weren't well placed as you landed. That cost you some time having to adjust before you could get your poison sting off," he coached as he paused and replayed parts for his little green spider. Ari soaked up every tip and mistake Gregory pointed out to him, a determined fire visible in his eyes. The little arachnid insisted that he replay the video a few more times, his focus unwavering as he watched it.

They left the sports club after that, waving goodbye to Linda and her Machamp as they headed out the door. The sun had now fully set. The tapestry of stars in the night sky was dampened by the city's light pollution but was still no less impressive. Gregory and his Pokemon quickly made their way back to the Pokecenter. The faint calls of hoothoot from the trees that lined the street rang out through the night, followed by the answering calls of Murkrows as they flew around the city looking to commit mischief. The lobby was empty except for the nurse manning the front desk- a different one from earlier.

The heavy door of his room clicked closed behind him as he bent to remove his shoes. Ari and Fennekin wasted no time claiming one of the many cushions on the room's floor. Gregory prepared a quick meal for himself and his Pokemon before changing into a pair of P.J.s that he packed.

His team's and his hunger satiated, he pulled out his Pokegear to call home. It was a little late, but he figured one of his parents would probably still be up. Plus, he wanted to at least let them know he had made it to Cherrygrove safely. Dialing the home phone, he waited as it rang a few times before his father's voice finally sounded from the other end of the line.

"Johnson residence, and before you start, whatever deal you're hocking, it probably isn't even that good," Myles said in a dry tone.

"Ha ha, Dad, I know you know it's me. The phone has a caller ID," Gregory responded, copying his dad's tone.

"Okay, you caught me, Greg. It's good to hear from you. How's the open road treating you?" his dad chuckled.

"So far, so good. We just made it to Cherrygrove a few hours ago," Gregory said. He then went over all that's happened to them so far, meeting the ace trainer Brian, catching Ari, saving Vulpix, and signing up for the Beginners Cup. His dad would occasionally ask a question but mostly let him talk.

"So yeah, we are going to have to get a lot of training in before the tournament in two days," Gregory said as he finished his retelling.

"I know you'll do great, Greg, just work on the basics like that Brian fellow told you and you'll be fine. If my time in the ACE League taught me anything, it is that with a good foundation, there is nothing you can't achieve," Myles said.

"Thanks dad, that was the plan. Nora wanted to go see if she could find some books on Pokemon nutrition tomorrow, I'll probably grab one too."

"That'a boy. Well, Son, It's getting late and it sounds like you have a big day planned tomorrow, so I'll let you go. Just remember your mother and I are proud of you, win or lose, just give it your all. I'll let her know your doing well, have a good night, love you,"

"Yeah I love you too dad," Gregory said, his cheeks heating up a bit from the praise.

The line died with a click as his father hung up the phone. Looking down, he saw that both his Pokemon were already fast asleep. So, with a big stretch and a yawn, he crawled into the center's soft bed, his heavy eyelids slamming shut as he drifted off to sleep.

---

Here are the Pokedex entries of some of the Pokemon Nora and Gregory encountered in this chapter:

Machamp are tremendously powerful Pokémon, capable of moving mountains with just a single hand. They use a variety of fighting techniques to pummel their opponents, most of which involve all four of their limbs. For example, they may use three of their arms to hold down foes while using the fourth to deliver a punch strong enough to knock them over the horizon (or derail a train, as one infamous incident had proven; luckily, no one was hurt in the accident). Alternatively, they may instead execute a different move with each of their limbs--for example, an uppercut, a hook, a straight, and a karate chop all simultaneously with their four limbs. They can deliver swift, endless volleys of punches to relentlessly pummel down opponents. There is even a unique name for a complex grab these Pokémon perform using all four of their arms: "the Machamp special." Machamp love challenges and will only fight harder when faced with strong opponents. However, they are terrible at delicate, precise work; their arms get jumbled together when attempting to manage fine details, and they will often end up destroying whatever they were trying to work with in the first place.

Machop, the superpower Pokemon. Making their homes in mountains, these pint-sized powerhouses can toss a hundred adults with ease. Machop are a determined Pokémon that are never satisfied with the amount of effort they are exerting. Their muscles never tire or cramp, so they can continue training and lifting almost indefinitely. Machop practice all styles of martial arts. Using the mountainous terrains in which they dwell to their advantage, they are often seen practicing by hurling Geodude and lifting Graveler that also live in these areas (much to their dismay). If there aren't any of these Pokémon around, Machop can also make do with similarly-sized boulders. A Machop can lift a sumo wrestler above its head without breaking a sweat. The majority of their body composition is pure muscle, allowing them to perform these amazing feats of strength. They can throw powerful punches and kicks thanks to their constant and relentless training, allowing them to utilize Fighting-type moves such as Karate Chop, Low Kick, Vital Throw, Cross Chop, and even Dynamic Punch. In areas where they live alongside Makuhita, they will sometimes challenge them to battles after sparring with their own friends.

A Hitmonchan's punches are as fast as lightning, nearly invisible to the naked eye. Hitmonchan may appear to be standing idly when, in fact, launching volleys of punches faster than bullet trains into thin air as practice. However, these punches do tire them out--after three minutes of intense work, they need to take light rests. However, Hitmonchan are determined, having the spirit of champion boxers, and will not give up no matter what. Even during these breaks, Hitmonchan will often move around or jog quickly in place. They punch in a corkscrew fashion, with enough force to pulverize concrete. Even slight grazes from their blows can cause mild burns. They are also skilled in sparring with light punches, allowing them to act as sparring partners to fellow Hitmonchan or aspiring human boxers (the latter almost always lose but learn from fights nonetheless). Like Hitmonlee, Hitmonchan can be found training in dojos but can sometimes be seen punching away at mountain boulders.

