Chapter Text
Scribbled on a ripped out piece of notebook paper, in a swirly and slightly crooked script, was a bullet point list of Pokémon names: Milotic, Gardevoir, Alolan Ninetales, Altaria, Absol, Volcarona, Frosmoth, Sylveon or Espeon, Meganium, Florges, Togekiss. Some Pokémon's names were crossed out and then rewritten or scribbled over and then replaced. All in all, it took hours of deliberation to narrow it down to just 12 Pokémon but I was proud of my final results. I compared and contrasted types, dex entries, and most importantly, photos of the Pokémon to see if they were up to my standards.
This list, when finished, was then neatly folded up and tucked into the front pocket of my overalls. Finally, I could set out for real this time and follow my dream sincerely: To have the prettiest Pokémon team in the world!
Each Pokémon was handpicked from an Encyclopedia I got on my 12th birthday, alongside 10 Pokéballs and an old bag to use on my journey. The first time I was ready to set out I was content to just take one of Dad's secondaries and face the world head on - but 2 years, a region change, and a lot of research into the top trainers in the world made me realize something vital. Top teams, well, aren't they all…kind of boring? I want - no, need - to stand out somehow, and to do that I can't just fit the mold like every other schmuck with a Rhyperior or Charizard.
No, I need something special, something spectacular, so with that in mind I decided to pick out what Pokémon would stand out the most and bring me to greatness. Most teams are themed after a type or a gimmick, but I found that no team was themed after beauty! It was unique, it was revolutionary, it was perfect.
With my list tucked away safely and my bag prepacked, all I had to do now was get Dad's old rod and set out for the journey of my life.
Or well, I would have, if Mom didn't stop me at the door.
“Aren't you forgetting something young lady?”
A stern tone greets me right before I can get to the door knob turned. So close…!
“Uh, lets see,” I looked down and counted out on my fingers, “Hm…bag, fishing rod, Pokéballs! Nope it's all here! So if you don't mind-”
“Ahem.”
I gulped, turning around slowly to see what fate awaited me. It was mom standing in the kitchen, hands on her hips with an unamused expression. Sitting atop her head was a Sobble mirroring her pose in a much more derpy manner.
Sobble's name was Memphis. He was one of Dad's many Secondary Pokémon - albeit one of the weaker ones - and he spent most of his helping out Mom instead of training with Dad.
“I hope you weren't planning to go off without a Pokémon to protect you as you search for your own?”
“Uh-”
“Because that would be very foolish and definitely make me reconsider agreeing to letting you go at all.”
“Well-”
“Especially because you promised me you'd be smart about this!”
All my protests died on my tongue, “...Sorry mom.”
“Hmph. Apology accepted.”
Memphis and Mom nodded in unison and he hopped off Mom's head right into my face. I squawked as his flippered feet scrambled for leverage, stumbling back a bit until he hoisted himself up and settled on my head. I resisted the urge to throw him off and instead looked to my Mom for help.
She, however, just giggled at my predicament. I pouted but she pinched my cheek and pulled me into a hug.
“You know I'm only hard on you because I care, right? Pokémon training is no walk in the park, you have to take this seriously!”
“I know Mom…”
Mom pulled back and smiled.
“Good. Remember Daddy and I love you very much, and you better come back every now and again for a rest and a warm meal, okay?”
Bleh. So sappy, “Ok Mom, can I go now?”
“Yes, have fun- oh, and tell Miss Magnolia I said hi if you see her.”
Finally! “I will, bye, love you!”
I took off before she could change her mind or kill me with all the sap. Memphis settled on my head and I knew better than to try and force him back into his ball. One too many Tearful Looks has made me completely unable to bully the little guy to get my way - but if he thought of getting him in my team then he'd be sorely mistaken.
It's not that Memphis was a bad Pokémon. Dad had trained him before he left and even if he spent all his time lazing about at home he still went out with me to forage or explore the forest. So, I know he's a decent battler and has some moves that pack a punch, but…well… he’s just not top team material. He's not pretty, he's cute and he’s super derpy. My team needs grace and elegance, not watery eyes and floppy mannerisms! Plus, the current Champion already has an Inteleon! I can't be so unoriginal. Once I have my own starter, I'm ditching him.
It shouldn't be long now anyway since I have the perfect starter in mind. Though I refuse to build my team around one type, I have got to have a water type. How could I ever face Dad on the path to greatness without his signature type?
And luckily for me Dad has one particular Pokémon that was the source for my team inspiration: Milotic, the most beautiful Pokémon in the world.
While for most of my team I was relying on photos and corroboration from other trainers - I knew from personal experience that not only do Milotic live up to their title, but they’re also super strong. While a few top trainers have a Milotic…the Champion doesn't, so it's fine.
Dad did offer me a Feebas to get me started for my 12th birthday but all I wanted was a fishing rod. There's no point in taking the perfect Pokémon right from the start. After all, no one cares about a story of someone getting handouts. So that's why I set out with one clear goal in mind before anything - fish up a Feebas!
