[IC] Pokemon: Luminous Dawn- Chapter 1- A Bright Future!

[Jory]

Route 1 Entrance- 8:56 AM

Jason smiled at Mio and nodded. "I'm Jason, and this is Rascal," he said again. Then, everyone in the circle went around introducing themselves and their Pokemon. For the most part they all got along. Jason felt an unspoken sense of relief among the group that there was no one who would be a huge problem to have along on the journey. But, as they say, 'time flies when you're having fun...'

Route 1 Entrance- 9:01 AM

The group chatted among themselves after introductions before being alerted by a loud rustling sound in the tall grass on Route 1. An orange and green blur sped out of the grass, stumbling as she reached the group. She nearly crashed into Mio, but managed to regain her balance before catastrophe struck. Now that she was standing still, it was much easier to see her. The new arrival was a young woman who appeared to be the same age as everyone else in the group. She wore a big green hat with a white pompom on top as well as a long orange overcoat with three buttons spaced evenly down the front. Underneath her open coat she was wearing a much darker orange (nearly brown) vest and a white blouse. She also wore a long green skirt, which appeared to be the cause of her locomotive difficulties.

She straightened her red framed glasses, looking around at everyone. "I'm soooooo sorry! I was just walking down Route 1 and suddenly I realized I was late so I was like 'O-M-G!' and then I started running but then I remembered I'm wearing a skirt and not pants or shorts like you should when you're running and then I was running through the tall grass and right as I was about to get out of it I tripped and then I almost crashed into you-" she said, speaking almost too quickly to fully understand while pointing at Mio "- and then I was like 'O-M-G!' and I didn't fall and so now I'm here!" she finally finished. She smiled broadly at everyone before looking surprised. "Oopsie! I almost forgot to tell you my name! I'm Bianca! I'm a Researcher at Professor Juniper's Lab! Today I'm gonna show you something super important." She leaned in, beckoning the group of students closer. "HOW TO CATCH A POKEMON! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!" She screamed, throwing her hands in the air and shrieking at a pitch that's normally inaudible to human beings. Then she stood upright and took a deep breath. "Okay, Bianca," she said to herself. "Just like Professor Juniper said, 'If you don't stop talking like a video stuck on fast forward I'll rip your goddamn head off!'" she reminisced happily, laughing at the last part.

Bianca quickly took a holobook out of her pocket and looked over the group. "Okie dokie, let's see," she began, now speaking at a much more manageable pace. "We have Acerbi, Mio. I recognize you from the picture," she said, showing Mio the hologram briefly. "Right now I'm accessing a subgroup of Professor Juniper's files that contains a copy of each of your Trainer IDs. You can use your Trainer ID numbers to register other Trainers in your XTransceiver. That way, you can call each other. Most Trainers, however, just call them TINs. Trust me, it's trendy," she said with a knowing wink. "I'd recommend you all exchange TINs with each other on the way to Nuvema Town. You're also going to want mine and Professor Juniper's in case you have any serious problems." She then looked over the group, grinning coyly. "But don't abuse the privilege, boys. Usually you'd have to work much harder to get my number."

She cleared her throat, standing up straight and beginning to backpedal toward Route 1. She stumbled, but caught herself and continued walking. "If you have any questions, I'd be happy to answer them on the way to Nuvema Town. If we're lucky enough to see a wild Pokemon, I'll even give you all a demonstration of how to catch one!"

With that said, she turned around and led the way onto Route 1 and toward an exciting new adventure!

Route 1- 9:20 AM

As the group proceeded onto Route 1, Jason was astounded by the natural beauty of the area. After walking through a short span of forested area, they'd emerged onto an open seaside plain.On their right was a beach, glistening white sand giving way to blue ocean waters. Most of the grass on the plain was about calf high. However, there were many areas where the natural dune grass grew much higher. These rustled frequently with the movement of local Pokemon, the smaller species preferring to hide from their airborne predators. On their left was an oak forest, unusually close to the water but green with the spring foliage of the southern Unova Region. The group proceeded down a dirt road that was hardened and patted down from years of regular travel. It was roughly fifteen feet wide, but was on an incredibly flat stretch of land. The roof of Professor Juniper's lab could just barely be seen over the far treeline. All in all, a beautiful start to an amazing adventure.

Jason was taken aback. Although he'd been to Nuvema Town before, it had never been this early in the day. With the sun coming over the trees and glinting off the water, everything seemed brighter. "Wow...." he breathed, for once at a loss for a snappy remark.

Bianca gave him a look of total understanding. "There's nothing that could ever be better than the beginning of a journey! It's full of like a million billion different possibilities! It makes my head hurt to even think about it!"

