The sun peeked over the hilly countryside on the outskirts of Pallet Town, heralding the start of a beautiful late spring day. The sound of a Dodrio's cries could be heard ringing in the air as the sleepy little town quietly began to awaken and bustle. One man however was already up and running, staring out of the window of his observation room at the top of his home for all these many years. A sense of pride was plastered across that wizened face of his, the streaks of gray in his hair now much lighter than in the past. Still he wore that lab coat with pride with his hands firmly tucked behind his back. He walked back over to the full length mirror near his computer and gazed into it, making sure he looked properly dapper.

"Ahhhhh, Pokemon League registration day! How I love it so! Fresh young faces, eager and full of life. Ready to go off on an adventure with their Pokemon. It's days like this that keep me young again." Professor Oak stood in the mirror straightening his collar. "Boy I tell you, nothing I love better than sending little kids out into the wild with nothing but tiny creatures to protect them, yessir!"

"Gramps, who are you talking to?" The voice came from the stairwell behind the professor. Up stepped the Viridian City Gym leader, Gary Oak who had entered the room to see if his grandfather was finally ready to greet the arriving trainers. "There's no one in here."

"Sure there is! The Pokemon listen to me! Or at least, they will until I give them to the trainers!"

"You don't have anymore Pokemon to give away Gramps! You gave away your last one ten years ago, remember? That Bulbasaur you gave to that homeless guy? Who ended up going on a drug crazed rampage off of it's spores?"

"Oh yes, I remember now! Little Johnny was so happy. Yes. But if I have no Pokemon to give, then how will these new Trainers get their first Pokemon?"

Gary sighed as he explained things to his grandfather for the umpteenth time. "They've already caught their own."

"Really? Kids these days. So self reliant. Back in my day ten year olds just sat around drooling on themselves and playing jacks. Fun times."

"Gramps most of these trainers aren't even kids anymore! I'm pretty sure I saw half of them out drinking in Viridian last night!"

Oak shook his head. "My my, they grow up so fast. Well, I'm sure they will still enjoy their Pokedexes. I made them myself you know!"

"No you don't." Gary rested his face against his hand. "We get them shipped in from Hoenn every time we need a batch. The last one you actually built contained nothing but dirty limericks and your grocery lists from the past two years. Someone scanned a Slowpoke and the screen literally said dumbass."

"Yes well, let's get ready to greet the young ones then." Professor Oak finally turned away from the mirror and walked over to the Viridian Gym Leader. "Come on downstairs...um...what was your name again?"

A nervous twitch appeared in Gary's left eye. "FOR FUCK'S SAKE OLD MAN! MY NAME IS GARY! GARY MOTHERFUCKING OAK! I'M YOUR GRANDSON!"

"Oh yes! I remember now. Your name is Gary. Well let's go downstairs Gary." With that, Professor Oak began shuffling down the stairs.

"God damn it. I shouldn't have to do this. I'm a gym leader. Where the hell's that Tracey guy? Never see him around here, he should be doing this!! Probably off scarfing down more donuts." Gary then followed his grandfather towards the stairs.

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As he walked down the path outside of Pallet Town, Erik squinted as the sun hit his face. He put his left hand up to his face to try and shield his eyes, but it wasn't doing much good. "Damn. Should have remembered those sunglasses." He adjusted the small duffel bag that contained the belongings he brought along for this Kanto excursion. He looked over at his travelling partner, who was currently smiling and sunning herself as she sat on his shoulder, blue and red flowers outstretched towards the sunshine as if she were reaching for a cookie jar on the top shelf. "At least you're enjoying yourself, huh Katya?"

The tiny Roselia looked over at her trainer, still smiling as she kept her eyes closed. "Rose! Rosel..." You bet! It's so nice up here... She returned her attention to the basking.

Erik simply chuckled and smiled. "Well then I guess I can put up with scorching my retinas for you." He looked up ahead, the large observatory on the hill where he was told he'd have to register for the Kanto competitions was in the distance. "Although I don't know why we had to come all the way out to the middle of nowhere. Could have easily just started in Vermillion. There was a gym there." He looked back over at Katya. "Though I guess it's best to get you some experience anyway."

Katya let out a content sigh. "Rose....."

"All right, well we'll just have to make the best of the opportunity then...and definitely buy some sunglasses when I get the chance. Holy crap, I almost miss the Route 210 rainstorms now." The two continued up the road toward Oak's Laboratory to get this Kanto Conquest underway.

"Ohboyohboyohboyohboyohboyohboyohboyohboyohboyohboyohboyohboyohboyohboyohboyohboyohboyohboyohboyohboyohboyohboy!"

Aeris couldn't sit still as they rapidly approached Pallet Town, and neither did Lisa, perched on Aeris' shoulder, jumping up and down from joy. It had been a long and boring sailing from Unova, and saying goodbye to her family had been sad, but she'd promised to call them whenever something important happened, and if nothing important would happen, at least she would call them once a day.

