Chapter Text
We are totally different people while we sleep: there are those whose dreamlike thoughts reflect the deepest and darkest sides of their personality; there are those who don't dream at all and wake up kind of confused, like something was missing; there are those who sleep without resting at all, because something else is on their mind.
That night, Chika was staring at the white, clean ceiling of her room, her breathing even, she was trying to sleep: the only source of light was brought by the moon, which was clearly visible from her window.
The girl liked that, knowing that the moon was shining despite everything that might have happened that same morning...it filled her with peace.
She turned on her side to look at the alarm clock on the night stand: it was past three in the morning.
'Four hours left before the great day...', the girl thought.
Chika's sixteenth birthday had taken place just a few days before, when the summer's hot sun was at his peak despite being destined to fade no more than a month later: she had invited You, Riko and the rest of her class to celebrate together and, of course, she had a lot of fun.
But now, Chika looked at her age with much more pride than any of the past years: being sixteen meant she could visit the most famous laboratory of her city, where, every year, hundreds of boys and girls would come running to meet their new future.
Being sixteen in her city meant Chika was ready to receive her first Pokémon ever.
Since she was a child, she had always been interested in Pokémon Battles: her mother would always call her when lunch was ready and, after a few minutes, go upstairs just to find her hypnotized by the TV, where trainers from all over the world were shouting orders and directing their hits towards their opponents, their faces were showing a focus and a determination rarely seen elsewhere; Chika found it amazing, how some particularly skilled trainers were able to know which attacks the opponent would have used in advance, this often granting them a decisive victory.
That the young girl knew a lot about Pokémon, this couldn't be said: not much was revealed in battle shows, this probably because the producers assumed that their spectators already knew advanced knowledge of battling, so she caught hints here and there, but nothing too specific or anything that would make her prepared to receive what would probably be her companion for that day onward.
The girl took a deep breath: anticipating her emotions wouldn't do her any better if she was to wake up like a zombie due to the lack of sleep, even less if she had to face lessons in a few hours; surely, they wouldn't let a poor girl without any experience explore the world with just one Pokémon, right?
She closed her eyes, letting the peacefulness of the night overcome her senses, while dreams of all kinds danced in the darkness, ready for us to hold on them and forget them in the morning, a secret shared under the moonlight, and the moonlight alone.
Takami Chika...who will you choose to be?
“Ohayousoro, Chika-chan!”
The orange-haired girl smiled sleepily as she waved an hello to her two closest friends: You Watanabe and Riko Sakurauchi. The sun was already high in the sky, so Chika supposed she might have overslept a bit; in spite of that, it looked like she had still plenty of time to get ready.
“So, Chika, are you ready? Today’s going to be a day we’ll always carry in our hearts”, Riko said, with a sweet smile.
Said girl yawned and rubbed her eyes before nodding and replying: “I am! Just give me some time to get ready and grab my things…!”.
“Try not to be late again!”
“Come oooon, Riko! You’re always too strict with her!”, You complained with a pout.
“You-chan, this is a special occas-” Riko tried to get out of that awkward situation: why did she have to be always the unfriendly one among their group of friends?
“I know, I know, I was just teasing you! Let’s wait fot her!” You answered, giggling and striking her signature pose.
Less than half an hour later the two girls were walking on familiar streets,
their
streets. Uchiura wasn’t a big town, plus both You and Chika had been living there since they were born: Riko, instead, had only transferred two years prior to that day, but she had got to know the place quite easily. Walking across the same streets every morning, stopping at the same traffic light every time, hanging out with their friends to the same places...everyone of them, in the depths of their heart, admitted that it could get quite boring: however, that day, there was something comfortable and relaxing in seeing everything was quite the same, despite what was about to happen. Their first Pokémon…! Chika herself couldn’t quite believe it yet, and neither could You, if her giggling and cheering throughout the whole walk were any sign of that; Riko, stood aside, sometimes smirking or making a comment, but otherwise staying silent: Chika thought that as her way to express nervousness.
