Chapter 2: Becoming Pokémon Masters

"The book says we were sent to this world," she murmured, her black eyes flickering down to the pages in her lap. "And if we want to go back... we both have to become Pokémon Masters."

I felt a dry chuckle slip out before I could stop it. "That's gonna be tough. I mean, I've seen some of Season 1… maybe part of Season 2, but after that? I'm blank." I tightened my grip around her. 

The heat of her back pressed into my chest, her hair brushing my chin, and for a second, it was easy to forget where we were. 

Easy to pretend this was just another day, another game, another challenge we could beat by watching YouTube walkthroughs.

She shifted slightly in my arms, tilting her head up just enough to glance at me, her dark eyes catching mine. "We're not getting these bodies' memories," she said. "But I know something from the book."

I straightened, my interest piqued. "What?"

Alice hesitated for a heartbeat, her lips pulling into a thin line as she considered her next words. "Do you remember in the anime… there were four Pokémon trainers from Pallet Town?"

My brow furrowed. "Yeah. Ash, Gary, and two others they never talked about." Then it clicked. "Wait… we're the other two?"

"Yup." Her voice held that familiar edge of certainty, the one she used when she had pieced something together. "Which means…"

I grinned, leaning forward. "We might have Bulbasaur or Charmander."

She nodded, though the excitement that fluttered through me didn't quite reach her expression. "Yes… but how do we even do this? We're Pokémon trainers now, but we don't know anything. This isn't like the games, Ethan. It's real." Her eyes softened, barely showing a hint of vulnerability before she covered it up again. 

She never liked to show weakness.

I dipped my head down, pressing a quick kiss to her forehead. "We'll figure it out."

I reached for the book, the same old leather-bound journal we woke up with in this strange world. 

"It says we get a money pouch when we defeat a Pokémon Trainer," I read aloud after a moment. "And… blank pages? What's that about?"

Alice leaned forward, her brows knitting together in concentration. "Yeah, I saw that too. What do you think those blank pages are for?"

I shrugged, flipping the book closed. "Who knows. But I've got a feeling we should each take a Pokéball." I glanced at the two lying between us on the grass. "There might be something written in the book after we choose."

Alice stared at the Pokéballs, the tension in her shoulders telling me she was trying to decide something. 

Then she picked one up and handed me the other. 

"Are you sure you don't want to see yours first?" I asked.

She leaned in, brushing her lips against mine with a soft smile, her voice low as she whispered, "Your Pokémon is mine. Mine is yours." 

I flipped open the book, watching as the words shifted and changed on the page. 

My eyes skimmed the new text. "Charmander. Looks like he knows Growl and Scratch… moves from Gen 1."

Alice did the same, her fingers brushing against her notebook. "Bulbasaur. Same. Gen 1 moves."

I tapped the page thoughtfully. "If I want to teach Charmander Ember… it'll take nine days, according to this method in the book."

Alice's sigh was barely audible as she let the notebook fall beside her. 

She leaned back against my chest again, her head resting on my shoulder. "We're sixteen, Ethan."

"Yeah… at least we've got that going for us." 

A quiet fell between us, the kind that usually comes when neither of us wants to say what we're both thinking. 

Who sent us here? 

Why? 

It didn't matter now. 

We were here, and that meant figuring out how to survive. 

"Maybe some bored god," I muttered, glancing up at the canopy of leaves above us.

Alice stirred in my arms, turning her head slightly to look up at me. "We should try to get out of this forest. We don't know where we are."

I nodded, releasing her as we stood. "Let's pack up and get moving. And Alice… don't mess with any wild Pokémon. Not until we know how to use ours."

She shot me a look, that familiar smirk tugging at the corner of her mouth. "I wasn't planning on it."

We packed our bags in silence, the weight of our new reality settling over us like a storm waiting on the horizon. 

I slung my bag over my shoulder and glanced at her one last time before we started walking deeper into the forest. 

The trees loomed tall and dark around us, and every rustle of leaves set my nerves on edge.