Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon and Harry Potter

Summary: Had you told Valkyrie 'Vali' Rosebud Potter that she'd end up transported to another world as a Eight year old due to an outburst of accidental magic mixing horribly with a patronus charm, time turner, and the presence of dementors, she would've considered it for a few moments before saying that her luck wasn't that bad. Of course, she would be underestimating just how much the Potter family luck could possibly do in situations like this. As a result, Vali ended up in another world filled with odd creatures. Thankfully, she had Sirius with her and they managed to survive with a little help. Sirius gained a wife and she gained a mother and brother. Having to adjust to pokemon wasn't that hard, she was actually eager to become a trainer. A life of adventure, companionship, and so much else? Sign her up. Dealing with criminal organizations, legendaries, and harsh realities? Not so much. Rated M to be safe.

BloodyKitsune1997: I am not abandoning my other stories. Updates will be sparse with this story. Hope you guys enjoy this as much as my other two stories

Chapter one

Vali groaned softly as she slowly came to feeling far colder than she had been moments before. She could remember the terrifying moment that the time-turner shattered against her skin as her flickering patronus turned into a supernova due to the intense amount of magic she'd conjured up due to her panic at the thought of losing the only family member that seemed to care for her. She took a deep breath and winced as sharp chilly air hit her lungs. Shivering, Vali opened her emerald green eyes and gasped softly. The world was covered in a blanket of white snow. She heard a low groan from near her and turned her head to see Sirius slowly sitting up. She watched his eyes scan the world around them and widen as she struggled to deal with the massive amount of emotions swirling through her. Sirius' eyes settled on her and he gasped out, "Pup?"

"S-Sir-" Vali cut herself off as she heard the soft and definitly childish voice that definitly didn't belong to a thirteen nearly fourteen year old girl.

"Pup, you look younger," Sirius told her with wide eyes.

Vali felt panic start to rise above the mass of swirling emotions. She felt tears prick at her eyes with as her throat tightened. She struggled to keep it back, but a strangled sob worked it's way through her throat. She felt arms wrap around her and lift her into a hug. She burrowed her head into Sirius' neck as she struggled with her emotions, "Siri..."

"Let it out, Pup," He shushed her, "Just let it out,"

The words she'd always wanted to hear, but had never heard before caused her to finally let loose the tears she'd kept back for most of her life. Sirius murmured soothing words of comfort and rocked her gently. When the tears slowly came to a stop and her sobs died to soft hiccups, Vali pushed against Sirius' shoulders and shivered softly as she looked around them, "W-where are we?"

"I have no idea," Sirius looked around as well, "But we'll figure it out,"

Vali nodded slowly while sniffling softly, "O-okay."

Sirius frowned as he put her down and slowly stood up while looking around, "Let's start by finding some sort of civilization and get somewhere warm to stay for the night though we should probably change into something warmer."

"Yeah," Vali rubbed at her eyes, "How?"

Sirius stuck his hands into his pockets before drawing out a wand that she recognized to be Professor Lupin's. He waved it and frowned as it only sparked weakly, "That's not good, but it will work for now."

Once they were both dressed in something better suited to the cold weather and Vali's wand was secured in a bag that Sirius carried, they set out in a random direction.

Delia Ketchum was making her way home with Professor Oak carrying her two year old son. The snow was coming down heavily and the Professor hadn't thought it would be a good idea for them to go home alone. The Professor's Arcanine walked with them providing warmth and light. Arcanine stopped walking for a moment and let out a whine causing Professor Oak to frown, "Arcanine, what's wrong?"

The canine let out a whine and paced slightly earning concerned looks from the two conscious humans, "Professor?"

"Let's check it out, it's probably a pokemon that got caught outside," Professor Oak decided before turning to his pokemon, "Arcanine, show us what's bothering you,"

The pokemon took off with them following him. Soon enough, the large fire type was digging in the snow and breathing out a few embers to melt the snow. Delia let out a gasp as she realized what the fire type had found, "People! Professor!"

"Quickly Arcanine, dig them out," The Professor took out a few pokeballs and released the pokemon inside, "Charizard, we have two people unconscious in the snow. Help Arcanine get them out. Alakazam, take Delia and Ash home before coming back here. We need to get these two out of the snow and to the lab,"

Delia wanted to protest, but knew she needed to get Ash inside quickly. Alakazam nodded slowly and reached out towards the two humans as Charizard began helping to melt the snow while taking great care to avoid burning the humans currently laying in it unconcious. Delia looked at the Professor and said, "Tell me what happens."

"I will," The Professor promised, "Now go,"

Delia inwardly sighed, but nodded to the powerful psychic-type.

As Vali slowly floated within the blissful serenity and warmth of her unconsciousness, she got flashes of what had happened before she'd ended up in this black abyss. Snow had begun to fall as Sirius and her had tried to find civilization. She had begun to get tired the more she walked. It seemed like the snow was sapping her strength with each step along with any warmth in her body. Eventually, she couldn't walk any longer and Sirius had picked her up after she'd stumbled for the fourth time. Even without any contact with the snow save for what was falling, the strength in her body was being sapped alongside the warmth with each breath of the chilled air. With each breath she took, knives of cold air stabbed into her lungs until it felt like she couldn't breath.

She couldn't remember anything after that and wondered what had happened to Sirius. Panic disrupted the serenity and she began to struggle to awaken. Sirius, what had happened? Did he get hurt? Eventually, she managed to pull herself from unconsciousness. She struggled to open her eyelids which felt like lead. Once she managed it, Vali found herself staring at a dark ceiling and turned her head slowly to see that the entire room was dark. The only source of light in the entire room came from a thin crack under the door. Slowly struggling to sit up, Vali tried not to cry out at the pain that ran through her as she moved her lead filled limbs. She had to take a small break once she sat up because of how tired she felt from that simple movement. Eventually, she managed to regain her strength and began moving towards the edge of the bed.

A soft cry left her as her body impacted the ground and pain ran through her limbs. She stayed there for a few moments as she tried to push back the tears that gathered in her eyes from the pain. As soon as the pain faded away enough, she worked on picking herself up and began the slow stumbling walk towards the door. She leaned against the wall beside it for a few moments to take a few deep deep breaths and regain the strength it had taken her to reach this point. She listened for any sound and couldn't find anything. She looked at the door handle and reached up to grab it. Twisting the handle, she carefully pulled open the door and flinched as bright light assaulted her eyes. Shutting them, she waited for the brightness to become less painful before opening them again to take in the world outside the room.

She found herself in a hallway. Rich looking brown wood covered the floor and a small portion of the wall. Cream colored paint covered the walls where paintings or photos didn't. She looked down the hallway and spotted a door. Moving towards it, she was almost halfway there when something spoke. It didn't come from a discernible direction which made her stiffen, "Child, you should be resting. My master had the lizard and the dog free you from the snow in order to provide medical care. Do not waste his efforts."