---

AN#2

Thanks again for all who took the time to read this!

A Special Shoutout to Lunag over at Artistree.com for the cover art.

Just wanted to shout out a cool website, https://www.theworldofpokemon.com/ - I will be using a lot of the information here for the Pokedex entries.

The next chapter should be ready by this Sunday!

If you have any Ideas for OC trainers and their Pokemon teams, please PM me. If you do send in an OC, Just give me some character quirks/ flaws that give me a gist of what they are like. Pokemon teams should be reasonable (no full teams of legendaries or all shiny Pokemon.) I'll be sure to give credit in an AN if I end up using any of your submissions.

As always, I appreciate any feedback that you can give that would make this story better!

 

[Benny Resto]

Author's Note:

This one is going to be on the shorter side. Also, this will be a POV change, the first one for the story. Please let me know what you think of it in the comments below.
Enjoy the story!

---

From her perch on the rocky outcropping in the back of the enclosure, Fennekin sat and watched the others play by the water's edge. As they chased each other around or competed in bouts of play wrestling, their happy laughter rang out in the open space within the glass walls of their habitat.

The elm branch that she chewed on was bland, able to nourish her body but providing no stimulation to her taste buds. She sighed, pushing it away for now.

Fennekin was bored. In the months since she's been here, she has already explored every inch of this cage. Any novelty of its environment has long since worn away. The other Pokemon that she shared the space with were content to spend their time in mock battles. When not doing that, they played and frolicked through the grass and small trees that lined the side of the space. She was not a stranger to battle but wouldn't consider herself overly competitive. So endlessly testing herself against her fellows did not appeal to her. Just as the same games of hide and seek or tag brought her no more entertainment, it became trivial as there could only be so many spots to hide in the pre-defined space they had to work with.

Occasionally, one of the humans with the white coats would come in and take her out beyond the glass for a time. They took her upstairs, where they would poke, prod, or scan her with strange machines. As they made scribbles of ink in journals or clacked away in front of a bright multi-hued screen, their voices would fill the air as they jabbered at each other. That was how she learned to read their body language.

Despite their prodding, these moments were her favorite. The window in the room allowed her to look out into a wide-open pasture that sat in the shadow of a giant mountain. She could see many other Pokemon roaming through the grassy fields. The green boughs of trees surrounded it, and in the center was a large pond. In its clear blue water, she saw water pokemon jump and swim on its surface. The sun's light reflected off the droplets of water that trailed behind as they splashed back beneath the water's rippling surface. Every time she gazed out that window, she imagined herself out there. The shaded undergrowth would surround her as she explored the forest. The cold, whipping wind would pull at her fur as she scaled to the mountain's peak off in the distance.
Sometimes, she fantasized about exploring the depths of caves after having evolved into a Braixen, or even a Delphox, using the light of her own fire to illuminate her way through the darkness. She would have to keep her wits about her as there would undoubtedly be traps and guardians to protect the treasure hidden within.

She didn't care where she went; she just wanted to experience life on an adventure. What strange lands would she discover? What interesting secrets could she uncover? Fennekin didn't know, and that was the problem. So yes, Fennekin was very, very bored.

---

"-you're sure spoiled for choice! My colleagues provided us with many rare Pokemon from their respective regions!"

Fennekin heard the voice of one of the humans with the white coats as he walked down the stairs. This was the taller of the humans, thinner, and with a messy patch of fur on the top of his head. This one was her favorite; he would always feed her some bluk berries after he finished his prodding. Or he would let her spend a little extra time upstairs so that she could look out the window and get lost in a daydream. He only took her back downstairs after he finished making his notes in the indecipherable scribbles his kind was known for.

'I wonder who he will be taking up this time,' Fennekin thought, getting up from her usual perch. These always seemed to be some new test or measurement for them to take.

She yawned widely, which caused her jaw to pop as she got to her feet. She let her back legs trail behind her in a way that stretched them out. Fennekin jumped down to the grass to join the other Pokemon around the small watering hole.

On her way over, she saw little Cyndaquil waddling over to take a drink from the tiny pond. He was one of the newest arrivals to the enclosure, having only just hatched from his egg a month ago. Cyndaquil would sometimes follow Fennekin around and ask her all sorts of questions that only toddlers could. She always enjoyed the distraction he provided her. As she joined him by the pool to take her own drink, she noticed him looking out at the far side of the room.

That was when she noticed the new arrival that followed behind the bespeckled man. It was another human, but this one was smaller and looked younger. He had shaggy black fur on his head hidden below a strange covering that shared its same dark hues. However, the part that drew her attention was the excited sparkle in his brown eyes. The way he gazed at the enclosures with such wonder made it hard for Fennekin not to be curious about this strange turn of events.

"So in here, you will find all the grass-type Pokemon-" she overheard the taller human say as they walked over to the enclosure on the right of Fennekin's.
Her eyes tracked their movement until they went out of view.

"What do you suppose this is all about?" she asked nobody in particular.

"The old human I used to live with told me that sometimes they send their young out into the world with a Pokemon companion. Maybe that is what's happening here?" Charmander said with a shrug of his orange scaly shoulders. He only gave the two humans a passing glance, not interested at all in their presence.

"Alright Chimchar, this time you're going down," He said, the fire that perpetually tipped his tail swishing as he turned and pointed a claw in challenge at the little red monkey Pokemon.

All Fennekin heard in reply was a mocking cackle. She didn't even turn to look at the impending battle as, at that moment, the boy and the older human stopped in front of the glass that made the front of the habitat.

