Goddamn, I cannot believe how long I took to make this DX

So, what have I been doing, you may ask? Well, let's just leave it at ADHD can be a bitch-and-a-half to have sometimes. But I'm back now, posting this chapter the day before my birthday, and I promise that the next wait will be NOWHERE near the wait it was for this chapter. Sorry about that.

Anyways, I'm not wasting any more time. Here's a new chapter, and it's kind of strange. Enjoy!

Route 29 was upon the Cul-De-Sac Kids, and New Bark Town was behind them. Their journey was now officially underway.

Right now, a great many of them were indeed still shocked that this is all happening, but it was fading and making room for a new feeling for them. It was one of excitement and joy, beyond all belief, and one that made them so excited to keep moving on.

And now, they were on their way.

"So," Matti asked, as they begun to move forward, "Now we're out on the road to victory. And with this, I have a gift for you all." Matti took off the bag on his back, and opened it up to reveal a large number of supplies. A lot of them just gawked at what was inside.

"Impressed?" he asked, a hint of smugness in his tone, "Well, don't be. I just packed enough to get us all started. Including…"

He reached in, pulling out a smaller bag from his big bag. Opening up this smaller bag, it was revealed exactly what they were.

"Whoa, holy heck," Eddy exclaimed, "That's a lotta Pokeballs, man."

"Indeed it is," Matti told him, a hint of smugness in his tone, "But they're not all for one man."

"Wait, they aren't?"

"Nah." He stood back up, and pulled out five of them, all compacted and small, "Hold out your hand, Eddy." Everyone in the group understood what was happening, so Eddy complied wordlessly, receiving the five little devices in hand.

Taking five out himself, and placing them in his pocket, he looked over to them and said "Alright, I got 40 left, and there are 8 of you left. You can probably guess what that means." And even though none of them did the math, they got what he was going for. Right now, they were going to get their Pokeballs.

Matti spread the 40 devices around the group evenly, everyone having exactly 5 by the end of it. "These are one of the most important things to you as Pokemon Trainers," he told them, then chuckled, "But I can assume most of you already knew that much." They all nodded, with the exception of Sarah, Jonny, and Rolf.

A smile spread on his face as he knew that this meant a chance to teach. "Well then, why don't we all go over the basics again," he asked, "It could be good for all of you."

Eddy just groaned to that, and said "Oh c'mon! We just got here, and we know what to do. We don't need the basics."

"Well, you may not," Matti countered, "But perhaps they do."

"And in the meanwhile," Kevin said, his voice laced with confidence, "If you need me, I'm going to head out and catch some Pokemon." And without another word, he sped off on his bike, pedaling out into the route on his own.

"Wait, Kevin!" Nazz called out, "Where are you going!? I thought this was a group thing!"

"Don't worry, I'll meet up with you guys in Cherrygrove Town!" He yelled out, helping to solidify his excitement. And with that, he was out of sight in another second or two, leaving the rest of the crew in shock.

"Well, that happened," Matti noted, his tone almost uncaring, "Well, no use in bothering with it. Back to business."

"Wait, what?" Double D questioned, "You're not going to go after him!?"

Matti just shrugged. "He said he would meet us at Cherrygrove. I trust him to keep that promise." And hearing this, everyone just looked at each other, some confusion evident. Matti would just take Kevin's word at face value like that? Someone he never met before yesterday, and he was willing to trust him to meet up at a certain point?

He certainly did seem like a bit of an odd one thus far.

"Now, back to what I was saying," Matti told them, breaking their focus, "Before we move forward, you need to know of the different ways of finding Pokemon. As most of you have probably heard, wild Pokemon live in tall grass. But that isn't the only place. In fact, they can live pretty much anywhere.

"There are some Pokemon that can ambush from the sky, some that you can shake or headbutt out of trees, some that you can fish out of the water, or some you can even find in city just by having a good look."

And hearing that, Double D nearly jumped in amazement at the sound of that. "Intriguing," he declared, "I had always assumed it would be more difficult than that."

"You know what they say about assuming, don't you, Double D?" Eddy asked, before Ed butted in, and yelled, "It makes a donkey out of me and you!"

There was a pause, before Eddy said "He's not wrong."

"Wow, big shocker there," Sarah called out, but Eddy ignored it and turned to Matti. "So tell me Poindexter, what's the point of saying all of this?"

"Because I wanted to solidify the point that it is easy," he said casually, then pointing to a tree, "In fact, if I said 'Ed, use Headbutt on that tree', odds are we'd find a Pokemon on it."

*CRASH!*

Matti nearly jumped in shock at the sound, and looked over to see Ed's head embedded into the tree. He pulls it out, and everyone notices that the tree has a massive dent in it, before the tree falls over. And all Ed does in response to that is look over to his friends with a smile on his face. "There we go Matti," he said happily, "I did it!"

"Uh, Ed… I didn't mean that literally!" Matti exclaimed, "I was just giving an example!"

"Oh," Ed said, as if it was nothing.

"How did you do that anyway?"

"I just hit it with my head."

Matti wanted to say something, but at the same time, he was not too sure what to say to that. He could reasonably deduce that Ed had a thick skull (in more ways than one), but that just wasn't like anything he had expected.

"Well, uh…" he paused, before noticing something. "Ed, you're jacket seems to be moving. Looks like you may have just proven my point."

Confused, Ed looked back, trying to see what Matti is talking about, and not getting much of an answer, other than seeing a bit of rustling on the back of his jacket. When he turned around, every member of the group got a clear view of what was there.

"Oh no," Jimmy screamed, "A creepy crawly!"

