The sun had barely risen when Ronan was running down the road, his old friend Growlithe at his side. He came to a cross junction and slammed into someone coming the other way. Ronan fell backwards onto the hard gravel. Growlithe started barking.
“Watch where you’re going,” they said indignantly. “Oh it’s you. I should’ve known.” Ronan looked over to see Sterling who had also fallen over. He petted Growlithe to stop his barking.
“Morning, Sterling. Fancy bumping into you.” Ronan jumped up just as Sterling did the same. They both brushed dirt off their clothes and then continued down the road together at a calmer pace.
“Can you believe the day’s finally here?” Sterling asked excitedly.
“My day came 8 months ago remember? But you convinced me to wait for you to get your license too.”
“Come on, you know you wouldn’t have nearly as much fun travelling without me,” replied Sterling with a grin. They continued down the road until they reached a large metal gate. Sterling hit the button on the console built into the wall. After a second of static a voice came through on the tannoy.
“Yes, hello, who is it?” the voice sounded sleepy and annoyed.
“It’s us, Professor. We’re here to get our pokemon,” Ronan called into the microphone.
“Oh very well,” Professor Oak said wearily. “Come on up. I’ll just open the gate.” True to his word the gate rattled open and Ronan and Sterling squeezed through the gap rather than wait for it to open all the way.
“Have you decided which pokemon you’ll choose?” Sterling asked as they made their way up the hill.
“Well I’ve had a long time to think about it and even though I really like Charizard, after all who wouldn’t want a fire breathing dragon on their side, but with Growlithe here another fire type would be a little silly. So I’m going to go with Bulbasaur. How about you?”
“Me, I’m going with Squirtle. I can’t wait to surf around on the back of a Blastoise.”
“Well we both have a long way to go before we can do that. Let’s concentrate on getting our first pokemon.” Ronan said as they approached the large house that the professor used as his lab. They rang the doorbell just as a pokemon began cawing to announce the morning. Ronan thought it might be a doduo. The professor had so many pokemon sent to him by other travelling trainers that Ronan did not know how the man managed to take care of them all.
“What do you mean first pokemon? You’ve got yours right here.” Sterling said, pointing down at Growlithe. They reached the front door and Ronan rang the bell.
“Actually Growlithe belongs to my family so I can’t take him with me yet. My mom told me I need to get so many badges before I’m allowed to keep him.” Growlithe barked and wagged his tail. The door to the lab opened and Professor Oak stood in front of them, hair still dishevelled from his bed and rubbing one eye with the back of his hand.
“Good morning, boys. I confess I didn’t expect you so early. Most trainers, no matter how eager wait until after breakfast before setting out to see me.”
“We wanted to get an early start. That way we have all day to catch pokemon between here and Viridian City,” replied Sterling.
“Well you’re enthusiastic which is good. Let’s see if you can hold on to that. Come on in.” The Professor stood back to let them inside and he led them down a long hallway to what must be the main room of his lab. Despite the professor’s complaints about the early hour, several of his assistants were bustling about the place, working on computers, taking notes, or observing different pokemon inside complex looking machines. Ronan and Sterling’s attention was drawn towards the table at the head of the room. Three pokeballs were arranged atop it and Ronan knew what must be inside. Every trainer from Pallet Town went to the professor to get either a Bulbasaur, a Charmander, or a Squirtle.
“We both know which pokemon we’re choosing already, Professor.” Ronan said stepping up to the table.
“Hmm, oh, very well. We currently have one of each so take your pick.” The professor moved over to one of his computers and seemed to be pretending neither Ronan nor Sterling were in the room. They each picked up the pokeball for the pokemon they wanted. Ronan attached his to his belt and turned to face the professor who pulled something out of his computer and offered it to Ronan. “These are your pokedexes. They’re filled with all sorts of information about the many pokemon you’ll encounter on your journey. Generations of trainers before you have completed and logged the data for every pokemon in Kanto but that doesn’t necessarily mean we have nothing left to learn. You should still work hard to achieve your goals. Too many trainers in recent years have forgotten that and given up in the early stages. I hope you don’t do the same.” Ronan and Sterling looked at each other and smiled confidently.