"This one is home to all the fire-type Pokemon, which includes Charmander, Cyndaquil, Torchic, Chimchar, Tepig, Fennekin, and Scorbunny," The man droned, it looked to Fennekin that the boy only half heard what was being said.

The boy's eyes briefly traveled to each Pokemon, lingering a little longer on the match between Charmander and Chimchar. However, it was less a match and more like uncoordinated flailing of limbs as the two hot-headed young Pokemon were still getting used to how their bodies could move.

Finally, the boy's eyes locked with Fennekin's. She felt a shock as something traveled through her. A longing that burned in her chest. It was the same feeling she got when she daydreamed while looking out the window upstairs. The feeling remained inside her as they moved on to the next enclosure, growing more intense as the seconds passed, bubbling up to a fever pitch.

At that moment, Fennekin had made a decision. She would not be staying in this place a second longer. She just hoped that Charmander had been right about what the boy's presence meant. She felt as if she would wither away if she had to continue on wearing holes into the earth, pacing about in the same tired motions of these past few months that her life had fallen into.

A few minutes elapsed, and then Fennekin saw the boy walk past by himself back to the habitat on the right side. She felt her tail and ears droop a little as he didn't even glance their way as he passed. The sting of disappointment hit her harder than she expected. The feeling in her chest extinguished, leaving an empty hole in its place. With a sigh, she was just about to head back to her perch in the outcroppings when she caught movement out of the corner of her eye.

The young boy had stepped back in front of her enclosure. His eyes roamed over the inhabitants with a considering gaze. Her ears shot back up, and her tail wagged slightly, its earlier despondence forgotten. Hope filled her chest once more.

'Now's my chance!' she thought, her body already in motion.

Before he had even stopped in front of the glass, Fennekin was bounding toward him. The hope that was building inside her did not allow her to be slow about it. When she reached the glass, she sat, gazing up at the boy.

'Pick me, Pick me. I want an adventure, so please take me with you. If you want a companion, here I am,' she thought repeatedly as if reciting a mantra. She acted as if, through willpower alone, she could influence his decision.

His eyes lit up, a joyful smile turning the corners of his mouth upward as he knelt in front of the glass. He raised one hand, placing it on the glass to keep his balance.

"Do you want to come with me on my journey, Fennekin?" the boy asked, that same glint of excitement dancing within his brown eyes.

Fennekin wasn't able to understand everything that humans said. However, she could pick up the intent and context clues based on the tone and little clues she got from their body language. So, she got the gist of what he had just asked her. Once his meaning clicked, she jumped excitedly onto the glass, one of her paws landing in line with his hand.

"Yes, I'll go with you!," She yipped joyfully.

His grin grew wider as he called back over his shoulder to the man in the lab coat. They exchanged a few more words before the taller human left and returned, holding a red and white sphere in the palm of his hand. The excitement Fennekin felt dimmed at the sight. She knew what those did. The sphere's light would engulf her, and then she would be in darkness. It wouldn't hurt, and she could hear things that happened outside it, but she would be unable to move. She would prefer the boredom of the enclosure to the sphere.

As the ball was passed to the boy and the glass door was opened, they exchanged some more words, too fast for her to attempt to decipher. The taller human made some erratic gestures as he spoke. As if his words demanded the gestures to articulate their meaning correctly.

Fennekin watched as his hand pointed to the sphere, then to the boy, and finally to her. After he had finished speaking, the boy looked between the ball and her a few times before he got back down on a knee in front of her.

"I'll walk. I don't want to miss a thing!" She quickly picked up on the meaning of his words, answering him with barely any hesitation. The boy gave her a grin that showed a glimpse of blunt white teeth before they began to make their way up the stairs. Fennekin happily trotted behind him, his longer stride requiring her to put more effort into keeping pace.

"Oh my gosh, she is sooo cute!" A loud voice called out as they entered the door at the top of the stairs.

The unexpected sound startled Fennekin, causing her to jump behind the boy's legs. After a second to collect herself, she peeked around and saw two other young humans talking with her new partner. One, another boy but with short blonde fur atop his head, was giving her a measuring look. One that seemed to find her lacking in some way. Fennekin did not like it one bit, so raising her snout, she gave him a dismissive huff as she promptly looked away. She saw the other human walk by them, this one a girl, going down the stairs they had just walked up. Her partner had said something to the girl, redirecting her earlier excitement to somewhere else.

'Looks like I won't be the only one getting out of those glass prisons, ' Fennekin mused.

Gregory, she assumed it was his name as all those around him kept addressing him as such, brought out a strange red box-like object from his pocket. She heard a strange voice start speaking from it, causing her to tilt her head curiously.

"Fennekin, The Fox Pokemon…."

She listened to the voice, trying to decipher what it was saying. Gregory looked to be focused intently on what was being said; his eyes would occasionally flick to her as it droned on. That was when she realized it was talking about her.

'What could it possibly be saying about me?' she wondered, not really able to understand everything it had said. 'And how would it even know what to say?' She pondered this as the monotone voice paused before continuing again.

These words she did know. However, if someone were to ask, she couldn't tell you how she did. Each one corresponded to how she focused her energy to perform attacks. The sound of each word was like the distilled intent behind the multitude of internal actions she had to do to use the move.

Finally, the voice stopped, and Gregory got down on a knee in front of her.

"Remind me to get you some sticks later, okay girl?" the boy said.

'Well, I guess it told him about what I like to eat,' She thought as he slowly brought one of his hands toward her. She sniffed at it when it stopped just before her face. She detected various scents on him, many she had never smelt before.

'Is that what it smells like outside?' she pondered.

There was one that underlies all the others; its faint aroma evoked a comforting feeling. Fennekin mentally connected it with Gregory.

