Chapter 2: Professor Elm and the thief?

Kai felt as if he was floating. He felt weightless as if he was swimming in the dead sea.

"Hey, he's waking up." A soft voice said.

"Don't crowd him, give him some space." Another said.

Kai slowly opened his eyes, feeling the light burn once again before his eyes adjusted again.

"Where am I?" He asked, slowly coming around.

"Hey, are you ok?" The soft voice asked.

Kai's eyes had fully adjusted now and opened wide as they took in the sight of the girl that had saved him.

"It's real... This is really happening." Kai said to himself, sitting upright a little too fast.

"Oh my." An older woman said as she came over to his side.

"Don't rush dear, you could hurt yourself." The woman said.

Kai didn't feel any pain as she stood up, noticing that the woman next to him was way too tall compared to him and the girl.

That can't be right. He thought.

"When I saw you being attacked by that rattata I just had to help you." The girl suddenly said, looking Kai in the eyes.

"Thanks..." Kai said, remembering what had happened.

"My. You, children, should really know better to go exploring without a Pokemon with you." The elder woman said.

"I know that mum!" The girl said.

Kai looked at her and then at her mother before he looked down at his arms and legs.

No way... He thought, realizing that she wasn't tall, but that he was short.

"Can I use the bathroom please?" Kai asked.

"Of course dear. It's up the stairs and to the left." The woman said, getting a small nod from Kai before he headed towards the stairs.

Kai slowly walked up to them so as not to make it look like anything was wrong. Soon he reached the top and turned left seeing that the door to the bathroom was open.

Kai could see a mirror, just as he had thought, taking a second before he stepped in front of it to take a look at his reflection.

It was as he thought. Kai hadn't gotten smaller, no. He was a child to be more exact.

"This can't be happening!" Kai almost yelled, looking at himself in the mirror.

I look around 12 again! Just what the hell is going on? He thought while trying not to pull his hair out and think about all of this.

"This can't be real... All I wanted to do was play my old Pokemon game again." Kai said before he took a deep breath.

"Wait a second..." Kai said after a moment.

"Play Pokemon again... I'm here in this world after dreaming about something like this for years, and I'm complaining." He said to himself before he smiled.

"This is a fantasy come true!" Kai said with a determined look in his eye, feeling a sudden sense of adventure and excitement replace the confusion and fear.

With that Kai took a moment to regain his composure as he took another look at his appearance.

His hair was a medium scruffy brown and of course, his eyes were still blue. The only difference was that he looked much younger than the last time he looked at his reflection.

With that, Kai splashed some cold water on his face and opened the door before heading back down the stairs.

"Did you find everything alright?" The mother asked.

"Yes, thank you," Kai replied, seeing that both of them were standing looking at him.

"My name is Kai, and I want to say thank you for rescuing me." Kai then said, bowing his head a little in thanks.

The girl smiled.

"Nice to meet you, Kai, my name is Lyra and you already know Marill right." She then said pointing to the small blue Pokémon.

"Yes, thank you, little guy," Kai said as the Marill ran over to him with a smile letting him pat it on the head.

"So, what were you doing out there alone in the first place, don't you have any Pokemon?" Lyra then asked.

"Lyra, don't be rude." Her mother suddenly said.

Kai rubbed the back of his head with an awkward smile trying to think of a way he could explain all of this.

"What? He's clearly not from New Bark town, that's for sure." Lyra said to her mother.

That's it... New bark town... Kai thought, feeling as if a light bulb suddenly came to life in his mind.

"Actually, she is right. I'm not from New Bark town." Kai said, getting both of their attention.

"I'm from Goldenrod City. It's just that I heard the great Professor Elm was giving some rare Pokemon to first-timers and well, I wanted one." Kai said, coming up with the story in an attempt to settle their curiosity.

"Oh my, and you travelled all the way from Goldenrod City by yourself with no Pokemon?" Lyra's mother asked.

"Yeah..." Kai said, not sure whether they would buy his story.

"Wow, I can't believe you made it so far without a Pokemon!" Lyra suddenly said, looking very impressed.

"Well young man, your mother must be worried sick about you." Lyra's mother said, having a concerned look hidden behind a soft smile on her face.

"However, it looks like you are in luck." She then said, letting the concerned look on her face fade.

"That's right!" Lyra suddenly yelled also getting excited.

"Professor Elm is giving new Pokemon trainers their first Pokemon tomorrow!" She then said.

Kai felt a smile form on his face, also getting excited.

"Is that right?"

"Well, how about you stay here with us for the night?" Lyra's mother then asked.

Kai was shocked at how nice they were and simply nodded.

"I would love to, if that is alright with you?" Kai said, not wanting to simply take advantage of their kindness.