"Sirius," Vali murmured, "Where is Sirius?"

The voice took on a softer tone and Vali could pick out vaguely feminine hints to it, "The odd man that was with you is in another room. Will you rest if I take you to see him?"

Vali nodded as rapidly as she could, "Y-yes. Please, I need to see Sirius."

The voice spoke in a resigned tone, "Very well. I will take you to the odd man before returning you to bed and informing my master that you have awakened."

Vali was about to thank the voice when something picked her up. It felt like there was nothing stable holding her up, but some kind of force seemingly defying gravity. She tried to twist only for the force to keep her still, "W-what is this?"

The voice took on a curious tone, "An ability that many psychics can use though it is harder for the human psychics to obtain the ability to do more than life small object."

"Psychics?" Vali murmured as the force levitated her down the hall past the room she'd been heading for, "What do you mean?"

"Humans and pokemon with psychic type abilities. Psychic type pokemon are far stronger than any humans though some have managed to become as powerful as some of us," The voice replied only making her feel confusion, "Do you not know what psychic-types are?" Vali shook her head, "What about pokemon?" Vali shook her head again, "This is a disturbing notion. No one within this world doesn't know what pokemon are. Pokemon are creatures of all shapes and sizes who live in the wild or alongside humans like myself. We are able to use abilities using our innate energies that most humans cannot. Pokemon grow stronger through battle though having humans train us allows us to grow stronger faster and gain new heights of strength that our wild brethren cannot. Humans like my master are known as Trainers who capture pokemon and train them. My master also studies pokemon and is known as a Professor due to his knowledge of the subject,"

"Capture?" A feeling of disgust ran through her, "Isn't that wrong?"

"No, it is the way of things and many pokemon choose to be captured," The voice, a pokemon, said, "While there are those that do not really wish to be captured, they soon realize the benefits. Those that do not like it eventually end up released back into the wild,"

Vali didn't really like the idea, but pushed that out of her mind, "What are you?"

"I am an Alakazam," The voice informed her, "I am a psychic-type pokemon,"

"Don't you have a name of your own?" Vali asked earning a soft hum.

"No though some of those trained by humans are given nicknames," Alakazam replied, "I did not want one even if my master offered it," Vali found herself in front of a door which was opened by a soft blue glow, "The odd man is in here. Would you allow me to look into your memories? It will fill some blanks and allow my master to help you,"

Vali hesitated for a few moments before asking, "Only the ones you need?"

"Yes," Alakazam replied and Vali granted her agreement, "I will wait until after you've seen the odd man and I've taken you back to bed,"

Vali nodded and found herself being deposited gently onto a bed. The lights flickered on and Vali gasped as she took in her godfather. Sirius looked like death warmed over. Vali reached out with a clumsy hand and touched his cheek which was very warm to the touch. Vali spoke, "He has a fever."

"He will be fine," Alakazam informed her, "It is lucky that we pulled you both out of the snow when we did. You were worse off than him, but that is due to how young you are. Though for some reason, you've recovered faster than him. He will be very weak for a few days, but should recover so long as he listens,"

Vali nodded slowly feeling herself starting to get tired, "Thank you."

"It is no problem, Child," Alakazam murmured as it lifted her with psychic and carried her from the room after shutting off the lights, "You will likely fall asleep very soon,"

Vali's eye lids fell closed as her consciousness wavered. She felt herself being placed on something soft and slowly fell asleep.

Vali woke up feeling something rough and wet brushing against her cheek. Trying to move away from the source didn't do anything as the licking moved to follow her movement, she felt something soft and warm press against her cheek. With a giggle, Vali tried to move beneath the blanket as she opened her eyes only for a soft orange and cream muzzle to follow her. Finally, she pushed up the blanket as she said, "Okay, okay, I'm awake."

She jolted at the creature that barked at her as its fluffy tail wagged and its tongue lolled out of its mouth. It looked kind of like a tiger with its orange and black striped fur. Orange tinted cream fur covered it's chest and tail. A tuft of the orange tinted cream fur came from its head. She stared at the creature before smiling as it padded closer to her. She reached out and let it sniff her fingers before giggling as it licked them. She jolted as it pressed closer and she carefully began to scratch behind it's ears earning a soft whine of pleasure. She heard a soft laugh, "Growlithe, where are you?"

The creature yipped prompting her to realize it was Growlithe, "So you're a Growlithe?"

The creature, Growlithe, barked as the door opened and a girl with brown hair entered. She paused as her dark viridian eyes widened before she grinned brightly, "You're awake! Grandpa will be so happy. My names Daisy Oak."

"Vali," Vali replied as Growlithe nuzzled into her hands.

"Growlithe seems to like you," Daisy noted with a smile earning a small nod from Vali, "You don't talk much, do you?"

Vali frowned slightly before giggling as Growlithe butted its head into her chest prompting her to resume her scratching, "I...Where am I?"

"You're in my grandpa's lab," Daisy informed her making Vali recall what Alakazam had said something about her master being a Professor, "I should go tell him you're awake. Growlithe, do you want to stay with her or come with me?"

Growlithe barked and settled down against Vali, "I guess it want's to stay with me."

"He," Daisy corrected before nodding, "Yeah. I'll be back soon. Grandpa's checking on the guy that was with you,"

Daisy disappeared through the door as Vali wondered how Sirius was. While Alakazam had said he'd recover, Vali wasn't sure how he currently was. She hoped that he would wake up soon. Growlithe let out a whine and Vali shook her head lightly while giving the pokemon her attention. She wondered what type he was though something about the heat radiating off of him made her think of fire. Growlithe enjoyed her scratches and kept her from thinking about Sirius long enough for the door to open. Growlithe yipped as he jumped off of the bed and rushed over to the door where an old man stood. He looked younger than Dumbledore, but he certainly wasn't young. His black eyes focused on her as he bent down to scratch behind Growlithe's ears, "I'm glad to see you're awake. My name is Professor Samule Oak. How are you feeling?"

Vali thought about the question before saying, "Tired and kind of cold."

"Any pain?" Professor Oak asked as he walked further into the room and Growlithe got back up onto the bed.

Vali nodded slowly, "A small amount. I mostly feel tired though."

"Well that's good," Professor Oak smiled at her, "It seems like Growlithe likes you," Vali nodded as the pokemon cuddled up against her, "What's your name?"

"Vali," Vali answered softly, "Valkyrie Potter,"

"And the name of the man that we found you with?" Professor Oak asked.

"Sirius Black," Vali hugged Growlithe to her chest, "He's my godfather. Is he alright?"

"He hasn't woken up yet, but he should soon," Professor Oak told her before sighing, "Alakazam told me about the memories she observed with your permission, but I'm having a bit of trouble believing it," Vali just stared at him, "How is it that you managed to transport yourself to this world?"