Lisa jumped up on top of Aeris' head. "Joltik, tik! Tik, Joltik!" Oh boy, so fun! A new region, so fun!

"Mhm, I know what you mean!" Aeris replied to her, continuing her own bouncing around the boat. They'd soon be there, and then they would meet so many people, and catch all the Pokémon, and eat some new food, and have lots and lots of funny fun fun fun!

"Faaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaryyyyyyyyy! We're almost there! Get up and see this!" She hurried over to her best friend and took hold of her arm, dragging her to the front of the ship to see Pallet Town.

Fary was drawing when they near Pallet Town. It was just some random sketches from around the boat and from back home in Unova. She was more then ready to leave for her Pokemon journey and the sooner she could get out of Unova and way from her ex the better. She knew that if she started in Unova she would have to face Grimsley at some point. The very idea was revolting to her, and who knows how he would act seeing her.

Her Zorua Emily was happily watching Fary laying right next to her. ""Zor zor zorua zor zo rua."It looks like we're almost there.

She was just about do with the sketch when her best friend Aeris yelled her name and ran over to her. Fary knew what was coming and quickly put away her sketch book knowing that if she didn't it might end up flying. She felt a firm grip on arm pulling her out of her seated state and flailing in the air like a helpless flag to the front of the ship from the shear energy of Aeris.

"Aeris for crap sake, you could of ripped my arm off." Fary sighed when her felt finally touched ground. She looked up knowing at that point she might as well and saw Pallet town right before her eyes.

Emily had trotted behind her flying trainer and sat down at her feet looking up and shook her head at Aeris and her bouncing bug.

The side of Gil's hand has been pressed tightly against her brow, warding off the sun as best it can, for so long she's almost afraid it's going leave an imprint. A massive pale line in a sea of sunburnt betrayal, because she's not pointing fingers or naming names, but she wouldn't exactly have to worry about her hand leaving a mark were the sun not raining its blazing fury down from above like a lover scorned. Or someone who hadn't been called back after a long night.

Her lips curve down into a frown, and she tilts her head. Aren't those interchangeable? Technically, they overlap, but it's a metaphor, so - actually, okay, no, wow, she's severely off-track. As in, her train of thought just derailed and leveled an entire town off-track. Probably blew up a small village along the way, too, because apparently, her attention span's worse than her next-door neighbor's son's, and that little bundle of regret and snot's not even five months old.

A sigh drifts out from between her lips, and she shakes her head. Time to forge onward. She's got a massive (okay, average) hill to scale and only today to do it, because she's pretty sure today's the last day for league registrations. (Unless she already missed her chance, in which case she's got a backup plan: lob the nearest rock at the presiding professor, steal a license, and bolt. Classic, but effective. Considering the massive trainwreck that comprises her time-management skills, it's actually a pretty sound idea.)

"Char," says the aforementioned Wukong, almost critically, as if he knows what she's thinking and doesn't exactly approve. It's almost uncanny - she's had him for, what, a week and a half, maybe? He can't be predicting her actions yet.

"Dude, don't even look at me like that. It'd be sick as all hell," she argues, swiveling her head around to shoot him a reproachful glare, and probably guaranteeing her inevitable stumble over a stray twig in the process. "Like if a train heist and an explosion had a not-ugly baby. And that baby came out casually shredding a wave while playing, like, eight guitar riffs. Level 8 cool."

She's not sure why she's rambling, but it's not nerves. Can't be nerves, because why would she be nervous in any way, shape, or form? It's not like her entire future depends on this, or anything. Not like she'll have to slink back home like a dejected little mutt, tail tucked permanently between her legs.

"Yeah," she mutters, quickening her pace, Wukong scampering along behind her, complacent in his cheerful ignorance, "no biggie. No pressure. yeah."

The world was spinning, yes, that was the first thing Sybil realized as she lay on the wooden deck, breathing heavily with her arms wrapped around something small and metallic. The world was spinning and loud and colorful, and her face was beet red from the sudden workout she received a mere few minutes ago. Luckily, not many were around to witness her lay there, no one was around to fill her head with unwanted feelings nor laugh at her pitiful inexperience with the Pokemon she had been chasing for a good while. No, she was instead blessed with sunlight and the familiar smell of the sea, bearing down against her already tanned flesh with the intensity of a forest fire.

She had been on a ship for the past few hours now, simply soaking up sun and gazing down upon the ocean with boredom, until, of course, Lapis decided he was a bit peckish for the steel railings that lined the ferry's deck. Sybil had spent a good half hour trying to keep him under control, running too and fro across the almost-empty deck with embarrassment clear on her face. She finally managed to tackle him, though, and thus ended the war between the two, with both parties wheezing on the heated wood and sweating bullets. The creature trapped under her arms wiggled slightly after a few silent moments, head poking out from beneath the yellow fabric that adorned the wheezing trainer, and the Aron let out a whine of a cry, attempting to free itself by pushing down on Sybil's chest. She let out a loud groan, sucking in one last deep breath before forcing herself up into a sit, arms tightening around the steel-type.