"Yeah, then that way tomorrow I can take you to meet the professor and get you a Pokemon so I don't have to save you every time," Lyra said jokingly.

"That would be great," Kai said, laughing with both of them.

With that, Kai was treated to a hot meal and a bath so that he could get cleaned up. He hadn't noticed it at first, but his clothing was also different from what he had been wearing before coming here.

He had a pair of black trousers and a black t-shirt complete with a pair of black and red trainers and a dark blue jacket.

"How I didn't notice that I don't know." He said to himself while in the bath.

Kai lay down in the warm water to let his body soak, letting the water wash away all of the stress he had felt from the day.

Not long after he was out to dry and changed into some spare PJs that Lyra's mother had left out for him before getting into the spare bed.

This was his first night in the world of Pokemon, and Kai wasn't too sure if he was still dreaming about this whole thing.

Still, he felt exhausted and he gusted the only way to find out was to see which world he woke up in in the morning.

-----

The next morning Kai was woken to the stay beam of sunlight that slipped through the blinds, catching him in the eyes and snapping him out of his dreams.

"arhhh..." He groaned, rolling over to that the light wouldn't bother him anymore.

"Wait a second!" He suddenly said, shooting up from the bed and sitting up.

Kai looked around the room and then down at his body, seeing that he was still in the PJs from the night before.

"It wasn't a dream..." He said, looking at his hands before he pulled the covers back and got out of bed.

Does that mean I'm still in the world of Pokemon... Kai wondered to himself.

"Kai, dear, are you awake?" Lyra's mother suddenly asked as she knocked on the door.

Well, that confirms it. Kai then said in his head before he answered.

"Y-yeah."

"Oh good, come down when you are ready and I will fix you some breakfast."

"Thank you, I will," Kai replied as he looked for his clothes, unable to find them.

Kai searched high and low but couldn't seem to find his clothing, finally deciding to just head downstairs in his PJs.

As he walked into the kitchen, Kai could see that Lyra was already awake and also still dressed in her PJs.

"Morning." She said giving a large yawn, clearly still sleepy.

"Good morning," Kai replied before he turned his attention to the Marill that ran over to him.

"Marill, Marill!" It said, clearly happy to see him.

"And good morning to you too." Kai then said, picking it up and cuddling it.

Never thought I would get to pick up and cuddle a real Pokemon. Kai thought to himself before putting Marill back down.

"Here you are." Lyra's mother then said, placing both of their plates down with breakfast.

It was some scrabbled eggs, what looked like bacon and some toast. Kai had to admit he was starving and quickly picked up his knife and fork before digging in.

"Looks like somebody woke up hungry." Lyra's mother said while sitting down.

Kai didn't stop eating to reply and simply smiled between mouthfuls at her as he carried on shoving his food into his mouth.

Lyra eat more gracefully as she gave some Pokemon food to Marill who took it and sat down to eat it happily.

"I bet he's just excited to get his first Pokemon today, Mum." She said as she swallowed a piece of her toast.

"Ah yes, the joy of getting your very first Pokemon. You never do forget it." She said with a smile, taking a small sip of her coffee.

"Saying that, we had best get ready." She then said, looking at the time on her watch.

"You don't want to be late!"

Kai had already finished his breakfast and placed his knife and fork onto the empty plate.

"Your right, we had better get ready." Lyra then said, seeming to also be done with her food.

"I hope you don't mind, Kai, but I washed your clothes for you last night and have them here ready for you." Lyra's mother said, reaching over to the basket to get them for him.

She really washed my clothes too... Kai thought, amazed at how kind she was.

"Thank you," Kai said as he took them from her.

"Don't mention it, dear." She simply said, handing them over.

"Now, both of you go and get ready." She then said, rushing them out of the kitchen towards the stairs.

Kai didn't have to be told twice as he got changed, pulling his black trousers and t-shirt on before he placed his socks and trainers on.

Last he placed his dark blue jacket on, deciding to leave the zip undone and took a look in the mirror.

This is it, this is the start of my very own Pokemon adventure. Kai thought, feeling nervous and excited at the same time.

Kai made his way down the stairs to see Lyra's mother waiting for him, a large smile on her face.

"Oh, my look at you." She said.

Kai had to admit he felt fresh and confident.

"Thanks." He said.

Lyra came down the stairs soon after, wearing the same clothing as she had done the day before.

"Alight, let's get a move on, Kai." She said as she took her hat off of a peg and placed it on her head.

"Be safe you two." Lyra's mum said, waving them off from the front door.

"Bye Mum, see you soon!" Lyra shouted as she waved.

"Goodbye, thank you for everything!" Kai also shouted, waving goodbye to her.

"Come on, Kai, the professor's lab is this way!" Lyra then said, getting excited enough to start running through the town.

