Let The Journey Begin (Pokemon Fanfic) *On Hold*

Chapter 3

After walking and talking for about an hour, Daniel, Kalib and Ralts reached the clearing into Huftville. “You should really take a look around Huftville before going to Satford. There are some pretty cool things here. But first go and heal your Pokemon at the Pokemon Center. I’ll meet you after at the café, I just have some quick errands to do.”

Kalib walked into the Pokemon Center and asked Nurse Joy and her Chansey to heal his Pokemon. Kalib sat in the lounge waiting for Ralts, Spinarak and Shroomish to be fully healed. There were lots of other trainers in the lounge all talking about their Pokemon or gym leaders. “Well Fletchling and I found Huftville Forest really easy.” One girl with a ponytail said smugly. The boy she was talking to rolled his eyes and said “yes but you didn’t catch a single Pokemon in there! I on the other hand caught 4 Pokemon!”

Nurse Joy entered the room and told Kalib his Pokemon were fighting fit. Kalib thanked Nurse Joy and walked out of the Pokemon Center. He couldn’t see Daniel anywhere, so he decided to walk around the small village. There were a lot of Miltank in the village. It reminded him of his farm at home.

An elderly lady approached Kalib. “Young man, are you on a journey with your Pokemon?” Kalib looked at the old lady and nodded. “Oh good! I’ve been looking for a trainer to battle. I went on a journey when I was younger, but I’m too old now for training and I don’t want my Pokemon to be wasted. My policy is, if you can beat me in a one on one battle, you can choose one of my Pokemon to take on your journey with you. Do you want to go ahead?” Kalib agreed to the old lady’s policy and they went to the battle field next to the Pokemon Center.

“Go Geodude!” the old lady sent out her sturdy Pokemon. Kalib thought about the type match up and decided to send out Shroomish. “Wow, a Shroomish, my you are lucky to have found such a rare Pokemon.”

“Geodude use Rollout!” The attack hit Shroomish and did some damage. Kalib realised he could get Shroomish feeling better really quickly. “Shroomish, use Absorb!” The attack seriously injured the Geodude. “Shroomish use Absorb before they have a chance to attack again!” Shroomish used Absorb again, Geodude fainted.

“Well done young man.” The old woman said. “So which of my Pokemon would you like?” The 2 Pokemon stood in front of the lady; Elekid or Magby. Kalib looked at the 2 Pokemon and thought carefully. “I choose Elekid” Kalib said. The lady nodded agreeing with his choice. “I think you and Elekid will work well together.”

The lady withdrew both Pokemon and handed Kalib the Elekid. Kalib thanked the old lady and she smiled at him. She started walking back to her house when a girl with red hair pushed the lady over and took the Pokeball with Magby in it. “Thanks!” She said laughing as she ran into Huftville Forest.

Kalib ran over to the lady and helped her up. “That theif, she stole my Magby.” The old lady was very upset. “I promise I’ll get Magby back for you one day” Kalib promised. Daniel came out of the Pokemon Center where he had been looking for Kalib. Kalib and the lady explained to Daniel what had happened.

Kalib and Daniel took the old lady back to her house. “Please, sit down, I’ll make you some tea with honey to make you feel a bit better.” Daniel said comforting the old lady. She nodded and Kalib helped her into her pink armchair opposite a TV. The programme seemed to be talking about someone who had just become the new Decoh Pokemon Champion. Kalib turned the TV off to give the old lady a bit of quiet.

“I’m Daniel, and this is Kalib.” Daniel explained as he came back into the room holding a cup of tea balanced on a saucer. “Nice to meet you boys, I’m Mildred. Thanks so much for all your help, you needn’t have made such a fuss.” Daniel shook his head, clearing disagreeing with Mildred’s statement. “What that girl did was awful! There’s no excuse for someone to act so violently.” Daniel exclaimed in disgust.

Kalib, Daniel and Mildred must have been chatting for an hour and a half before anyone realised the time. “Oh my, it’s getting rather late! Do you boys have anywhere to stay for tonight?” Mildred asked her guests. The boys looked at each other with unsure faces. “It’s no worry, we can stay at the Pokemon Center just down the road.” Kalib said happily. Mildred nodded her approval.

