It was not a particularly busy day at the Sandgem Town seaport. One may suspect this was because there wasn't much to see in the seaside town, and indeed, there was not much to Sandgem's name. If one wanted a nice beach, he would go to Sunnyshore City. If one wanted beautiful fields, he would travel to Floaroma Town. And if one wanted interesting and powerful Pokémon, he would go literally anywhere else. Truly, it was a place of interest only to beginning trainers who were lucky enough to receive a starter Pokémon from the local Pokémon scientist, and even then, one would have to be incredibly lucky or incredibly wealthy to get a reasonably rare Pokémon for free and no strings attached.

Regardless of all these factors that would say 'go somewhere else' to an intelligent man, it was this town that Ash Ketchum, an experienced Kantonese trainer of fifteen years, had decided would be the first step into the Sinnoh region. Damned be the 'Most Interesting Places to Visit in Sinnoh' brochure and its so-called 'helpful advice'! He started his Kanto journey blind and ignorant, and he would be damned if he didn't start all of his other journeys the same way!

The young lad was currently in front of a videophone, his hair as unkept as ever underneath the red cap, and his new jacket already scuffed and dirty, despite having not seen dry land in almost thirty days. Upon Ash's shoulder were two Pokémon – a yellow mouse with a thunderbolt-shaped tail, and a purple monkey with a hand on the end of its tail.

The screen on the videophone lit up, displaying a picture of a middle-aged man with a swept-forward hairdo, a red shirt, and a white lab coat. The man smiled, and said in an aged voice, "Ah, if it isn't my second-favourite travelling labrat! How are you, Ash?"

"Hey, Professor Oak." Ash replied cheerfully. "I'm doing fine. I just arrived in the Sinnoh region, actually."

"Ah, a lovely region!" Oak nodded. "And Pikachu and Aipom, too! I see you're both looking healthy and fit!" He frowned as he looked upon Pikachu's tired face. "…Not that you seem to be pleased about it."

"Nah, Pikachu's just a bit tired from the training we did on our trip." Ash waved his hand.

"(I was promised a relaxing cruise trip to Sinnoh.)" Pikachu muttered sourly. "(Since the day we left port, we have done nothing but train on the cruise deck.)"

"(I guess being top Pokémon has its drawbacks.)" Aipom chuckled. "(After all, I didn't get trained to death.)"

"(That's because you were hiding in the cargo hold for half the trip!)" Pikachu snapped at her.

"Yeah, Aipom snuck on board. Cheeky little thing probably missed me." Ash smiled as he scratched the monkey under the chin. "Which is kinda why I called. I need you to send Aipom's Pokéball to me. Didn't know she'd be coming along for the ride!"

Oak frowned. "Wait… you weren't planning to just bring Pikachu, were you?"

"Yeah, I figured I'd start my Sinnoh journey fresh." Ash replied, moving his hand to scratch under Pikachu's chin, an act that the electric mouse happily relaxed into. "After all, Pikachu's my third-strongest Pokémon. What could go wrong?"

"Murphy would probably put money on 'everything'." Oak replied sardonically. "Am, uh… am I to take it that you were planning to capture more Pokémon?"

"Obviously." Ash replied, raising his eyebrow. "Why?"

"Well, it's just… I'd prefer if you'd keep your captures to a minimum in this region." Oak replied awkwardly. "Normally, I wouldn't ask this of travelling Pallet Town trainers but… well, I'm currently at maximum capacity."

Ash winced. "…Would this have anything to with my Taur-?"

"This might have something to do with your thirty, large, stampede-loving Tauros, yes."

"Are you sure there isn't any room left?"

"Not a centimetre. Between you and Gary, there's barely enough room to accommodate the Pokémon of new trainers." Oak sighed.

Ash folded his arms, his expression pained. "Oh, but then where can I send Pokémon that I catch in Sinnoh?"

"Send them to your mother. She's got plenty of room on her ranch." Oak suggested. "Actually, speaking of, have you called her recently?"

Ash started at Professor Oak, his expression completely still.

"…Yes." Ash said slowly. "I called her before I left for Sinnoh."

"That was almost a month ago."

"…I know?" Ash asked uncomfortably.

Oak sighed. "Ash, you better give her a call. We don't want another repeat of what happened in Johto."

"Why do you guys keep bringing up Johto?"

"It took you a whole year to give us one phone call! The only reason we knew you weren't dead was because I kept getting Pokémon from you!"

