Chapter - 6

"But we may miss out on the best Pokémon" Matthew warned.

"Imagine if Holly and Addy walk out of the Lab with some awesome

Pokémon and we get left with a Magikarp or a Skitty or something. If

we want to Pokémon Champions one of these days, we need to get

some awesome Pokémon to start with!"

Ryan sighed. "I guess you're right. Is our stuff ready, downstairs?"

Matthew nodded. "C'mon! We can get some breakfast along the

way."

Ryan hurried down the stairs and picked up his traveling duffle bag

and sleeping bag. Matthew was already throwing his own traveling

bag over his shoulder and making for their front door. Ryan paused

as he neared the exit to their house and looked back at the stairs,

wondering if they were doing the right thing by heading out without

their mother. Before he could voice his concerns, Matthew came

back inside, grabbed his brother's arm and dragged him out, shutting

the door behind them.

After grabbing a sandwich for themselves at the local delicatessen,

the two strolled down the tranquil morning village of Parlor Town.

One of the smallest towns in Arcana (next to Magic Junction), Parlor

Town was only known to be home to a few local fishermen, the deli

owner, and a few Kingston residences. Michael and Julia made their

home at the Pokémon Research Facility on the border of the town,

where the boys were set to begin their own Pokémon journey. The

two affectionately called their home: The Ranch, as beyond the

facility where Julia worked was nearly 300 acres of land where

Michael's nearly 800 Pokémon roamed freely and played and lived

together. Ryan and Matthew's family, as well as Michael and Julia,

were the last of the Kingston family who were in Parlor Town, as the

others had moved closer to their places of work. Besides the

delicatessen and the Research Facility, only a few dozen families

and a local park were all that made Parlor Town the peaceful village

where the twins journey would begin.

After turning the corner of the street where their house was, the two

looked down the main road and saw Julia's Research Facility. Their

next door neighbors were Ryan and Matthew's childhood friends

Holly and Tommy Queensbury. Despite their father's business being

in Taghwan City, Mr. Queensbury chose to keep his family in a quiet

and peaceful village like Parlor Town and commute to work atop his

Braviary. Holly was Ryan and Matthew's age, while her brother

Tommy was a few years younger, only nine. The two of them were

likely still sleeping before they would get their own first Pokémon. It

was probably for the best, as if Ryan and Matthew weren't the first

two there, they would likely brownnose Julia into giving them some

powerful Pokémon to use.

The boys continued on their way to the Research Facility, passing

more houses from some of Parlor Town's esteemed residents,

including Professor Julia's cousin, the Queen of the Arcana

Pokémon Contests, Piper Pines and James Kingston's old friend and

colleague, Claude Jacques, a renowned lawyer and Pokémon

Philosopher. The owners of these houses were often never home, as

Claude was usually off providing lectures to aspiring Pokémon

Professors in universities across the world and Piper could generally

be found in one of her many penthouses in the region, usually in

Titanio City.

The last house before The Ranch was the home of Ryan and

Matthew's closest friend (and their mutual crush): Addison Tenton.

Like Holly, she too was the same age as Ryan and Matthew, but

came from a more ambitious family. Her mother, Deidre, had been a

consistent Queen of Arcana Contest contender for several years

before raising a family, even winning it on three consecutive

occasions before Piper began to dominate the competition. Her

father was the Warden of the Arcana Safari Zone and often brought

Addison to see all of the Pokémon that lived there, usually ones from

foreign regions. Thanks to both of her parents, Addison managed to

be born with the best traits of both of her parents as she was quite a

lovely girl and a natural when it came to raising Pokémon. And there

was no fiercer competition Ryan and Matthew embroiled themselves

in than their competition to impress her.

But, it appeared that she too was also sleeping the morning in. Ryan

stopped to look at her house and wonder if they should get her up as

well, but Matthew's quick pace prompted him to follow after his twin

brother. The two came to a halt outside the gates to the Ranch,

which were currently closed. "I guess we have to wait a bit" Ryan

remarked.

"Fine by me" Matthew agreed. "At least we're the first ones here."

