Pocket Monsters: Dusk and Dawn

"Pssyyyyduck!"

Farrah patted the group of Pysduck's heads as she prepared to leave her childhood hometown- Lavender town. "I'll miss you, too!" She giggled to them, as they dropped a bag of berries at her feet. Memories of her first encounter with the group of ducks flooded into her mind. She smiled, patting them all once more.

"T-Thank you all! I'll miss you, and I promise to visit soon!" She grabbed the tasty berries and put them into her bag before exiting the town's limits, waving the Psyduck away.

"Good byeee!" Her mother called from the open window of their home. Farrah turned once more, walking backwards and waving back to her mother, small tears forming in her eyes. "Bye Mama!"

Farrah turned back around to the route before her, starting her long journey to Viridian City. She'd heard rumors that a group of youngsters such as herself could get a Pokémon from Pallet town-which was right by Viridian. The young woman decided she'd check out Viridian for more information!

The young woman walked onward, a bit nervous to be travelling on her own. She'd make sure to stay on busy, man made paths since she had no Pokémon!

----

A few days had passed, and Farrah had made it into Viridian! Though she was tired from all the walking, she was bubbling with excitement to find out more about the rumors of Pokémon.

As farrah trudged through the streets of the small city, she rubbed her arms. Viridian was a little cooler than Lavender Town since it was so close to Mt. Silver. The timid girl looked up at the mountain's snowy peak with wonder. Would she ever be strong enough to travel there? she'd heard strong trainers often went there to test their abilities as a trainer.

She shook her head, waving the thought away. Her first priority was to become a Pokémon ranger and help others! Being a trainer was second. Of course, she needed a Pokémon to pursue either dream!

Unsure of where to begin to investigate these rumors, Farrah took a seat on a bench by the Pokémon center. She tucked her blonde hair behind her ear, nibbling on a berry as she wondered if there were any other teens who were there for a Pokémon too!

 

Fierre had always woken up early, but today he had a reason for it. It would take a couple of days to reach Viridian City, and he had to make sure he was ready to go. Checking his belongings to make sure they were intact, he softly moved down the stairs to avoid making noise. He hated goodbyes, and giving one to his father and Tech would not go over smoothly. "Where are you going, son?" A deep official-like voice echoed throughout the two-floor house. Fierre turned his head to see his father sitting at the dining table, a cup of coffee in his hand and Tech the Eevee on his lap. The young trainer sighed; looks like he wasn't slipping away that easily. He replied, "You know where. Out to Viridian." His father stood up, causing Tech to jump down, and strode across the room. "I'm well aware of that, son. I'm more concerned about what you will be doing."

Fierre looked down. "We've been over this, Dad. I'm going to become a Trainer. I'll get my own Pokémon partner. I'll challenge the Gyms and the League, become the Champion." His eyes shifted up to glare into his father's, a fiery ambition burning brightly in his irises. "And Rocket will fall by my hand."

The father shook his head. "You cannot travel out there for pure vengeance, Fierre. What happened two years ago matters not now, only then. Yes, I lost some important papers, but I could not care less. They're petty thieves, it is not our problem." He placed a hand on his son's shoulder. "What you should do is just enjoy your time with your Pokémon and do your best against the League." Fierre remained silent and closed his eyes, nodding in agreement after a moment. His father smiled brightly. "I wish you luck, young man." With a pat, he sat back down.

Just as Fierre turned to leave, a nudge on his ankle alerted him to Tech. He knelt down. "Sorry, buddy. You can't come with me on this one." The Eevee looked sorrowful to see his friend go, but instead of whimpering the dog Pokémon leapt into Fierre's arms for a goodbye hug. He squeezed his friend tightly before placing him on the ground. "See you later, Tech." With a tip of hat, Fierre turned and stepped outside.