The 'creepy crawly' in question was a green, arachnoid Pokemon, with large black eyes with white pupils, red mandibles, and a white horn on its head. It had six yellow legs, all of them with a dark green strip in the middle of them, and a similar dark green stripe on the end of its abdomen. And speaking of its abdomen, there were three dark green marks on the back of it, resembling a face. And judging by the expression of the face markings, the little guy was not very happy.

"A Spinarak," Matti pointed out, "How long has it been since I've seen one of those?"

"(How dare you mess with my tree)," the Spinarak said, "(You will pay for your actions!)" And without warning, it climbed up Ed's coat, and bit him right on the shoulder, its mandibles piercing through both his jacket, and the shirt underneath it.

Seeing this made Ed's friends all very worried. "What's it doing?" Ed questioned, his voice seeming slower, and almost intoxicated. "Ed, you have to get it off your shoulder," Matti said seriously, "It's poisoned you."

"Oh, that's why I can taste purple…"

Suddenly, Ed fell forward, leaving everyone terrified. "Don't worry," Matti calmed them, "It's not fatal. In fact, all it takes is a Pecha Berry from my stock, and he'll be fine. And in the meantime, one of you catch that Spinarak."

"Wait, what?" Sarah asked, "You want us to catch that ugly bug? Are you crazy?"

"It's obviously rather disgruntled, given what happened to its home," Matti told her while his back was turned, rummaging through his bag for something. "I think if we don't capture it, it might be a while before it calms down."

"(What)," Spinarak called out, looking at Matti from the side, "(You think you can just capture me!? I'd like to see you try!)" Everyone gave a confused stare at the little creature, not really sure what it said, other than hearing that it sounded angry.

"You know what," Double D said, pulling out his Pokeball from his side, "If it is a necessity to catch this Spinarak, I shall do it. Chikorita, standby for battle!" He threw his Pokeball into the air, and in a burst of light, out popped his little Chikorita.

"(Let's go)," she happily declared, "(I'll teach you to mess with my friends!)" Her intent was to intimidate a little, but it was clear that was not going to happen. The Spinarak just seemed to stare at her in annoyance. "(You will not get the chance)," it responded, "(I'll take you down)."

"Chikorita, use Tackle!"

On command, the little grass-type lunged forward, ready to throw her entire body weight into the attack. But unfortunately, that plan went south fast. The little Spinarak dodged to the side, leaving the little grass-type to fall flat on her face. When she got back up, she shook the dirt off, and looked over to see the spider Pokemon just looking at her in annoyance.

"(Is that the best you can do)," he said, "(That was such a pitiful attempt at a strike)." Hearing that made her feel a little worried. This was only her second battle as a Trainer's Pokemon, so she wasn't too sure of what to do. But even so, she planned to stand her ground the whole time.

While she was contemplating this, the Spinarak opened its mouth, and unleashed a purple spike that flew at Chikorita. It stuck her right in the side, and she felt a pain surge through her, as she was forced back. "Was that Poison Sting?" Double D questioned. "That looked rather strong for a Poison Sting…"

"It was," Matti called out, "That was a critical hit."

Double D jumped at hearing that, and realized that Chikorita was probably in pain. He was about to reach into his bag and grab something, but then he realized, he did not have any potions, or any healing items in general. "Oh dear, or dear," he rambled, "What do I do? I don't want her to faint in her second battle."

"(Don't worry about me)," Chikorita called out, looking back to her trainer, "(I'll be fine.)" Double D did not know what she was saying, but he felt like she was trying to reassure him.

"(Oh please)," Spinarak declared in annoyance, "(By the looks of it, one more well-placed poison sting, and you'll be going down)."

"(Not happening. I'll take you down.)"

"(Well let's see if you can even hit me then, if you're so sure of yourself.)"

Out of anger, she attempted another Tackle attack, only to reunite her face with the dirt. The Spinarak just looked at her in annoyance, and attempted to go for another Poison Sting. "Chikorita, dodge it, then use Tackle," she heard Double D call out. And on instinct, she did as commanded, narrowly dodging the attack, and actually hitting with an attack of her own.

"Okay, that's good," Double D said to himself, but in his mind he was thinking 'What do I do from here? I still can't heal her.'

"(Not bad)," the Spinarak responded, "(For a clumsy oaf)."

Normally, such comments really wouldn't affect Chikorita, but after that display, she wasn't necessarily feeling too sure. She had only landed one out of her last 3 hits, and it wasn't like this Spinarak had used Sand Attack or Double Team. He just moved out of the way, as if she were easy to predict.

"Don't worry, Chikorita," she heard Double D call, "I will make sure we win this!" Though judging by his tone of voice, even he didn't really believe that. This was going to be a challenge, and possibly one they will fail at.

"(Just stop trying)," Spinarak told her, "(You've essentially already lost.)"

"(No)," she told him back, "(I won't give in. You're just a wild Pokemon, and I won't lose to you.)"

"(Then come get me.)"

Chikorita really didn't have much of a response to that, other than attempting another tackle.

But Double D sure did have a response. He noticed as the battle was going on that the two Pokemon seemed to be doing more fighting than talking. 'And she's doing attacks without my orders,' he added mentally, 'Is the Spinarak insulting her or something?'

Naturally, this had him worried, as he continued to watch the two Pokemon argue, and Chikorita continue to reunite her face with the ground. It almost seemed like the Spinarak was toying with her. It hadn't thrown a move in a while.

'It seems distracted, almost,' Double D noted, 'Wait… that's it!' On instinct, he grabbed one of his five Pokeballs, and tried to line up his shot. Unfortunately, that was easier said than done, considering that it refused to sit still for a moment.

How in the heck was he supposed to get out of this?

"Are you done yet!?"

Everyone (the two Pokemon included) looked over, and saw Matti standing there, tapping his foot against the ground, impatiently. "This battle is taking far too long," He exclaimed, "We need to get a move on, so either catch this Spinarak, or let it go."

