As should be obvious (this is a fanfic), I don't own pokémon. Every character who appears in this story has come from my imagination (excluding Professor Oak, who is only referenced).
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"BUZZ-UZZ-UZZ-UZZ…"
"WOAH!" Paul Apesce literally jumped out of bed. As he hit the alarm clock he noticed that it was two hours earlier than he usually woke up:
5:15 AM
Not realizing why he set it so early, he fell back into his bed, his brown hair flying upwards as he did so. He started dozing…
"BUZZ-UZZ-UZZ-UZZ…"
"WAHH!" Paul literally jumped out of bed. As he hit the alarm clock he noticed that it was one hour and fifty-one minutes earlier than he usually woke up:
5:24 AM
Still not realizing why he set it so early, he fell back into his bed again.
This time, after he fell down, Paul remembered what day it was—the fifteeth of January. His tenth birthday was yesterday, which meant that he was eligible for his first pokémon. On the fifteenth of every month, eligible trainers could receive their first pokémon from Professor Oak.
He changed his clothes, then rushed over to his parents' room as fast as his legs could take him.
"HEY, MOM, DAD!" he yelled down the hallway.
As he arrived in his parents room, his parents were reluctantly getting up. His dad, after seeing the time, fell back down:
5:38 AM
His mom, though, stayed up. She obviously wanted to fall back into her bed, too, but she stayed up and turned to Paul.
"Whudda y'want? " She asked sleepily.
Paul immediately exclaimed: "My pokémon journey starts today!"
At first Paul's mom stared at him like he had the head of a Blastoise. Then, she became aware of what her son said.
"No, Paul. You can't go."
Paul paused. "I must have heard you wrong, Mom. Did you just say that I can't go on a pokémon journey?"
Slowly, his mother replied, "Yes, I said that you can't go on a journey."
Paul's mind nearly shut down from shock. "NO!" was all he said before he grabbed his backpack and left the house. He knew that he couldn't go to the Professor's house, as it was too far away, and he had gotten lost too often to trust his navigational skills. He subconsciously walked randomly through a forest.
When he calmed down, Paul stopped and obseved his surroundings. The sky was a brilliant blue, and a lake nearby was emerald green, and still liquid, despite it being extremely cold.
He also noticed the sun rising way up high. This led him to remember that, if he left his home around 5:38 AM, he hadn't eaten anything for a long time. His watch confirmed that:
11:47 AM
He was lucky to have packed some food the day before. If he didn't he would have to find berries (and he didn't think that berries grew in the winter), or just go without food. He was glad that he didn't have go hungry.
When Paul finished his food, he noticed a large blue scale sticking out of the water. Wondering what it was, he, used a long stick to poke the scale gently.
"ROOOOAAAARRR!!!"
A Gyarados had risen from the water, roaring and screaming. It turned to face Paul, readying a hyper beam.
Paul fainted from shock before the attack hit him.
***
Paul woke up. His head throbbed, so he couldn't understand the yelling around him. Slowly, he regained his senses.
He was in the middle of his room. His mom was yelling at him, and his dad was sitting in a chair, thinking.
"...and that's why you cannot go on a journey!!! ...and ARE YOU EVEN LISTENING?" Before he could answer, his mom stormed out of his room.
His dad told him exactly what happened to him after he fainted: "You were attacked by a Gyrados. The cuts on your legs could only be made by a Gyrados' hyper beam. Obviously, you fainted. After that, your mom and I found you laying next to the lake. The Gyrados attacked you fairly harshly, but it could have been worse... Are you hurt badly?
Paul replied, "No," so his dad walked out of the room, leaving Paul alone.
***
It was almost half a year since Paul was attacked by the Gyarados. Paul laid on his bed, staring at the ceiling of his room. The air conditioning wasn't working, so it was too hot to do anything else. Besides which, he was practically imprisoned in his own house, even though his cuts on his legs had healed— As they say, time heals all wounds, Paul thought, Well, almost all— parents' thoughts aren't something that could be healed with time. Arguably, they aren't wounds, but anyway, time won't fix them… I'll have to do that myself…
He had been trying to do so for the past six months, but he was fighting a losing battle. Dropping hints about his longing to go on a journey just didn't seem to catch his parents' notice. Going up and just flatly asking them for it, as he had done just before his tenth birthday, did not work, either. His dad hadn't really reacted, while his mom simply didn't let him go. She had asked him why he wanted to go on a journey, but his answer (that he wanted to see the world) did not satisfy her.
"OH!" Paul jumped off of his bed. He had the greatest idea! So, it might not work, he thought But it's worth a try.
Paul ran down the stairs. His mom, as he expected, was working with the broken air conditioning. "Paul!" she exclaimed in frustration, "Could you please help me with this stupid thing?"
"Sorry, Mom," Paul replied calmly. "I could try, but it won't help. But a Squirtle might help. In two days it will be the fifteenth of July. I could get a Squirtle, and it might be able to use bubble in a few days after that, and that might help the air conditioning to restart. Or you can let me get an Ice Beam TM to teach it. If the air conditioning doesn't work, still, ice is certainly cold and can cool down the house. Please may I go to Profesor Oak's lab to get a Squirtle?"
Paul's mom turned to him and replied. "Paul, do you know the reason we didn't let you go on a pokémon journey? It's because one of my friends was attacked by a Gyarados, not unlike how one attacked you. She was seriously injured. In fact, she was paralyzed from the waist down, and it wasn't a temporary paralysis like if you were hit by a stun spore, it was a spinal cord injury. She's currently in a wheelchair. I don't want you to get hurt.
"Your dad, however, says that a journey is a good chance for you to become independent. Furthermore, he was a trainer when he was your age, and he's had a lot of experinces—and a lot of fun—as a trainer. Indeed, he even met me on his journey. I was studying to become a nurse at a pokémon center, and he came in... you know the story," she concluded her story early when she saw Paul's bored expression.
"But anyway," she continued, "Your dad and I have been discussing it for the last six months. We've came to a compromise. Since my friend was attacked by a Gyarados when she was alone, you may go on a journey provided you travel with at least two other people. We were going to tell you tonight. Oh, but since you offered, you'll have to fix the air conditioner before you go."
Paul's brain took a few moments before it understood. Instead of responding he ran back into his room to phone his friends to join him on his journey. Meanwhile, his mom started fiddling with the air conditioner again.
***
It was now July fifteenth, and Paul couldn't believe it! He was actually getting his first pokémon!
His dad was walking with him though the forest. Through the foliage, he could see a windmill. As they continued walking, a whole labratory came into view.
Paul went up the sidewalk, and rang the doorbell.
~~~~~
10/6/07
Edited 5/25/09
Edited 8/17/09