A cool breeze drifted across Pallet Town as the door swung open, sending a few stray dead leaves twirling through the air. To the young trainer, it signaled change.

~~~~~~

A few days had passed as Fierre made his way into Viridian, and the cold wind that first occurred in Pallet seemed to follow him here. He had trekked through the shortcuts he found on his passes to Pewter, shaving hours off his time. He looked off to his left, the road to the League lay there. Someday, he knew he would take on the Elite Four and claim the title of Champion. Past that lay Mt. Silver, home of the most powerful trainers in the Tohjo area, where he would also lay his claim. But for now, he needed to get his first Pokémon and challenge the Pewter Gym.

Fierre cast his eyes across the small town, looking for anyone who might be able to guide him. He spotted a young blonde girl being asked questions by a doctoral-appearing man outside the Pokémon Center. He trotted over, hoping that the doctor could answer some of his questions. He caught that his name was Thetford, and that he was Oak's assistant. He smiled slightly. The boy knew the Professor due to his father having to work with him multiple times. Stepping up, he said aloud, "She's not the only one looking for a license," he said, "I'm here for the same reason. Name's Fierre." He leaned up against the wall of the Pokémon Center next to Farrah. "From Pallet Town."

He took a glance at Farrah, wondering what her motivation for coming out here was. She seemed to be from farther out, closer to Saffron and Vermilion. He shifted his gaze back to Dr. Thetford. "Are we the only ones here?"

 

The Pokémon seemed sad Valish was leaving them earlier than she said she would. The three forest Pokémon that she had played with for the last half-hour moved closer to her, all whining for her not to leave. Patting each one of their heads, she faintly smiled at them.

"Don't worry! I'll be back soon~" She told them, picking up her bag, and slinging it over her shoulder. "Maybe with a new friend!" The Pokemons' eyes seemed at brighten at a new friend. She giggled softly before waving at the Pokémon. With this, she left the forest. Valish had heard rumors of teens like her being able to get a Pokémon. The white-haired girl normally didn't listen to rumors, but she wanted a Pokémon so badly it didn't matter to her any more. Deciding it was best to check the Pokémon Center, she made her way towards it. The black-eyed girl spotted a girl around her age on the bench near the Pokémon Center. Best place to start looking. She approached the blonde, when she noticed a man who looked like a doctor near her. She slowly walked closer, listening in on what the doctor was saying.

"Excuse me?" She asked Dr. Thetford, now standing beside the blonde. "I heard you would be giving out Pokémon licenses, and I wanted one. Is there any way I could get one?" The girl shifted her weight. She noticed a boy come up to the two girls, so she nodded at him.

 

Zack had been wandering around the city for quite some time. After his encounter with some Rocket members, he wasn't too sure as to what he would do with his future. There were plenty of options for him to select and all of them sounded really awesome. As his mind wandered about the various possibilities, he hopped off from a small ledge, landing on the plush grass.

"You know. I still need to buy me some pokeballs to actually capture you." Zack said to his comrade. "Plus you need a name. I keep calling you Zubat and it's bugging me."

His Zubat fluttered around his head, squawking at him for a couple of moments. Almost as if he were trying to communicate with Zack. Unfortunately, the boy couldn't understand Pokémon speak and didn't know what his companion was trying to say. The Zubat gave up and perched himself on top of Zack's hat.

"I'll have to think of one." He said to him as he continued to walk towards the Pokémon center. "But for now, I want Nurse Joy to make sure you're in tip top condition. Prime ready for fighting our future opponents. After all, we can't be easy pushovers. They wouldn't like it.

He eventually reaches the Pokémon center and notices a few trainers lingering by the front. Zack tilted his head and glanced upwards at his Zubat. "Huh. I wonder what's going on here?" He shrugged and walked right on over to the others. As he did, he adjusted his hoodie, making sure that the clothes beneath it, didn't show.

He heard Valish say something about a Pokémon license. Zack tapped his chin thoughtfully as he thought about what she was talking about. It dawned to him, that to become a legit trainer, he needed a license. "Hmm... I just wonder if it would be a good idea to get one..." He frowned at the thought. Did the others have a license or not? "I better, just in case." He shrugged to his Zubat and continued over to the group.

Once he made it there, he quietly stuffed his hands into his pockets and looked at the other kids. None of them appeared to have any clue as to what was really going on. And neither did he. But he did realize that he was the only one standing there with a Pokémon at his side. "Hello." he said to them with a calm tone in his voice.

 