Finished with her inspection, he reached further, running it between her ears. His fingers were gentle. His palm's weight and slight warmth soothed her as it made a steady rubbing motion over the fur of her head.

Fennekin couldn't remember the last time she received affection like this. A vague flash of memory hit her, a glimpse of a black paw and dark red fur followed by red eyes full of love, gone as fast as it arrived.

The other humans she interacted with, those wearing white coats, were only interested in the readings and figures their machines gave them. Even the tall one with the glasses she liked would only give her a few pats, which were given in a brusque manner. Unable to even come close to the same feeling of comfort she was experiencing now. They had never hurt her, but she could tell that Gregory cared greatly about her. In the few minutes that she'd known him, he never lost that look of wonderment he had when she had approached him.

So Fennekin decided to give him some affection in return. Using his leg as a springboard to jump up to his shoulder, she gave him a single lick across the cheek. She rubbed her cheek briefly against his in mimicry of an embrace, which caused him to huff amusedly as he got up to his feet. From her new vantage point, she could once again see the fields, forest, and far-off mountain through the room's back window.

She once again slid into fantasies of all sorts of adventures that she could experience in the outside world. Only now, it wasn't just her exploring the untold number of new sights, sounds, and experiences out there in the wide world. Now, she was joined by the human boy she had chosen to be her companion.

Fennekin has had many dreams of the wider world outside the glass habitat, all of which she thought were just that, dreams. However, it seemed that they just got a whole lot more possible, she thought as she flicked her eyes briefly to Gregory before the outside world grabbed her attention once more.

So Fennekin may have started the day bored out of her mind, but it seemed that that was about to change.

---

AN #2

So, like I said, this was my first time doing a change of POV, and I hope to do more of these in the future. Hopefully, they will help give more depth to the other characters present in the story!

As always, if you guys and gals have any critiques or if there are any errors that you find, please leave a comment to let me know!

Reading the comments you all leave really helps to motivate me to write more, and I also enjoy interacting with everyone, so keep them coming!

Finally, if you have any Ideas for OC trainers and their Pokemon teams, please PM me. If you do send in an OC, Just give me some character quirks/ flaws that give me a gist of what they are like. Pokemon teams should be reasonable (no full teams of legendaries or all shiny Pokemon.) I'll be sure to give credit in an AN if I end up using any of your submissions. Thanks to those who've already submitted some! The next chapter will be out on the 24th.

 

[Benny Resto]

Author's note:

First off, sorry for the late update. With the holidays and a severe case of writer's block, I wasn't able to have this chapter ready by the 24th.

Anyway, I was finally able to finish the chapter, so I hope that you all enjoy it.

As always, please let me know what you think in the comments!

---

As Gregory returned to consciousness, he felt the weight of a gaze upon him. He slowly opened his eyes to see two tiny black orbs staring right at him as Ari hung suspended from the ceiling by a strand of his silk webbing. It took every ounce of willpower that Gregory possessed not to jump out of his bed screaming. The only outward externalization of how startled his arachnid friend had made him was a slight twitch in his eyebrow followed by a long, slow blink of his eyes. They sat like that for a few moments as Gregory let the pounding of his heart settle within his chest.

"Good morning, Ari," Gregory deadpanned. At his greeting, the little green insect let out an excited series of chittering as his red mandibles clacked in emphasis to whatever it was he was saying. Gregory took a moment to decipher what Ari was saying to him as he sat up in bed, stretching his arms out to either side, thoroughly awake after the morning's fright.

"Don't worry Ari we will be doing a lot of training today," Gregory replied after getting the gist of what the Spinarak was after.

Looking over, Gregory saw that Fennekin was still fast asleep on the same cushion she had claimed last night. She was on her side, legs twitching occasionally, making adorable little yips and growls, the little vixen thoroughly trapped in the realm of dreams.

He reached over to carefully grab his pokegear off the bedside table so as not to wake her up. Opening up the device's camera, he took a quick video and snapped a few pictures of the precious moment.

Gregory felt Ari climb up his back to the top of his head, his six legs easily able to find purchase on his night clothes. Gregory reached up and gave him some pats on the head, careful not to prick himself on Ari's horn, as he rose out of bed. He walked over to his pack and grabbed a fresh pair of clothes, putting Ari on the floor before entering the bathroom to shower.

"We have to do some errands around the city first, but we will do some training after that. I promise!" Gregory called over his shoulder just before the bathroom door clicked closed behind him.

—-—-—-

Gregory exited the elevator onto the second floor, Ari again sitting atop his head, carrying Fennekin underneath an arm, still half asleep. The little fox pouted sleepily as they made their way to the cafeteria side of the room to grab some breakfast. As he got closer, Gregory saw two distinctly different lines of food. The Center had stocked the left side with all sorts of human breakfast staples; Pancakes, bacon, eggs, and little pre-packaged bowls of cereal, which sat next to a large refrigerated dispenser full of miltank milk. Gregory quickly grabbed a plate and started working his way down the line, his plate filled with a little helping of everything there was. Sat on the counter next to the food was a tiny display that read:

'All food is sourced locally from Cherrygrove's very own Orwell animal farm Est. 1984.'

The other food line had many different varieties of Pokemon food: bowls overflowing with different types of berries, and freshly baked Poffins, which sat next to trays of Pokeblocks hand-made by the center, separated by type and genus. These took up the most space on the counter and came in all different shapes and sizes. Fennekin's demeanor completely changed as soon as she caught the smell of the food. Her ears stood straight up, and she raised her nose into the air, trying to catch all the different scents wafting through the cafeteria.

