The Beginning of a New Generation

[Heofthehills]

The young boy looks all the pokémon on the table and sees the lush green leaf of Chikorita and smiles, his excitement growing. Reaching into his coat he hands the Professor his ID and points the Grass pokémon.

"Can I have that one?" he asks timidly. He wasn't quite sure how this worked, but he believed that there might be some town requirements...and he being from a frozen setting, he was worried he would have to collect a Ice pokémon. Thankfully, the Professor nodded.

"Of course," the authority figure said and Eirik reached out and scooped up a Chikorita, activating the ball immediately, the beam of light shooting forth at his feet and the small green monster appeared at his feet.

Squatting down, he looked into the big eyes of the female Chikorita. "Hello there...do you think you can come with me and we can learn all that we can about battling...and one...be the best?"

The bright eyed creature was obviously excited to be free of the pokéball and to be treated with such respect, "CHIKO!!!" it replied with great enthusiasm.

"Good...now then, my little Freyja, shall we begin our journey?" he asks. The chikorita looked at him and decided it liked the name enough, and that it was ready, so it gave a firm nod, a stern look of determination on her face.

"Chiko...Chikorrrrita."  

[Heofthehills]

The young boy opened the book and began flipping through, trying to figure out the basics of his pokégear before heading out, then looking back up to Professor Hemlock. "Oh, yes...Um...could I have two more of the badges so that I may go to each of the seventeen gyms, please?" he asks as he teases the leaf on Freyja's head, who responds with a quiet "rita...," and nuzzles against his thigh.  

[Elfgirl M-chan]

Upon seeing that Rylie had caught up to Vee, Winry allowed herself a slight grin. Motioning for Tim to follow her, she made her way over to the two kids. Appearing behind Rylie, Winry stated in a cheerful tone, "I think she was trying to ask you the same thing. You okay there, Vee?"  

[BonzaiRob]

Perin and Odeko appeared quietly from behind Tim.
"We ran away too," Perin said quietly, looking very awkward. Odeko leaned his head against Perin's leg.
"[The professor guy didn't suspect anything, so you've got to be cheerful to help your trainer! She's got nothing to worry about.]" Odeko said cheerfully to Peloria.  

[Heofthehills]

If Eirik had been a kid from another town with the same drive that he has, he probably would have run off at this moment and bought the two badges, but he could hear his mother saying just before he left...'Don't you waste your money...don't forget to eat, feed your pokémon, and take good care of yourself. If you need to spend it, so be it, but don't be stupid or you will have to come home and you will never be a Pokémon Master.'

"Thank you anyway, Professor," the boy says rather down-trodden. He then slips the manual into his PokéPack and looks down to Freyja. "I'm going to be doing a lot of walking...and you are more than welcomed to stay out of your ball as long as you don't get us into trouble...or I can carry you in the ball...It is up to you," he says with a smile as he pets the little monster's head.

The green little critty put on a huge smile and began jumping up and down, then ran in circles around him, "Chika, Chika, Chikarrriiii!!!!"

"I guess we will be walking together then, huh?" he says with a grin, already thinking of this pokémon as if she had been a life-long friend and companion. "We have our work cut out for us, but I think the first thing we should do," he says as he opens his hand and shows her the five extra pokéballs, "Is go find us some more friends." Eirik then looks up to Hemlock and asks, "If I want to catch more pokémon, I don't have to let any of them go, do I? I had heard I could store them elsewhere...right? I don't want to give up my friends as I make them...but to match each gym, I'm gonna want a lot of pokémon..."  

[Heofthehills]

"That's so frosty! Thanks!" he responds excitedly, then looking down to Freyja, "You ready to go and see if we can grab a few friends for you, little one?"

The little Chikorita smiled up to him and responded with a gleeful, "Riiiii!"

Giving her another pat on the head, Eirik looked over at Professor Hemlock and smiled again, "Thank you very much, sir...you have been very kind." He muddled through that, but his mother had told him he must be as polite as possible, especially to people who help him in his journies.

And so they began...

Eirik immediately threw his shoulders back and began almost strutting forward towards the tall grass that he had to pass just outside of town on his way from the train station. Here was as good of a place as any to start collecting pokémon, and so why not get things started. He heard a girl nearby talking to someone, but he didn't want to interrupt, so he looked at Freyja, who looked just as determined as he...and began to trek through the grass...seeking whatever new adventure would come before him.  

[Heofthehills]

Eirik crept through the grass, looking back to Freyja, anticipating what would come next, the knot in his stomach growing tighter as he heard the grass ahead of him shake. Clenching his fists, he prepared for whatever would come next...and that...was a Wild Shinx!

The yellow and blue cat-like pokémon let out a menacing Growl that caused Freyja to dig into the ground a bit.

"Here we go, Freyja...don't let that Shinx get to you....TACKLE!" Eirik calls out and with her little legs dug into the ground a bit, Freyja charges right towards the wild pokémon and tucks her head just in time to crash into the Shinx, throwing it back.

The little cat quickly responded and leapt towards Freyja, "Duck!" Eirik calls out, worried for his new friend. It was too late, and the pounce landed, throwing Freyja back.