"Who says you two are the first" a voice chimed in from nearby. The

twins looked around for the source of the question and find a small

tent put up just behind a bush near the gates. As if rising out of the

morning mist, Addison crawls out of her tent and greets her friends.

"When did you get here?" Ryan asked his friend.

"Last night" she explained, stretching her nimble body. Though she

was only twelve years old, she possessed a poise and confidence

beyond her years. Her chestnut-colored hair and peach-colored skin

were complimented by a pair of haunting violet-colored eyes. She

wore a white blouse with a red short skirt and a similarly colored

scarf around her neck. She almost always wore a smile on her face,

one of the many qualities that Ryan and Matthew admired about her.

"My Mom and Dad told me to head to the lab whenever I was ready.

So, I figured I would camp outside until Professor Julia opens up the

facility."

"I wish our parents would have let us do that" Matthew exclaimed.

"You didn't miss much" Addison assured him. "I think the Professor is

still sleeping."

"The only thing that matters is that we got here early" Ryan added.

"And now we wait" Addison replied. With that, the three friends sat

down alongside her tent and waited around for their time to come to

pass. After several minutes, Addison turned to the boys. "So, which

Pokémon do you think we're going to be given as a Starter?"

Ryan shrugged. "Can't really say for sure."

Matthew clenched his fist eagerly. "I'm hoping for something really

powerful, like a Charizard or something."

"I don't think your first Pokémon would be one so powerful" Addison

said. "Professor Julia said that some Pokémon won't obey

inexperienced trainers. If we're going to get one, I hope it's a

Pokémon that'll help me become a Queen of Arcana like my Mom or

Piper. Maybe something like a Eevee."

"Eevee?" Ryan asked.

Addison pulled her PokéGear out of her pocket and scrolled through

her photos, until she came across a picture of an Eevee. She then

slid to his side and showed him the picture. "This is it, right here" she

showed him.

Ryan looked over the Eevee. It wasn't a particularly remarkable

Pokémon, but like Addison, it always seemed to smile. "Aw, it's

cute."

Matthew looked deeply disappointed. "Eh, I guess. But is it strong?"

Addison shrugged. "I guess it depends on how you raise it. I know

that when they first set out on their journey, Julia and Michael both

started with an Eevee. Not that I want to go on the same journey as

they did, but it would be nice to have the same Starter as my two

favorite Pokémon Trainers."

"Is Julia really a Pokémon Trainer?" Matthew asked. "I've never seen

her battle before."

"You don't have to battle to be a Pokémon Trainer, Matt. You just

have to be around them enough and enjoy spending time with them.

My Mom is a trainer, even though she's never even taken on the

Gym Challenge. My Dad did, a long time ago. But he's still a trainer,

even though he doesn't take part in the Challenge anymore." She

pulled her PokéGear back and put it back in her pocket. "Besides,

I'm going to be a trainer, but I don't have any interest in taking part in

the Challenge." She looked to Ryan and Matthew. "I expect you two

will?"

Ryan nodded. "Yup. I have to give it a try, at least."

"Same here" Matthew agreed. "But I'm gonna do more than just try.

I'm gonna go all the way and become the new Pokemon League

Champion!"

Addison smiled nicely. "Well, it's a tough road. But if you guys work

really hard at it, I'm sure you'll succeed."

"What about you, Addy?" Ryan asked his friend.

Addison looked to the skies, where the sun was finally starting to

brighten the stars from view. "Me? Well, all I know is that I have to

register for the Queen of Arcana contests. I think I have to go to

Alchemiburg for that. After that, I'll be trying to become the next

Queen of Arcana."

Ryan turned to her, surprised. "You mean, you're not going to travel

with us?"

"I don't want to get in your way" Addison replied softly. "I know my

road goes a bit differently from yours."

Matthew stood up. "No way, Addy! You won't be getting in our way.

We'll be going to the same cities as you."

Ryan followed his brother's lead. "Exactly. We're friends, Addy.

Where one of us goes, the other should follow."

Addison couldn't help but beam at her friends. "Thanks, guys." She

hopped to her feet and put her hand in between the boys. "We're a

team, now and always, right?"

Ryan put his hand on top of hers. "Now and always" he repeated.

Matthew did the same. "Now and always."