Surely, nothing can go wrong with that.. right?
Wrong.
I stared at the horrible horrible lake by Miss. Magnolia's lab with immense contempt.
My mood was already soured by the time I got there because, for some reason, every gosh darn Pokémon across Route 2 wanted a piece of me! I couldn't go three steps in any tall grass without something jumping out at me!
It was fine at first, since the first couple of battles weren’t much of a bother. The route wasn't that long, so I thought there surely wouldn't be many more…but, by the tenth random encounter I was heavily considering going back and asking for some repels. I didn't though, because that would have wasted more time than I already had. It was still super annoying though, especially because I had to admit-if it wasn't for Memphis, it would have taken much, much longer.
Battles were annoyingly easy when everything that challenges you is either a wimp or a weakling. A Zigazoon lunges at me? Water gun to the face. A Yamper scurries over? Bind then Pound combo, total knockout. Accidentally step on a Lotad in a puddle? Well, it never saw that Sucker Punch coming.
It was useful, but it also meant by the time I finally got to the bridge it had already been an hour into my allotted fishing time. Ugh.
All of that would have been fine…if I could fish up anything besides a freakin Arrokuda. Hours. Hours wasted. Every. Single. Bite. A freaking useless, ugly Arrokuda! If it was a variety of fish maybe it would have been okay. I considered adding Luvdisc to my list and Magikarp at least didn't fight back when I tossed them from the hook, but it was all Arrokuda. Stupid, Arrokuda and their stupid, stupid Pecks. Memphis was having a good time beating them up but every time the fish got at least one hit in before they were discarded.
I'd been glaring down at the water after the last tug revealed not an Arrokuda, but a freakin Bidoof of all things hanging limply off the line. It was a bit funny at first but then it tried to Rollout into me and Memphis Sucker Punched it so hard it literally flew. It was something new and proved the river did have more than one kind of Pokémon, but it didn't fix the core issue. Namely, the lack of Feebas. Seriously, what gives?!
My sour musings were cut off by a cheerful voice.
“Hey girl~! Whatcha doing?”
Gah! I jolted forward at the sudden interruption to my solitude but luckily Memphis wrapped his tail around me and yanked me before I fell into the water. I tumbled back, catching myself with my elbows and looked up at the giggling woman standing behind me. I glared, but she just kept laughing at my predicament - I almost fell in, how rude! Sonia was the last person I wanted to see right now. Her and her rambling would put me to sleep before I could cast the next line.
“Sorry! Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you, I just wanted to see what you're up to.”
“I'm fishing, duh,” I grumbled.
“Aw come on, no need to be grumpy. What are you fishing for?”
I sit up and she sits down beside me on the dock. Unlike me, she sat cross legged since her legs actually would reach the water if she stretched out. At first I didn't answer and instead went back to glaring at the water. Memphis didn't let that slide though and smacked me on the cheek for being rude even though I didn't invite her to hang out, she decided that on her own. Ugh.
I mumbled, “a Feebas.”
“Hm?” She leaned in closer, “I didn't catch that?”
“I want a Feebas!”
Sonia flinched back at my volume and I wanted to slap myself for my stupidity. I probably just scared away all the fish with that outburst. Before I could follow through on my urges Sonia grimaces and nods with understanding.
“Ah, yeah, I see the problem.”
“...what problem?”
“Well…” She drags out the L sound and looks away, “It's just that Feebas don't live in the river?”
What. “What?”
“I spotted a few at the lake…but I've never seen one swimming in the river. Too many Arrokuda I think.”
What.
“The lake?” I turned to her in horror. “The lake I'm not allowed to go around because the Pokémon are too strong? That lake?”
“Yeah…”
“So I wasted all my freakin time fishing for hours for nothing?!”
“Uh,” Sonia looked a bit guilty but nodded, “Kinda?”
Oh, ok. I stared down at my Dad's rod for a moment, then proceeded to try and snap it in half. Bye bye Pokémon team of my dreams. It was a nice fantasy while it lasted.
“Hey- stop that!”
Sonia tried to snatch the rod out of my hand. I flinched and held it back as far as I could but she was unfortunately much taller than me and had longer arms. It was a well-fought battle, but she eventually wrestled it away from me. How neither of us fell into the water, I will never know, but by the end she was standing up and holding it over her head as I desperately tried to reach.
Memphis, the traitor, did nothing to stop my assault or the theft that took place. Instead all he did was watch our scuffle with Judgement in his eyes. Not even at the cruel thief who ruined my dreams, but at me!
“Give it back- that's my rod!”
She didn't relent, “You were literally trying to break it?!”
“So?!” I shouted, “It's mine!”
“You can't just break it-”
“It's my rod!”
She continued without acknowledging my protests, “-over something so small!”
“Small? Small! My hopes and dreams are ruined- how is that small?!”
“They aren't ruined- You can still get a Feebas!”
I froze, my pursuit of the rod temporarily paused.
“What do you mean?”