“We won’t let you down, Professor,” said Ronan, rolling up his sleeves.
“Yeah, we’ve got this,” Sterling added.
“Only time will tell. Anyway here are your extra pokeballs. Good luck.” The boys bade farewell to Professor Oak and ran back to the front door. The sun was up and it was looking like it would be a perfect day to the start of their journey.
“Ready to hit the road?” Ronan asked.
“Not just yet. There’s one thing I think we should do before we leave.” Sterling pulled out his new pokeball and looked at it for a moment. “I want a pokemon match. Let’s see what they can do.”
“If you insist.” Ronan had never battled before, not even with Growlithe but he knew Sterling had been allowed to practise at pokemon camp last year. “Just remember I have the type advantage.”
“Oh I’m not worried,” replied Sterling taking up position across the grass. Ronan moved to stand opposite him. He took a breath and reached for his new pokeball.
“Go, Bulbasaur!”
“Go, Squirtle!” Ronan was trying to take it all in. The flashes of bright light revealing both pokemon, his bulbasaur shouting and scratching at the ground with its front paw. Sterling wasn’t wasting any time. Before Ronan had even caught the now empty pokeball, Sterling was calling for an attack. His Squirtle complied almost immediately and charged forwards with a tackle attack that found its mark. Bulbasaur was knocked backwards but stayed on its feet.
“Alright, Bulbasaur try a growl,” Bulbasaur did as Ronan asked but no sooner was it finished than Sterling had ordered Squirtle to use tail whip. He followed this up with another tackle but this time Ronan was ready.
“Tackle back, Bulbasaur.” The two pokemon clashed and came to a standstill. “Well done. Now use vine whip.” Nothing happened, the two pokemon continued to butt heads. “I don’t get it. Vine Whip is one of Bulbasaur’s attacks. What’s the problem?”
“Your bulbasaur will need to train before it can learn a move like vine whip. That’s why I wasn’t worried about type advantage for this battle. Squirtle jump back and tackle again!” Squirtle pushed Bulbasaur to one side as it leaped away. Then it ran forwards again and shoulder charged Bulbasaur, sending it flying. It didn’t get up again.
“Bulbasaur,” Ronan ran over to his pokemon, dropping to his knees and placing a hand on Bulbasaur’s head. “Are you okay?”
“He’ll be fine,” a voice said a little distance away. Ronan looked up and saw Professor Oak coming outside. “I thought you two might try something like this. Luckily for you I always keep a stock of potions handy.” He handed Ronan a small bottle with a spray nozzle and the top. “Spray that onto Bulbasaur.” Ronan did as he was told. The bottle’s contents spouted onto Bulbasaur’s body and he shivered before jumping to his feet. It looked ashamed.
“Don’t blame yourself, Bulbasaur. It’s my fault we lost. We’ll do better next time. Return.” Ronan withdrew Bulbasaur and put the pokeball back on his belt.
“That particular Bulbasaur has always been seriously stubborn, forever picking fights with other pokemon. It takes losing pretty hard, but losing isn’t the end of everything. You’ve only just started right?” Professor Oak explained. “Speaking of getting started, I thought you two wanted to get away early so you had more time to catch pokemon?”
“We wanted to test out the ones you gave us first,” said Sterling who had put Squirtle back in its pokeball.
“Well in that case you’d better take a potion for yourself.” The professor handed Sterling a bottle like the one he had given Ronan. Sterling put his in his backpack. “Off with you now. I have work to be getting on with.”
“Thanks for everything, Professor,” Ronan called as he and Sterling made their way down the hill, back to the gate.
“Sorry for ambushing you like that,” said Sterling as the gate rattled open.
“Don’t worry about it. I learned my lesson. Next time will be different.” They came to the path out of town and Ronan went down on one knee to pet Growlithe. “Time for you to go home, buddy. Take care of mum and dad, and keep my brother out of my room.” Growlithe licked his hand before running off down the street. Ronan felt a little sad watching his old friend go. He stood up and looked at Sterling.
