In honor of Pokemon's 20 year anniversary I've decided to start a drabble fic, with each chapter dedicated to a mistake I've made/lesson I've learned on my own Pokemon journey. And I'm not talking about my journey from Pallet to Indigo, but rather my journey from Blue to X.

I've been playing these games since before I could properly read, and I can promise you that I've done some pretty stupid things over the years. And if I did them, then it stands to reason that some poor trainer, in some region, would've probably done the same thing. After all, realistically, not every trainer becomes a master, right?

So, without furthur ado, I give you Solecism

I want my Butterfree, now!
(No Shortcuts)

This was it.

Today was the day.

No longer would he have to listen enviously to his friends exploits. No longer would he have to fake a smile at every club meeting. No longer would he have to put up with their well-meaning, if condescending, promises.

"Don't worry, John. You'll get your own Bug Pokemon soon."

And 'soon' was finally here.

He'd prepared for this day. Read up on all the different types and move sets, debated the pros and cons. Caterpie or Weedle? Beedrill or Buterfree? Tossed and turned, and finally, finally, settled on who was to be his partner.

His starter.

As a Bug-Catcher it was perhaps one of the most important questions he could be asked. "What was the first Bug you caught?" It would define not only him, but his future team: Did he focus on status effects? Was he more inclined to being a power house? Did he prefer agility over endurance?

In the end, however, it all boiled down to one, all important, question; poison or flying?

And John had chosen flying.

Had chosen Butterfree.

And today was the day he could finally make it all happen...he just needed to find himself a Butterfree, first.

~:~:~:~:~:~:~

Alright.

So, perhaps.

John mussed, just "perhaps" there are no Butterfree flying around Viridian Forest.

Perhaps he would just need to capture a Caterpie and train it up.

That's fine, that could be fun, getting to know the little critter while he's still young and training him well, training him right. Still...training takes time, and a Caterpie has an entire evolutionary step between it and Butterfree.

And John really, really wanted a Butterfree.

Suddenly there was a rustle in the tall grass, snapping John out of his musings. Brandishing his Net as a weapon, John slowly crept closer. Only to yelp when he felt his foot land on something hard.

He briefly glance down before shooting back in shock.

A...a...a...Metapod! It was a Metapod!

And it was just laying there, staring at John, almost as if it was asking to be captured!

John couldn't believe his eyes, sure it wasn't a Butterfree, but it was one step closer than any old Caterpie would be! Without hesitation John un-clipped the Pokeball on his belt and re-sized it. "This is it." He thought, "I can feel it. This is my starter."

He released the Pokeball, a stream of red light, and then One. Two. Three. "Click."

"..."

He'd done it! He'd caught Metapod!

"No. That's not, right." He thought, "Amber. That's her name. I caught Amber."

Filled with the thrill of victory John immediately sprinted through the forest, desperate to find an opponent for Amber. After all, the sooner she leveled up, the sooner she would become a Butterfree!

And then, as if by divine intervention, John stumbled across an entire pack of Metapod! All sitting there, lounging, as if they were just waiting for a challenger. Well, John was more than happy to put an end to their waiting.

"Come on out, Amber!" He called, excitedly releasing his newest friend. "Show them what your Tackle looks like!"

"...grhg." Amber gurgled in what sounded like exasperation.

Her opponent responded with Harden. "No, Amber," John called out shocked, "don't just sit there, use Tackle, Tackle!" After a few more attempts John was forced to face the facts. His Metapod, his starter, didn't know tackle. Didn't know any attack other than Harden.

Suddenly, Butterfree seemed like a distant dream.

~Fin~

A/N:

When you capture a Caterpie it knows String Shot and Tackle, when it evolves into Metapod it additionally learns Harden. If you capture a wild Metapod, however, the chances are high that it only knows Harden. Making it as useless as a Magikarp. Perhaps even more useless. (At least Magikarp can look foreward to learning Tackle at l.v. 15.)

I learned this lesson all the way back in Blue, and as a Bug Trainer myself took it to heart.

Always train your Bug Pokemon (and all, if you can help it) from the ground up.

No shortcuts.