Their town could be not as lively as big cities like Tokyo (where Riko was born and lived before transferring), but the walk to the Pokémon Lab was quite a long one. Half an hour after having set off from Chika’s house, the girls decided for a quick break before resuming their sweet journey, the three of them sitting on a bench: the sea and its beach could be seen just in front of them, and they both lacked people, which You found strange.
“Are we alone here? Looks like half of this place never existed”, she pointed out.
“Probably adults are organizing the journey of their children, while the others probably went seeing the Laboratory being full of people, which doesn’t happen that often. Also, there isn’t much to see here, except that diving shop there, but that also looks closed”
After that, the girls stood quiet for some minutes, before You brought up another topic.
“How do you think our Pokémon is going to look like? I’d love to receive something powerful, to get my revenge against some of my relatives who constantly blame me for not having a Pokémon yet!”, You grinned, determination evident on her.
“Woah, calm down, You-chan!”, Riko warned her, laughing, “I don’t think they’ll just handle us the best Pokémon out there. It would be best for us to start from the beginning, since we’re fairly unexperienced”.
“You mean, like…a ’starter Pokémon’?”, Chika asked, curious.
“I heard there are some Pokémon that are chosen every year for young trainers to choose. I think someone already referred to them as ‘starters’ “.
“This is amazing! Do you happen to know anything more, Riko-chan?” You jolted, impatiently waiting to discover something more about that amazing world whose Pokémon trainers were part of.
“Unfortunately not. This is everything I know so far. I guess it’ll be exciting to find out more together!”
“Definitely!”, Chika stood up, running to the opposite direction they were facing, “How about we resume our walk? I’m looking forward to that moment!”.
The Pokémon Lab was the biggest building in their town: its walls were of a quartz-like white, with doors and structured made of gray, cold metal and a majestic, ruby red roof where the sculpture of a Pokéball could easily be seen from the entrance.
“Woah…! I’ve never been so close to this Lab before!” said Chika, in awe.
Riko had left behind her calm expression when amazement took over, and now she was staring at the building too, together with dozens of boys and girls of her age: although Uchiura wasn’t a populated town, it was the only one in the nearbies to actually have a Pokémon Laboratory, so that day people of the near towns and villages had come too, along with their parents. To summarize, there was a crowd standing in front of the entrance, with Riko questioning herself about the exact waiting time before their turn would eventually come.
To their left, people stood apart to let some of the teenagers pass: they were the ones who had already got their Pokémon, and were tightly holding a Pokéball in their hands, smiling with pride, some of them showing haughtiness, while some other were clapping and cheering at them, probably their parents.
“Hmpf! Those guys think they could own the world just because they’ve just received a Pokémon! How pathetic!” You huffed.
“Well, technically, they could!”, an old man replied, making You jolt in fear.
“Woah, you scared me! Uhm...excuse me, who are you?”
The old man smiled: “Oh, I’m sorry, young lady, I haven’t introduced myself: I’m Higashi Akio. I once have been a Pokémon trainer myself, but now I’m too old to travel on my own: despite that, I still enjoy coming here every year, just to be the spectator to many dreams becoming reality”.
“Oh, that’s very kind of you, Sir!”, Riko replied, “We’re here for the reason you said, to receive our first Pokémon!”
“Aye, no need to be so formal! Just call me Akio, everyone in my town does. Anyway, I’ve heard one of the first generations is going to be extracted this year, so-”
“What do you mean with ‘generations’, Akio?”, Chika interrupted him before the man could say anything else.
“Chika! It’s rude to interrupt people!”
“Ahem...sorry, Riko-chan…”
The man didn’t seem to bother the interruption: “Ohh, I see you’re plenty new to this world! In that case, I won’t spoiler you anything new: just get ready, girls, this will be the day you’ll remember forever and that you will tell about to hundreds of kids after you!”.
