Greyscale

[SIZE=9pt]I've finally decided to post this on LV. It is posted on Fanfiction, but there will be some changes between the two versions during the first four chapters.
The rating is T, but there will be some sensitive topics mentioned as well as violence in later chapters. I may or may not post those chapters here. In the event that I don't; I will provide a link to the chapter.
Disclaimer!
I do not own Pokémon, nor do i own any other published work that I may reference in this work. This work is sorely written for free entertainment for its author and readers.

Summery:
Hilbert Black had been waiting for his Pokémon journey for ten years. Alongside his friends and cousin, Bianca, Cheren and Touko, they set off to explore Unova. But they never expected an adventure that would bring them face to face with legends. A retelling/AU of Pokémon B/W.

Chapter One

Spoiler: This Will Be the Day

Greyscale
Chapter One
"This Will Be the Day"

Hilbert Black stared at his ceiling, illuminated by his alarm clock. He glanced over to check for the umpteenth time before grinning widely. Today was the start of a new day. Not just any day, but the new season of the Unova Pokémon League and his first run through the league. He looked over to where his travelling clothes were and at his packed bag before looking back at the ceiling.
Today he would meet his starter and partake in a journey he had waited ten years to go on. He could almost picture himself going on adventures and winning the championship and having his badges displayed alongside Touko's.
The giddiness from the day before filled his bones and Hilbert grinned as he got up, grabbing his outfit as he made a beeline for the bathroom.
He adjusted his hat after wiping his damp hands on the towel as he wandered downstairs, the smell of baking muffins luring him into the kitchen.
"Morning Mom!" he greeted his mother, Helen Black as she pulled a batch of blueberry muffins from the oven. She smiled at him as she put the muffins on a cooling tray.
"Good morning Hilbert, you ready?" she asked, turning the tray over and popping the muffins out. He nodded as he helped himself to a muffin, dodging the swing of the spatula. "Sure am!" he exclaimed, taking a bite of the muffin only for his eyes to widen as he burned his tongue.
"Careful, they're hot," Helen deadpanned, pouring more batter in the tins. Hilbert blew on his remaining muffin as Touko entered the kitchen and helped herself to a muffin.
"I'm heading out to Accumula now Aunt Helen," she started, going to the fridge and pulling out a water bottle and Helen nodded.
"Alright dear, have a good journey and I'll see you tonight?" she asked, putting the tin into the oven and setting the timer.
"I'll be back for dinner," Touko agreed and Hilbert gave her a mock hurt look.
"You aren't seeing me off? He asked and Touko gave him a deadpan look back as she pulled out a few apples and put them in her bag.
"No," she replied shortly. She closed her bag and slung it over her shoulder, heading towards the kitchen door before pausing. "Don't do anything stupid and die." she added before leaving.
Hilbert finished his muffin, unperturbed by Touko's attitude.
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Bianca Smith ran a brush through her hair. She reached across her sink and pumped some hair gel into her hand. She stared at her reflection as she finished the long process of taming her thick hair.
"Alright Bianca," she murmured, giving her hair a final pat and reached back over to wash her hands. "You can do this, it's not like you haven't defied your parents before. Well, not at this scale. But you can always pull the school card..." She huffed and tugged on her hat, her index finger resting lightly on her right cheek. "Why Bianca! How could you leave such a wonderful school to run around in the muck like a heathen?" she mimicked in a falsetto before rolling her eyes. She dusted off her skirt as she eyed her appearance before speaking in her normal tone. "Maybe you should take a cue from Touko, Bianca. She may be a bitch, but she isn't a coward."
Bianca turned around and walked back into her bedroom. She picked up her satchel from her bed as she swept through her room, kicking aside her abandoned pajamas. The sun's rays filtered through the open hall as she made her way to the staircase, her shoes squeaking with each step.
She stood at the top of the stairwell, her right hand clenching into a fist. She closed her eyes briefly and exhaled, slowly unclenching her hand.
"You can do this Bianca; Mrs. B did invite you to breakfast. There's no need to let them know about your plans just yet," she whispered before exhaling through her nose. "You're being paranoid. Mom isn't even in town to stop you."
She took another breath and began to descend.