Vali battled with herself for a few moments. Magic wasn't supposed to be talked about with non-magicals outside of family, but this wasn't the world she came from. After a few moments, she replied, "I...I don't know. My magic reacted."

Professor Oak frowned, "Can you think of any reason why your 'magic' would react that way?"

"I was scared...I was so scared of losing Sirius so soon after finding him and the fact that the demons trying to take him from me were going to take my soul as well," Vali's fingers clenched, "Fear and panic as my patronus began to fail. Knowing that I was going to die and lose my godfather," Vali's mind flashed back to that moment, "I suppose my magic reacted to my will for us to live and get away from the demons. I suppose it also reacted to my wish to be free," She closed her eyes, "Among my people, there is a thing known as accidental magic which occurs within children during times of duress, I suppose I managed to tap into it. No one really knows what all magic can do,"

"But that doesn't explain you being deaged or your god-father," Professor Oak pointed out.

"The time-turner," Vali remembered it shattering, "I don't know what it was exactly, but it allowed people to travel an hour at most back in time,"

"Why did you have it?" Professor Oak asked her curiously.

"For my classes," Vali told him remembering McGonagall's speech to Hermione and her, "I took two that were at the same time,"

Professor Oak nodded as Vali's eyes grew heavy again and he seemed to notice her tiredness, "You should get some rest. I will send Daisy back in here to bring you something to eat later. Growlithe," The pokemon blinked at him, "Do you wish to stay here?" Growlithe yipped and snuggled against her as Vali slowly began to lay back down, "Alright. Wake her up when Daisy comes back."

Sirius woke up the day after Vali's first conversation with Professor Oak though he was too weak to move. After making sure Vali was alright, Sirius had spent time speaking with Oak both about their world and the new world they'd found themselves in. Daisy spent time introducing Vali to various pokemon around the Professor's lab though Vali's personal favorites were the fire types. They were so warm and she felt a connection to them though she couldn't really explain it. Growlithe was a constant companion alongside Daisy when the female Oak wasn't helping take care of her two year old brother. It was about two days after Sirius woke up that the other person that had found them came to the Oak residence with her two year old son.

Vali was cuddling Growlithe as Daisy played with her younger brother, Gary. Gary was kind of sweet though he seemed a bit jealous of Vali for being so close to Growlithe. The TV was broadcasting the latest news in Hoenn region's contest circuit. Vali could see the appeal of contests though admitted she liked pokemon battles a bit more. Daisy looked up as the doorbell rang, "I'll go get it. Gary, Stay."

Daisy got up and rushed towards the door as Gary walked over to the couch. Gary pulled himself up and reached towards Growlithe. The puppy pokemon blinked at Gary before yipping and padding over to the toddling child. Vali watched the boy with a slight smile as she asked, "Gary, what's your favorite pokemon?"

"Growlithe," The boy answered as he hugged the puppy pokemon, "I love his evolved form Arcanine too,"

After meeting Professor Oak's Arcanine, Vali could understand. Vali looked back at the screen as it showed a reply of a rising star in the contest circuit. Daisy soon returned with a woman following after her. Vali took her eyes off the screen to look at the woman as Daisy spoke, "Miss Ketchum, this is Vali. She the kid-"

"You're alright!" Vali flinched at how loud the brown haired woman's voice was before finding herself being pulled into a tight hug.

Vali stiffened at the contact before beginning to try and push away from the woman. Panic at the surprising touch filled her as she found herself trapped causing a whine to slip from her lips. Vali found herself across the room as a loud pop sounded. Ignoring the feeling of her stomach rebelling and her sudden tiredness, Vali ran from the room as fast as possible as memories of the last time an adult had gotten that close to her when she was last this age. By the time her panic began to fade and she fell to her knees to puke up the food she'd eaten, Vali found herself in the indoor fire-type enclosure Professor Oak had. As she finished puking, she heard a whine and turned her head to find Arcanine standing there with a few other fire types. She stumbled to her feet as she murmured, "I'm sorry for startling you."

Black spots invaded her vision as she began to topple over.

Delia looked up at Professor Oak as he placed a cup of tea in her hands, "I didn't think I'd startle her. I just wanted to express how glad I was that she was okay..."

"I know, Delia," Professor Oak sighed deeply as he sat down across from her, "But from what Alakazam could glean from the memories of her childhood, the reaction she had was justified. Give her time,"

"I'll try," Delia flinched as she remembered the fear filled eyes that had stared at her before the girl had darted from the room like a frightened Rattata, "I just...Professor, she looked so scared,"

Professor Oak took a sip of his tea, "To be honest, Delia. I think the fact she ended up transporting to another world so diffrent from her own just after facing creatures that could have eaten her soul is hitting her. The fact she was deaged to seven years old isn't helping."

Delia closed her eyes and drank some tea before asking, "What do we do?"

"For now, she needs to get an understanding of the world around her and be introduced to new things slowly," Professor Oak began as he leaned back against his seat, "She needs to be around Sirius as well. He's the only staple from her former world other than their wands,"

Delia nodded slowly, "Do you think that if I took things slow that she wouldn't react badly?"

Professor Oak nodded slowly, "Yes, but don't try to touch her. Treat her like an abused pokemon only less volatile."

"Is that why you allow Growlithe to stay with her?" Delia asked earning a nod from the pokemon professor.

"It's also due to the fact Growlithe likes her," Professor Oak replied with a small smile.

Vali and Sirius stayed with Professor Oak for the rest of winter learning about this new world. Sirius spent much of his time speaking with league officials and doing most of the tests Professor Oak had. Delia was a constant and Vali slowly warmed up to her. Vali did have to go through some tests, but they weren't too bad especially since she got to meet more pokemon. When spring came, Sirius and Vali were granted identification for this world with Kanto listed as their home region and Pallet Town their home. Sirius didn't like the idea of capturing pokemon, but wanted to work with them. The Kanto sect of the ranger union offered to allow him to join them and he took the offer at Vali's prompting. He was given a Houndour as a partner and began training to become an effective ranger.

Delia offered to take Vali into her home and with a bit of reluctance, the witch accepted knowing that Sirius would feel better about it. Delia made sure that Vali felt at home with her and didn't attempt to act like Vali's mother. She was patient and let Vali move at her own pace which allowed the displaced witch to get comfortable. With Vali's interest in pokemon and the young girl needing to catch up to those in her age group, Delia taught Vali when she didn't have to be at her restaurant before dropping her off with Ash at the Oak residence. Sirius had done a spell to figure out their ages a bit after they'd arrived and they had discovered that Vali was eight and Sirius was 30.

