Chapter 32

Light was showing an obvious expression on her face for the very first time since she was found. While Fireball was in her arms and fainted, Light was holding her tight and staring at her with despair, she was close to cry. The more she looked at the poor Pokémon, the more frustrated she felt. She realized that there was a scar on the Pokémon’s leg and her paws were harmed. “She probably tried to hide in the sand to protect herself from the cold.” Light thought while she looked at the Pokémon.

Fennel finally recovered from the shock and responded. “Martha, prepare the nursing room! We are coming right away!” She shouted. Fennel burst in upon Light and grabbed Vulpix. Light, with brimmed eyes, surprised looked at Fennel. She took the Pokémon and rushed in the laboratory. Oak and others followed her behind except Light. She stared at the building for a while. Finally, once she recovered, she walked inside to find that nursing room.

Once she came inside, Pikachu greeted her. Light crouched and let Pikachu climb on her shoulder. But Pikachu rejected it. Light thought Pikachu was probably mad about her interest in another Pokémon. But that was not the time to deal with Pikachu. Light focused on the voices in the laboratory. She realised that people were talking loudly in the hallway on the north-western side. She let Pikachu stay there and ran there.

She saw the team of Professor standing before a window and analysing inside. Light pushed everyone aside and came before the window. Once she looked inside, she saw Oak, Fennel and an assistant, whom Light never saw before. They gathered around a bed and talked over something. Once Oak moved on the left side, Light saw her little Fireball lying on the bad. There were cables attached to her. Light looked around to find a door. It was on the right side of the room. She pushed everyone aside again, which would require quite of an energy in a crowd in such a small room. Once she reached to the door, she attempted to open it, but it was locked. Light knocked on the door with her punches. “Let me in! I want to see Fireball! Let me in right now!”

A click was heard. Once the door was opened, Light saw Fennel standing there. Although Light was about to go inside, Fennel held her arm and walked out of the room. “You are coming with me.” She said. “I have questions to ask you.” Light could not be sure if Fennel was angry or just worried, but one thing for sure, she was not happy.

Light did not struggle or insist on what she wanted to do. She silently followed Fennel behind with the hope inside that Fireball could be cured. Fennel brought Light in her office and closed the door. She showed Light the empty seat. Light sat on it with no struggle again.

“Who is that Pokémon?” Fennel asked. She was still standing in front of the door, did not sit on her chair. Light stared at the floor. “Fireball, she is my friend.”

“Define ‘friend’.”

“She is very important for me.” Light mumbled. “Will you save her? Is it possible?”

“We are working on it.” Fennel sighed. “But you have to be frank with us. We are here to help you. I need to be sure that you did not cause anything to this Pokémon intentionally.”

“I wasn’t ready to speak.” Light responded. “Even if I was, I didn’t know what to say.” She looked at Fennel in the eye. “But now… Now, I do.”

Fennel nodded. “Let me have Professor here. He will be interested.” She walked out.

I am Light Yellow, a ten-year-old little girl. You have found me fainted when I was in Pallet Jungle. Ever since then, you had, and still have, many questions in your head about me. Because I never spoke or revealed anything about myself, you thought it was not the right time to bring them up until now. In the meantime, I recovered and tried to get used to my new life here. Not that I did not try to escape. I tried it many times. But every time I tried, I was either found or it was not possible to cross the border of laboratory. However, I never tried escaping again once I met Pikachu in the backyard. She does make me feel like home again.

First things first. Let me tell you about my early life. Just until four years ago, I was living with my family in our small, lovely house in Viridian City. I was the happiest person alive. In the morning, I would wake up to delicious newly roasted bread smell and I would have the best breakfast with my mom. The whole day, she would take care of me. In the evening, my dad would come from work and we would walk around the city and just talk. I would love to talk to my dad about anything I want. He would guide me for anything. I trusted him more than anyone.

Everything was perfect in our lovely bubble which we called “life of ours”. At least, it was the case for me. One morning, I did not wake up to that amazing smell that I loved, instead a rumble was the reason. The rumble of my parents’ fight. I heard my dad screaming “It is just not possible to satisfy you! As if you want to be unhappy!”. My mom did not agree with this. Instead, she blamed everything on my dad. “It is you, who never tries to change things and instead wants to make me pretend I am happy! But you know what? That is not the solution!”

