Hello Trainers! My name is Professor Oak. Welcome to the amazing world of Pokémon!
This world is inhabited by powerful creatures called Pokémon.
For thousands of years, humans and Pokémon have lived in harmony. Some of us do battle with them, some of us breed them and some have Pokémon to keep them company or to help them with work.
Unfortunately there are also those who would use them for their own nefarious agendas.
It's been ten years since some of the most exceptional trainers I've ever had the pleasure of knowing made sure that these evil men would not have their way, though. One of them is my grandson, actually... uh... what was his name again? Blue! Yes, Blue Oak. You might find him in the Viridian City gym every once in a while.
But enough about ancient history, I see 10 young men and women in front of me. Won't you tell this old man something about yourselves?
Normal = DarkSalmon
Grass = ForestGreen
Water = Aqua
Fire = OrangeRed
Electric = Gold
Ground = SaddleBrown
Rock = Gray
Steel = SteelBlue
Psychic = DeepPink
Fighting = Maroon
Ghost = Indigo
Dark = MidnightBlue
Bug = Olive
Poison = MediumVioletRed
Flying = SkyBlue
Dragon = RoyalPurple
Fairy = HotPink
Name: Remy Olivier Age: 24 Gender: Male City: Veilstone City/Sinnoh Appearance: Roughly 6ft tall and with an average build, Remy is instantly recognizable thanks to his shaggy head of bright red hair. He has fair skin, typical to a denizen of the North and wears baggy, army green cargo pants, black boots, band t-shirts and a black leather jacket, a memento of his late father which he's customized with a red decal of a Zangoose's scars. His face always has a lazy look about it, always in a half dazed smile, while his reddish brown eyes are sometimes hidden behind black shades. His looks are quite infamous for attracting the ladies which, coupled with his cavalier attitude tends to get him in trouble. Personality: A free spirited lover of life. Remy is the personification of "devil may care". Being from Sinnoh, Remy has a "country bumpkin" air to him. He loves everything life has to offer: Pokemon, music, women, taking naps under trees and more women. He's friendly to the point where people actually find him unbearable. Those who can suffer him for more than 30 minutes, however, would find in him a friend of unwavering loyalty.
Remy treats his Pokemon like brothers and throws himself wholeheartedly into battle with them, completely forgoing his lazy demeanor. Biography: Raised by his grandmother in Sinnoh's Veilstone City after the death of his parents, Remy was taught to enjoy life and to help others enjoy it as well. When he was 10 he found a wounded Zangoose in an alley, a long way from it's natural habitat of Hoenn. After 2 hours of "heavy negotiation" a scratched up Remy brought what would be his most loyal companion home to get healed. By age 15 Remy's grandmother had died as well. With no one left to raise him Remy took to the streets doing whatever he could to get by: work in warehouses, Pokemon battles and even a bit of pickpocketing (made easier by the Sneasel he now owned after a trip to Snowpoint City). At age 22, Remy has long since left Sinnoh and is wondering around Johto. When he hears of the Tournament being held in Goldenrod, he immediately jumps at the opportunity.
"15.000P? Wooohoo! Let's go make Remy rich boys!"
Inventory
5 Super Potions
2 Hyper Potions
1 Revive
3 Antidote
3 Paralyze Heal
2 Awakening
2 Burn Heal
1 Ice Heal
2 PokeBall
1 Great Ball
1 Dusk Ball
1 Lure Ball
1 Expert Belt (on Primeape)
Remy's Poketch
Some basic camping gear (small tent, sleeping bag, pocket knife, etc.)
A wooden fishing rod
Some Pokemon food
A net hammock belonging to Primeape
Zangoose is Remy's first Pokemon. Saving it from injury (somewhat against it's will) in Veilstone, the two have been thick as thieves ever since. There's no master/servant relationship between the two. Zangoose is as likely to scold and boss Remy around as he is. Zangoose has a careful nature and is generally a no nonsense Pokemon. As with all Zangoose, it has a deep seated hatred for Seviper.
Sneasel is Remy's second Pokemon. Hatched from an abandoned egg near Snowpoint City, it has since become somewhat of a naughty natured foil to Zangoose's seriousness. It excels at stealing shiny things, so Remy usually keeps it out of its ball and on his shoulder. In battle, Sneasel is agile if a bit of a glass jaw. Being a Sneasel, it tends to put bird Pokemon on edge, because of its primary diet of bird eggs.
Primeape, Lvl 28 MALE
Ability: Vital Spirit
-Karate Chop
-Low Kick
-Seismic Toss
-Rage
-Focus Energy
-Brick Break (TM move)
Primeape was caught as a Mankey while Remy traveled around Kanto. A rash natured ball of untameable energy, Primeape is the furious enforcer of Remy's little band of thieves. Very undisciplined as Fighting-types go, it fights solely for the thrill of the fight. This prompts it to sometimes make stupid mistakes which, while possibly working his way, often hurt him too. After spending time on Remy's team however, he's begun to trust his Trainer's abilities. A trust that's difficult to earn from Fighting-types.
Darumaka, Lvl 25 MALE
Ability: Hustle
-Fire Punch
-Fire Fang
-Rollout
-Headbutt
-Incinerate
-Work Up
Remy acquired Darumaka as a reward for winning a bet. Thoroughly unfamiliar with Unovan Pokemon, Remy hasn't used Darumaka in battle much, mostly just enjoying the jolly Fire-type's companionship. Darumaka himself has shown its passion for battles, as well as food. Darumaka is always keen to drive Remy to the point of bankruptcy with its appetite.
Name: Grace Heller
Age: 19
Gender: Girl
City/Region: Violet City, Johto
Appearance: Standing at just under 5'6" and weighing roughly 120 lbs, Grace isn't exactly what you'd call intimidating. Though years spent wandering around in the great outdoors have given her a decent tan and a modest amount of muscle, the girl's slouching posture and generally meek air make her seem like she's often the smallest person in a room. Her dirty blonde hair is long enough to fall halfway down her back, and is styled so that it curls up at the end, and her bangs fall just short of covering her ice-blue eyes.
Whenever she finds herself around large crowds of people, Grace forces an uncomfortable half-smile onto her face, though the expression typically fails to convince anybody of its sincerity. The young woman's eyes, though sharp and clever, are normally downcast, refusing or unable to make contact with anyone else's.
Normally dressed in a well-worn pair of jeans, a plain t-shirt, and a windbreaker, Grace doesn't really bother to keep up with fashion trends and the like, preferring instead to stick with the routine and familiar. She also wears a wide-brimmed hat and a necklace with a pewter Unown hanging from it, a souvenir from the Ruins of Alph that somehow became part of her everyday attire. Like most trainers, she wears her Pokéballs on her belt and carries most of her gear around in a backpack.
Personality: It's easily apparent that Grace is a rather timid individual, almost painfully so. Soft spoken to a fault, the girl struggles to make an impact in any sort of social gathering, and often finds herself interrupted or simply not noticed by the people around her. Recognizing that this isn't exactly the best way to live, Grace's resolved to better herself by interacting with more and more people, but... It's been a long, bumpy road so far, and things don't exactly look like they're going to get any easier for the poor kid.
Still, despite her crippling inability to operate properly around people, Grace tries her best to be a decent person. If she thinks there's something she can do to help someone, she'll offer her aid in a heartbeat. Or, you know, however long it takes her to actually string a few sentences together. And while social situations are her kryptonite, the girl has a pretty decent head on her shoulders, and has faced more than her share of dangers in the wilderness. She's learned first hand just how important resourcefulness and creativity are when it comes to Pokémon training. However, that doesn't mean that she's always able to stand and fight; if she thinks that the best course of action is to retreat, she'll do so instantly.
Finally, when it comes to Pokémon, Grace's almost an entirely different person. Armed with plenty of experience, some first-hand, some handed down from her parents, the lass knows her way around most of the species native to Johto, and even a few from other regions. There are few things Grace enjoys more than finding a new Pokémon to marvel at, and she's surprisingly competent when it comes to battling wild critters. When it comes to her own team, she treats his Pokémon more like they're siblings than anything else.
Biography: Born in Mahogany Town, Johto, Grace spent most of her childhood growing up in the small town on the Lake of Rage. She made friends with the other kids, went fishing for Magikarp with her family, explored the freezing (and annoying) Ice Path, and got up to all sorts of shenanigans that only little kids can. She enjoyed her life there, and, like most children, assumed that nothing about it would ever change.
So, needless to say, when her dad died, she was pretty shaken up. And her issues were only further compounded when she and her mom, Jessica, moved to Violet City to be near her mother's family, leaving her friends and the rest of her emotional stability behind. Barely 8 at the time, Grace had a lot of trouble adjusting to her new life, and ended up retreating inside herself, trying to hide her feelings from anybody else. Sure, she went to school, did her chores, and fulfilled all her other responsibilities, but that was it. Friends and fun kind of fell by the wayside for her.
When Jessica eventually remarried, she and Grace's new step-father, Nathan took the girl on a family trip to Hoenn, hoping that a change of scenery would shake her out of her funk. And when that failed, Nathan paid a visit to an old friend of his, one Professor Birch...
So, when the family finally made it back to Johto, Grace's parents had a surprise for her: A Treecko, that she would be in charge of caring for and raising. As would be expected, this paid off big time, and Grace quickly fell in love with her new Pokémon. Though she still had trouble connecting with people, the young girl threw herself headfirst into Pokémon training, dreaming of one day being the region champ.
Years passed by, and Grace grew up. Now that she's almost 20, she believes that she and her Pokémon are ready for the big leagues. With the tournament in Goldenrod City coming up, she figures that trying her talents out there would be a good first step. Even if that means traveling to one of the most populated places in all of Johto. Which is even more packed than usual thanks to all the tourists and foreign trainers making their way there for the tournament.
Misc. camping gear
Poor Rod
Town Map
Pokétch (worn on Grace's wrist)
Several guidebooks from various regions, which include a list of most known Pokémon, which serves in place of a Pokédex
Grace's first, most loyal, and hardheaded Pokémon, Sasaki is the strongest member of Grace's team, and boy does he know it. Though the Grass-type is usually more than content to simply sit back and take things easy, if he feels like he, his trainer, or his fellow teammates are being insulted, he'll spring into battle in an instant. Fiercely proud of his godlike speed, Sasaki's usual tactics involve throwing enough attacks at an opponent that they're guaranteed to be hit by at least one of them. He has also appointed himself Grace's "life coach" trying to make sure she stands up for herself when she's being particularly timid.
As of now, he stands about a foot shorter than his trainer, and he can normally be found chewing on some leaf, stem, or piece of grass. Oddly, the leaves growing from his arms and forehead are stripped red and green.
---------------------------------------
Ditzy: Quagsire, lvl 26, Female
Ability: Water Absorb
Water Gun
Mud Shot
Slam
Mud Bomb
Amnesia
Ice Beam (TM)
One of Grace's more colorful Pokémon, Ditzy is a little... well, ditzy. To Sasaki's occasional annoyance, the Quagsire is carefree to a fault, and is apparently unable to muster the slightest hint of aggression.
Despite her unintentionally goofy demeanor, Ditzy can be quite clever when she focuses on something. If only she wasn't so easily distracted by shiny objects. Or things that smell nice. Or interesting sounds. Or... Well, you see where this is going. The word "unfriendly" doesn't exist in Ditzy's vocabulary; she almost always carries herself with a cheery, bubbly air.
-----------------------------------------
Terrycloth "Terry": Umbreon, lvl 27, Male
Ability: Synchronize
Quick Attack
Bite
Confuse Ray
Feint Attack
Detect (Egg)
Dark Pulse (TM)
The calm, collected member of Grace's team, Terry constantly carries himself with composure and, no pun intended, grace. He believes that he's above antics like those Sasaki and Ditzy get themselves into; after all, someone in this group has to be the sensible one. However, despite his almost regal air, Terry has this one spot under his chin, that if you scratch juuuuuuust right, will turn him into putty in your hands. Grace only resorts to using this drastic method during times of emergency. Or whenever she feels like Terry's getting a little too high and mighty.
Terry has been named for the softness of his fur, which hasn't changed from when Grace received him as an Eevee.
Name: Dante Pace
Age: 49
Gender: Male
City/Region: Pewter City
Appearance: A handsome old fox that isn't quite all silver yet, Dante strikes a delicate balance between the cocky, quirky youth he used to be and the old codger he fears he's turning into. His face is devilishly charming, as it has always been, but has lost some of the androgyny he possessed in his days as a young trainer. Laugh lines and crinkles in his forehead pock him. His kinked eyebrows sit atop a pair of gleaming blue eyes, full of wit and vitality. His lips are thin and flexible, capable of a wide array of expressions, most of them smarmy. On his head is set what was once black hair, but has been peppered by age to the point where most all of it is grey. He has reacted to this by making the transition artificially, and has dyed all of his hair silver. If he's going to get old then he's doing it on his own terms. He's been accused of going through a mid-life crisis based on his wardrobe. He's very fond of clothing that shows off his body; he has a lot to show off. From head to toe he is a creature of packed muscle belied by his height, which makes him look skinnier than he is.
Personality: Dante is the frustrating kind of man who won't be told that he's too old to do something. Stubborn unto point of absurdity, he will tackle any challenge without even stopping to consider if he will survive the attempt. However, that doesn't mean he's stupid. Dante can be extremely cerebral, and in a lot of ways is smarter than the average human. The trouble is that from an early age he instilled in himself the idea that the only way to acquire self-worth was to overcome all challenges with your own two hands, and he never really found a ceiling to how far he could take that philosophy. He's very simple in the way he judges people: if you pour everything you have into accomplishing your goals, then you're worthy of respect. But if you give in and allow yourself to ride on the coattails of others, then you're scum and aren't worth his time.