Life was better than ever and Vali could honestly say that she was thankful for what had happened. About a year after they arrived, Vali and Sirius discovered that their wands no longer functioned though they could still use their magic even if it was harder. Vali took apart her wand with the help of Professor Oak and created a necklace out of the phoenix feather that had been it's core. Sirius merely kept Remus' wand as a memento to his old friend in a case that he always carried with him. Vali loved Sirius' Houndour which the man had named Regulus though the man hadn't said why he'd chosen that specific name. Regulus loved Vali and spent most of the time when Sirius was in Pallet town with Vali alongside Growlithe whenever the puppy pokemon managed to get out of Professor Oak's lab to find her.

Everyone was gathered at the Oak families dinning room two month's before Vali's tenth birthday eating dinner. Daisy looked at Vali curiously, "Hey, Vali. What are you going to do when you turn ten?"

"Oh, right!" Delia snapped her fingers, "You're turning ten in two months."

"Do I have to do something?" Vali asked in confusion putting down her fork.

"Well, you have managed to catch up with your age group fairly quickly," Professor Oak said looking at the witch with a slight smile, "The only thing you're missing at the moment is a bit of technical and practical knowledge,"

Sirius spoke as Vali fidgeted slightly at the attention, "Pup, what do you want to do?"

Vali frowned as she thought about it, "I think I want to become a trainer, but I don't think I want to travel alone with just a pokemon. Or at least, not at first. But I don't know how I can get a traveling partner since most of the other kids around my age don't really want to become trainers or don't really like me."

Sirius frowned at her words, "They don't like you?"

"They think I'm odd especially since I've only recently started going to classes with them," Vali's nose scrunched up, "Not to mention, most of them are immature,"

Professor Oak spoke after a few moments, "I might have a solution for your problem, Vali," Everyone looked at the Professor save for the two three almost four year olds, "The pokemon leagues of Hoenn and Kanto are trying to increase the amount of skilled trainers for each league. To do so, they're offering trainers that place within the top ten of the conferences a chance to travel to another region. I won't go into many details other than the trainer that accept are being given a few perks such as an increased limit of the pokemon they're allowed to carry, a starter from the region they're traveling to, and some extra money on their trainer account," Professor Oak looked pleased about it, "One of the trainers will be arriving a day after your birthday and might be willing to travel with you. From what I've seen and heard about him, he's a rather pleasant young man with a powerful team."

Sirius had looked okay with the idea until he heard the word man. He went to say something only for Delia to elbow him before she turned to Vali, "I think that would be a nice idea, Vali."

"I don't know..." Vali frowned slightly.

"How about this," Delia smiled at her in encouragement, "We get you ready to go on your journey and on the day the young man arrives, you meet him. If you don't like him, you don't travel with him and wait until you feel ready to travel alone. If you like him and get along with him, you start your journey with him,"

Vali thought about it before saying, "Alright."

Delia beamed at Vali making the young witch's chest feel warm. Vali slowly smiled back before looking at Daisy as the girl asked, "So what starter do you want?"

"I want a fire type," Vali decided earning a snort from Sirius and amused looks from the other adults, "A Charmander though I kind of want to go to Johto at some point to get a Cyndaquil," Vali smiled as she thought of the fire mouse pokemon, "I really like them,"

"Do you want to become a fire-type master, Vali?" Professor Oak asked her with a raised eyebrow.

Vali flushed while shaking her head, "No. I love fire types, but I like a lot of diffrent pokemon too."

Sirius let out a bark-like laugh and said, "Well, I can tell you that fire types definitely love you."

As if agreeing with his statement, Growlithe entered the dinning room and got onto Vali's lap earning a few laughs from the table. Vali scratched behind the puppy pokemon's ears with a soft smile.

A few days before Vali turned ten, Ash walked into the room Delia had gifted her. She was getting her bag prepared for her journey, but paused when she spotted Ash. Looking at the little boy she often helped Daisy watch, Vali asked, "What's up, Ash?"

"You're really going to become a pokemon trainer?" Ash asked her curiously earning a nod, "Why?"

The question struck a cord in Vali and she actually thought about why she wanted to become a trainer. She resumed putting her things into her bag, "For as long as I can remember, I've wanted to travel. Back in my old world, it was a way to become free. Here, I want to see what this world has to offer and maybe see if I can find out just how Sirius and I ended up here. I also want to see how far I can go and what kind of pokemon I'll end up getting on my team."

"Will you come back?" Ash asked her curiously.

"Of course," Vali was baffled about why Ash would even ask that, "Why wouldn't I?"

Ash flushed slightly as he said, "Because you never call this place your home."

Vali put down the shirt she had been folding and looked at Ash, "Ash just because I've never said it out loud doesn't mean that Pallet town isn't home."

"What if you find someplace else you want to live?" Ash asked with a frown.

Vali's eyebrows pinched together at that question, "Even if I do, I'll still come back. What's wrong, Ash?"

"I don't want you to leave," Ash admitted after a few moments, "I want you to stay here with mom and I,"

Smiling softly at Ash, Vali reached out and pulled him into a hug, "Ash, I can't stay here forever since there's a big world out there with so many things to offer. When you turn ten, you'll understand and want to leave too. It's a part of growing up."

"I don't wanna grow up," Ash muttered earning a soft laugh from Vali.

Vali shook her head lightly. She glanced at her bag and said, "Ash, how about I make you a promise?" He looked at her curiously, "When you turn ten and become a trainer, I'll be your traveling partner. In the mean time, you have to study hard and be good for your mom."

"You'll really travel with me?" Ash asked with wide eyes earning a nod.

"I'll even give you a pokemon," Vali promised earning a grin, "But, in order for me to give you a pokemon, you have to do well when you start going to school, okay? If you do that, I'll give you a pokemon,"

"Promise?" Ash asked earning a nod.

"Pinkie promise," Vali held up a hand and Ash linked their pinkies, "Now, I need to continue packing,"

"You still have a few days before you're going to start your journey if you like the person Professor Oak talked about," Ash protested earning a laugh from Vali.

She picked up her shirt again and began folding it, "If I pack now, I can make sure I have everything I need. I also have this list," Vali finished folding the shirt and put it into her bag before picking up the list, "Everything Professor Oak, your mom, Sirius, and the message boards say any good trainer needs is on here. The pokemon food and the trainer meals will wait until the day before I go on my journey so that I can make sure they're as fresh as possible."

"Aren't trainer meals icky?" Ash asked with a scrunched up nose.

Vali thought about the simple meals. They were kind of like granola bars from her old world only bigger than the thin bars she remembered. They were specifically created by the Pokemon Leagues to make sure a trainer could stay healthy while outside of populated areas. They were somewhat bland, but not as bad as some of the things she'd eaten before. Vali shook her head, "While they're a bit bland, they aren't the worst possible thing you could eat. I read on one of the message boards that you can make them taste better with honey, berry juice, moo moo milk, or pieces of berry. Professor Oak let me try one a few days ago."