“If I am the problem, just sign up for a divorce and we can solve the problem of your life for once and all!” That was what my dad said. I didn’t know the meaning of divorce. But I thought, if it was going to solve everything and make my mom and dad happy again, I would love them to do that as soon as possible.

I was scared. I decided to stay in my bed, under the blanket for a while. The door was slammed. I think my dad left the house to go to work. I waited for my mom to come and get me to the kitchen as she always would. Therefore, I waited. I waited longer. And I waited even longer. My mom was not going to come and get me. I left the bed and got out of my room. When I was in the hallway, I heard my mom. She was not speaking but crying. I looked at her in front of the door. Her eyes were red, her face was wet, and she was sad. I thought she would be happy if she saw me. I walked inside. She looked at me and put a gentle smile on her face. It was much different than how I imagined. The smile was so fake that I wasn’t convinced that she wasn’t sad.

After that, I did not see my dad for a while. He was no longer coming home in the evening to take me out. I had so many things to tell him about, but I could not. Instead, I tried to keep everything in my mind and do them all at once when I see him again. I was, in the other hand, curious of what he was up to, why he was not coming home. I wanted to ask my mom, but I was worried that the question would make her upset again. As much as I wanted to see my dad, I also did not want to see my mom upset again. Therefore, I never mentioned him leaving home.

One day, I saw my mom happily screaming in the house. I was having a midday nap. I had no idea what she was celebrating. When I woke up, I did not even need to ask. She grabbed me, hugged and almost danced in the living room. “What is it, mom?” I asked. “Your dad and I will take you out for dinner tonight.” She said. “Like how we used to do?” I asked. It already felt like ages ago. “Not like them.” My mom said. “It is going to be special. We will wear our most beautiful dresses and we are going to eat very expensive food!”

I did not know the meaning of expensive food, but I hoped it would taste good. My mom and I dressed up for the evening. I thought I looked different. I was never this garish, or maybe I was but I could not remember. “Will dad be back home after the dinner?” I asked with the courage that I somehow found inside. I was still worried that the question would upset her, though. But it left a gentle smile on her face. “Yes.” She said. “He is back for good.”

When the door knocked, my mom was about to lose it. She checked herself one last time on the mirror and she decided that she was ready. Very excitedly, she walked towards the door and opened it. My dad was there. He was wearing a black tuxedo. His white shirt was really white. My mom hugged him. The two were really happy. My dad walked towards me after her. He gave me a pocket of chocolate. “How is my little smart girl?” He asked. I really missed him.

We got in the car. He drove to the highway. I was sitting on the back. I was tied to the baby car seat so tight that I could barely move my body. But I did not care. I was amazed by the pleasant conversation of my parents. My mom was catching up with him. She was updating him with everything that had happened while he was gone. My dad seemed interested, although he did not share too much.

I barely remember what happened between. We did not make it to the restaurant, and we did not eat the expensive food that I was kind of curious of. Instead, I opened my eyes in a bed. The room was completely white. I felt pain all around my body. A lady approached me and asked me if I was alright. I was too scared to speak. Because when I checked around, my mom was not there. The lady was also friendly and nice, but she was not my mom. I wanted to see her, I did not want to be around that stranger woman. I couldn’t speak, instead I cried. Whenever I cried, my mom would hear me in whichever room she is, and she would come to me. This time, however, she did not.

“Where is my mom?” I asked while crying. I am not sure if she did not catch the words between crying, or she did not want to answer. But she did not inform me anyhow.

An old guy came in the room. He was as white as the room with the long jacket he was wearing. He was young and handsome. I knew something was not right. If he could come, why would not my mom? I did not feel safe. He gave me a glass of water. It was not transparent as I would often drink. It had a pale white tone. I drank the whole glass because I was exhausted. After that, I fell asleep.

When I woke up, no one was in the room. I followed my instincts. My mom and dad were not in this place, and I had nothing to do. I silently got out of the room and found myself in the garden. It was too crowded. Many people were walking tired, upset and worried. It gave me too much negative energy. I ran outside of the garden and disappeared.

Back then, I didn’t know what the place was called, but now I do. Where I ended up was Pallet Jungle. I had problems with food and water. Once I found a river and the water did not taste bad. I decided to find a place to sleep in this area. A hole in a tree was alright for me. As for the food, I ate the fruits on trees. Oranges were my favourite.