"Oh, stop that! I can't let you go around eating whatever you want!" She scolded quietly, raising her nose as Lapis attempted to give her a puppy-eyed stare. Sybil gave a meager thought of shoving the small thing into its pokeball, but it passed with a single sigh and she slowly rose to a stand, cradling the extremely heavy Aron with both hands. Her eyes turned to the sky first, quickly drinking up the beautiful azure color before shifting to stare beyond the edge of the ship. It was then she saw her first strip of the Kanto Region, a simple gathering of green just on the distance. Her eyes widened with sudden excitement, and she drifted towards the closest railing, leaning over the side and squinting to gain a better glimpse. There, beyond the crashing waves and crying Wingull, lay a completely unfamiliar land mass, free for Sybil to dig up.

The ferry cut through the waves like a knife, growing closer and closer to the dock that jutted out from what Sybil assumed to be Pallet Town, and as boat begun bellowing out its arrival horn she turned and vanished down inside the small ferry, gathering whatever she had left on the lower floor with the speed of a hyper child. The people who had gathered in the cool, seated floor began to rise as the horn continued to blow, chatting idly among themselves as the waves grew smaller and the greenery of the land approached from the front. Sybil slowly pulled the the backpack over her shoulder, keeping Lapis held up with a single, strained arm, and as she turned to once again return to the deck the captain's voice filled the buzzing air.

"We have docked at Pallet Town. Please depart and enjoy the wonderful region of Kanto!"

Sybil felt a smile claim her normally annoyed expression, but it faded as she realized a crowd was beginning to grow behind her. A headache instantly relinquished any cheerfulness she had gained, and with a new found cold expression she hurried up the stairs and gazed across the new landscape with tired eyes. Green, it was very green, but unlike the Hoenn greenery which was rich from topical sunlight and constant rainstorms, this was more like a pasture. Cool and calm and sweet-smelling. A white-sand beach jutted out around the dock, near empty and serene as the blue ocean lapped against its curved edges, and beyond the dark-wooded dock stood a gathering of trees and building alike, all joined by a dirt path. It was a vast difference from the sandy town of Dewford, or the large, building-filled city of Lilycove. The single word that came to mind was "quaint". This quiet, small, quaint town would be the start of her new adventure. The very thought sent a strange feeling through her body, a feeling of excitement and fear of the unknown. Sybil glanced down at Lapis who, thankfully, seemed to have calmed down greatly, and with a half smile she allowed him to walk beside her as the departed from the ship, taking their first steps together into this unknown land.

She made a bee-line to the closest bench, evading the crowd which had begun to gather on the dock, and she turned towards her backpack, opening the small pocket with general casualness. Inside was a single slip of paper, her agenda for the next couple of hours. First: Find Professor Oak's lab. Easy enough, the town seemed small and she could already see the possible building beyond the trees on a nearby hill. It was large, and a windmill, old and worn, rose and turned above the landscape. Would that be considered a laboratory building?

"Guess we'll find out, huh?" She whispered to herself, and Lapis, who sat by her feet, cried out in agreement. Sybil smiled down at the Aron and, after shoving the note into her shorts pocket, stood and started a slow trek towards the building on the hill, keeping her eyes forward and her face cold.

A big ol' puff of hair resembling a trainer meander onto the docks of Pallet Town, readjusting to the solid wooden planks. "Just gotta get my land legs back, heh." He mumbled with a uncertain chuckle, wobbling a bit. "Okay, i'm good...i'm good." He reassured himself, standing straight to face the professor that brought him to this magical, new region. "Thanks for the ride, Mr. Elm..." He noticed the guy practically already embarking back across the water. "...You're not getting off?" Charlie asked.

"Sorry Chuck, something's come up! Gotta return to New Bark, ASAP!" Professor Elm hastily called back. "Take care, and make sure you meet with Professor Oak before you leave Pallet Town! He'll tell you how things work around here!" He added with a wave. Charlie excitedly waved back. "Okay! Thanks again for the ride! Have a safe trip back!" He exclaimed as he waved. Once the professor was out of sight, he swiveled 'round to face the town.

"Alright...now where would Professor Oak's lab be, exactly?" The good professor didn't exactly provide the boy with directions. "Well, these sorta adventures are all about the journey embarked, rather than the destination..." He mumbled some reassuring words as he wandered off the dock and proceeded further into town.

It was clear he wasn't alone in the area, as trainers of all shapes, sizes and ages populated the scene. And most were paired with their own Pokemon companion. "Oh! That reminds me-" He knelt down, reaching for the singular pokeball hanging from his belt. How could he almost forget about the shy little Cyndaquil Professor Elm entrusted him with? He released her out into the world, realizing he hadn't let her since he first named her back at the lab.

"Hey Quinn~" He called the adorable fire mouse in a sing-song sort of way. "Welcome to the new world! Who knows what we might run into out here!" His bubbly disposition contrasted the Cyndaquil's clear uneasiness. She didn't look all that happy to be here.