"(Well this battle wouldn't be going on if you didn't send that idiot)," the Spinarak hissed at him. Matti looked to it in annoyance and said "And as for you, either keep fighting or leave! I don't care which."

Everyone looked at Matti in confusion. Was he talking with that Spinarak?

"(Don't give me that garbage! My tree is gone! Where do you expect me to go!?)"

"There are other trees in the area. Don't YOU give me that garbage."

"(Shut up!)"

"You shut up!"

Seeing an opportunity, Double D broke the action, as his Pokeball hit the Spinarak on the back of its abdomen. A red energy surrounded it, as it was brought into the ball, which fell onto the ground. Everyone watched as it shook around.

Once…

Twice…

Three times…

Along with a snapping sound and a slight flash, confirming the capture.

"Fantastic," Double D said, "My first capture of the Johto region!" He grabbed the Pokeball with a sigh of satisfaction, compacted it, and placed it in his pocket. "Though in all honesty, that battle could have gone a bit smoother."

Matti simply sighed, and told him "I guess that's lesson 4. Wild Pokemon can be pretty crazy. You never know what will set them off. Or what will get them to react."

Double D nodded, but then remembers something. "Wait, what about Ed!? Is he alright?"

Matti nodded, and moved out of the way, to show Ed on the ground. Everyone looked in silence, and after a few moments, he started to stretch and yawn, before standing back up with a smile. "Hi guys," he said, "What'd I miss?"

"Double D caught a Spinarak," they heard Eddy declare, "And Matti was arguing with a Pokemon. Speaking of which…" he turned over to the professor, "How the heck did you do that?"

"I'll tell you later. For now…"

There was a dramatic pause as his eyes widened just slightly.

"Um…" He said, looking at them with confusion, "Where did Rolf and Jonny go?"

Everyone looked around, noticing that the two in question were missing. They had not even noticed them leave, and that made worry spread between them. They looked around in every direction, before looking back to Matti, who simply shrugged.

"Well, I guess that's our current mission," he declared, slamming the bottom of his fist against his palm, "Find Rolf and Jonny." He pointed out behind them, to a ledge, and said "Meet back there in an hour. Hopefully one of us has found them by then."

Everyone nodded and they went off their separate ways, looking for them. Meanwhile, Matti just stood there and smiled. 'Good to see their at least motivated,' he thought with satisfaction, 'Hopefully this will help them build up a little experience with the landscape.'

The search was not that good for anyone.

They had split apart into teams of three, the Eds going one way, and Sarah, Jimmy, and Nazz going the other. Though the forests were vast and the trees made it difficult for them to navigate. Needless to say, both groups had quite a bit of trouble.

With the Eds, they nearly got attacked by a horde of Spinarak, and considering Double D nearly got beat by one, they knew they were not particularly ready for that. Their instinct was to flee, and luckily, they made it out of there with minimal damage. But not five minutes after that, they ran into some Rattata, and were forced to run again to keep from getting attacked. They got no break, and by the time they were far enough away, they were exhausted.

As for Sarah, Jimmy, and Nazz, they each got a Rattata trying to gnaw at them at least once, and a Hoothoot or two trying to peck at them. They had also saw a Weedle in the distance, but considering their last two experiences, none of them wanted anything to do with that.

And throughout all of this, they got no clues as to where Rolf or Jonny went.

Heading back to Matti, they saw him returning right to the ledge, and pacing back and forth.

"Hey Professor," Eddy called out, "Any luck on finding those numbskulls?" He looked over to the group and shook his head no. "Unfortunately, I haven't seen them at all," he told them, crossing his arms in annoyance, "The search got us nowhere."

Everyone in the group groaned in annoyance, and Matti took notice to their irritation at this. 'It's almost enough to make me want to tell them,' he thought, before hearing a sound in the distance. 'Almost.'

"What was that?" he questioned, as the sound resonated once again, this time loud enough for them to discern where it came from. It sounded like someone screaming 'Slahorn' out northwest of where they currently were. Eddy looked over in that direction, and told them "That sounds like Rolfy-boy! He must have headed out to Route 46!"

"We should probably catch up to him," Double D added in, "Separating our group too much is bound to end badly."

"Do we have to," Sarah questioned in annoyance, "We should be getting a move on. I'm getting sick of this route."

Everyone just looked back at her, before Matti told her "Well then, let's not waste our time on voicing our annoyance on this place. Let's move."

Without warning, Matti ran back to the ledge he was standing by, and jumped up, effortlessly getting up onto the higher ground. The Eds looked dumbstruck. "You can climb those," Double D asked in shock, to which Matti replied with "Jeez, what kind of limits did these 'games' place on you? If you have the athletic ability, then climbing these is easy."

Hearing that, Eddy grabbed Ed and told him "Give us a boost up, Lumpy!"

The oaf of the group did as told, throwing Eddy up, and then grabbing Double D and doing the same. He was about to climb up himself, before Sarah yelled at him to take Jimmy and her up as well. Out of natural fear, he did so, letting the two younger kids up as well. And lastly, since Nazz was there, she asked nicely, and Ed helped her out.

Then, he grabbed the side, and pulled himself up.

"Alright, we've just skipped a good patch of tall grass, meaning we can catch up to the Rolf before he gets a move on," Matti told them, as another loud cry could be heard, "Let's not miss a beat. It sounds like whatever he's doing is still going on."

Everyone replied wordlessly, and the party began to move forward. First, they all avoided the large, rectangular patch of tall grass, making their way over to the other patch closer to the gate that led over to Route 46. It was a much longer walk than they had assumed it to be, and they were lucky to move without running into many Pokemon, and they made it through the tall grass without much hassle (other than tripping once or twice).