"Or maybe it's just the thinking, period," Jason said under his breath to Rascal and Brendan, eliciting a small chitter of amusement from the Minccino. However, once Rascal made a noise. the rustling in the grass near the group stopped entirely. Suddenly, a Patrat's head popped out of the grass! Then another, and another! All three of them leapt into the path, angrily chattering at the travelers. Bianca was taken off guard and yelped in surprise before looking at the group and grinning.

"Hey, they're not that mad! I think they want to battle you guys! This is the perfect opportunity for me to show you guys how to catch a Pokemon!" She smiled and gestured to the students with pets. "Come on, guys! Show these Patrat what you're made of! Those of you without pets, you're about to learn some valuable skills, so watch closely!"

Jason stepped forward, pointing his finger at the Patrat. "We'll fight them! Right, Rascal?" The Minccino jumped down from his shoulder and onto the ground getting into a fighting pose. Jason looked back at the group. "Anyone else want to join in?"

Bianca laughed. "Alright, gang! To catch a Pokemon, the first thing you need to do is weaken it. These Pokemon aren't too strong, so one hit should do it! Use an attack!"

Jason nodded. "I'll wait for Mio and Jack to get their Pokemon out here first."

[K_H]

9:20 AM - Route 1

Jack nodded, and then spoke to Lara, the two of them walking up next to Jason as he did so.

"All right, Lara, let's show those Patrat who's boss!"

Lara nodded and then ran up next to Rascal, ready to fight the Patrat. She seemed to be standing in front of the middle one.

Edited January 20, 2016 by K_H

[starkidcosmo]

9:01 AM- Route 1 Entrance

Just as Mio was starting to settle in with the group, a blonde girl wearing a ton of orange stumbled head-first out of the tall grass towards him. He braced himself for the impact, shifting so that the breaks on his rollerblades would stop him from skidding, but the collision never came. Instead, the girl caught herself and then launched into a high-speed rant.

Truthfully, Mio had no idea what was happening. He caught her name, Bianca, and got that she was Juniper's assistant, but everything else sailed straight over his head until she finally calmed down. Meena, who'd almost been shaken from her perch, grumbled and glared at the oblivious Bianca.

Bianca did a quick explanation on the XTransceiver's Trainer ID, or TIN function, and then they were off.

9:20 AM- Route 1

The well-worn path made for an easy, relaxing trip. Mio glided a little behind the rest, enjoying the feeling of the sweet ocean breeze on his face. It was an altogether peaceful, pleasant trip.

And then Bianca yelped in surprise. Mio dashed forward and skidded to a stop at the sight of three Patrat chattering aggressively at the group. Meena was on the ground in front of Mio in seconds, her fur fluffed up in anger. Bianca announced that this was a perfect learning opportunity, and Jack and Jason stepped forwards with their pets.

Not one to be outdone, Meena slunk forwards, eyes gleaming. To her, Patrat were just good, fattening meals. Noticing the look in her eye, Mio slid forwards.

"Uh-uh, Meena." he said. He took quick note of where Lara and Rascal were positioned, then made a short gesture towards the Patrat closest to them, on Lara's left. "Meena, scratch."

With an unhealthy amount of glee, Meena darted forwards and lashed out with her sharp claws, catching the Patrat on its left cheek. She dodged backwards before it could counter, tail lashing.

Mio took a sharp breath. He was more tense than he had expected, and this was only a battle with a low-level wild pokemon!

[Jory]

Route 1- Everyone

Bianca squealed in glee as Meena's attack caught the Patrat. The small rodentlike Pokemon seemed cowed by the attack and hung toward the back of the group, staying away from the Meowth. "Perfect shot, Mio!" Bianca cheered from the sidelines. "Now Jason!"

Jason nodded, looking toward the Patrat group. "Pick your target and use Pound!" The Minccino sped toward the Patrats. He faked to the left, drawing the one on that side away from its comrade before dealing a quick yet sharp blow to the one on the right with its tail, making use of a Pound attack. The Patrat that got hit rolled backward, then got back up. It looked dazed, however, and most of the fight seemed to have been taken out of it by the unexpected attack from the pets.

Bianca whooped and cheered again, throwing her fist in the air. "Good work, Jason!" she said encouragingly. "Now, Jack, it's your turn!"

[K_H]

Route 1 - Everyone

Jack nodded, then spoke to Lara.

"Bite the last one, Lara!"

Lara lunged forwards, teeth gaining a dark aura as she bit the third and final Patrat, catching it on the arm before letting go of her target and dodging back before it could even try to hit her in response.

[Felicity]

Route 1- the bystanders

"You know, I gotta wonder what's so exciting about a group of wild animals attacking you." Katie noted idly. At the start of their journey Katie honestly wasn't interested in the scenery. Nature was not her wheelhouse, so to speak. Besides, there were still six of them, plus Bianca the hyper-assistant. It didn't feel like an adventure, it felt like... a field trip. Which to be fair was still interesting. Just... not what she was expecting.