"Qui..." She mumbled in reply, nuzzling herself into Charlie's lap. He would've squealed right then and there if he hadn't had caught himself. "C'mere cutie pie~" He lifted her into his arms, where she immediately curled into a ball in his creases. He stroked at her fur, taking mental note of the warmth emitting from the ignition pads on her backside. "Alright Quinn, let's find the professor's lab. This place looks small enough, i'm sure we'll run into it eventually." He stated, rising to his feet.

"Nah, you're fine, I've done it loads of times now, and it's still attached!" Aeris let go of her when they were at the front of the boat, bouncing up and down a lot as they got closer and closer, eventually stopping at the dock to let passengers off the boat and into Pallet Town. "Eeeeeee, we're here!" Aeris had all her stuff on her, so there was no need to go and get it.

Neither did Fary, so after picking up Emily and putting her in Fary's arms, because she knew that would be better than having Emily run after them, she dragged her off the boat and into town, then let go of her and starting looking around, going "Oooooooh!" every now and then while looking at everything.

"So exciting!" She could hardly contain herself from excitement, as she also looked at all the people there and their Pokémon. There were so many of them! She remembered hearing there were a lot of Pokémon while she was in the Trainer School, over 700! "I wonder if all of them are here in Kanto!"

Before she got too far in thinking about that, she spotted a boy with a Cyndaquil, which was super adorable, and took off towards him, squealing all the way to them. "EEEEEEEEE! Sooooooooo cuuuuuuute! Socutesocutesocutesocuuuuuuuuuuute!" All this time, Lisa had remained on her head, observing all that Aeris had, and finally now looking down onto the Cyndaquil in the boy's arms. "Is this your Cyndaquil? How did you get it? How long have you had it? What's its name? What's its favorite food? Color? Shape? Day? Oh, who cares, it's so adorable!"

"This looks like the place... it's a bit bigger than I remember," Adrian mused to himself as he strolled into Pallet from the north, having just passed through Route One. It was only then he realised he was missing something. Specifically, someone.

"Magnus! Come on, dude!"

A loud beep emitted from a patch of grass, followed by a thump and the sound of a low hum strengthening a little. Sure enough, Adrian's Pokémon of choice hovered up out of the foliage, magnets spinning lazily. Magnus flipped over in midair, blinked its one large eye and turned back upright with a flourish to catch up to Adrian. The little Steel-type beeped again, this time a little cheerier - or so Adrian figured, given its slightly higher pitch - as it landed on his pack without much of an effect on the total weight. Chuckling to himself, Adrian pressed on.

"Okay, so the Lab is round the corner from here, past the docks and town hall, top of the hill... y'know, I don't really know many people who use the Pallet docks. I mean, sure, there's a few ships there now, but most turn up in Vermilion... Magnus! Get out of there!" Sure enough, the Magnet Pokémon had flown off to pop open a house's circuit box, presumably to siphon electricity to power itself.

Adrian grabbed his Magnemite by its spherical body and yanked it away from the house before it could do some real damage, hurrying away with his Pokémon secured in his arms. "I keep telling you, mate, you can't go cracking open circuit boxes without me asking permission from the owner. I'm sure we can getcha a few minutes' recharge from the labs before we head back up Route One, yeah?"

Beep.

Adrian took that as an 'okay', and let Magnus back into the air. Thankfully, it just settled down on his shoulder as he kept walking. "Y'know, I'm hoping we're not the only ones visiting the Labs on the last day of registration... that'd be rather awkward. 'Specially given old Prof Oak's disposition these days... I wonder if there's a petition around somewhere to find a replacement for him." Thinking aloud, he completely failed to notice the half dozen or so others with small Pokémon in the area... well, almost completely. Adrian could see a few ships at the docks, whose passengers were unloading and spreading out. Several groups were starting to form about the place; he carefully passed a few people on his way to the Labs, narrowly missing a girl sprinting past towards some other guy.

"Li-lit."

"Agreed," Danny muttered, leaning back on one of the folding chairs that lined the ship decks. Whoever it was, they apparently didn't know the word "polite", and it was getting on his nerves, and by the looks of it, his Litwick Inizio's nerves as well. He tried to show no sign of emotion as the commotion between the two girls went on in front of him. Upon observation, the two seem to be several years Daniel's elder...which was strange. He usually remembered back in his travels that the young-adult Pokemon trainers always liked to bring at least three Pokemon. Danny shrugged and looked back at Ini. Maybe they liked to have a challenge in a different region. And by their Pokemon, they were surely from Unova.

Ini had picked up this detail as well, but his shifting showed that he was not willing to approach the two girls and their Joltik and Zorua. "Oh, what's wrong, Ini?" Danny asked, noticing Ini's reluctance; a prompt splash toward the steel-bar railings allowed him to quickly piece two and two together.