Chika didn’t know that a simple waiting room could bring to deep anxiety: she had been pacing back and forth along the corridor to the point where she ended up bothering many people, but still, staying put and sat was a struggle for her.
Riko was biting at her nails, an habit neither Chika nor You knew she had. In the meanwhile, cheers could be heard from the outside, a sign that the group of boys that went into the otherwise sealed room some steps away from them had just come out from the back door, making an obviously great show of their new “conquests”.
It was a matter of minutes now, before an assistant would show, telling them to come in as well, unlocking the door with a thin, metallic badge, then...Chika didn’t quite know what could happen next. Would they be allowed to choose a Pokémon? Or would somebody else choose it for them? Was it really free? A stomach ache suddenly became the main thought in her mind, for how strong it was: the orange-haired tried to ignore it, knowing it was due to her nervousness; it took her some time, but eventually she succeeded, just when a good looking woman walked towards them.
“Are you three girls together? Or do you prefer to go one at a time?”
The girls glanced at each other, but then You nodded: “We’d like to stick together, if you could, please”.
“Of course. Please, follow me inside”.
The woman unlocked the door, just like Chika had seen her doing moments ago: then she took a step further from the door to let the girls pass.
Inside it was quite dark: both the walls and the floor were made out of dark wood, and candles were the only source of light, scattered across the room, put on various surfaces, as though they were tiny stars in the darkest of the night skies.
A man in a white lab coat was standing behind a table: when he greeted the three girls, they looked around to see who had just spoken, for he was almost completely hidden by the dark feature of the wooden table.
“Good morning, girls! I hope you had a safe trip to my laboratory! I’m Professor Walnut, but before I start introducing you your new companions, what about you introduce ourselves?”.
“I’m Takami Chika!”, the girl immediately said, before any of the other two could speak, “I live here, in Uchiura! And I can’t wait for my adventure to begin!”.
“I’m Watanabe You!”, her childhood friend spoke, “I’m a friend of Chika’s, and I was born ready for this!”.
“I’m Sakurauchi Riko!”, the red-haired added, “I’ve lived in Tokyo before coming here, but I’m just as ready to start my journey!”.
“Excellent! I see you all are strong-minded girls! Before your journey as official Trainers begin, I’ll explain you a few things: first of all, as you might already know, we live in a world where Pokémon are the trustworthy companions of us humans; people train them to battle with other Trainers or just keep them as pets. Every Pokémon lives in a Pokéball, that you’re about to receive. There are more than seven hundreds of Pokémon in the world, everyone has a unique type, its own moves and nature: it’s up to you to discover and catch as many of them as you can or just train a few and aim to the greatest height Pokémon Trainers could aim to: the Pokémon League! Now, girls, come closer…”.
The three girls were still processing the informations they had heard, and they were way too amazed to even make a step forward, if not after a few moments.
“Here, girls, are three very special Pokéball, each of them hosting an equally special Pokémon inside. The first one”, the Professor pointed to the Pokéball on the left, “is a Grass type Pokémon. The second one”, his hand switched, now resting on the Pokéball on the right, “is a Water type Pokémon, while the third one", he now tapped the Pokéball between the other two, “is a Fire type Pokémon. Now, take a moment to think about your choice and who will choose first. Remember, girls: once you’ve chosen, that Pokémon is yours forever”.
The three girls were already excited by the thought of receiving a Pokémon, but now they were completely terrified. That was a choice that would change their fate and the path each of them would eventually take.
“Chika-chan, You-chan...you two should go first. I don’t want to be a burden or making anyone of you angry with my choice. Besides, I’ll be happy with whatever Pokémon I’ll receive, as long as I’ll get the chance to train it later”, Riko muttered, slightly embarassed.
“Riko! Don’t be silly! You’re not a burden, besides there’s no way we could even be disappointed by your choice!” Chika replied, mildly irritated.
