This is one of the stories that helped inspire The Guardian (the other one was permanently deleted, unfortunately, so I can't really show you guys). Anyway, this is kinda ridiculously old, so bear with the crappiness, please.

Beep! Beep! Beep!

I pulled the covers completely over my head in an attempt to block out my alarm clock. Why did I have to set it so early?

The noise kept up.

Ugh.

I rolled over to blink at the flashing red numbers. 6:30. Six-freaking-thirty. I reached out and slammed my fist down on the alarm clock's mute button. As the beeping stopped I closed my eyes again.

"Sasha! You told me to make sure you were up by now!" my mother called sweetly from just behind my closed bedroom door.

I did?

Sleep had made my mind as foggy as a swamp. Maybe I did.

"Professor Oak called, too, to remind you what today was. He wished you a happy birthday, Sasha."

Birthday? Oh. Oh, yeah! It's my twelfth birthday! Oh, and that means...

My late night forgotten, I jumped to my feet... a little too fast, and I toppled back onto my bed. I shook my head in frustration and got to my feet a bit more steadily.

"I'll get ready mom! Thanks!"

I heard a faint sigh of relief from the hall, then receding footsteps towards the stairs.

As quickly as humanly possible, I changed into my gray t-shirt, jeans with a black belt and sneakers. I pulled my hair into a ponytail while simultaneously repacking the Simple backpack I planned on bringing. I snickered softly as I remembered the Simple Co. slogan: It's so Simple, it's Complicated.

Downstairs, I sat down at the kitchen table.

"Ready for today, sweetie?" my mother asked, handing me a plate of scrambled eggs.

Taking a bite gratefully, I mumbled, "Of course!" and spewed eggs all over the table cloth.

My mother patted my head and wiped up the mess.

"Oh I know. You're always ready for anything."

She smiled at me. I smiled back.

"Look at the time! You better hurry, honey. Professor Oak made it clear that he wasn't going to keep all the Pokémon there until you arrived."

My mother picked up the finished breakfast and hurried over to the sink. On my way out, she called, "Remember to come see me before you go!"

Outside, I breathed in the cool air of morning. The best morning of my life, to be precise. Today was the day I'd finally start my journey as a real Pokémon trainer. I'd been dreaming about today for as long as I could remember. It was my life's ambition...

I checked my watch. 7:00 already! I glanced once more at my suburban house, and then took off running towards Professor Oak's laboratory.

I waved to assorted neighbors when I passed them. I was in a hurry. That left no time for small talk. But when my best friend Alexander (Zander, for short) called a greeting to me, I felt guilty about my lack of enthusiasm for his presence.

Zander was a few months older than me, but he'd stayed in town. I don't know why for sure, but I could guess. His mother would be all alone if he left, and she just couldn't really handle that. Zander's father had died a month before his twlefth birthday and Zander's mother still hadn't gotten over it. We all grieved, but she was far worse than any of us.

Professor Oak's lab was about a mile away from my house. Usually it would take me at least fifteen minutes to get there. But today, I was in hyper drive. Barely seven minutes had passed by the time I stood panting at Professor Oak's doors. I heard the click of a mechanical device and the doors slid open, welcoming me. Without pausing, I rushed inside... and promptly smacked into someone. I flew backwards and hit my butt on the smooth, tiled floor.

"Are you alright?"

I pressed my hand to my forehead and looked sheepishly at the person I'd run into. At this height, all I could see was a white lab coat and gray trousers without looking up.

"Um, yeah. I'm alright. Sorry."

I picked myself up and dusted off my clothes.

"Good. Then you're able to receive your first Pokémon."

I widened my eyes in surprise. Then I blinked. I'd run into Professor Oak!

"Really? Great!" I replied.

Oak chuckled and waved his hand, indicating me to follow.

We passed lab assistants working on machines, Pokémon training on treadmills and all around lab worthy equipment. Oak stopped in front of a large machine, dome-like in shape, with three Pokéballs seated in dents.

"So, which one do you want?"

I stared at Professor Oak; I hadn't really thought about it.

I swallowed hard and ran through the Pokémon in my head:

Charmander- a great fire type, but not the best choice for a beginner. Still, fire types are awesome.