Mia woke up to her dad holding a plate with toast next to her bed. "Dad, you know I'm leaving Poliwag with you, right? You won't be alone." She got out of bed and grabbed the plate. "And I promise you, I'll drop off a flying Pokémon with mum, that way she can come home whenever she wants." Her dad's face lit up when she said it, as it always did. Mia hadn't seen her mum in three months now, and she really missed her. She could never imagine what her dad felt about seeing her mum every half a year or so.

She got some strawberry jam out of the fridge downstairs and spread it on the toast her dad made for her. "You know you didn't have to do this for me, right? I do appreciate it though." Her dad wasn't talking though, just looking at her longingly. "Dad, you know I'm going to go no matter how long you stare at me." When she had one piece of toast left, she said goodbye to her dad and grabbed her poliwag print backpack. When she picked it up though, it was heavy, like there was a few heavy rocks in there. She unzipped the bag and found Poliwag staring up at her. "Come on, you are going to stay here and make sure dad doesn't get lonely." Her Poliwag just stared at her sadly.

At the door, her dad walked up to her and hugged her. She hugged back, making sure not to get jam on his shirt. The Poliwag looked up with an expression that meant 'dude, I wish I was in my evolved form so I could hug too', but no one noticed, or could read it's expressions anyway. She grabbed the Vermillion-Pallet ferry pass and walked out the door. She shouted back to her father "I promised to come back and visit whenever I can!" And she ran down to the Underground Tunnel which connected Celadon to Vermillion, the jam toast hanging out of her mouth.
--------------------------------------
After a day long ferry ride and another day long trek to Viridian from Pallet town, Mia finally reached Pokémon Centre where she would get her Pokémon license. There were already two guys and two girls waiting for something, hopefully their for their licenses. One of them even already had a Pokémon. She ran over to the group and saw who she thought was the man giving out the licenses. "Hey guys, am I late? I'm here to get my Pokémon license." She started tapping her neck nervously, hoping she hadn't made a massive blunder in front of these five strangers.

 

Farrah jumped at the sound of Dr. Thetford's voice. She didn't even see him walk up to her! She looked up from her seat to the tall, handsome doctor. She wondered if he was an actual medical doctor or something else.

"O-Oh, I'm Farrah! It's nice to meet you," She spoke softly but nervously to him. "Yes, I'm here for my license and Poke-"

She was cut off by someone else. She jumped again, seeing as she had only been paying attention to Thetford, and didn't expect anyone else to walk up.

She looked to the wall of the Pokémon center, where a young man, who had tried to seemingly show off when introducing himself, stood. He'd said his name was Fierre.

Fierre asked the doctor if anyone else was there. This time, Farrah actually looked around for others, so that she wouldn't jump like an idiot when they approached. "I don't think we're alone.." She mumbled to Fierre and Thetford, noticing two girls her age and a young man approaching.

The newcomers all differed in personality. The one guy, who had a zubat, seemed rather quiet, simply stating hello. But at least he said hello, one of the new girls didn't say hello, or didn't seem to even acknowledge anyone but Thetford. The other girl arrived late and desheveled. But nonetheless, they were all there for a Pokémon and license.

"Hello," Farrah offered a small smile to the one male with the zubat. "I'm Farrah. Is that your zubat?" She pointed to the spazzy little Poison type.

"You're not too late!" Farrah said to the other nervous girl. "Dr. Thetford here was just telling us about Pokémon and licenses!"

She turned back to the Dr. "So.. is there a test we must complete to get our license?" She asked nervously. If there was a test, she wasn't sure she would pass! She didn't know a whole lot about movesets and such of Pokémon- if that was what kind of test it was.

 

"Today is the day!" Korina giggled as she hopped out of bed. She hummed a little tune as she opened her closet, gabbing her clothes that she'd be wearing for the journey. As soon as she was all ready, she went downstairs to say goodbye to her mother. Her facial features hid the sadness behind a sweet smile as she embraced her mother. They held each other close for a bit, knowing that they it would be a long time before they'd see each other again. The two of them let go but her mother put her hand on Korina's shoulder and looked her directly in the eyes. "I'm really proud of you sweetheart," she smiled ever-so-slightly but the sadness could still be seen in her eyes. "Your father would be too." Korina's smile faded as she gazed sadly at the floor recalling the bitter-sweet memories of her father. She soon recalled the vow that she made to herself and she looked back up at her mother smiling once more. "Thanks mom." she said as she grabbed her backpack off the table and headed for the door.