"I… well…" Ash spluttered. "Brock and Misty knew I wasn't dead!"

"So did your Pokémon, and we couldn't talk to them, either." Oak said dismissively. "Look, just promise that you'll call your mother once you take care of Team Rocket up there, will you? The longer you put it off, the worse it'll be."

"Yeah, yeah," Ash grumbled. "I was going to call her any-"

Ash blinked. "Wait, Team-?"

Before Ash could finish his sentence, a giant mechanical hand, insulated with rubber, descended down and grabbed Pikachu around the waist.

"(Oh, mother-!)" Pikachu snarled as the hand clasped around him.

"Pikachu!" Ash exclaimed as his yellow buddy was wrenched from his shoulder.

"(-Fuckerrrrrrrr!)" Pikachu shouted as he was hoisted into the air, the hand retreating into the bottom of a large basket.

The basket in question was one of a hot air balloon, notable for its distinctive Meowth-head shape. Within the basket were five distinct shapes: a lean man with a blue mop for a haircut; a tiny pink humanoid Pokémon with a clown nose, perched upon the man's shoulder; a blue punching bag with arms, one of which was saluting over its forehead; a catlike Pokémon, grinning with an unusual malevolent intelligence; and a curvaceous woman with an improbably long and curvy hairdo. They stood in the basket, leering down on the scene below, and they sang, "We're heeerrrreeee~!"

Aipom leapt off Ash's shoulder, and Ash gritted his teeth, ready for a battle.

Team Rocket looked down at them.

Ash and Aipom continued glaring up at them.

Team Rocket continued looking down at them.

"…Wait, was that it?" Ash asked, confused.

"Unfortunately, yes." Jessie shrugged. "We're still working on our new motto."

"Luckily for you, this means that this'll be over quicker than usual." James said coolly.

"So, we're just goin' to nab Pikachu and run!" Meowth said nastily, in what was almost perfect English. "Sound good?"

"No." Ash replied.

"Neat! See ya!" Meowth replied, slapping a button on his remote. Two small engines popped out from the sides of the basket, propelling the hot air balloon forward at rocket speed.

"Oh, no you don't! After them Aipom!" Ash cried, running after the nefarious ne'er-do-wells, Aipom following in tow.

There was silence on the port for a while, Oak's unimpressed face flickering on the monitor.

"…And Murphy wins the pot once more." He muttered as he reached for the disconnect button.


Pokémon Diamond and Pearl: An Abridged Novella

Chapter 1: Delayed Beginnings


As interesting as it would be to watch Ash Ketchum chase down Team Rocket for what must be around about the 450th time, the rest of this story actually begins in the village of Twinleaf Town – a place that was actually even more boring than Sandgem Town. Regardless of this fact, it was in this quiet, dull little town that the famous Top Coordinator Johanna Berlitz resided, in a nice, modest, two-story villa on the outskirts of town.

She was currently sitting in her living room, a cup of tea in her hands and a Glameow curled at her feet. The sound of her fifteen-year-old daughter's footsteps echoed from the floor above as she drank, getting louder and louder until she had bounded down the stairs and was right in front of her. As usual, she wore her white beanie, her pink boots, her black-and-pink skirt that was far too short for Johanna's liking, and her ever-present, ever-confident smile.

"Hey mom!" Dawn said happily. "I've finished packing!"

"I packed for you." Johanna replied.

"Yeah, but I double-checked." Dawn replied proudly.

Johanna sighed before giving her daughter a tired smile. "Well, I guess that means you're ready to go off on your journey then!"

"I know! I'm so psyched!" Dawn exclaimed, leaping up into the air. "I can't believe I'm finally going on my journey! How'd you even get Professor Rowan to give away a rare Pokémon to me?" Dawn asked her mother curiously.

"I paid him two and a half million Poké." Johanna replied cheerfully.

"Yay!" Dawn pumped her fist into the air. "Thank Arceus we're made out of money!"

"Yeah, sure, God's the reason we're made out of money." Johanna said under her breath.

"What?" Dawn asked.

"Nothing, dearie!" Johanna deflected. "So, have you thought about what kind of trainer you want to be?"

"Ha!" Dawn giggled. "I didn't even need to think twice! I'm going to be a Top Coordinator, just like you, mom!"

"I thought you might." Johanna said. "In that case you might need this."