"You can do it, Freyja...I know...now...give it all you got...and TACKLE!" Hearing his words stirred the little green-skinned pocket monster to grin her teeth, squint her eyes and go charging at the cat once more...this time nearly running over it with the force of her Tackle. The force of that attack seemed to be just enough to daze the Shinx and Eirik knew that was his chance...pulling the red and white ball from his belt, he hurled it at the little pokémon and watched as it sucked the blue-furred cat in. He watched at the ball shook about, rolling as the Shinx struggled for it's freedom...but in the end, it was not to be, and the ball went still, returning to Eirik's belt. Running over to his slightly injured Chikorita, he scooped her up in his arms and gave her a good squeeze, "You did, Freyja! We just took OUR first step together to becoming Champions!" he says with his voice exuberating excitement.

The bright red eyes closed with joy at the hug and Freyja squeeled, "Chico..chico...RITA!"


"Now...Should we go get him...and you healed up before we let him out and see if we can come up with a good name for him?" Eirik says as he sits her back down, kneeling beside her, to look into her eyes. Freyja looks at him, then looks towards Lodo. "Ok, then back we go...Let's not take any undue chances."

He turned and walked towards the town once more, quickly escaping the tall grass that so oft hid wild pokémon. Once clearing it, he comes acrossed Vee, Rylie, Winry, and Tim...seeing they were having a 'moment' he walked past and back into town, heading back to the Professor...after all, it had only been a half an hour or so.

"Professor," Eirik called out as he entered the PokéCenter once again. "Can you heal my pokémon here, or do I need to go somewhere else in this huge city?" he says, still unsure of the ins and outs of this...at least the finer details.  

[Heofthehills]

He smiles and nods, then looks down to Freyja, "Ok...time to go in your ball for a few minutes...ok?"

"Riita."

He pulls the ball free from his belt then smiled as he held it up and watched it absorb his Chikorita. Then he walked over to the Nurse's counter and hands her his two pokéballs, then waited while she took them and used the machines to heal his friend and his new acquisition. The nurse returned the two balls rather quickly with a smile, "Here you go, good as new."

"Thank you," Eirik says with a grin as he releases Freyja beside him and look down to her. "Do you think we should release our new friend?"

The little green critter bounced up and down, "Ri Ri RIIIII!"

He pulled out the second ball and nodded, then pressed the button. The blue and yellow electric cat appeared before them and looked to each of them and let a, "Shiiiiiinx."

Eirik chuckled, then reached up to push his hair back, "Now...what are we gonna call you, little guy?" He knew he was male by checking his pokédex, but what to call him...then he saw the spark at the cat's tail and he knew...instantly..."Mjolnir!" Hearing that the cat...truly it looked more like a kitten clenched it's face and it's tail sparked brightly. "I think you like it, huh, Mjolnir!" Eirik reaches down tentatively to brush the Shinx's head, feeling as if he is building static electricity as he goes.

The blue face got brighter as it purred, "Shinnnnnxxxxxxx."

"Well, we have the start of one big, happy family. Shall we go?"  

[Modenopfer]

Peloria bounced enthusiastically out of Vee's arms and grinned at the dragon-type. She had never seen one before, but she wasn't the least bit afraid of it. Nor was she afraid of the bird-type Pidgey that followed the psychic girl. "Oddish oddi-odd oddi oddodd oddish!" She chirped at Odeko.
["Trust me, I want to go back to Wandell even less than she does. I'm having the time of my life!"]
Turning, she noticed the stoic rock-type, Cubone, glaring out at her from behind his owner. She winked at him mischievously. "Oddi odd-oddish, oddi-odd?"
["We meet again, y'old stiff! Want to play some more?"]

Vee smiled sheepishly at all of her friends. "Thanks for coming, but I really can't stay very long. See... well, I ran away this morning to come to trainer's initiation cause my parents wouldn't let me be a trainer. And I'm pretty sure they'll find me if I stay here.... Peloria, stop that!"
She reached down and snatched the playful oddish off of the Cubone's head once again. "Bad bad bad bad oddish!"
Suddenly, she heard something from a distance and cocked her head to the side. Someone was giving orders, their commands punctuated by sounds of a scuffle and a Pokemon's battle cry, "Rii! Rita!" Vee's eyes grew wide with excitement as she turned back to the others. "Someone's having a battle! Can we go see?!"
The sounds abruptly stopped and the area around them was quiet once again. Whoever it was, their battle was apparently over. Vee frowned, then her expression brightened as she looked once again at the other trainers. "Hey, hey do any of you know how to battle? Can you teach me how? Pleeeease?!"  

[Heofthehills]

Eirik looked down to Mjolnir and Freyja and smiled brightly. "I can't wait to take you home and show you off to everyone! Though, I think first, we should go out into the bushes and see if we can get some practice," he says as he begins to walk to the door of the PokéCenter. Freyja immediately follows, but Mjolnir seems reluctant. After all, he was just stolen from the wild minutes ago...and even though he was defeated and this child was his trainer...he wasn't about to make it easy.

"Shinxxxxx," the tail end of the name seemed like a hiss, which caused Eirik to turn around and stare...his quick stop and spin taking Freyja by suprise, the little grass-type bumped right into his leg and whimpered. "Riiii."

"Come on, Mjolnir...if we are going to be the best...we have to work hard and we have to learn to work as a team. That means practice. It also means building our family to be larger...I don't want to have to make you, but we have work to do!" Eirik is half-pleading, half-whining. He is a kid, after all.

The little blue cat let a whine and then a sigh, but seemed to agree and began to follow. Freyja looked over to him and let out a few squeeks, "Chiko Chiko RIIIIII!" The Shinx gives her a nod and they strut out behind Eirik, towards the wild grass once more, this time the two little pokémon have their heads held high. Their travels do take them right by the group that has formed, but unless spoken to, Eirik won't stop. He is determined.