I have absolutely no idea how long I stayed there. But I remember I was there long enough to learn how to survive. I knew which species were dangerous and unfriendly, and which seek help for themselves. I was doing just fine on my own. There were some baby Pokémon that would often play games with me. But they grew up so fast that they decided not to have fun with me anymore. It was sad, but their parents would not mind me, which would make me happy. Normally, when there are trainers around, these Pokémon would hide very safely. I was exceptional to them.

Once I encountered a giant, rock Pokémon. It was so huge that it could easily crush me if it wanted to. It was either familiar with me in this area, or it felt that I was someone harmless, it just let go of me. Once in a while, I encounter that rock. Although I am not sure if it is the very same one, it doesn’t hurt me, instead goes away. I am no longer afraid of those rocks.

I couldn’t know back then, but now to think of it, I think it was the first time beginning of winter since I began to live in jungle. When I woke up in the morning, I felt the unpleasant cold breeze on my skin. I knew I should have changed my outfit very soon. Not only that, but also the sky was covered with dark clouds. It was obvious that the rain was coming ahead. But what bugged all the Pokémon in the forest was the thunder. Once in a while, they would appear in the sky and illuminate the ground abnormally. That was not a big issue, but the sound that comes after it is scary, especially for the Pokémon in the jungle. That’s why, they were acting strange that day. They were assailant, peevish and grumpy.

With the uncomfortable feeling in my stomach, I left the tree I slept on in order to look for breakfast. I would eat a particular fruit every morning, the yellow one which is called something I had no idea. I would just recognize it by the looks. The tree I would usually grab on ran out of the yellow fruit. Thus, I had to find a new one. While walking in the jungle, looking for a tree with that fruit on it, I realized something weird. I found a Pokémon being attacked by two others.

The Pokémon being attacked was a small, red Canidae. The two other Pokémon were two purple Ophidia. They did not have hands or legs. They were grovelling on the ground and approaching the so-called “enemy”. I could not just turn and walk away. I had the urgent feeling inside that I was supposed to go and save that little thing. After all, she could not protect herself alone. She was on the corner, even smaller than she normally was. She was probably a baby Pokémon and she needed a rescuer. Where could her mother be, though? She was not supposed to leave her on her own.

Therefore, I came up with a plan in seconds that I hoped it would work. I found some stones on the ground and threw them on the two Pokémon. I did not know back then but living in the forest gave me some skills. I could aim much better and I could survive over dangerous situations. However, back to the topic, these Pokémon did not have a chance to attack the little one, as they were distracted by me, as well as mad at me. They shook their heads as if they agreed on something. Then, they began to approach me. It was not in a sneaky way to keep myself undecided if they were going to attack me. This was too obvious that they were coming to get me. I felt scared. I needed to do something fast. I did what I could the best for protection. I climbed on a tree. The closest one. Those idiots were not any worse than me, however. They followed me up to the tree. I held onto some branches and attempted to hit them, but there was no use. They were much better than me.

Just when I was on the edge of the branch and the two were about to get me, the little one found the courage inside. Because she ran towards the tree and used an attack that I had never seen before. She brought several fire balls out of her mouth. The balls gathered around the two Pokémon and they were burned. As they were distracted and in pain, I took my chance and climbed down the tree. I grabbed the little one as soon as I got closer. We had only one chance – run as fast as we could.

At least, I thought it would be helpful until I got caught. These Ophidia could get quite fast if they wanted to. They covered both of us all around. With their long bodies, they grovelled on the ground and gave us no chance to escape. The little one wanted to attack and protect herself and me. I was not happy with the idea, as she could get hurt.

“Hold it, Fireball!” I said. That was the first time I nicknamed a Pokémon. The only thing I knew about her was the fact that she was capable of creating fireballs. I did not think it through, it just came out of my mouth. She seemed to understand it. I covered her in my cloth, so that she could not get hurt.

The two other Pokémon seemed to be angry. I wish they could open up the way and let us go. But they did not do such thing. One of them suddenly jumped on my arm. It bit my arm so hard that I felt the pain in my veins. I screamed and fell on the ground, while the other one jumped on me as well. It was on my legs. It wrapped my legs probably to prevent me from running. Later on, it bit me on my knee. The pain was doubled. I felt like my stomach was trying to let everything out. When the two set me free, I writhed on the grasses for a while. I tried to puke but it was not easy. The last thing I remember is I fainted.

