Pokemon: The Journey

The next day, Ash and his Pokémon woke up to the alarm clock they had set in the Center's room for Trainers. There were multiple rooms for them to rest. The trainers had to pay for their stay in the rooms. It was a business run by the League. There were exceptions to this rule of payment for room services at the Center, but it was required to be given by special people. Nurse Joy had allowed him to stay at the Center free of cost for helping yesterday.

Knock. Knock.

Hearing the sound, all of the room's occupants tensed, looked at the door, and prepared for anything that might come through it.

"Son, are you awake?"

Hearing his mother's voice, both Ash and Pikachu relaxed. Spearow followed their suit but still kept a vigilant eye.

"Yes, I am awake, Mom!"

"Can you open the door?"

"Ok."

After putting on his shirt and fixing his pants, he opened the door to let his mother in. She was carrying a tray of breakfast for his Pokémon and him.

It was good. His mother could never make bad food. His mother was sitting to the side, watching him and his Pokémon eat their breakfast with gusto. After they had finished eating, she collected the trays and put them on the table before looking at him.

She hit him in the shoulder.

Spearow was ready to hit her, but Pikachu stopped him from doing so with a knowing look in his eyes.

Looking surprised at his mother, he saw her crying while she was hitting him lightly. She scolded him about what happened yesterday, about dealing with Gyarados, Team Rocket, and the former Officer Jenny. Why did he play hero when he should have just run away and saved himself? Of how worried she was when she found out about it.

He saw her crying for him, and he immediately did not like it. He did not want to worry his mom and make her cry.

After she had cried and calmed down, she told him that Professor Oak would be in the lobby waiting for him and left.

Sitting in his bed for some time, he just contemplated his life.

'This isn't your fault, kid. Nobody could have predicted yesterday's events to happen. You were doing the best you could do to survive. All parents are scared for their child's safety.'

'I do not like seeing her scared and sad, Roshi.'

'Me neither, kid. Me neither.'

'We just need to stay out of trouble and harm like yesterday from now on, then!'

'Kid. I do not think that's possible anymore. You just jinxed us.'

'Jinx?'

After being told what being jinxed meant, Ash was kicking himself in his mind.

Sighing, he got out of bed, brushed, bathed, and dressed to start his day.

He had replaced his old gear entirely with hiker-grade material. He had folded and kept his old clothes in the bag along with the new ones. He kept the new tent secured at the bottom of the bag, with the bag on it. Things like the poles for his tent, the cooking pots were strapped to the side with cordage. The medicines like Potion, Antidote, Paralyze Heal, etc., had expired or were closer to expiring more than he liked. He still needed to sell the items he got from the Spearow and use the money to buy food and other medicines he would require, given he had just jinxed himself.

Putting on the new gear, he looked at his Pokémon and asked how he looked. Pikachu gave a thumbs-up.

Grinning, he called back Spearow to his ball and went downstairs to meet the professor.

The lobby was more packed than yesterday.

Looking around for him, Ash spotted Professor Oak and went up to him. Upon seeing Ash, Professor Oak took his hand and motioned him to follow him to a back room. He saw Nurse Joy and Chansey there, along with the things that Roshi had demanded to take with him after they were told what they were.

Closing the door, Professor Oak looked at him and said, "Ash. I know this is sudden, but the League would like to reward you with 30,000 Poké dollars, while the Jenny clan has given you 20,000 for helping to catch a rogue member of their clan."

Nurse Joy took over, "You will also be allowed to use a single room free of cost in every Center henceforth."

Ash was shocked upon receiving such news. Then he narrowed his eyes and said, "There is a catch, isn't it?"

Nodding once with approval, Oak replied, "Yes. You will be given such facilities and rewards, provided that you never tell anybody about what happened yesterday. The League would like you to keep it under wraps. They do not want to cause panic among the general populace. The league's and the police force's faces will be tarnished, and it would cause unrest, which they do not want. Team Rocket might also use this to carry out their activities, and the ones working with them might get cautious now, and they would not be caught."

Sighing, he nodded and asked what else the professor wanted.

"Can I see your Dex? I would like to see the number of Pokémon you have seen. I would also like to update its software for you to use the..."