"Good morning!" she greeted her father as she jumped the last few steps and bounded through the kitchen.
"Good morning Bianca, I thought you wouldn't be up for another few hours," Professor John Smith said, looking up from his papers. He put them down and picked up his mug of coffee, taking a long sip.
"Mrs. B invited me to breakfast and to see Cheren and Hilbert off," Bianca shrugged. She sat down on a stool and began to pull her shoes on.
Professor Smith glanced over at her. "I suppose at this point I'd tell you to follow your dreams if I happened to know that you were planning to go on a journey. But I don't know what you're planning to do when you took that sabbatical from school since you never told me anything."
Bianca looked up at her dad, her mouth opening and closing. "Thank you dad," she said, rushing over to give him a hug. "I'll call you every day!"
Bianca barreled out of the kitchen and Professor Smith sighed and rested his head against the counter.
"What am I going to tell her mother?"
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Cheren Knight opened the Black's backdoor and entered into their spacious kitchen. "Good morning Mrs. B," he greeted the older women as he passed her and the stove.
"Good morning Cheren," Helen smiled as she looked over her shoulder. "Hilbert is upstairs in his room and breakfast will be done shortly."
Cheren nodded took a few steps before pausing. "Is Touko here?" he asked, still staring towards the living room.
"No, she left an hour or so ago," Mrs. B replied evenly and Cheren exhaled, grateful for her lack of presence.
"Thanks," he muttered and resumed his journey. He made his way up the steps, his shoes thudding with every step. He knocked on the door and Hilbert opened it.
"Morning Black," Cheren greeted and Hilbert opened his door wider, revealing his messy room.
Cheren gave Hilbert an exasperated look. "You didn't even have the decency to clean your room," he stated, stepping over a pile of clothes.
Hilbert shrugged. "I got busy last night; Touko made me repack everything at least three times. I had to convince her I didn't need the kitchen sink!" he let himself fall back onto his bed and Cheren sniffed at the mention of Touko.
"What does she know? She didn't even get past the eighth gym," he grumbled and Hilbert sighed, quickly changing the subject.
"Dude, chill, this isn't that big of a deal that you have to get snippy," he said, sitting up and Cheren turned around.
"Whatever," Cheren muttered before dropping the subject. "Where's Bianca? She said she wouldn't be late, like usual. Today is very big deal; it begins our rite of passage into adulthood."
Hilbert got up, reaching over to poke Cheren's nose. He ignored his squawk of protest. "Who even calls a Pokémon journey a rite of passage anymore?
"I'm here!" came Bianca's greeting before Cheren could retort. He turned to look at her and from the corner of his eye, he saw Hilbert do the same.
"Good morning Bianca, you're late," Cheren told her, a faint blush rose in the blonde's cheeks.
"I came as fast as I could," she admitted, rubbed the back of her head. She looked over her shoulder. "Is that the box Mrs. B mentioned?" She asked Hilbert, who was pulling a box out of his closet.
"Sure is," Hilbert stated, placing the box on his bed. "Mom mentioned that Professor Juniper had a critical project, so she sent them over here instead of us going to her lab."
Cheren moved over to Hilbert and leaned in as he began to remove the box lid. He began to tap his foot as Hilbert read over a note. He put it on the table before revealing three gleaming spheres.
Cheren fought the feeling of butterfrees as he spoke. "Who's going to choose first?"
"I think Hilbert should, he is the eldest of us, and this is his house," Bianca put in, giving a shrug.
"Go ahead," Cheren conceded as Hilbert looked over at him before picking up the pokéball with the flame sticker.
"You can go next Cheren," Bianca spoke up. Cheren shot her a glance and she shrugged. "You're far more excited than I am, I don't mind. Honest," She offered.
Cheren nodded, his cheeks tinted pink as he picked up the pokéball with the waterdrop and Bianca grabbed the pokéball with the leaf.
"Together? On three?" Hilbert asked, holding his pokéball out, like he was in an anime.
Cheren and Bianca turned to face him. Bianca rolled her eyes, slipping into her own stance while Cheren copied Hilbert's.
"One, two... THREE!" Bianca shouted. She tossed her pokéball up into the air.
"C'MON OUT!" Hilbert declared as there were three flashes of light as the Pokémon emerged from their pokéballs.
Cheren looked down at his starter, the Oshawott looked up at him and grinned widely as he hugged Cheren's leg. Cheren felt a smile curl on his lips as he returned his starter, looking over to where Bianca and her Snivy seemed to be having a stare off over to where Hilbert was hugging his Tepig.