He is a harsh but fair trainer, expecting the pinnacle of strength from his Pokemon, and returning that effort by putting forward all of his effort into training them. He is tolerant of failure, but only if it is because of a clear gap in skill between his Pokemon and their opponent. Slacking off is unacceptable, and he keeps his Pokemon on their toes by sparring with them himself. His power is absurd for a human, and he boasts that he could pin a Steelix into submission with his legs alone. It's hard to tell if it's bluster.
Dante isn't the most mature man, and though he's picked up some wisdom over the years he still displays a semblance of the energy he tackled life with in his youth. Calm, cool, and determined to be the most interesting thing in the room, he aims to impress by showing off whenever possible. He takes this bravado into social climes, and tends to try and make friends and allies by showing them up at whatever they're good at.
Biography: Dante Pace was much like any other trainer. Born in a village on the Lake of Rage, he was the child of a great fisherman, the best in Johto. Predating the widespread usage of Pokeballs, Dante's father was the sort of man who captured Water Pokemon by reeling them in with nothing but a simple pole rod, and then fought them to submission with his own hands. Dante admired his father greatly, and wished to be strong like him. He desired the strength to make a career out of his bare hands. He went fishing with his old man every day, and worked harder and harder at becoming strong. Together, they caught dozens of Water Pokemon, most of which were butchered by his mother, a local chef, and the rest were shipped off to be sold at casinos and pet stores. But one day, around Dante's tenth birthday, his father decided he had earned a gift. He was given the choice of a single Pokemon from that day's haul which he could keep as a pet. He chose a Magikarp, which his father advised against, but Dante would have none of it. He knew the legend of Gyarados, and had fought several of the wyrms himself. He greatly admired Magikarp, and the notion that through hard work and determination such a worthless Pokemon could become so powerful. He took that Magikarp home with him, and began to train it.
Eventually, he was drawn away from his home. Though the Pokemon League was very old as an institution, the Gym Challenge was a newer innovation that only recently caught on in the more remote reaches of the Johto Region. Fascinated by the idea of it, Dante took the challenge, determined to defeat the Champ, with Magikarp by his side.
And he did it. Many long and harsh months passed, and at the start Dante was beaten more often than not. But for every bruise he and Magikarp received, they only grit their teeth harder and pressed onward. And his efforts paid off. Magikarp evolved. As a team, they were unstoppable. With many Pokemon by his side Dante overcame the challenges of the Pokemon League and bested the reigning Champ. Though he had the opportunity to accept the title, he turned it down, feeling that it was too stationary a position for his purposes. He knew that he hadn't reached his peak, and desired the opportunity to get stronger. He left the Johto Region entirely, and began to trek across the world. He acquired many exotic Pokemon, and met many people. It was a trip he made by foot, and one he did not hasten for anything. Decades passed. Dante wasn't starved for company, however; he had his Pokemon, and still enjoyed the fiery spirit inside him that pushed him to seek out adventure. And many fellow trainers came in and out of his life, a menagerie of lifelong friends he made along the way. One of them stayed by his side from the beginning: a girl about his age by the name of Delilah, who eventually he would come to love, and marry.
And about seventeen years ago, he stopped. His feet had trod the world over, and he felt a feeling he'd never experienced before: contentment. He'd been walking so long that he was ready to stop. Settling down in Pewter City with Delilah, only a short distance from where he had begun all those years ago, he started a family and opened a new chapter on his life. He had two children: a daughter, named Daria, who shared the fire in his soul. And a son, named Dirk, who took after the personality of his father, but had a little more of his mother's tender heart than his older sister. He sat back, and relaxed in his old age as he watched his children grow, and urged them on in pursuit of their own dreams.
It's hard to say when exactly his sentiment began to change. But it was recent. As he watched his daughter train at the gym, he felt his stomach and felt fat. When had he gained weight? He looked in a mirror, and saw wrinkles he hadn't known he had, and when he went for a run his joints ached in ways he'd never known they could. The contentment of his quiet life as a retiree, living off the vast fortune of his earnings as a trainer, had vanished. This no longer satisfied him. He found an ad in the paper: a tournament, only a year off, to be held in Goldenrod. An annual event that would test trainers from around the world. And the fire rekindled. He took to training once again, both his own body and those of his Pokemon. His companions had become little more than pets in the intervening years, and had forgotten what made them champions so long ago. But now they've started down the long road to remembering...
Inventory: $20,000
8 Super Potions
20 Pokeballs
5 Great Balls
4 Full Heal
2 Antidote
2 Awakening
2 Paralyze Heal
2 Escape Rope
5 Repel
Pokemon:
Ancalagos (Gyarados, Male) Lvl 30
Ability: INTIMIDATE
- BULLDOZE (TM)
- BITE
- DRAGON RAGE
- LEER
- TWISTER
- FLAIL The first Pokemon that Dante ever received, a gift from his father after a routine fishing trip. Although it began as a weak Magikarp, Dante was inspired by the potential it held to become strong, and the two of them worked as partners to achieve that strength. Ancalagos is in many ways the vicious creature his species has a reputation for being, but his discipline is unmatched, and his loyalty to his trainer is ferocious. He is proud of his own power, because it was gained through hard work alongside his trainer.
Eclair (Rhyhorn, Male) Lvl 26
Ability: LIGHTNING ROD
- HORN ATTACK
- TAIL WHIP
- STOMP
- BULLDOZE (TM)
- SCARY FACE
- ROCK BLAST For a time, Dante traveled in the far-off Kalos region. After a tragic accident that resulted in the destruction of a passing trainer's bike, he was forced to make up the debt by competing on her behalf as a Rhyhorn Racer. For the duration, he borrowed the trainer's sponsor's Rhyhorn, whom he wound up bonding with, and the two of them won many races. After securing a championship on her behalf, the trainer released Dante from service, and as a way of saying thanks let him keep the Rhyhorn he raced with. Lightning is energetic and ignorant of his size, causing many a near-injury by his attempts to greet people with a pounce and nuzzle. He is far faster than most Rhyhorn on account of his upbringing, but seems lacking in the strong defenses that others of his species possess.
Elo (Rufflet, Male) Lvl 28
Ability: SHEER FORCE
-WING ATTACK
-HONE CLAWS
-SLASH
-AERIAL ACE
-LEER
-SCARY FACE Unique among Dante's current team as not being a a part of the team he traveled the world with, Elo is still a relic of his past. While making his way through the Unova region, he visited the vast city at its center. While he was there, Delilah's bag was stolen by a random thug. When Dante chased the crook through the streets to get it back, he was denied the chance by, of all things, a tremendous bird. A Braviary swooped down from above and picked the thief right up, carrying him away. Baffled, Dante scaled skyscrapers and chased the Pokemon across the rooftops, all the way back to its nest, where in a bizarre turnaround he saved the thief's life as well as retrieved Delilah's bag. He caught the Braviary, taking it along with him on its journey. Only a short while ago, in the present day, his Braviary passed from old age, leaving behind a single egg. Dante hatched it, and took the chick, Elo with him when he struck out from home again. Being a baby, Elo is quite inquisitive and curious about the world around him. However, his instincts as a Rufflet cause him to overstep boundaries in satisfying his curiosity, and he can inadvertently spark conflicts with his rough and uncouth behavior.
Geist (Mismagius, Female) Lvl 29
Ability: LEVITATE
-PSYBEAM
-MAGICAL LEAF
-POWER GEM
-SHADOW FORCE
-CONFUSE RAY
-ASTONISH The product of a night in a haunted house gone wrong. Dante and his companions were caught in the middle of a highly dangerous thunderstorm, and sought shelter to get out of the open. Not looking to judge and preferring to just get whatever they could get, the four of them stumbled across an old mansion. They tried to get the attention of whoever lived inside, only to find the place abandoned. Thinking themselves saved, they settled in for the night, unaware that they were being watched. The night that followed was one of torment and fright as a gang of ghost Pokemon led by a tricky Misdreavus haunted them. Dante, being the kind who never turned down a challenge, perceived the ghosts' antics as just that, and over the course of the night turned the tables on the mischievous Pokemon, playing all sorts of nasty tricks and illusions on them in retaliation for their own. As the light of the sun peered through the windows, Dante came out the victor of the ghost-off, a terrified gang of ghosts at his mercy. Laughing at their expense, he praised Misdreavus' spirit, and invited her to come along with him. Geist is a very playful creature that enjoys the opportunity to scare others. As a battler, she's more focused upon being creative than being effective, and given the chance will play all sorts of nasty tricks on the competition before going in for the finishing blow.
Name: David "Dave" Itosu
Age: 19
Gender: Boy
City/Region: Saffron City, Kanto
Appearance: Dave is slight young man of mixed white/east Asian decent. He stands some 5'5'' tall with thin limbs that none the less have some tone to them. This frame is usually covered by a green flannel shirt left open to show whatever t-shirt lies beneath and boardshorts with a stylized red and black flame pattern. Dave's broad head is topped with spiked frosted hair, and he is prone to leave his dark eyes covered by slim mirrored sunglasses fitted to his head.
In short he looks utterly and fantastically lame.
Personality: Confident, witty, capable and, above all, cool is what Dave continually strives to be. He is not succeeding. Dave is in fact rather painfully average in most regards, neither being as smart or competent a trainer as he likes to pretend. He will talk big (oh boy, will he ever) in an attempt to win the admiration of others, but his win/loss ratio is truthfully quite abysmal, mostly due to the fact that his constant bragging inevitably brings out more experienced trainers eager to show the annoying little upstart his place in the pecking order. The only reason Dave has gotten to where he is now is because the guy doesn't know when to quit. His team has learned much from the constant beatings even though the trainer hasn't.
This being said, Dave can be a pretty decent guy. The self doubt that leads to his need for approval from strangers also makes him quite sympathetic towards others.
Biography: Dave was born the youngest son to the top student of Saffron City's Fighting Dojo. When said dojo lost its Gym status to Sabrina's Physic-type school, and its founder, the eponymous Karate King, moved on to other projects Dave's father was left in charge of the now somewhat ill reputed dojo. While he managed to regain some respectability to the dojo in the subsequent years, young Dave never really recovered from those dark days. Growing up with his father and the Karate King as idols Dave's whole worldview was upended when they were trounced by Sabrina. However, instead of this being the end of his childhood innocence Dave simply found new idols to worship. He rebelled against his father, declaring both him and the dojo master "big dumb dumdums", and instead found surrogate father figures in Kanto's gym leaders. Many a day was spent watching old reruns of League battles, all the while skipping out on karate class. Three leaders in particular became the objects of Dave's obsessive fanboyish love: Vermillion's Lt. Surge, Cinnabar's Blaine, and the Elite Four's Lorelai. His infatuation with these three runs so deep that he has modeled his own team after theirs; utterly unable to choose between his fandoms he now uses Fire, Ice and Electric types. As soon as he was old enough Dave ran away from home to catch the pokemon that would make up his current party. But these couldn't just be any old pokemon. They had to be the same kind as key members from his three idols' teams. And so, with no small amount of effort, Ponyta (for Blaine's Rapidash), Pikachu (for Surge's Raichu), and Shellder (for Lorelai's Cloyster) were caught. Dave was occupied with the agonizing choice of whether to apply for membership at Blaine's or Surge's gym when he heard about the Goldenrod Tournament. A tournament he was eligible for? Where he could win the admiration of thousands and (dared he dream it?), maybe even that of one of his idols? He's not going to pass up this opportunity. Fame and fortune awaits!
Inventory:
5 x Hyper Potions
3 x Super Potions
5 x Full Heal
10 x Pokeball
1 x Premier Ball
1 x Ultra Ball
1 x Dusk Ball
3 x Revive
Hitmonchan is Dave's first pokemon which he received from his father at a very early age. Although inseparable when young, today the Fighting-type just reminds him of why he left home. There is also the uncomfortable fact that Hitmonchan really doesn't fit in with his trainer's reinvention of himself. None of Dave's three idols use a Hitmonchan and he has privately considered benching him in the PC, or even releasing him. Dave can't bring himself to do so, although he's sure that he must eventually.
Hitmonchan himself is loyal to a fault, but he can sense the awkward air between the two. It hasn't escaped him that he is seeing less and less time outside his pokeball.
Ponyta is a sensitive soul and can see that all is not right within the party. Although she quite likes Dave she doesn't find the boy's obsessions healthy, and is bothered by the deteriorating relationship between her trainer and Hitmonchan. Still, she's unsure what to do about this or if doing anything at all would be overstepping a boundary.
Shellder is ludicrously naive and shares Dave's dreams completely. He is utterly caught up in his trainer's excitement about the Kanto Gym leaders, believes fully that he too will someday be a champion pokemon, and has even developed a fanboy crush on Lorelai's Cloyster.
Pikachu does not fu*k around. She had a good thing going in Viridian Forest when this frosty haired jackass came along and caught her, and now she's being carried along for a literal ego trip; forced to fight in some tournament so that this kid can avoid his daddy issues for one more day. Oy vey. Pikachu dreams of being released along with Hitmonchan. Anything to get away from this insufferable idiot.
Name: Harley Edwards
Age: 19
Gender: Female
City/Region: Fallarbor Town, Hoenn Region
Standing at a rather short but sturdy 5'3 and weighing in at 125 pounds with a well-toned frame, Harley is a small package with a lot of vigor and enthusiasm, as well as deceptive strength. Her skin is fair, leaning toward pale, while her face is narrow and sharp, with a long nose, defined eyebrows, pointed chin, and a wide, full-lipped mouth. Her eyes are a bright green, while her hair is a darker shade of red, cropped short underneath the bandana she perpetually wears.