Her hand was on the knob when she heard an agitated bark come from behind her. She turned to see a very upset Houndour glaring at her, not appreciating that she was forgotten. "I didn't forget you, silly!" she opened her arms wide and the Houndour jumped up into her arms. She gave the Pokémon a tight squeeze as she said her goodbyes. "I'm going to miss you a lot Myra!" Myra whimpered in response as Korina set her down on the floor. "Don't worry, I'll be back again someday." she said as she patted the Houndour's head. She opened the door and turned, giving one last wave to the both of them before she set off. Down the steps she went into the busy city streets. "Time for my adventure to begin!" she happily murmured to herself as she headed for Viridian.

---

"I'm finally here." She let out an exhausted sigh and looked around. After many days of traveling, she finally made it to Viridian. It was very different compared to the big city but she didn't mind, in fact, she liked it a lot. She made her way over to the Pokémon center only to find a group of kids that looked about her age. She hurried over to them, overhearing a girl saying her name was Farrah and she mentioned something about a Pokémon license. "You guys are here for that too?" she inquired, her eyes filled with excitement. "By the way, my name is Korina. Nice to meet you all!" she looked at each one of them in turn and noticed that one of them already had a Pokémon. I can't wait to get mine. She thought to herself as she waited patiently to hear what the others had to say.

 

Zack quietly stood in place as one of the other trainers took note of his appearance. She was simply being friendly, which was nice. He simply gave her a firm nod. The male was more shy than he was nervous. "Yes. He just sort of... tagged along." His voice trailed off a little bit, lowering to a whisper. Zack's mind was going back to the day where he had met the Zubat and rescued it. He never understood why the Zubat liked him so much. But he did and he tagged along, even without being stuck in a Pokéball. "I...don't have a name for him yet. I can't really think of a good one that would fit." He shrugged. The most words people will probably get out of him today! Unfortunately, he still didn't introduce himself.

His Zubat chimed happily at Farrah. He loved the positive attention she had given. As the matter of fact he tried showing off his enthusiasm by flying in large circles and figure eights above the two soon-to-be Pokémon trainers. Once his little show was done, Zubat parked himself back onto Zack's hat and his partner reached up and patted him on the head. Zubat squeaked with excitement.

The doctor seemed quite eager to be talking to the group. His enthusiasm and talkative nature certainly reinforced Zack's opinion about him. He even noticed the sudden interest in his gaze towards him. Though Zack was sure that the assistant was more intrigued over the Zubat rather than him, he still managed to give Thetford a small wave. Zack then glanced upwards at his companion for a brief moment before the man made his way over to him.

Quietly, Zack stepped away from the excitable man. Personal space bubble safety was breached! He watched as the assistant examined his Zubat. Zubat on the other hand didn't seem to mind this. Attention hog... Zack thought before he spoke up, responding to the man's comments. "Th-thanks." He managed to squeak out before Thetford continued to speak on about the difference in Pokémon. He certainly had a passion in them! It was pretty interesting hearing what he had to say about the differences. It even made Zack tap his chin. I bet some of the color schemes are rare too! Rare is good! I wonder if it makes them stronger than the norm? Hmm...

His mind snapped into reality when he was given a ball. He looked at the smooth metal texture and noticed the bright metallic paint reflect in the sunlight. "Woah! A Pokéball. My very own!" He smirked upwards at his Zubat. "You know what this means..."

Zubat squeaked with glee at this. He then flew into the air.

"Alright! Zubat, you're mine!" He pressed the button which made the Pokéball larger. Zack then tossed it into the air as the bright light zipped out from the container. It hit the underside of Zubat and quickly pulled him into the ball. Zack caught the ball and watched the little light glow. It faded and made that cool "ding!" sound. He decided to call Zubat back out of the ball. As expected, the Zubat flew over to him and perched himself on his hat.

