To the east... To Pallet town!

[Shikimori]

Now that he had gotten his first pokemon and had started on his journey to be a pokemon master, Shikimori was making his way to Pallet town, the first stop on his quest. As his made it over the hill he could easily spot the large home that belonged to none other than Professor Oak, the world's foremost expert on the origin and physiology of pokemon. His eyes wandered farther down the hill, skirting from house to house, noticing that none of that were as big as his home back in Mochizuki to the west.

Shikimori sighed pensively, almost reconsidering going out on his own. It was starting to get awfully lonely to have no one there with him. It was at that moment that he remembered about the small sphere shaped object strapped to his waist. 'I could always ask Squirtle to come out here and walk with me. I'm sure it's tons more interesting than anything he could be doing in that pokeball.' Acting purely on impulse, Shikimori reached back and grabbed the tiny pokeball. Remembering to click and enlarge it first, Shikimori then tossed it up in the air and called Squirtle out in front of him. He caught the pokeball and minimized it, putting it back by his side. Squirtle looked around in a confused manner for a second, not seeing Shikimori behind him, and then quickly spun around to look up at his master. Upon seeing Shikimori it let out a happy "Squirtle Squir!" and then jumped up into Shikimori's arms, who was now beaming proudly. He was glad to finally have some company. "I guess you're pretty happy to be out of that pokeball too, aren't you Squirtle?" It nodded gleefully and clung tightly to his chest.

With Squirtle now walking by his side, looking refreshed by the morning breeze, Shikimori strolled up to Professor Oak's laboratory. A large metal gate blocked the path, but a small TV intercom allowed him to contact the Professor to open the door. He told them that he would be working in his office which was the first door on the left once they made their way through the entrance.

Squirtle and Shikimori walked slowly up the path to the door, then through the unlocked entrance. Just as Professor Oak had said, the first door on the left held his office where he seemed to be observing the behavior of an enraged Rattata on a large monitor. Professor Oak quickly spotted Shikimori and Squirtle and greeted them warmly. "Ah there you are, Shikimori... and who might that be?" As Professor Oak asked this, the timid Squirtle eased away and hid behind Shikimori's leg. Of course, the TV intercom was too tall to see the tiny Squirtle down by Shikimori's knees, so Professor Oak didn't even know he had come. "I thought you might have been one of the trainers that had come in to claim your own pokemon, but it looks like you already have a fine Squirtle of your own." His bright smile helped to gain some of the trust of Shikimori's Squirtle, and with the help of a few words of confidence from Shikimori himself, Squirtle squirmed out from behind Shikimori's leg and stood proudly in front of the pokemon expert with his shell held high. Professor Oak knelt down to rub the top of Squirtle's head before he even greeted Shikimori properly. Once he stood up he stuck out his arm to shake Shikimori's and then welcomed him into his office.

Professor Oak sat down and immediately asked Shikimori what he had brought with him, and when he replied "Only food for the journey." the old man nearly fell out of his seat! "Is that all that you brought with you??" He quickly got up and ran over to a table nearby where a cardboard box, that seemed to have just arrived a few days ago, sat. He reached in and grabbed what seemed to be one of many Pokedex. "As you know, I am a pokemon researcher... but in my old age I'm not able to travel the world like I used to. That is why, I am going to give you this: a Pokedex." Shikimori had seen something like this in his home town where he had received his first pokemon. "A Pokedex?" He replied. Yes, a Pokedex. This tool stores all sorts of information about Pokemon that you might find useful on your journey. And as you travel, you will be able to add to my research by using this. Sounds like a fair trade, don't you think? Shikimori smiled happily and accepted the Pokedex from Professor Oak. Oh! I almost forgot. You might also need these. He reached into his pockets, which seemed to stretch on forever as he dug, searching for the object he was soon to give to the new trainer. When his hand finally emerged he was holding three minimized pokeballs. He put his hand down to Squirtle's level to let him see them, to which he stared at them curiously. "Though these aren't the best type of balls used to capture pokemon... they should suffice for now. I hope you can use them well and catch as many pokemon as possible!" Shikimori gladly accepted the gift. "Now, I must be getting back to work! It's like it never stops coming! You should be off on your journey. All of the others started before you." Shikimori nodded and then looked over at Squirtle, who then nodded back at him. "All right Squirtle, let's go." Shikimori thanked Professor Oak and then left the same way he came.