And by the time the gate was in their sights, they heard a cry of despair. Rushing over, they were met with the source of the cry:

Kevin, on his knees, with scraps of metal in front of him.

"Kevin," Nazz called out, running over to him, "What happened!? Are you alright?"

"No! I'm not," he declared, misery evident in his voice, "He broke me! He broke my bike! And he broke my Charmander!"

"Who did?"

Kevin paused, and told her "I didn't get his name. But he was a downright nasty S.o.B."

He looked over to the others, and asked where Rolf and Jonny were. "That's what we were trying to figure out," Double D told him, "But clearly we ran into something else important. What happened?" As he said this, he surveyed Kevin, noticing the bruises on his body.

"There I was, minding my business, when suddenly, this jerk showed up, and challenged me to a battle. I threw out my Charmander, and I thought I had this. But then the guy pulls out a Mightyena out of nowhere, and I lose so quickly!"

He paused and covered his face with his hands.

"And when I'm about to leave, he starts talking this spiel about 'taking something as a prize', and when I tell him I don't have any cash on me, he starts going on again, saying something about paying in blood or some crap like that! And when I try to get away, he sicks his damn mutt on me!

"I got hit into the tree, and knocked out. And when I woke up…"

He paused, looking down and nearly tearing up. Everyone immediately realized that those were the scraps of his bike. Even Matti, who had not known him for too long, had an understanding that he cared for that bike quite a bit. Most figured letting him mourn a little was at least proper, but among them, one member thought maybe now would be the time to lighten the mood.

"Well I guess that means you're stuck with us," Eddy told him with a light chuckle, "That's one person found, at least." But those words fell on deaf ears, as Kevin stood up, taking a deep breath. "I guess I had it coming," he said sadly, "I went off so far ahead of the group and all that."

"Nonsense," Matti told him consolingly, "You had no idea that something like that could happen to you. All you can do is try to move forward from it. Now let's see if we can't regroup with the rest of them."

"Rest of who?"

Looking back, Matti's only thought was 'Speak of the Devil, and the Devil shall appear.'

There, standing behind them was the son of a shepherd himself, a simple grin on his face and a Pokeball in hand. "Hello there Ed-boys, Matti-boy, and others," he said, "Rolf was just exploring this vast land to see if he could find any more of these 'Pocket Monsters'."

"So I could figure," Matti told him, "Find anything good?"

"You tell Rolf."

From behind his back, he pulled out a small grey Pokemon, similar in shape to a big stone, with bulging rocky eyebrows, narrow brown eyes, and two muscular arms, each with five blocky fingers. It stared at the group with a stern look, as Rolf brought it back behind him.

With a single scream of "Ishlahalg!" He threw the Pokemon right over to the group. A couple of them flinched, worried they were going to get hit, but among them, the researcher held out his hands to catch it. Matti did stop it by doing this, but as he caught it, the weight forced his arms down to fall to the ground.

"Oy vey," he cried out, "I forgot how dense Geodude can be. Always catches me off guard." With little effort, he picked the small rock Pokemon, and handed it back to Rolf. "How did you get that anyway?"

Rolf's expression changed to one of incredible satisfaction, as he remembered what happened.

There they were, locked in the truest struggle of strength, finesse, and leverage, that many men have been thrown into for generation upon generation…

The noblest of pursuits, the most challenging of challenges, and the greatest adversity for any man…

"An impressive grip, small rock with arms," Rolf declared with energy in his voice, "But you shall not best the son of a Shepherd!"

"Geodude!"

The arm wrestle.

Currently, Rolf was on the losing end, the Geodude having surprising strength for something with no grounding. Rolf did everything he could to push against it, but he was still losing just slightly. But then, he saw it…

Turning his hand just slightly, he gained leverage on the Geodude, and started to push its hand toward the ground below them. Even starting to lose its ground, the Geodude still continued to struggle, trying to gain back its lost ground, and still fought with vigor.

"This is the end, small rock with arms! SLAHORN!"

With the war cry sounded, Rolf pushed with all his might, and the Geodude's arm crashed into the ground, affirming Rolf as the winner of their little contest.

"A mighty challenger you were indeed, small rock with arms," Rolf said happily, "But Rolf rarely loses in contests of strength. And as such, you remember the terms of our little agreement, no?"

The Geodude nodded, and Rolf pulled out a Pokeball from his trouser pocket, remembering what he saw Double D do during his battle with the Spinarak. The Geodude moves forward wordlessly, and placed its fist against the button. A red energy enveloped the rock Pokemon, before pulling it into the ball. It shook a few times in Rolf's hands, before making a snapping sound, thereby confirming a capture.

A sigh of contentment escaped Rolf's mouth. "The first milestone on Rolf's journey has been reached," he said aloud, to no one but himself really, "Now, he has a new Pocket Monster as ally!"

The memory was deeply satisfying, but as he was sure they would not believe him, he just settled with saying "Found it."

Matti smiled at this. In truth, he had seen Rolf and Jonny walk off, but since everyone was so focused on the battle, it seemed he was the only one who noticed. He could have told the group, but he realized this would be the perfect opportunity to see their hustle. So, he played the fool, and pretended like he knew nothing. But luckily, it seemed to work out for the better, as they made some progress on the route, and Rolf got a new Geodude.

"Well, that's two mysteries out of three solved," he told them contently, "Now all we need to do is find Jonny, and the party will be complete again."

"Oh, Jonny the Wood Boy," Rolf questioned, "Rolf saw him as he was leaving. He told me to tell you 'he would meet up with you in the next town'." Upon hearing that, the Professor groaned in annoyance, exasperated from the turn of events.