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[SIZE=9pt]Chapter Two[/SIZE]
[SIZE=9pt]

Spoiler: I Was Waiting for This Moment

Greyscale
Chapter Two
"I Was Waiting for This Moment"

Touko looked down at a worn pokéball. She sighed as she faced it outwards and pressed the button down, letting out the Pokémon in a flash of light.
"FREEDOM!" The Staraptor cried out, flying up towards the sky, out of range for the pokéball. She looped around Touko, who stopped and waited for her Pokémon to land back down. She flew upwards towards the sun and dived at Touko, pulling out a few feet from Touko and knocking the hat off her head. Touko sighed as she picked up the hat and the Staraptor landed in front of her.
"Kaze," Touko started to say, swallowing a lump in her throat and Kaze tilted her head and stared at Touko. "I..."
"Was incredibly foolish," Kaze finished. She hopped backwards from Touko and kept staring at her. "Silly mistress. You'd better be taking me on a journey to make it up."
Touko coughed and looked really interested in the tall grass she was next to. "I wasn't planning on it..." she admitted and Kaze hung her head before taking off into the air.
"You aren't putting me back in that pokéball then," Kaze declared as she flew around Touko before flying off into the open sky, making sure to stay in Touko's eyesight. Touko exhaled and continued to hike up the slight hill. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a trainer of the youngster class; cower back as Kaze screeched loudly from above them, causing several pidoves to scatter from the tall grass and the surrounding trees.
"Don't scare the trainers," Touko chided the Staraptor as she stepped out of the dewy grass, and Kaze gave her a look as she skimmed the tall grass, snatching a patrat off the ground and flying to a nearby tree. Touko pointedly ignored her as she passed the trainers, holding up a non trainer ID card. They nodded and started running through the tall grass as Touko slipped passed them, eyeing the growing buildings of Accumula.
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Hilbert stretched his arms above his head, keeping in a yawn as Bianca and Cheren debated behind him. He paused as a thought occurred.
"So let me get this straight," Hilbert said, turning around to face the two. "Your dad turned out to be just fine with you taking a sabbatical to go on a journey and your mom was totally against it?" at Bianca's nod, he let out a low whistle. "Talk about role reversal. Remember a couple years ago?"
Bianca shrugged. "That was before I got accepted into CUA. Now Mom doesn't think that a journey is a good idea... she wants me to stay in art school because I have a talent and should hone it," she grimaced. "Dad usually supports Mom, but he knows that I need to know what I want to do."
Cheren adjusted his bag's straps. "I already know what I'm going to do," he put in firmly. "Move to a small village in Johto where no one has heard of the Knight family." He pulled out the small pokéball and stared at it before putting back in his pocket.
Hilbert turned back around, gazing at the lab as they walked up the path. "I always thought on the day that we would start out journeys, I would know my goals," he confessed, shrugging his shoulders. "Maybe Touko is right; I'm too much of a dreamer."
Cheren snorted, rolling his eyes. "White has a stick far too up her ass for any good advice, don't listen to her."
Bianca pinched the bridge of her nose as Hilbert whirled around again and she sighed, already knowing that Hilbert would rise to the bait/advice,
"She's not stuck up. Just... hard to get along with," Hilbert defended. "She does care about me, somewhere, deep within her heart."
"And here we go again," Bianca grumbled. She stepped up her pace, breezing pass Hilbert. She opened the lab door and a blast of cool air greeted her. Bianca lifted her foot and stepped over the sleeping lillipup as she entered the lab.
Across the room, near the far corner, Professor Juniper laid, slumped over her desk; clearly asleep.
As Hilbert closed the door, Cheren sighed and followed Bianca's careful steps. Professor Juniper snored lightly, the edges of her papers ruffling up and Cheren adjusted his glasses.
"Professor Juniper?" he asked, stepping over a stack of books. He placed his right hand on the desk, stretching forward to poke her. As Cheren was reaching over, Professor Juniper's head lulled forward, sliding off her wrist and landing onto her papers.
Cheren gave a yelp as he overreached and fell onto the desk, a hair's breadth from Professor Juniper.