After the Professor said what he would be able to use and how, Roshi got excited and told him to give the Dex to him.

Upon receiving, the professor went to a computer, inserted a drive into it, and started pressing buttons on the keyboard. After the software had been installed, he had checked the entries of Pokémon Ash had seen.

"Pikachu, Pidgey, Rattata, Raticate."

After reading Raticate, he looked up from the Dex at Ash's smug look in shock and disbelief.

Regaining his bearings, he looked through the rest. "Spearow, Poliwag, Magikarp, and Gyarados. You never mentioned Poliwag and Magikarp yesterday."

Looking just as shocked at what he heard Professor Oak say, he went into deep contemplation.

'I think the Pokédex must have recorded them while you were underwater in the river. You must not have heard it properly while trying to swim and escape the Spearow flock.'

Nodding mentally at Roshi's reasoning, he said the same words to Professor Oak while none of them noticed Nurse Joy's paling face.

"Well, it looks like you were telling the truth about what had happened to you yesterday. The Raticate and Rattata, living in a subterranean cavern with glowing crystals? I might just discover something new about Pokémon habitats this way."

"Professor, could you tell me what this is?"

Ash took out the item that had been given to him by the Raticate Chief.

Looking at the item, the professor was confused by it and said that he did not know what it was, so he should keep it with him as it might be anything, but to him, it looked unimportant.

Nurse Joy, by then, had gained control of her expression and looked serious when she said, "Ash."

Perking up at her voice, both of them looked at her, then Oak remembered what or who else was going with Ash.

Ash said, "Yes, Nurse Joy?"

"I would like you to take Chansey with you on your journey."

Gobsmacked at what he was hearing, he asked her to elaborate.

"She is now scared of every trainer except you, so she will not be able to help in the Center."

"Won't the League cause issues with it? The Chansey are exclusively Pokémon related to your clan."

"The League will not have issues with it. I have already talked with a representative about it. I hope that she will regain her trust in humans. Promise me that you will take good care of her."

'Well, that solved our issue with healing and first aid for good measure. We still have to stock up on others like Antidote, Paralyze Heal, Repel, antibiotics, and others. Take her with you. It will make the journey much safer now. Ask her about where we could get medical supplies and food.'

"I accept. Welcome to the team, Chansey."

Using the Poké Ball on her, he caught her and scanned her using the Pokédex.

"Chansey, the Egg Pokémon. It's a Normal-type Pokémon. A kindhearted Pokémon, Chansey, will share its eggs with injured people and Pokémon. However, Chansey will never share its egg with those with evil hearts. The eggs become more delicious if Chansey is raised with love and care. Chansey's egg is used as a high-class cooking ingredient due to the nutrition it has. As a result, Chansey has been referred to as doctors' doubles because of its egg-like appearance. Due to its egg being over-harvested, Chansey is extremely rare in the wild and is said to bring good luck and happiness to those who manage to catch it. Fleeing from those seeking its egg has made this once-slow species much quicker on its feet than in the past. It is more commonly found in urban settings.

This Chansey is Female and knows the moves Heal Pulse, Heal Bell, Soft Boiled, and Gravity."

Internally whistling at the moves, both Professor Oak and Roshi appreciated it.

Promising Nurse Joy that he would take good care of Chansey, he asked her where he could find the pharmacy and the Poké Mart.

After getting the directions to both, Ash and Pikachu left the Center.

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Professor Oak sighed and said, "I wish that he would not get involved in any more dangerous situations. He will not be able to survive if the same things happened."

Looking at the professor funnily, Nurse Joy asked, "Why will you be worried? His Pikachu is powerful. I am even surprised that Pikachu listens to him, a rookie."

Puzzled, he asked Nurse Joy, "What do you mean?"

Confused, she said, "Well, you said that he defeated a flock of Spearow and most likely caught its leader, right? The thing is that..."

After hearing what she said, Professor Oak widened his eyes before turning serious.

"It would seem that I have to put the search of the cavern on hold now. There are now far more urgent matters that I need to look into."

Getting up from his seat, he reached the door and started pulling the handle when Nurse Joy asked.

"Like what?"

Looking at her, he said with all the seriousness of a veteran, "Either capture a flock of murderous birds or commit a small genocide."