Green's Free Use Journey

Viridian Forest

After making their way down a short dirt path from Viridian City, Green and Machop found themselves in front of an arched entrance formed by the curving tree branches of Viridian Forest. The trees were tall and thick, with strong branches overlapping each other to form a tight knit canopy above. After taking in the imposing scenery Green took a few steps forward into the forest with Machop following behind, making sure to hide himself behind Green's leg. As they entered they were plunged into darkness as their eyes adjusted to the lack of sunlight. After a brief moment of blindness they look around them in awe at the sight of the forest scenery. Green had never seen anything like it before, she had always heard Viridian Forest was an imposing place but she never expected anything like this. Before them was a large open area, fenced off by the tightly spaced thick tree trunks of the forest. The floor was covered in moss, leaves and small bushes creating a natural carpet along the floor. Machop happily ran ahead, loving the soft squishy feeling of the ground. It was springy and light, he felt as if each of his steps bounced slightly like he was walking on a bed. All around them the humming and buzzing of bugs could be heard. Butterfree, big butterfly like pokémon flew overhead in the canopy, disappearing in and out of the large leaves forming it's roof. They sung a high melodic tune as they did, pairing up and dancing around each other. Occasionally they would turn around and shake their behinds at each other rhythmically, causing the other's big red eyes to light up with a hypnotic blinking pattern like a disco floor.

"Wow... " Green whispered as she stood there dumbfounded, staring in awe at the completely alien world around her.

Green was interrupted by a weaselly little snigger coming from her right. She turned her head and a group of teenagers all dressed up in big safari hats with nets draping down over their faces and matching light brown khakis. They smirked and sneered at her, one leaned against his long bug catching net and looked her up and down before raising his eyebrows at her. Up until now she hadn't minded the occasional glance sent her way, she was used to it to some degree by now. However, that look just sent a shiver up her spine in all the wrong ways. She couldn't help but grit her teeth as she cringed. Green looked down at Machop and he was gritting his teeth too but in anger, he had taken a wide stance like he was preparing for battle. That's when it clicked with Green, these were trainers, they were challenging her. The absolute devastating cringe had distracted her from the most basic unwritten Pokémon rule.

If a trainer looks you in the eye, it is an assertion that they think you're weaker than them and that they challenge you to a battle. To deny the battle is an admittance that you concede and they are in fact the strongest.

Green scowled and stood her ground, she wasn't about to be looked down on by a bunch of bug catchers. As she stared them down the guy leaning on his bug net stood up and picked up a small container with a handle on the top. The top popped open and from it he retrieved two pokéballs.

"You sure you can handle yourself? Have you even been in a battle before?" He asked condescendingly, his friends snickering in the background.

"Can you? All you do is train bugs, even toddlers can get a Caterpie to evolve." She said coldly as Machop stepped forward in front of her.

The bug catcher's sneer disappeared and he scowled at her, his brow furrowing. He opened his pokéball and with a dazzling burst of red light a Caterpie materialised in front of him. It's bulbous black eyes bulged as it stared at Machop, it's slinky tail-like body shifting back and forth in the moss as it sized him up.

"Rich coming from a newbie, you may be hot sweetheart but looks aren't gonna get you anywhere in a battle. Is that daddy's pokémon there? Was it your going away present?" He asked in a sleazy, mocking tone. "How can you take yourself so seriously when you haven't even caught a pokémon yet?"