"You sure are a glutton, aren't you?" Gregory chuckled as he let his Pokemon pick out the foods that caught their interest. He let the worker scan his trainer ID and then turned to find a seat so that they could eat their bounty. Juggling a fox in one arm and three plates of food in the other, Gregory made his way carefully to an open seat in one corner of the seating area, dodging out of the way of half-asleep trainers answering the siren's call of their empty bellies.

Fennekin took her time eating, savoring every bite, letting all the different flavors of her meal permeate her taste buds. All the while, she was making happy noises of enjoyment. Ari, however, ate with an almost robotic efficiency. Gregory didn't think he was even tasting his food with how quickly it disappeared. He enjoyed watching the dichotomy between his two Pokemon as he ate his breakfast.

Ari had just climbed back up to Gregory's head when he noticed Nora making her way towards the table, Mudkip and Vulpix both trailing behind her, a tray of food held between her hands.

"Good morning, Gregory," Nora said as she placed down the tray and pulled out one of the chairs to sit down. Mudkip and Vulpix leaped up to the table, tucking into their food as soon as Nora placed a bowl before them.

"'Morning," he managed to get out between bites of his breakfast.

Silence descended over their table, the only noise coming from the cacophony of scraping silverware and the low chatter from the other trainers in the room as they finished up their food. Gregory set down his knife and fork as a contented sigh escaped his lips, one that only a full belly can inspire. The level of noise in the room had died down as they all ate their breakfast, the morning rush of trainers and their Pokemon trying to grab a bite of food before starting their day having died down considerably.

"Were you still wanting to go find a library or something?" Gregory asked, breaking the companionable silence of the table.

"Mhmm, yeah, I know of one close by." She replied as she finished the last bite of her own food, gently placing the cutlery on the table's polished surface.

"Cool, I'm ready whenever you are. I think Ari just might explode if we don't start training soon," Gregory teased as he caught the impatient look the little arachnid shot him. His red mandible made a few jerking clicks in what Gregory thought was his version of a huff. He gave the bug-type a comforting pat as he got up from his seat. He slung his pack over his shoulder and pushed his chair in as he and Nora walked toward the elevator. Fennekin, Mudkip, and Vulpix all followed behind, leaving behind empty plates that they had scoured clean, licking their chops to get every last residue from their meals.

The morning sun was just beginning to rise above the tall buildings that made up the part of the city they found themselves in. Its warming rays chased away the chill that lingered in the air from the previous night. Gregory followed Nora as she led them through the streets of her hometown. He noticed they were heading in the opposite direction of Chasaji's sports club, heading southwest deeper into the city's heart. The foot traffic on the road had started to pick up as they went along. People and Pokemon of all different types bustled about like Combee in a Vespiqueen hive. Men in suites power-walked past their long strides eating up the distance to get to their jobs in the high, towering office buildings in the city's downtown area. Various street vendors were hocking their wares at the corners of city blocks. Gregory even saw a man with a large aquarium tank filled with Magikarp. The red fish Pokemon wore blank expressions as their lips opened and closed, unconsciously filtering anything edible from the water they floated in.

"Only the best trainers can bring out the potential of these pokemon! Do you have what it takes? For only 200 credits you can find out!" The man with the Magikarp called out to all that passed him by.

Gregory and Nora walked quickly past him, not wanting to be dragged into his sales pitch. Gregory didn't know much about Magikarp except that they evolved into Gyarados and that there are plenty of cautionary tales of trainers who had their newly evolved Magikarp turn on them, causing severe injury and destruction or worse. He wasn't afraid to admit that he didn't think he had enough experience as a trainer to get a Gyarados to listen to him.

They walked the city streets for a few more minutes, Nora occasionally taking them through alleyways and what appeared, to Gregory at least, to be random side streets until they finally appeared in front of a rather large building. It wasn't quite the length of Chasaji's gym, but it was way taller, reaching up about four stories. Its red-bricked facade clashed with the more modern building styles surrounding it, but Gregory thought it suited the structure well.

As they walked up the small set of stairs that fronted the building and entered through the doors, they were greeted by a vast open space filled with rows upon rows of bookshelves, all filled with books of all types.

'Greetings. If you require help finding a specific tomb in the collection. I am more than happy to assist you,' A voice suddenly said, catching both teens off guard. It took Gregory a minute to realize that he hadn't actually heard the voice with his ears, but that instead, it arrived to him like thoughts inside his head. He looked around, trying to pinpoint where that had come from. His eyes landed on a Pokemon off to the right, sitting behind a counter.

Its large head, covered in short yellow fur and with a large mustache reaching off its snout-like nose, had two large pointed ears. Its body, which was rail thin and covered in brown armor, was positioned meditatively, floating a few feet off the ground. Floating around it were two Silver spoons, a corona of blue light emanating from them. Laid out all around it were piles of books. Many were open on the counter or held a loft in that same blue light before it's face.

'Please ensure that your companions keep their fires under control, or I will be forced to remove them from the building,' The Alakazam's voice said, once again projecting his words directly into Gregory's head. Its eyes flashed with a dangerous blue light.

At their feet, both Fennekin and Vulpix shared a nervous glance before giving the psychic-type Pokemon a nod.

Its warning delivered, the Alakazam returned its focus to the many books it was reading. The two split up, browsing through the shelves at their own pace.

About an hour later, they emerged from the building back onto the street. The sun was just now reaching its zenith in the sky, unobstructed by a single cloud. Nora had an armful of books she had checked out from the library. A small, satisfied smile pulled at her lips.

"Found everything that you were after?" Gregory asked as they headed back towards the Pokemon center, his own bounty of books tucked safely into his pack. He shuddered to think what that Alakazam would do if he returned a book damaged.