Her clothes often consist of a dark grey tank top emblazoned with a red "R", symbolizing her support of Team Rocket, even though she doesn't actually belong to the organization itself. Along with that, she usually wears a pair of pale blue cargo pants, with her PokeBalls and speakers at her belt, a pair of serviceable boots, a dark grey bandana, worn over her hair, and a pair of black, fingerless biking gloves.
For special occasions, however, she does have a single Team Rocket uniform that looks much like the one Jessie of Team Rocket wears, with the short white jacket with red "R", white miniskirt, and black thigh-highs. But, only the most important of events would she wear it.
She is also rarely seen without her plain, brown traveling pack, which is usually slung over one shoulder on it's single strap.
Harley is defined by her ferocity, abrasiveness, and pride, taking Pokemon Battles very seriously and generally a difficult person to get along with. Rash and outspoken, she is quick to boast before a battle, but at the same time, is quick to admit when she has clearly made a mistake, though she always vows to not make the same mistake twice. Her temper is surprisingly even, and it takes quite a bit for her burst out in anger. Once someone manages to work their way past her rough exterior, however, people find that she is a caring woman, and a loyal friend to human and Pokemon alike.
In battle, she is ruthlessly direct and relentless, taking a brute-force approach to battling. She ignores any kind of attack that doesn't actually damage her opponents Pokemon, and urges her own Pokemon to keep the offensive. Whenever outside of battle, she cares very deeply for her Pokemon, making sure they're both happy and healthy, considering them to be family in every way but blood. Though, that isn't to say they never disagree, often arguing over one thing or another.
Something that sets her apart is her admiration of Team Rocket, a well known criminal organization. She sees them almost as a romantic underdog with a snappy fashion sense and a catchy motto, and eventually wants to join them. While she knows that they're infamous Pokemon thieves, she sees no reason why she can't simply catch strong wild Pokemon for them, should she ever join their ranks.
Despite living most of her childhood in Hoenn, Harley was actually born in Kanto, in Lavender Town. It was after she turned five that she and her parents, Renee and Harlon Edwards, a craftswoman and trainer respectively, moved to Hoenn, and Fallarbor Town. But, five years was long enough for her to have heard a few vague stories of what would eventually become her fixation: Team Rocket.
As a child, Harley was energetic, curious, and loud, and due to her father being a Pokemon Trainer in his own right, she was drawn to the strange and fascinating creatures right from the beginning. That often meant that she would end up bringing the occasional Zigzagoon and Spinda home in the hopes of keeping it as her own Pokemon. And her parents answer was always the same: One day she would have a Pokemon of her own, once she was ready.
However, the during practically her entire childhood, she would end up regularly watching the news and seeing Team Rocket, along with a few other Teams, attempting and often failing some grand scheme that they had cooked up, and in the process, became a fan. Her parents, thinking that she was simply trying to be a rebel, decided to support her in the hopes that it would actually discourage her from looking up to them. Their ploy ended up failing miserably.
It was at the surprisingly late age of fifteen that she got her first Pokemon: A Torchic. Harley immediately fell in love with it, and named it Fahrenheit. With her parents blessing, she set off on her first journeys as a Pokemon Trainer. She wasn't particularly interested in taking on the Gym Challenge just then, instead deciding to explore the region, and see what kind of Pokemon she could find. Along the way, she trained Fahrenheit, who turned out to be a serious fighter, as well as a near-constant companion.
It took Harley some time to finally capture her first Pokemon, due to being particularly picky. Her first was Anubis, a young, stray Riolu. Harley had no clue how the Pokemon had gotten into Hoenn, since it certainly wasn't a native of the region, but she wasted no time in pitting Fahrenheit with the baby Pokemon, and in short order, she had caught it. Once she had Anubis, she immediately took to training both him and Fahrenheit. In the process, her Torchic evolved, surprising both her and the poor Pokemon, who was clearly shaken after the experience.
She made a detour back home then, and she commissioned an Everstone Collar from her mother, hoping to prevent Fahrenheit from having that kind of experience again. In the process, Anubis and her mother hit it off prompting Harley to suggest a trade. Renee agreed and offered her Scyther assistant, Cutter. However, the trade resulted in Cutter's evolution, thanks to the Metal Coat he still held, which happened to be one of Renee's crafting supplies. In the end, however, she ended up with a Scizor, and her mother wished her luck on her journey when she left.
Soon after, she decided that seeing Hoenn wasn't enough, and made her way to Slateport to take a ship to Johto. When she arrived in Olivine City's port, she was taken by the new sights, the new people, and more importantly, the new Pokemon. On one of the many streets of the city, she came across a Murkrow that had gotten itself into trouble with a small group of stray Meowth that managed to bring it down. Harley immediately had her Fahrenheit drive the Meowth away, and out of compassion, she tossed a PokeBall and managed to catch it. Once she had stopped by a Pokemon Center, she was tempted to release it, only to find that it felt somewhat indebted to her. Deciding it was better than possibly being ganged up on by Meowth again, she decided to keep her, and named her Godmother.
Her travels continued across Johto, and she ended up passing through the snowy Route 28 towards Mount Silver. After setting up camp one night, she spotted a rustling in the grass near her pack, and found that a Sneasel was rifling through her things. Taking the opportunity to bolster her team even more, Cutter and the Sneasel fought it out, ending up in adding yet another to their ranks. It quickly became clear that Celsius, the Sneasel, was going to be trouble.
By this time, she had caught wind of the upcoming All Region Tournament. She had avoided Gyms up until that point, but that felt like an excellent way to test her skills. So she turned around, and headed straight for Goldenrod City, training her Pokemon along the way.
$3900
- (5) PokeBalls
- (10) Super Potions
- (5) Antidotes
- (5) Paralyze Heals
- (2) Escape Ropes
- (1) Everstone ("Held" by Fahrenheit)
- Bike
- PokeDex
- Johto Town Map
- Cell Phone
- Small Portable Speakers
- Wanted Posters of Jessie, James, and Meowth, the Team Rocket Trouble Trio
Fahrenheit is the first of Harley's Pokemon, and her most serious one. He is a fighter, and one that simply doesn't know when to quit, even when he really should. Rarely kept in his PokeBall, he ends up being Harley's traveling companion, as well as her rather unwilling 'Partner in Crime', whenever she goes into her Team Rocket spiel. Fahrenheit is also unnerved by having evolved once, so in a stroke of ingenuity, Harley came up with a collar, fitted with an Everstone, to prevent him from evolving again.
Cutter: Lvl 25, Male Scizor
Nature: Lax
Ability: Technician
- Bullet Punch
- Pursuit
- Fury Cutter
- Metal Claw
- Steel Wing (Egg)
- X Scissor (TM)
Unlike the rest of her Pokemon, Cutter is neither her starting Pokemon or a capture, but a traded Pokemon that used to belong to her mother. Once an easygoing assistant for her handicrafts, Cutter is now one of Harley's lazier fighters, though no less potent. His evolution came about by accident, due to holding a Metal Coat her mother was still using for one of her commissions.
Godmother is Harley's second capture, and was actually rescued in the process. As such, she is very thankful to Harley as well as her team, and does what she can to look after them. A rather maternal sort, even though she isn't quite as strong as the others, even Fahrenheit will deign to listen to her. Occasionally, at least. Still, she is the sole voice of reason in the team, which often ends up being quite the struggle.
Celsius is Harley's latest capture, and by far her most troublesome one. While Celsius will follow direction in battle, out of battle, Celsius wants nothing more than to cause as much mayhem as possible, and otherwise impress the leader of the group, Fahrenheit. As such, She is usually kept in her PokeBall as much as possible, much to her chagrin.
Appearance: 6'2" and of an average, if somewhat scrawny, build. Brown hair and eyes, with a glint of enthusiasm sparkling behind them. His pale skin betrays his indoorsy nature.
His clothing consists of a labcoat, kept immaculately clean, layered over a t-shirt with a pair of jeans. A messenger's bag for his things and a pair of tough, functional sneakers finishes his suite of clothing.
Personality: Having grown up with his Pokemon for most of his life, Anthony treats them much like you would expect a person to treat a close friend or beloved family pet, being deeply concerned for their well-being and going out of his way to keep them comfortable and safe. He lets them stay out of their pokeballs whenever possible, and generally treats them very well.
While the life of a graduate student is tough, Anthony doesn't let it keep him down. He's agreeable and strongly dislikes conflict, violent or otherwise. While some of his habits seem odd to the ordinary person(like his insistence on wearing a labcoat at all times), his enthusiasm for studying Pokemon has a habit of being infectious, with even the most apathetic or cold-hearted people often finding themselves caught up.
Biography: Born the son of Jacob and Maria Larch, Anthony showed from an early age a keen intellect and a natural, burning curiosity. Most physical endeavors bored him, such that when most children were out playing with their pokemon or in fields, training for they day they might head out and become trainers, Anthony could usually be seen at the local library. This bookish nature clashed with his father, an accomplished former trainer, who saw his son's disinterest in battling as a sign he was lazy. Anthony declined to become a trainer when he became a teenager, instead opting to study Pokemon as a scholar. Eventually, shortly after turning nineteen, he got his real chance to become an academic when he was offered a job to study under Sinnoh's own Professor Rowan.
While it was hard, grueling work, he still considers the opportunity to work with someone as renowned as Professor Rowan as the greatest opportunity he could have ever asked for. In assisting his new mentor in researching his various theories of pokemon evolution, Anthony began to develop his own theories - but they focused much more on the bond between trainer and pokemon and not the innate property of evolution itself. Soon, after several years of assisting Professor Rowan, Anthony resigned from his position in Rowan's lab in good standing to wander the world, seeing if he could gather evidence for his own theories.
Three years have passed since, and he soon drifted back to Jubilife to visit his family. When he arrived, his father handed him the newspaper with a smile and insisted that he 'join the family business' and go off to Goldenrod to become a trainer. While leery to abandon his dream of becoming a professor, Anthony couldn't help but admit that it was the perfect opportunity to observe trainers and pokemon in action - exactly what he needed to advance his studies. So off he went, using what little money he could scrounge together to buy supplies and a ticket to Goldenrod.
The bold leader of Anthony's trio, Kelvin's posture is very much that of an alpha - head high and eyes forward. When defending Anthony or any of his pokemon, he's fearless and aggressive, throwing himself into the fray to dish out punishment. However, this fierceness belies an otherwise playful nature, especially with Anthony. He communicates mostly with growls, roars, and gestures, unlike most pokemon, making appear foolish to others. However, he is not stupid, but simple - and more than smart enough to understand that Anthony is far, far cleverer than he could ever hope to be.
Almost the polar opposite of Kelvin, Artemis is quiet, calm, and contemplative. Her demeanor almost never changes, even when under duress, and this clarity has served her well over the years, both as a combatant and a counterweight to Kelvin's brash nature. While not a coward by any stretch of the imagination, she's more than willing to retreat if the tactics of the situation call for it. Much like Kelvin, she only speaks rarely, and only when she feels she has something important to say.
The latest addition to the Larch family's set of pokemon, Chick was acquired(and named) by Anthony's mother as a Chikorita. While that name served it well as her gardening companion, Anthony's father soon started to train him, and Chick quickly took a liking to combat. When he evolved, he started to regret his childish moniker, and jumped at the chance to join Anthony. Especially compared to Kelvin or Artemis, he's a real chatterbox, and isn't afraid to give Anthony an earful when he feels he deserves it.
Pascal: Level 27 male Floatzel
Ability: Swift Swim
Nature: Naughty
-Aqua Jet
-Ice Beam(TM)
-Water Gun
-Swift
-Crunch
-Pursuit
Unlike the rest of Anthony's pokemon, Pascal joined the team quite recently - though Anthony has known this rascally devil for quite a while. Whenever he'd set into the forests of Sinnoh for professor Rowan, Pascal would never be far behind, always plotting a prank to pull on the hapless assistant. Eventually, Anthony got fed up with his tricks and when he set out he decided to try to catch the Floatzel to end his reign of terror once and for all.
Sadly, he succeeded - and now the newly-dubbed Pascal continues to terrorize his new trainer. Willing to do anything to be the center of attention, especially Anthony's attention, Pascal loves nothing more than pulling pranks and provoking tempers. Unfortunately for everyone else, he knows how to press Anthony's buttons to escape discipline for all but the most serious transgressions, so he does so with relatively free reign.
Name: Ella Renoir
Age: 13
Gender: Female
City/Region: Snowbelle City, Kalos
Appearance: With chocolate coloured skin and dark hazel eyes, Ella stands at 5"2', and weighs in at around 115 lbs. She has delicate features, contrasted by a burning gaze that never seems to dull. Her long black curly hair is frizzy and untamed. Always seen with a large set of pink headphones, either on her head or around her neck, Ella is typically seen wearing the warmer clothes of her home town, woolly jumpers, a gilet, long skirts and thick dark tights with ankle boots.
Personality: Ella is a tenacious girl, and can be very single minded when it comes to her goals, she has a 'go all out' philosophy when it comes to most things in her life, almost bordering on recklessness. Ella is energetic, always joking, always moving, Her enthusiasm is unmatched, inspiring courage and solidarity in her Pokemon even when they appear to be outmatched. What she lacks in experience, she makes up for in indomitable spirit.
At first glance, she may seem like she overworks her pokemon, however, she never makes them work harder than she would herself, she endures the same harsh training she puts them through. As such, it is not uncommon to see her with small bruises or scrapes.
Biography: Born in Snowbelle City, Ella is accustomed to cold climates, and although she has visited several cities in Kalos, she always finds herself longing for the freezing winds of home. Her mother is from Kalos, while her father is from the Johto region. Her father a trainer himself, Ella has been taken on many journeys around the region, her father's love of Pokemon instilled into her from a very young age. Ella's first Pokemon, a Cyndaquil, was a gift from her father at the age of five and has been her constant companion ever since, very rarely being kept in his Pokeball. Leaving the city at ten with her father to tour the region, it was then that she caught her other three Pokemon. A Ralts (now Kirlia), an Eevee (now Jolteon), and a Mienfoo.