"This was not how I expected the first day to be," he said, before letting out a tired chuckle, "But at least we can say your first day here was something else." He turned back around, and told them "Well, let's get a move on, then. Route 1 of any journey is usually never that interesting."

"Are you basically saying Ed getting POISONED is the least of our worries," Eddy exclaimed in shock and annoyance, "Jeez, this is a lot different from what I thought."

"Get used to it," Matti told him, "Now let's get a move on. The day is still young, and we could get to Cherrygrove within the next hour and a half."

"Hour and a half," Sarah complained. He just chuckled and told her, "That is, of course, calculating the average chance of being jumped by a wild Pokemon, especially with such a large group of travelers. If we miraculously run into nothing, then that estimate could be cut in half."

Sarah groaned in annoyance. "I just want to be done with this route already. Nothing cool has happened."

"Oh funny," Eddy said snarkily, "I figured you of all people would have enjoyed the idea of seeing Ed poisoned!"

"Shut it, Fishface! I don't want to hear it!"

"Well, I don't want to hear your stupid mouth!"

They were about to go at it, and everyone could tell. This normally happened when Eddy and Sarah were in each other's vicinity for too long, and it usually ended with a bout of yelling. Both Ed and Double D were ready to intervene, and would have too.

"Don't start, you two!"

At least if not for the fact that they had someone there to do it for them.

"Look, now is not the time to deal with your trivialities," Matti told them, "If you two are gonna go at it, wait until we're at the PMC. Then you can make it a Pokemon battle, instead of a fistfight, like I can tell you want to."

No one knew what to make of that, though. The way he said it implied impatience, though what he said implied that he didn't really care, so long as they had an excuse. It was as if he was condoning it, but behind closed doors.

"Wait, you're just gonna let them go at it?" Nazz asked, "That seems a little irresponsible, dude." To that, Matti shrugged, and said "They're likely to go at it regardless of what I say. So all I'm going to ask is for them to wait until they're somewhere where they can heal their Pokemon."

There was a brief silence, before Kevin said "You're a weird dude. You know that?"

"So I've been told. Now let's hustle. Cherrygrove awaits."

Without so much as another word, he headed forward, leaving the Cul-De-Sac kids to follow.

The walk was not necessarily the hardest thing in the world, but they were getting to be annoyed with it. The morning sun beating down their backs was already pretty irritating, but the fact that they were forced to stop often.

There was no avoiding that other patch of tall grass, and they were forced to fight quite a few Pokemon who seemed intent on hindering their travel. The battles weren't necessarily hard, and it was decent experience, but many Pokemon in the team were left with some form of damage. And to make it worse, Matti alerted them that he apparently forgot to stock up on Potions. So for right now, they have to make it through, and fight extremely sparingly.

There were only about three Pokemon among the group who were not injured, and that was Matti's Torchic, Ed's Totodile, and Rolf's Geodude (two out of those three being because of sheer dumb luck). And considering how much they'd been through already, the group decided to take a moment to rest. They let out their Pokemon, and just sat and enjoyed the moment of peace.

"Jeez," Eddy said aloud, "This was crazy. I'm surprised we made it out so easily."

"You're telling me," Kevin agreed, "And here I thought this was gonna be easy. I guess we really didn't know what we signed up for."

"Yeah, but at least it's been interesting so far."

"I'm still amazed by all this. I never would have imagined I'd be here. It's awesome."

Eddy chuckled. "And here I thought you were just a typical jock." Kevin looked at him with confusion, and asked "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Well, the fact that you're here was a huge shocker," Eddy told him, a hint of smugness to his tone. "I always would have thought you were a fan of… oh I don't know, Ultimate Fighting or Football games on TV. But Pokemon? That thought would have never crossed my mind."

Kevin deadpanned. "Really? You just thought I wouldn't have a side besides sports?"

"What can I say, you just never stuck me as that kinda guy. That's why I never brought it up."

Kevin thought for a moment on that. Eddy's words did have a bit of merit to them. He was a bit more of an active kind of person anyways, usually riding his bike everywhere, and playing basketball and football. What could he really say in response to that? It was kind of true.

"Well, I'm here, Dorky," he decided to say, his expression conveying amusement, "And I'm afraid that you guys are stuck with me. So get used to losing to me a lot."

A bit of competitive spark entered his mind as he heard that. "Is that a challenge, Shovelchin!?" He exclaimed with a smirk, "Because if it is, then next time we battle, I plan to beat you into the ground!"

Kevin laughed, "Well, good luck with that, because I'm a lot better at Pokemon then I've let on. And hopefully, I can get my Charmander to listen to me in the meantime."

They shared a laugh about that, before Eddy realized something. "Speaking of which, where is your Charmander?"

Meanwhile, in the distance, the Pokemon in question was sitting on a ledge and looking up to the sky, annoyance blatantly plastered on his face. As it stared up to the clouds above, he let out a low growl. "(That stupid Mightyena)," he said in anger, "(I can't believe how dumb that was)."

The memory was burned into Charmander's mind, as he remembered the fight. Though in all honesty, it could barely even be called that. All he had been able to do against that damn Mightyena was scratch once. It barely even did any damage, before the Mightyena used Bite, and the battle was done.

In all honesty, Charmander felt like it was robbed. Just because that trainer had a big dumb mutt, Kevin had to lose. "(It's so uncool)," he said out loud, "(Next time I see that damn mutt, I'll beat it into the ground)!"

While he was thinking this, he heard a couple of light footsteps behind him. On instinct, he turned back, and readied his claws to attack, but a twinge of pain ran through him. His injuries still weren't healed, and it showed.

But he realized it was Cyndaquil, so he didn't need to be too worried. It came close, holding a small blue fruit, which Charmander recognized as an Oran Berry. Confusion was his first thought, but Cyndaquil looked at him, before laying the berry down.