Dawn gasped as Johanna handed her daughter a dirty old piece of metal on a crusty old ribbon. "Oh – my – gosh!" She squealed. "Is that…?!"

"My very first contest ribbon!" Johanna said proudly. "Keep it as a good luck charm!"

"Yes!" Dawn gently cupped the ribbon in her hand as if it was a priceless Fabergé egg. "I'll take extra care of it!"

"Now, Dawn." Johanna said cautiously as Dawn vibrated with energy. "I know you're excited to go on your journey, but before you leave, I want to make sure that you understand that once you leave, you'll be on your own. You won't have me around to do everything for you, you'll only have yourself and your Pokémon. I don't want you going out into the world with the mindset that everything will simply be handed to you… which I've admittedly imparted upon you regardless. Do you understand?"

"No need to worry, mom." Dawn replied confidently, giving her mum the 'thumbs up'. "I know what I'm doing!"


"Oh God, I have no idea what I'm doing!" Dawn exclaimed as she desperately pedalled her bike up and down the streets of Sandgem Town. "Where is it? Where am I? Is it the big building? The small one? Why is this map so useless, it doesn't even have a compass rose!" Dawn desperately studied the map, tears now pouring down her face. "Why do I have to do this myself?!"

After about ten minutes of inconsolable sobbing while riding about town aimlessly, Dawn eventually bumped into a very tall man in a black coat, with a blue vest and tie underneath it. He looked down upon Dawn, most of his face hidden behind a stark white moustache, a pair of sideburns and a roughly combed white hairdo.

"H-hello l-large in-intimidating old guy." Dawn stuttered through tears of vague hardship. "C-could you p-please point me i-in the direction o-of Professor R-Rowan's lab?"

"Eh, maybe I could." The old man replied in a gruff, deep voice, most of it obscured beneath his 'stache. "What's it to you?"

"I-I'm meant t-to receive my…" Dawn hiccupped. "…my starter Pokémon, b-but I can't find it a-and it's too hard and-"

The old man sighed. "Why do I always get the crying ones?" He muttered to himself. "Alright, I can direct you to my lab. I was just heading there myself."

"Oh, thank God!" Dawn gasped. Then she blinked. "Wait, your lab? You mean you're Professor Rowan?"

"Careful, might have to call you Holmes if you keep that kind of detective work up." Professor Rowan replied.

"Yay!" Dawn exclaimed in joy, leaping into the air. "I found Professor Rowan! No need to worry!"

"…That was a quick turnaround." Rowan said uncertainly.

Dawn giggled. "I have wild mood swings!"


In retrospect, Dawn wasn't quite sure how she had missed the laboratory. It was literally the largest building outside of town, with a giant windmill attached to the back of it. Perhaps she thought the lab would be within the town, rather than outside of it.

"Thanks for taking me to your lab, professor!" Dawn said brightly as she followed Rowan through the polished hallway of the Sandgem Research Lab.

"Yeah, well, you certainly made it easy." Rowan replied, looking over his shoulder to peer at Dawn sternly. "All I did was tell you that I was Professor Rowan and that I could take you to my lab. I could've led you behind a warehouse shed to murder you and you wouldn't have been any the wiser. Do you even realise how naïve you are?"

"…Um…" Dawn said uncertainly.

"Eh, that's women for you, I guess." Rowan shrugged, continuing on.

"Um…!" Dawn said alarmedly.

A sliding door in front of them opened, revealing a small research room with what looked to be about three young men in white labcoats standing around a table with a Pokémon on it. The Pokémon looked to Dawn like a green turtle-like creature with a large head and brown shell, cheerfully eating from a bowl of pellets.

"Welcome to my lab." Rowan said. "This is where I conduct research on Pokémon evolution – how it works, what triggers it, and so on."

"That sounds interesting." Dawn commented.

"No, it doesn't." Rowan replied bluntly.

"…Oh."

"Science isn't the only thing I do here, of course." Rowan continued. "Since my research grant was suspended, I've been selling somewhat rare Pokémon to beginning trainers as a side gig. Usually, I only sell to boys – on account of them being of the superior sex – but since your mother paid me a lot of money, I'm willing to make an exception."

Rowan gestured toward the table. "You have three options to choose from: The Grass-type Turtwig, the Fire-"

Rowan's hand moved to point to the empty place beside the obvious Tiny Leaf Pokémon.

"…So, my supposedly highly-trained staff." Rowan said to the men in labcoats. "Can't help but notice that there is only one Pokémon here. Is there a reason for that?"