As a trainer, Ella has found that the harshness of Snowbelle City is the perfect place to train her young Pokemon, and as such, has not ventured long from her home city in the three years since returning from her tour of the region.
However, after countless hours of training and many battles with other trainers passing through her city, she now believes she is truly ready to test her skills.
Matchstick the Cyndaquil. Male. Level 25. Ability: Blaze
Moveset:
Flamewheel
Flare Blitz (Eggmove) (An all or nothing kinda move, very rarely used)
Defense Curl
Quick Attack
Ember
Smokescreen
Like his trainer, Matchstick is indomitable, fiercely loyal and protective, he is Ella's best friend. His near constant exposure to the cold and harsh weather of Snowbelle has given the Pokemon an uncharacteristic fondness for it. He despises his pokeball, and will often refuse to enter it. With a fiery spirit to match Ella's, Matchtick is willing to perform great acts of recklessness to pull victory from the jaws of defeat, often risking personal injury.
Having been with Ella from a very young age, nobody can read her mood better than Matchstick, even her parents have admitted that they'd never be as close with Ella as she is with her Cyndaquil companion. Often mimicing his trainer's pyhiscal mannerisms, Matchstick will often sit on his trainer's head, and has been known to pounce plafully on Ella's parents and friends.
Despite passing the required threshold of evolution, Matchstick has no such desire to change, instead choosing to remain as his master.
Small and tenacious.
Matchstick wears a blue neck bandana with snowflake embroidery.
Serenity the Kirlia. Female. Level 22. Ability: Trace
Moveset:
Confusion
Magical Leaf
Double Team
Teleport
Lucky Chant
Shadow Ball (TM)
Serenity is Ella's dance partner, although significantly more skilled than her trainer, she cherishes her time with the girl, and is deeply attached to her.
Quite bashful, Serenity does not like being the centre of attention, and often hesitates in battle. Inspired by her trainer's fiery enthusiasm, however, and her belief in Serenity's skills, she can find confidence where she thought there was none. The Pokemon does have a breaking point, and woe betide the opponent who makes her cross that threshold.
Serenity has a small pink flower button pinned in her hair.
Blitz the Jolteon: Female. Level 23. Ability: Volt Absorb
Moveset:
Thundershock
Thunderfang
Sandattack
Helping Hand
Quick Attack
Dig (TM)
Blitz is the mischievous one of the team, often shocking random people with static electricity, or stealing food or other items that take her fancy, she appears to have a near limitless supply of energy. Somewhat of a slacker, however, she often disobeys in casual situations, opting to run tirelessly making as much ruckus as she can.
Blitz has a small red ribbon tied around the middle of her left ear.
Tai Chi the Mienfoo. Male Level 22. Ability: Regenerator
Moveset:
Fakeout
Meditate
Doubleslap
Detect
Swift
Power-up Punch (TM)
To call Tai Chi calm would be an understatement. He is the most disciplined of the group, and while Serenity is Ella's dance partner, Tai Chi is her sparring partner. Through combat with each other, they have developed a strong bond of respect. Always prepared, Tai Chi has been known to challenge Pokemon far beyond his own skill, if only to measure his own abilities and perhaps learn something new.
Both Ella and Tai Chi enjoy watching old cheesey kung fu action movies, often reinacting fight scenes for fun in crowded areas.
Tai Chi wears a long white head band, with the words 'LEGENDARY' printed in huge red capitals across the front, originally a joke gift from Ella, he has come to cherish it.
Appearance: At a short 5?1?, you?ll be surprised to find a person under all of that long, purple hair. Short cheek-length sidelocks and a fringe frame her kind face, while the rest is left long and straight. Rosy-red eyes peek out from underneath the fringe. Her skin is fair but not as pale as porcelain and freckles dot her button nose. Nevertheless, it is a face that rarely smiles, at least when Mel is with other people. Sometimes she wears her hair in an odango style, but often Mel delights in the liberal use of hair accessories such as combs and hairpins, but never hairbands as she hates her forehead.
Her style of clothing can be summed as plain but elegant. Mel is normally seen in whites and pastel colours, and rarely wears black as she believes it to be bad luck. She is most often seen in a furisode kimono of the same colours alongside a deep blue obi with a floral pattern. Though, if she is just travelling from place to place, Mel opts for more casual outfits such as baggy tops and trousers; though in both casual or formal wear, there is an air of innocent elegance about her. In contrast to this, Mel carries her various items around in a nondescript black messenger bag.
Personality: In a word: shy. Mel finds it difficult to approach, let alone talk, to people and will only do so when absolutely necessary. However, with her Pokemon, she is open and friendly. Mel just seems to get along with those critters more than people. Mel dislikes using Poke Balls and usually has at least one member of her team alongside her, out in the open, allowing Mel to hide behind the bigger ones. She also dislikes any people who assume because she was born and raised in Lavender Town, she must be psychic or something. Mel isn?t; she simply is good around Pokemon, like how some people are good with children.
Other than that, she can be quite easy to get along with, if you go through the whole business of getting to know her. Also, Mel cares about her Pokemon very much, almost to the point where it has affected her playstyle: it is quite defensive and relies on the various Poison-inflicting moves of the Poison-types in order to whittle down her opponents? Pokemon?s health alongside defense-boosting moves such as Defense Curl before going for any big blows. Nevertheless, Mel is more interested in the breeding side of things, rather than winning Pokemon battles, they?re more of a chance for her Pokemon to exercise their skills than anything else.
Biography: Naturally, she was born and raised in Lavender Town. While her childhood was pretty uneventful, Mel grew during a time when the face of her hometown was changing, when the Pokemon Tower was being converted into the Kanto Radio Tower. As a result, her parents were often away at work, her father helped with the converting the Pokemon Tower into the Kanto Radio Tower and her mother helped with moving the PokU+00E9mon graves. Mel was left in the care of Mr. Fuji, a shy old man with a fondness for Pokemon. However, he was busy with work as well, leaving her alone in his house.
She didn?t mind, the Lavender Pokemon Volunteer House was full of Pokemon who needed care and attention and she was more than happy to provide that. Mr. Fuji soon noticed that, and on one of her birthdays, gifted her with a Pokemon egg to raise. Mel couldn?t wait for it to hatch, and hatch it did. Mel awoke one morning and found that the egg had been replaced with a creature full of smoke and smiles - a Gastly. It was the start of a great friendship. While she was content to simply stay at the Lavender Pokemon Volunteer House, Mr. Fuji and her parents encouraged to go out and explore the world.
She gave in to their desires, said goodbye and started off on her journey. First off, she explored Kanto and made some new friends. On Route 8, Mel caught a Rattata and trained up her Gastly, nicknamed Isaac. There it evolved into a Haunter and grew powerful enough to defeat the various sorts of wild Pokemon there, enabling her to move on. Mel?s next stop was Saffron City, and during her time there, she traded the Rattata for a Woobuffet; the trainer she traded with said something about needing a ?F.E.A.R.? Pokemon, whatever that was. Afterwards, Mel chose to cross Route 7 to Celadon City.
There, she made another friend, Grimm - a Grimer - and another as she made her way after staying a few days in Celadon City, as Mel had heard about the tournament and choose to go, seeing as her Pokemon were getting a bit restless and if she won, well the money would be nice and that was putting it mildly. While traversing Route 7 during the night, she caught a Houndour and named it Kero. From there, Mel returned to Saffron City and took the Magnet Train to Goldenrod City, just in time for the tournament, where surely she will meet new friends, human and Pokemon alike.
Inventory:
- Bike
- Map
- Phone
- 6 Full Restores
- 5 Poke Balls
$1,000
Pokemon:
Casper: Level 29 Haunter
Ability: Levitate
- Shadow Ball
- Confuse Ray
- Mean Look
- Smog (Egg Move)
- Lick
- Night Shade
Enjoys Pokemon battles and often drags Mel into them.
Gobbles up any piece of trash he can get his hands on.
Ziggy: Level 23 Wobbuffet
Ability: Shadow Tag
- Counter
- Mirror Coat
- Safeguard
- Destiny Bond
-
-
Wears a polka-dot bow tie and is fond of karaoke.
Kero: Level 20 Houndour
Ability: Flash Fire
- Ember
- Bite
- Odor Sleuth
- Smog
- Leer
- Howl
A proud young pup, eager to prove his worth.
Name: Haruki Age: 23 Gender: Male City/Region: Olivine City/Johto
Appearance: Haruki is deeply suntanned, with dark brown hair cropped short and light blue eyes peering out of his broad, prematurely lined face. He's muscular, with a sturdy build and short, thick limbs, weighing in at around 160lbs., but short, standing at only 5'6" or so. He moves with obvious ease and a modicum of grace, despite his bulk. He smiles often, showing off blindingly white teeth and good cheer, though his face is equally often set in determination, with a serious scowl or simple blank look of concentration.
Haruki doesn't unstand the words "fashion" or "style" or maybe even "clothes." Clothes to him are things to keep the sun and wind off of him, so he gives them very little thought. He dresses in pair of loose-fitting white trousers, with a loose-cut white jacket for a shirt, though he prefers to go shirtless when it's acceptable. (Though perhaps calling them "white" is a little generous. They might have been white, once, but six months of wandering and washing clothes in rivers tends to dull colors pretty fast. They might best be called gray at this point.) He carries a rugged hiker's pack stuffed with kit for camping and battle, with his Pokeballs hanging off his belt.
Personality: Haruki is an easy-going guy in most every aspect, save two: Pokemon battle and his own martial arts training. He demands a lot from his Pokemon in battle, but he demands just as much from himself, both for in-battle tactics and out-of-battle training. Outside of these two things, he's pretty content with whatever. He isn't apathetic, per se, simply content with most anything. He's equally content to sleep outside as he is to sleep in a five-star hotel, or to be alone with his Pokemon as he is to be with a crowd of people.
He has a temper, which is firmly under control in most circumstances. Indeed, his first step towards becoming a martial artist was learning to control his temper. Nowadays, it only shows up when he fails his Pokemon by giving them faulty orders that result in them being hurt, or when megalomaniacs like Team Rocket and Co. rear their ugly heads.
He's a friendly person, and likes people and Pokemon, though he is perhaps not the most talkative of people. He abhors people mistreating Pokemon, though some particularly lax trainers might view his training regimen as cruel. He doesn't see it as such, simply wants his Pokemon to be as strong as they can be.
Biography: Haruki was born to a rugged old sailor, Lee, and a pretty girl from Unova, Anne. His father left them to sail when Haruki was four, promising to come back in a few years. So most of Haruki's early memories involve only his mother working hard at the Olivine Cafe to provide for them, and avoiding any questions he asked about his father. They spent many evenings picnicking at the top of the Glitter Lighthouse, his mother staring wistfully out at the sea while they ate. Haruki grew in the wild abandon of childhood, playing in the constant sea wind, unconcerned with his mother's unwillingness to answer his questions.
Then, he was eight and it had been four years since either of them had seen Haruki's father. His mother, Anne, began to lose hope. It wasn't uncommon for sailors to just not come home. Shipwrecks, pirates, or simple unwillingness to give up the seafaring life were common. And to Haruki, the name Lee meant almost nothing, a faint smear of memory and slight warmth, unplacable and forgotten.
But come home he did. The ship sailed into harbor one foggy morning and began unloading as though nothing much had happened. By that point, Anne had long since stopped getting excited everytime a ship pulled in. The sailors straggled into the Cafe, tired and achey after a long voyage, glad to be back to land and fresh food. Anne thought nothing of it, and seved her usual breakfasts, taking orders and catcalls in stride, when she heard something and dropped her tray. Someone mentioned a "Cap'n Lee" who'd been making for Olivine for the past year or more. The sailor in question was wondering why to one of his pals, and Anne recognized him as one of the sailors from the ship that had docked that morning.
So they were reunited. The story as to how Lee became a captain was long and tangled, and Haruki never properly understood or cared. He and Lee didn't precisely see eye to eye, even as young as Haruki was. Lee thought Haruki should be more focused, working on becoming a deckhand and eventually a proper sailor. Haruki wasn't willing to give up the freedom of his childhood just yet, but the point was moot. Lee had decided to take his wife and child onto his ship with him, and train Haruki himself.
So the rest of Haruki's childhood was spent on the sea with only short stops in ports. Lee was a hard man, and Haruki worked hard to please him, but never quite managed it. So Haruki left. He hopped off the ship at Cianwood City, and immediately got beat up and robbed. He was sixteen.
An old man passed Haruki being beaten. He seemed frail, and the thugs tried to order him to leave. But the man simply twirled his cane, tossed a Pokeball, and assumed a defensive stance. The Pokemon was a Mienshao, and it and its master made short work of the thugs, barely seeming to move but throwing them like they weighed nothing. The man, who Haruki learned was one Master Xiao, took Haruki to his home and nursed him back to health before giving him a thourough scolding for being so stupid. Haruki apologized profusely, but the man was less angry and more concerned. A sixteen year old wandering the world without Pokemon? Xiao refused to let that stand, and give one of his Mienshao's children to the boy, and started training them both.