"(What the heck is this)," Charmander asked, his voice probably a little louder than necessary. Cyndaquil shrunk back just slightly, before telling him "(Y-you looked to be in pain. I wanted to help)."

In truth, as he looked at the berry, he felt the twinge of pain in his side, right from where he got bit. In all honesty, that was painful, and he was just glad that the professor guy had a Revive he was capable of sparing, otherwise he would have been fainted. But still, he did not want to take the berry. It was beneath him to accept from a weaker Pokemon.

"(I don't need your handouts)," he growled in annoyance, expecting Cyndaquil to cower at the anger in his voice, "(I can handle myself)."

"(Even if you can, you're going to need your strength)," Cyndaquil told him, his voice calm and not shaky in the slightest, "(This will help)."

"(I said I don't need your handouts)!"

Charmander had completely expected Cyndaquil to back off because of that, but what he saw surprised him so much. Cyndaquil was completely undaunted, and seemed to stand a little taller, as if trying to look him in the eyes.

"(You need your strength)," Cyndaquil said, this time sounding very serious, "(This will help)."

"(What are you, my mother)?"

"(I just want to make sure everyone isn't hurt. And like it or not, you're a part of everyone)."

As much as Charmander wanted to come up with some kind of insult for that, he really couldn't. He had never really seen this side of Cyndaquil before, but he had to admit, there was something about it that he didn't hate seeing.

He and Cyndaquil weren't necessarily friends or anything like that, but a display of hidden strength is always satisfying. It's not too often that people don't relent against him, so he figured he'd play along. And besides that, it was free food. So who was he really to complain?

"(Alright, you little coward)," he said, picking up the berry off the ground, "(I'll take this little berry of yours. I do need to keep up my strength)."

Cyndaquil seemed to smile a knowing smile. "(Glad to see you're seeing things my way)."

To that, Charmander glared. "(Don't push it)."

And Cyndaquil did not push it at all. He just left without another word, and the little Fire-type was alone again, as he liked to be. Looking at the small blue fruit, he almost gave a genuine smile. Even though he had been mean to that little bugger, Cyndaquil was willing to look out for him, and even bring him a berry from somewhere.

But as he thought on this, he chuckled. "(That little coward is way too trusting)," he said to himself, "(I could just throw this berry out, and he'd be none the wiser. Not only that, but he would have wasted all his time trying to make nice)." It was almost comedic to the young Fire-type, and he was almost tempted to do that.

But as he thought of that, he realized a fact about the situation. If he did that, what would he really be proving? It's not like anyone was around to watch him or for him to make a message. It was just him and that berry, and frankly, he was getting sick of looking at it. So, he started to eat. At least if it was in his gut, he wouldn't have to stare at it anymore.

Cyndaquil walked back over and was greeted by his fellow Johto Starters. Both Chikorita and Totodile gave him a hug, and asked him where he had been. "(Just finishing up some unfinished business)," he smiled, glad to have met with his friends, "(I was hoping that would pass enough time for us to get moving once again)."

"(Unfortunately, not the case)," Totodile said, "(But the sun is barely overhead, so we've still got a few hours before things get bad)." A sigh escaped the little Water-type, as he looked over to the other Pokemon in the group. Everyone was having a conversation here or there, planning out battles, or simply enjoying the fresh air.

"(This is all very good)," Totodile said with contentment, "(It is amazing to see all of us gathered in one place. I've never seen so many gathered in one place)."

"(It is quite the pleasant experience, no)?"

Looking over for the source of that one, Totodile and the others saw Rolf's new Geodude approaching. He came down to about face level with the three Pokemon, and smiled a simple smile. "(Greetings)," he said happily, "(I am Geodude, the new Pokemon to Rolf)."

"(Totodile. Pleased to make your acquaintance)." He extended his hand, which the Rock type graciously shook. Totodile noted how Geodude's grip was firm, leading to a very fine handshake. "(So, being that you are the newest member of the group)," Totodile asked, "(What say you to a little friendly competition? Being able to stretch our combative muscles would be fantastic)."

But for a moment, Geodude just seemed to stare at him blankly. "(You speak with very large words, small blue one)," he said, "(And while I did not completely understand you, I assume you seek a battle)?" Totodile nodded fervently at that.

And without another word, both headed off to get their trainers. Ed and Rolf were both having a pleasant conversation, when their Pokemon came up, both jumping and saying something. The two had no idea exactly what, but there was an inkling there. "I think our Pokemon want to battle, Rolf," Ed said, "You want to?"

Rolf shrugged, and said "Rolf just got the rock with arms. He has not even had time to give it the traditional salute." To that, the other two Eds nodded, knowing Rolf was all about tradition. He had saluted his Bulbasaur as soon as he had gotten it, but being that he probably wanted to get back, he must have waited.

"Well, whatever the case," Double D told him, "The experience might be good for a new team member. The Experience Points will most certainly help it in catching up to your starter."

Rolf pondered on that for a moment. He did not know what these 'Experience Points' Double D was talking about were, but it sounded like it was a good idea. He knew Double D was smart on the subject of… well, everything, so it was probably in his best interest to pay attention.

"Very well then. Rolf shall accept the challenge of thick-in-the-dome Ed-boy. Send your small blue Pocket Monster at him!"

The two new trainers took their Pokemon and went a good 30 feet away from each other. Each one smiled, as Ed called for a judge, to which Double D answered. Every member of the group watched as the two Pokemon stood before their trainers.

"The battle between Ed and Rolf shall now commence," Double D declared loudly, "Each trainer shall battle with one Pokemon, and the battle shall end when one trainer's Pokemon is unable to battle! Ed, are you ready?"

