literature

A Rookie Adventure CH1 - The First Step

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The sun was still low in the sky, but the morning was already pleasantly warm. Jade could feel the light bathing her arm, and sighed in her half-awake state of relaxation. Staying here forever, she thought, wouldn't be such a bad thing.

“Hrroooooo...” a voice whistled by her ear.

She wriggled and turned away from the noise. “Five more minutes,” she mumbled.

The ground around her shifted slightly and a large nose began to nuzzle the area around her face, blowing warm air across her cheek. Jade giggled and yawned, rubbing her eyes and blinking against the light.

“Alright, I’m awake. Thanks Princess,” Jade said, reaching out a hand to stroke the large, blue serpent-dragon that was her mother’s Dragonair.

“Huurooooooo,” Princess cooed pleasantly in response, wrapping the little girl up in its coils. Jade cuddled into the Pokémon for a while before untangling herself and walking to the water's edge, gazing out at the ocean they'd crossed the night before.

“You should be getting back soon. Mum will be glad to see you. Give her a hug from me.” Jade caressed the Dragonair’s back once more, and then watched as her childhood friend glided over the sandy bank and slipped effortlessly into the frothy surf. Jade continued to stare out, her back towards the rising sun, looking for signs of Princess long after the dragon Pokémon would be out of sigh. Fighting to swallow the tightness in her throat, she smiled despite her damp eyes. Nobody said that beginning her Pokémon journey would be easy.

Jade's tenth birthday had only been weeks before, so most of the gifts had been relevant to her trip. Her parents had bought her plenty of writing supplies, knowing she loved letters, as well as a compact camping kit, a stylish water bottle and book of simple things she could make and eat. She tugged this out now, picking at what was left her her packed lunch and contemplating a more hearty breakfast.

She thought back to how it must be at home without her. She knew her parents would already be awake, tending to the Pokémon. First they'd feed the injured Ponyta their breakfasts, and any medication they'd need to take. Then it'd be the turn of Richter and Tempo, the two powerful Tauros who pulled her parents caravan whenever they moved to a better graze location. Usually at this time Jade would be feeding Swift, her mother's former racing Rapidash. In his day, Swift was incredibly feisty, and nobody but Jade's mother could calm him once he started to rage. She loved hearing about all of his stories, barely believing him to be the same gentle steed who now pulls her own little cart during moving days, and keenly follows her around the grazing fields looking for treats and a scratch on his nose.

Jade wanted a Rapidash of her own someday. She knew she'd never be a racer like her mother; she was too much like her father. Calm, careful, and a little bit shy. He'd been working under Professor Oak in Kanto when the pair had met. She the flighty trainer travelling the region, and he the scientific breeder nurturing infant Pokémon in a quiet corner of Kanto. When his experience of breeding attracted the attention of Professor Elm, Jade's mother would have happily followed the man she loved had she not already been pregnant. They were reunited before Jade was born, and the whole family moved to Johto to start a new life. But this move, and her parents' strong ties with Kanto, was why they had sent her back here to start her own Pokémon journey.

Still feeling peckish, Jade finished getting herself dressed and packed up her belongings, before making her way north towards Pallet Town. It was here she'd been born, though she left before she was a year old and had no memory of it. She was excited to be getting her Pokémon training license, despite the anxiety of being so far away from home. Her worries only increased as it seemed to take for ever to find civilisation. But eventually she spotted rooftops, and a few well-used dirt paths through the trees.

Finding Pallet Town was one thing, but she couldn't see any signs that indicated where Professor Oak's laboratory might be. Jade sighed, glaring at the sun with frustration for already being so high. She wasn't off to a good start and, to make matters worse, the streets seemed to be deserted. She was just contemplating knocking on someone's door to ask directions when she heard raised voices coming from a nearby street. While she ordinarily would have avoided what sounded like an argument she preferred that to bothering strangers in their houses, so she walked in the direction of the voices and hoped they could help.

Rounding a corner, Jade saw the cause of the commotion. Two girls were approaching her, one blonde with a harassed expression, and the other an auburn-haired girl who was flushed in the face. The blonde one noticed Jade first and quickened her pace, much to the annoyance of her companion.

"You know I'm right," the rad-haired girl cried out. "Running away won't change that."

"I'm not listening," the blonde girl replied in a musical voice without even turning round. She stopped short a few feet away from jade, smiled and bowed her head slightly. "Hi," she quipped. "Are you getting your Pokémon license today, too?"

"Erm, yeah," Jade replied, blushing a little. She took an involuntary step backwards as she saw the red-haired girl approaching, suddenly realising she'd been brought into the middle of a situation she'd rather not be part of.