"Do you think he'd let me try one?" Ash asked her curiously.

Vali thought about it before shaking her head, "I don't think so. They're meant for older kids and adults rather than kids around your age."

Ash pouted making Vali laugh earning a scowl and elbow to her side. Vali caught him around the waist and began tickling him earning shrieks of laughter from the boy. Vali looked up as Delia asked, "What is going on here? Ash, you should be asleep."

"I wanted to see what Vali was doing," Ash said as Vali stopped tickling him.

"He was pouting," Vali replied earning a smile from Delia.

"You should go get ready for bed," Delia advised earning a pout from Ash.

Ash put up some protest, but eventually left. Vali smiled softly as she watched him go before turning back to her packing while feeling glad about the technological advances this world had. There was no way people could pack enough food to last a month for not only a human being, but multiple pokemon especially if said pokemon had monstrous appetites. Noticing that Delia hadn't left, Vali asked, "Is something wrong?"

"You've grown a lot since you came to this world," Delia said making Vali flush a bit, "Seeing you getting ready to go on your journey just makes it more evident,"

"Everyone has to grow up sometime," Vali commented before saying, "Thank you...for everything. I know it can't be easy to look after a kid like me along with Ash even if Sirius is sending money to help out. I know that I caused a lot of trouble back during those first few months..."

"I would do it all over again," Delia told Vali as she walked into the room, "You're an amazing person, Vali. I'm just glad that I got to see you become this person,"

Vali smiled softly as she looked down at the shirt in her hands, "It's strange to think that so much could have changed since Sirius and I arrived."

Delia wrapped Vali in a hug and the girl only stiffened for a few moment before accepting the warm embrace. Closing her eyes, she wondered not for the first time if her mother would have acted like Delia if they'd lived in the pokemon world rather than the wizarding world. Delia pulled away after a few moments and looked at Vali seriously, "Vali, you're always welcome in this home. It's as much yours as it is Ash's and mine. No matter what."

With stinging eyes, Vali replied, "I-I know."

"Now, I've got to get Ash in bed. Do you want me to come help you pack?" Delia asked and after a moment of hesitation, Vali agreed, "Good. I want to take a look at your list to see if I can add anything. While I wasn't much of a trainer, I do know some of the things you'll need,"

The day of her tenth birthday arrived and Vali woke up to Ash bouncing on her bed. Groaning softly, Vali stopped Ash's bouncing with a minor spell, "What time is it?"

"Seven!" Ash answered making Vali groan again.

Vali pulled Ash to her after releasing the spell and yawned out, "I don't need to be up for another hour. Go to sleep."

Ash squirmed against her, but eventually decided to go back to sleep. Vali managed to sleep for another hour and a half before a certain dark/fire type decided to pay her a visit. After getting the hell-hound off of her and sending Ash out, Vali got ready for the day. Walking downstairs, Vali headed to the kitchen and found Delia cooking at the stove while Sirius read the paper. Hugging her godfather, Vali yawned out a good morning. He hugged her back, "Good morning and happy birthday, Pup. You have to be at Oak's lab at ten right?"

"Mhmm," Vali yawned softly, "I think I'll go a bit early though. I want to spend some time with Growlithe,"

Sirius chuckled as Vali went to the fridge and pulled out some pinap juice, "He'll be put out when you finally leave."

"I wonder where Growlithe's trainer is," Vali said as she sat down at the table and poured herself a glass of juice.

"Growlithe doesn't have a trainer and Professor Oak hasn't managed to find the perfect person to adopt him out to," Delia informed her earning a frown from Vali, "Growlithe's one of Arcanine's pups, so Professor Oak wants to make sure he'll have the perfect home,"

"Well, I hope he finds one," Vali kind of wanted to have Growlithe with her.

He was her friend and the first pokemon she'd physically met not to mention her most constant companion. She would miss him greatly when she left. Ash walked into the room as Delia began putting breakfast on the table, "Vali, what pokemon are you getting?"

"I want to get a Charmander," Vali told him.

"Why not Squirtle?" Ash asked with a frown, "He's strong,"

"While Squirtle maybe strong, Charmander is too and he can boil water while I'm on the road," Vali explained earning a confused look, "Water that isn't boiled can really hurt humans, so you need to boil water to make sure it's safe to drink. Some natural sources of water are okay, but boiling water is a safe option,"

"Oh," Ash only looked confused.

Instead of pressing that part of the subject, Vali told him, "I also want to get a Charmander because of it's final evolution, Charizard. He can fly at that stage."

"Oh, right!" Ash looked excited, "When your Charmander evolves into a Charizard, can I ride him?"

"Only if your mom says you can and he can handle it," Vali replied earning a pout, "But I have to get a Charmander first,"

Vali headed to the lab with Ash while Sirius and Delia stayed at the house. Reaching the lab, Vali opened the door and one of the lab assistants smiled at her, "Hi, Vali. Here to get your pokemon?"

"Yup," Vali said with a nod, "Ash wanted to be the first to meet my starter,"

"You're a bit early, but I think the Professor won't mind," The assistant said, "Follow me,"

Vali and Ash followed the assistant towards the back of the lab where rows of pokeballs were stored. Professor Oak looked up from a pokeball that he was fiddling with and smiled, "Hello, you two. You're a bit early, Vali."

"I figured it would be easier and give me more time to get to know my starter," Vali said before looking at Ash, "Not to mention, a certain someone decided to wake me up at seven this morning,"

Professor Oak chuckled with a smile, "Well, I might as well begin. First, I want to give you a pokedex. Once you have eight badges, I'll give you the national dex upgrade. What color do you want?"

Vali thought about it before saying, "Dark red, please."

Professor Oak took out a dark red pokedex and hooked it up to a waiting computer before typing a few things. Once a beep sounded, Professor Oak unhooked the pokedex and handed it to Vali alongside six basic pokeballs, "Here you are, it will function as your trainer id. If you lose it or it gets severely damage, you'll need to come back here to replace it. Make sure your memorize your trainer id just in case."

Vali took the pokedex, "It has my full name in it?"

"Yes though I've put in a little notice about your preferred nickname," Professor Oak informed her while walking over to a round machine sitting in the middle of the room, "It will also automatically update your age, the pokemon you catch, and the number of official battles you participate in," He tapped a button and a trio of pokeballs rose up, "Here are the starters I have for you. The fire-type, Charmander," Professor Oak pointed to a pokeball with a flame sticker on it, "The grass-type, Bulbasaur," Professor Oak pointed to a pokeball with a leaf sticker, "And lastly, the water-type, Squirtle," Professor Oak pointed to the last ball, "Which starter do you want?"

"Charmander, please," Vali said earning a smile.

Professor Oak picked up the pokeball and handed it to Vali. Tossing it into the air, Vali called out, "Come on out, Charmander."