“I have an idea:”, suggested Walnut, “why don’t you go by order of introduction? Whoever has introduced herself first will choose first".
“Sounds good to me”, Riko accepted.
“This means you’re first, Chika!”, You cheered, pushing her friend forward.
“Eek! Wait, You, I…!”. Knowing arguing wasn’t going to be of any use, the girl took a deep breath and looked closer at the three Pokéball in front of her: the yellowish light coming from the candles reflected itself on the Pokéball’s lid surface, making it sparkle; their base was of a cold and lightly rough material that Chika assumed to be iron or aluminium; the lid and the base were connected by a button-like circle, probably some opening mechanism.
Three fates, one girl...who will you choose?
Chika looked at the Fire type Pokéball: it shone of a fierce light Chika had never seen before, and she swore she could hear the roaring of flames coming from inside; this both excited and frightened her, but something told her that it wasn’t the right Pokémon for her. She also took a look at the Water Type Pokémon: she could smell the salty scent of the sea waves in a stormy day; it amazed her, how the whole ocean seemed to have been chained, captured by an almost alien technology. Still, she moved forward to the last Pokéball, the Grass type one: she could see the border between the lid and the base sparkling; on a closer look, she found that the tiniest flowers were trying to make their way out of that cage, only to be stopped by a tight and solid material.
Looking at them, Chika understood: grass reminded her of a forest, where a thousand animals, dangers and landscapes met; and, in spite of knowing it would be dangerous to visit a real one, she had always dreamed to live an adventure like that, since she was a child, when she used to play explorers with You and their friends. It was the place, the world she had always been aiming to, from her childhood up to those days: it was her own little fantasy, that she could live while asleep; it wasn’t a place she had been to, like the Water type, nor one she feared she couldn’t control: it was her familiar dream.
“I’ve thought over this…”, Chika took the left Pokéball in her hands, “And I choose you...Grass type Pokémon!”.
She threw the Pokémon at her feet, like she had seen done in shows, and a strange creature came out of it: it was mostly green, and had something similar to a giant seed on its back. It was cute nonetheless, so Chika crouched to try to pet it, still excited, smiling and laughing all the time.
“Now it’s my turn.”, You said, “And for as much as I think having a Fire type would be cool, my life is among the most ferocious waves of the ocean, captain and sailor of my own boat. The one Pokémon that belongs to me can’t be anyone else other than…”, she took the right Pokéball in her right hand and mimed Chika’s gesture from before: “Water type Pokémon!”.
A monster that looked like a turtle came out: it was completely bluette, with the exception of its brown shell. It stood on his two feet, unlike any common turtle would. You was initially too scared to get any closer, but after a minute or so she finally found the courage to hold it, hugging her new Pokémon as it was a baby.
Riko smiled as she looked at her two friends happily playing with their new companions. Then, after glancing at Prof. Walnut one last time, she stepped forward and took the last Pokéball from the table.
“So, I guess this little Pokémon belongs to me now, doesn’t it? Unlike Chika and You, it looks like this tiny creature has chosen me, instead: I wonder whether it was fate, for us to be together in our journey. I hope I’ll be able to deserve you…”, she gently held the Pokéball in her hand, aiming to the ceiling, “Fire type Pokémon!”. The monster came out from its Pokéball, and Riko was quick in catching it before it fell to the ground: it looked more or less like a lizard, except it was completely orange, with a tiny flame burning on the end of its tail, making Riko doubt about the pain the being might have felt.
“Amazing! That was great! Congratulations, girls, you’re now officially ready to become Pokémon trainers! Well, at least, you almost are: there are still a few things I have to give you, of which some will make your journey a little easier. Here, take these, first”: Professor Walnut moved from his place behind the table to come directly in front of the girls, who were now holding their Pokémon, staring at him, a joyful expression on their faces; for there were many different ways of expressing happiness, starting from the spark in You’s eyes to the toothy grin on Chika’s face, ending with the faintest trace of blush on Riko’s cheeks.