Zack then turned to Thetfold and listened to what he had to say. It was then, his jaw felt like dropping. I have to travel with these guys? How uncool... I just want to go out and start training and do my missions! He wanted to frown at the thought but he kept his mouth clenched shut and a firm look on his face. Well... if I want to be a legit trainer... I suppose I should do this... I wonder if they're legit trainers too? Or are they not? He couldn't help but bring his hand up to his chin and tap on it. So many questions he had to ask but none usually answered him.

"Alright." He said with a firm nod. "I suppose we all head to there, then." He turned towards the way he had just came. It dawned to him that the direction wasn't the right one. Zack frowned and turned back to the other trainers, stuffing his hands into the pocket of his hoodie. "I don't know where Pallet Town is..."

 

More trainers showed up over time, assuring Fierre that he and Farrah weren't the only ones here. One kid appeared with an odd-colored Zubat at his side, saying only hello. Another introduced herself as Korina; Fierre nodded his head in return. Thetford mentioned he had seen the young boy around Pallet, which was odd, because Fierre never heard of Oak having Thetford as an assistant until the man before him mentioned it himself. "Nice to meet you too, I guess."

Thetford went on to explain that he was in charge of studying Pokémon color alteration and something called a Delta Species. Fierre raised an eyebrow. He had studied long about the different types of Pokémon, but a Delta Species was a topic he hadn't heard of. He pointed to the Zubat that belonged to the other boy. "You mean like that?" Thetford went on to acknowledge the Zubat, giving Zack a Pokéball to contain it in; the boy immediately captured his Zubat. Thetford then proposed his task: reaching Pallet Town in a day or less. Fierre's shoulders slumped and dropped his head in exasperation. He had just come from that town not a day and a half ago, now he had to go back? Why couldn't have he just stayed at home? Before he could object, the Doctor turned away and headed off.

"Great," Fierre muttered. "Never thought we'd have to go back there. Can't believe I walked out here just to..." he trailed off as he, for some reason, recalled Thetford wanted to reach Pallet in a day. The young man gripped his head, throwing his hat on the ground. "You gotta be kidding me!" He turned to the others. "Guys, we won't make it. I live in Pallet, it took me a day and a half to get here. I even took the shortcuts I found during my traveling between there and Pewter." He slumped down onto the bench next to Farrah, head in his hands. "We're so screwed." Fierre wanted to cry; his dream was just in his grasp but still so far away. He slowly looked around at the rest of the group, they seemed rather shocked at their situation as well.

Zack complained about not knowing where Pallet Town was, moving Fierre out of his trance-like state. He realized that he couldn't give up, not now, not ever. His dream wasn't impossible yet. He picked up his hat from the dirt and dusted it off, replacing it on his head. He stood and stated confidently, "Well, I guess you're lucky to have me. Like I said, I'm from Pallet Town, and I know some of the shortcuts back down the path." He pointed in the right direction of where to go. "If we start moving now and don't take breaks, we might make it there just after dawn tomorrow. What say you?" He waited for everyone's response. "Let's get going." He turned to leave but stopped. He moved back. "If we're going to work together, though, we might as well get each other's names. I'm Fierre, if you didn't hear." He pointed to Korina. "You're Korina, if I recall-" then at Farrah- "and Farrah." He gestured to the other boy. "We still need your name, along with the other two girls."

 

Valish noticed she had only talk to the Doctor, making her seem very rude. She didn't want to seem rude, but she didn't really talk to people who she didn't trust. But she hated seeming rude.

"Hello everyone... It's nice to meet you all... Call me Valish." The white-haired girl said loudly enough for all the teens to heard. She looked down at her feet, and drew in the dirt with her right feet. She looked up to see a pretty Zubat. This make her smile. She smiled warmly at the Pokémon. She almost reached out to pet the Pokémon, but decided not to.

"Do you mind if I pet your Zubat?" She quietly asked Zack. Depending on how he answered was a factor in whether or not she would start to trust the guy. A new girl ran up to them, and Valish shook her head, answering her question without speaking. She crossed her arms, sighing. She would have to learn to talk more.

Nodding to the girl that had just came up, she said quietly; "Hello." Valish listened to the Doctor for now. She nodded, a sign she was taking it all in. Different colored Pokémon? The girl smiled. Yay. But the test was one she almost frowned at. It didn't matter anyway. Turning to the group of teens, she decided to be more open.


"I know Viridian city, and the forest like the back of my hand. I know a lot of shortcuts." The white-haired girl told them, talking louder than before. "Well," She started, looking at Fierre. "We still have to try." She knew of a shortcut within the forest, and the Pokémon in there didn't mind her, but she wasn't too sure about the other teens.