When Haruki was eighteen, Xiao decided they were well-equipped to handle the outside world, and allowed them to set off. Haruki and his Mienfoo, Akio, set off across the world. Haruki'd seen a lot of the world with his mother and father, but wanted to see the interior on foot. He wandered Johto for a bit, seeing the land of his birth in its entirity. He found himself just east of Mahagony Town, near the Ice Path, when he saw some punk beating a fish. Being confused by why someone would do that, not to mention angered, Haruki stepped in. The punk was apparently fishing for a Magikarp- Haruki didn't even both to question why- but had caught a Remoraid instead, and was apparently not happy about it. Haruki flipped the guy into the water, and offered the Remoraid a place in his small family. It accepted, allowing itself to be caught by the Pokeball, and Haruki carried it back to Mahagony and had it healed. He dubbed it Manami. Then Haruki, Akio, and their new friend Manami, set off back to wandering.
Eventually, Haruki decided he was tired of Johto. There was only so much land to cover, but there were other nations to explore. He took a ship to Hoenn first- he'd fallen in love with Slateport when he'd first been there with his family, but found it much less palateable now for whatever reason. So he wandered Hoenn for a while, but not nearly so thoroughly as he had Johto. He crossed through the Petalburg Woods when he was beset- but not by thugs, no. By a gang of Shroomish led by a Breloom, who'd apparently been disrupting travel in the area. Haruki managed not to laugh at them, and decided to take care of it. He and Akio made short work of the pseudo-gang, before the Breloom leader stepped in to fight them. The fight lasted hours, Akio and the Breloom throwing punches and counters back and forth until both Pokemon lay in an exhausted heap. Haruki lifted an eyebrow, and threw a Pokeball. The Breloom was too weak to fight against it, and thus Haruki's third Pokemon joined him, who wore a dented, rusted collar with the name Dan emblazoned on it. Haruki was twenty-one at the time.
He continued wandering, ending up back in Johto, in Olivine for a while. He stayed for a few months, not properly sure why. He took a job at the docks, and understood eventually. He was waiting for his parents, even if he didn't want to see them. His father's ship docked eventualy, and Haruki was assigned to help unload it. Anne saw him first, and swept him up in a big hug. She was older and frailer than Haruki remembered, and he was stouter and more serious than she remembered him. Haruki and Lee were still stiff around one another, however. Things had been said that could never be unsaid. But Lee was glad that Haruki was doing well, and, before they headed off back to parts unknown, he gave Haruki a gift. A Pokeball, with a single Pokemon inside. A Pawniard, a favorite of cutthroat thugs. Haruki just barely stopped himself from releasing it out into the wild. He decided he would try to teach it to be better. He was fairly confident in his ability as a trainer by this point, and was sure he could teach it to behave itself. At least, he told himself he was sure. Miyako, he named her. Then, there was four and Haruki decided to hold off on catching more until he was sure he was doing a good job training them.
A perfect opportunity to show himself if he was or wasn't training properly fell into his lap: the All-Region Tournament. He made his way to Goldenrod, training as he went- evolving his dear Manami on the way- and arriving just in time for the event... Despite having left months earlier. Haruki is not good at staying on course.
Inventory:
$1400 left over. Key Items:
-Map
-Phone
-Poketch
-Bedroll
-Tent
-Survival Gear (hunting/gathering gear, dried fruits, berries, and meat, poncho, etc.)
-Black Belt, held by Akio
-Toxic Orb, held by Dan.
Moves:
-Meditate
-Calm Mind
-Fake Out
-Force Palm
-U-Turn (TM)
-Baton Pass (Egg Move)
Steady and powerful, Akio aspires only to be as powerful as his progentior, Master Xiao's Mienshao. He's been with Haruki for going on eight years now, and they've established quite a bond over that time. Akio can mostly direct himself in battle, though Haruki occasionally has a special stratedgy in mind. As an aside- Akio and Haruki normally do their training together, and often spar, but Akio stays in his Pokeball most of the time. Haruki finds it silly to have a Pokeball and make a Pokemon walk anyways.
Manami is easily frightened, to put it mildly. Completely unwilling to get anywhere near her opponents, especially after the circumstances Haruki caught her in. Rather than trying to train this out of her, Haruki instead worked with her to develop a moveset that doesn't require her to be anywhere near the enemy. Since then, she's cheered up a lot, and will blast away gleefully. In battle, she lives up to her species name, providing high-power artillery with a wide variety of typings to wipe the floor with a goodly number of opponents.
Dan's mellowed a lot in the two years since Haruki captured him. He'd been mistreated by a previous trainer and hated all humans because of it. Now, he mostly just dislikes humans, though he respects Haruki at least somewhat, given the human can keep up with Dan in a fight. Which is the only reason Dan lets himself be bossed around and trained by him- he wants to be better than Haruki or Akio.
In battle, he's prone to coming out slugging and never slowing down to listen to Haruki's strategies, which makes him something of a wildcard. But, sometimes, all you need is absolute brute force. However, that's not so much Haruki's style, so Dan is Haruki's least-used Pokemon.
A gift from an untrusted father, Miyako and Haruki had a rough start. Haruki had fought a few thugs who loved Pawniards, and thought they were evil for it. However, Miyako is anything but. She's determined to show Haruki that she's not a thug or evil or any of that nonsense. She's honor-bound and steadfast, if not precisely kind or gentle.
And she's taken great strides with Haruki. The group fought an Alakazam and its trainer on the way to Goldenrod, and Akio and Dan would have been knocked out entirely if not for Miyako. Since then, Haruki has been much slower to judge her, and has developed a training regimen just for her, which he'd been refusing to do- the greatest show of support he could give, given that training her to be more powerful made him directly responsible for any nefarious acts she might perpetrate.
Name: Danny "The Fang" Huntly
Age: 20
Gender: Male
City/Region: Johto/Cianwood City
Appearance: Danny stands at 5 foot 10 with a slim, lithe build brought on from countless days of cardio and running with the pack. His hair stands out in a wild forest of platinum blonde spikes with pale orange spikes sprouting up from near his temples. His eyes are a bright shade of red and people often notice how his canines are a little larger than average. It's easy to spot considering how much Danny tends to smile or how wide he opens his mouth when he talks/yells.
Danny prefers comfort and familiarity over style and (often) practicality. So he's rarely seen out of his worn and torn jeans or the last pair of hiking shoes he bought that are slowly falling apart from the inside. On top of that he's got his totally rockin' open green flannel vest, it used to be a shirt but sleeves only slowed him down. Often this is all Danny needs to wear, showing off some skin isn't something that bothers him... buuut the officer Jennies of this world like to throw around words like public nudity so he'll usually wear a plain white vest underneath too. He's not, like, totally uncivilized.
Personality: Everyday is an adventure, even if you're doing something small, that doesn't mean it doesn't matter. Getting to travel the world, meet new people, see great things and getting to do it all with your best pokemon buddies. What could be better?! Danny manages to see something good in everything, even if he has to try kinda hard sometimes. Some people say this makes him naive or joke that he's living in his own little world and if he is, so what?
He's been called stubborn more than a few times, a comment he's always been too stubborn to agree with, but it comes from a good place (depending on who you ask). The life of a trainer is one long challenge after another, so why go into that if you're not going to throw yourself into it with everything you've got? Danny treats every challenge he meets like this, throwing himself at things with infuriatingly peppy energy. How do you think he got his nickname, The Fang? He gave it to himself. You want a cool nickname, you gotta take matters into your own hands.
Biography: Danny may have been born in a little house overlooking the sea but the awesome waves never called to him like they did other people. The city gym attracted tons of trainers who were just soooo in love with fighting type pokemon or water types. Granted surfing across the ocean on the back of a giant pokemon did seem pretty amazing but none of the surfer dudes would ever let Danny go for a ride on their pokemon, something about how he looked at their girlfriends.
Danny's mom was from the Kanto region originally, something between a breeder and a trainer, she settled down in Johto when she met Danny's dad. She ran a poke-salon out of their house, which the local gym members often used to pamper their freaking looking fighting types between big bouts. Seeing how this was super boring Danny would often play with his mom's Ninetales (Who also found this super boring). The old fox was kind enough to humor him while he played at being trainer. It was the happiest day of Danny's life when his mom showed him the egg Ninetales laid (he still has no idea how it happened). Soon enough Belle, his Vulpix, hatched from it and the two have been inseparable ever since.
Danny and Belle set out on their travels as soon as he was old enough, though it was a while until they wandered extra far from home. Besides the safari zone was so nearby. It was on one of their training sessions in the zone when Danny ended up getting locked in after closing time - not because he got lost... do not listen to belle, he was not lost! - That they met and captured a young Houndour. With a real team in the making Danny finally found his passion wasn't for an exact type of pokemon like so many people had (though having two fire types was pretty AMAZING!). It was for the noble canine pokemon, just like the three legendary dogs he'd heard about.
Now older and with the making of a true pack under his belt, Danny set off to explore the world, his first stop: The Hoenn region. Not just for adventure but with a mission in mind. Danny and the team were sick of getting their tails handed to them by water types and after studying up on dog pokemon he'd learned of an electric hound that was native to the region. After much hunting he finally found an Electrike. The little fella was so cute Danny thought his heart might stop, luckily its electric attacks zapped him back to life.
After a long time away training Danny decided to see how the folks were doing. On his way home he even managed to add a new member to the pack. That most noble of dog pokemon, a Snubbull. Shortly after he heard about the tournament. With four pokemon in the pack and Houndour freshly evolved into freakin, hardcore Houndoom! They're ready to test themselves against the toughest opponents they can find.
Inventory: Besides the basics needed to survive out on the road, Danny has an old rod he won off a fisherman in a match, a bag of poke-treats that he keeps on hand and a big metal canteen for water.
x5 potions
x1 Super potion
x3 antidotes
x3 awakens
x1 burn heal
10,000 Dollars
Pokemon:
Belle, Lvl 30 Vulpix, Ability: Flash Fire
Moves: Quick Attack
Fire Spin
Will-O-Wisp
Hex
Feint Attack
Confuse Ray
Belle is Danny's oldest travelling companion and is very much the lady of the group. Ironically she often serves as the ice to Danny's fire, holding herself with calm dignity and grace, there are times when there seems to be something other worldly about her but she's always welcoming to the people she meets.
Lvl 27 Houndoom (Doom for short) Ability: Flash Fire
Moves: Howl
Smog
Bite
Odor Sleuth
Flame Charge (TM)
Beat Up
The dog they call Doom. D was the first pokemon Danny managed to capture and their relationship has been the rockiest out of all the members of the pack. It's a long story as to how they managed to bring each other around but after the most grueling journey of their time together, Doom found new respect for his trainer and decided to give the kid a chance. He considers himself the big dog of the pack and enjoys fighting more than the rest of his pack mates. They may not be as tough as him but mess with one of the little dogs and you mess with Doom. He's gotten a lot energetic since evolving.
The small yapper type of the group, Sparks is as stubborn as his trainer and always trying to prove himself to the bigger pokemon. It doesn't help that he's small, even by Elecktrike standards. Napoleon complex aside Sparks is a puppy at heart and mischievous to boot.
The newest member of the pack, Snubbull hasn't got a nickname for nothing other than her current name could suit her. Her face is frozen in a mask of constant disapproval. Yet Danny seems oblivious to her antisocial nature and claims she's the most adorable little sweety.
Welcome to JohtoTV news, where we give you the news that matter!
Our first story today, ArkCorp's shares have been plummeting down in the Saffron City stock exchange for the last 6 months. ArkCorp, known for it's amazing innovations in the field of medical technologies, used in PokéCenters worldwide, has mysteriously stopped production of most of it's products, allowing competitors such as SilphCo to take over.
Shareholders are now abandoning the company en masse and the industry stalwart is facing bankrupcy in the next quarter. We tried reaching ArkCorp CEO, Titania R. Alta for comment, but were told she is in no capacity to comment on the current situation.
More on the story as it develops.
In other news, Trainers from every corner of the country are flocking to Johto's capital of Goldenrod for the 2nd Annual All Regions Tournament. A week long tournament and festival designed to spotlight the very best Trainers of the country. We now go live to Gabby Seong and Ty Anderson in Goldenrod City.
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"Thank you John, we're here in the very center of Goldenrod, under the world famous Radio Tower where the atmosphere is getting positively electric! Trainers from all over have gathered here, forming a veritable melting pot of cultures and Pokémon.
Excuse me! You there with the red hair and the Sneasel!"
"Huh? Yeah? What can I do you for?"
"...Gabby Seong, JohtoTV news. Are you here for the tournament?"
"Uh, yeah I guess you could say that."
"Ok, well, how do you feel surrounded by all these formidable adversaries raring for a battle?"
"Well... I... uh... I'm just here for a shot at that cash prize, to be honest. Look, I kinda gotta run, I was just in the middle of st... a thing. See ya."
"CUT, Damn it! That was a disaster. I knew we should've just picked some 10 year old mute with fire in his eyes..."
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"What the heck was that all about?"
Remy asked Sneasel as it seemed busy looking for something. Sneeee... Sne?
The sneaky Dark-type offered the theory that perhaps Remy wasn't exactly the enthusiastic poster boy for Pokémon training the reporter was after.
"I guess... Hey, while you're up there make sure our new friend doesn't fall from the bed, will ya?"
The man pointed a thumb over his shoulder, at a small red Pokémon, Darumaka, who'd made a makeshift hammock from his Trainer's hood. Sneasel nodded in approval. Remy could count on him.
Remy made his way to a large fountain, adorning the city's large central plaza, and took a seat at the edge. From his new vantage point he could see it all.
It was a sunny June afternoon in Goldenrod City and from the Magnet Train station, denizens of Kanto, with their city-dweller airs and Hoenn with their tanned skin and weird sense of style could be seen arriving into town. From the North, Remy could spot fellow Sinnohans, who had to trek all the way from their Ferry's dock in Olivine, their mouths gaping at the sheer scope of the city. Nothing like this up North, not even Veilstone or Jubilife. Of course from every corner of the city, Johto natives with their laid-back mannerisms kept pouring in. Remy was also sure that the Tournament had attracted some exotic tourists from abroad. Unovans and Kalosians could be made out. Impossible to miss, with those accents...