"Water," he muttered. Danny knew how much the Candle Pokemon detested water; it was almost a death wish to come into contact with it. Danny finally sighed; they had plenty of time to mingle once they hit land, and forcing his Litwick to meet to two were surely going to met with fiery resistance. So instead, he stood up from his seat and simply watched a few meters away from the railings, seeing Pallet Town approach in the distance.

The town reminded Danny of something — this was going to be a new journey, with new lands to travel and new faces to meet. Danny wondered what the Pokemon here would be like. His parents had said that a few of the Pokemon they had met during their travels will surely be here, however. Almost immediately Danny felt homesick at the thought; he had already missed traveling along with his parents and the family Klink, and let out a small sigh.

Suddenly the boat came to a stop, and Danny snapped back into reality. Inizio was waiting on a table next to him, staring quietly at the town as well. The teenager smiled at Ini, picking him up, careful not to get too close to the blue flame on his head. "It's a fresh start, Ini. We can do it ourselves," he reassured, exiting the boat along with the group of trainers.

Danny slowly stepped out of the ship and onto the docks, feeling a bit wobbly with his steps, but nothing too uncomfortable. He rolled his eyes as Litwick comfortably slid into his sleeves with a smug grin. Time to go the Professor Oak's lab...which seemed to be the large building, apparently. With no time to waste, Danny and Inizio set off for what seemed to be a lab, trying to move past the group of trainers.

...Until he walked right into the path of the hyper-girl, crashing right onto the ground with Inizio. He wasn't sure if the Joltik girl had noticed crashing into him, but right now, the Litwick wasn't pleased and his fire on his head was growing.

Charlie paused, as a shrill shriek grew from behind him. As soon as he could turn around, a spastic redhead was already loudly invading his space, damn near knocking him off his feet in the process. Despite such a fright, Charlie managed to keep on a smile as the girl gushed all over the sight of Quinn. Though, she spit out questions so fast, he could barely answer any of them. Quinn didn't appreciate all the loud attention, and only shrunk into a tighter ball. Even then, he felt he should introduce her instead of looking on like a Stantler in headlights.

"Uhh, heh, this is Quinn. We're from the Johto region...I just got her a few hours ago, so I haven't got around to feeding her yet...i'm sure i'll find out her favorite foods in due time, though!" He cobbled together something resembling a awkward reply, and topped it off with a sheepish chuckle. As his eyes wandered about the girl's person, he couldn't help but notice the little yellow pom-pom skittering about on the girl's head.

"Is that your Pokemon?" He thumbed towards the buggy puffball. It definitely looked familiar, but he couldn't put a name to it. It was something he never saw in person until today. It was pretty cute too. Before she could answer though, a boy came through the cut, crashing into the girl. The redhead was mostly (if not entirely) unfazed by the unsuccessful tackle, but Charlie was almost ready to jump out of his skin a second time. The kid seemed to take more damage than the girl did, and beside him sat...a sentient candle. "Weird." He thought before addressing the minor.

"You okay, bro?" Charlie asked simply, moving beside the redhead to help the guy back to his feet. "...I'm gonna also assume we're all going to the same place, yeah? To Professor Oak's lab? Y'all probably have a better idea on where it is than I do..." He added.

Danny groaned and slowly patted the sand off his clothes, sighing exasperatedly. Welcome to Kanto, he thought to himself as he slowly got back up and pulled the satchel to tighten it on his back. "I'm fine. Thank you, sir," he answered calmly...though Danny's Litwick thought otherwise. Danny was quick enough to realize the rising anger in Inizio, however, and quickly hugged him back up and showed him his Pokéball (which seemed to specially have a lighter coloration than a regular one), quietly threatening to return him back if he misbehaved. They had a lot of time to have to fun around here, but attempt to burn another person or her Joltik was not one of them.

"Well...this is my first time coming to Kanto," Danny admitted while Inizio mumbled to himself - which sounded more like "Lit-lit lit-wi..." Danny ignored the candlestick's complaints, however, and continued. "I'm from Hoenn myself...Slateport, to be exact, though I've been traveling to multiple regions with my family for several years. Got lil' Ini here from a Unova vacation here."

A light nudge quickly got the Litwick to chime it. "Lit-wick!"

Danny nodded and took a deep breath. "Anyway, I'm Daniel, though I prefer it if you just call me Danny. And this Litwick here is called Inizio," he introduced. "Why don't we hunt for Professor Oak's lab together? It's probably the large building over there."

Before she managed to answer Charlie, someone bumped into Aeris, which she didn't notice until Charlie went to help him up. She thought she remembered seeing him on the boat from Unova, especially since she'd probably seen everyone on the boat about a million times while she was bored on the way to Kanto. Can't really be too much all over the place on a boat.

"Hi!" she said enthusiastically to Danny. "I'm Aeris, and this is Lisa." She pointed towards her Joltik who was bouncing happily on top of her head. "Joltik!" she replied when her name was said. She was a little nervous, being around two Fire types, but their trainers were near, so she should be safe.