"I know of a shortcut in the forest..." She trailed off. She doubted anyone would want to take her forest shortcut. She knew if they were fast they might make it. Nodding to everyone, she smiled for once, not because of Pokémon.

"Let's move then."

Oh, wait, did I talk about a shortcut in the forest?

"Oh, sorry guys." Valish's face started to heat up. "I talked about the forest, didn't I?" She always did this. Mix up the forest with everything else.

 

Mia was relieved when Thetford said that he would be giving out the Pokémon licenses, and he was apparently one of Oak's aides. He then went on to talk about Delta Species, with had a slightly different colouration than other Pokémon. When Thetford pointed out that Zack's Zubat was one, she was kinda relieved.
"Oh, so that's why he looked different to every other Zubat I've seen come to the Day Care. He is kinda cuter than a regular Zubat, being all blue."
She then saw Thetford give him a Pokéball to catch it with. She was hoping to not think it, but she might have had to break her promise to herself not to physically capture Pokémon. She might have to use Pokeballs at some point.

Then there was the announcement of Thetford's test. If they couldn't act as a team, they would never get their licenses. But the test seemed so insane. Apparently, one of the kids there was a Pallet Town resident, who Mia couldn't help feeling sorry about, said they would have trouble getting to Pallet in a day. There was also a citizen of Viridian city who knew a shortcut to Pallet. "So, Valish, you and Fierre should be able to get us there, right?" She looked towards both Valish and Fierre and smiled. "Maybe we can get there within the time limit." She got up and walked over to the group who were preparing to go.
"And my names Mia Avery. Guess I was too nervous before to introduce myself."

Mia then went over to Valish directly and wanted to talk to her. "It's okay if you screwed up, if we didn't have to go down to Pallet, I'd want to go straight to Pewter." She thought for a bit about whether or not to tell about her reasoning why, but would it really matter. "My mum works in Pewter, so I'd prefer to go there rather than Pallet, but I guess that will have to wait."

 

Farrah petted the little strange-colored Zubat that sat on Zack's hat. As she did so, she wondered how the little bat was even latching himself onto the quiet guy's hat. It didn't have any claws or anything! It was interesting to think about.

The quiet girl watched as Thetford gave Zack a Pokéball to catch the Zubat! Farrah had never seen someone catch a Pokémon up close! It was nice to see a person and Pokémon have a close enough bond that they didn't have to battle to create a bond.

The blonde tossed her hair behind her shoulder as she listened to Thetford's words. However, she didn't expect the words that came out of his mouth.

Farrah felt herself slowly frown. they had to make it to Pallet town in a day?! She'd never even been there before, she didn't know the way at all! She hoped some of her new friends knew the way. She looked to Fierre for support. "E-Excuse me," she mumbled quietly to him. "Do you know a quick way to get back to your hometown?"

Everyone seemed so discouraged and worried! Fierre, who was from Pallet town, seemed distraught. His head was in his hands as he sat on the bench by Farrah. Farrah patted his back awkwardly. Maybe next time the professor would give out Pokémon, they'd make it..

It made Farrah feel a little bit better that Valish and Mia hadn't given up. It seemed to make Fierre feel better, too- he was suddenly energized! He stood, ready to get a move on. He reintroduced himself. Farrah was feeling great now- everyone seemed raring to go!

The girl pushed herself off of the bench, turning around to tighten her shoe laces. She turned back to the group, her hair swishing behind her. "And I'm Farrah!" The soft spoken girl said, suddenly a little louder than normal. "Let's get going!"

With that, she began to march towards the entrance to the route leading to Pallet town. Glancing back to see if anyone was following her. As she neared the entrance, she turned to the others. "Okay, Fierre, you know the way best, right? Lead the way! I-I can run if I have to!"

She smiled at Zach. "Maybe your Zubat could even look ahead for us to make sure the area is cleared!"

The shy girl mumbled to the rest of the group. "I hope we don't run into any angry wild Pokémon.."

 

Korina's eyes were wide with excitement as she realized she didn't miss anything. She listened intently to everything that Dr. Thetford, taking note that he was interested in Zack's Zubat. She knew some stuff about alternative colored Pokémon but she was never lucky enough to see one up close.
She noticed Thetford hand Zack a Pokéball. Zack wasted no time capturing the little Zubat, letting him out of its Pokéball after it was his. It was quite a sight to see him catch the Zubat without a stuggle or fuss. In fact, the Zubat was happy to be with him.