"Yeah, so…" One of the men replied dully, scratching his rear. "We decided to, like, do an… experiment, where, like, we gave the… fire monkey less food than usual… then it, uh… like, stole from the blue… the blue bird. Then, like, the blue bird got angry… and it attacked, uh… and then… the monkey jumped out the window… and the bird followed him.

"…We're still analysing the results." The scientist shrugged.

Dawn and Rowan just stared at him.

"…You guys aren't real scientists, are you?" Dawn asked, a sinking feeling in her stomach.

"Well, I am." Rowan replied. "These idiots are from Craigslist. Since I'm not technically a professor anymore, Canalave University won't send me students that I can use. I've had to resort to hiring morons from the internet."

"Dude, what… what's this Pokémon? The one we have?" One of the 'scientists' said in a confused, sluggish tone, pointing towards the Turtwig, still happily eating away at its pellets.

"I think…" Another 'scientist' frowned in concentration. "…I think it's a Squirtle, dude."

"Absolutely shameful." Rowan muttered. "Anyway, I need you to go get those Pokémon for me."

"What?!" Dawn exclaimed, completely taken aback. "Why me? I'm an inexperienced teenage girl with no Pokémon! You guys are experienced adults with Pokémon!"

"Yeah, I have three counterarguments to that assertion." Rowan replied. "Firstly, I'm quite old, so I couldn't go looking for them even if I wanted to. Second, as you've just seen, my staff are idiots and can't be trusted with a Tamagotchi pet. Thirdly, I'm a man, you're a woman, do what I tell you to do and don't ask questions."

"I…" Dawn spluttered in indignation, confusion, and a significant amount of anger. "No! No, I'm not going to do that! Fuck you!"

"Alright, you clearly need some motivation." Rowan pointed out the broken window that the two Pokémon had escaped from. "Over in that direction is a group of Ariados, spider Pokémon that kill and eat anything unfortunate enough to come across them. Since they likely travelled in a straight line, they've probably headed straight towards them and will be dead by the hour. And the closest Pokémon ranger is at the least two hours away. As it stands, you're probably the only person here who can save them in time."

"So," Rowan turned back to Dawn, her face contorted in fury and anguish. "What's it going to be?"


"Piplup! Chimchar!" Dawn called out as she wandered through the forest aimlessly. "Come on out! People are worried about you!" She sighed. "At least, I hope they are." She said quietly to herself.

Her steps were cautious and anxious, and her gaze as alert as it could be. She knew what kind of Pokémon she was looking for, thanks to the vague descriptions of Professor Rowan. Even so, finding the starters was proving to be harder than she thought. Almost too hard.

She felt something scratch against her leg and she cried out. Looking down, she saw a fresh tear in one of her leggings.

"Oh, come on!" She exclaimed. "Alright, no. I'm not doing this guy's work for him."

She turned around and started to walk away.

She slowed down and stopped.

Guiltily and apprehensively, she turned back and faced the forest.

Then she heard something.

She turned toward the sound, suddenly alert. Then, she started running towards it. The sound became louder, more distinct, until she could distinguish two different voices, one that had an 'ip' sound, and another that had a 'har' sound.

"Piplup? Chimchar?" Dawn shouted as she rounded a clearing. "Is that yoooouuuuuaahhh-!?" Dawn skidded to a halt, her eyes shooting wide open.

In front of her was a massive, silky web, easily six feet across. Within it were a number of scared, writhing Pokémon, most of them common field Pokémon with three exceptions: a blue penguin, a red, fiery monkey, and a maroon spider that, unlike the others, was not restrained by the webbing.

"(This is all your fault!)" The Piplup screeched at the monkey, desperately trying to free himself from the sticky threads of silk.

"(How is this my fault? You're the one who stole my lunch!)" The Chimchar cried back, pulling at his restraints.

"(You stole my lunch!)"

"(Struggle all you like, bitch, you ain't gettin' outta my web.)" The Ariados chittered.

"Oh… oh no." Dawn whispered. "What do I do? What do I do? That asshole didn't even give me a Pokémon!"

"(Hey, I see you there, human.)" The Ariados cackled as it scuttled down to the Piplup. "(You better not fuck with my food, or I'ma fuck with you!)"

"(Oh God, someone please help me! I'm too awesome to die like this!)" The Piplup shrieked and struggled harder against the webbing.