[Jory]

Route 1- Captured!

Bianca cheered as the Poochyena delivered its blow. "Alright, now watch closely!" she reminded the students. She took a Poke Ball out of her jacket and threw it at a Patrat, scaring off the others as their comrade was sucked into the light. The ball shook three times and then clicked, indicating the Patrat had been captured!

D-Tier battle finished! Experience gained!

Bianca walked over and picked up the Ball, turning to the rest of the group. "You guys did amazing! Now, if no one has any questions we're going to head to Nuvema Town!" She smiled widely before turning to walk down the path toward Nuvema.

Jason grinned at Rascal. "That's how we do things, bud! Good work!" After complimenting his Pokemon, he followed Bianca toward Nuvema Town.

((posted this from mobile. Nuvema Town is coming this weekend!))

[Shadow Sketches]

Route 1- Everyone

Alecks walked beside Katie but wasn't much for conversation as he kept looking around, sometimes admiring the pretty green colors nature had, but mostly looking out to see what kind of pokemon he could spot. Though the Patrats challenging them was surprising it ended up being quite easy to take care of them and Alecks was kind of disappointed. "Too bad they didn't put up more of a fight.." he whined a little as he scratched the back of his neck. "Still, nice job on taking care of them, I'd have no idea how to deal with a scary Patrat myself~" he joked, it was hard for him to take those lil chubby creatures seriously.

Edited January 21, 2016 by Shadow Mankey

[K_H]

Route 1 - Everyone

Jack congratulated Lara on the small victory, then the pair of them started walking with the others. As they did so, Jack couldn't help but overhear Alecks, and thought to himself, rolling his eyes and then slightly shaking his head as he did so.

Oh, please. They were actually rather cute, and definitely not scary whatsoever... Too bad they had to be on the receiving end of a beatdown from us three.

However, he kept his mouth shut and kept walking towards Nuvema Town with the others, Lara walking next to him as he casually viewed their surroundings, a faint smile on his face.

[Jory]

Nuvema Town- 10:00 AM

After a lovely and otherwise uneventful jaunt down the seaside Route 1 Bianca happily led the group through the gate to Nuvema Town. The team members had all gotten each others' TINs as well as Bianca and Professor Juniper's. The blonde led them to the front of Professor Juniper's lab, then turned around and smiled at them. "Well, this is a big moment for you all." Her tone was utterly serious, not at all like the adolescent chatter of earlier. "Once you walk through this door, you'll be receiving your starter Pokemon. From there, your journey will begin. I won't be traveling with you, but I'll see you around. Professor Juniper is going to explain more about that." She looked them over one more time, nodding approvingly at the end. "You're all going to make great Trainers someday. But this is square one." With that, she turned and walked through the door and into the Lab, the rest of the group following her lead and entering.

They found themselves surrounded at first by a reception desk. Bianca led them directly past it and through a lab containing both researchers and advanced scientific equipment all along counters throughout the room. Some of the Researchers were wrapped up in their projects; others waved at the group, smiling at the new Trainers and reminiscing about the beginning of their Pokemon journeys. They then proceeded back through a library, a large room lined with shelves upon shelves of books on the science behind Pokemon. Bianca tripped on a chair that had not been pushed in after use (for shame!), causing a loud noise. A librarian promptly shushed the girl, pressing her fingers to her lips. Past the library was another lab, this one smaller and with what appeared to be more specialized machinery. At the far workstation was a scientist bent over her desk, her brown hair bobbing as she scribbled notes down.

She appeared to finish and put her pen down deliberately, rising from her chair and turning to face the new arrivals. She graced them with a warm smile, inviting them to move closer. "Thank you, Bianca," she said. "I'll take them from here." The scientist once again turned to face the group. "My name is Professor Aurea Juniper. Welcome to my Lab," she said as she walked from the workstation toward a table to her left. The group followed her, curious about what she would be showing them. "Today," she began. "you will be receiving a starter Pokemon. On each of your applications, you were asked to select three Pokemon that you would like to train. While not everyone got their first choice, everyone got a Pokemon from their list. So don't fret," she said with a knowing smile. "We arranged it so your group would be as diverse as possible in both type and species. But the most important thing to remember is that Pokemon are not toys." Juniper's dignified manner was just as imposing in person as it was on the XTransceiver. However, there was a certain warmth in her voice that just did not carry through electronically and made her seem much more human.