"Yes, plus some!" Nora replied happily.

"I found 'Pokemon Biology: the basics by L. Henson,' 'Pokemon nutrition for dummies' and a few others." she said excitedly as she jostled the tombs around in her arms. Reading out a few of the titles embossed onto their covers.

They continued retracing their steps back to the center, chatting idly the whole way. Finally, they turned a corner, and the familiar facade of the center came into view.

"I am going to go train some more with my team, what do you plan on doing now?" Gregory asked as they entered the building, the glass doors gliding open silently at their approach.

Ari and Vulpix both perked up at his question. The little spider Pokemon had been bored to tears during the trip to the library but was now starting to chitter excitedly at the prospect of improving his battling technique.

Vulpix, on the other hand, was looking up hopefully at Nora as he unleashed a full-powered Babydoll eyes.

It was super-effective as Nora glanced down at the little tod and then at the books piled in her arms.

"I think we'll also get some training in," she sighed, giving her books another longing glance. However, it was short-lived as Vulpix yipped excitedly, rubbing the soft vermilion fur of his body across her leg, a gentle smile stretching across Nora's face at the sight.

They took the elevator to their rooms to drop off their books before meeting back down in the lobby of the center's bottom floor. From there, they decided to split up. Gregory wanted to give one of the local battle clubs a try, while Nora was going to go try out Chasaji's. Armed once again with his Pokegear's GPS, Gregory and his Pokemon set out to find the Cherrygrove battle club.

The Battle Club ended up being all the way on the city's west side and took up a few acres of land. It was a massive facility with a central building with smaller satellite facilities scattered across the lot. The main building looked like a stadium. Its circular structure had a modern aesthetic with many jutting metal and reflective glass windows. Its domed roof had a poke ball facade, perfectly mimicking the red and white spheres.

As he walked up to it, Gregory saw a few outdoor battlefields with various terrain layouts. One looked like a miniature forest, the battlefield surface covered in grass and sprinkled with large trees. Gregory could feel the excitement welling up in his chest. He and his team haven't had many opportunities to battle, and this was an excellent opportunity to see how he measured up to other trainers.

The Battle Club lobby was a mostly open space with a high vaulted ceiling, from which large banners hung, their colorful fabrics emblazoned with the various symbols for all the Pokemon types. At the back of the room were two large doors on either side of a wide reception desk. The place was packed, a long queue of trainers snaking around the lobby. Gregory wasted no time and found a place in the growing line.

"Rook, de dee," A familiar chirping drew Gregory's attention. In front of him, he saw a familiar Pokemon staring down at him from his trainer's shoulder. Leona's Rookidee gave him a bob of his head, but due to his stature, it was more like its whole body.

She turned to face him at the sound of her Pokemon's call. Her amber eyes widened slightly in recognition as they took in Gregory.

"Hey! It's good to see you again," Leona said, giving him a grin that caused the skin around her scar to be pulled taut.

"Where's your friend at?" she asked a second later, noticing that Nora wasn't with him.

"Nora decided to go do some training on her own, we'll be meeting up later," Gregory said as he stepped forward in the line.

"This your first time at a battle club?"

"yeah. I've always wanted to go to one, but I never had a pokemon of my own until now."

They spent the next few minutes exchanging small talk while waiting for the line to progress. In that time, Gregory learned that she was born in the Galar region. Her parents were Pokemon breeders who owned a ranch on the outskirts of Turffield town. This, Gregory thought, was probably where she got all her Pokemon from. His eyes flicked down to her belt, where five Pokeballs were clipped, their casings shiny. Evidence of the care Leona gave them.

"So what made you decide to start your journey here in the Johto region?" Gregory asked. They had been waiting in line for about 10 minutes now and had reached the halfway point.

"I guess it's because I traveled around Galar a lot already because of my parents work. So I just wanted to explore somewhere I've never been before," She answered quickly in a flat voice and with an exaggerated shrug of her shoulders.

She hadn't looked at him as she gave her answer.

Something about her answer seemed off to him. Gregory wasn't sure exactly, but he was pretty sure that Leona had just lied to him. He was curious and wanted to dig deeper but decided against it. He had obviously just stumbled on a sore topic and didn't want to antagonize her with his prying.

Another few minutes of awkward silence followed them as they inched along through the line.

"I can take the next in line here!" one of the receptionists called out as Leona and Gregory finally made it to the front of the line.

"I'll see you around. You better train hard for the tournament; you'll need it if you hope to beat me," Leona teased lightly, all traces of the earlier tension gone as if it had never been there, as she approached the front desk.

"We will see about that!" Gregory chuckled as he waved his hand in response to hers as they bid farewell.

A few seconds later, a different receptionist called for the next person in line. Gregory ambled over with Fennekin trotting at his side.

"Hello there! Welcome to the Cherrygrove Battle Club. Have you been to our facility before?" The man behind the counter said. The name tag of his uniform let Gregory know his name was Tom.

"No, This would be my first time,"

"Well allow me to explain how it works!" the man said happily, entering a few inputs into his computer. "First I'll need to see your trainer ID, which I'll use to register you into our system."

The man took the proffered ID and began clicking around on his screen, the rapid clacking of his fingers on the keyboard bespoke of his experience in his duties.

"Here is your ID back, Mr. Johnson. Now that you are registered, allow me to walk you through the different services we offer," Tom continued after he passed Gregory's ID back to him.

"We offer single battles, double battles, and we also offer triple battles, Though they aren't quite that popular yet. Once you decide which battle style you'd like to do I'll give you a ticket with the field you will be battling on. If you need help finding your way just follow the signs posted throughout the building." Tom paused to motion with his hands to the various signs hanging throughout the back portion of the lobby.