“Girls, now pay attention to what I’m about to say”, Walnut called for their attention.
“This red object in my hand is called a Pokédex”, he raised his right hand to better show it to the girls, “The Pokédex is the product of the technology of Poké Labs in Kanto, Johto and many other famous regions you’ve already heard of. It will register info about any Pokémon you already have, catch or trade, including their moveset, nature and type. It’s by far the most useful tool among young and advanced Trainers: you’ll receive one each, I recommend to always carry it around”: then, he handed one Pokédex at each girl, with them immediately opening it and trying to figure out how it worked.
“Here, girls, try it on your new Pokémon! Oh, I almost forgot: to store your Pokémon back in its Pokéball, hold the ball towards it and order to return!”.
You was the first one to try out her Pokédex, holding it and pressing a yellow button; the device flashed a few times before showing an image of her Pokémon, with a diagram, a chart and a few lines written:
“ Squirtle [WATER]: Squirtle’s shell is not merely used for protection. The shell’s rounded shape and the grooves on its surface help minimize resistance in water, enabling this Pokémon to swim at high speeds “.
“So...is my Pokémon named Squirtle? That’s so cool!”
“Hey, I want to try too!”, Chika said, copying You’s actions to activate her Pokédex”
“ Bulbasaur [GRASS/POISON]: Bulbasaur can be seen napping in bright sunlight. There is a seed on its back. By soaking up the sun’s rays, the seed grows progressively larger “.
“ ‘Bulbasaur’? He looks great with that seed on his back! I bet we’ll be great friends!”
“Yes, getting to know the Pokémon you train is a fundamental step to become a master.”, Walnut said, “If you know what are the weaknesses of your Pokémon before you battle, then you’ll get some advantage. Now, Sakurauchi-san, why don’t you try too?”.
“Uhm...yes! Of course! I’ll just…” Riko aimed for her Pokémon, that was looking at her with curiosity; just like Chika and You, her Pokédex showed a few entries:
“ Charmander [FIRE]: 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 “.
“Charmander...it looks so strong! I hope he’s not aggres-KYAAAAAA!”: said Charmander had just scratched Riko’s leg and was now trying to bite through the shoes.
“Stop it! Charmander, return!”, Riko held her Pokéball to call Charmander back, and he obeyed, vanishing in a blue, sparkling smoke that went directly inside the ball.
“Good job, Sakurauchi! Quite easy, wasn’t it?”, Walnut nodded in approval.
“I...guess so…”: Riko’s hand was trembling, but she nonetheless made sure her Pokéball was safe in her hand by holding it tightly, never letting go of the tiny life that was inside of it.
“Now, I have some gifts for you: here are five Pokéballs each, that can be used to catch other Pokémon: the lady on Route 1 will tell you more about it; next, five potions each, to heal your Pokémon in case something happened. About the rest, you’ll have to pack your own things if you want to travel far and wide to train your Pokémon!”.
The three girls cheered, Chika and You called back their Pokémon and put them in their bags as well, then joined Riko for a group hug: now that they were Trainers, they would be unstoppable. That day was just the beginning of weeks, maybe even months, they would surely remember as the most beautiful of their lives.
“Are you girls ready?”, Riko asked.
“I am, Riko-chan”, You replied.
“I was born ready!”, Chika added.
“Then...let’s do this”.
Riko pushed the back door open, only to be met with rays of sunlight that blinded her for some moments, having she been in an almost complete darkness for a while. When she regained her sight she stepped outside, followed by the two other girls, and was immediately met by clapping and loud cheering, coming from various directions: not only her parents and both You’s and Chika’s were shouting, but also complete strangers she might have seen once in her life. She thought back at the words of the old man at the entrance: people came just to be spectators of the realization of a dream, to be the public to new Trainers that could, one day, be forever remembered in history.
It was true, that dreams had been shaped into reality, that day.
Their dreams.