Bianca rolled her eyes as Hilbert stifled a chuckle.
"You could give me some help," Cheren muttered as he grasped the desk, pushing himself upwards. He took a step back as Professor Juniper jerked awake.
"Oh goodness!" she yawned, leaning back in her chair, her arms stretched out above her head. She rolled her head before bringing down her arms. "Good morning you three," she yawned again. "I suppose you're here for the pokédexes, aren't you?"
They nodded and professor Juniper leaned to her far right, disappearing from view for a moment before straightening back up.
"Here we are," she told them and spread the three pokédexes on the desk. Cheren reached over and picked up the blue one. Unlike his father's, it was lightweight and resembled a cell phone.
"Excuse me," Bianca reached passed him and grabbed the pink pokédex. Cheren glanced at her to see Bianca's eyes widen in surprise.
"Wow, this is really light," she commented, earning a snort from Professor Juniper.
"It was designed to be convenient," she told the group. "It was an automatic scan feature, so you don't need to catch every Pokémon, just have it out."
Hilbert nodded, playing around with the pokédex. The screen lit up for several moments before dimming and Hilbert began to peruse the screen.
"Is Touko with you?" Professor Juniper asked and at Bianca's shake of her head, she groaned. "I was hoping she'd be willing to demonstrate how to catch a Pokémon..."
"You already showed us, on that road trip," Cheren cut in and Hilbert looked up from his pokédex, stuffing it in his pocket.
Professor Juniper paused and her lips tugged downward as she squinted her eyes. "That's right, I did," she confirmed. "In that case..." she pulled 15 pokéballs and distributed them."Good luck! And don't forget to keep them out! The battery charger is solar powered! And you three know to register for the league at Accumula's pokécenter? Right?"
They nodded again and she motioned for them to leave. The three turned around to leave with Hilbert bouncing on his heels as Bianca moved towards the door, standing in the shadow as Cheren yanked it open and gave her a thumb up as he left with Hilbert following quickly.
Bianca gave a faint smile as she too left and closed the door behind her, not seeing Professor Juniper sigh and let her head fall onto the desk.
Bianca walked along the well worn path towards route one, her bag bumping her side as she followed after Cheren and Hilbert. Her stomach flipped as she inhaled and exhaled shakily, focusing on the smooth surface of Snivy's pokéball she held clenched in her hand.
"You can do this," she reminded herself, exhaling again. The pokéball in her hand shook and she let out a shaky laugh, taking a step forward and another step.
She was doing it, actually defying her mother for the first time in her life. A strange feeling bubbled up in Bianca's chest and she took another step as the feeling burst out and she let out a bark of laughter, feeling much lighter than she had in years.
She could finally be who she wanted to be. Bianca grinned as she picked up her pace. She didn't have to worry about her art, her schooling or pleasing anyone. She could learn who she was. Snivy's pokéball shook in response to her excitement and Bianca grin grew. She looked up to see the signpost for Route One staring at her across the way, Bianca inhaled and exhaled again, feeling the butterfrees in her stomach flutter.
"You ready?" Cheren asked.
Bianca jumped and turned to face Cheren, her hand flying up towards her heart. "Y-yeah," she said shakily. She paused and exhaled. "Yeah! Let's do this!"
Hilbert cheered. "Alright then! Onward!" He linked arms with Bianca and Bianca linked her arm with Cheren.
"On three?" Cheren asked, pocketing his pokédex as he stepped beside Bianca. Bianca looked up at him and they shared a grin as Hilbert counted down.
"...three!" Hilbert said and Bianca broke out of her thoughts as they clumsily ran forward.
Hilbert slipped on the dewy grass and pitched forward, Bianca following him for a brief second before Hilbert's arm slipped down, freeing her as Cheren caught her.
"You ok?" Cheren asked, steadying her. Bianca looked up and smiled.
"Yeah," she said, dusting her skirt off, her cheeks feeling warm. Hilbert stood up and she twisted to face him.
Hilbert offered them a sheepish smile, and rubbed his lower back. "This is happening!" he cheered, pumping his fist. "To Accumula!" he declared, twirling on his heel as he walked towards the well worn path leading to the next town.