Squirtle- a cool water type, not hard to train.

Bulbasaur- an easy going grass type, perfect for an inexperienced trainer.

All three were great Pokémon, but I could only pick one. I thought about Ash Ketchum, the trainer who'd come and gone from Pallet Town years ago. He'd been too late and missed out on the three Pokémon Oak had to offer. But he'd been given a special Pokémon: a Pikachu. I wasn't expecting anything like that since all three were still here, but it was nice to think about not having to make a choice.

I sighed.

"Well? Any ideas, Sasha?" Oak pressed.

I assumed he had other twelve year olds coming in soon. I took a deep breath and studied the Pokéballs in front of me. Out of nowhere, the one to my left seemed to move slightly. Only a shake, but still quite visible. I picked it up in my hand.

"I think I'll take this one."

I ran my thumb over the mark on the starter Pokéball. The symbol stood for something, but I couldn't read it.

Oak seemed shocked.

"Are you sure? You don't even know which one that is."

No, but I can tell this is the one I'm meant to have.

I turned to Oak. "I'm sure, Professor."

I pressed the button on the Pokéball and watched it open. A small, blue Pokémon jumped out and shook itself. I grinned. I got a baby Squirtle.

My new Squirtle gazed up at me with wide, brown eyes full of innocence. Perfect.

"A fine choice, Sasha. This particular Squirtle is only recently hatched, but it is already strong and determined. Would you like to give him a nickname?"

I crouched down so that I was eye level with Squirtle. His eyes reflected back my own, as clear as the ocean on a calm day. I nodded.

"How about Waves?"

Squirtle's eyes lit up and he jumped into my arms.

"Waves it is then. Do you want to travel with him, or keep him in the Pokéball?"

After Ash's Pikachu had refused to be in its Pokéball, Professor Oak had given a choice to all new trainers: keep your starter out and with you, or locked up in its Pokéball.

Most people didn't choose the latter.

"Out and about, Professor," I told him with a smile.

"Ok. Now here are your Pokéballs and Pokédex. You are going to accept my Pokédex assignment, aren't you?"

I nodded eagerly and took the items, placing them carefully in my backpack.

"Great. Now Sasha, you should go tell your mom that you're leaving soon. You don't want her to be worried."

My mood sunk after that one.

When I was little, I ran away, but I had every intention of coming back! I had just wanted to catch a Pokémon. I knew that only twelve year olds could be trainers, but I thought if I proved that I could catch my very own Pokémon, then they'd have to change the rule. Let's just say that it didn't work out too well, and my mother had called the police on me.

I rolled my eyes.

"Yeah, I'll do that."

Saying a quick goodbye to Professor Oak, I headed back to my house. I was a lot slower this time around, though. Honestly, I was dreading telling my mother that I was leaving. She already knew, but I think maybe she repressed the idea.

Waves trotted at my side, keeping up even with his short legs. He seemed happy to be with me, and I was proud to have him. Water had always secretly been my favorite type.

"Hey, Sasha!"

I spun on my heels to find Zander running to catch up with me. Waves hid behind my legs as he approached.

"How did it go?" Zander asked, out of breath.

I stepped out of the way so that Zander could see.

"Meet Waves."

Waves didn't move, so I had to give him a little push towards Zander.

"Go on, Waves. He's my best friend. He wouldn't dream of hurting you."

Waves relaxed and straightened up. Zander gently petted Waves' shell and the effect was startling: Waves mellowed out completely and made a sound almost like a purr.

"I guess you found his soft spot, huh Zander?"

Zander smiled up at me cheekily. Zander stood up and faced me.

"So... you're leaving then?" Zander asked with his hand on the back of his neck.

I shifted on my feet nervously. Another thing I'd been dreading? Telling Zander that I wouldn't be around anymore. It wasn't that he'd be alone; he had plenty of other friends. But Zander only trusted me to be around his mother. Other kids our age were afraid of her because she constantly muttered to herself and randomly started crying. I understood why she did it, but other kids didn't.

I was tempted to ask him to come with me, but I knew he wouldn't take the offer. Still, I felt I had to try.

"Yeah, I'm going. Hey, Zander-"

He cut me off.