Sonia frowned, “Just because you can't go to the lake now doesn't mean you can't ever. You just have to get the Feebas after you build up a decent team, and I'm sure no one would mind you going to the lake.”
I stared. She…she had a point, no? Maybe Milotic shouldnt be my starter, but instead the final piece of the puzzle? The last member who made the entire journey worth the blood sweat and tears? Wouldn't that be cool too? The most beautiful finally taking its spot in the team made for it…
“Yeah, yeah you're right. I don't need a Feebas right now. That could totally work!”
Sonia nodded, “Yeah! That's the spirit.”
She finally gave back my rod and with it a renewed vigor for greatness. My story is just getting beginning, sure it was a bit of a rocky start but whose isn't? It's all part of the process!
But well, there was still one problem.
Namely, “All the Pokémon nearby suck. How am I meant to build up a strong team if I don't have any good Pokémon?”
Sonia frowned, “What do you mean? Yampers are pretty cool, and a Zigazoon turns into an Obstagoon eventually ya know?”
I pouted, “Well, yeah, but I can't catch any of those Pokémon.”
“Surely Sobble can handle a few more battles?”
“It's not because of that. It's ‘cause I can only catch certain Pokémon.” Duh.
Sonia paused and then asked, “Well, which ones can you catch?”
“Well I'm so glad you asked!”
I dug into my pocket and fished out my list, shoving it into Sonia's hands. Hesitantly she took it and unfolded it carefully. She scanned it quickly then blinked and looked back up at me.
Yeah, I know what she's thinking, “It's pretty awesome right? I've got some pretty high standards and none of these lame, weak Pokémon will do.”
“Well,” She started, paused, blinked again, and then restarted, “Well it's good to have a plan, and actually most of these Pokémon wouldn't be too hard to get but- what exactly do any of them have in common?”
“Isn't it obvious?”
“...Enlighten me anyway?”
I smirked, of course Sonia couldn’t understand so easily, “These are the most beautiful Pokémon in the world- duh!”
“Oh. Yeah, duh, whoops, my bad,” Sonia handed back the list, which I gladly returned back to pocket, “So how exactly does a Feebas fit into any of that?”
I stared, “They turn into Milotic.”
“Yeah, but no one knows how to evolve them.”
“My Dad does!”
Now it was her turn to stare. Which made sense since she and Dad hadn’t met before, I think. Dad wasn’t around enough to get to know the neighbors, which was so lame, but those are the sacrifices top trainers have to make. I'll have to be like that one day too so it's fine…
“His starter was a Feebas,” I clarified, “He told me if I wanted a Milotic he'd help me evolve it so it's fine!”
Sonia hummed and nodded, “Ahh, yeah, ok ok. Your list isn't bad but there is a problem with all of them.”
“What problem?”
She grimaced, “You'd have to go into the Wild Area.”
I froze. Then, slowly, I started to bend the rod still in my hand.
“No- none of that! It's not a problem we can't solve, okay?”
“It's over, everything was for nothing. My dreams, truly for naught-”
“You're being dramatic! Don't make me take the rod away again.”
“This is the correct response to being told I'll never have my dream team!”
“I never said that!”
“What else could that have meant?! My mom wouldn't let me in the Wild Area- she barely let me come here-”
She cut off my tirade, “What if you were League sponsored?”
I paused in my fishing rod abuse, “Huh?”
“Would your mom be okay with it if you were League sponsored? Like, League trainers get way more help than the average person, plus it would help you get strong enough to go to the lake way faster than the old fashioned way.”
“Well, yeah, maybe- but who'd want to sponsor me? And wouldn't I have to have some Pokémon first?”
“Eh, you don't need any registered Pokémon to be eligible for the sponsorship program, just go to the Wild Area with Sobble and get some Pokémon of your own before you register for the Circuit. It'll be fine.” A beat, “and, I wouldn't mind helping you out with your dream…if you want.”
The rod clatters on the ground, my jaw dropping with it. No freakin’ way.
“Are you serious? No take backsies-! Seriously- Is that allowed?!”
“Serious as a heart attack,” she says solemnly, then snickers, “But really Rose has been trying to get an in with me forever, especially since Gran's retirement is coming up, I'll talk him into it and- Oof!”
She was cut off by me laughing at her. I wrapped my arms around her waist and she toppled over but didn't push me off.
“Thankyouthankyouthankyou- I'm sorry for all those times I thought your nerd stuff was lame! You're the best!”
“You thought I was lame-? You know what? You're welcome. I'll call Rose up tonight and see what I can do. You should go back and tell your mom the good news.”
Right, Mom, oh she's going to freak out!
I pull back and scramble to my feet. Memphis and Dad's rod were scooped up as I dashed back home. I'm a trainer now - a real bonafide trainer! In the gym circuit and everything. I'm gonna be on TV!
Any Pokémon that tried to get the jump on me on the way back were quickly thwarted by my total disinterest. I didn't have time to battle - I've got a destiny to conquer and a Feebas to earn. Best. Day. Ever.