"They can be extremely dangerous and unpredictable. So remember everything you've learned from the time you were a child until now. Use it to help you connect with your Pokemon. Beyond simply a tool for Trainers, your Pokemon will grow to become some of your closest friends. They will be with you through trials that test the very fabric of your being, asking whether or not you are worthy to continue. And hopefully, with the help of your Pokemon, you will be." She cleared her throat. "As you are aware, your journey is intended to help us understand how going on a journey as an adult differs from going as a young person. As such, there will be a group of youngsters from Nuvema Town who will leave with you on your journey. They won't be with you the whole time, but I'm sure you will all be happy to know that Bianca will be accompanying them as a chaperone of sorts. Now, to the fun part," she said with a wide grin.

She took a box off her desk and went around to each research participant, handing them a standard red Pokedex. Juniper took one for herself as well. "This is the latest Pokedex. I heard you kids all like retro stuff now, so I special ordered them to look like Professor Oak's original model. You can change the color somewhere in the menus," she added. "And now for the most important part of the day," she continued, gesturing to the Poke Balls on the table. Each one was in a small cradle that had a paper name card on the front. "You can all feel free to take your Poke Ball and let your Pokemon out. None of them are too big, so we should be fine with the space we have."

Professor Juniper's Lab- Jason

Jason practically sprinted toward the table after Juniper said they could take their Poke Balls, scrambling to find his among the nine that were present. Finally, he saw his name printed in bold (JASON HOOPER) and grabbed the Poke Ball. He turned to the Minccino on his shoulder as he backed away from the table and looked him in the eye, nodding. Rascal was trembling with excitement. "Well, bud, ready to meet our new friend?" Jason asked. Rascal nodded, bracing himself. Jason pressed the button in the center of the ball, releasing a Pokemon in a bright flash of white light. A Treecko looked up at Jason and Rascal with curiosity, his yellow reptilian eyes blinking slowly as he registered the new Trainer in front of him.

"Hey, I'm Jason," the new Trainer said, not really sure how to react. He crouched down to be at eye level with the Grass-type. "I'm your new Trainer. You alright with that?" The Treecko seemed to consider this offer, then crossed his arms and shrugged. He walked a couple of steps to Jason, extending his balled fist to his new Trainer. Jason was shocked, his eyes wide. "That's... freakin'... AWESOME!" he shouted, elated at the prospect of having such a cool Pokemon. He quickly fist-bumped the little gecko, eliciting a slight grin from his new Pokemon. The Treecko sighed and shook his head, rolling his eyes at his Trainer's overreaction.

"Oh, right, we have to name you," Jason said as an afterthought. He looked at the Treecko and nodded. "I've got just the name for you. You'll be Gomez," Jason said with certainty. Rascal chittered his approval, swishing his tail back and forth in excitement. He leapt down from Jason's shoulder, walking in a circle and examining Gomez curiously. "Do you like that?"

The Treecko nodded. "Tree!" he contributed.

[Shadow Sketches]

Professor Juniper's Lab- Alecks

Alecks looked around at the science equipment as he entered Juniper's Lab, they didn't really interest him that much nor could he tell what most could do. His sister, Alice, would love looking at all the equipment and could probably tell more about what some of the equipment did, but perhaps he was overestimating her scientific skills. He suddenly kind of wished his twin could be beside him on his journey, just now realizing he was going to miss her more than he thought, but he pushed on as he was eager to meet his new partner that would surely help keep him from feeling loneliness.

Once they reached Professor Juniper and he got his Pokedex he immediately went in and changed his Pokedex's color to black to set it apart from the others. Once that was done he set his sights on the cradle with his name on it, walking over to it he tried to keep his excitement from showing too much as he did not want to embarrass himself. But in the end he reached the table with a silly, exited grin on his face. Wasting no more time, he threw the pokeball slightly in the air over him as he pressed the button in the middle of it, waiting in anticipation as to what pokemon he had gotten. Suddenly a Chimchar appeared after a bright flash of white light, he was facing towards Alecks and it took him a second to realize he was in the air but he quickly adjusted and dropped towards his new opened armed trainer. Alecks caught the pokeball falling down in one hand then caught the Chimchar in a hug as he fell too, carefully avoiding the flame at his rear.

"Chim!" Chimchar cried out adorably and climbed onto Alecks shoulder. "Hey Chimchar, I'm your new partner in crime, Alecks!" Chimchar giggled slightly as he covered his mouth with his hands "We're gonna have to give you a name huh?" Alecks said as he looked at Chimchar. Chimchar cocked his head slightly as he looked at his new trainer with big grey eyes. "I know, what about Apollo?"

Chimchar pumped a fist into the air and nodded, satisfied with his new name "Chim!" he responded.

Edited January 23, 2016 by Shadow Mankey

[Felicity]

Lab- Katie

As Katie was led into the lab, she couldn't help but feel a flutter of excitement, her heart pounding a fraction faster with each step, her rising enthusiasm showing on her face. Her surroundings were more like a sci--f setting than anything she had ever seen and she was about to start her own story. That was something wonderful.