"I'm good, Double D!"

"Rolf, are you ready?"

"Rolf is prepared, Double D Ed-boy!"

Both Totodile and Geodude stared at each other, waiting for a command. The other Cul-De-Sac kids went and gathered around, willing to at least watch. Well… all except Sarah.

"Um, Sarah," Jimmy called out, "Aren't you going to watch?"

"Heck no! I've seen enough battles for one day," she said in annoyance, "And besides that, I don't want to watch my idiot brother when I know he's gonna lose!"

"Wow, talk about little faith," Eddy said, "Kick his butt, Lumpy!"

Ed nodded, and everyone waited. While they were, Matti showed back up and joined the audience. When asked about this, he answered that he was just taking a walk. "So I see a battle was planned while I was gone," he said, "Looks like this might be an interesting one."

"Indeed it will be," Double D said, "Now, if there are no interruptions, let the battle commence!"

Ed wasted no time. "Totodile, use Scratch!"

The small Water-type did as commanded, and rushed the Rock-type with a scratch attack. However, being that it was a Normal move against a Rock Pokemon, it did not do much damage, evidenced by how Geodude barely moved.

"Alright, Rolf," Ed said happily, "It's your turn?"

"Ok. Um… small rock with arms, what can you do?"

That cued an anime-fall from every member of the crew, who simply could not believe that. As Double D stood back up, he had to question it. "Rolf, how is it that you do not know your own Pokemon's move list?"

He shrugged. "Rolf was not told what the moves are, or how to find out what the moves are." Double D groaned at that. "Well, I guess I'll help you out with that one," he said, thinking for a moment, "If it was caught on Route 46, then it should be about… Level 4, if memory serves? So that would me-"

"It knows Tackle and Defense Curl."

Everyone looked over, and saw Matti, with his Pokedex out, staring at it, intently. When he saw their look of curiosity, he showed to them what he was looking at. On the screen was Geodude's image, and held a detailed summary of the Pokemon.

Geodude

LV3

Ability: Rock Head

Moves: Tackle, Defense Curl

Everyone was confused, and that made Matti smile. Another chance to explain something. "At any time, if you have a Pokedex, you can do a scan on a Pokemon," he told them, "It might be a little different on the Johto Dex, but all you really have to do is find the 'options' button, pick scan, and voila."

"It's that easy," Rolf questioned.

"Yeah. Do you not know how to use a Pokedex?"

"Rolf does not know how to use this newfangled livestock moving paper thingamahoosey!"

Matti looked away for a moment. "Right," he mumbled, "Stupid question."

"Gee willikers," Jimmy said, "So we can just check any Pokemon's personal info at any time?"

"Well, not always, and not any Pokemon. It requires the Pokemon to be stationary for at least a few seconds, and it can only be done to your own?"

"Wait, then how the heck did you do it?" Eddy asked. Matti just chuckled, and said "Professors get special Dexes. Just a little privilege to help with research. Now, is that all you needed to know?"

Rolf nodded, and looked over to Ed, who was looking away at a tree. "Bundt-cake-for-brain Ed-boy, are you ready to continue this battle of Pocket Monsters?" Ed looked back, and said "Yeah, sorry. I just thought I saw something in the tree."

"Then let us continue. Armed rock, Tackle into the blue beast!"

"(Very well then)," Geodude complied, beginning to charge, "(Prepare yourself, small blue beast)!" Totodile waited, expecting for his trainer to call for Water Gun, knowing that it only took one for the battle to end. But instead…

"Totodile, use Leer!"

That shocked Totodile. Ed was calling for Leer instead of Water Gun? But why?

While he was thinking on this, Geodude rammed into him, and he was forced back. "(Whatever the case)," Totodile declared, "(I'm not one to disobey orders)." He glared at the Geodude in an intimidating way, seeing the blue aura surround it, confirming the Defense drop.

"Now use Scratch!"

"(As you comma- wait, what!? Scratch?)"

Totodile was dumbfounded by that, to the point where he had to turn back and question why Ed was thinking of using something like that. But the moment he turned around, he heard Rolf call for another Tackle. Luckily, Ed called "Dodge, then use Scratch!"

He was confused, and slightly irritated by it, but he did as commanded, barely avoiding the Tackle, and swiping at the hard surface of the Geodude with his claws. Once again, he could tell the damage was minimal, but it looked like Geodude felt the hit a little more.

"(A valiant effort, little blue one)," Geodude said to his opponent, "(But I do not intend to lose)!"

"Use Tackle!"

"Scratch!"

This went on a couple more times, and Totodile was starting to get tired of this dance, of just scratching and tackling at each other. Occasionally a Leer would be called, but that still didn't change the fact that this was going on forever. Ed apparently did not know that he had Water Gun, and he knew this battle would go on forever if it kept going like this.

As he was thinking on that, he got hit with a particularly strong tackle, which sent him back. He was certain that it was a critical hit, and the crowd's gasp confirmed it. "You're Totodile isn't looking good, Ed," he heard Double D call out, "You need to be careful!"

And there it was. They would lose if he kept going like this. He had to convey the message somehow.

"(Ed)," he called out, turning back to his trainer, "(Call me to use Water Gun)!"

He looked at his Totodile, and said "Aw, are you hungry?"

"(No)," he retorted, this time a little louder, "(Water Gun)!"

"I'll feed you after the battle, I promise. For now, use Scratch!"

"(Oh for Arceus' sake)!"

Deciding that it was better if he did it himself, he forced a stream of water from his mouth at the Geodude. Ed gasped at that, but Rolf seemed to be a little more prepared. "Avoid it, small rock with arms, then Tackle!" And avoid it did, only to hit him with another Tackle, this time hitting him right in the chest. Totodile was forced back, and fell to the ground, the pain starting to get to him.