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[SIZE=9pt]Chapter Three[/SIZE]
[SIZE=9pt]

Spoiler: This Day and Never Again

Greyscale
Chapter Three
"This Day and Never Again"
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N leaned against a brick wall, scanning the small crowd of people. His eyes remained narrow as he watched a small child run after a herdier, nearly grabbing the tail.
"Hey!" the herdier barked as the child giggled. He huffed and began to herd the child over to presumably his master.
"Nope, nope, nope!" was the general consensus from a flock of pidoves as they all lifted up and landed a few feet away, going back to hunting for food. Their mutterings quieted back to a low hum of mingled conversation. He watched them, his head tilting sideways as he lost himself into his thoughts.
N shook himself out of his stumper as more Plasma members filed past him, the metal clinking together as they walked over to the park. He glanced at the sky, and made a mental calculation of the time. He sighed as he leaned against the wall and shifted his weight.
His stomach flopped as he inhaled. Today was important, he mused. He had been prepared for years for this day; when his dreams could begin to come to fruition. N exhaled slowly and lowered his hand from his pendent, gazing around the small townsquare. From the corner of his eye, he saw a strange birdlike Pokémon. He studied it; it resembled a tranquil... loosely - if tranquils had black and grey coloring with a large comb of red feathers hanging over its face.
Beside the strange Pokémon was a girl who appeared his age. She stoked the Pokémon's breast feathers and spoke to it softly and as it replied, N cursed his weak human hearing.
The Pokémon nodded and lifted off, flying towards the forest to cause pandemonium among the pidoves.
N watched it as it disappeared before glancing back at the human. He tore his gaze away as she disappeared to the upper level. He sighed and shifted his weight once more as he studied the townsquare, his mind slipping back to the unfamiliar weight clasped in his left hand.
N let his lip curl upwards in distaste for the pokéball he held. A few more hours, he reminded himself as he settled in for the wait.
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Hilbert stretched his arms in the air as he walked along the path. Beside him, Tepig trotted, taking in the scenery. He let his arms fall as he spotted Bianca in the distance, fighting a trainer. He grinned as he looked down at Tepig, who cheerfully snorted and went back to walking. Hilbert settled his hands in his pockets. "You ready for this?" he asked, glancing down at Tepig before looking back at the rising buildings of Accumula. "Our journey..." he grinned and exhaled, butterfrees in his stomach. "I've waited five years to say this, but we're on our way to become the champion!"
"Tepig!" Tepig agreed, looking up to his master and then to the town ahead of them. He squealed as Hilbert broke into a run and quickly pursued him.
Accumula grew in size as the two came closer and so did the familiar figure of Cheren and Bianca. Hilbert slowed down, making his strides longer as Tepig ran past him and tried to skid to a stop but ended up crashing into Cheren's legs.
Cheren turned around and looked down before making eye contact with Hilbert. "There you are," he said with a short nod.
Hilbert rubbed the back of his head. "I didn't expect you here this early," he admitted and Bianca rolled her eyes.
"The sooner I get away, the better," she told him, pointed looking towards Nuvema. Bianca nudged Cheren. "And Cheren couldn't wait to meet his adoring fans," she finished with a smirk as Cheren buried his face in his hands.
"Don't mention that," he groaned, rubbing his temples. "I haven't even done anything except for my Father's merits."
Bianca patted his back while Hilbert fished around for Tepig's pokéball. He pulled out the sphere and returned Tepig before clipping the pokéball onto his belt. "Are we just waiting for Professor Juniper to arrive?" he asked, glancing into the town and over all the people gathered. He frowned and pointed towards some LARPers.
"What are they doing?" he asked and Cheren and Bianca glanced in the direction he was pointing.
Bianca's eyebrows furrowed. "I have no idea," she said, tilting her head. "It might be some time before Professor Juniper gets here, wanna check it out?" she looked at Cheren who shrugged.
"Why not? It's not like we have anything better to do," he agreed. Bianca nodded and offered him a small smile as they walked over to the growing crowd. Hilbert sighed as he watched them before following them into the middle of the crowd. As he got closer, the LARPers weren't LARPers at all, he noted, staring at their strange banner. More of the not-LARPers marched into the townsquare, escorting an older man who wore a long cloak wearing a red eyepatch that seemed to be glaring out at the crowd. They fell into formation and the man took a step forward, addressing the crowd.
"My name is Ghetsis," he began. "I am representing Team Plasma and today, ladies and gentleman, I would like to speak about Pokémon liberation."
Hilbert blinked in shock, and the crowd shared his confusion; whispers breaking out. Ghetsis raised his hand and began to speak again.
"I'm sure most of you believe that we humans and Pokémon are partners that have come to live together because we want and need each other," he paced a little before turning back to the crowd. "However... Is that really the truth? Have you ever considered that perhaps we humans... only assume that this is the truth?"
Murmurs broke out and Hilbert bit his lip. He pulled out Tepig's pokéball and studied it carefully, considering Ghetsis' words.
"Pokémon are subject to the selfish commands of Trainers... They get pushed around when they are our 'partners' at work... Can anyone say with confidence that there is no truth in what I'm saying?"
Hilbert looked back up, putting away his pokéball. He glanced towards Cheren and Bianca to see them in various shades of disbelief. The murmuring of the crowd drug on until Ghetsis continued again, with his voice slightly raised.
"Now, ladies and gentlemen, Pokémon are different from humans. They are living beings that contain unknown potential," he paced some more, standing on the far side of the small park. "They are living beings from whom we humans have much to learn. Tell me, what is our responsibility toward these wonderful beings called Pokémon?"
The crowd broke out in murmurs again, and someone called out;