Katie approached her own pokeball, the label making it clear it was hers. Katie had barely heard professor Juniper as her focus was entirely on her new partner. There was no hesitation as Katie picked up the ball and let her partner loose.

What Katie had not expected was to have her ribs crushed in a jumping hug from the small, excited Timburr.

The Timburr knew. The Timburr had waited so, so patiently. This person here, this wonderful person, was the one who was going to take him away from this horrible, horrible lab. He wanted to explore! He wanted to run, jump, fight, fly and swim around the world! This lab was sooooo cramped it drove him crazy. Which is why he loved anyone who could take him away.

"Erk-owowowowOW!" Katie verbalised her pain as she struggled to extricate herself from the fighting types grip. If he was this strong already, she would have to break this possible habit before he really could crush Katie in his grip. "It's nice to see you're enthusiastic but LET GO!"

Timburr dropped to the floor immediately. He would NOT anger his saviour. Not this time! This time he would be an angel, even if past experiences told him he had a talent for annoying the other pokemon. Good as gold, that was his new creed!

"Well, I think I have a name for you already Roy." Katie half-murmured. Roy nodded quickly, happy with whatever name his trainer gave him. It didn't even occur to Katie to ask if that was ok. It just seemed ideal to her. Reminiscent of someone else she had read about. All he needed was a cowboy hat and superpowers.

"Oh, right. I'm Katie. I guess you figured out that I'm your trainer, only Arceus knows how... Anyway. Nice to meet you." She squatted to look at Roy on his level. No point antagonising him. Especially when he seemed so happy to meet her already. Heaven has no rage....

[K_H]

Professor Juniper's Lab - Jack

After receiving his Pokedex and hearing how to change it, Jack did exactly that, altering the color to indigo in order to make his unique.

After three of the other participants got their partners, Jack and Lara were next to hurry to the table. Jack then searched for his card. it didn't take him long to find it, and they then made space for the next person to get their Partner. Jack then spoke to Lara, grinning in excitement.

"Ready to meet our new partner, Lara?"

Lara eagerly yipped in response, and Jack then continued.

"All righty, then!"

He then pressed the button in the center. The pokeball opened, then unleashed a brilliant flash of white light as a shinx materialized on the floor in front of the pair. It shook itself, and then sped between Jack's legs and dove into the bag before Jack could react. Jacks could only say a quick phrase as the shinx made its move for his bag.

"What the-?!"

He then noticed that there was a potion from his bag just over his shoulder, and looked upwards, highly amused.

"Guess I'll name you Leonidas, little guy."

the Potion went back into his bag, and then Leonidas came down from Jack's bag, happy with the name Jack had given him.

Leonidas then decided to get to know the rather cute poochyena with the yellow headband, who introduced herself to him as Lara. She seemed interesting enough, maybe they could be closer at a later time. For now, though, there were places to go, things to do, and a world to explore!

Lara, on the other hand, was surprised at how quickly things happened, much like her Trainer was. When Leonidas had asked her who she was, she gave him the honest truth about the names of her and the Human standing next to her. Leonidas seemed satisfied with that. Judging by how he'd looked at her, he thought she was cute. Because of this, she was blushing under her fur, although neither Jack nor Leonidas could notice.

For now, though, the three of them were still where Jack had let Leonidas out of his Pokeball for the first time.

[Chim]

Lab - Brendan

Brendan eagerly looked around the lab. It wasn’t exactly what he wanted to do later, he wanted to do fieldwork, but it came close. He carefully avoided coming close to Bianca like he had done the entire time. She was just too much for him to deal with and he was glad when they finally met professor Juniper.

I wonder what kind of Pokémon I will get… was all Brendan could think about. No matter how much he did his best to listen to what Juniper had to say, nothing really stuck with him until she handed out the Pokédex and told the group where their Pokémon were waiting.

Brendan was really hyped and wanted to sprint after Jason, but unfortunately the table was quite the distance away. Not to mention he would’ve to bodycheck at least three others to get there. So the young adult waited for his turn. His thoughts trailed back to when he first had to answer the damn question. At the time Brendan had no idea what kind of Pokémon he wanted as a starter. There were multiple types and species he considered, but since he didn’t really had a favorite, he just couldn’t make a decision. Eventually his dream of becoming a researcher and visit ancient places had made the decision for him. Just pick the species that could be useful in ancient ruins or hard to reach places where history and mythology waited for him to tell their tale. Doing it that way would be easy! Right?

Nope. Even after scratching half the Pokémon on his list, Brendan had a hard time. Maybe a Swinub? Ice and Ground could prove useful in multiple circumstances. But there was this feeling he really wanted a Unovian Pokémon… A flying type? Could be handy to reach high places and scout caves. Caves… Ruins, as far as he knew, usually had hidden chambers and could be dark like a cave. And caves were filled with rock types…

When Jack stepped aside Brendan found the Pokéball with his name immediately. He grabbed the red sphere, stepped aside and pushed the button. “Yes!” he cheered when he noticed he had gotten his first choice. The Roggenrola didn’t share the happy feeling. In fact it didn’t do anything. It just stood there. Was it staring? Could it even see?

