In the world of Pokemon, everyone at some point gets asked the question...
Are you going to become a Pokemon trainer?
Pokemon battling dominates the world. It's how champions are decided, how disagreements are settled, how regions are conquered.
But...
There's one problem with catching Pokemon on this route... There's no areas for Pokemon to live up to their wild nature.
Only Pokemon can pass into the tree line, one of the region's natural wonders. It's a safe haven, a place for them to live peacefully and keep their nests away from human interference. Route 1 is too structured for them to want to come out.
It's like choosing between a cage and a world without boundaries.
I pass through another one of the longer grass areas. They're small so it doesn't take much time to go through but they're also all empty.
I wade my fingers across the long blades, staring down for any sign of a creature. My dad always told me to not waste time searching for Pokemon, but what do I do on my first day?
I smile, he did give me a lot of tips. I wonder how many more I'll completely ignore.
I look up at the clear sky for a second. No clouds, no wind, just peace and quiet.
Then the trees rustle.
A grey and white blur races out of the trees. It looks like a small flying type, very stocky.
I watch it soar around in the sky, doing flips and having the time of its life. But then it swoops down right in front of me, as if challenging me to catch it. You are on little birdy.
"Vanillite," I call out my ice type. The adorable ice cream cone pops out and catches notice of the bird. Its icy blue eyes become sharp with a little smirk under them. This Pokemon is a little frightening.
I bring out my Pokegear and scan the Pokemon about to be caught. "Starly, a flying and normal type Pokemon. Because they are weak individually, they form groups. However, they bicker if the group grows too big."
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"Weak individually huh?" I watch Starly closely. "This one obviously doesn't believe it."
"Ok I know we haven't had much training or any really, but trust me okay?" I look at my Pokemon and she nods. Obedient Pokemon, never take that for granted.
"Icy wind!"
Snow and ice swirls around vanillite, forming a cloud of damage. Starly watches it devour him, ruining the nice day.
The flying type falls to the ground fast, super effective. I get a pokeball out of my bag and enlarge it by pressing the button.
I go to throw but then it shoots upwards, making a beeline for the trees. I watch it carefully as I bring back my arm. "Come on, make all that practice useful," I mumble.
The ball leaves my hand, spinning through the air. My eyes glance back and forth between Starly and the red and white sphere. They get closer and closer then bang, I'm amazing.
Starly flew straight into the ball that is now wobbling on the ground. I run towards it and get there just in time to see it click. "Welcome to the team," I smile as I pick it up. "Let's go find Gold Vanillite."