"Could it be liberation?"
"That's right! We must liberate the Pokémon! Then, and only then, will humans and Pokémon truly be equals," Ghetsis acknowledged, he whirled around and walked to the center and faced to crowd. "Everyone, I end my words here today by imploring you to consider the relationship between people and Pokémon... and the correct way to proceed. We sincerely appreciate your attention."
He swept to the right and the other members of Team Plasma fell into line, following him out of the town.
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Touko gripped the railing, her knuckles turning white as she exhaled shakily. "Team Plasma" she murmured. "Plasma. Not..."
She was skipping into Jubilife, her first badge hanging proudly on her scarf. She smiled even wider when she saw Professor Rowan and Lucas. She changed directions towards them, but hesitated when she saw two Team Galactic grunts surrounding them...
Touko shook her head, her hands flying up towards her temple, as Ghetsis' voice broke her out of her memories. "Calm down," Touko chastised herself. She forced herself to let go of the railing and crossed her arms, her nails digging into her skin. "They're just some activists." She spotted Hilbert standing in the crowd. Her eyes widened.
Touko barely noticed uncrossing her arms and rushing down the stairs. By the time she had reached the townsquare, the grunts- protesters. They weren't gangsters- had left the town and she let out a breath she wasn't aware she was holding. Touko slowed her hurried pace, stopping mere inches away from Cheren as he also headed to Hilbert.
"White," Cheren greeted shortly and Bianca nodded in greeting.
"Hilbert," Touko stated, pointedly ignoring Cheren and Bianca. She felt their glares at her back and Hilbert raised an eyebrow before she sighed and glanced back at the pair. "Knight, Bianca," she added.
"What did you think of that?" Hilbert cut in, maneuvering to beside Touko. She bit her lip and scanned the crowd, half listening to Hilbert's conversation.
"I don't like it," Bianca broke in. She crossed her arms and frowned, staring at the park where Team Plasma had been not ten minutes ago. "Do they even know what they're saying?"
"I doubt it," Cheren added, adjusting his glasses. "Don't pay them any heed. They're just another group of human-haters."
Bianca nodded and Touko sighed as Kaze landed beside her.
"You try to release me, and I'll peck your eyes out" Kaze said cheerfully, preening her wings. She lifted them, showing off her impressive wingspan before resuming her task.
Touko shifted, pointedly not looking at Cheren and Bianca. "Nice to know someone cares," she muttered lowly as she heard Bianca's gasp and the robotic voice of "Pokémon not recognized," from the pokédexes.
"Your Pokémon... just now, it was saying..."
Touko turned sharply towards the unfamiliar voice, her posture stiffening and her eyes narrowing as she craned her neck up. The stranger towered over her, his head cocked as he studied Kaze.
"Slow down, you're speaking too fast. Now what's this about Pokémon speaking? What a strange thing to say," Cheren scoffed from behind her. Touko could imagine him crossing his arms and the stranger looked past her.
"So you can't hear them either..." he mused, more to himself than to them."How sad..." he looked up. "My name's N."
"I'm Hilbert, and this is my cousin, Touko," Hilbert spoke up, he stepped up beside Touko and she shot him a warning look.
"I'm Bianca Smith," Bianca piped up before Touko could say anything. She sighed and Kaze pecked her leg. She winced as Cheren added.
"And I'm Cheren. We, excluding Touko, are assisting Professor Juniper with the pokédex, though my main goal is to become the champion," Cheren cut in smoothly. Touko pursued her lips as N replied to Cheren.
"The pokédex, eh? So... You're going to confine many, many Pokémon in pokéballs for that, then. I'm a trainer, too, but I can't help wondering... Are Pokémon really happy that way?" N frowned before turning to Touko, and she took a step back instinctively, swallowing as he made eye contact with her.
"Well, Touko, is it? Let me hear your Pokémon's voice again!" N declared, sending out a purrloin.
Kaze lifted up and flapped twice, gaining lift. The two Pokémon sneered at each other while Touko fished an older model of the pokédex from her pocket. Hilbert pulled Cheren and Bianca away from the optional battlefield.
Touko opened it and scanned the Purrloin; steadily ignoring N. She frowned before snapping her pokédex shut and tucking away her bag. "I decline your challenge," she stated, looking towards N. He looked taken aback and blinked rapidly.
"What?" he asked, tilting his head, his brow furrowing. "Are you not a trainer?"
"White," Cheren began, pushing up his glasses. "What in Victini's name are you doing?" He stared at her, his eyebrow arched. "You can't just refuse a battle."
Touko closed her eyes. "If the difference between the lowest leveled Pokémons exceeds 10 power-levels between challengers, the trainer with the higher level Pokémon has the right to refuse battle," she recited before opening her eyes to see N's stunned expression. Kaze landed next to Touko and she stoked her crest feathers before expounding at their stunned expressions. "For me, this battle would be unethical and could result in potentially severe injury for my opponent as Kaze is about 30 levels higher than Purrloin."
"I see..." N said carefully. He looked at Touko and she stared him in the eye, challenging him. He broke away from Touko, instead looking towards Purrloin.
"I could take him," Purrloin protested, looking towards N.
"Not a chance," Kaze replied, smugness dripping off her words as she landed. "Don't be so arrogant. I have faced legends and mad men!" she raised her wings and spread them out to their full length. "Would you test your mettle-"
Touko lowered the pokéball and put it in her pocket. "You're one to talk," She muttered under her breath. She met N's gaze once more before stalking towards the pokécenter. She let herself exhale as she heard Bianca ask from behind her, "Is that even a legitimate rule?"
Touko hurried her pace to the pokécenter, her breathing evening out as she ran into Professor Juniper. She rubbed her side as the two stared at each other for a moment.
"Touko?" Professor Juniper asked, surprised by her sudden appearance. She reordered the papers in her arms as they continued to stare at each other
"I want to go on a Pokémon journey," Touko said firmly, not looking away from Professor Juniper.