“Uuuhm, I’m Brendan, your new partner. Nice to meet you!” Brendan tried. “I still have to nickname you. How about I call you Titan?”

The rock type didn’t respond and just stood there until finally it gave a small nod.

[starkidcosmo]

10:00 AM- Nuvema Town

Mio flicked the detachable rollerblades off of his shoes with practiced ease as the group stood outside Juniper's lab. He stashed them in his BAG, listening to Bianca's unexpectedly serious lecture with awe. She'd seemed very... ditzy before, but now he could see she was definitely a Pokemon Professor's assistant. Even Meena took her seriously.

As she led the group inside, Mio found himself stunned by all of the research and knowledge around him. There were researchers everywhere, and Mio had to restrain himself from bounding over and pestering them about their work. His self-control was further tested as Bianca led the party through a huge library area, filled to the brim with exactly the kind of science Mio was interested in. He was practically drooling, and leaving those books behind filled him with sadness. He even brushed a tear away from his eyes.

I'll come back for you, he thought. Please wait for me! Meena closed her eyes in exasperation, as if she could hear her trainer's thoughts.

Juniper's Lab- Mio

Mio listened to Professor Juniper's lecture with rapt attention, to the point that he tuned everything else out. He trembled as she handed him his Pokedex. It was precisely the same as Professor Oak's original model, and he found himself geeking out internally for a good minute and a half.

After she'd had enough of her trainer's fangirling, Meena leaped to the top of the pokeball table. It didn't take her long to find Mio's, as everyone else had already gotten theirs and were currently bonding with their new pokemon. She rapped the pokeball with her claws, drawing Mio's attention.

Embarrassed, Mio hurried over to his pokeball and picked it up, admiring the smooth, but easily gripped chassis. He felt as if its weight was meant to be there. Swallowing in anticipation, Mio turned away from the table and pressed the button in the center.

A Mudkip appeared in a burst of light, wiggling her tail fin. Mio gasped softly and knelt down to make eye contact with his new partner.

"Hi," he breathed, at a loss for anything else to say. The Mudkip made a gentle noise in the back of her throat in response. Meena, feeling left out, dropped down to the floor where she circled around the new teammate with interest.

"Hey," Mio said again. "I'm Mio, I'm gonna be taking care of you from now on, okay? I'm your new trainer, if you want to stay with me." He reached out a trembling hand, not sure if he could pet his new friend or not. In response, the mudkip shoved her face into his hand, rubbing against it much like Meena did. Mio laughed, delighted.

"I'll call you Loam, is that ok?" Loam nodded and turned to Meena, who shrugged.

I don't have a problem with you, she seemed to say. Loam waddled over and shoved her face into Meena's with unabashed glee. Mio guessed Meena would be blushing if she could.

He stood up, Meena and Loam at his side. He was a real trainer now, and he'd never felt better.

[Shadow Sketches]

Juniper's Lab- Alecks

Once Apollo saw the Timburr, he half hid behind Aleck's head and glared at Roy. Seeing this, Alecks was confused at what troubled him "What's the matter buddy?" he asked his new partner. Apollo replied with a short cry then jumped down from his shoulder to land on the floor a little bit away from Roy. He then puffed up his chest and smacked a fist against it once, looking right at Roy challengingly. Alecks followed behind Apollo to stand beside him, apparently there was some sort of rivalry between the two of them. He wasn't sure whether they were already rivals from before or whether Apollo just decided to see Roy as a challenge, either way Apollo seemed to want a fight.

"Looks like Apollo wants to test his skills against Roy, so what do you say? Want to test our strengths?" Alecks smiled at Katie, a teasing glint in his eyes.

Edited January 23, 2016 by Shadow Mankey

[Jory]

Professor Juniper's Lab- Jason

The new Trainer was busy hanging out with his Treecko, who he thought he was starting to get a handle on. Gomez was not quick to action, but when he did anything it was deliberate and done the right way. It seemed as though he was a bit of a perfectionist, which was fine by Jason. The brown-haired youth walked over to the pair that looked like their Pokemon were about to battle, cracking a grin. "Hey, hey, quit monkeying around," he said jokingly. "If you two are going to go at it, I'd put my money on that Timburr. No offense dude, but if that hug was any indication than your Chimchar's gonna get pulped."