It occurred to Dawn that the smartest thing to do at this point was to run. She tried her best, gave it her all, but now her life was in danger, and hey, her life was more valuable than that of an animal. After all, there was still a Turtwig at the lab, she could just take that one and be on her way, no harm done to her.

However, there was something about witnessing this Pokémon screaming in genuine terror that triggered a long-dormant protective instinct within her. She reached down, grabbed a nearby rock, and with a mighty cry, she hurled it at the Long Leg Pokémon with all her strength.

It bounced harmlessly off the spider's abdomen. It looked up at her, irritated.

"…Yeah, I don't know what I thought would happen." Dawn muttered faintly.

"(Bitch, you just interrupted my lunch.)" The Ariados chittered. "(You're gonna die now, motherfucker.)"

Dawn shrieked as a hail of venomous purple darts flew towards her. She dodged to the side, barely avoiding them. She watched them impact against the ground, where they exploded for some reason.

Dawn rarely did her best work under pressure, but even though her brain was reeling from the fact that she almost just died then, an idea came to her head.

The Ariados leapt from its web, letting loose another round of Poison Stings. Dawn got on her feet and took off, just barely dodging the poisonous needles as they flew over her head. With the word 'shit' echoing in her head on repeat, she leapt in front of the Ariados's web and waited.

The second she saw the violet darts coming, she leapt to the side. As she figured, the darts that flew past her impacted against the web and exploded, causing the silky strands to tear apart and release the Pokémon within it.

What Dawn did not figure was that the darts had a pretty wide spread and were crazy fast. About four darts pierced her side as she leapt. She hit the ground hard along with the Pokémon. For a moment, the shock prevented her from feeling the pain.

Then she felt it. She then proceeded to scream something awful that she would never, in her life, ever say in polite company, clutching her waist where the needles had pierced her.

"(W-T-Fuck, bro!)" The Ariados snarled as the previously trapped Pokémon started running away, with two dazed exceptions. "(Oh, you fucked up now, you little bitch. Me and my buddies are gonna fuck. You. Up! Boys! Get at her!"

Upon which, about five other spider-like Pokémon and a dozen smaller, green spider Pokémon emerged from the trees, all of them chittering rapidly and angrily.

"Oh, dear God!" Dawn shrieked, leaping to her feet and picking up the struggling bodies of Piplup and Chimchar, her adrenaline temporarily overriding her pain. "Shit, shit, shit, shit!" She exclaimed as she ran from the horde of cruel Bug-types, a hail of Poison Stings falling behind her.

"Hey, I'm really sorry about this!" Dawn said quickly to the Pokémon she held in her arms as she ran through the forest. "Are you two okay?"

"(…Lady, you just saved my life.)" Piplup chirped quietly.

"('Saved' is kinda subjective here, dude.)" Chimchar said, nervously looking over Dawn's shoulder.

"I'm here to save you two!" Dawn smiled to them, trying to keep a cheerful face. "I'm…"

The adrenaline wore off.

"…really not doing too good." She said weakly. Her legs gave way and she collapsed to the ground. The two Pokémon fell from her grasp with a yelp from both.

"(…Lady?)" Piplup said nervously as he got up.

"(Oh, lady, I've got some bad news.)" Chimchar winced as Dawn grasped her injury, blood flowing freely from the wound. "(You are super gonna die.)"

"…Is that my own blood?" Dawn asked faintly, looking at her crimson-stained hand.

A silky string of silk came from above, trapping Dawn's feet to the ground. She screamed and looked up at the mass of spider Pokémon. It was no longer clear whether her paleness was from the blood loss or from the sheer terror of the situation.

"(I warned you, bitch!)" The main Ariados shrieked gleefully. "(We're gonna fuck you up!)"

"(You're gonna die, human!)" Another Ariados chittered.

"(Made a fuckin' mistake coming here!)" A third Ariados screeched.

"(I'm going to drink your vital fluids!)" A Spinarak said in an adorable voice befitting a little squishy bug Pokémon.

"(…Yeah, I'm gonna go.)" Chimchar muttered, bounding off into the forest. "(Pretty sure I know how this'll end.)"

"(Where are you going?!)" Piplup cried, backing away as the Bug-types advanced.

I'm going to die. Dawn thought to herself, genuine tears of fear rolling down her face. It's only my first day, and I'm going to die.

"(Uh…)" Piplup said uncertainly, looking between Dawn and the Ariados.