"I'm on my way to Professor Oak too! I came here with my bestest friend who's around here somewhere..." she said as she skimmed around for her. She was used to Fary being slower than her and taking her time, even though it was booooooring, but that was fine. "We came here to see the Professor together, so she should be able to find her way there." As she said it, though, she spotted her and waved towards her. "Faaaaryyyyyy! Over here!"

"Wingull! Wing! Wing! Wingull!"

A flock of wingull soared over the peaceful shores of Pallet Town. Waves rolled in from the Twenty-One in the south and crashed against its soft white beach. Children ran across the sand and splashed through the water; their parents keeping a careful eye on both their kids and their tans. And in spite of the commotion of registration day, Pallet Town truly lived up to its quaint, peaceful reputation.

However, an idyllic evening at the beach fell victim to strange circumstances. The waves began to sweep in from the south with more and more force. Distressed Magikarp splashed up out of the surf near the shore and before long, a single large fan-like fin was sighted off the coast. It sped through the waters leaving literal wakes in its way as it made a beeline for the quiet seashore of Pallet Town.

A mighty pokemon reared its draconian head; "GYARADOS!" it roared. The Gyarados shot its head up high above the surf and glided into the shoreline before lowering its head onto the beach.

Claire Hawk slid down the side of the Gyarados; her hair and bathing suit still soaking wet. She lands on the ground with a soft crunch and bounces up and away from the Gyarados. An older man, her father, stands up on the back of the Gyarados. He holds onto Gyarados' tall dorsal fins.

"You got everything?" he yelled down at her.

She held up a small pokeball in her hand and it expanded to full size. She yelled back, "Yeah, pops!"

"Alright! Call whenever you can! We'll see you when you come back around to Cinnabar!"

"Mhm! Bye pops!" she smiled up at him and he popped a faux-salute before patting his Gyarados' fin and flying back off towards the Twenty-One. Claire waved after him as he surfed off towards Cinnabar Island on the back of his Gyarados. When he was out of eyeshot she turned around and walked off and slid her way into a changing booth on the beach.

Inside the booth, Claire pressed the button on her pokeball; the ball flew open and red lightning lit up the changing booth. Claire closed her eyes for a brief moment and when she had opened them again there on the floor of the booth stood was a Chinchou with a trainer's satchel tightened over its shoulder. "Chin, chin, chin!"

Claire smiled and rubbed Chinchin's head; he smiled and flapped his fins happily. He nuzzled off the shoulder bag and Claire snatched it up off the ground, "Thank~you." Within minutes she had changed into dry clothes and was on her way to Professor Oak's laboratory to get her journey underway.

A rather loud roar reached Adrian's ears, and he paused to investigate where it had come from. Sure enough, a large Gyarados let a young passenger jump down from its back, before an older man - presumably the owner of the Water-type - turned his mount and sped away. "That Gyarados must be pretty well-trained," Adrian mused, "to have carried passengers even a short distance. I wonder where they came from. Although it's not the most refined of Water-type transports... a shame you don't see Lapras much any more."

Magnus had no comment, instead lifting off of its Trainer's shoulder to hover a few feet above him, magnets spinning.

"Hmm... y'know, Kingdra comes a close second to Lapras in terms of elegance in Water-types... maybe we'll find a Horsea somewhere along the coast to train up." That comment got a Beep out of the floating Magnemite. "What? You can't expect me to run through the entire League with just you, Magnus. Gotta build up a strong team. C'mon, time's a-wasting." Adrian stuck his tongue out at his Pokémon, who spun in midair in response and followed the Trainer as he resumed walking.

The girl who had gotten off of her Gyarados transport was a short distance away; Adrian gave her a short wave as their paths began to cross. Maybe she was here for a visit to the Lab as well.

Collab of Hella and Raven

Claire craddled Chichi in her arms as she walked up the beach towards the center of Pallet Town. She walked slowly, kicking up the white sands of the beach with her bare feet as she went along. She moved her head back and forth, staying as alert as possible when Adrian caught her eye. He waved at her and his Magnemite flew around his head.

"Must be another trainer," she said lowly to Chichi.

"Chin, chinchou..."

Claire smiled and looked back up at Adrian, "Wanna go say hi?"

"Chinchou, chin!"

"Alright then!"

Claire smiled and waved in unison with Chichi back at Adrian before walking across the beach to his side. Claire looked up at him.

"Hi! Are you here for the registration too?"

"Yup, Magnus and I took the long walk from Celadon City." At the mention of its name, Magnus gave a beep and waggled one of its magnets in a copy of the wave Adrian had given earlier. It dropped down to the girl's height, taking an interest in the Chinchou in her arms.

Chichi's antennas moved, touched together and lit up when Magnus came down to meet him. He pulled his antennas apart slowly, electricity flowed through the air between the nodes on the ends of his antennas shortly before they returned to their normal state.

"I was hoping I wasn't the only one to show up on the last day of registrations... maybe we'll get lucky and more people will show up. I'm Adrian, by the way. What's your name, kiddo?"

"Claire."

"Chinchou!"