When I opened my eyes, I found myself on a bed made of soft and fresh leaves. It was so comfortable that I could not remember if I slept that well in a while. But the place was completely stranger to me. Where was I? Who carried me all the way here from the point I fainted? Should I had been alarmed?

I got off the “bed” and checked around if there was something fishy. But it was just a part of the jungle which was more like a home and no one was around. I thought it could be the best time to run off. No one would help people for no return, I thought. Thus, I ran a couple of steps until I fell. My stomach was struggling so hard that it was impossible for me to bear with this pain while running. I lay on the ground, writhing with my hands on my stomach. Quickly later, Fireball appeared before me.

“Fireball!” I responded. I was quite happy to see her safe and sound. “Are you hurt? Is everything alright?” I asked. I was worried about her, after all. She approached me and licked my face. I thought she was telling me that she was alright.

“Where are we?” I asked. That was the only question that I needed the answer. Later on, relatively much bigger Pokémon came to me. She was smiling, and Fireball was running around her. I assumed she was a friend, but they did not belong to the same evolutionary chain. It was impossible. They had nothing to share in common. Fireball was around half meter, other one was more than two meters. Fireball was dark red, other one was brown. Fireball was quadruped, other one was bipedal.

The big one hugged me and carried back on the bed. She still had that gentle smile that gave me trust and happiness. She then landed me a bowl. There was something green in it to drink. I assumed it was medicine. Out of my trust, I drank the whole thing despite of its horrible taste. Once I was done with it, I lost it! My stomach started a riot on my body. I could not lie down anymore. Once I felt like everything in my body came to my throat, I realized that was the antidote. I threw out everything in my stomach. The big Pokémon put her hand on my shoulder and cried on me as if she was congratulating me for my “success”. I lay back on the bed and let my body rest, while I kept my mind busy.

Then, a baby came around. The baby was blue and resembled of the mother. It got closer to me, but it was sceptical. It was probably curious of me, as someone it saw for the first time. I was not like other Pokémon in the jungle either.

“Hey, little buddy.” I said, tiredly and with almost closed eyes. It did not take longer before I fell asleep again.

After I was healed, they did not let me go. They wanted me to stick around with them, which made me quite happy. I was calling the big Pokémon “Mom”. She was treating me how my mother used to. She was protecting me and guiding me on what to do. “Baby” was not able to leave the nest since it was not safe bet for it. Therefore, Fireball and I would go out during the day and either play or discover around. When it gets close to the sunset, we would head back to the nest. Baby would be happy to see us, and we would play some more together. If we were hungry, Mom would prepare something for us. For a quite long time, it went on like that. I thought I found myself another family and began to forget the details about my real one.

One of those days, in which Fireball and I were exploring in the jungle, did not bring anything good for us. While we were running, a rumble distracted us. We hid behind the bushes and decided to see what was going on. We found a group of traveller walking through the path in the jungle. It had been so long since I saw humans. Seeing them sure brought some memories back me but I was not happy to remember any of them. What they reminded me were rather unpleasant. Therefore, Fireball and I decided to walk away. But that was not the case when we were stopped by some people in the group.

“There is a girl who needs help!” An old lady shouted out. As if she knew one thing about me! How come she could come to conclusion that I needed help?! I knew involving all these people would not bring any luck. I convinced Fireball to run away besides me. But I was caught already. They put me on a chair and some of them who claimed himself to be a “doctor” checked on me. He thought “it would be the best to have a check-up in a sterile field”. I didn’t know the meaning of it, but he meant hospital. I could not struggle, because they were too many and had no such intention as hearing out what I say. They put me in a car and took me away, away from my only family.

I was brought to a hospital. I could not recognize if it was the same one as I was put before. It had been so long already. But the inside was, less or more, the same. White walls, white beds, white closets… Why would everything have to be so white? It was so annoying for me.

They put me on a bed and an old doctor came to me. She analysed me. She asked me questions, but I did not answer. Not because I did not know the answers. I knew if I ate something “suspicious” or where I had been in the past months. But after all, I was brought there by force and I had no reason to answer what she wanted to know. Because of my silence, she came to conclusion that I was shocked. I was annoyed by the conclusion and I was about to object it. Thankfully, I did not, though. Because it made everything easier for me.