All the trainers and breeders had one thing in common though. They were strong and in it to win it. There was no doubt, this year's tournament? Was going to be a blast!
"So this is where papa grew up, eh?" Ella placed her hands on her hips as she took in the dock side view of Olivine City, her wild hair wafting gently in the breeze.
Matchstick, perched on top of Ella's hair, he sat on his hind legs as he took in the area from his greater vantage point, squeaking curiously.
"That's right!" Ella grinned. "You're from Johto too!" She stretched her arms out in front of her before lacing her fingers behind her head. "Of course, you were only an egg back then, so I don't blame ya for not rememberin'," She chuckled.
Matchstick didn't seem particularly impressed as he let out a low growl.
"I agree, not nearly enough snow." Ella grimaced. "How the hell do these people deal with humidity this high?" She shook her head incredulously. "But we're not here for the weather, are we?!" The girl chirped as she grabbed the small Cyndaquil from off her head, holding him out in front of her, his snowflake bandana ruffling gently in the sea breeze.
"What are we here to do?!" She asked loudly.
Matchstick cried eagerly, holding his front paws in the air.
"That's right! We're here to show these noobs just what Kalos has to offer!" She grinned as she held Matchstick higher. "Me and you, bro, the others too! This is where we make a name for ourselves! We'll make mama and papa proud!"
Plopping Matchstick back on her head as he roared enthusiastically, she reached behind her, grabbing her suitcase by the handle. "Let's go!" She cried in tangent with Matchstick's squeaks as she set off towards the nearest train station.
An hour or so later, Ella and Matchstick arrived in Goldenrod City, immediately overwhelmed by the sheer number of people there.
"Holy crap Matchstick! Hoenn, Sinnoh, Kanto, Unova, they're all here!" The girl whistled as she struggled to take it all in. "Look, there's the Radio Tower!" She cupped a hand over her eyes as she raised her gaze.
Matchstick cooed in amazement, he had always felt tiny, but this was a whole other level.
"Wow." She whispered, a smile curling her mouth as she began to move into the crowd.
The splendor of Goldenrod City really was a sight to behold. Tall buildings stretched up into the clouds, casting shadows that hid the pedestrians from the bright sun on this warm afternoon. Meandering his way through the crowd was one such pedestrian. His hair was silver and his eyes shielded by a pair of sleek sunglasses. A big backpack was hung over his shoulder, slapping against his back with every step. He was dressed inappropriately for his age: a grey tank top, a size too small and showing off his fit physique, as well as a pair of black track pants. He whistled a tune to walk to as he marveled at the great city, a bewildered smile on. "This place has gotten so big! Ain't it, fella?"
"Flet-ruff!" agreed his companion. Atop the other shoulder sat a red and grey little bird by the name of Elo, whose big eyes jumped from sight to sight. This Pokemon was young, and had never been to this city, but his trainer was a different story. He had frequented this place, once, long ago. But almost nothing was as it was. He'd seen the new Radio Tower and how it dwarfed the rest of the city, and was blown away. He could remember a time the biggest building in Goldenrod had been the Gym. Now? In this urban thicket he wasn't even quite sure where the Gym was. The trainer threw his head back and guffawed, clutching his stomach with both arms. The cacophonous sound drew the attention of everyone within a block; his iron lungs had a tendency to do that. "Oh, jeez, this place is so confusin'! Makes my head spin." Wiping a tear from his eye, the animated trainer plucked a treat from a pouch at his side, handing a poffin up to his bird. Elo took it obediently and gulped it down, thanking his trainer with a squawk. "Don't sweat it, lil' buddy. Of course, I'd give you more if you could tell me where the nearest hotel was..."
Elo's eyes lit up. He'd heard it, his trainer definitely said it: finding a hotel equals more treats. Accepting the challenge with his mightiest screech, the Rufflet flapped his little wings and catapulted off his trainer's shoulder, who reached after him with a terrified expression. "Ya dunce, that was rhetorical!" But it was too late. Spurred on by the faint promise of delicious nibblings his Pokemon had sped through the crowd and almost out of sight. His trainer sighed, running a hand through his silver hair. "Dumb little bird. Even if you find one, how'm I supposed to catch ya in this crowd?" His arms slipped through the straps on his pack and tightened them, stretching out one leg in preparation. A manic grin grew on him as he tightened his legs. And in a single bound he released. "It's a race!"
The crowds of Goldenrod were dispersed by a human blur, some madman whooping and hollering at a bird some distance ahead. Those unlucky enough not to get out of his way were bowled over, leaving them dazed and confused by his passing. He darted through crowds, slipped between strangers, leaped over benches and threw himself around corners with wild abandon. The Rufflet was fast, but he was faster. Three blocks down the way they were close enough that he could end the chase...
"HERE WE GO!" he shouted, and pushed down with his legs. His body was thrown upwards, nearly ten feet high. His flailing arms scooped up Elo mid-flight, and the both of them came tumbling down to the concrete. Elo squeaked and squawked at his trainer, demanding to be released. A Rufflet's pride wasn't to be besmirched by...
"Rrrruff?" asked the bird. Normally his trainer had responded by now. It looked up at him, and got a nasty drop of sweat on its brow for it. His trainer's mouth was jarred open in a wretched grimace, teeth grinding together as shallow breaths seeped between the gaps. His eyes were wide open and unblinking, staring blankly forward. His chest was making tremendous motions, going up and down in an erratic rhythm. Elo squawked again, trying its best to sound upset. What kind of jerk of a trainer would play a nasty trick like this on his Pokemon? If his trainer had any sense he'd stop pretending to be in pain this instant, and stop worrying his partner. "Ruff? Ruff! RUFFLET!"
"GRAAAH--" Dante Pace opened wide and sucked in a lungful of air, leaning back up. "A-ack, ugh..." He smiled at his Pokemon sheepishly; Elo noted how deep his wrinkles seemed from this angle. "Uh, sorry about that. I guess I'm, heh, not really back in the best of shape yet. How's about we take it slow for a bit, okay?"
"Sure thing, guy. We'll take it slow."
Say... where had they landed, anyway? Dante scanned his surroundings, finally lucid again, and saw he was in a dark alley. He sure didn't remember Elo going this way. He glanced at the bird in his arms. "Where the heck did you take us, anyway?"
"Rrru." Elo shrugged. But the alley was secondary to the main concern. A pair of men, in their early twenties at the oldest, were standing there, backs against the wall. Beside them was a burly Machoke, flexing its muscles in anticipation. Dante pushed himself up to his feet, letting Elo hop down to the ground. Dusting off his dirty pants, he nodded his head once or twice. "All right. I'm not so out of touch. This is some kinda shakedown, right?"
The two punks looked at each other. On the left was a tall, skinny boy with a green fauxhawk, a leather jacket, and a white t-shirt that had what was presumably his name emblazoned on the front: Blake. Blake's companion was squatter, with a shaved head and pierced nose. He had a red hoodie, with his name as well: Dunk.
"Really? Your name is Dunk."
"Shut your hole, mark," said Blake, running a comb through his hair.
"Name's not Mark." Dunk stepped off the wall and pointed a sausage-like finger at the muggee.
"He said shut it, or we goin' billy berzerk on you."
"Name's not Billy, either." Dante leaned back, cracking his back and casting a glare at the both of them. "Listen, I'm not in the mood for this. So why don't ya just take my money and go? So this doesn't have to get ugly. Go buy some candy or something." He reached into his pocket and pulled out his wallet. The muggers, unused to such cooperation, shared a look with each other and smiled ugly smiles, with several teeth missing and others filed to points.
"Lookee-lookee, Dunk. We reeled in a smart one!"
"Yeah, Blake. 'Slike ol' man mark do this every day!"
The wallet hit the ground.
The scowl on Dante's face sent a chill down the kids' spines. Blazing eyes stared them down, and in a low snarl they heard him ask a simple question. "Did you... just call me 'old man'?"
The two shared another glance. Dunk quietly whispered, "Yes?"
The space where Dante'd been standing was gone. Everything slowed to a crawl as he charged the punks. He led with his left arm and barred Dunk right at the neck, slamming him against the wall. The pudgy kid tried to scream something, but halfway through the first syllable somewhere between three and seven punches swelled up his lips to the point that communication was no longer an option. Blake was off the wall quickly, pointing at him with his long fingers. "M-Machoke! Do somethin', man!"
"MAAAAA-CHO!" The Fighting-type Pokemon hollered as it threw a fist at the other trainer. Dante's free hand placed itself in the errant limb's way, and stopped it dead in its tracks. Machoke's blue skin blanched just a little as the furious trainer called for his own Pokemon.
"RRRRRUUUUU!" Led in by its own battlecry, the Rufflet slammed against the much larger Pokemon with an Aerial Ace. The slice pressed Machoke against the brick, tossing fragments of dust and brick everywhere. Then came a Wing Attack, buffeting him with a relentless barrage. Only seconds passed, but when they did Blake was left with an unconscious Pokemon sliding down the wall with shock carved on its face. The only conscious thug left backpedaled as quickly as his gangly legs could take him. Dante was faster. The elder trainer wrapped his hands up in the leather of Blake's jacket, and threw him against the wall too.
"Puh-puh-please, freako!" Blake squealed, shrinking before the psycho. "You ain't human, you berzerking, man! I'm sorry, we ain't do it again! The heck are you?!"
"Oh, ya wanna know who I am, huh?" His tormentor hissed. Blake was pulled closer, so he could see every detail of the man's face as he told him: "My name isn't Billy, or Mark, or whatever you call easy pickin's these days. My name is DANTE PACE. And I. AM NOT. OLD." Dante let go, and Blake dropped flat on his rear. Pace pivoted on his heel and made for the exit of the alleyway, Elo hopping back onto his forearm as he held it. "Rrru! Rufflet?"
Dante's sour face sweetened instantly, and he flashed a cocky grin at the precocious little bird. "Heck no; I think that's enough excitement for one day. How'sabout we go find somewhere to sleep before we get into any more trouble, eh?" His Rufflet cooed in agreement, and the pair stepped back out into the streets of Goldenrod proper. Now then, where to find a hotel...
The Goldenrod City docks were abuzz with activity - ships from all over the world were just making berth, filled with prospective competitors and eager spectators for the upcoming tournament. Dock workers, dressed in their practical work clothes, set about the process of mooring each ship and processing each passenger in turn. The crowd disembarking was standard fare for such an event - a haphazard mixture of eager amateurs mixed with older fans. There was, however, one person in the mix that stood out - dressed in a peculiar labcoat despite the warm weather, flanked by an unusually large Arcanine.
"Did you see that, Kelvin!?" Anthony presented the sketchbook to the Pokemon, proudly displaying an image of a pod of Lapras gliding over a calm set of waves. "It's not every day you see a pod of wild Lapras surf by!"
Kelvin tilted his head at the picture. He never quite understood his trainer's preoccupation with sketching and recording every last behavior and occurrence of Pokemon out in the wild, but even he had to admit it was a good likeness. The picture had various semi-rambling notes in the margin, speculating the relationship each Lapras in the pod had with one another, with lots of big words Kelvin couldn't recognize crossed out or otherwise erased. He gave the notebook a sniff and stepped back, content to let his master continue adding minor details to the sketch as their queue marched on.
Anthony hurriedly stowed the notebook in his labcoat as their turn for the customs official came up. The bored officer visibly perked when he saw Anthony's unusual attire, before reverting to his previous, disinterested posture. "Passport, please."
"Uh... right. One minute." A brief moment of rifling through his satchel later, and he produced the desired document. The customs official glanced over it, gave it a stamp, and continued in a bored monotone, "The reason for your visit, sir?"
"I'm competing in the tournament." The officer's brow quirked in response. He gave Anthony another look - seeming to give the labcoat particular scrutiny - before shrugging. "I guess I've seen weirder."
"Wait, what's that supposed to mea-" The officer cut him off by stamping the passport again and handing it back. "Welcome to Goldenrod, Mr. Larch."
"Uh... thanks. I guess." He hurried from the dock with Kelvin in tow, but not before making sure to pick up one of the copy of a city map. The city itself reminded him quite a bit of Jubilife, just a bit bigger. Well, a lot bigger. And humid. But the spirit both cities had was the same - a bustling metropolis, filled to the brim with people and Pokemon alike. A few minutes of digging through his satchel later, and Anthony produced another piece of paper, this one looking to be a rough printing from a PC. "Let's see... our reservations are for the Sleeping Sunkern. That means we need to head... this way. I think."
He motioned to head off, but was cut off by a whine from his side. Kelvin, with a discontented frown on his face, started nuzzling Anthony's satchel. "...I'm sorry, boy, but letting them out now would just cause a huge fuss. Especially Pascal." He shuddered to think what that devil would do in a crowded city street - especially after being cooped up in his ball for so long. Kelvin responded with another whine, pawing at his Trainer's side. "I promise I'll let them out when we get to our hotel, okay?" He took another look at the map, its arcane markings having not changed a bit since his last inspection "...if we can find it. Oh boy..."
In a meadow just outside Goldenrod, Haruki was finishing up his "morning" exercise, his shirt discarded and laying in a rumpled heap at the base of a tree where he was hanging, upside down and sweating profusely. Akio and Dan were sparring nearby, throwing punches and counters almost too fast for a human eye to see, while Manami lazed on a rock beside a small pond, with Miyako out gathering a few berries for their breakfast, having finisher their morning routines already.