Professor Juniper's Lab- Everyone

Professor Juniper stepped in front of Alecks, Katie, and Jason, shaking her head. "You'll have time to battle in just a moment, but make sure you go outside before-" she began. However, she was interrupted by the doors to her lab loudly banging open as three adolescents struggled with each other to be the first through. Finally, the sole youth of the group, sporting a spiky navy blue head of hair, managed to push his way to the front. As a result, all three collapsed on the ground. None the worse for wear, they continued their petty arguing and jostling all the way to the front, where they stopped moving but continued loudly yelling at each other until Juniper cleared her throat. Like a dog with a whistle, the three immediately stood at attention and ceased their hullabaloo.

"Glad you three could make it," Juniper said warmly. She reached into the box and took out the last three Pokedexes, handing one to each of what were now obviously the Nuvema Town group. Each one went and collected their Poke Ball, then returned to Juniper's side. She had them turn to the rest of the group and called out for everyone's attention. "Everyone, gather around. These are the students from Nuvema Town," she began, introducing them. "They'll be going on their journey alongside you. I'm sure they have something to say to you all," she finished, gesturing toward the Nuvema students to introduce themselves.

Jason

Jason looked on with interest as the Nuvema Town kids were brought forward. He wondered which was going to be the strongest and which ones were going to be his top competitors before laughing it off, dismissing all of that as ultimately unimportant. After all, his Pokemon journey was about growing with his Pokemon, not about who was the strongest.

[starkidcosmo]

Juniper's Lab- Mio

Mio had been fiddling with his Pokedex, changing the color to green, to blue, to white, then back to red in rapid succession, unable to decide whether he wanted it personalized or true to the original, when a group of children barreled into the room. Mio flinched, startled out of his conundrum.

Mio was immediately uncomfortable. He'd never been good with kids. Even when he was a kid he was bad with kids. What was he supposed to say to them? How should he treat them? He'd never been able to understand what to do around kids. He shuffled awkwardly and looked away, cheeks burning.

Meena, sensing his discomfort, abandoned her strange bonding ritual with Loam and bounded up on the table, from which she leaped elegantly onto his shoulder. Loam tried to follow, but her back legs weren't exactly built for anything but power. She wined at Mio's feet, shoving her head into his shin. Mio, grateful for the reassurance and distraction, knelt down carefully and scooped her up in his arms.

Noting Jason's interest in the kids, Mio edged towards him in search of guidance. But once he came close, Mio clammed up. I'm too awkward for this! he thought, floundering internally. Besides! It'd be rude to talk while the kids are... doing whatever. He decided to pretend he hadn't come looking for help from his fellow trainer. Meena rolled her eyes and sighed. Loam, fascinated by everything Meena did, copied her.

[Ojama Yellow]

Juniper's Lab- Tara

Tara was the first one to step forward. Gently pushing up her glasses, she took a step forward. "Hello!" Her voice wasn't particularly loud, but due to her clear articulation, the others shouldn't have had any problems understanding her. "My name's Tara Wilkes!" Although it could not be seen from her appearance, the girl was pretty nervous. Normally she had no problem speaking up in front of a large group of people, but these were all kids older than her.

She gulped at the thought that these were the kids she would have to battle in the future. People had told her that the other participants would be older, but she hadn't realized that she actually had to compete against them...until now. And the thought was making her very uncomfortable.

[Azeria]

Juniper's Lab- Alia

Alia took a slow step forward and then another one before coming to a halt next to Tara and looked at the other participants to the program. Pushing away a strand of her long brown hair from her eyes so she could see them more easily. "Hi." Alia greeted them quietly, she woke up only half an hour prior to going to the lab and so she wasn't very alert at the moment, she barely had the time to take a shower and get dressed. "I'm Alia, Alia Hoskins." She yawned a bit after introducing herself before covering her mouth, she didn't want to give a bad first impression after all, even as tired as she was

She wasn't usually this tired, but she'd spent most of last night being extremely excited about this and barely slept because of that, and why wouldn't she be? After all, she'd get to travel all around Unova, something she as well as her friends have wanted to do for a long time now and that dream would finally become a reality now.

[Sutoratosu]

Juniper's Lab- Hugh

The lone, spiky haired male youth was the last of the three young trainers to speak. He had spent the entire time since he'd gotten there eyeing the older participants, never lingering on one for more than a few seconds before sizing up their partners for those of them who had released them. The neutral line that constituted his mouth portrayed nothing as he stood there, arms folded and leaning his backside against the table.

"The names Hugh," He said simply. Unlike Tara, his nerves were steady as steel, and unlike alia, that fierce, focused gaze in his crimson eyes made it seem he was so alert that, even if a giant jug of sentient, cherry flavored beverage were to come crashing through that wall behind him, enthusiastically shouting 'OH YEAH!' at the top of it's lungs and causing countless pokedollars in property damage, the boy'd still be ready for just about anything. "don't wear it out."