Boy, I hope I can have a friendship like that.

She listened to the rest of what Thetford had to say. She expected that getting her Pokémon license wasn't going to be free but she didn't expect what the doctor had in store for them. "All we have to do is get there all together?" She was happy to travel with a group, it would keep things interesting and it would be a nice way to form bonds with the others. The only problem was the amount of time they had to get there.

Two of the people in the group knew where to go but Fierre didn't think they would have enough time to make it. Korina felt sorry for him, but she too was a bit sad. If they couldn't make it, she would never become a Pokémon trainer. Soon, Fierre became more positive about the journey. He asked for everyone's names, pointing at Korina, recalling what her name was. She acknowledged him and nodded in response. Valish spoke up as well, saying that she knew some shortcuts, which was a relief. "Well, we'd better not waste any more time here. Let's get going!" She said happily as she walked over to the ones that were ready to go.

 

"Aw come on guys." Zack said as he placed his hands into his hoodie pockets. He couldn't believe how discouraged they all were, already! They haven't even started on their journey yet and people were already looking like they were giving up. "I'm sure we can find the quickest route there. Maybe if we can even find a bus or something. Bike route, roller blades." He was throwing out ideas. He had no idea how this side of the region was like. "I think we can make it."

Zack's Zubat chimed enthusiastically at this. He too thought they could make it in time as well! They just needed to get moving soon.

Zack walked over to the young boy who introduced himself as Fierre. He turned to the others and wore a grin on his face. "The name is Zack. I am from Fushcia city."

He turned to the embarrased young girl who spoke about shortcuts in the forest. "No-no! Don't be ashamed. If you know shortcuts that could save us time to get to Pallet, then show us! If you know anything about shortcuts, do not be afraid to say it." he smirked. He took several shortcuts to get to Viridian City. Though, he didn't actually know where they were. Zack just happened to stumble across a couple of them. He then heard someone say something about coming across wild Pokémon. "Well, I'm no pro trainer yet. But if any of them decide to give us an issue, I can have my Zubat here, chase them off. He may not look tough but he's pretty hardy."

Zack's Zubat puffed his chest out, trying to look all macho and tough.

Zack then nodded to Ferrah. He didn't think about Zubat trying to be a scout. It'd be a good idea. "You hear that, buddy?" He asked his Zubat. He too nodded in response before finally getting off of Zack's hat and taking flight.

"Lead the way." Zack said.

 

Valish looked at Mia; someone who the white-haired girl was starting to trust.

"Thank you so much." She sighed, smiling faintly. "I'm scared around humans, so thank you so very much." Nodding to her, she told herself Mia was the girl she would open up to first. She ran her hand through her white hair once. She wasn't going to give up now. Moving to walk beside Fierre, she hit her shoes against the ground. She mapped the shortcuts out in her head.

"I know of more than three shortcuts." Valish looked Farrah out of the corner of her eye. "I could maybe deal with them...?" The girl trailed off. She could deal with an angry Pokémon, but it would hold them back. But it was good anyway. She started to walk, hoping the rest of the group was in tow. It seemed her, and Fierre were leading the group. The girl stopped. She was surprised by Zack acting so nice to her!

"Th-Thank you, Zack." Valish smiled, as she petted his Zubat. She giggled as the Pokémon puffed his chest out. Then, she started to walk, knowing when to take a shortcut.

 

Mia saw that Valish was being a bit shy. Then she said that she wasn't comfortable around humans, which really showed she was shy. "Hey, no problem. We all screw up what we're trying to say sometimes Valish." Then someone said that they hoped they wouldn't run into any angry Pokémon. "Damn, I thought we would get our Pokémon now, I might've considered bringing my Poliwag along. At least we have your Zubat with us Zack." Seeing that some of the group were ready to go, standing over somewhere else, waiting for everyone to be ready. She walked over to the group, she was pretty sure that everyone was there. "So, we've got everyone, right? We don't want to leave anyone behind."

It didn't take long for Mia to find Valish. "Hey, so you wanna walk together? I was hoping to talk some more on the way there. And, I don't want to sound rude, but we should probably leave to Pokémon battling to Zack and his Zubat for now. I would hate to see anyone get hurt on the way there, especially my new friend." She gave a friendly smile to Valish and started tapping her foot impatiently waiting for the group to get going.