Chapter 2

You checked your bag one last time just to make sure you had everything before you set off. Your Silph Co Bag that you got with your license, check. Camping gear, food, thirteen pokeballs, five potions, five full heals, and ten thousand pokedollars starting money as a trainer.

Yeah, you had everything. So you went on your way, Bulbasaur happily plodding along at your side.

Route 1, was surprisingly bare.

One lone Spearow was sitting out in the open, and one Pidgey high in the sky. There was a Sandshrew you almost went for, before it burrowed down underground and escaped you and Bulbasaur both before you could even give any orders.

So you continued on your way. Ten minutes later, a Mankey saw you and leapt into the tree's and away before you could do anything.

You sighed, "We're not having much luck are we?" you complained, slumping over.

There was a tug at one of your boots, and you looked down at Bulbasaur, to see him pointing behind you with one of his vines.

Turning around, you followed where he was pointing, looking down the small hill beside the pathway towards Viridian City, at the large stream that spanned the whole route, connecting Pallet Town and Viridian City.

And there you saw it. Minding its own buisness, walking along the lake bed, was a rather large Krabby.

A water type! Just what you needed to take on the Pewter City gym, and even a type that could battle well in Cerulean City's water battle field.

You were definitely going to catch it!

You didn't really like the idea of just jumping it from behind. You'll do it of course if needed, but you prefer the idea of facing your future pokemon head on.

"Come on." you said, jumping and sliding deftly down the hill.

You took out some pokechow as you reached the bottom, Bulbasaur at your heel. "Krabby!" you called out to the water type, gaining its attention.

It turned towards you, and raised a claw into the air and greeted you happily. "Kookee koo!"

Huh, a friendly little fellow huh?

"Heya, have some food." you said, walking over and crouching down, holding the food out to the little water type.

It blinked, before nodding and picking some up with surprisingly deft pincers and popping them in its mouth. It greeted Bulbasaur as it did so with another raised claw, getting a returning vine from Bulbasaur himself.

"So, I want to catch you." you admitted upfront, "You okay with that?"

Krabby blinked, then looked to Bulbasaur and asked something. Bulbasaur shrugged a bit, before saying something back. Man, what you wouldn't give to be able to understand pokemon talking.

They traded words back and forth for a few moments, before Krabby turned towards you and eye smiled, nodding happily, "Kookeekookee!"

Huh, well that was easy.

"Okay then, welcome to the team." you smiled. Reaching into your pocket, you pulled out a shrunken pokeball and enlarged it, then touched it to Krabby's head gently. It popped open, and Krabby faded into red energy before being sucked inside.

The ball closed with a click, and then glowed bright red at the centre and shook in your palm. Once, twice, three times, and then it let loose a ping as Krabby was captured successfully.

Excitement filled your body. And it hit you for the first time. You were a pokemon trainer. You got your starter pokemon earlier. And you just caught your first pokemon ever!

"Woo!" you cheered.

Bulbasaur gave you an odd look.

__________

It was probably just because it was early morning. But you didn't run into anything else on your way to Viridian City, besides a Rattata that tried to get into your backpack when you set it down to give both Bulbasaur and Krabby a little treat, and to get to know them better.

It beat a hasty retreat when Krabby menacingly snapped his pincers at it. The little rat literally shot off with a quick attack.

You ended up walking the rest of the way to Viridian City, for another two hours with them by your side. Bulbasaur was generally a cheerful, go with the flow type, where as Krabby was quite friendly and a bit of the protective sort, if the way he chased off that Rattata was anything to go by.

Still, you left Pallet Town behind at 7:30 Am, and just as you arrived in Viridian City, it was just about coming up for eleven.

You looked down at the two pokemon at your feet, and could see the fatigue building up on them. Krabby more so than Bulbasaur. He wasn't built for long distance walking, but at the very least it was a decent little workout for him.

You lifted both of their pokeballs from your belt, and returned them both, "Take a rest guys." you said, then stashed them back on your belt. It wouldn't be a good idea to keep them out and risk them being exhausted by time you reached Viridian Forest.

Now what to do? There wasn't really any point heading to the Pokemon Centre, your pokemon were a bit tired, but nothing that wouldn't be fixed up in their pokeballs and a bit of rest.

You didn't really fancy your chances with the Viridian City Gym either. Giovanni was the strongest gym leader in the region of Kanto after all.

Well, you supposed that the Pokemon Centre was at least a local trainer hangout where a lot of trainers got together during their rest between cities to trade information.

Though, the league circuit this year has only just started.

You made your way to the pokemon centre, and from there the trainer lounge. There wasn't really many people in there, just four.

None of them had much to say as far as rumours or advice went. They were pretty new themselves, for the most part. One guy who was waiting to challenge Giovani though at least let it slip that there was a rather large swarm of Beedrill floating about the forest.

So you could at least keep your eyes out on that.

"Hey kid!" one of the trainers called out just as you were about to leave.

"Yeah?" you asked, turning back.

He was an older boy, perhaps two or three years older than you. Clad in some dusty travelling clothes, and short brown hair, "You up for a battle?" he asked.

You paused, considering it for a moment. "Yeah, I'm game." you replied.

"Cool, follow me and we can have it out at the battlefield out back." he said back. He beckoned you to follow him, and you did so, being lead outside to the back of the pokemon centre, where a large battlefield painted in white was situated.

"You ready?" He called out to you, taking a spot at the far end. You nodded, "Right then, on the count of three, we'll both release our pokemon kay?"

"Gotcha!" you acknowledged, grabbing one of the pokeballs from your belt.

"1!"

"2!"

.."3!" he counted down.