Of Moons, Birds and Monsters

The moon was rising as Dave left the outskirts of Pallet Town behind him, eager to be on his way and begin his journey. Sure, his mum had always told him to try and move in the day, but what did she know. He grinned as he looked down the path ahead of him, winding its way between the trees and rolling hills. Adventure!

Stopping for a moment, Dave pulled out his shiny new PokéBall and tossed it casually ahead of him. A flash of red later, a small bird was flying around, chirping cheerfully - it darted upwards, momentarily framed against the fall of night, before swooping down and landing at his feet. Pidgey. His Pidgey.

Grinning inanely, he pulled out his PokéDex, eager to learn about his new companion.

"Pidgey is a Flying Pokémon. Among all the Flying Pokémon, it is the gentlest and easiest to capture. A perfect target for the beginning Pokémon Trainer to test his Pokémon's skills. Pidgey's Gust power creates tornadoes. It also has a Sand-Attack."

"I think I'll call you Pressly." Dave mused aloud. The Pidgey chirped in agreement before hopping onto Daves shoulder, perching there happily.

"Right, Pressly! We should get going if we want to kick this adventure off. Bring me that horizon!" With that, Dave and his new companion began striding purposefully down the route.

"Aaron huh? I'm Dave, good to meet ya!"

Dave flipped out his PokéDex, eager to learn more about the small white cat preening itself in the moonlight.

Meowth, the Scratch Cat Pokémon. Meowth loves to roam at night to gather coins and other objects that sparkle, but it spend most of the daylight hours sleeping.

"You ready for this, Pressly?" The bird Pokémon chirped in agreement, jumping down into the short grass between the two novice trainers. His first battle... a shiver of excitement ran down Dave's spine. A light gust of wind sent ripples through the grass and ruffled his hair in what Dave hoped was an appropriately dramatic fashion.

Trainer and Pokémon alike held each others gaze across the small stretch of grass between them. Silence held sway, but for a moment.

"Pressly, sand attack and tackle!"

Dave watched the opening moves eagerly, the two Pokémon on fairly even terms. "Have to win this". Losing his first ever battle was not an option.

"Pressly, dodge that scratch then give it another sand attack!"

Still no clear advantage here. Dave couldn't risk messing this up.

"Pressly, tackle then fly up high!"

Dave grinned. The aerial advantage could prove decisive here - he could feel it in his gut. Hit and run tactics were his best bet.

"Alright Pressly, drop down for a sand attack to throw him off scratch, then tackle!"

OOC: Sure. Sorry :p, used to ASB plus not really been in the mood for long updates, but it turns out I actually passed my exams somehow so less moping xD.

Dave looked on as Pressly dived, kicking up a plume of sand once more at the opposing Meowth with his wings. The cat Pokémon took a swipe at Daves new companion, but struck only air. Dave couldn't help but fist pump as the retaliatory tackle struck home. The small bird chirped, slightly out of breath. They couldn't afford to back down now.

However, timing was everything, and Dave felt this wasn't quite the right time to end it. No point taking risks - they had to wait for the opportune moment.

"Pressly, let's do this! Tackle it then fly up again!"

Hit and run tactics had worked once, after all.

Pressly struck once more with another tackle, taking a glancing scratch as he passed. The two Pokémon separated, the Pidgey swiftly gaining altitude whilst the Meowth tried desperately to clear its tear filled eyes. Pressly circled overhead. The Meowth waited, looking for the perfect time to strike. Time to finish this.

"Pressly, time to end this! A diving tackle, then go for another tackle!"

Dave clenched his fist, hoping he hadn't just made a big mistake.

Pressly's victory produced what can only be described as a minor seizure from Dave. On closer inspection one might conclude it was a victory dance - for a very loose definition of dancing.

"You did it Pressly!" The Pidgey flew up and landed once more on his head, obviously tired but pleased with himself. Aaron got up from checking over his Meowth and took a step forward, extending a hand.

"Great battle, dude! I see I have a lot to learn, thanks for showing me that. Meowth and I are gonna get a lot stronger, you'll see. Here, take this." Dave pocketed the PokéDollars and inspected the odd looking berry he'd just been handed. "That's a Sitrus Berry. I thought that Meowth could have it after the battle, and feel a lot better, but he needs a PokéCentre more than that. Here, you take it, your Pidgey deserves it."

"Cheers. Good battle." Dave grinned as the other trainer walked away, fading into the night. Just before he went out of sight, he stopped and turned.

"Oh yeah, I'll show you next time, seeing how we're rivals and all now. See ya!"

A rival... hell yeah!. Famous rivalries flashed through his mind - Red and Blue, Johanna and Lila... they would make this a rivalry worth remembering. He just hoped Aaron was up to the challenge.

A tired chirping broke into his daydreaming.

"Oh, of course. Sorry little buddy." Dave held up the sitrus berry, which Pidgey swiftly plucked from his fingers. Dave winced, the sharp beak catching his thumb. "Ow!" The apologetic chirp came amongst a mouthful of food. "It's fine, Pressly."

Turning towards what he thought was the direction of Viridian, Dave resumed his walking, wondering what else lay in store.

Dave looked eagerly on at the Venomoth, but doubted Pressly could take on a fully evolved Pokémon. Not yet anyway. The faint scent of pollen wafted over as the pair reluctantly passed the flowers by.

A short while later and it was definitely past time for another breather. Dave had never realised travelling would be so tiring. It was alright for Pressly, perched atop his head - now that was style. What Dave really needed, he'd decided, was a larger Pokémon upon whose head he would balanced, who in turn would balance upon another Pokémon, and so on ad infinitum. Amusing, but hardly practical. He didn't have that many PokéBalls to hand.

Pressly nuzzled against Dave's neck. Suddenly on the other side of his neck, he felt something moist against the other side of his neck. He jumped up in alarm. Looking around, he quickly found himself face to face with a large, pink blob that seemed all tongue and tummy. Dave whipped out his PokéDex.

Lickitung, the Licking Pokémon. It uses a tongue that is more than twice the length of its body to battle, as well as to gather food.

"Alright, a Lickitung. Pressly, you good to battle?" The pidgey chirped its agreement. "Let's go with sand attack to tackle!"

I'm going to pull out of this for a while - at least until christmas holidays. My degree has to take priority.

Dave grinned as the Lickitung's attack lashed the air a foot to Pressly's left. The two Pokémon exchanged tackles and began circling.

Once more the pink Pokémon tongue lashed out towards his partner.

"Quick Pressly, dodge that lick by flying up high, then drop an air cutter!"