"(Alright boys, let's fuck her up with Poison Sting!)" The lead Ariados said raising one of its forelegs as a signal.

"Please…" Dawn begged weakly.

It occurred to Piplup that the smartest thing to do at this point was run. As much as he touted his own horn, he was not a particularly strong Pokémon. If he stayed, he was probably going to die. And hey, this human probably knew what she was getting into, she knew the risks. No harm done in saving his own skin.

Piplup was not known for doing the smartest thing in any given situation.

As the hail of violet stingers fell towards Dawn, paralysed with fear and pain, Piplup leapt in front of her, held his flippers in front of him and whispered, "(Endure.)"

Dawn's eyes widened as Piplup took the full brunt of the Ariados attack, the Poison Stings shattering against his body. For five incredibly tense seconds, he stood there, taking the attacks without letting up an inch.

When was over, he lowered his flippers and glared at the spider Pokémon.

"(Bro, did you see that?!)" One of the Ariados cried in alarm. "(That guy just took all of our attacks like it was nothing!)"

"(I know, I saw it!)" The lead Ariados responded, equally as alarmed. "(Bro, we need to get the fuck out of here, this guy's on a whole 'nother level!)"

Intimidated, the entire horde of Ariados turned around and scuttled away.

"…Piplup…" Dawn whispered in awe.

"(…Yeah, that's right!) Piplup said, grinning. "(I can… I can take whatever you can throw at me…)" He lurched forward. "(I'm gonna pass out real quick, I'll be right back...)"

Upon this, Piplup toppled forward and passed out.

Dawn looked down at the Pokémon that had just saved her life. Her body now completely drained of adrenaline, all of the day's events suddenly caught up with her. From the pain, shock, exhaustion and relief of not dying, her eyes rolled back in her skull and she fainted, falling over backwards.


"(…Hey, I think she's waking up.)"

Dawn tried to open her eyes. The results were blurry and indistinct.

"(…So she is. And here I thought we'd lost her.)"

Dawn groaned and tried to blink the blurriness away. She heard a couple of sounds, but they were vague and unclear.

"(What do we do?)"

"(I sense confusion in her. Our presence will likely add to it. We'll leave and let the Guardian see if her choice was correct.)"

Her brain attempted to make sense of the situation. It failed, shorted out, and Dawn fell back into unconsciousness.


Dawn winced, then slowly opened her eyes.

The results were surprising for a variety of reasons, the first of which being that she was alive and that she had not died in the horrifying experience she had just had.

The second was that she was no longer dying. She tentatively confirmed this by reaching for her waist and wincing at the dull stab of pain. She felt blood, sure, but it was dried up and gross. In fact, her wounds seemed to be completely healed. So that was nice, if inexplicable.

The third surprise was that she appeared to be in a completely different location, which she confirmed by turning her head to the side. She blinked away the remaining blurriness to see a large body of what looked to be water. Lake Verity.

"Wha…?" Dawn murmured. She briefly tried to figure out how she could've moved half an hour west, then gave up and decided she didn't care. She wasn't near the Ariados. That was good enough reason for her.

She sat up, wincing as she did so. Even though she didn't seem to be seriously injured anymore, her body still ached, more so than it ever had in her life. She looked herself over, inspecting the damage. She had a few bruises on her legs, her leggings were torn, her dress was shredded where the Poison Stings had hit her, and her hair was completely ruined.

Other than that, she was physically fine.

"…I am never coming back to this town again." Dawn muttered, dazed.

"(Urgh…)"

Dawn looked to her side. A small, penguin-like Pokémon was slowly coming to beside her.

"(Where… where am I?)" Piplup groaned. "(Am I dead? This doesn't look like heaven… I don't think I'm dead.)"

Dawn smiled. She gently picked up the little penguin. "Hey, Piplup." She whispered. "Are you okay?"

"(Wait… you're the lady who saved back there.)" Piplup said in realisation. "(Did you take us here?)"

"That was a really brave thing you did back there." Dawn said in appreciation. "You saved my life."

"(Lady, you saved my life.)" Piplup waved his fin confidently. "(We're just even now.)"

"My name's Dawn. I'm a beginning trainer from Twinleaf Town. Professor Rowan sent me to find you and Chimchar. I… guess I didn't figure how much trouble you'd get yourself in."

"(Wait, you work for him?)" Piplup asked in astonishment. "(…You don't sound like someone who would. Or look like it, for that matter.)"