[Jory]

Professor Juniper's Lab- Everyone

Juniper looked warmly at the three younger participants, then back at the group. "They'll be with you at times, but for the most part your adventure will be separate from theirs." She gestured to the double doors leading outside. "Well, I'm sure you're all just about ready to burst with excitement. We'll be heading outside so you can each have your first battles. Pair off with each other." She walked over to Bianca, removing a Poke Ball from her lab coat's pocket. "I know you already began your journey, but these new Trainers are going to need someone among them who can guide them. Let them make their own mistakes, but should they stray too far I think you should step in." She handed the Ball to Bianca, who nodded in understanding.

"Thank you, Professor Juniper. I won't let you down." She cradled the new Poke Ball. "This is so exciting! I just can't believe that I have another new Pokemon!" she gushed, overcome with glee. Professor Juniper chuckled and shook her head, then beckoned for the group to follow. She led them through the double doors marked, "Exit" and outside.

Outside- Jason

The sun was shining brightly as the group stepped outside and into the large meadow behind the lab. Five large Pokemon battling fields were painted on the grass, arranged in a row from left to right across the meadow and situated between the treeline and the lab. "This is is, guys," the new Trainer said to his Pokemon. Gomez and Rascal both nodded, the latter chittering softly in excitement. Gomez simply bounced from foot to foot, appearing to loosen up before the fight that was sure to begin soon. Jason surveyed the crowd, selecting his opponent carefully. His eyes landed on Brendan, who had seemed like a pretty nice guy on the walk from Accumula Town. He locked eyes with the other Trainer and took a couple of steps toward him, ready to battle.

"Hey, Brendan. I heard when Trainers lock eyes, they have to battle each other. I'll try to go easy on you since I have the type advantage," he joked. "What do you say to a Pokemon battle? And don't worry, Rascal's gonna sit this one out. It'll just be Titan and you against Gomez and me."

[Shadow Sketches]

Outside- Alecks

He wasn't too impressed with the new kids introductions, he never thought much about kids in the first place. Though he had to admit that the shy Tara was adorable, like a little puppy. But he reminded himself that they were now all rivals to him, he would make sure to prove he could take them all on no matter what. Especially the blue haired one, he barely knew him for five minutes and he already didn't like his attitude. He would have to challenge him later, for now Apollo was on his shoulders and pulling at his cheek pointing right at Roy and Katie. Alecks nodded slightly, his determined gaze matching his partner's "All right, I get it buddy." He walked towards Katie, both him and Apollo had a fire in their eyes as they got closer to their first challenge.

"I'm obligated by my honor to prove Jason wrong, so I guess I'm going to have to beat you and Roy" holding his hand out to her, waiting for her to shake it in acceptance of his challenge "Come on, let's have a fight for the ages! No healing items or anything, just us and our skills!"

Edited January 28, 2016 by Shadow Sketches

[starkidcosmo]

Juniper's Lab- Mio

Mio shuffled uncomfortably as the three kids introduced themselves. The first two, Tara and Alia, seemed calm enough; Tara was composed and polite, while Alia was quiet-- although that might've been from exhaustion. Hugh, however, was everything Mio was terrified of. He glanced down as the aggressive kid scanned him, sweating. Relief washed over him as Professor Juniper led the group outside.

Outside- Mio

Mio took stock of the situation as fast as he could. It seemed that Alecks and Jason had already made their challenges, which left either the three kids or Jack. He grimaced, realizing his decision was pretty much set. Meena, still balanced on his shoulder, lashed her tail from side to side in excitement. Loam, however, didn't seem all that interested, instead opting to shove her face into various parts of Mio's chest.

Reluctantly, Mio approached Jack and waved.

"Ah, well..." he coughed, averting his gaze, "...Want to fight?"

[Felicity]

Outside- Katie

"I'm obligated by my honor to prove Jason wrong, so I guess I'm going to have to beat you and Roy" holding his hand out to her, waiting for her to shake it in acceptance of his challenge "Come on, let's have a fight for the ages! No healing items or anything, just us and our skills!"

Katie coughed awkwardly, averting her hazel eyes from Alecks. He seemed nice enough but...

"Uh, yeah, that's nice and all, props for the melodrama and all, really, but I don't really wanna battle right now and, well, I'm not too sure Roy does either." She glanced down at her new partner. He was nodding along as he stood behind her legs, glaring at Apollo. Katie didn't really understand why Roy disliked Apollo but she wasn't gonna take away his right to be petty and not offer an outlet for any aggression. Then again, it might not be that simple.

Katie waved Bianca over. "Uh, is it alright if we don't battle? I don't really want my first memories with my pokemon to be of him getting wailed on by someone else." Plus she wanted to rush over to the cutie pie girls and maybe the downer of a guy, if he proved to be a little friendlier, and squeal. She had a soft spot for little kids. Especially ones old enough to not be annoying.