Trials of a Champion - Kanto [Pokemon x OC]

55 Return to Saffron

"We're back, Saffron City!" I exclaimed, standing just beyond Saffron's population limit sign with my hands above my head. Nobody could hear me—there was nobody around to hear me—but I couldn't care less. "And we're here to defeat your Gym Leader!"

"Keep it down! You'll give yourself a sore throat."

After fighting our way down the other side of Evolution Mountain, the culmination of nine days of travel surrounded by nature, the snow level thinned out, very slowly, until it transformed into grass and dirt. Rocks, too, and trees here and there.

Before long, we came upon trademark signs of the concrete jungle: skyscrapers, bridges, and a combination of scents that made me nauseous. Regardless of the gross, pollution smell, it served as a nice break from being lost in the wilderness.

"It's so exciting to finally be here—Waah!!"

Paul grabbed my backpack to keep me rooted in place. "Don't go running off, dammit."

"Worried I'll get lost? If I do, I just have to start shouting, and you'll find me in no time."

"Please don't."

As we walked along the sidewalk, I slipped off my jacket. "I need to change out of this winter gear before anything."

"Feels a little weird to be back in the city, don't you think?" asked Paul as his head studied our surroundings. Oddly enough, the streets seemed a little more empty than we expected. "Even if it's so quiet."

"Sure does. Being out in the jungle was great, but it's kind of nice to come back to civilization. Hey, Luxray, let's split a humongous bowl of noodles when we get to the Pokémon Center. What do you say?"

He drooled at the thought.

While Eevee dreamed about a bowl of mixed berries, Paul inspected the nearest town directory to jog his memory of the city's layout. "Pokémon Center is this way. Come o—Yes, you can have your bowl of berries once we get there."

I moved to follow them, but something stopped me.

As my eyes briefly scanned the directory, they focused on a bold arrow pointing to the west. The shaft had a label: Celadon. A second arrow pointed east, also with a label: Lavender Town.

I met Mr. Fuji in Lavender Town. He showed me a picture of that boy with the red hat.

Of all the people I could possibly meet, it had to be someone who knew him.

Come to think of it...

As though viewing a slideshow, my mind moved to the day I left Pallet Town; the day I met Green. He looked oddly familiar from what I remembered. After that mysterious Pikachu briefly appeared to defeat the Spearow flock, both Pokémon and Pokémon Trainer vanished like a puff of smoke.

Why did he look so familiar, and how did that Pikachu appear...? Wait a minute!

In Celadon, during our escape from Team Rocket's hideout, I encountered a mysterious, cloaked figure who also had a Pikachu. He spoke to me very briefly, and he freed the Pokémon in the cages, and he even handed over a physical item: a floppy disc. I remembered the letter, too.

His voice sounded similar, and he's definitely not a figment of my imagination if I've interacted with him. The really weird part is ... both times ... there was a Pikachu closely followed by a flash of red?

Plus, I never did see his face.

"Is it all just a coincidence, or could all these events be connected somehow?"

I wondered about the possibility. Could I have been seeing the same person and the same Pikachu? After all, I never once saw the cloaked man's face as he handed over the floppy disc, and we all were too distracted to pay attention. Could it have been Green under the hood, but then how could he have disappeared so quickly?