"Let's get you back to the lab." Dawn said, slowly getting up with Piplup in her arms. "I dunno where Chimchar went, but frankly, I'm not in any shape to find him."

"(He also left us to die. I don't know if you were paying attention to that.)"

Dawn looked down at the penguin with a tired smile before embracing him. "…Thank you, Piplup."

"(Hey, what are-?!)" Piplup started angrily, before stopping and relaxing. "(Oh… okay. Yeah. I am pretty awesome.)"

They stood there for a moment, the wind gently blowing past them.

Then the wind really started blowing.

Dawn looked over, turning around to face the lake where the wind was coming from. Piplup looked over his shoulder with her.

The surface of the lake rippled.

As Dawn and Piplup stared, a shape emerged from the waters of the lake, its form only barely visible. It looked towards her, twin tails floating gently behind it, a strange otherworldly aura flowing across the lake.

Dawn looked directly at the image.

It looked back.

You are chosen.

The shape faded. The wind died down and the lake's surface returned to normal.

Both Dawn and Piplup stared at where they had seen the image, dumbfounded.

"…What the fuck is HAPPENING TODAY?!" Dawn shrieked.


It was a very sorry-looking Dawn Berlitz who returned to Professor Rowan's laboratory. Her clothes scuffed and torn, Piplup in her arms, she walked inside and made her way to the main room.

"Welcome back!" Professor Rowan said cheerfully when she entered. "Took you long enough, but it seems like you managed to get both Chimchar and Piplup back here safely."

"Yeah, I did!" Dawn snapped, her clothes scuffed and torn, Piplup in her arms. "Thanks for all the help, asshole!"

"Don't mention it." Rowan replied. "Now that that's all done, we can finally get around to why you came here in the first place." He cleared his throat. "You have three choices: the Grass-"

"Piplup." Dawn said immediately.

"…You sure? There are two objectively superior options on that table over there."

Dawn glared at him. "I don't know if I could communicate to you in words exactly what I've been through today, but if there's one thing I've learned," She looked down to Piplup with a happy smile on her face. "It's that Piplup and I are going to look out for each other, no matter what."

"(Woo!)" Piplup cheered. "(I'm leaving! See ya, bitches!)"

Rowan shrugged. "Well, that's very clearly the incorrect option, but I suppose thinking like that is to be expected from you."

"Because you're a woman." He clarified.

"And therefore mentally and physically frail." He elucidated.

"…Can you just give me my trainer licence so I can leave?" Dawn asked angrily. "I'm really looking forward to never seeing you again."

"(Same.)" Piplup added, his expression unimpressed.

Rowan handed her a tray, upon which were six small red-and-white metal capsules and a small, phone-like pink device. "Here you are, license is on the Pokédex, press the button on the Pokédex to scan things, yada yada." He told her. "Six Pokéballs as well, I assume you know how those work. Now get the hell off my property so I can do some science without interference."

"Gladly." Dawn said as she took the devices. She turned and left, unable to leave the building quickly enough.

Stepping out into the open air, Dawn took a deep breath and sighed. It was already dusk, the sun setting over Sandgem Town. What she had thought would be a fairly simple first step had turned into the most harrowing ordeal she had ever experienced in her life.

A significant part of her was tempted to give up, like usual. Go home, where she knew she'd be safe, warm and secure. After all, if she told her mum what had happened on her first day as a trainer, she'd never be allowed to leave the house ever again. She'd certainly never again have to fight the Ariados that would now haunt her darkest nightmares for years to come.

But that was just it. She'd never be allowed to leave again. She'd never be able to pursue her dream of being a coordinator if her mum knew what today had been for her. Well, Dawn was not going to give up this time. This time, she was going to see this through to the end, whatever that might be.

Besides, whatever was in store for her in the future, it couldn't be any worse that what she had been through today.

"…Alright, Piplup." Dawn said tiredly. "First, we're going to go to a Pokémon centre. We're going to relax, book a room for the night, I'm going to have a bath and…" Her smile faltered. "…a very long cry…" She straightened up. "But come tomorrow, we're going to head out for Jubilife City. I'm going to become Top Coordinator, no matter what, with you alongside as my partner! What do you say?"

"(Well, I don't know what any of those things are, but let's do it!)" Piplup pumped his fin into the air.

With that, the two new partners headed back into the town of Sandgem, their destinies unknown and full of potential.