"I know what you're going to ask, Sasha. And I'd love to say yes but I just... can't. Not now at least."

Reluctantly, I nodded.

"I get it. But you'll see me off right?"

Zander swung his arm around my neck and started pulling me down the road.

"'Course I will, Sasha. Now come on, your mom will want to see Waves!"

Zander took my hand and started running.

_______________________

Back at my house, my mother was gushing over Waves.

She pulled his cheeks and stroked his tail, all the while smiling like crazy. Waves quietly put up with it like a true partner Pokémon would. Oh I just loved him!

"You picked the cutest Pokémon, Sasha! He'll be a great partner, I'm sure. And against the first gym he'll be your greatest asset. When are you planning to go, honey?"

Surprisingly, she didn't sound stressed or regretful at all. She sounded excited for me. And because of that, I couldn't have been happier.

"I'm thinking about leaving soon. Maybe by nine."

That would give me a few hours to say my goodbyes, and I'd need every second.

"Oh Sasha, I forgot. I left your Pokégear on your dresser. Why don't you go get it?"

My Pokégear!

"Thanks mom!" I called, running up the steps and racing down the hall to my room.

I practically ripped the door off its hinges trying to get it open. And there it was, sitting on my dresser with a red bow taped to it. I pulled the bow off the Pokégear and turned it on.

It even smelled new!

My mom had already programmed a few numbers in: Hers, Professor Oak's... Huh. Where was Zander's number? I thought it was weird, but I could ask him for it before I left.

Waves tottered after me as I headed back downstairs. I gave my mother a hug.

"Thank you so much for getting me this!"

I'd been asking for a Pokégear for a whole year, but she had never deemed it necessary.

"I knew you'd be traveling far away, and I thought this could help us keep in touch," my mother explained.

I pulled up the menu screen to show Zander.

"You got the newest version, too. It's really cool, Sasha."

He smiled at me and I thought I could see a new glint of happiness in his eyes. But I didn't think it came from the Pokégear. What was he so happy about?

"Can Waves meet your Charmander now?" I asked suddenly.

Zander had chosen a really fiery Charmander from Oak's lab. She was such a sweetheart though!

"Great idea. Last I saw, she was sunning herself out in the yard. Let's hurry."

I blew a kiss to my mother and the three of us set off.

A few houses down, Zander pushed open a white picket-fence gate, holding it while I entered his yard.

"What a gentlemen!" I teased.

Zander rolled his eyes and locked the gate behind him.

"Now, let's see... I saw Zoom by the elm tree, over there I think," Zander said, pointing to the big elm we used to climb.

I shaded my eyes but still couldn't make out anything bright orange. Or anything flaming for that matter.

"No offense, Zander, but you need to keep better track of that Pokémon of yours."

Zander shot me a half amused, half annoyed look.

"I could say that same thing to you, Sasha. Where's Waves right now?"

I started to say "Right here," but when I turned around, I stopped dead. Waves was gone. Uh-oh.

"How about this? I help you find Waves, you help me find Zoom. Is that cool with you?"

I nodded.

"Ok then. I-"

A loud call of "Squirtle Squirt!" cut Zander off.

We followed Waves' call to the backyard, where we found him playing with Zoom.

Zoom was almost twice the size of Waves, but that didn't seem to frighten him. The two starters were chasing each other across the lawn like a bunch of Rattata were after them.

"Found 'em," I muttered.

Zander gave me a playful shove.

"You wanted the two of them to meet, didn't you?"

He put two fingers to his teeth and gave a sharp, one note whistle. Zoom and Waves skidded to halt and turned to greet us with smiles.

"Char Char!" Zoom squealed.

She ran to meet me and I hugged her tightly.

In the past months I'd grown really close to Zoom, since she'd been around for so long. I felt the familiar pang of regret that Zander couldn't have left Pallet the day he turned twelve. He would never admit it, but he was sorry too.

"Well Z, what do want to do now?"

I said that this time was for goodbyes, but I didn't want to face them right now. I was almost praying for a distraction. But Zander never got a chance to make a suggestion.

"Alexander! Where are you?!"

A chill crept up my spine at the sound of that shrill, sad voice. I resisted the urge to shiver.