The boys got ready to leave. That was when Kalib noticed a number of ribbons and trophies in a trophy case that had been situated behind where he had sat. “What are those?” Kalib asked Mildred. The elderly lady got up from her armchair and shuffled towards the trophy case. “These are ribbons and trophies from my time as a Pokemon Coordinator.” Mildred said fondly gazing at the well-polished reminders of her youth. “What’s a Pokemon Coordinator?” Daniel asked with a degree of uncertainty.

Mildred began to explain what a Pokemon Coordinator was to the boys. “A Pokémon Coordinator is someone who raises Pokémon to compete in Pokémon Contests. Coordinators need a Contest Pass from a particular region to enter Contests there. They raise their Pokémon much like Pokémon Trainers do, but with much more emphasis on beauty and appearances as they are major factors when it comes to points in Contests. Coordinators train their Pokémon to be able to do well in battles too, since the second round of a Contest is a Battle Round.” The boys nodded and listened carefully.

Mildred continued to explain to the boys about Pokemon Coordinators, showing off her ribbons and trophies as she did. “The goal of a Coordinator is to collect Ribbons. Since contests only occur at specific times, the Coordinator only gets one chance to win a particular Ribbon from a particular Contest. They also must compete with other Coordinators for that Ribbon. They need to collect five Ribbons in a region in order to be able to participate in that region's Grand Festival. If they win the Grand Festival, they will be awarded the Ribbon Cup and the title of Top Coordinator.”

“Did you ever compete in a Grand Festival?” Daniel asked Mildred. She smiled at the boy’s lack of knowledge on the subject. “My dear boy, of course I did. That trophy you’re holding is from winning the Kanto Grand Festival. The one Kalib has is from winning at the Sinnoh Grand Festival. And the 2 still in the trophy case are from Hoenn and Kalos.”

Daniel looked at her in awe. “Wow so you’ve travelled to lots of regions then? That’s so cool! And to have won so many Grand Festivals…it’s so neat!” Kalib had to agree with him. Pokemon Contests sounded like a lot of fun. They sounded really interesting and completely different from gym battles. “So when you went to Hoenn did you see any Shroomish?” Daniel asked Mildred. Kalib had almost forgotten Daniel’s excitement for Shroomish. “Of course I did. While some Pokemon can be common in some regions, they can be rare in others. I won the Hoenn Grand Festival using a Breloom that I trained from a Shroomish.” Daniel’s face lit up with excitement. He examined the room for any sign of a Breloom, but there was none. “So where is Breloom now?” Daniel asked. Mildred had a smile on her face still while she put the ribbons and trophies away. Upon hearing the question Mildred appeared somewhat saddened.

“My Breloom passed away only a few years ago. It was a very old Pokemon, almost as old as myself! It’s buried in the Lavender Tower in the Kanto region. Breloom loved Kanto very much. I’ve visited Breeloom’s resting place every year.” Mildred said with a pained look on her face. Daniel and Kalib mimicked the face, both also sad by the sudden change in atmosphere. “That’s so sad.” Daniel said honestly. “I can find some comfort though”, Mildred proclaimed, “my granddaughter, Emma, is raising a Shroomish that hatched from one of Breloom’s eggs. Her and Shroomish are following in mine and Breloom’s footprints by entering Contests. She’s entering one in Fladburgh City in about a week I believe.”

Daniel looked excited. “Wow, so there’s one Fladburgh in a week? That’s so soon and nearby!” It was true. Fladburgh City was to the north of Huftville Forest. “I’ll definitely drop by and look into what Pokemon Contests are like. What about you Kalib?” Kalib nodded in agreement. The boys were thrilled that they could see a Contest so soon. “I’ll let Emma know you’re going to watch the contest and maybe you could all meet up at some point!” Mildred said happily. It was obvious she liked Kalib and Daniel and could only imagine the fun Emma would have if she travelled with the pair of boys around Decoh.

The boys finally left Mildred’s house. It was night time now. Kalib and Daniel headed towards the Pokemon Center to get a good night’s sleep. It had been an eventful day for both of them. Kalib couldn’t believe he had delayed the experience of travelling for so long. Admittedly he had planned to have got to Satford City and start training for his first Gym battle. However, he had already got a team of 4 Pokemon in 1 day, learnt all about Pokemon Contests and made 2 good friends. It was a day well spent, even if he was behind schedule.