Disclaimer: I dun own pokemon. You should all know that by now.

Rating: PG-13 for language, pokemon violence. A pokemon journey from a 
teenager's point of view.

"Tales for the Road"
by A.C

Chapter One
The Only One Left

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BEEP - BEEP - BEEP - BEEP - BEEP - BEE

*SMASH*!!!!

I peeked out from under the covers, trying to focus my eyes so I could catch a 
glimpse of my damage. The Gyarados alarm clock that had once sat on by bedside 
table was now replaced by a pile of rubble, which was humming in the same tone 
as before. I growled, punching the remains until they finally shut up.

I rolled onto my back, pulling the blankets up to my chin and gazing at the 
ceiling, wondering why the hell I had set my alarm clock. My mom had forbidden 
me to unless it was an emergency, being as that was how I always turned my alarm 
clocks off - breaking them into little bitty pieces. So why had I set it? What 
did I need to do today? Let's review... Tuesday, May Fourteenth, 2003. School 
had ended... so.... oh YEAH!

I threw off the blankets, flipping out of bed with a cheer and racing to the 
door where I ran smack into my mother. She was folding her arms, giving me a 
stern look. I looked back, blinking for a minute, then grinned.

"Morning, mum."

"What's with all the noise?" she asked, pretending to be cross. I could tell she 
was pretending because I saw the edges of her mouth curl up slightly in a smile. 
"You'd think today was the day you got your pokemon or something..."

"YEEEEHAW!" I cheered again, slipping past her to the bathroom. Behind me, I 
could hear her laughing. I brushed my teeth, my dark chocolate hair, seeing the 
chestnut and scarlet highlights gleam and washed my face, grinned at myself in 
the mirror and ran back to my room to get dressed.

I dressed rapidly and pulled on my backpack, tying my black and red scarf around 
my head and admiring the gypsy/pirate look it added. With one last check in the 
mirror, I headed downstairs to where my mom was sitting at the kitchen table, 
reading the paper. I bustled around the kitchen, grabbing a bagel and some cream 
cheese, and stuffed it in the toaster.

"You ready to go?" came my mom's voice from behind the paper.

"Of course," I answered, really really really hoping she wouldn't go through her 
'list' of what I should have. I was busy watching my bagel so it wouldn't burn.

"Do you have your map?"

"Mom!" I growled, shooting her a glance as my bagel popped up and snatched it, 
"Don't go through the bloody list... I already have everything. I'm sure of it. 
We went through it last night, remember?"

She sighed as she put her paper down, and I began buttering - er, cream-cheesing 
- my bagel as fast as I humanly could, therefore getting cream cheese all over 
my hand. 

"I know, I know..." she looked up at me, a forlorn look on her face (I purposely 
avoided her eyes and set to work on the other half of the bagel) "But I just 
can't believe you're leaving home already!"

"Already?" I repeated, "Mom, I stayed home an extra four years. I'd say FINALLY 
leaving home." I finally looked up to see her still looking at me as if she was 
about to cry; "Mom, don't worry! I'll call, I promise."

"I'll miss you, honey," she said with a sad smile, "Now you go make a name for 
yourself. Just call when you get to Cerise City, okay?"

"Will do," I answered, but my response was muffled, for I had half a bagel 
stuffed in my mouth. I bolted for the door with the rest of it in my hands, 
"Bye, Mom!"

"Bye honey! Love you!"

"Luv ya too!" I answered as the door slammed shut. I took off running for 
Professor Aspen's lab. I could see it from my house - everyone in Tangerine Town 
could. It wasn't exactly a bustling metropolis, more like a pitiful booniesville 
town way up in the mountains. Well, we necessarily weren't in the mountains, but 
the Geode Mountains were directly to the North and we were furthest North in all 
of Rhoto. 

The lab was located on a hill at the edge of town, in sight of the grassy route 
leading out of town and to the rest of the world. I reached the lab in about 
five minutes and paused to catch my breath at the white fence surrounding the 
yard. The grass inside was clean, thick, short and a perfect shade of green, 
framed by the picket fence and overflowing flower beds. A weed-free cobblestone 
path led up to the cheery red door, complete with a sunny "Welcome!" mat. The 
whole thing made me sick.