"Mom," Zander whispered. He shook his head as if to clear it. "Coming mom!" To me he added, "Can you watch Zoom for a little while? Mom, she... she doesn't really care for Zoom's personality."

I stood up, Zoom still in my arms. "

You can count on me, buddy. Want me to take her back to my place?" I asked, trying not to sound defeated.

Zander's shoulders sagged with relief.

"That would be great, Sasha. Thanks. I'll come by a little later to pick her up."

He raised a hand over his shoulder in a wave as he ran for the front of the house.

My head bent low, I sighed quietly into my hair. Zoom, picking up on my feelings, nuzzled my cheek. I stroked her tail affectionately.

"Alrighty then guys, we should go home. Zoom I'm sure Zander will be back soon. He just has some... issues at the moment."

I set Zoom down and waited till Waves was at my side before heading home.

____________________________

"Where's Zander?"

I turned away from my mother, unwilling to tell her the truth. That would've been unnecessary anyway.

"I see. Well Zoom can stay as long as she likes. You'll be going soon, Sasha, so I can watch her after you leave."

My mother's words stung; Zander wouldn't be able to see me off after all.

"Thanks, mom. I guess I should make sure that I have everything, huh?"

I shrugged my shoulders and tried to look as casual as possible, but I failed miserably.

"Oh honey, I know you want to wait but the later you get going, the less ground you can cover by dark. It's better if you leave at nine. I'll make you a lunch to pack."

My mother scurried into the kitchen faster than a frightened Pidgey. I sank onto the couch. Waves and Zoom jumped up and sat with me, getting comfortable under my arms.

"Squirt..." Waves sighed.

"Char..." Zoom agreed.

I watched as the clock ticked forward, one second at a time, almost killing me with anticipation. I hated it. This day was supposed to be my greatest ever. But now, it felt worse than my normal days. I couldn't wait to be off.

Tick. Tick. Tick.

Nine. Finally, it was 9:00.

As if on cue, my mother appeared in the doorway holding my Simple backpack, recently stuffed with sandwiches no doubt. I stood up and strapped the Pokégear I'd gotten to my belt. She handed me my pack. The fabric felt abnormally heavy in my hands as I slung it onto my back.

A kiss on the forehead was my mother's final goodbye for me. I gave her a smile and turned to go out the door.

A slight tug on my jeans stopped me. Waves. He had his arms up in the air like a child who wanted to be picked up. A faint chuckle escaped my lips. I bent down, unzipped the top of my pack, picked up Waves and sat him down in the pack. From his expression I could tell that he was happy with the new arrangement.

Now that everyone (but me) was happy, it was really time to get going.

"Watch Zoom until Zander comes for her. If you can, tell him I'm sorry that I didn't get to see him before I left."

I shouldered my backpack and went out the door. Locking it behind me, I started down the path that led out of town.

Where was I heading, you ask? Oh Viridian City of course! No gym there that I can face, but it is the first stop for any trainer leaving Pallet Town. And I was leaving Pallet Town. At least for a while.

Who knows; I could come crawling back here, defeat clouding my eyes. But for right now, I was ready for anything. Well, almost anything.

"You happy to be going, Waves?"

The little Squirtle nodded eagerly.

"I thought so. While we're just walking, why not test out some moves? Can you do Bubble?"

As an answer, Waves opened his mouth and let lose a soft stream of sparkling bubbles. Not the best attack, but it was a start.

"Water Gun?"

Waves again opened his tiny mouth, this time shooting out a harsh jet of pure water. It hit a tree, splitting the bark, and had enough force to knock me on my butt.

"Wow, some power you got there, Waves. We'll make a fighter out of you yet!"

"Glad to see you're already strategizing."

I cocked my head to the left in surprise.

Zander?

He picked me up under the arms and hauled me to my feet.

What was he doing here?

He must have seen the confusion on my face, because he laughed and laughed. And laughed. "Your mom offered to keep an eye on my mom. Said she'd be happy to let me go. And she was happy to see that you wouldn't be traveling alone."

Hot, burning tears crowded behind my eyes, but I kept them at bay. However, I couldn't stop myself from tackling Zander in an Ursaring hug.