"Your opponents will be decided at random, and will be trainers who have the same number of badges as you."

"So which battle style would you like to participate in today?" Tom asked.

"I'll stick with single battles for now," Gregory said.

He didn't really have to think too long to make his decision. Gregory and his Pokemon hadn't been together for very long, so they were still learning about each other. Nor did he think he was skilled enough to order both Fennekin and Ari in a battle simultaneously. The wild Spearow flock from the other day was one thing, but against a trainer, it was a whole different story.

"Excellent. Here is your field assignment. You'll be in Stadium 2B. Enjoy your time with us here at the Cherrygrove battle club." Tom said as he handed off a small ticket stub with a barcode and a bold 2B on its face.

Gregory thanked him and was just about to turn and leave before Tom stopped him.

"I almost forgot. For every battle you win you will earn a Club Point which can be exchanged for various different prizes. Every stadium will have a prize counter you can exchange you points at."

With a final wave, he and his Pokemon made their way to their assigned stadium.

Gregory stepped into the trainer box on his side of the field, his fingers jittery with excitement as they hovered next to Fennekin and Ari's Pokeball. He had had to return them before the start of the battle. His opponent for this match was a boy around his age. He had a determined look that matched Gregory's with a backward blue cap and an orange shirt.

"The name's Joey! You don't look all that tough. I hope you're ready to lose," Joey called out as he stepped into his box, a Pokeball gripped in his hand.

"We will see about that!" Gregory replied as he raised a hand. The Pokeball he chose expanded out of travel mode.

The battlefield that they would be competing on was a forest variant. It looked more like the route Gregory took to get here than a Pokemon battlefield. A single line of compacted dirt was in the center, flanked on either side by trees and shrubs loosely packed together.

The Battle Club referee stepped forward on the elevated platform overlooking the field and raised two different colored flags.

"Alright, each opponent can use two pokemon and may switch out only once. The trainer that has no pokemon able to battle will be declared the loser. Obey my commands at all time."

"Blue trainer, are you ready?" The ref said, making eye contact with Joey, who gave a curt nod in reply, his eyes focused forward at Gregory and the battlefield.

"Red Trainer, Ready?" He said, turning to Gregory.

"I'm ready!"

"Trainers release your pokemon!" The ref said, whipping both flags downwards.

Both trainers threw their Pokeballs to the field, twin lights flashing as their Pokemon materialized.

Ari appeared on Gregory's side of the field, his mandibles chittering in anticipation.

On Joey's side, the Pokemon that appeared was a small quadruped with light blue skin, large ears, and a small horn, only slightly larger than the spines that protrude from its back. The female Nidoran locked its red eyes on Ari, its whiskers twitching as it gnashed its buck teeth and widened its stance in preparation for its trainer's command.

Gregory quickly took in the environment, eyes flickering, trying to absorb all the information he could.

"Nida, Fury swipes go!" Joey called out, snapping Gregory's eyes back forward.

"Ari, dodge into the trees!" Gregory snapped out.

Despite its short stature, the Nidoran was able to quickly cover the distance between them. Leaping the last few feet toward Ari, a glowing claw stretched out for a strike. However, Ari reacted quickly. He raised his thorax, and a strand of web shot out, impacting wetly with one of the nearby tree trunks. Using the new anchor point, Ari pulled himself out of the Nidoran's way, its glowing claws slashing harmlessly through where the little spider just was, landing on the side of the tree. His six legs were quick to find purchase with the rough tree bark.

"Nice dodge Ari! Now string shot," Gregory said as he punched his finger forward at the little blue Pokemon.

Just like with the Spearow, Ari reared his head and spat globs of his sticky webbing at the Nidoran. Heeding its trainer's urgent calls to get out of the way, their opponent was able to jump out of the way of most of the projectiles. In the end, though, Ari's recent accuracy training showed itself as he scored a direct hit on the Nidoran's face, which caused the Pokemon to flinch back. It shook its head from side to side, trying to dislodge the web blinding it.

"Great! Now use bug bite!" Gregory ordered.

Ari clicked his mandibles once in understanding before he leaped from the tree he was perched on.

"Look out!" Joey yelled, but his warning was unheeded. Nidoran was too focused on trying to clear the web from her eyes. Ari's jump let him close the distance so that he could clamp onto Nidoran's body. The vicious bite caused her to flail even more as she squealed in pain. Ari delivered three more bites before he was caught by a wild swing from Nidoran, hitting the ground hard on his back. The little spider Pokemon was able to make it back to his legs after a few seconds of awkward shifting of his body.

Meanwhile, Nidoran cleared most of the web from her eyes after reaching up with a claw. Gregory could see that Ari's mandibles barely made a dent through Nidoran's thick hide. However, the blow Ari had taken left him a little wobble, Gregory watching as he tried to shake it off. Gregory clicked his tongue before raising Ari's Pokeball, signaling to the ref that he would be switching out his Pokemon.

"Sorry, Ari this match-up isn't in your favor," Gregory said apologetically as the red light engulfed his Pokemon.

He exchanged the Pokeball for Fennekin's before lobbing it into the air, a snap-popping noise preceding the flash of light that brought the yellow fox to the battlefield.

"You're up Fennekin, let's show them what you can do!"

"Nidoran fury swipe!" Joey called out, not wasting any time.

"Use Ember, follow up with scratch!" Gregory commanded in response.

The two Pokemon burst into motion. Nidoran charged forward, her sight no longer impeded by the web. Fennkin stood her ground as she inhaled a quick lung full of air. She threw her head forward, hot embers flying toward the charging Pokemon. Unlike Ari's attack, fennekin's embers visibly hurt Nidoran, causing her to flinch as the fiery projectiles impacted her head and chest.