Feeling like I was visiting my grandmother rather than the leading professor in 
all of Rhoto, I marched up the path and knocked once or twice on the door. Then 
I waited, rocking on the balls of my feet and shooting distasteful glances to 
the perfect yard. And then the door opened, revealing...

A Hitmonlee. I blinked at the thing for a few minutes, utterly baffled, while it 
babbled to me in its native language - which, of course, wasn't anything I was 
going to understand anytime soon. So I did what I always do when I don't know 
the answer. I guessed.

"Uh... I'm here to see... Professor Aspen?" I finished off my intelligent-
sounding response with a lame grin, wondering if it was going to slam the door 
in my face. That window, some eight feet to my right, was low enough off the 
ground...

But I didn't need to worry about clambering through windows just to get my 
pokemon. The Hitmonlee stepped back, opening the door wide as it did and 
gestured for me to come in. With a grin and a 'thanks' and a mutter of 'lucky 
guess' under my breath, I stepped inside the warm lab. The Hitimonlee closed the 
door behind me.

The place was huge, and, oddly enough, felt like a lab deep in the rainforest. 
Large fans were at the ceiling, but they did nothing to help the warm, humid air 
inside, even if the windows were thrown open. The floor was wooden, the walls a 
smooth, cool metal, lined with lab tables cluttered with junk. A waiting area to 
my right consisted of wicker chairs and a wicker coffee table, where a few kids 
my age and younger were already gathered. Yet the thing that probably most set 
off the air of jungle-science were the eighty or so plants all over the bloody 
room, crammed into every corner, balanced precariously on the lab tables. Two of 
them were flanking the door just behind me, and at least three were gathered 
under each window.

I blinked around some more, finally decided to go see what kind of low-lives 
were also here for a pokemon (I detested people) and walked over to the waiting 
area, taking a seat on a wicker chair and leaning back, purposely ignoring 
everyone as I continued to look around. Despite the weird jungle air the lab 
had, I decided I rather liked it. I wouldn't have been surprised to see brightly 
colored birds or buzzing insects flying in and out.

"Are you here for a pokemon?"

I clenched my teeth. Damn. No matter how cold and distant I acted towards those 
I did not wish to communicate with, somehow, someway, people always talked to 
me. Why? I reluctantly looked down to see that the five other people sitting 
with me were all staring at me. Yeah, real inconspicuous...

The girl nearest to me, looking a year or so younger, rather pale, timid 
looking, with long blonde hair and dark eyes, was the one who had spoken. She 
was drawn up in such a feeling of a shy deer that I was certain if I yelled 
'boo' she would piss her pants. So instead I answered; "Yeah."

"Oh," she said quietly, as if she had no clue that was why I was there, "So am 
I. We're all beginning trainers."

"Yeah!" said a little ten-year-old boy with wild brown hair and brown eyes that 
looked too big for his head, "I'm Caleb and that's Vicky! I can't wait! I've 
been waiting for this day forever!" It seemed impossible for the boy to say 
anything - he had to yell it. 

I smirked and glanced around at the other individuals. It was slightly obvious I 
was going to be receiving a list of names I didn't want to know. Sure enough, a 
scrawny girl with long dark blue hair pulled her baseball hat down harder over 
her eyes and said between smacks of her gum, "I'm Stacy."

There was another boy, this one looked my age and possibly older. His reddish 
brown hair was just as wild as Caleb's, and he had soft blue eyes behind wire 
rimmed glasses. He was pretty skinny and pale, clutching a laptop. "Dylan," he 
muttered under his breath, looking at his shoes.

It looked like Caleb had brought a friend. Another little boy who looked almost 
exactly like him, but with wild black hair and large blue eyes that looked too 
big for his little head, also chirped up; "And I'm Jake! I'm so excited... I 
just hope I get a good pokemon!"