"Hey! That hurts, Sasha!" Zander's words were cross, but his tone was happy, content.

"Alexander Dasher, it's great to see you again."

When I saw his Charmander's hurt expression I added, "Of course I missed you the most, Zoom."

Zoom breathed out a smoke-filled fireball and crossed her arms.

"I thought I told you never to call me Alexander. It's way too formal, Sasha," Zander said with a broad smile.

"Yeah but this was a special occasion! You can't blame me, you know."

On my feet again, I helped Zander up.

"But seriously, I'm really happy you decided to come. I don't think I could do this without you."

Even as I said the words, I was just realizing them myself. Zander, if he was surprised at all, didn't show it. He merely gave me a pat on the back.

"I bet you could've. But fortunately for you, you won't have to find out any time soon. Now, Viridian right?"

I agreed.

"Awesome. We better get going if we want to get there before dark. You know as well as I do that that's when trainers lose everything."

Zander wasn't trying to be funny; trainers almost always got seriously injured at night. And most of the time, it wasn't night Pokémon that they had to worry about.

"You're right. We need to move."

After a few dozen feet, the trees completely closed us in, blocking out the familiar Pallet Town scenery. For the first time, I felt a little unsure of myself. Could I really be a trainer? Could-

The feeling of Zander's warm hand pressed against mine halted my hopeless thinking. I could be a trainer. In fact, I'd be the best trainer. Better than even the famous Ash Ketchum. I was sure of it.

And Zander was here to help, and I'd repay him for that.

________________________

We'd been walking for hours; the sun was on its way to setting.

I checked my Pokégear for the eighteenth time.

"We're pretty close to Viridian's Pokémon Center. Only another half mile, I think."

Zander hadn't dropped my hand since we set off. Actually, he'd tightened his grip as the sun sank lower and lower.

He's worried about me, I thought.

Normally, my first instinct would have been to be insulted. But I knew Zander actually cared about me. I knew he wasn't worried just because I was slightly smaller and younger than him. He was worried because of the dangers that could befall any trainer traveling in the woods after dark.

"I think we should sleep there, if they'll have us. It'll be way more comfortable than sleeping out on the cold dirt."

While I totally agreed with Zander, something was bothering me. If we were both going to be trainers, then eventually we'd have to tough it out in the woods, no matter the danger. But that thought was for another time. At the moment, sleeping in the Pokémon Center sounded like a terrific idea to me. I was too tired to fight anything tonight.

After a while, the lights of the Pokémon Center came into view.

"Sweet. Let's hurry!"

Zander practically had to drag me along as we raced for the doors. But before we reached them, something pulled me backwards and wrenched my hand from Zander's.

"Ow!" I hissed as I hit the ground.

Someone pinned my arms behind my back.

"Ok sweetie, this is how it's going to go down. You'll hand over your Squirtle without a fight and I won't have to hurt you."

I sucked in a hard breath.

Ok, I thought, Zander had a right to be nervous for us.

"Waves," I whispered. "Don't be scared. We'll get out of this."

Zander was standing a few feet away, looking determined but still worried. It was a look he'd been wearing for the last hour and a half. I shot him a message with my eyes, warning him not to come closer. It was probably the hardest thing he'd ever had to do. I tried to send the same message to Zoom, but I couldn't see her in the dark.

But that didn't make any since. She had a freaking flaming tail! Where-

"Wait, where's your Squirtle?"

Waves? Where are you?

"Where is it? I-"

A strangled yelp cut the man off. He loosened his grip and I shot forward out of his reach. Spinning around, I caught sight of Waves with his jaws clamed onto the man's arm. Zoom had her tail dangerously close to the man's face, a warning not to try anything. In the light coming off Zoom, I could just make out a large, red R on the man's shirt.

"It can't be... Team Rocket?"

Beside me, Zander stiffened.

Team Rocket was bad news, made even worse by the fact that everyone in Kanto had thought they were gone for good after their boss, Giovanni , was defeated years ago.

Why were they back now? After so long? These were questions I didn't have an answer to.

Zander took a step forward.

"We'll let you go if you promise to leave us alone for good."