“Ready to go?”
“Watch where you’re going,” they said indignantly. “Oh it’s you. I should’ve known.” Ronan looked over to see Sterling who had also fallen over. He petted Growlithe to stop his barking.
“Morning, Sterling. Fancy bumping into you.” Ronan jumped up just as Sterling did the same. They both brushed dirt off their clothes and then continued down the road together at a calmer pace.
“Can you believe the day’s finally here?” Sterling asked excitedly.
“My day came 8 months ago remember? But you convinced me to wait for you to get your license too.”
“Come on, you know you wouldn’t have nearly as much fun travelling without me,” replied Sterling with a grin. They continued down the road until they reached a large metal gate. Sterling hit the button on the console built into the wall. After a second of static a voice came through on the tannoy.
“Yes, hello, who is it?” the voice sounded sleepy and annoyed.
“It’s us, Professor. We’re here to get our pokemon,” Ronan called into the microphone.
“Oh very well,” Professor Oak said wearily. “Come on up. I’ll just open the gate.” True to his word the gate rattled open and Ronan and Sterling squeezed through the gap rather than wait for it to open all the way.
“Have you decided which pokemon you’ll choose?” Sterling asked as they made their way up the hill.
“Well I’ve had a long time to think about it and even though I really like Charizard, after all who wouldn’t want a fire breathing dragon on their side, but with Growlithe here another fire type would be a little silly. So I’m going to go with Bulbasaur. How about you?”
“Me, I’m going with Squirtle. I can’t wait to surf around on the back of a Blastoise.”
“Well we both have a long way to go before we can do that. Let’s concentrate on getting our first pokemon.” Ronan said as they approached the large house that the professor used as his lab. They rang the doorbell just as a pokemon began cawing to announce the morning. Ronan thought it might be a doduo. The professor had so many pokemon sent to him by other travelling trainers that Ronan did not know how the man managed to take care of them all.
“What do you mean first pokemon? You’ve got yours right here.” Sterling said, pointing down at Growlithe. They reached the front door and Ronan rang the bell.
“Actually Growlithe belongs to my family so I can’t take him with me yet. My mom told me I need to get so many badges before I’m allowed to keep him.” Growlithe barked and wagged his tail. The door to the lab opened and Professor Oak stood in front of them, hair still dishevelled from his bed and rubbing one eye with the back of his hand.
“Good morning, boys. I confess I didn’t expect you so early. Most trainers, no matter how eager wait until after breakfast before setting out to see me.”
“We wanted to get an early start. That way we have all day to catch pokemon between here and Viridian City,” replied Sterling.
“Well you’re enthusiastic which is good. Let’s see if you can hold on to that. Come on in.” The Professor stood back to let them inside and he led them down a long hallway to what must be the main room of his lab. Despite the professor’s complaints about the early hour, several of his assistants were bustling about the place, working on computers, taking notes, or observing different pokemon inside complex looking machines. Ronan and Sterling’s attention was drawn towards the table at the head of the room. Three pokeballs were arranged atop it and Ronan knew what must be inside. Every trainer from Pallet Town went to the professor to get either a Bulbasaur, a Charmander, or a Squirtle.
“We both know which pokemon we’re choosing already, Professor.” Ronan said stepping up to the table.
“Hmm, oh, very well. We currently have one of each so take your pick.” The professor moved over to one of his computers and seemed to be pretending neither Ronan nor Sterling were in the room. They each picked up the pokeball for the pokemon they wanted. Ronan attached his to his belt and turned to face the professor who pulled something out of his computer and offered it to Ronan. “These are your pokedexes. They’re filled with all sorts of information about the many pokemon you’ll encounter on your journey. Generations of trainers before you have completed and logged the data for every pokemon in Kanto but that doesn’t necessarily mean we have nothing left to learn. You should still work hard to achieve your goals. Too many trainers in recent years have forgotten that and given up in the early stages. I hope you don’t do the same.” Ronan and Sterling looked at each other and smiled confidently.