[Shikimori]

Shikimori and Squirtle were really starting their journey now. Shikimori now armed with a Pokedex and three pokeballs, they would need to catch a few pokemon to take on the first gym leader. "Hey Squirtle. I've heard of this first guy... Brock." Squirtle looked up at Shikimori as he kept staring forward, thinking about what his first gym battle would be like. "From what I heard. He uses all rock pokemon, so you shouldn't have any trouble winning all by yourself." Squirtle grinned in Shikimori's direction, showing a full row of teeth. Shikimori turned to him and smiled, hoping it would keep his spirits up. It was just then that Shikimori spotted a kid a bit younger than he was walking on a trail that would soon merge with his own. He was walking alone with a large backpack that seemed to be holding his clothes or some sort of supplies. He ignored the kid for the moment and kept on his path straight ahead, he wouldn't force a confrontation unless the kid calls him out.

A few steps before their two trails converged, the kid cried out, causing Shikimori and Squirtle to turn towards the noise. Blocking the path between the kid and the convergence of the two trails was a hungry looking Rattata. 'This could be bad. I should step in and help him. He doesn't seem to have any pokemon of his own.' Shikimori nodded at Squirtle and he nodded back at him. At once, the two of them dashed towards the boy. About 5-10 feet from the Rattata, that was now advancing on the boy, forcing him back against a tree, Shikimori and Squirtle stopped. "Leave that kid alone!" Shikimori shouted. Squirtle mimicked him, shouting "Squirtle squirt squirtle squirtle!" at the Rattata. When the two saw that it didn't intend on stopping, Shikimori made the quick decision to engage it in a pokemon battle. "Alright Squirtle! Get in there and help that kid!" Squirtle jumped forward, running at full speed at the Rattata. "Now, give it a tackle attack!" Squirtle turned to its side and rammed right at the Rattata with its shoulder. It was then that the Rattata's attention was caught. It's head quickly turned to face Squirtle. Noticing the danger, the Rattata jumped out of the way of the tackle and then tried to return the attack on Squirtle as it was passing by. "Squirtle! Hurry, retreat into your shell!" Shikimori's squirtle moved quickly and pulled it's arms, legs, head and tail into its shell and braced itself for impact. Rattata's attack hit hard and knocked Squirtle back, in a different direction from the boy they were trying to protect. Seizing the opportunity, Rattata made a dash for the boy. "Squirtle, quickly, get out of your shell and stop the Rattata from getting to him!" As Shikimori said this he started running over to where the action was to make sure Squirtle was okay. Squirtle quickly popped out of his shell without a scratch on him and ran at the Rattata at full speed. "Now Squirtle, give it another tackle!" Now that the Rattata was too busy going after the boy, Squirtle made full contact with the side of its body with his head. "Nice job Squirtle! You're doing great!" Squirtle flashed a big smile over to Shikimori and then turned back to the Rattata that was now getting back up from the attack. 'This is one tough Rattata... No... It must really be desperate for that food the kid must have in his bag.'

As the Rattata got up for more, Squirtle stood his ground and awaited another order. "Okay Squirtle, it looks like he's getting serious now. Just wait for him to make his move." Squirtle nodded solemnly, keeping both eyes on Rattata. A second later the Rattata was running straight for Squirtle with the intent to finish this battle and get back to the kid. "Trust me on this one Squirtle. Stand your ground. I'll tell you what to do when the time comes." Squirtle acknowledged the order by bracing himself for the impact by bending his knees and leaning into the attack. Once Rattata was upon him, Shikimori shouted to Squirtle. "Now, grab Rattata as he attacks you and then spin him around and throw him!" Squirtle did exactly that. Right as Rattata hit him, he grabbed it by the hind legs and swung it around, throwing it into a tree nearby. "Yeah, now that's what I call using your opponents strength against them!" When Rattata landed on the ground the boy ran over to Shikimori, while Squirtle jumped up and down, cheering over his first victory. "That was really come amazing battling! You and your Squirtle are really in tune!" Shikimori smiled and looked over to the Rattata that was, by now, too tired to get up. "He looks to weak and tired." The kid took the bag off of his back and reached into it to retrieve a sandwich that he had been saving to eat later. He took half of it and put it in front of the Rattata. "Here you go little guy. I know you didn't want to hurt me. You were just hungry, right?" The Rattata quickly gobbled up the sandwich and then, feeling a little better, got up and scurried away. Squirtle looked up at Shikimori as he watched the pokemon escape. "It's alright. We'll have time to make plenty of friends. I promise, the next pokemon we see I'll catch and add to our group, alright?" Squirtle nodded happily and then came back to Shikimori's side.