The poison pin Pokemon was undeterred. She pushed through the pain and lunged at Fennekin, her left claw connecting forcefully with the little fox's head. Before Fennekin could recover from the first blow, a second, this time with her right claw, followed after. Rolling with the force of the hit, Fennekin dodged the third follow-up swing before popping quickly back to her feet.

Fennekin lunged back into the fray landing her own strike against the Nidoran. She followed it up with a point-blank burst of embers at Gregory's shouted command. The impacts of the fire caused a cloud of smoke to obscure both combatants. This proved too much for the little blue Pokemon; when the smoke cleared, it had fallen to the ground, its eyes closed and chest heaving air, no longer able to battle.

"It's not over yet!" Joey said as he returned his defeated Pokemon and threw out his second Pokeball.

When the flash of light dissipated, it revealed a ledyba hovering above the ground, the hum of its vibrating wings causing a distinct buzzing noise to pervade the area. Its wide, round eyes locked onto Fennekin with resolve. Its two black antennae twitched, and it pounded the top two of its six legs together like a boxer hyping themselves up before a bout.

"Into the Trees ledyba!" Joey called out.

Before Gregory could get out his order to use ember, the red bug-type shot into the trees on the right side of the field. The humming from his wings was diffused by the foliage as he disappeared from Gregory's sight.

"Ready an ember, Fennekin, shoot it as soon as he comes out," Gregory ordered.

Fennekin spread her stance out as she waited. Gregory could see a slight heat mirage spreading around her body as she began preparing an ember. Her ears would oscillate like a radar dish searching for any hint of her bug-type opponent.

He kept his head on a swivel, eyes scanning the small copse of trees and underbrush. Try as he might, he wasn't able to spot anything. He could feel the tension building as they waited, seeing who would make the first move.

"Now!" Joey called out as he made a chopping motion with his hand as if to cut the tension in half.

From within the trees, Ledyba burst out, his wings buzzing at high speed, as he shot toward Fenniken. Before she could release the held ember, a high-pitched noise burst out of Ledyba's open mouth. The sonic pulse caused Gregory to slap his hands over both his ears, curling in over himself as a headache started to pound beneath his temple. Poor Fenniken got it worse, the supersonic causing her retaliatory shot to go wide as she tried to pin both her ears back to her skull to block out the sound. Her actions were ineffective, as the atrocious sound caused her eyes to glaze over with a dazed expression. Suddenly, she ran wobbly and off balance toward one of the trees to her left. Gregory tried to call out to her to get her to stop, but she didn't seem to hear him, running headfirst into the tree's trunk.

Gregory winced at the impact, watching as his poor fox was laid out on the ground. However, thanks to that, she could shake off the effects of Ledyba's attack, her eyes regaining their focused clarity.

"Go Ledyba finish with a tackle!" Joey ordered.

"Show him you're charm. Then Ember!"

Once again, the red insect charged toward Fennekin. Only for it to falter a second later as the vixen gave a playful wink, eyes a glow with pink light, which caused a similar glow to reflect in Ledyba's. His wings stuttered to a halt as if of their own volition, causing him to drop from the air and slide across the dirt, lightly tapping Fennkin's leg.

The cutesy posture and look that she had vanished instantly as a more savage one took its place. She leaped back and unleashed a hail of embers point-blank into the down bug-type.

As the smoke cleared, Ledyba was out cold, the outside of his carapace lightly singed from the hot embers that had just peppered it.

"Ledyba is no longer able to battle. The blue trainer no longer has any usable Pokemon, leaving the red trainer the winner," the Ref announced, raising the red flag he held in his hand and pointing towards Gregory's side of the field.

A red light engulfed Ledyba's body as he was returned to his Pokeball. Gregory saw Joey whisper a few words of encouragement before clipping it back to his belt.

The two trainers briefly met in the middle to shake hands, Joey exchanging the prize money for the fight to Gregory's account.

A nurse from the Battle Club's in-house clinic came and took his Pokemon so that they could get a quick look over. Once they were returned, Gregory waited as his next opponent entered the field from a door on the opposite end.

'Today is going to be a great day,' Gregory thought to himself as he made his way back to the trainer box.

---

AN#2

As always, if you guys and gals have any critiques or if there are any errors that you find, please leave a comment to let me know!

Reading the comments you all leave really helps to motivate me to write more, and I also enjoy interacting with everyone, so keep them coming!

Finally, if you have any Ideas for OC trainers and their Pokemon teams, please PM me. If you do send in an OC, Just give me some character quirks/ flaws that give me a gist of what they are like. Pokemon teams should be reasonable (no full teams of legendaries or all shiny Pokemon.) I'll be sure to give credit in an AN if I end up using any of your submissions. Thanks to those who've already submitted some!

 

[Benny Resto]

Hey everyone! Apologies that this isn't a Chapter release; that should be coming out soon-ish.

I just wanted to touch base with you all and give a couple of announcements. Firstly, I've created a Discord for this and any future stories that I create. You can find that link here - https://discord.gg/Uu3AuaUH. That link will expire in 7 days, so if you have any problems, just PM me, and I'll send you a fresh one.

Also, I have decided to open up a Patreon. This is only for those who wish to support me; whether I have 1,000 patrons or 0, there will be no impact on chapter releases. You can find that here - https://www.patreon.com/Bennyandthejets800. Patrons will get to see chapters a day before they are posted and will have a chance to offer edits.

I honestly am surprised by the amount of positive reaction this has gotten here and across the other sites I post, so I want to close by thanking all of you who decided to give my work a chance!