The Beginning

Chapter Three

Charlie's mother didn't want him to go when he told her about Elm's request for vengeance. She said that he might end up like his father; dead. Charlie showed her Gold the Sandshrew and she reluctantly let him go, knowing that he was a lot safer with a Pokemon.
  Now Charlie was on his way to Cherrygrove to pick up some supplies for his journey. The Saturday afternoon air was sticky and hot, but with a slight breeze running through the Cedar trees, Charlie couldn't complain. How could he? He was going on an adventure with his first Pokemon, who had taken an immediate shine to Charlie and was currently running around on all fours and smelling the flowers and grass blades like a puppy. Charlie smiled at Gold's curiosity and sense of adventure. It bode well for the dangerous mission that they would eventually undertake.
  As Charlie kept walking, Gold found a particularly nice flower. As he struggled to pull it out of the ground, he felt a stabbing pain in his side. He let out a scream of pain, at which Charlie whirled around to see Gold holding his side.
  "What's up, buddy?" he asked worriedly. Gold pointed to the flower, and Charlie saw what was wrong. Next to the flower was a very angry Weedle who had made his home underneath its petals. Charlie began to laugh but that changed to slight panic when it appeared that the Weedle was about to charge at him, it's small horn turning purple.
  "Gold," Charlie said whilst backing away slowly. Gold had appeared to have recovered from the sting the tiny Bug-type had given him. "I think we should make this Weedle faint before he attacks." Gold gave a squeak of agreement and ran to stand in between Charlie and the Weedle, who began charging.
  The battle was on.
  "Defense Curl!" Charlie called and Gold responded by rolling into a ball and bracing itself for the attack. The Weedle ran straight into Gold and was knocked backwards without causing any damage.
  "Scratch it!" Charlie commanded. Gold pushed off and began rolling at the enemy. Just before he came into contact, Gold opened up, leapt from the ground and flew straight at Weedle. The Scratch attack hit Weedle on the back. Gold did a roll as he landed on the other side of his opponent, who was lying on the floor, unconscious.
  Charlie let out a sigh of relief as he went to stroke his partner. "Well done, Gold. Team Rocket won't stand a chance against you!" Gold hugged Charlie's leg and the duo carried on.

Cherrygrove Town was busy on a Saturday afternoon. People were going about their business and buying all sorts of things from the various shops that lined the streets. Charlie, a little bit worried about Gold after the sting he got from the Weedle, went straight to the Pokemon Center.
  It was there that he met Ray for the first time.
  As Charlie walked in, he saw various trainers stroking their Pokemon, using the PCs and reading magazines. It was cooler in the Pokemon Center and Charlie didn't want to leave. It smelt of strawberries and felt like home. He wondered if all the Pokemon Centers in Johto were like this.
  The Nurse saw him standing in the middle of the room and smiled as she asked, "Can I help you?" Charlie snapped back to reality and saw the pink-haired nurse smiling at him.
  "Oh, yes please" he replied, embarrassed. He approached the counter and tapped it twice quickly. Gold jumped up to the spot where he tapped the desk and wagged his tail. "My Sandshrew, Gold, took a nasty sting off of a Weedle and I just wanted him checked up on, if that's alright?"
  "Of course" the nurse replied. She picked up Gold and took him through to the back to be checked on. Charlie sat on one of the comfy looking chairs around the Center and started rooting through his backpack. He pulled out his wallet and counted his money. All 1000P was there.
  "You gonna give me that?"
  Charlie looked up cautiously and saw a massive boy standing over him. He looked a few years older than Charlie, probably about fourteen or fifteen.
  "I'm sorry?" Charlie said quietly.
  "Your wallet, stupid. Give it."
  "Why?" Charlie asked timidly.
  "Because I'll have to release my Machop and he'll beat you up otherwise." The boy took a step back and pulled out a Poke Ball. Charlie saw the boy's face properly for the first time. It was defined, but blocky, much like the boy's body. He had brown eyes that pierced Charlie and made him feel small. He was wearing a black hoody with the hood pulled up and dark jeans. He looked the complete opposite of Charlie's small shape.
  "But I need this money. You can't have it."
  "I'm sorry. It sounded like you said I can't have it."
  "That's because I did." Charlie was feeling a little bit braver now, but he wasn't sure why. Perhaps it was the thought that he had a Pokemon now, or maybe because people were beginning to watch was happening.
  "Right, that's it, smart mouth. Machop, use Brick Break on this scrawny little-"
  "Ray! Not again!" It was the nurse, who was carrying a healthy looking Sandshrew. "I wish we could ban people from these Centers because you would have been banned years ago!" The big kid, Ray, suddenly looked quite scared. Gold waved at Charlie from the desk and looked really happy. Charlie waved awkwardly back, not sure what was going on.
  "Sorry, sis" Ray said. "It won't happen again." Ray put the Poke Ball away and scowled at Charlie. "You got lucky this time," he whispered. "Next time, I won't be near Pokemon Center, and then you'll be beaten up with nowhere to go." With that, he stormed out.
  "Excuse me, I believe this is yours?" the nurse said to Charlie. Charlie gave a small smile, but it was hard to look happy when his face was whiter than his hoody. He shakily walked up to the desk and picked up Gold, who gave him a big hug and jumped onto the floor.
  "Please excuse my brother. He isn't very smart and thinks everything can be solved with punching. Did he steal anything?" Charlie shook his head and gripped his wallet tight. "Good. Your Sandshrew is healthy. There was no poison, just a scratch. We get a lot of Weedle related injuries here, so we're experts on the subject now." She laughed. "I'm Nurse Joy by the way, but you can call me Sam. You?"
  "Charlie Justice" Charlie replied quietly.
  "Pleased to meet you. Are you headed for Violet City? There's a Gym there. You might want to check it out. Your Sandshrew could probably give the leader a run for his money." Charlie nodded, some colour returning to his face.
  "Where's the best place to get supplies from?" Charlie asked Sam.
  "Probably Terry's. It's just next-door. They close at two o'clock though, and it's already four. We sell food here though, like meals and we have beds through that door there," she signaled to the left of the Center to where some double doors were. "You could stay the night."
  Charlie smiled. "I'll stay tonight and leave tomorrow."
  "Good idea." Sam studied him. "How old are you, Charlie?"
  "Ten."
  "You're certainly brave going off into the world at ten. My parents didn't let me go until I was twelve. I got bored of it though and went of to a med school in Hoenn. Now I'm twenty- three and living my dream. Anything's possible."
  "Uhh, thanks?" Charlie said, a bit confused.
  "There are also people around this town who would give you a battle. I'd come back before nightfall though. Some people are best avoided at night, like my brother."
  "Thanks, Sam. I'll go train then." Charlie turned to walk out the door with Gold at his heel.
  "Be careful, Charlie. Back by nightfall, remember?"
  "Yes, Sam" Charlie smiled. "You're like my mother." Sam laughed as Charlie left the cool Pokemon Center to go train in the hot evening air.