Chapter 5 "Danu"

Needless to say, my mom was amused by my adoption of Chikorita.

"Arthur, are you sure you want Chikorita?" Professor Elm asks. Normally, Chikorita are the ones that go to the third-place trainer. At least among the Royals of Johto, the Chikorita line is the least popular.

"Yes, Sir. I can't see Chikorita with either of them. Ethan would try to force it into situations where it would panic, and from what I've heard about Lyra, she wants to be a part of the Pokemon Contest circuit. Which means this little one would be in the same situation with either. At least with me, I know how to slowly coax her into being more confident."

My mom finally stops laughing. "Sorry kid," she says, "I know how much you originally wanted Totodile, so seeing that little Chikorita convince you to become her mom that fast was hilarious."

I very carefully pick up my new partner and say, "Don't worry. One day you'll be big and strong. We'll get there together. And ignore my mom."

Chikorita just looks at me and waves the little leaf on top of her head happily. With me holding her, I can feel the slight tremble from her fear. But just me smiling and reassuring her is enough to make her a little happy.

Of course, my mom being my mom, acts like I just shot her in the heart. The professor smiles at the joking byplay, while the other two just look a little confused. I notice that Lyra looks a little relieved to not be getting Chikorita. They really aren't as popular as the other two. Or even the other grass type Royals. Still hurts to think that she was willing to take a Pokémon that she wouldn't connect with.

"All right then, Ethan you can choose next. Lyra, as the third-place holder, you'll get whichever one that Ethan doesn't pick."

They both nod, and Ethan looks directly at the Cyndaquil. The little guy has managed to locate a wall and is doing his best to climb it. Considering there is a berry tree just above that wall, I'm pretty sure the little guy is looking for a snack.

Ethan proceeds to pick up the Cyndaquil and grab a berry to feed him. "I choose Cyndaquil." He looks quite pleased, and to be fair, I can't quite blame him. If you look at the entire thing from a battler's perspective, fire types are some of the harder pokemon to find. And for the elemental types, fire is one of the best. With four types that are weak to it, and only three that they are weak to, having your starter be a fire type is a solid bet.

Of course, this leaves Lyra with the dancing Totodile. Which, oddly enough, seems like it will be a good match. I guess luck does play a role in everything. Granted, watching a Totodile try and do a step kick is a bit much.

Once that's done, Professor Elm speaks up once more. "Now for the slightly less fun part. I just emailed all of you with the information you need to know to care for your new Pokemon. Everything from diet and exercise to recommended treats and toys. Please remember, that by owning a Pokemon you are taking the responsibility for its actions. This means if your Cyndaquil burns something, you'll have to pay for it Ethan. If your Totodile soaks someone on the street, that is on you, Lyra. And if your Chikorita starts eating your moms favorite roses Arthur, my recommendation is to run. She'd kill both of you."

Both of us shiver for a moment, as we can feel my mom's glare from just the thought of that.

Getting Chikorita's pokeball, I put her inside so that we can get back to the transport hub. We pile back onto the bus, and after a little bit, we are back on our way home. I read the email Professor Elm sent me, and it covers a lot of good information.

Chikorita is a female, and was likely the runt of her clutch. As such, she would have been bullied by her brothers and sisters, which resulted in her timid nature. Her favorite foods are essentially salad greens, so lettuce, some onions, and other fresh vegetables. Not too hard for a new trainer to handle. In fact, if I mix those with some Oran berries, I should be able to make some treat pellets that I can keep a hold of to encourage her.

The main goal right now though, is to convince her to open up a little bit and get more comfortable. If she is constantly terrified of anything new, we won't last long once we get to compete.

So once we got home, that exactly what I did. I took Chikorita out and started showing her the ranch. I introduced her to my dad's pokemon, which was amusing. They sniffed her, and while she was terrified, she eventually calmed down once she realized they wouldn't hurt her.

I showed her what I have come to call the exercise track. It's not actually a track, but more of a path that has formed from my repeated running of it.

