The Disorganized Professor

Your pace had slowed down, your ear still feeling hot from the words Blue had whispered into them, but you still headed for the Lab.

Perhaps your pace had been a little too slow, as when you reached the lab, the first thing to reach your ears upon opening the door was your rival shouting, "WHAT DO YOU MEAN 'THEY'RE ALL GONE', GRANDPA?!"

Professor Oak was scratching the back of his head nervously. For all his knowledge and aclaim as a Pokemon Professor, you'd always heard he was a somewhat disorganized and forgetful sort... and taking a look around his lab for the first time you could see why. Books and manila files filled with papers were a minefield of stacks all around the room, forcing you to weave between them as you approached the empty Pokeball container that Oak and his grandson were standing next to.

"It's as I said, Blue," Oak replied, "I was going to give you and your best friend each one of three Pokemon that are considered best for beginners I had caught recently but then the some lab assistents for the Professor from the next town over stopped by and they needed some Pokemon for research purposes and I guess I lost count..."

"Okay," Blue said, "One, she isn't my friend! Two, how do you lose count when you ONLY HAD THREE?!"

You clear your throat, causing Oak and Blue to turn in surprse. You walk forward (and give Blue a soft elbow to the ribs as you pass him) and look at the Professor with concerned eyes as you ask, "Are... are you saying we're too late? Will we really have to wait until you get more to start our journey?"

Oak frowned sadly. "That may just be the case, Red," he said... and then paused as his expression changed to a more thoughtful one, "... unless..."

"Unless?" You and Blue say in almost perfect unison.

"There... ARE two more Pokemon I have in the Lab that I could part with," Professor Oak said slowly, "But... they're not really for beginners as one requires a lot of special care and attention to reach its full potential and the other can be notoriously tempermental and hard to work with..."

You smirk and give Blue a wink. "One of those sounds perfect for someone who thinks he can become the League Champion in a matter of days," you say tauntingly.

"Given how easily you get lost and distracted," Blue shoots back with a snort, "I'd have a few WEEKS at least before you got to Viridian. And then it'd be another TEN YEARS before you could even lick the Champion's boots, let alone BEAT 'em."

Professor Oak smiles at the two of you fondly. "Ah, such youthful boasting," he says, "It's been a few years since I've seen two people trying to impress each other so much."

You and Blue both shoot the Professor a glare that is weakened by the redness of your faces. Oak laughs at your reactions as he heads into the backroom of his lab. "Well, if you're both sure," he says as he comes out carrying two Pokeballs, one with a yellow dot painted on it and the other with a brown dot, "I'm willing to let you both try."

In another world, on another adventure, Oak would have handed you the yellow-dotted Pokeball and Blue the brown-dotted one. However, on this world and for this adventure, a rogue pile of books he fails to notice near his feet interceeds. With a cry of surprise, Professor Oak trips and falls, the two Pokeballs flying from his hands. You and Blue rush forward to catch them, the brown one landing in your hands as the yellow one lands in his.

The impact causes the two Pokeballs to pop open and both of you go wide-eyed as you see your first Pokemon partners.

"Eevee," the small, brown almost fox-like Pokemon says as it looks up at you.

"Pikachu," the yellow, rodent-looking Pokemon says as it looks up at Blue.

As Professor Oak pulls himself to his feet (muttering something about how he's fine, thank you for being so concerned) you and Blue look at your new Pokemon and then slowly look up at each other with matching grins.