A burst of bluish white light left the pokeball as it split open and landed on the ground. As the light began to fade, the pokeball fell back down and Vali caught it before looking at the pokemon that had emerged from the ball. The pokemon was a bipedal reptilian Pokémon with a primarily orange body. Its underside from the chest down and soles are cream-colored. It has two small fangs visible in its upper jaw and two smaller fangs in its lower jaw. Bright blue eyes stared at her from a cute face. Its arms and legs are short with four fingers and three clawed toes. A fire burns at the tip of it's slender tail and twitched as the Charmander stared up at her. Getting onto her knees, Vali held out a hand to the fire-type, "Hi, Charmander. My name is Vali. I know that you don't know me yet, but I'm your trainer. I'm going to go on a journey soon and I'd love to have you by my side. Would you like to come with me? I don't know what I can offer you other than friendship and a willingness to help you become stronger."

Charmander stared at her with a measured gaze before smiling wildly and taking her hand in it's claws while giving a noise of agreement. Professor Oak smiled at the interaction, "Well, I'm glad that worked out. Now, why don't you scan Charmander here while I go take care of something?"

Professor Oak left them and Vali took out her knew dex. She looked at Charmander with a smile, "I'm going to scan you with this, Little One. It'll tell me about you."

Charmander, the lizard pokemon. From the time it is born, a flame burns at the tip of its tail. Its life would end if the flame were to go out.The flame that burns at the tip of its tail is an indication of its emotions. The flame wavers when Charmander is enjoying itself. If the Pokémon becomes enraged, the flame burns fiercely.

This Charmander is Male and has the ability Blaze. This Charmander knows Growl, Scratch, Ember, and Dragon Pulse.

Vali's eyes widen at the last move, "Dragon Pulse?"

"Ah, yes," Professor Oak appeared, "This Charmander's egg move is Dragon Pulse. The breeder that I got him from has a Charizard that learned that move though I'm not sure where,"

"Is it a big deal?" Ash asked her curiously.

"No, but it's unexpected," Vali looked down at her new pokemon, "You're a powerful little guy, aren't you?" Charmander let out a little trill from the back of his throat looking kind of smug, "Well, I'm glad to have you on my side. By the way, do you want a nickname?" Charmander thought about it before nodding and she thought about it carefully before saying, "How about Helios? He was known as a god of the sun?" Charmander shook his head and Vali began running through the names she associated with fire and dragons before finally saying, "Smaug?" Charmander made a noise of pleasure at the name and breathed out a few embers, "Smaug it is then,"

"Where'd that name come from?" Ash asked with a frown.

"I got it from a book back home," Vali explained as she scratched under the now named Smuag's chin earning a pleased purr-like sound that made her smile, "Smaug is the name of a greedy gold loving dragon in the book that acted as one of the villains. There's more, but I can't really remember it since I read that book a long time ago,"

"Well it sounds like a good name for Charmander," Professor Oak said earning a nod from Vali, "Now, I have something for you before you leave today,"

"Oh?" Vali stood up and looked at the Professor curiously, "By the way, where's Growlithe? He's usually here by now,"

"This involves Growlithe," Vali frowned feeling a bit worried for her friend, "As you no doubt know by now, Growlithe doesn't have a trainer,"

Vali nodded, "Yeah, Delia told me that he was one of your Arcanine's pups and you wanted to make sure he went to a good home."

"Indeed," Professor Oak help up a pokeball making Vali's eyes widen, "I do not normally do this especially since you're a new trainer, but I figure that you can handle it. You've become a dear friend to Growlithe and treat him well. You're a wonderful girl and I know that you'll become a great trainer which is something Growlithe needs. Valkyrie Potter, I am entrusting Growlithe to you. Raise him well,"

"Professor," Vali murmured as she held out her hand and felt the pokeball settle in it, "Are you sure?"

Professor Oak nodded with a warm smile, "I am and so is Arcanine. Not to mention, Growlithe would be very put out if you left him behind and no one likes a sad puppy pokemon."

"Thank you," Vali murmured before looked down at Smaug, "Smaug, it looks like we'll have another teammate to start our journey. He's an old friend of mine. Do you want to meet him," Smaug considered it before nodding, "Come on out, Growlithe," Vali released her friend and he shook his head before catching sight of her, "Hey, Growlithe," He yipped and darted over to her, "Nice to see you too, Buddy," Vali bent down to scratch behind his ears before saying, "Growlithe, do you know why I'm the one that called you out?" Growlithe blinked before shaking his head, "Professor Oak decided that I could be your trainer. Do you like that idea?" Growlithe barked and licked her face, "Quit it, Growlithe," He stopped but wagged his tail, "Now, you aren't the only member of my team. This," She pointed to Smaug who was eyeing the puppy pokemon warily, "Is Smaug. My Charmander and starter,"

Growlithe approached Smaug and sniffed at him as the reptilian pokemon did the same. They conversed with some yips, barks, hisses, growls, and trills. Ash looked confused by the interaction, "What are they doing?"

"They're getting to know one another," Professor Oak explained as he went over to his computer and did something, "I've added Growlithe to your trainer id,"

"So all pokemon can understand one another like that?" Ash asked earning a shrug from Vali.

"Yes, though Electric types can converse using their electricity," Professor Oak answered before looking at the conversing duo, "I need to get back to what I was doing. Why don't you take those two home?"

"Right," Vali smiled lightly as she observed her pokemon, "Professor, when is the guy supposed to arrive?"

"He should be arriving late tonight and will be staying in one of my guest rooms," Professor Oak replied earning a nod from Vali, "Come by the lab at noon to meet him,"

"Of course," Vali turned to her two pokemon, "Smaug, Growlithe," The two paused and looked at her, "The Professor wants us to leave, so we should get going. Do you two want to travel outside your pokeballs for now," The two thought about it before nodding, "Then follow Ash and I,"

They left the lab and started heading back to the Ketchum/Potter/Black residence. Ash looked at her curiously, "So what are you going to do until tomorrow?"

"Get to know my pokemon, see what they can do, and make sure I have everything ready," Vali explained as they reached the front yard before pausing, "Smaug, this is my adoptive little brother, Ash,"

Smaug looked at him and Ash looked at the fire-type in return. Smaug finally smiled and nodded to Ash earning a grin from the four year old. They headed inside with Ash calling out, "Mom, Sirius! We're home!"

"Smaug? Really?" Sirius asked as he looked at the Charmander who was currently enjoying the attention Delia was giving him.

"He chose it and I didn't really have many options left," Vali replied with a shrug.

Sirius looked at Growlithe who was laying across Vali's lap, "What about Growlithe?"

Growlithe perked up and Vali asked him, "Do you want a nickname, Growlithe?"