Sweat was forming on the grunt's face. Whether it was from the heat or stress, I couldn't tell. Zoom pushed her tail a little closer and he caved.

Nodding his head a thousand times a minute, the grunt said, "Ok! Ok! Let me go! Please!"

Zander waved his hand and, reluctantly, Waves and Zoom let him go. The Team Rocket Grunt sped off into the gathering darkness.

Seconds later, we couldn't hear the grunt's panicked footsteps anymore.

I pulled Waves closer to me and Zander did the same with Zoom. Unexpectedly, Zander wrapped one arm around my shoulders. His tensed muscles felt hard against my skin and I realized how freaking scared he'd been. That could have ended a lot worse than it did if the Pokémon hadn't jumped in.

"Are you alright, Sasha?"

Zander's voice pulled me out of my depressed thoughts. I leaned against his side and sighed.

"Yeah I'm fine. Just shocked, I guess. Team Rocket. Who would've guessed they'd show up?"

Zander shook his head, visibly irritated.

"It might've just been one lone guy trying to bring the group back together. But still... We should warn the police. First, though, we should get to the Pokémon Center."

He glanced up at the shining moon. It was getting late, and I was exhausted from all the walking.

"Come on, up you go."

Zander offered his hand and pulled me to my feet.

"Can't we just forget that ever happened?" I asked, almost pleading.

That was all I wanted to do right now.

"I know what you mean. But Police Chief Jenny deserves to know about all this, don't you think?"

I gave a weary nod.

"Ok then. Here, you walk in front of me this time."

Zander put his hands on my shoulders and steered me into the Pokémon Center, our Pokémon on his heels. Bright lights pretty much blinded me as we entered the Pokémon Center. After so much darkness outside, I wasn't used to artificial lighting.

So... this caused me to stumbled, and incidentally, fall down. It seemed to be my thing at the moment.

"I'm alright, I'm alright," I said, getting up.

When I'd regained my balance, I saw Zander smothering a laugh. So much for his concern. I scowled at him.

"Are you sure you're ok, miss?"

I almost jumped out of my skin at the sound of Nurse Joy's voice, just behind me. Taking a deep breath did nothing to calm my already frayed nerves, so I faced Nurse Joy still looking a little freaked.

"Positive, Nurse."

Nurse Joy's gaze softened.

"Oh good. I saw you take that fall and I was worried about you. But, it's a good thing you're not hurt, because I can only treat Pokémon!"

Nurse Joy gave a small, amused laugh. Her breezy attitude was so infectious that I found myself laughing along with her.

"Well, I see that you two are out late. Can I ask why?"

Nurse Joy tipped her head to one side and gave me a faint smile. Zander saved me from having to explain.

"We're from Pallet Town. New trainers and all that. We know it's late, so we were wondering if we could crash here for the night. Is that ok?"

Wow. Zander's truly a people person.

"Of course! Pokémon Centers always offer shelter to people who need it. You two can 'crash' on the couches. Would you like me to take a look at your Pokémon while you're here?"

"That would be great. Thanks a lot. Oh wait. Do you need their Pokéballs?"

Nurse Joy simply shook her head sweetly.

"No. I know of Professor Oak's new offer. I take Pokémon as they are."

With a smile, Nurse Joy herded our Pokémon towards a door marker Examination. I dropped into a chair, weak with exhaustion. Being terrified really takes it out of you. Zander took a seat next to me.

"Well, that was exciting."

I slugged his arm.

"Your definition of exciting really confuses me," I said.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. My definition of a lot of things confuses you. Just get some sleep and we can argue about my vocabulary tomorrow on our way to Pewter City."

Well, I thought, I can't really deny that I'm tired. Alright, I'll get some sleep.

"Deal. Oh and stop mooning over Nurse Joy while you're at it."

Zander looked surprised, but he didn't sound like it when he spoke.

"You got it, Sasha."

Using my backpack as a pillow, I laid out on a few chairs, pressing my back down flat. I muttered a goodnight to Zander and closed my eyes.

I actually really hate this, looking back on it. It was stupid and cliche, but I thought it could serve as a nice comparison to The Guardian's new incarnation. That's pretty much the only reason I'm posting it here.