Claire giggled and rubbed Chichi's head, "And this is Chichi."

"We're from Cinnabar Town."

"Ah, that's why you needed the Gyarados transport... was that your father dropping you off?"

Claire nodded, "Mhm, that was him."

At the sight of Chichi's electricity display, Magnus gave a series of excited tones and tried spinning his pair of magnets to replicate the trick. The older of the two Trainers just chuckled. "Aw, he likes you. But he's still a little young to be producing electrical charge of his own. Maybe once he gets a bit stronger."

"Yeah." Claire walked alongside Adrian in brief silence, "Do you think there'll be any more trainers there?"

"I hope so... there were a fair few people getting off the ships docked back that way." Adrian pointed over his shoulder as he spoke. "A few of them looked like the Trainer type, though I didn't stick around to check. Plan A is to get into the Labs before they close registrations. Speaking of which..." They turned a corner to find the Oak Research Lab waiting for them at the top of a hill. It was surprisingly well-cared for at first glance, despite the slightly weathered look that many of the older buildings in Pallet Town had.

"Brilliant, the Lab's still open. Do you think we should head inside, or wait for others to show up?"

"Uhm... let's go ahead and go inside. That way if people don't show up we still get registered and everything."

((Switching to past tense from here on out to establish consistency. Also wow Gil is a total ass I am so sorry))

There were times when Gil truly wished she'd developed some sort of exercise routine as a child, because then she wouldn't be staggering up the hill on these pitiful sticks she called legs. Functional muscle was something she was sorely lacking - then again, she was also lacking any sort of muscle to begin with, so the distinction was somewhat pointless, especially when each step was fire and agony and holy shit, she was ninety percent certain her lungs were starting to shed. Like snakes, except twenty percent more traitorous. Also like snakes in that they didn't have arms. She had absolutely no idea when that idea had begun forming, and the longer she contemplated it, the more disturbing it became.

Shooting Wukong an oblique glance - the cheerful little bastard was scampering along gleefully, as if he relished each inch of this hellish ordeal - Gil pressed onward, the grotesque image of lungs with arms still lingering in her mind, where it would presumably remain until she finally keeled over and escaped this torment. "Just hurry the hell up, already," she grumbled, because death was a flighty whore. Death waits for no man my ass. "Dragging it out, yeah, cool, I can roll with that."

Clouds of dust stirred with each scuffing step, and Gil gave a surprised, horribly strangled-sounding cough, squeezing her eyes shut. Slapping at the dust ineffectually, she somehow found the energy to speed up, still spluttering like a beached Wailord. Twigs crunched solidly underfoot - for the most part; there were the occasional loose clumps - and a dusty dirt path melded smoothly into sturdy gravel. Eyes thoroughly watering, harsh coughs scraping past her lips, trying to shake loose the stray dust desperately trying to pervade her lungs, Gil stumbled forward.

Opening her eyes would have probably been the first good idea she'd had that day, so it was only natural she kept them clamped shut. (Like hell was she spending the rest of the day with dry eyes, they were already bloodshot enough to begin with; that dust wanted to get in, it could bring the goddamn Jaws of Life.)

Her foot swept forward for the next step, and a solid wall of something crashed into her face. There was a sudden spurt of pain in her nose, and a distinct throb in her forehead as something suspiciously warm smacked against it, and then she was lying in an unceremonious heap on the ground, expression dazed and bewildered and more than a little bit alarmed. The gravel bit into her palms, and she was pretty sure she'd managed to bruise every possible inch of her tailbone, including the parts that hadn't hit the ground.

"What the hell," Gil bit out, a little more savagely than she'd intended, eyes snapping open, flitting about, trying to identify what - or who, because Gil wasn't exactly a genius, but she was pretty sure walls didn't wear clothes - had dropped her to the ground like she was an old piece of trash. (Well, she was, but that wasn't the point.)

Evidently, the dust hadn't needed the Jaws of Life. Whomever this sack of moldy dicks was had worked just fine.

Around the two, people spoke and laughed and creatures rose from the water. Nothing really different from cities in Hoenn, thank God the annoyances of towns and cities were similar, it would make avoiding them easier in the end. Sybil stared at the ground intensely, blocking out any toxic emotions that dared to claim her brain while Lapis trotted quickly beside her, a look of pure joy on his face. He was obviously enjoying the sun and breeze of Pallet Town, and from his wandering eyes Sybil could tell he was rather curious of the others surrounding them. She clicked her tongue to get his attention, and with playful eyes she seemed to say,

I'm sure you'll make many friends later on

And that simple look was enough to give the Aron an extra hop in his already small step. Sybil turned her eyes to the sea, catching only a glimpse at the blue-scaled body of a Gyarados by the dock she had just escaped from. A magnificent Pokemon, both strong and beautiful, and though Sybil was rather unfamiliar with the species she couldn't help but let her curiosity grow from just a simple look. Glancing even further, she saw many unknown Pokemon with their trainers, most as young-looking as Lapis, and with her growing wondering thoughts she seemed to fail to notice the sudden presence behind her. Until it, well, threw her to the earth, that is.