I nodded, wondering vaguely if these were the ones supposed to compete with me 
for the title of the League Champion. None of these half-wits looked like they 
could spend a night outside - except maybe Stacy, who had gone back to reading 
the baseball magazine she had with her. Vicky didn't say anything else to me, 
looking placidly around the room, twitching in her seat. Where was Professor 
Aspen?

As if on cue, I heard a voice ring out from behind me, "Hello, trainers!" We all 
turned and looked to see a young man with piercing blue eyes and spiky black 
hair approach us, his Hitmonlee in tow. He was shockingly young looking to 
anyone outside, who may of heard of him. Despite being only in his early 
twenties, he was an expert on pokemon and rather famous.

"I presume you're all here to get your first pokemon?" he asked casually, 
smiling around at us all. Caleb and Jake began bouncing up and down, but they 
chanted unanimously; "Yeah!"

Instead of getting ticked off and smacking 'em a few good ones around the head 
like I would have done, Professor Aspen merely laughed. Like the midgets were 
funny or something. "Hold your Ponytas, now!  You'll each get a pokemon 
eventually. Now, we have six beginning pokemon here, one for each of you. To 
decide which pokemon you'll be getting, you'll pick a pokedex." He held up both 
hands, were he was holding six various-colored pokedexes like a hand of cards.

I took the black one and opened it curiously. The screen was dark for a minute, 
and then lit up suddenly with a large number six. I growled under my breath, 
furious at my luck. I have a saying; If it wasn't for bad luck, I wouldn't have 
any luck at all. Cursing my luck, I looked back up as Professor Aspen continued.

"Now, you each should have a number. Whoever has number one may come and pick 
their pokemon from these six." He stepped back, sweeping an arm out to a small 
table, covered with a glass dome. In the dome, six pokeballs sat; a green, red, 
blue, silver, pink and a rather dirty one, underneath its appearance I could 
just make out its color as gold. Although now it looked more like dirt. No way a 
decent pokemon could be in such a dismal pokeball.

Stacy stepped forward, looking bored as she blew a large pink bubble of gum and 
popped it, snatching up the blue pokeball as she did so. As she returned to the 
rest of us, she opened the pokeball, releasing a small, cute Squirtle. It looked 
around at its surroundings, saw its trainer and contemplated her for a moment 
before smiling, obviously satisfied.

Next came a rather loud shriek of excitement and I saw Caleb go rushing forward 
to grab a green pokeball before returning to his place, releasing it with a 
loud; "I choose you!" A Bulbasaur appeared, yawned and settled down at his feet. 
Jake was next, grabbing the red pokeball containing a Cyndaquil before Vicky 
nervously stepped forward, quickly took the pink pokeball and released the 
pokemon; a rather bouncy Igglybuff that looked positively delighted with its 
trainer, bouncing into her arms.

I was feeling considerably nervous now. No way could I be stuck with that old, 
dirty peaceable... no, how could it happen to me? I shot a nervous glance at 
Dylan as he stepped forward, contemplating his choices. *Please take the gold 
one... pleeeeease... please be nice and take it...*

But my thoughts soon grew furious as he reached out and took the silver one, 
which turned out to be an Eevee - much to my anger. Trying not to show the 
Professor how annoyed I was, I walked forward and picked up the dirty peaceable. 
As I did so, however, I felt a small shock and looked down at it, surprised. It 
was then I heard Professor Aspen speaking.

"Now, I have a few supplies for each of you," he explained, handing out trainer 
supply belts for each of us, already equipped with a slot for our pokedex and 
five empty pokeballs, with space for the peaceable we already had. There was 
also a small map attached, and a miniature first aid kit. We each took our 
belts, and I attached mine around my hips.

"Well, trainers, keep in mind that your pokemon is not your slave - they are 
your friends, your companions and your equals. Treat them well and they will be 
loyal to you and fight for you with all their soul. If you have any questions, 
feel free to contact me from anywhere. And be sure to visit." He winked at each 
of us, and we said our good-byes.

~ ~ ~