“We won’t let you down, Professor,” said Ronan, rolling up his sleeves.
“Yeah, we’ve got this,” Sterling added.
“Only time will tell. Anyway here are your extra pokeballs. Good luck.” The boys bade farewell to Professor Oak and ran back to the front door. The sun was up and it was looking like it would be a perfect day to the start of their journey.
“Ready to hit the road?” Ronan asked.
“Not just yet. There’s one thing I think we should do before we leave.” Sterling pulled out his new pokeball and looked at it for a moment. “I want a pokemon match. Let’s see what they can do.”
“If you insist.” Ronan had never battled before, not even with Growlithe but he knew Sterling had been allowed to practise at pokemon camp last year. “Just remember I have the type advantage.”
“Oh I’m not worried,” replied Sterling taking up position across the grass. Ronan moved to stand opposite him. He took a breath and reached for his new pokeball.
“Go, Bulbasaur!”
“Go, Squirtle!” Ronan was trying to take it all in. The flashes of bright light revealing both pokemon, his bulbasaur shouting and scratching at the ground with its front paw. Sterling wasn’t wasting any time. Before Ronan had even caught the now empty pokeball, Sterling was calling for an attack. His Squirtle complied almost immediately and charged forwards with a tackle attack that found its mark. Bulbasaur was knocked backwards but stayed on its feet.
“Alright, Bulbasaur try a growl,” Bulbasaur did as Ronan asked but no sooner was it finished than Sterling had ordered Squirtle to use tail whip. He followed this up with another tackle but this time Ronan was ready.
“Tackle back, Bulbasaur.” The two pokemon clashed and came to a standstill. “Well done. Now use vine whip.” Nothing happened, the two pokemon continued to butt heads. “I don’t get it. Vine Whip is one of Bulbasaur’s attacks. What’s the problem?”
“Your bulbasaur will need to train before it can learn a move like vine whip. That’s why I wasn’t worried about type advantage for this battle. Squirtle jump back and tackle again!” Squirtle pushed Bulbasaur to one side as it leaped away. Then it ran forwards again and shoulder charged Bulbasaur, sending it flying. It didn’t get up again.
“Bulbasaur,” Ronan ran over to his pokemon, dropping to his knees and placing a hand on Bulbasaur’s head. “Are you okay?”
“He’ll be fine,” a voice said a little distance away. Ronan looked up and saw Professor Oak coming outside. “I thought you two might try something like this. Luckily for you I always keep a stock of potions handy.” He handed Ronan a small bottle with a spray nozzle and the top. “Spray that onto Bulbasaur.” Ronan did as he was told. The bottle’s contents spouted onto Bulbasaur’s body and he shivered before jumping to his feet. It looked ashamed.
“Don’t blame yourself, Bulbasaur. It’s my fault we lost. We’ll do better next time. Return.” Ronan withdrew Bulbasaur and put the pokeball back on his belt.
“That particular Bulbasaur has always been seriously stubborn, forever picking fights with other pokemon. It takes losing pretty hard, but losing isn’t the end of everything. You’ve only just started right?” Professor Oak explained. “Speaking of getting started, I thought you two wanted to get away early so you had more time to catch pokemon?”
“We wanted to test out the ones you gave us first,” said Sterling who had put Squirtle back in its pokeball.
“Well in that case you’d better take a potion for yourself.” The professor handed Sterling a bottle like the one he had given Ronan. Sterling put his in his backpack. “Off with you now. I have work to be getting on with.”
“Thanks for everything, Professor,” Ronan called as he and Sterling made their way down the hill, back to the gate.
“Sorry for ambushing you like that,” said Sterling as the gate rattled open.
“Don’t worry about it. I learned my lesson. Next time will be different.” They came to the path out of town and Ronan went down on one knee to pet Growlithe. “Time for you to go home, buddy. Take care of mum and dad, and keep my brother out of my room.” Growlithe licked his hand before running off down the street. Ronan felt a little sad watching his old friend go. He stood up and looked at Sterling.
“Ready to go?”