"Alright, you two," Haruki said, dropping from the branch into a strong defensive stance, "Show me what you've got." Akio moved first, opening with a long flowing kick, while Dan lunged with his superfast punches. Haruki caught the kick on his forearm, grabbed the poor Mienfoo's leg, and swung him down, knocking Dan off his feet and sending them both sprawling. They lay in a tumbled heap for a second, before pulling apart and standing. Haruki grinned, then looked up at the sky.
"About time to eat and head out," he said with a slight frown. "You know I'd love to stay here and spar all day, but we need to go check in at that hotel." Akio and Dan both looked at Haruki curiously. He ignored them- he wasn't even sure why he'd decided to rent a hotel himself-, and whistled loudly. Miyako appeared out of the shrubbery, carrying an armful of berries, her blades stained with juice from cutting the stems. She dropped them near the embers of their fire, and moved to Manami's pond to wash her blades off.
The next half hour or so passed quickly, feasting on berries and dried fruits, chittering excitedly to one another while Haruki sat silently but happily next to the embers, eating with his Pokémon. He eventually stood and dusted himself off.
"Well, kids, it's time to get going. Daylight's wasting. We all ready for the hardest fight of our lives?" He looked at each in turn.
"Mien," Akio said immediately, and certainly. Haruki point his Pokéball at the Mienfoo, and withdrew him. He turned to Manami next.
"Oct, oct... Illery," the water Pokémon said, much less certainly, but Haruki had come to expect that from her. He withdrew her, and turned to Miyako.
"[color=midnight blue]Pa, paw, pawn,[/color]" Miyako said with a decisive nod, then disappeared in a beam of red light.
"Last but not least. Dan?"
"Breloom!" He sounded the most enthusiastic, for sure, but Haruki wasn't even sure if he'd have cause to use Dan. Too much of a wildcard. But he was withdrawn all the same, and Haruki quickly packed up and broke camp. Haruki shrugged his jacket back on, but didn't bother to button it up. He'd been to Goldenrod plenty of times, and he knew no one would even take a second glance at the travel-stained stranger.
He quickly found the road again, taking a moment to note the direction of town, then set off. He'd had some trouble with keeping on course, but now he was out of time to wander. He was in the city within ten minutes.
The towering heights of Goldenrod didn't even make an impression anymore, he'd wandered in and through so many times, but the crowds. He'd never seen so many people in one place. He heard a thick Kalos accent, spotted someone bearing the newest styles out of Ever Grande, and saw so many Pokémon it made his head spin. He didn't even recognize a goodly number of them.
He decided to wander for a bit, rather than go straight to the inn. He knew roughly where the inn was- he'd ducked in once when he got caught out in a thunderstorm- and could probably find it pretty quickly once he needed a place to stay. In the meantime, there was just so much to see! People from all over the world, right here in Goldenrod. Rather exciting, he had to admit. He idly wondered how many had come through Olivine on the way. His thoughts were interrupted when he spotted a massive, glorious Arcanine padding along next to a rather scrawny... Is that a labcoat?
Haruki had to stop and look for a second, and overheard the labcoat-wearer (Scientist? Doctor? Hm.) talking to the Arcanine while trying to decipher a map.
"I promise I'll let them out when we get to our hotel, okay?" he was saying to the beast. "...if we can find it. Oh boy..."
Haruki stepped up next to the man, assuming an intentionally nonthreatening pose, and grinned. "First time in the city? It can pretty baffling for first-timers. Want some help? I like to think I know my way around pretty decently."
Goldenrod was bustling with street traffic, all thanks to the upcoming All Region Tournament. Trainers, and non-Trainers alike, flocking to either compete, or watch the spectacle of the competition itself. In fact, it seemed that everyone and their goddamn mother was out in the streets, instead of in their homes, hotels, or actually doing anything besides be in the way. Or so thought the short redhead pushing her bicycle through the crowd, accompanied by a bored Combusken.
"Com-Combusken," came the flat squawk from the Combusken.
"Yes, Fahrenheit, thank you. I know we're lost." was the girl's replying snarl.
Harley couldn't believe it was possible, but with the crowd milling like it was, she supposed it wasn't surprising. What it was, was infuriating, frustrating, and eerily familiar. Like deja vu, though she couldn't place why that was. She had never been in Goldenrod before now. But, things being what they were, she had to deal with it if she was going to have any chance of even registering for the tournament itself.
So, she pushed her way to the wall of a building and leaned against it, sighing heavily. Fahrenheit strode up to her side and crossed his arms as he looked up at her. At least he wasn't at risk of losing her in the crowd: No one else dressed like she did, with the bandana on her head, and the Team Rocket tank top she wore.
Once she had taken her moment to get out of the bulk of the pedestrians, however, she simply decided to get astride her bike and motioned for Fahrenheit to get on behind her. The Combusken looked at her with an expression of confusion, then shock.
"Get on Fahrenheit. Bikers get right of way. Move it, people!" she called.
Once her Pokemon was sitting behind her, arms around her waist, she shot through the small gap that formed in the crowd and took off down the street on her bike. She only managed to avoid hitting anyone thanks to her own shouts, and hurried attempts to get out of the way. She only stopped when she came to Goldenrod's central plaza, marked by the large fountain in the middle of the street.
Stepping off of her bike, she laid it against the fountain itself before sitting down on the edge and heaving a sigh.
"Well, this is as good a place as any to get our bearings. Why the fuck does everyone have to be out and about at once? It's insane." she grumbled.
"Com. Com Bus-Busken." cawed Fahrenheit.
"Listen, not everyone is competing like me. Some are just spectators, I'm sure of it. And the rest have to be locals. It's beyond me why they have to all be out on the streets." she told him, jabbing a finger gently into the Combusken's chest.
Fahrenheit simply rubbed at the spot she poked before sitting next to her. Looking around, he spotted another Trainer, one that didn't look that unlike his own Trainer. And this boy was accompanied by a Sneasel, which couldn't help but remind the Pokemon of Harley's own Sneasel, Celsius. Hopefully that one wouldn't get it in it's head to try and woo him too, Fahrenheit thought with a small shudder.
Turning to Harley, he pointed at the two.
"Busken," he squawked.
Turning her attention to her Pokemon, she looked to where he was pointing and had to smile a little to herself. She stood up and strode over to the pair, putting a hand on one hip as she looked at both of them.
"Hey, nice Sneasel you have there. You don't see many of them outside of the snow. Seems like hardly anyone has any appreciation for Dark Types." she said, before holding out a hand, "I'm Harley. This here's Fahrenheit."
"Woooooow~," the young woman breathed out, staring wide-eyed at the sea of people and Pokémon pouring in and out of the metropolis's streets. "So this is Goldenrod..."
For a few seconds, Grace Heller simply stood there, transfixed by the imposing scene stretching out before her. Oh, sure, the skyscrapers that ran up and down the city's skyline had been visible for miles now. And the sounds of thousands, if not millions, of people bustling here and there had carried almost all the way to Ilex Forest. Even Goldenrod's scent, the telltale mixture of countless restaurants, car exhaust, and sweat had been readily apparent for a good while now. But still, the mere sight of so many countless individuals melding together like that, creating currents that flowed along the various avenues and roads...
"Vyle."
The sensation of something sharp poking into her side shook Grace from her brief reverie. "What!?" she cried, giving her head a few rough shakes and sending her hair waving back and forth. Then, catching hold of herself, the girl suddenly went rigid and let out a long breath, slowly letting her body relax. "No, no, I'm fine, Sasaki, really. Just a little, um..., yeah," she finished, chuckling weakly.
The Grovyle by her side looked up at the young trainer unconvinced, arching a single eyebrow. "Gro, vy-vyle, vy? Vyle vy, grovyle," he replied, nodding his head towards the city proper. And the endless crowds of people, Pokémon, and whatever else that flooded it.
Grace, after throwing a nervous glance in the same direction, directed her gaze firmly to the ground between her feet. "Well, uh, maybe we don't have to go in just quite yet?" the girl said, uneasily twiddling her fingers together. Hesitantly, she slid backwards a few paces. "I don't- Maybe we could wait until the it's a bit later, and it's not so busy? I mean, I'm sure the hotel will save our reservations, and I don't think that-"
As his trainer launched into a series of excuses, all the while shying further and further away from their destination, Sasaki let out an exasperated grumble. Irritably, the Grass-type looked between his mumbling charge and the city. Suddenly, and the Grovyle turned back towards Grace, mischief dancing threw his eyes. Not bothering to stop his trainer's spiel, Sasaki suddenly latched onto one of her wrists and started pulling her forward. He may have been smaller than her, but that certainly didn't mean he wasn't strong enough to lead her around.
Grace barely had time to shout out, "W-wa-it, Sa-sas-!" before her Pokémon had barreled into the sea of bodies, dragging her along right behind him. The shock of suddenly finding herself inside that seemingly omnipresent mass, surrounded on all sides by body heat and the roaring chatter of a thousand conversations, was a bit much for the girl. Squeezing her eyes shut tight and still being dragged along by Sasaki, Grace used her free hand to clamp her hat to her head, bent forward slightly, and started half-shouting apologies to the various people and Pokémon she was bumping into. "S-s-sorry! Excuse me! I'm sorry! Look out! Please excuse..."
For his part, Sasaki simply charged forward at random, taking whatever twists and turns he needed to in order to navigate the crowd. He made sure to tuck his wrist leaves in (it wouldn't do to actually cut someone, after all), but not even his agility would let him make it through without bumping into the occasional passerby, especially not when he was dragging his trainer along behind him. Still, at least they were making progress now; they should be making to the inn in a matter of... He had no idea how to get to the hotel.
"...Grovyle."
Growling, partly at the obstacles that seemed to insist on getting in his way and partly at his own idiocy, the Grass-type tossed his head about, trying to find a place where he and his constantly apologizing tag-along could stop and get their bearings. Someplace a little more isolated, a little calmer. ...Which would probably be easier to find, if he could actually see over the crowd, instead of just looking at endless array of shoulders.
Suddenly, through a miraculous gap, the Grovyle's sharp eyes picked up an alleyway on the edge of the street. It probably wasn't the cleanest of places, but it would do. Angling himself, Sasaki cut through the crowd, bumping people or Pokémon out of the way as needed. Within seconds, they were out of the crowd and in the alley.
"Choooooo..."
Which was apparently occupied by a pair of unconscious ne'er-do-wells and a very groggy Machoke. Making an executive decision, Sasaki decided that maybe an alleyway wasn't the best place to take a break, and powered through to the other side. A man with a Rufflet perched on his arm was standing in the entryway, but Sasaki paid him no mind. He'd just bump them out of the way as he passed, and-
THUD
Sasaki's shoulder collided with something that felt like muscle and was about as hard (and unyielding) as a brick wall. With a grunt, the Grovyle lost his balance and his grip on Grace's arm, and went tumbling to the pavement, momentarily dazed. "Grovy~..."
Grace, finally free of her Pokémon's momentum, screeched to a halt, narrowly avoiding bumping into the man herself. "Sasaki!" she exclaimed, staring down at the Grass-type with concerned eyes. But seeing as how he was already stumbling back to his feet, odds were the Grovyle would be alright.
Clasping her hands around her mouth, Grace sidestepped around and turned to face the man. "I am so, so sorry," she said, glancing between her unsteady Pokémon and the man he'd so rudely collided with. Though she couldn't decide who she should be looking at, the girl apparently had no trouble finding stuff to say, rattling off an inane explanation/apology. "He normally doesn't just run around like that, I swear. It was only because he was trying to get us into the city, but I didn't want to, so he felt like he had to take charge and lead me around, but then he was going so fast and the streets were so crowded and there were so many people and..."
Matchstick growled ponderously as he pored over the map atop Ella's bed of hair.
"You figured out where the hotel is yet, little bro?" Ella aked impatiently as she navigated through the throbbing crowd.
Barking at the girl about patience and its virtues, the Cyndaquil pawed at the map as he tried to keep it straight.
Putting on a deep voice, Ella pursed her lips. "Johto is really easy to navigate, Ella, back in my day blah blah blah, your mother and I, blah blah blah, the weather isn't that warm, blah blah blah, vital life lessons, blah blah blah." An exasperated sigh escaped her lips.
Matchstick roared in frustration as he leaned over the front of Ella's brow, poking hard at the corner of the map repeatedly as he thrust it into the girl's face.
"What?!" Ella cried out, ripping the map from her Pokemon's grip. "What do you mean the map is twenty years old?!"
The Cyndaquil threw his paws in the air before sitting back on the girl's head, crossing his arms over his chest, a plume of smoke escaping his nostrils sulkily.
"Damn it papa!" Ella cried out as she scrunched up the map in her fist, "You suck!" Tossing the balled up paper over her shoulder angrily, she ignored the annoyed cries of the person it must have struck
"Watch it kid!" An angry sounding man called out from behind.
Ella and Matchstick raised a hand and paw respectively as they both gave out a half-hearted apology, not even bothering to turn around as they continued moving, trying to figure out just where the hell the Sleeping Sunkern was being hidden.
After the nonstarter that was Remy's interview reporter Gabby Seong had moved on to new, and hopefully more talkative, targets. Nothing could have prepared her for what she found.
"... and I'm telling you this Tentacruel was huge! Absolutely enormous! Well over seven... no, eight! 800 feet tall! Looked like something out of a monster movie. I was out of harm's way, of course, what with me riding the legendary Articuno as you know, but that's not to say there weren't a few close calls. It lashed its tentacles, hundreds of them, at us every which direction, but Articuno and me came out alright with our aerial dodges! Duck and weave, you know? Swish! Swoosh! Like that!"
Miss Seong had to herself dodge the young spiky haired trainer's wildly gesticulating arms at this point, an increasingly incredulous look on her face.
