Unforgivable Errors (Rewrite)

The Journey Begins

As time went on, Ash and Serena enjoyed their time at the lab, learning from Professor Sycamore and spending time with the Pokemon there. Soon, the day came for the two children to leave on their Pokemon journeys. Ash spent half the morning packing his backpack with the supplies Professor Sycamore had provided him, while Serena debated over what hat to wear.

"Hey Ash, which one do you think looks better?" the honey-blond girl asked, holding up two pink hats. They looked rather similar to each other, except one had a slightly more flat top and a black bow.

"I don't know, they both look nice," Ash replied with a shrug. Fashion wasn't something that he understood very well. He supposed it must be a thing that girls had more of a knack for than boys.

"Oh, okay. I'll just go with this one, then," Serena said, placing the pink straw hat with the black bow on her head. "Ready to go, Ash?"

"I think so," Ash said, looking through his backpack one last time. "Yeah, I've got everything. Let's go."

Together, the two ten-year-olds raced downstairs, eager to get on their way and start their journey. To Ash's surprise, Professor Sycamore, along with Froakie and Hawlucha, were already waiting for them near the reserve. He had thought that he and Serena would be the first ones awake.

"Morning, you two," the Kalos researcher greeted them. "Sleep well?"

"Yeah, we slept great," Ash responded as Froakie and Hawlucha jumped on him excitedly. "Hey, you two. You excited to go?"

"Yeah, you bet!" Froakie cheered happily.

"We've been ready," Hawlucha answered, slightly calmer than his younger companion but no less bright.

"Looks like the four of you are just raring to go," Professor Sycamore observed with a small chuckle.

"Yeah, we've been waiting for this day forever, right Serena?" Ash asked, giving a little fist pump.

Serena smiled and nodded. "I'm looking forward to meeting all sorts of new Pokemon," she said eagerly.

"Well, as much as I'm sure you'd both love to be on your way right now, there is one last thing we need to take care of," Professor Sycamore said cheerfully. "Serena, you still need to pick a Pokemon to have as your very first companion."

Serena's eyes lit up, and Ash could tell she had completely forgotten about having to choose a starter Pokemon. He couldn't really blame her; after all, going on a journey was an exciting prospect. He wondered which Pokemon she was planning on choosing.

"Here, you can pick from any of these three," Professor Sycamore said, taking out three Pokeballs and releasing their captives. Out came a Fennekin, Chespin, and another Froakie, though smaller than the one currently perched on Ash's shoulder.

"Hi!" Fennekin chirped happily, smiling at Serena.

"Hello," Chespin said with a small wave.

"Hi..." Froakie said nervously. He seemed to be quite a bit younger than Fennekin and Chespin and had probably only just become eligible to be picked as a starter.

Serena observed the three Kalos starters carefully, wondering which one she should choose. They all looked like amazing Pokemon to have, and truthfully she didn't really prefer any over the other. That said, she would only be able to choose one, so she supposed she should narrow her options down somehow.

"Let's see...I would really love a Froakie, but Ash already has one and if we both have one things could get confusing," she mused.

"Aw," the small Froakie said sadly, looking down at the floor. Serena gave a sad smile and patted it on the head.

"Hey, don't worry. I'm sure another trainer will pick you," she said encouragingly. Then she turned her attention to Chespin. "Now Chespin...he's really cute to be sure, but...once he evolves, well, I plan on taking part in performances and I'm not sure Chesnaught's really suited for that."

"No way!" Chespin exclaimed with a shudder. "Performances? Count me out! I would never want to do something girly like that! Fighting-types are supposed to be tough, you know."

"I guess Chespin feels the same way, Serena," Ash said with a chuckle. Froakie and Hawlucha let out snickers of their own as well-little did Ash know, this particular Chespin was the same one who bullied Froakie whenever he wasn't looking.

"And now, that just leaves Fennekin," Serena continued, turning to the fox Pokemon-but to her surprise, she wasn't there anymore. "Huh? Fennekin?"

Ash, however, spotted something next to Serena's leg and grinned. "Hey Serena, I think your starter Pokemon chose for you," he said, pointing to a certain fire fox rubbing her head happily against Serena's leg.

"Oh, hi there, Fennekin," Serena laughed, turning and petting the small fox. "You want to come with me?"

"Yay!" Fennekin said happily, jumping into Serena's arms. Serena managed to catch her before she fell and laughed.

"I'll take that as a yes, then," the honey-blond girl chuckled.

"Marvelous," Professor Sycamore exclaimed. "You both have your Pokemon and you're ready to go on your journeys. I have one last thing to give you two, and then I'll let you both be on your way."

He went into his office for a few moments before returning with two Pokedexes in his hand. Ash took his and observed it in awe. It was certainly made from better technology than the ones in Kanto, not that he found that much of a surprise. He wondered how anyone in Kanto managed to walk three feet in the forest with the lack of any good resources there.

"This is the most up-to-date version we have," the Kalos scientist informed them proudly. "I hope you'll put them to good use."

"We will, Professor. Thanks," Ash said happily, stowing his Pokedex away in his backpack.

"Yeah, we'll collect lots of data on all sorts of Pokemon," Serena agreed, stowing her own Pokedex away as well.

Five minutes later, Ash and Serena were finally ready to leave. Professor Sycamore had given the pair of them a set of twenty Pokeballs each, although they would only be able to carry six Pokemon at a time. Any additional captures would be transported back to his lab until they felt like calling on them. Froakie and Hawlucha had been given their own Pokeballs, though both Pokemon had decided to stay outside. The Bubble Frog Pokemon wanted to be able to see the world, and Hawlucha would never stay inside a Pokeball if Froakie was outside.

"Now, stay safe you two, and remember to call me if you ever need anything," Professor Sycamore said as Ash and Serena were about to leave the lab.

"We will, Professor," Ash promised with unusual solemnity for someone his age. He hesitated for a moment, then added, "And thanks for everything you've done for us."

"Yeah. We wouldn't have made it here without your help," Serena added.

"It was no trouble at all," the Kalos researcher said kindly.

"We'll see you around, Professor. Bye!" Ash called over his shoulder, waving as he raced off down the sidewalk with Serena hot on his heels.

As they ran down the busy streets of Lumiose City, Ash felt a rush of excitement surge through his veins. Finally, he was going to start on his journey towards his dream of becoming a Pokemon master.