"What did you run off for?" she gushed. Up close her green eyes flashed brightly, and the locks of her short, auburn hair frizzed messily in the breeze. Jade pulled at the hem of her dress self-consciously, taking in the tomboyish look of this girl's clothing, and then flitting her eyes to the stylish blonde girl. Her hair fell in loose ringlets from a pair of pigtails on her head, tucked neatly behind some leather goggles just above her fringe. She was wearing shorts and large walking boots, which looked more than ready for a journey across any kind of terrain.

"I didn't run off," she was saying, her voice strained. "I was saying hello to this girl here..."

"Jade," she jumped in, wanting to be polite.

"Right, saying hello to Jade," the girl continued.

"I'm Brianna," the red-haired girl quipped, holding out a hand to Jade as if to shake. Jade returned the gesture uncertainly. "But I like to be called Bree."

"That's nice," the blonde girl sighed, a little sarcastically. "I'm Sophie," she added, before walking on down the path. Jade hesitated, not sure if she should follow Sarah or stay with Bree.

Her mind was made up for her, however, when Bree smirked and said, loudly, "you're going the wrong way."

"Well, any way has to be better than the way you're going," Sophie replied, snappily. But she came back anyway.

"We were just talking about Gym Badges," Bree gushed. "want to see who can get the most?"

Jade took a breath to reply, but Sophie cut across her. "For the last time, nobody cares. You can have all the badges you want."

"Maybe Jade's not like you," Bree sulked. "Maybe she DOES want to collect them too, right Jade?"

"And maybe you should stop trying to make everyone else think like you," Sophie replied, her blue eyes blazing.

This went on until they arrived at Professor Oak's laboratory, which saved Jade from having to admit she'd no idea what the Gym badges were or how you collect them. She just wanted to travel around the region she'd been born in. Beyond that, and getting a Ponyta of her own, she didn't have any goals.

"How could you not want the badges?" Bree was persisting. "That's what every trainer dreams of; beating the gym leaders, going to the League competition and being a Pokémon Champion."

"And having everyone stare at you and pick on everything you say and do for the rest of your life," Sophie sighed. "Not everyone wants to be famous. It's boring."

"You're just scared," Bree said, decisively. “You know you’ll lose because you’re not strong enough, so you don’t want to even try! That’s just silly.”

“No, you’re the one who’s silly,” replied Sophie. "How can I not be strong enough when I don't have a Pokémon yet and neither do you?"

Jade sighed again, and pushed the bell. At the sound of Professor Oak's voice on the intercom Bree and Sophie mercifully fell silent and followed Jade up the driveway. The door opened as they approached, and man with youthful eyes and silver hair beamed at them.

"Welcome, all of you," he chirped. "You must be here for your Pokémon licenses, yes? Come on in."

The three girls shuffled nervously through the hallway, following the man into a tiled room filled with odd machinery. In the middle of the floor was a round pillar-like mechanism that held three Poké balls under a glass dome. Jade's breath caught in her chest as she realised that, within a little while, one of those Pokémon would belong to her.

"Well, I believe we've never met before, but I am Professor Oak and this is my laboratory where I study Pokémon and, more specifically, their relationships with humans. To that end, I would like to give you each a Pokémon and Pokédex today. Please, wont you tell me your names?"

All three hesitated, until Bree stepped forward. "Brianna Crossland, Professor," she said, with a slight stammer.

"Ahhh, of course," the Professor smiled. "You do look a lot like your mother, you know." He beamed as he handed her a green Pokédex, before looking to the other two.

"My name is Sophie Bell," Sophie said, politely. "Pleased to meet you, Professor."

"Why, the pleasure is all mine, my dear," Professor Oak replied, handing her a blue Pokédex. "And I assume that leaves...?" he trailed off, looking at Jade expectantly.

"Jade Avalon, Professor," Jade said, blushing.

"Of course you are," Oak smiled, waving a purple Pokédex in her direction. She took it, gratefully.

Just then, a man walked into the room. He had longish black hair, and grinned sheepishly. "Oh, sorry Professor," he said. "I didn't realise you had company."

"It's okay," the Professor waved dismissively. "Ladies, this is one of my assistants, Tracy. Did you need me for something?"

"Oh, it can wait," Tracy said, retreating through the door he'd come from.

"Now, where was I?" Professor Oak pondered a moment, before a smile spread over his lips. "Ah yes, the best part. Do you girls know which Pokémon you want?"

All three of them nodded in earnest. Professor Oak frowned. "Normally, you wouldn't all arrive at the same time, so there's an element of first-come, first-served involved. But, as you are all here at once, it might be tricky if there are any crossovers."

"I'd like Bulbasaur," Bree burst, before biting her lip with embarrassment. She glanced towards Sophie, who pulled a face.

"Don't look at me, I don't want your Bulbasaur," she replied. "I'd prefer Squirtle."

"And you?" Oak asked Jade, who swallowed before whispering her choice to be Charmander.

