Chapter 1: Teething Problems

Jay found the watery breeze refreshing. It was the perfect start to the perfect day; as today was the day that he started his journey as a Pokémon Trainer. He was determined to make everything go right. Every detail of his journey was already planned out in his head: what Pokémon he was going to catch, the techniques he was going to use, what items he would buy. Every meticulous detail was perfectly sculpted into the deadliest battle tactic, ready to be utilized when needed. The strap on his bag pressed against his chest as he walked, the weight of it causing a pendulum swing with every step, as in it were his notes. For the past three years he had kept a journal of battle techniques, helpful information and general tips picked up from observing other's battles and the Television. The Journal had now become three bulky books, each oozing with experience. He also carried another: a blank notebook, which he intended to fill with his own information and tips, intending to pass it on to his children some day, and educate others in the skills of Pokémon training. Yes, nothing was going to go wrong.

As he continued along the lakeside towards Sandgem Town, he saw the person that was waiting for him: his old friend Solana. She was a couple of days younger than Jay, and he had put off his journey so that they could start together. As agreed, she was stood along the forest line, her small black rucksack plonked on the floor by her feet. She stood out against the lush green vegetation, her dark green hair wafting in the breeze, held in a ponytail with a metal rod piercing through the narrowing. Her neat sunglasses causing an inhuman sense over her face; small jet black circles covering each of her eyes connected by small metal lines in-between. A dark blue scarf was wrapped around her neck, a large golden brooch in the shape of a bow held it in place: wrapped once around her neck then left to flow down her back. It covered a vast amount of her jacket, which appeared as it was make from a Grey Crocodile Skin. Complementing this was a folded navy mini-skirt, and matching socks, protruding from her black converse shoes, up to mid thigh, nearly reuniting with the skirt. She stood facing the water, staring blankly into the distance.

"You're late," she declared as he approached, only her mouth moving "That's not very good, Jay."

"Well, if you had walked with me, then you wouldn't have had to wait me," he replied. She stood silent, after all, his point was quite valid. She had wanted to walked a different route to Jay, and stop somewhere on the way, but wouldn't say where. "Where did you go?"

"To see my Gran, actually," she answered, "she had something to give me."

"What's that then?" he asked. She glanced left and right, making sure the coast was clear, before bending down reaching into her rucksack. Bright sunlight reflected off of the rod, making Jay glance at it. He noticed that it had a small Crystal on the end, but she sprang back up before he could get a better look. In her hand she held a Poké Ball. Throwing it into the air, it opened, releasing a burst of white light. As the emerged shape became coloured, it was revealed to be a Misdreavus.

"She's been in my family for years, and today is the first day that I can legally acknowledge her as my own" she said. The Pokémon floated down to her left shoulder, staring at Jay.

"But Sola-" he started, but was briskly interrupted.

"sssssshhhhh!" she hissed,"You can't use my name in public! Call me Oni...that way people never know who I really am." She had always wanted to be a detective, spending her childhood around Twinleaf Town solving mini mysteries, like who ate the last cookie, or who was to blame for her not being able to find something. In all fairness, she was devilishly good at it.

"OK then Oni," Jay said, slightly sarcastically, "shall we continue to Sandgem?"

"Fine."

They reached Sandgem pretty quick, before lunchtime anyway; clearly notable by the way that Jay's stomach hadn't started rumbling yet...much... Solana had put Misdreavus back in here Poké Ball as they entered town, as she wasn't supposed to have it yet. The building they headed for was the most majestic in town: Professor Rowan's Lab.

They were greeted instantly as they entered the sterile building. The pure white walls and gleaming metallic surfaces were covered with bits of equipment and machines, each of which had flashing light and glass panels.

"Hello," said a voice, it was an Aide of the Professor, "Jay and Solana, I presume?" He took them into a small room, fitted out for a photo shoot, with the white screen and umbrellas for lighting against the far wall.

"We need a picture for identification, for entry into the Sinnoh League," he told them, "who would like to go first?" He walked over to a positioned camera and started to fiddle with it.

"Do you have a bathroom?" Jay asked, slightly panicky. Without looking away from the camera, the Aide pointed to a barely noticeable white door across the room.

Jay rushed into it and found himself in an even smaller room, with a set of cubicles, sinks and a long mirror that extended down the wall, again, the room was white in all available places. Jay inspected himself in the mirror, making sure he was photo-ready. HE ran his fingers through his chocolate-brown hair, which as long enough to be sculpted into a smart parting, also giving him a bit of a fringe. Next, he targeted his clothes. He was wearing a brown faux leather jacket, covering a plain white shirt, followed by dark blue jeans, and black boots. He pulled out all the wrinkles in the fabrics and returned to have his picture taken.

After being photographed, the Aide led the pair to the main part of the building, where a tall man, with white hair, a white moustache and a lab coat was waiting for them. Both trainers instantaneously recognised him as Professor Rowan. He shook both their hands and led them to a metallic table in the corner of the room where three Pokémon were stood in a row: a small blue penguin, an orange chimp and a green quadruped. Again, Jay could already name them as Piplup, Chimchar and Turtwig.