"He could use Water Gun the whole time!?" Ed asked, confirming it to Totodile that he did not know the whole time. "(I see)," he said to himself, "(He could not understand the message I wanted to convey)." And then, he fell down and fainted.

"Totodile is unable to battle," Double D said, with a bit of shock laced in his tone, "The winner is Geodude, and as such, the Victory goes to Rolf!"

At hearing this, the Geodude roared what sounded like a battle cry, and unleashing mud from its hands into the sky. Everyone saw that, and tried to avoid the mud. Which they did, but that didn't help with the confusion of it.

"Looks like Geodude leveled up," Matti clarified for them, "That's Mud Sport if I've ever seen it."

Rolf smiled, coming over to his Geodude and extending his hand out. "Excellent work, small rock with arms! You have proven how useful you are." The Geodude accepted, before Rolf pulled out the Pokeball. "Return to your new compact home. Rolf shall call of you when needed."

Once returned, Ed looked at his Totodile. He wasn't sure what he was feeling right now. Confusion? Disappointment? Something else negative? He was not too sure. All he knew is that he felt something. "That whole time, Totodile could use Water Gun," he said, "But I didn't know." He returned his Pokemon, and felt a feeling of dissatisfaction at losing his first battle against a trainer.

He felt stupid.

"I told you Ed was going to lose," they heard a smug sounding voice say, "But you wouldn't listen."

Everyone looked over to Sarah immediately, and there was a collective glare from them, which was enough to make her shut her mouth. From the group, Double D and Eddy came over to Ed. "Cheer up, Lumpy," Eddy told him, "It was a really good battle. You got nothing to feel bad about."

Hearing that made some of their eyes widen. They had never seen Eddy be consoling to anyone, and it was kind of shocking.

"Thanks Eddy," Ed said, "But still, I lost."

"That is fine, Ed. You still showed a good amount of skill," Double D said, "And besides that, you had fun, didn't you?"

Ed nodded.

"Well, that is the most important part."

"Amen to that."

Matti came over, and offered a small yellow crystalline item to the oaf. "Go ahead and use a revive," he told him, "We may be near Cherrygrove, but that doesn't mean battles can't happen within that short walk."

"Oh?"

Matti smiled, and told him, "Come on. Get back up from this one. It's not like one loss is anything to get riled up about. You're just starting out, so some losses are going to come here and there."

Ed took the item, and asked "Why didn't I know about Totodile learning Water Gun?"

"Well that's an easy one," the Professor told him, "He didn't do anything to indicate that he learned it. Normally a Pokemon will show off the move when they get it, much like Geodude did with Mud Sport just moments ago. And since you didn't know how to use the scan mode, there really wasn't any way for you to know, unless you wanted to ask me to make sure."

Ed looked at the Pokeball in his hand questioningly. "They are supposed to show off that they learned a new move?"

"Yep."

"Then why didn't he?"

"My guess is he just assumed you knew. But again, you said it yourself what assuming does." Matti gave a light chuckle at that one, remembering Ed's donkey quote. Then suddenly, his expression got serious for a moment. "That being said, you can't slack off either. You have to make sure you understand your Pokemon as well as it understands you. Right now, you can't catch onto a word it's saying, but you need to learn."

"Matti," Double D interjected, "Are you sayi-"

"Lesson Five: Communication is important."

Every member of the group nodded, no one having anything really to say to that.

"You want me to talk to a pet?"

Well, almost.

"You're absolutely crazy," Sarah said, "Why the heck would we talk to animals? It's not like we can understand what they're saying."

"Were you not there when I argued with Double D's new Spinarak earlier?" Matti retorted. "It is completely possible to understand them. It's just all about if you want to."

"You're just insane."

"So I've been told."

He stood up, pointing to the road just below the ledge. As they followed his finger, they saw the small town that they were supposed to be heading to. "Just follow me down this path a little further, and we'll be in Cherrygrove. From there, we're going to take a little break."

No one questioned him, and they all just started running, heading down the ledge and toward the town.

To this, Matti internally laughed. 'They certainly are excited to get out of this route,' he said to himself, 'Though I must admit, this was decently fun. It's nice to have travelling companions.' But as he replayed today's events in his mind, he remembered how crazy it got in only an hour or two. It wasn't even noon yet, and yet, they had already had their knowledge on Pokemon put to the test.

'It's clear they need to learn to differentiate fantasy from reality. Whatever these 'games' did, it must have colored their perception on how this would work if they ever made it here.'

Though as he replayed the image of seeing their satisfaction at some of the things they accomplished, he realized that they were already doing okay.

'We've got a long way to go… but we're doing alright.'

Matti

Caesar

-Torchic

-Male

-Level 5

-Moves: Scratch, Growl

Ed

Totodile

-Male

-Level 5

-Moves: Scratch, Leer

Double D

Chikorita

-Female

-Level 7

-Moves: Tackle, Growl, Razor Leaf

Spinarak

-Male

-Level 4

-Moves: Poison Sting, String Shot, Constrict

Eddy

Cyndaquil

-Male

-Level 5

-Moves: Tackle, Leer

Kevin

Charmander

-Male

-Level 6

-Moves: Scratch, Growl

Rolf

Bulbasaur

-Male

-Level 6

-Moves: Tackle, Growl

Geodude

-Male

-Level 4

-Moves: Tackle, Defense Curl, Mud Sport

Nazz

Squirtle

-Male

-Level 5

-Moves: Tackle, Tail Whip

Sarah

Tepig

-Female

-Level 5

-Moves: Tackle, Tail Whip

Jimmy

Oshawott

-Male

-Level 5

-Moves: Tackle, Tail Whip