The kid walked back over to Shikimori and Squirtle just as they were about to walk away. "Hi, my name's Kenta. What's your name?" Shikimori wanted to try and avoid a lot of conversation, but it seemed that Kenta had no one with him, so it was only natural that he would want someone to talk to. "My name is Shikimori, and this is my Squirtle." Squirtle introduced himself with a short "Squir squirtle." The kid smiled and looked down at Squirtle. "I wish I had a pokemon of my own... but my parents said that I have to wait until I'm older.... So, where are you going? I'm going to visit my grandparents in Viridian City." "I'm heading to Pewter City for my first gym battle." The kid picked up his backpack and then looked over at Shikimori again. "If you use the same moves that I saw you use just now then you should have no problem in your first gym battle! Oh, also, Iif you're heading that way, then we might as well travel together, right? It's pretty lonely on the way there." Shikimori nodded and the two of them made their way up the path. It was already afternoon and they probably wouldn't be in Viridian until tomorrow at this time. "Sure, Squirtle and I could use company, right Squirtle?" Squirtle approved with a big thumbs up and so the group made their way up the path towards Viridian City.

[Shikimori]

Hours later the three were still making their way through the grassy trail to Viridian City. "We should stop soon to set up camp. Walking all night wouldn't be the best choice. It would be best to rest for the night and then continue in the morning." Kenta nodded, knowing that soon they would have to stop to set up camp. "You're right. Let's try and find somewhere near water so I can fill up my kettle." Shikimori nodded to him and they continued down the path. Soon they could hear the trickle of a stream somewhere in the woods. The sun had not yet set on the horizon, and they probably had about 15 minutes left of sunlight. "We need to find that water quickly if we want to get there before the sun goes down."

Shikimori, Squirtle and Kenta turned off into the forest and followed the sound of the water. This faint noise continued to grow until it was the full rush of a lush spring. The sight of the setting sun reflecting off of the flowing water water an amazing sight to Shikimori who had never seen anything like it. Squirtle's eyes lit up as they approached the edge of the water. Once they were at the water's edge, Squirtle stuck it's head out over the stream and stared down at his reflection in the rippled mass. Like a small child, it slapped it's tiny hand across the water, causing its reflection to disappear for a moment, only to reappear seconds later just as it was before. After having experimented a bit with the water, Squirtle jumped right in. Being the water pokemon that he was, it was like second nature to swim around at incredible speeds and shoot up out of the surface of the water, only to land back in with a huge splash. Shikimori chuckled for a second, seeing how much fun Squirtle was having, and decided to join him. He slid his backpack off, removed his jacket and shoes, and then rolled his pant legs up to his knees. Gingerly, he waded into the water. It was cool, but refreshing to the feet of a person who had been walking all day long. He called to Kenta to join but he was already pulling supplies out of his backpack to go to sleep. 'I guess he needs his rest. He went through a lot today.' Shikimori smiled and turned to Squirtle who was now backstroking through the stream and spitting a stream of water out of his mouth like the spout of a whale. Shikimori reached his hands down into the shallow pool and then brought the up, splashing Squirtle and sending him down into the water. Squirtle quickly swam back up to the surface and glared at Shikimori jokingly. He quickly dove back down into the water so that Shikimori couldn't see him and then came up right in front of his face to splash a wave of water at point blank.

Only a short time had passed before Shikimori and Squirtle were soaking wet, and tired out. "We should probably turn in now." Shikimori saw that as the sun had gone down, Kenta had fallen asleep in his sleeping bag. A small fire lit the campsite, which Shikimori placed his T-shirt next to to dry. Using the light of the flame, Shikimori pulled out his sleeping back and set it out next to him. He was about to get into it when he saw Squirtle sitting down in front of the fire warming himself. Shikimori grabbed his jacket off of his backpack and then walked over to Squirtle. By now, the half moon was shimmering above them, and the little bits of burning ash floated up into the air like fireflies, only to cool and then slowly fall back to the ground. Shikimori sat down and then picked up Squirtle and sat him down on his lap and then wrapped his jacket around him. "You've gotta stay warm if you don't want to get sick." Squirtle looked up at him and smiled. "Squirtle, squirtle squirt squirtle." Shikimori rubbed the top of his head and then set him down on the ground next to the sleeping bag, letting him keep the jacket to sleep under until he got him a suitable blanket. Shikimori stared up at the stars, and thought about how the moon looked so large even though it was so far away. Soon. the two drifted off into a deep sleep, with only the sound of woodland insects as their lullaby.