"So have you decided which one you would like?" Asked the professor, standing in front of the table. Jay had prepared for that question for a year, and wasted no time in answering "I'll take Pip-"

"Piplup." Solana demanded, butting into Jay. The professor picked up the azure Pokémon and handed it to her, apparently not having heard Jay at all. Jay stammered, disappointed that his plan was going to waste.

"Fine, I'll take Turtwig" he said slightly sulkily. The Professor passed it to him. The creature looked up at him, curiosity in its eyes, and with the young creature in his arms, Jay forgot about the disappointment, realising that he had received his first Pokémon nonetheless, and he knew that things wouldn't always go as expected, so there was no point to dwell on the past. The integrity of the moment was interrupted as a phone started ringing. The Professor reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a small, silver flip phone. He lifted it to his ear, flicking it open on the ascent, seeming more confident with the technology than most others his age.

"Hello?" he answered, "Yes. Really?" A look of surprise took over his face. "Can I see it? Where are you?" Jay stood and listened curiously to the half conversation. Solana was busy inspecting Piplup, oblivious to the phone call. "When will you be here? Really? I'll wait outside." And with that, he snapped the phone shut and replaced it in his pocket, something resemblant of a smile breaking out on his face. "Come with me, you two are in for a real treat" he said, starting to walk towards the glass double doors, through which the pair had entered.

Jay hadn't noticed how hot it was in there. Walking into the cool breeze was like having thick mud being washed off the skin. The Professor was stood still, staring up at the sky, with his hand across his brow to protect his eyes from the Suns glare. Solana adopted a dignified position, holding her bag by its handle with both hands, resemblant of a soldier. She stared at he sky, her simple sunglasses doing the same job as the Professors hand. Piplup stood to her right, gazing around at it's new surroundings. As much as he looked, Jay couldn't spot anything in the cloudless sky; it was just a beautiful blanket of blue.

"Here he is," announced the Professor, "right on time." Jay followed his line of vision into the air, and after a moment of searching, spotted something: a small, black shape. As it got closer, he realised that it was a Honchkrow – the give away being the hat-like structure atop its head, and the puffy white chest. It finished its descent with fierce flapping of its wings, causing such a gust against the ground that dust and dirt was kicked up into a whirlwind. Its feet hit the ground with the utmost grace, its wings folding neatly back onto its body. "My boy," addressed the Professor, seeming to be talking to the Pokémon, "welcome back." From behind the left wing, down the curve of the body, a boy, not much older than Jay, slid down and landed on the floor on his feet. Although Jay didn't recognise the red Beret sat on the boys short black hair, or the beige rucksack he had, Jay already knew his identity, as the boy came from Twinleaf Town too. His family had lived in Solana's House before her family moved in, and the two boys had spent many days fishing and playing in Jay's younger years. The boy was Lucas, who had left on his journey two years before, as he was two years Jay's elder. Solana moved in shortly after.

"Jay?" shouted Lucas, squinting over at the group from his companion. Jay waved over, in response to the question. Lucas strode over, ending up standing in front of Jay. "Hi Professor," he added, inspecting Solana's interesting style of dress.

"This is Sola..." Jay started, but remembered what she had said, "Oni, this is Oni." Lucas shot Jay a confused expression, while Solana extended her arm for a handshake. Lucas met her offer, shaking her hand, then turned back to face the other two.

"So we're all raring to see it," started the Professor, slight excitation in his voice. Lucas reached into his pocket, pulled out a Poké Ball and threw it in the air. It burst open, light exploded out and a huge, white shape appeared behind Lucas; the shadow it cast was big enough to cover the entire group. The light faded, and left was a large, blue creature, stood majestically on four legs. Its elongated head loomed over its back, while the crest on above its hip demonstrated its superiority, similarly to that of a crown. Lucas stood in front of it, arms crossed, a smug grin across his face. Jay and Solana stared, mouths hanging open, gazing upon the legendary Pokémon, while the Professor stood with his hands held behind his back, as if this was normal.

"Oh, this seems like a perfect opportunity," he announced, reaching into the bulging pocket of his lab coat, and pulling out two small, red hand-held machines. He gave one to Jay, and the other to Solana. "These are Pokédexes, every trainer receives one, and it acts as your identification in official institutions. Open it up and see what it does." As instructed, Jay opened it up. Automatically, an image of the Pokémon in front of him appeared on the screen, and an electronic voice started speaking.

"Dialga: The Temporal Pokémon. A legendary Pokémon of Sinnoh. It is said that time flows when Dialga's heart beats."

"So why have you got it?" asked Solana, which Jay thought was a question he should have thought to have asked earlier.

"I caught it." replied Lucas proudly, puffing up his chest as he said it. Solana walked over to the mighty beast, which didn't seem to mind. She started looking at its skin through a magnifying glass, poking it with the rod from her hair, seeming to perform tests on it. Jay walked over to it, watching Solana as she run her finger down its skin and placing it on her tongue. He extended his arm, reaching out to touch it. The skin was smooth, as if built to remove air resistance. Suddenly, Jays head started to hurt, feeling as if he had a really bad headache. He felt a pulse travelling up ad down his arm, from his body to Dialga's. The pain in his head got worse, his face now cringing. He tried, but couldn't pull his hand away, although he wanted to, something made him unable to move, as if his body and brain were disconnected. His vision started to blur, and all he saw was body shaped blobs rushing in his direction. It was too late. His vision went black, and he passed out.