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[SIZE=9pt]Chapter Four[/SIZE]
[SIZE=9pt]

Spoiler: Decretum

Greyscale
Chapter Four
Decretum
Hilbert waved to Professor Juniper as she headed back down Route One. He dropped his hand and faced Touko. He jumped back and rubbed his head. "Touko! I wasn't expecting you there! Are you going to go back to Nuvema?"
Touko shook her head. "No, I will be also going on a journey."
Hilbert grinned at her. "That's awesome!" he declared, raising his hand up. Touko looked at it and faced Hilbert, raising an eyebrow. Hilbert lowered his hand and coughed softly. "So... anyway, did you want to tag along with me?"
Touko nodded. "Yes, there is safety in numbers," she offered a short smile before glancing at the pokecenter, missing Hilbert's smile back. She rubbed her arm and glanced around the town. "Shall we be leaving?" she asked.
Hilbert nodded and turned around. "To Route Two!" he cried. Touko adjusted the strap on her bag and followed after her active cousin. On her hip, Kaze's pokéball shook and Touko laid the tips of her fingers on it. She glanced around at the route gate, and excitement welled up in her chest. She was going on another journey.
Hilbert glanced over at Touko and grinned at her and she rolled her eyes at him. "Did you sign up for the league?"
Touko shook her head. "No, I was planning on doing so when we hit the next town over," she replied, looking around the route gate. The attendant waved them passed and Touko fell into step behind Hilbert, blinking once or twice as she scanned the unfamiliar scenery.
"Hilbert! Touko!"
Touko whirled around, her hand hovering around Kaze's pokéball. She relaxed her posture as she saw Helen jogging towards them.
"There you two are!" She called out, slowing to a fast walk as she grew closer.
"Mom? What are you doing here?" Hilbert asked, he blinked in surprise as Helen Black stopped a couple feet away from them.
"Can't a mother see her child off?" she asked with a smile which Hilbert returned. "Besides, I heard from Professor Juniper that Touko was going on a journey," she looked over to Touko, who nodded. Helen beamed at her. "I suppose you'll want me to sign you up for the league then."
Touko shook her head. "No, I'll take care of it," she assured her and Helen nodded before looking back at Hilbert. "I found something that would be useful for you," she said, digging through her bag for a moment before pulling out a pair of Running Shoes.
Hilbert accepted them. "Wow! Thanks Mom!" he cheered, immediately changing shoes. He stood back up and gave an experimental jump. Touko watched and rolled her eyes before turning back to Helen.
"Would you like me to talk with Professor Juniper about you signing up for the Pokédex project?" Helen asked, studying Touko.
Touko shook her head. "No, thank you." She touched the bulge in her right jean pocket. "My old one still works, just waiting for the patch to finish installing."
Helen nodded before addressing both of them. "Don't forget to call me often and try your best!"
"I will," Hilbert promised as Touko mumbled something unintelligible. Helen hugged them both before heading back towards Accumula. Touko turned around, her heart clenching in her chest and she squeezed her eyes shut. She felt Hilbert's hand on her shoulder and she recoiled from it.
"Come on," he said, removing her head and Touko opened her eyes.
"Yeah," she agreed, cursing her shaking tone. Touko pressed her lips together, forcing herself to still and not think about anything.
"Onward!" Hilbert declared, throwing his arms out. He grinned stupidly, throwing an arm around Touko's shoulder. She glared at him and Hilbert just turned his stupid grin towards her. Touko snorted, but made no motion to move his arm. They started, stepping into the tall grass and it brushed their calves. Kaze's pokéball shook with excitement and Touko untangled herself from Hilbert's grasp to let out the Staraptor. Kaze glided above her before divebombing the tall grass.
A flock of pidove emerged from the tall grass, squawking in fright as they flew away from Kaze.
She repeated this a few times, sending Pokémon running everywhere. Touko rolled her eyes as Kaze circled again and Hilbert protested as a sewaddle scurried passed him.
"Kaze is scaring off all the Pokémon!"
Kaze swooped low, passing inches from Hilbert and he ducked instinctively as the Staraptor plucked the Sewaddle off the ground and perched on a tree branch. Touko directed Hilbert away, all but pushing him into the tall grass.
"The best way to attract Pokémon is to make a lot of movement, but be easy on the noise - that scares away a good portion of Pokémon," Touko instructed, pushing Hilbert. He yelped and stumbled forward, barely catching his balance. Hilbert glanced back at Touko, who made a shooing motion. Hilbert sighed and began to shuffle around in a circle, nearly jumping back in surprise when a pidove flew into his face.
"Tepig!" Hilbert called, stumbling with the pokéball. He managed to call out his starter as the pidove flew away, trying to catch up with the flock.
Staraptor let out an impressive craw and the pidove's speed doubled and Hilbert sighed, his head falling forward.
::::
::::
Bianca twisted her hands, rubbing them as she inevitably popped her knuckles and wrists. She stepped out of the tall grass, taking another gulp of the fresh air. She could barely see Cheren as he plowed through the trainers, heading towards Stration. Bianca exhaled, letting her eyes close as she breathed in the air and let her mind go blank, just listening to the sounds of nature... and trainer battles. Bianca opened her eyes and walked down the short hill towards the tall grass, letting out Snivy as she did so.
"Sniv," he hissed, turning his nose up as Bianca stepped foot the tall grass.
"Pup! Pup!" A lillipup barked, running through the grass towards Bianca. Snivy hissed discontentedly as he lashed out with a vine whip, smacking the lillipup's nose.
"Tackle!" Bianca called out, digging through her bag for a pokéball. Snivy glanced towards her, receiving a tackle for his troubles.
"Sni," Snivy let out, tackling the lillipup as she came around. He jumped back after sending the lillipup skidding.
"Lilli..." the lillipup growled and charged towards Snivy.
"Vine whip!" Bianca yelled and Snivy nodded, lashing out as the lillipup charged towards him. His vines shot out and Snivy turned ever so slightly, the vines whipping against the lillipup.
"Lilli..." she whimpered, dazed and Bianca threw out a pokéball. She whispered a victorious yes as it hit the lillipup and activated.
The pokéball shook, once, twice and thrice before settling down with a click. Bianca threw her arms up, cheering. Snivy rolled his eyes, glaring pointedly at Bianca. She quickly picked up the pokéball and weighed it in her palm and smiled. She tossed it up and down.
"Come on out!" Bianca called, pressing the button and it clicked opened and the lillipup materialized in front of her.
"Pup! Pup! Pup!" Lillipup barked. She stared at Bianca before looking towards Snivy and yelping. "Pup!"
Bianca crouched down. "I'm Bianca and I'm your trainer," she said and lillipup sniffed her offered hand.
"Lilli!" she barked, her tail wagging as she licked Bianca's hand. Bianca giggled, pulling away her hand and Snivy let out a longsuffering sigh.
"Snivy," he drawled out, tapping his foot, gaining Bianca's attention. She glanced down at him and pulled out his pokéball, silently returning him. Lillipup ran around her feet, barking and wagging her tail. Bianca smiled as she straightened up, stretching her arms up.
"Come on, let's go," she told Lillipup, who simply wagged her tail, bounding into the tall grass. Bianca stepped forward, smiling as she dodged a patrat, who Lillipup was happily chasing. A youngster waved at her before turning back to his battle.
As Bianca stepped onto the path, a large flock of pidove flew overhead, squawking and chirping loudly. She stared at them as they flew towards Stration, growing smaller by the moment.
"Hiya Bianca!" she heard Hilbert holler. She turned around and waved at the approaching Hilbert and Touko.
Bianca waved back, undaunted by Touko's indifferent expression. "Hi Hilbert!" she called back, meeting his volume and Touko glared at the both of them.
"...we're right here," she was huffing as they drew closer to Bianca. "Must you two scream?"