The puppy pokemon nodded and Vali began offering names to the puppy. Sirius finally suggested, "How about Balto?"

Growlithe barked and wagged his tail. Smiling, Vali said, "Balto it is. I should scan him too."

Vali took out her dex and scanned the now named Balto.

Growlithe, the puppy pokemon. Very friendly and faithful to people. It will try to repel enemies by barking and biting. Growlithe has a superb sense of smell. Once it smells anything, this Pokémon won't forget the scent, no matter what. It uses its advanced olfactory sense to determine the emotions of other living things.

This Growlithe is Male and has the ability Flash Fire. This Growlithe knows Bite, Roar, Ember, Leer, Odor Sleuth, Helping hand, and Morning Sun.

"Morning Sun?" Ash asked looking confused.

"It means that Balto can heal himself though the amount depends on the weather," Vali explained with a light smile, "Not a bad move set and he's probably perfected most of them considering how old he is,"

"So, what do you want to do?" Sirius asked her curiously.

"I want to get a feel for their moves and their general condition. From there, I can work on setting up training schedules," Vali said as she scratched behind Balto's ears, "I know that I'm going to be training their speed. Charizard are fairly slow on the ground unless they use their wings to propel themselves, so training Smaug to get as fast as possible in his lower forms is important though both Charmander and Chameleon are fairly quick already. Growlithe and Arcanine are speed demons even without Extreme speed. Power is a definite, but that comes with time and training not to mention evolution when they're ready. Defense is a definite..."

Vali trailed off as she opened up the notes section in her pokedex and began typing down her plans much to the amusement of Sirius and Delia.

Balto and Smaug walked beside Vali as she headed towards Professor Oak's lab. The two fire-types hadn't returned to their pokeballs since she'd released them yesterday. Balto darted around her legs though he made sure not to get close enough to trip her. Smaug watched his teammate with amusement alongside Vali. Vali smiled lightly though it dropped as they reached the hill that Professor Oak's lab sat on. Walking up, she felt her stomach churn a little and her palms start to sweat as she got closer to the lab. Balto and Smaug looked at her in concern when they reached the door and she didn't open it. Balto whined and Smaug patted her leg earning a strained smile, "Sorry guys, I'm just a bit nervous is all. Let's head inside."

Opening the door, Vali let her pokemon enter first before following them. She found one of the assistants, "John, right?"

"Ah, Vali," The aid smiled at her, "Professor Oak's in the corral with the new comer. He told me to tell you to go there when you arrived,"

"Thank you," Vali told him before looking at her pokemon, "To the corral, I suppose,"

"No problem," John said before he walked off.

They walked through the lab towards the door that led to the corral and exited onto the deck that was set up at the back door. Walking onto the deck, Vali heard the calls of pokemon and smiled lightly. She loved to corral as it always had so many diffrent types of pokemon running around. Balto sniffed around before yipping and darting forward. Vali quickly returned Smaug before following after Balto knowing that the Growlithe had gotten the Professor's scent. Vali followed after Balto for five minutes before he finally slowed down near the top of a hill. Vali panted softly as she stopped beside him, "Next time, how about you slow down a bit? I'm not used to running after you at full speed."

Balto yipped and nodded making her smile. She scratched behind his ears earning a pleased groan before she stopped and they continued heading up the hill. Professor Oak turned and smiled as he spotted them, "Ah, Vali! You're just in time. I hope you didn't have a hard time finding us."

"Thanks to Balto here, it wasn't that hard," Vali said while patting Balto's head making the Growlithe bark and wag his tail clearly pleased at the praise.

"Balto, that's a nice name for Growlithe," Professor Oak admitted as they reached him, "Now, Steven should be back in a few moments. He wanted to let Skarmory stretch his wings,"

"Is he like you thought he'd be?" Vali asked wanting to know a bit more about her supposed traveling partner.

While she would meet him before making her final decision, Vali wanted to know more about him before then. Professor Oak understood what she was asking, "Yes. Steven Stone is exactly what I'd thought he be. I'm sure that if you travel with him, he can give you tips on raising your pokemon though he is trying to become a Steel type master."

Vali's eyes widened at the last part. A steel type master? While not as hard to raise as Dragon types, it still took a lot of patience since Steel types were slow to grow. It took a special person to be able to raise them to their fullest potential which made Steel type masters only a little more common than Dragon type masters. Vali was a bit more eager to meet him and felt some of her nervousness fade. The sound of metal feathers and a heavy wing beat filled the air as a piercing cry sounded. Balto growled beside her as she covered her eyes with an arm as the wind caused by the landing pokemon kicked up a lot of dust. When it settled, she put down her arm and stared at the Skarmory standing not even ten feet from her.

Metallic silver coated most of large body. Crimson red covered the sheet metal-like feathers underneath the metallic silver wing covers. Dark grey metals covered a majority of its neck save for a few inches below its head. A similar grey metal covered most of its feet save for its sharp claws. Its sharp looking tail was a deeper grey than the other parts of it's body, but still gleamed in the sunlight. Vali's eyes met the obsidian colored eyes in the sea of yellow and felt like she was being judged. A cultured voice spoke, "Sorry if we took a bit longer than I said, Professor. Skarmory found some nice updrafts and I thought it would be best to let him enjoy it while he could."

Vali's eyes snapped towards the teen that got off of Skarmory's back. Aristocratic features were the first thing she noticed outside of his icy blue hair and bright sky blue eyes. He wore a a white undershirt with a black overcoat that has purple zig-zag streaks going down and a red tie. On the ends of his sleeves, he has silver cuffs. He also wears black pants with dark-purple dress shoes. Professor Oak spoke and she focused on the Professor, "It's fine, Steven. You're right on time."

"Oh?" He caught sight of Vali and Balto, "Who are these two?"

"Steven, this is Valkyrie Potter and one of her pokemon, Balto," Professor Oak introduced before gesturing to Steven, "Vali, this is Steven Stone and one of his pokemon, Skarmory,"

"It is a pleasure to meet you, Miss Vali," Steven held out his hand and Vali took it only to flush as Steven lifted it to his lips before pressing a kiss to the knuckles, "Professor Oak's been telling me about you. I would be happy to travel with you for awhile,"

"It's nice to meet you as well, Mr. Stone," Vali said with a smile as Steven let go of her hand, "Please call me Vali,"

"Then please call me Steven. Mr. Stone reminds me of my father," Steven replied earning a laugh from Vali, "So shall we get to know one another? I understand that you want to get a proper gauge of me before going out into the wilderness with me. I will be doing the same as well,"

"Let's head inside then," Professor Oak advised, "It will give me time to get Steven's starter ready and make sure his pokemon are ready to travel,"

The two agreed and they all headed inside.

Balto curled up beside Vali on the couch while Smaug sniffed at Steven. Steven looked amused by the fire-types antics, "So Vali, what's your ultimate goal?"