"Well, that's easy then," he grinned, handing each of them a Poké ball. Jade gripped hers tightly, enjoying the weight and the coolness of the metal in her hand. Knowing that her very first Pokémon was in that ball made her stomach flutter with excitement.

"Here are a few spare Poké balls each," Oak said, handing them out in groups of five. Jade knew trainers could only carry six Pokémon at a time, and she wondered what happened to the rest. When Professor Oak asked if they had any questions, she mentioned this to him and he explained about the PC transfer system. Knowing that any spare Pokémon she caught would be sent back to Pallet Town and the Professor made her feel very secure, and she happily left the lab still clutching her Charmander's ball.

She'd have released the Pokémon at once had Bree and Sophie not begun arguing again. “You picked a water-type, that means my Bulbasaur is stronger than your Squirtle,” Bree was saying, proudly. “I told you I’d be better.”

“That doesn’t matter,” said Sophie. “This young, I bet it doesn’t even know a grass-type attack yet. You’re being stupid again.”

“I am not stupid!” said Bree, fiercely. She walked to the bottom of the driveway and peered up and down the street, as if looking for something. Before the others could react, she suddenly burst into tears and ran away down the road.

"What did I say?!" Sophie cried, a look of shock on her face. "Come on," she cried, before taking off after Bree, closely followed by Jade.

They found her leaning on a fence, still crying and with a young boy in her arms. A woman approached from inside the garden, with the same flaming hair and a tired look on her face.

"Beena," the little boy was saying, poking Bree in the cheek where her tears were.

"I know, Louie," the woman sighed, taking the child into her own arms. "I tried, Brianna," she said, soothingly. "I can't leave Kimmy home on her own, you know that. And with her fever so high I can't bring her with me."

"I know, Mum," Bree sighed, her voice tinged with frustration. "It's just, today's important."

"I know it is, sweet heart," Bree's mother replied, with sadness in her eyes. "I wanted to be there, I really did. But your father's not back yet."

"Meeting Rowan?" Bree said, bitterly.

Bree's mother sighed, and shook her head. "Rowan left yesterday,. and you know I'm annoyed with your father about that. But what's done is done, I can't get the money back now."

"That was supposed to be my PokéGear," Bree said, crying harder.

"Brianna..." her mother began.

"I know, I know!" Bree cried, stifling her sobs. "I know you can't help it, I know you couldn't come. It just isn't fair."

"No, love," Bree's mum shuffled the toddler in her arms, but he stretched out for Bree again and she leaned over the fence to take him.

"Beena," the boy said, poking her face again until she giggled.

"They're going to miss you," Bree's mum said, smiling sadly.

"Oh, Mum," Bree laughed through her tears, turning and giving her mother a hug over the fence as she passed the baby back. As she did so, she caught sight of Sophie and Jade watching.

"Are these your friend, Brianna?" Bree's Mum asked, as Sophie walked over, followed by Jade.

"Yeah," Sophie said, before Bree could reply. "You coming with us?"

Bree hesitated, wiping her eyes a little more. After a moment, she nodded, and began to smile a little.

"Good," Sophie turned to Bree's mother. "If she needs to get in touch with you at all, Mrs Crossland, I have a PokéGear she can borrow."

"That's comforting to know," Bree's mum smiled, reaching out to brush a strand of Bree's hair from her face. Bree shuffled uncomfortably, picking up her bag and waving goodbye to her family. As the girls walked away, Bree turned to Sophie with confusion in her eyes.

"Why did you...?" she began, her question trailing off.

"Look," Sophie said, sighing deeply. "We should start again, alright? Are you okay?"

"I guess," Bree replied. She paused, before adding, "my Dad wants me to collect the badges, I think. It'll make him proud."

"Then that's what we'll do," Sophie said, firmly. "But you're collecting them, we're just your cheering squad, okay?"

Bree laughed. "What about Jade?" she asked.

Jade took a deep breath. "Before today I'd never heard of them," she confessed. "I'm happy to watch you battle for them, I just want to travel."

"Same here." Sophie agreed. "So following you is as good a reason as any, right?"

Bree laughed again. "Sure," she said. "Sounds like a plan to me."
The first chapter of my fanfiction, A Rookie Adventure - rewritten! Follow the journey of three budding Pokémon Trainers as they set off from Pallet Town.

Next: A Rookie Adventure CH2 - Catching A Pokemon

Jade, Sophie, Bree and all other OC's © :iconrosemonkeyct:
Pok
émon © Gamefreak
© 2014 - 2024 RosemonkeyCT
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PokepalsFS's avatar
haha, I just imagined casually waking up to a Dragonair every morning o_0

Bree irritates me, but in a way a character should. Maybe I will come to like her...

Good stuff Thumbs Up Thumbs Up