Kai nodded as he ran after her, taking in the site of Newbark town. It was certainly much bigger than Kai had realized, seeing that in the game it was some tiny little village.

However, here it was not and seemed to be what one would expect of a normal town, full of houses and buildings, roads and streets that went off in all directions.

Wow... No way I would have been able to find my way around here by myself. kai thought as he ran down another street, following Lyra towards what looked like a park.

Kai could see lots of different people and lots of different Pokemon all living side by side. Some were simply playing and enjoying the nice weather while others were training or going about their business.

"Amazing," Kai said, stopping to take in the sight.

"Hey, what are you waiting for, Kai, come on!" Lyra shouted in the distance, seeing that he had stopped all of a sudden.

Kai quickly snapped out of his amazement, looking at all kinds of Pokemon from Nidorans to fully evolved Machamps flexing their muscles.

"Kai come on!" Lyra yelled, smiling because she could see how much he loved Pokemon.

Kai nodded and quickly ran after her, feeling excited and free as he jumped into the air almost consumed with energy.

"That's the spirit!" Lyra also yelled, running with him towards the end of the park and back onto another street.

The two had been running for what felt like ten minutes now, crossing over a fair part of the town before they reached a large building behind brick walls, that seemed to have its own land.

"Here we are," Lyra said, pointing at the large building in front of them.

Kai took a moment to catch his breath, hardly feeling tired at all now that he was so young again.

"This is Professor Elm's lab," Lyra said as she opened the gate to walk into the yard.

"Well come on." She said after a moment, seeing that Kai was doing his thing where he took too long to think again.

Kai nodded and walked into the yard with her before she rang the doorbell.

Both Kai and Lyra waited a moment for someone to answer, however, nobody did.

"How strange." Lyra said wondering why he wouldn't answer.

"Try again?" Kai suggested, getting a nod from Lyra as she rang the doorbell again.

Suddenly the door burst open and a figure dressed in black barged into both of them, knocking past Kai and pushing Lyra onto the ground before they rushed out of the gate and down the street.

"Hey, what the hell!" Kai yelled, seeing red hair under the cloak the person was wearing before he turned around to help Lyra up.

"Are you ok?" He asked, taking her hand and helping her to her feet.

"Ah, yeah, I'm ok," Lyra said, dusting herself off.

"Who the hell was that jerk?" She asked, seeming rather mad.

"No, wait!" A voice from inside suddenly yelled, rushing towards the front door.

"Professor?" Lyra asked, seeing that it was Professor Elm.

Kai could see that he looked the same as he had looked in the games and anime, having short scruffy brown hair and his iconic glasses and lab coat.

"Oh, Lyra!" The Professor yelled, trying to catch his breath.

"Please, you have to help." He then said, taking another breath.

"What's going on Professor?" Lyra asked, seeing that something wasn't right.

"That person just stole one of my Pokemon, please you have to get it back." Professor Elm said, looking at both Kai and Lyra.

"No way!" Lyra yelled, clearly worried.

Kai couldn't help but feel that this was all a little familiar but also nodded.

"We can help get it back, Professor," Kai said, announcing himself.

"Who is this?" Elm asked, adjusting his glasses so he could get a better look at Kai.

"Oh, this is Kai, he's a friend Professor. He came here to get a Pokemon from you today." Lyra said, introducing Kai to him.

"Is that right?" Elm said, taking a good look at Kai before smiling.

"Well, if he is a friend of yours then I'm sure I can trust him too. If you are going to help catch that thief then we had better get you a Pokemon to help." Elm then said, quickly bringing them inside the lab.

Kai and Lyra quickly walked into the lab, seeing how big it was. Kai could also see that some of the Professor's aid were running around the lab in a panic because of the stolen Pokemon.

Soon Elm and the others came to the back of the lab where there was a table laid out with three Pokeballs placed on it.

"Here, I have two Pokemon left that you can choose from, so make sure you pick which one you want carefully.

This was it. This was the moment Kai had been waiting for.

"Professor, the police are on their way." One of the aids said from behind Kia and Lyra.

"Good," Elm said with a smile before he turned back to Kai.

"Here, let me show you them out of their Pokeballs so you can get a better look, but you will have to be quick. Time is of the essence if we want to find that thief." Professor Elm said, getting a nod from both Kai and Lyra.

"That's right. Let's do this Kai." Lyra said, getting a nod from Kai as he agreed.

"Alright, here we go," Kai said as he waited for Professor Elm to release the Pokemon from their balls, waiting to see which one he would be able to choose, feeling the suspense building within himself.

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Alright going to end this chapter here! I hope you enjoyed it.

Let me know which Pokemon you would want to see in these pokeballs!

Peace out.