"I don't really have one yet," Vali admitted as she ran her fingers through Balto's fur, "For now, I just want to travel, earn gym badges, and get settled as a trainer before I decide to really do anything. I'm mostly interested in seeing the world, seeing how far I can go, meeting new pokemon, and maybe discovering some mysteries,"

"So you're going to try and find answers about why you ended up in this world?" Steven asked making Vali stare at him in surprise and he smiled warmly, "Professor Oak mentioned it and I've read some of the League reports. Not many, but enough to know some things,"

Vali felt a bit of anger, but mostly she was relieved. The idea of not having to keep her limited knowledge of this world a secret was nice. While she'd learned a lot about this world, she didn't know everything and that would get her into trouble. Deciding that being angry at Professor Oak wouldn't do anything, she said, "Yeah."

Steven didn't look bothered by her rather short reply and said, "I came to Kanto not only because it's a new region and learning to adapt is key to growing stronger, but due to the stones that can be found here. Like fire stones which can be used to evolve your Growlithe safely."

"So you like gem stones and stuff?" Vali asked him earning a nod.

"It's a bit more than that, but the simple answer would be yes," Steven leaned back against the couch he was sitting on as Smaug decided that he wasn't worth paying attention to and returned to Vali's side, "I also want to become strong enough to become the Champion of Hoenn. I expect that if I work hard, I can manage it by the time I turn sixteen. That gives me two years and a few months as my fourteenth birthday is in September,"

Vali let that information sink into her head, "Professor Oak also mentioned that you're trying to become a steel type master."

Steven smiled lightly and nodded, "That I am, I will say that traveling with fire types will be a new experience, but it should be worth it. I won't assume, but are you trying to become a fire type master?"

Vali refrained from snapping at the elder trainer, "No, I just love them. I want to train other pokemon too."

"You can still do that while becoming a master," Steven told her, "After all, I'm getting a starter that isn't a steel type and have a few pokemon that aren't of my favorite type,"

"True," Vali admitted, "I still don't know if I want to become a master. I might eventually, but for now, I want to bring out the best in every pokemon I end up with,"

"A good idea," Steven agreed before asking, "So, do you want to travel with me?"

Vali thought about it carefully before looking at her two pokemon, "What do you guys think? Should we travel with Steven?"

Balto got up and jumped off the couch before walking over to Steven. He eyed the human that the aged master his sire obeyed had suggested that his human travel with. Despite smelling of damp earth and dark caves, the human didn't smell bad nor did he give off any signs of bad intent. Locking eyes with the male, Balto looked for any sign that the male would be bad for his trainer only to find nothing. He would watch him, but for now, he'd give his approval of Steven. If he tried anything or made his human regress into that scared pup that had been brought here, he would show the human why it was a bad idea to anger a Growlithe.

With a yip, Balto licked the male before going back to his human. He nuzzled her earning a smile as his new pack brother, a fire lizard of all things, snorted and eyed the human. Smaug, an odd name though no more odd than his own new name, eyed the human before shrugging. It would see that he didn't care who the male was so long as their human wasn't harmed. Balto would need to teach the fire lizard what it meant to be in a pack since he didn't think Smaug's kind knew about pack.

Steven chuckled at the reaction, "It looks like they think we should."

"Then I don't see why not," Vali agreed earning a slight grin, "We'll have to stop by my house so I can grab my bag and say goodbye to my family,"

"Of course," Steven agreed.

Professor Oak chose to appear then and said, "Steven, your pokemon are ready and I have the starters lined up."

They followed Professor Oak into the room that Vali had gotten both her pokemon in. Vali returned Balto and Smaug feeling that it would be best if Steven met his newest pokemon without any others around. Professor Oak announced the choices and Steven chose Squirtle. The water type blinked slightly as it appeared and Steven bent down to it's level, "Hello, Squirtle. My name is Steven Stone and I've just become your trainer. I can't really say much at the moment since we've just met, but I want to tell you that I'm going to make you into the best that you can be."

Steven continued to speak to the water type for a little bit before returning Squirtle.

Vali led the way to her house while explaining about it, "Delia Ketchum took me in when Sirius took the offer to become a pokemon ranger for the Kanto sect. Sirius Black, as you've probably read, is my Godfather and adoptive father figure. He's more bark than bite. Lastly, we have Ash Ketchum, my adoptive little brother. He's Delia's son and four years old. He's a good kid and likes pokemon though he isn't too sure about what he wants to do just yet."

"I look forward to meeting them," Steven said with a smile as he walked beside her, "Though I suppose Mr. Black won't be happily about you traveling with me,"

"Like I said, he's more bark than bite especially is Delia is around," Vali giggled as she remembered Delia elbowing Sirius more than a few times when he'd complained about her perspective traveling partner, "Just act how you usually do and answer the questions he asks truthfully, you'll be just fine,"

"Of course," Steven nodded lightly.

Soon enough, they reached the house and Vali opened the door while calling out, "I'm home and going on my journey!"

"Vali!" Ash raced towards her, "Don't leave!"

"Ash," Vali bent down and caught him, "We made a promise remember,"

Ash pouted, "Yeah. Wait," He caught sight of Steven, "You're Steven Stone! You almost beat that guy in the finals."

"That I did," Steven looked a bit amused, "And you must Ash. Are you thinking of becoming a trainer?"

"Yup! I want to become a master though I don't know what kind of type I want to master," Ash said earning a smile from Steven.

"Well, you have a lot of time before you really need to decide," Steven said as Delia exited the kitchen.

"Welcome back Vali and who's this?" Delia asked while walking over to hug Vali.

Vali returned the hug before gesturing to Steven, "This is Steven Stone. We're going to be traveling partners."

Delia beamed at her, "I'm glad you decided to go. Why don't you head upstairs and grab your pack?"

"Right," Vali turned to Steven, "I'll be right back and we can head out once I say goodbye,"

"Of course," Steven looked at Delia, "It is a pleasure to meet you, Miss Ketchum,"

Vali rushed upstairs towards her room to grab her bag only to pause in front of the hallway mirror. She was a lot more healthy than she had been at ten last time and definitely stronger. Her eyes settled on the grey and white spots threaded through her hair, they had appeared after Sirius and her had arrived in this world. They figured it was a response to the immense strain that had been heaped upon her magic and body. Regardless, Vali was happy as it help distance her from the girl that had been brought to this world. Running a hand through her hair, she pulled up her bangs and looked at the nearly non-existent scar that had once been the main way people recognized her. She smiled briefly as she decided that it was better this way. She wasn't the girl that had been transported to this world a year and some months ago. While the scars of her past would always be with her, she was healing and far stronger than she had been before. Taking a deep breath, she turned towards and began walking towards the stairs. It was time to start the next chapter in her life.