"All right little lady. This is the track that I run every morning. You'll be joining me, but we'll be taking it a bit easier for you at first. Our goal for you is to just keep running. Once you can run two whole laps without stopping, we'll see about other trainings. Okay?"

She chirps up at me, before nudging me with her head.

I chuckle, "Hang on, we have one more important thing to do before we get there. Would you like a name of your own?"

As I say this, I kneel down in front of her and she chirps again. "Hmm, well let's think about it for a minute," I say, trying to think up a name for my pokemon.

Danu. I hear something say, jerking upright and looking around.

But the more I think about it, the more I like it. No idea what it means, but it's pleasant sounding.

"How about Danu?" I ask Chikorita.

She thinks about it for a minute, before looking back up at me and chirping once again. Then, she chirps and starts to take off onto the track. I follow her, chuckling for a minute. I already know she won't be able to finish the course as easily as she thinks, but that's okay. This is training that she can get used to, and there is no way she can fail.

***** One Week Later *****

In the week since I got Danu, we have quickly gotten used to each other. Danu is quite happy with our current training schedule, and so am I. We get up early morning and do our morning run. Danu still isn't up to two laps of the track yet, but she is building up some strength. I keep encouraging her, never letting her think down on herself.

After that, we join Dad for morning chores. With Danu, I'm now in charge of checking the feed for the herds. It's mostly grains, with some berries and such mixed in as well. Danu will check the food, looking for anything wrong with it, while I do the heavy lifting. At least for now because once Danu gets big enough, or evolves, she'll be helping as well.

Once we've fed the herds, it our time for breakfast. I'm following some of Professor Elm's instructions, but focusing on a mixture for Danu that will help promote growth. Some of the ingredients are a bit expensive, but others are hilariously cheap for me. For example, Moomoo milk is highly recommended to help with bone growth. For most people, a single bottle would cost close to fifty pokedollars. For me, I just have to go out and bottle it myself. My parent's told me that doing the work needed for raising myself would make everything seem so much better in the end.

The only ones that my parents have to actually get for me are Miracle Seeds. To maximize her growth, Danu needs one every other week. Granted, they have to start off at the low end of the spectrum according to my parents. Apparently one of the classes we get only after we have a pokemon is on ratings. So I'm looking forward to that. But my parents made sure to get me some low grade Miracle seeds.

However, our schedule is about to get slightly mixed up. Professor Oak's summer camp is starting next week. From what I understand, the invitees from other regions have been arriving for the last week. So our morning runs and everything else are going to shift to fit the summer camp as well. Granted, I was a little surprised when I actually saw the list of people who would be showing up. Johto only has me, Lyra, and Ethan. Kanto has Ash Ketchum, Gary Oak, Elaine Windleaf, and John Red. Hoenn has Steven Stone, May Birch, Justin Ruby, and Lorraine Sapphire. Sinnoh sent Cynthia Shirona, Lucy from Jubilife City, and Marcus Diamond.

The other regions aren't officially part of the Alliance yet, though a Benga Lightfeather is participating from Unova, as well as a Francois Glace from Kalos. According to the letter my mom got from the Oak Pokemon Lab, they are attending to see an example of benefits for their respective regions.

This was actually the first time I saw someone without a last name get awarded as well. Lucy from Jubilife City was from a poor family. When I say poor I mean so poor that shoe leather was a culinary item for her. However, during her two years at Junior Pokemon School in Jubilife, she managed to not only impress but thoroughly shock everyone. She scored higher than I did in almost every category except fitness. And I imagine if she had a decent diet, she would have beaten me there as well. As it was, the top three invitees to the camp were her, Cynthia, and me. Everyone else scored high enough to place, but compared to us it was no contest.

With a week left before the camp starts, Danu and I started on battle training. Honestly for her, this was just playing with the pups. I wanted her used to being around other pokemon and possibly people. This way she wouldn't panic or freeze up in a battle. And sure enough, only two weeks after she was with me, she was acting like a regular baby pokemon. She still had moments, where it was obvious she was scared or nervous. But no more of the completely terrified that she had when I first picked her up.