"But it was obvious that the beast was headed for Hutber Port, right? The damage it could do there would be, like, totally bogus, so we rushed there ahead of it. I warned the mayor, but I knew it was too late to evacuate the place, so instead I offered to cook up my Super Secret Stun Sauce. We were gonna load up that sauce in a tank and fire it right at that little red gem-like thing that Tentacruels have. You know the one. Right on their, like, foreheads. That's their weak point, see? Heh, you know there's actually a funny story behind that sauce recipe... It was handed down to me from none other than... Actually, you know what? I don't wanna get off track here. We'll save it for another time. Where were we? What was your question again?"
It took a second for the reporter to get her mouth working again. It had been hanging open too long. The kid's tirade had gone on for a solid five minutes.
"Um... A-are you here for the tournament?"
"Oh. Right. Yeah. Yeah, I'm here for the tournament."
Dave Itosu stuck both thumbs down the rim of his boardshorts, puffed out his chest, and put on a winning smile for the camera. Said camera had of course stopped recording some minutes ago. There was no way the reporter and cameraman were unleashing this guy on an unwitting public. They were pretty sure that would be some sort of breach of the journalistic code of ethics.
Fortunately the two were saved from the voluble young man by a disturbance in the crowd. There was a lot of shrieking and confused yelling as something made its way through Goldenrod's throngs. And it was getting closer. Dave, however, being too occupied with himself didn't notice anything before it was too late. He only managed to lower his sunglasses in inquisitive disbelief before he was run over by a roaring madman chasing a Rufflet.
"Huh? Whuzzat? Is there a Tauros loose in... GAH!"
*TRAMPLE*
The human freight train that was Dante Pace came and went, leaving behind a somewhat flattened Dave lying on the ground. And he was left lying there. It seemed that the journalistic duo had taken the opportunity to escape another bombastic tale of adventure from the young trainer.
"This is no way to treat the future tournament champion... ow..."
While Sneasel kept his eyes open for potential pockets to pick, Remy was concentrating on finding a sucker to hustle. An event like this was a veritable buffet for a guy like him, with all these hapless tourists with no idea of which way is up.
"Hey, nice Sneasel you have there. You don't see many of them outside of the snow. Seems like hardly anyone has any appreciation for Dark Types. I'm Harley. This here's Fahrenheit."
Remy's head jerked, slightly startled by the voice that had snapped him out of his trance. Sneasel too, swiched his focus, peering over his Trainer's red hair at what looked like a female version of Remy. He also noticed the girl's Combusken.
Snea? Sneeee... Its scent was unmistakeable. Fire/Fighting... What a particularly disdainful type combination.
Remy examined the young woman in front of him.
Pretty easy on the eyes, this one... Looks street smart too. Not a good target. What's with the Rocket logo though?
"Thanks. I'm pretty fond of Dark-types, myself. Name's Remy. Remy Olivier. This here's Sneasel and the lazy sod in my hood is Darumaka." The man said, motioning at the small Fire-type, still fast asleep. "That's a mighty fine Combusken there, miss. You in town for the tournament?" Remy continued, standing up and finally meeting Harley's handshake with his own.
While both trainers examined one another, the Pokemon seemed to be sizing one another up as well. Fahrenheit could see, and hear, the Sneasel look over at him, sniff, and then let out a somewhat disdainful hiss. Really, despite the mild feeling of insult, he was relieved he at least didn't have yet another Ice Type giving him unwanted attention, so he returned the Sneasel's hiss with a small, arrogant snort of his own, sending cinders flying from his beak.
Harley, meanwhile, looked over the trainer in front of her even as he did the same to her. He looked like he could hold his own in a fight himself, was handsome after a fashion. Not to mention he looked like he was trouble. Then again, she thought with an inward smirk, she was trouble too.
"Thanks. I'm pretty fond of Dark-types, myself. Name's Remy. Remy Olivier. This here's Sneasel and the lazy sod in my hood is Darumaka."
He returned the handshake, before turning his attention to Fahrenheit.
"That's a mighty fine Combusken there, miss. You in town for the tournament?"
"Thanks, and I am. In it to win it. You?" she asked, leaning back as she crossed her arms over her chest and smiled a little at him.
Remy dug out an Ultra Ball from one of the pockets on his pants and aimed it at Darumaka. It was high time for him to continue his nap elsewhere. With a red beam, the small Pokémon was back in his ball and in Remy's pocket. He then looked back up at Harley to answer her question.
"Yeah, we're in. Me and the boys have been staying in Goldenrod for a while now, taking a break from all the travelling. Thought we'd give it a shot, if only for the chance to fill the coffers, y'know?"
The young Sinnohan peeked at his Pokétch. 17:23. He and the boys could do with some dinner soon.
"So uh, you in need of directions or something? If you're looking for an inn, I'm staying at The Sleeping Sunkern. It's a nice place and probably the last place in the city with vacancies..."
The Magnet Train had been heaving with people, and now this. Mel probably said enough "excuse me"s for about a month while while just trying to get out of the station in all of that bustle. It was to be expected with the 2nd Annual All Regions Tournament but it was still awesome close up. The young trainer felt rather small in the large crowd and the thought of the possible caliber of the numerous other trainers was downright terrifying.
""Dour!" Kero barked, as if to snap Mel out of her daze.
The Dark Pokémon lead his Trainer on through the streets, stopping every once in a while in order to make sure that both of them knew where the other was. Kero had taken it upon himself to guide Mel around Goldenrod City, even though the young pup didn't even know the area. Still, he walked around with a façade of purpose. He had banked on his sense of smell to get through the crowded maze but there were scents everywhere. Some familiar, some strange.
Suddenly Mel stopped. 'I swear I've seen that sign before.'
Kero also stopped, cocked his head and then let out a whine. Had his trainer figured out they had basically been walking in circles for about fifteen minutes?
"Oh Kero." Mel sighed as she went up to him and patted the Houndour on the head.
That mean yes.
However, she wasn't done yet. "You like new places don't you, been chasing you around for a quite a while now, huh?"
Kero cringed - that wasn't what he was doing at all! He was just trying to be a guide. Regardless, being newly caught and the resident newbie of the team at least gave him an excuse for his behaviour. So, the young pup swallowed his pride and barked. Mel smiled in reply, but could only keep up the smile up for so long. She was utterly lost. Obviously, it wasn't Kero's fault. 'Never blame the Pokémon, blame the Trainer. Should have asked for directions back at the station.'
However, not all hope was lost...
There was... the MAP.
She immediately delved into her bag and pulled the thing out. Leaning against a wall, she studied the map for any clues as to where the Trainer and her Pokémon had stumbled into. Her hand drooped down, even with the map, she had no idea where she was. At a glance, it was one of the alleyways that zigzagged the lesser-known parts of the city. It was also within reason to assume there were was somewhere out of the rather uncrowded maze.
She put the map away and ruffled Kero's fur, "Let's get out of here."
Another bark, though this one was more self-assumed. Kero had a job to do...
"He normally doesn't just run around like that, I swear. It was only because he was trying to get us into the city, but I didn't want to, so he felt like he had to take charge and lead me around, but then he was going so fast and the streets were so crowded and there were so many people and..."
"Jeez louise, kid, ya've sure got a mouth on ya." The babbling girl was cut off by the man her Grovyle had blundered into. Dante turned around to get a better look at the girl, letting her see the exasperated smile on his lined face. He put one hand on his hip and ran the other back through his hair, tossing it away from his face. He didn't look quite so upset as she'd imagined the human wall to be. Dante stooped down a bit to get a better look at the stranger's face, coming within about a foot. Wide, unblinking eyes scrutinized Grace Heller, as she watched his lips curl down into the tiniest, puckered frown. Apparently satisfied with whatever conclusion he reached, Dante stuck out his hand for her to shape. "Ya kinda look like a wimp. 'Sup? Name's Dante." His Rufflet peeked over her shoulder, staring at the newcomer with eyes as wide as saucer plates.
Anthony's face soured in concentration as he continued to stare at the map. Despite his best efforts, its strange, eldritch markings remained static, much to his continued frustration. He was on the verge of just giving up and asking a policeman for directions when a sudden voice yanked him from his stupor.
"First time in the city? It can pretty baffling for first-timers. Want some help? I like to think I know my way around pretty decently." Anthony's head jerked in the direction of the sound, revealing a tanned, athletic-looking fellow. He was a bit hesitant to just out and out trust the first person to offer help, but if he said he knew his way around the city Anthony wasn't going to complain. The sooner he could find a safe place to let Pascal and the others stretch their legs, the better! "Yea, I'm not exactly from around here." He awkwardly scratched his head stowed his map before giving the man a handshake. "The name's Anthony, by the way."
He looked to the direction he assumed was deeper into the city. "So... My hotel's the Sleeping Sunkern. You know where to find it?"
Harley watched as Remy pulled an Ultra Ball from one of his pockets, and aimed it at the small Fire Type that was sleeping in the hood of his jacket. Then he looked up at her and answered her question.
"Yeah, we're in. Me and the boys have been staying in Goldenrod for a while now, taking a break from all the travelling. Thought we'd give it a shot, if only for the chance to fill the coffers, y'know?"
Harley nodded in understanding. After a moment, he looked down at his Poketch, then looked back up at her.
"So uh, you in need of directions or something? If you're looking for an inn, I'm staying at The Sleeping Sunkern. It's a nice place and probably the last place in the city with vacancies..."
"You know, that sounds pretty good. Lead the way." she said, striding over to her bike and pushing it next to her.
Once she was back with Remy, she pointed a finger at the Sneasel.
"As for you, don't try to steal anything from me. I have enough trouble with my own Sneasel." she told him, though she smiled while she said it.
As she and Fahrenheit followed the boy, she tilted her head and looked him over one more time.
"So, where are you from, Remy? Not from Johto, I'd guess. And you don't look like you're from Hoenn, like me." Harley said.
"Stop... making it... look... easy!" Danny panted through ragged breaths as he stumbled along after the pack.
They'd been running since they hit the long stretch to Goldenrod and Danny wad starting to lag behind his collected pokemon as they bounded along ahead. It was starting to look like four legs really were better than two, unless you were Snubbull who seemed happy running on two legs as usual, the other two stumpy limbs flailing behind her. His backpack was beginning to feel extra heavy just when Doom broke away from Belle at the lead and doubled back to keep pace with Danny.
Doom hadn't even broken a sweat as he easily lolloped along beside his straggling trainer, shooting the boy a cocky grin and raising the darker patch of his fur that served as an eyebrow.
"Oh! Oh it's like that is it?"
Doom gave a deep, sharp bark in return.
"Then it... is...ON!" Danny dug in that little bit more, summoning his energy and leaving an explosion of dust in his wake. His second wind was kicking in with gusto and he pulled away up towards the front of the pack, despite the yappy protest from Sparks. "Come on guys! That all you got?" Danny cheered back at them.
This earned a squeaky little roar from Belle as she bounded along by his side, looking at him all askew.
"We'll fix your fur late, Belle, right now we gotta make sure we- DETOUR!" The four pokemon all shared a collective look of 'Whaaah?' as Danny took a super sharp left turn and ran off at full pelt into the grassy field. They all did there best to catch up, Snubbull grumbled all the way until they caught up with Danny who was busy striking an awesome pose on the edge of a steep drop.
"There it is everybody!" Danny spread his arms out wide like he could hug the view. "Goldenrod city! The capital, tournament central and where we're going to make a name for ourselves!" Danny clenched his hands into determined fists. "Everybody's come a long way looking for a great battle. Let's not disappoint them!" Danny cheered, pumping his fists as he psyched himself up.
"AAAAaahhhooooooooooohhhhh!!!" He let out his own howl of victory as the rest of the pack joined in. "AAAAArrrrooooohhhh!" "RRRoooooowwwwwrrrrrr!!" "AArroooowwwwwoooooohh!" "Mmph."
================================================================================================
'In the city! The big ol' ciiity. Evey'body's doin' stuff... in the ciiity!'
The little song his brain was ad libbing added an extra spring to Danny's step as he struggled his way though the crowded city streets, bustling for position among the crowd. Not that he had much trouble with people getting too close, most people seemed to be actively trying to avoid him. It was like they thought the young man with unkempt hair, half a shirt and fang like teeth was unapproachable or something? Danny'd been warned that big city folk could be standoffish, this must have been it.
At least Goldenrod had a good spot by the sea. Not as good as Cianwood but it would do. All he had to do now was find the hotel. It was a little fancier than the places they usually stayed but Belle had insisted that if they were going to be competing in the big leagues they should stay somewhere proper for it. It made a certain amount of sense and even Snubbs had agreed... probably... well she grunted.
Thing was though... Danny had neglected to buy a map and finding a street sign or a landmark in all these crowds was proving tricky. There was no helping it, he needed to find some higher ground. With a leap and a bound Danny latched himself onto the nearest lamppost and shimmy'ed himself up it like a metal rope. Using one hand to cling onto the overhanging light limb and the other to hold over his eyes like everyone had to do when they were trying to look far and wide Danny scanned the street to try and get his bearings. Nevermind looking like a sailor monkey or the fact that he had no idea what he was looking for, Danny had places to be!
It was while he was canning that Danny spied one of the most beautiful creatures he had ever seen. "Great Entei's whiskers!" He exclaimed before flinging himself from the lamppost and landing ninja style in front of the fine specimen he'd seen.
"You!" He yelled, pointing dramatically (was there any other way to point?) "Are possibly... one of the finest Houndour's I've ever seen!"
And bam! he was all over that little pup, going over it with all the precision his mom had shown when she was going about her breeder business. "Look at that fur." Then suddenly he was knelt by its head. "And those teeth, do you brush regularly?" Even more suddenly, he'd lifted the little guys gums. "And you're skull plate! check out that shine!" No more! Now he'd produced a magnifying glass and was examining the skull like plate on the pokemon's forehead. "You gotta be proud of that!"
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