Spoiler: Decretum

[/SIZE]
[SIZE=9pt]Hilbert ignored Touko, raising his hand and Bianca smacked it her own. "You wanna battle?" he asked as Touko crossed her arms, looking elsewhere.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=9pt]"Sure!" Bianca agreed and Hilbert pulled out a pokéball.
"I'll referee," Touko offered suddenly and winced at Hilbert's and Bianca's stares.
"Alright," Bianca relented, taking several steps away from Hilbert and Touko moved off to the side, between Hilbert and Bianca.
"The battle between Bianca of Nuvema and Hilbert of Nuvema is underway; each side may use up to two Pokémon. The battle is over when either side's Pokémon are unable to battle. Bianca has the first move, Battle begin!" Touko dropped her arms and took a step back, watching them.
"Oh right, Lillipup!" Bianca called, pulling out her pokéball while Hilbert mirrored her action, calling out his tepig.
Lillipup wagged her tail, yipping happily while Tepig snorted, embers scorching the grass.
"Use tackle Lillipup!" Bianca called out and Lillipup rushed towards Tepig, looking focused.
"Ember!" Hilbert called and Tepig blew some embers out of his mouth, but they didn't stop Lillipup as she rammed into him.
"Pig!" Tepig cried out, skidding backwards on the grass. He shook her head and glared at Lillipup. He snorted and ran towards the normal type, ignoring Hilbert's call to stop.
"Tackle!" Bianca called and Lillipup nodded, racing towards Tepig. They collided and skidded backwards, wincing in pain.
"Why do I even bother?" Touko muttered as she watched them before raising her voice. "Hilbert! Rein in your Pokémon!"
"What?" Hilbert called back. He bit his lip and looked at the battle. "Tepig! Use ember!"
Tepig snorted, blowing a stream of embers towards Lillipup, who whined as they hit her fur.
"Use leer!" Bianca called back and Lillipup glared at Tepig who squealed.
"Tackle once more!" Hilbert called and Tepig shook off his fear before charging at Lillipup, colliding with her as Bianca began to speak.
"Lilli..." Lillipup whined, collapsing on the grass. Touko raised her arms.
"Lillipup is unable to battle," she declared before dropping her arms and taking a step back as Bianca recalled her Pokémon. "Trainer Bianca, choose your final Pokémon!"
"You fought well," Bianca praised to the pokéball before she put it into her bag. She looked back up to see Hilbert gushing over Tepig. "Snivy!" she called and Tepig snorted as Snivy appeared and sneered at the fire type.
"Use Ember!" Hilbert called and Snivy recoiled, hissing indigently at Tepig.
"Vine whip!" Bianca called back and Snivy shot out two vines, slapping Tepig on the nose with them. Tepig snorted, charging forward as Hilbert shouted
"Tackle!"
"Use Vine whip! No! Tackle!" Bianca scrambled to say and Snivy gave her a look, moments before Tepig plowed into him.
"SNIV!" Snivy cried out, rolling to a stop. He hissed at Tepig as he got to his feet, his vines shooting out to smack Tepig again.
Tepig blew embers out and Snivy recoiled at the heat, retracting his vines.
"Um, use tackle!" Bianca called out and Snivy huffed, but ran forwards.
"Ember!" Hilbert cheered as Tepig dug his feet into the ground and let out an impressive ember as soon as Snivy was in range.
"SNIVY!" Snivy abandoned his attack in favor of trying to get away from the flames; he glared at the fire type as he stayed a careful distance away. Tepig snorted and stomped the ground, rushing forward before Hilbert could call out another attack.
"Tackle?" Hilbert suggested as Tepig charged towards Snivy who readied his vines.
"Vine Whip!" Bianca barked, watching as Snivy shot out one of his vine, wrapping it around a nearby rock just seconds before Tepig reached him.
"PIG!" Tepig squealed as he tripped on the vine and Snivy began a barrage of whips against his back, he leapt back as Tepig regained his footing and shot embers at Snivy. Snivy sneered, smacking Tepig once more on the nose before the fire type fainted.
"Not the cleanest attack," Touko muttered before raising her voice. "Tepig is unable to battle! Trainer Hilbert, choose your final Pokémon!"
Hilbert recalled Tepig, mumbling a good job before pulling another pokéball off his belt. "Pidove, Come on out!" he called as a pidove materialized in the air.
"Pidove!" Pidove exclaimed, flapping his wings. He landed in front of Hilbert and cocked his head, staring at Snivy.
"Use gust!" Hilbert ordered as Bianca called out:
"Tackle Snivy!"
Snivy ran forward as Pidove began to furiously flap his wings. Already tired from his previous battles, Snivy flipped backwards as the gust hit. "Sn..." her groaned as Bianca recalled him.
"Snivy is unable to battle!" Touko was saying. She dropped her arms. "Hilbert of Nuvema is the victor!"
Bianca paid Touko no heed as she tucked the pokéballs into her bag as Hilbert wandered over. "Great battle!" Hilbert exclaimed as he approached her, holding out his hand. Bianca took it and winced as he shook it vigorously. "You want to join Touko and me to Striaton?" he asked and Bianca shook her head.
"No thank you, I should double back to Accumula to heal my Pokémon," Bianca explained and Hilbert nodded.
"Alright," he agreed, before glancing over his shoulder. "Hey, where did Touko go?" he wondered, staring at where she had been just a moment before.

::::
Touko kept her eyes on route two, ignoring the scenery around her. She shouldered her messenger bag and glanced up at the sky, wrinkling her nose at the stench of Max Repel, but kept walking through the tall grass and disappeared into the treeline, ignoring the Trainer's shouts.
She kept running, ducking under branches and leaping over roots until she reached a clearing. Touko dug into the backpack and pulled out two pokéballs.
"Join me my friend," she said quietly and a light burst from the pokéballs as Kaze settled on a nearby branch.
When the light faded, a Garchomp stood in front of her.
"Don't tell me you're here to offer meaningless apologies," the Garchomp growled, baring her fangs at Touko. "And don't call me your friend. Friends don't leave friends trapped for months."
"Oh give it a rest Tiamat!" Kaze snapped. She flew down to Touko and landing on the ground, snapping her winds out. "If you would stop being such a hard headed jerk and listen, you would know she means her words!"
Touko stood straight. "What do you want me to do? Grovel on my knees?" she looked up at Tiamat and crossed her arms.
Tiamat bore her teeth in a snarl and Kaze shot forward, cloaked in crackling blue energy, slamming into Tiamat and pushing the dragon back a few feet. Tiamat snarled and tried to leap at the Staraptor. Kaze pushed herself upwards, lazily dodging the blow.
"Tiamat, Kaze," Touko snapped. "Stop fighting!"
Kaze cheerfully ignored the orders, instead dancing in the air, casually dodging the Dragon Pulses. Tiamat growled deep in her throat at the display. She leapt into the air, snapping at Kaze's tail feathers. Kaze screeched as she dived, energy coating her, snapping across her wingspan.
"Stop it!" Touko roared. She scowled at them, fishing around her bag before pulling out the pokéball, clicking the button. Kaze vanished in a stream of red light.
Not a second later, Kaze broke out again. She flew up out of range, giving Touko the stink eye. Tiamat turned around, looming over Touko. She bore her teeth as Touko glared back up at her.
"I will never forgive you for abandoning us," Tiamat spat.
"I will not ask for your forgiveness," Touko replied. "I did not come to offer you two excuses." She inhaled. "I am going on another journey. Will you lend your power to aid me, or..."
"Tch!" Tiamat's eyes flashed. A growl still low in her throat, the dragon-type stomped a little way away. "You've got a lot of gall, asking me that now. Do you have any idea the hell you forced me through?"
Touko set her jaw as she squared her shoulders. "It was hell for me as well!" she snapped.
Tiamat turned. "One. Chance. And don't you dare put me in that prison again."
Kaze sighed at their combined stubbornness.[/SIZE]