Sybil collapsed as the sudden force drove her downwards, dust spilling into her mouth and coating her front. Lapis cried out with surprise at her sudden fall, though he didn't attempt to help her up, seeing as he was rather small still. Someone landed behind them after the initial fall, cursing out in what Sybil could assume to be pain or annoyance. She rose after a moment of silent and unhelpful composure, and as soon as she glanced upon the slightly taller girl behind her a feeling of rage seized her brain, causing her cold-like expression to crack with unforeseeable anger. She attempted to control her tongue and her reaching empathy, but this doll-faced girl before her just seemed to emit an unnatural amount of rage. Sybil felt her mouth twitch, eyebrows furrowing as she turned around quickly and jabbed a finger at the girl's chest, her head coking to the side as she hissed out an angry,

"Where the hell were you looking?" She took a second to stand and make a show of brushing herself off before glowering down at the white-haired stranger with growing annoyance, "who do you think you are?" Sybil felt a sneer paint her face at the girl's harsh glare, and she took no time to narrow her eyes as well, feeling tension grow within her like untamed ivy.

This is what they call 'picking a fight', huh?

Pallet Town was supposed to be a sleepy town. Despite it's reputation as the starting point for Kanto league challenges, it was still very small. The Oak Laboratory dominated over the landscape from a hill, it was clear to see from the entrance from Viridian City. The windmill at the top of the observation room stood out, it's red blades spinning against the lazy blue sky. It was a picture of serenity. So how in the heck was it offset by the collision of limbs and backpacks that Erik witnessed occurring in front of him?

The Sinnoh native dashed ahead as Katya held on, looking to see if things were all right, but by the time he caught up, it appeared everyone had recovered sufficiently from the mash-up. At least until the two girls in front of him looked to be at each other's throats. One was clearly dustier than the other one but both were peacocking something fierce. Now, Erik didn't have enough experience when it came to watching girls fighting, because most veterans of the bar scene would let the two go at it and watch the fur fly. Erik however had been raised better than that, by someone who had seen his share of casino fights. Plus, he didn't need to have to worry about ambulances coming around to deal with the aftermath. So instead, he stepped ahead, intent on trying to quell the scuffle.

"Hey, hey...calm down..." he offered as he tried to step in between the two ladies. "There's, uh, there's no need to fight unless it's...you know...Pokemon I guess." Katya watched from Erik's shoulder, not sure what to do in this situation either. A shame she didn't know Sweet Scent or Aromatherapy.

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As Adrian and Claire entered the laboratory, it looked a little...dishelveled. There were piles of books all over the place and a couple of Nidoran ran through the hallway in front of the two aspiring trainers. There was a bit of a smell wafting through the air, of sawdust and ...old milk? It was tough to place but it smelled off.

A voice called out from the back of the hall. "Hey! Is someone there! Give me a second I'll be up front in a sec. Just feeding some of the Pokemon. Just head to the foyer to the left. Watch out for the Pidgeys perching above the doorway!"

Fary made her way to Aeris taking her time. She didn't like rushing around all the time; to her it was using up too much energy to make it worth the effort. Besides, she'd much rather enjoy everything around her. After all, that very moment wasn't ever going to happen again so she might as well savor it. Emily looked up at her as she walked.

Emily was just like her trainer, she liked to take her time getting from place to place, but she found Aeris to be a bit annoying. She didn't dislike the girl. She just hated that Aeris had a habit of waking her up from a nap with her fast pasted yammering.

"Zorua zor zor rua Zorrrr Zor?" Can't that girl take a breath?

Fary laughed some petting Emily.

"No no she can't Emily. She may be a ball of energy but she means well and you know that." Fary petted her faithful Pokemon as she approached Aeris and her new annoyed friend.

"I'm sorry about Aeris. She... well, has too much energy for her own good. Anyway, I'm Fary Nitashi. I'm from Nimbasa City Unova. It's nice to meet you. My, what a beautiful Cyndaquil you have there." Fary smiled some trying to be polite to the unknown trainer.

"Aeris, huh?" Charlie silently regarded the redhead's name as she was introduced a second time. Considering Fary's calm, casual demeanor, Charlie could already envision the dynamic shared between the two girls. One playing straight man to the other's crazy antics. He was hip to the idea. "Oh, i'm Charlie, by the way." He realized he had went this long with introducing himself. "Charlie Delacroix." Quinn fidgeted a bit as she was mentioned, but not much else. "Wait, really? You're from Unova?" That was a interesting tidbit of info, he thought. "I'm from Johto myself."

He began towards the lab (Or, what he assumed to be the lab, the big ol' building Daniel pointed towards), and motioned for the others to follow. "So, how is it in Unova? I thought Goldenrod was a big city, but when you see something like Castelia on TV...whoo! It just doesn't compare! I mean, all those big buildings...and the lights...ohh, it must be beautiful at night." He thought of the region in a dreamy tone.