I don’t really remember how long I stayed in the hospital. It feels like days, but it could be weeks as well.

Everything had changed when I saw Fireball kicking the window at night. She somehow found me and came to get me. That was the way she was thanking me for saving her from these two Pokémon the day I met her. “Fireball!” I responded. That was probably the first thing I actually spoke since I was put there. I ran to the window and opened it. I did not realize until then, but I missed her so much. When I hugged her, her smell reminded me of my home. I was craving for that smell, only that I didn’t know.

I did not even think of any other option other than… “Let’s go!” I said. “Don’t let me be imprisoned here for another second! Let’s go!”

Since the doctors assumed that I was still in shock, they did not have too careful precautions for me. We climbed down on the wall from the window and escaped. Due to both darkness and the fact that I did not follow the way, Fireball guided me the way. We ran for hours and hours to reach in the jungle back. When we got there, it was almost sunrise. The sky was in dark blue as we got back in the nest. Baby was in deep sleep, but Mom seemed to be worried. When I got there, Mom gave me a huge hug. We embraced each other so tight that for a split second, I thought my bones were going to crack.

“Thank you for getting me back.” I could only say.

Everything got back to normal in no time. We were still going and exploring in the jungle with Fireball all day long and getting back to our “home” in the end. Mom and Baby really loved us, as well as we loved them. Fireball was my best friend, like my sister.

Just recently, we heard some noises in the jungle. This time, it was nothing like what he faced with the travellers. Many people in black uniforms were rushing in the jungle. Fireball and I got it right away, they were up to nothing good. We hid on a tree and watched them for a while. They were putting devices all around the jungle which would make “beep-beep” noises and showing some red or white spot lights on them. They did not seem any good. We tried to break those who were left behind, but they were even unbreakable. Fireball’s fire balls were not even enough for it.

“Maybe we should let Mom know about it.” I said. Fireball agreed with me. We ran back to the nest. Fireball explained everything we knew. Mom wanted us to stay in the nest and left. We waited for a while for her to return, but she did not show up. Furthermore, Baby was about to wake up. If it woke up and looked for Mom, we would have nothing to say. With the unpleasant discomfort in my stomach, I asked Fireball to watch on Baby, while I was looking for Mom. It was hard to convince Fireball, but she accepted my suggestion in the end.

I ran back in the jungle, looking for Mom everywhere. I could not call her name out, otherwise I would be caught by the men in black uniform. I was as silent as I could be. In the meantime, I witnessed so cruel things. The men caught wild Pokémon with nets. The “weak” Pokémon, as they called it, were put in a truck, while the “healthy and worthy” Pokémon were put in another one. I had no idea what they were up to, but the whole thing made me worried.

I climbed on a giant tree to look for Mom. That was the highest point I could get to. But still, it was not clear where to find Mom. She was nowhere to be seen. I was distracted by a guy down below. He was one of the men in black uniform. “What are you doing?” He called out to me. I was worried. I did not want to be found. At that point, I had no idea what was ahead of me. I wanted to jump on another tree and disappear. As I ran to the other side of the branch, the man pulled out a Poké Ball. It was clear that he had no intention of letting me go. However, he did not really need to do anything. As I jumped, I did not manage to catch the branch of another tree. I fell on the ground. It was so high that I was in a great pain. My legs were almost screaming besides myself. The man grabbed me and carried to the trucks. Other men looked at me in the eye, but they did not ask anything. The man who carried me to the trucks put me down and told me to “behave”. Then, he left.

I lay down there the whole day. Once in a while, I passed out and woke up. My legs gave me a lot of suffer. It was near the sunset. I checked my legs. They sure still hurt, but I could give it a try and walk as no one was looking at me. I forced myself to stand up. Hell, it was so challenging, but I made it. Then, I held onto the truck and took a few steps. After the practicing, I managed to walk farther. Eventually, I disappeared in the jungle, as I thought.

I don’t know what it was, but the jungle was covered with a black smoke all around. I could not breathe properly, and nothing was seen around. I have absolutely no idea how long it took until the smoke cleared. But when it disappeared, I was not alright. I felt like I was on drugs. I kept going for a while, but that is all I remember. The rest is what you already know.

…

Light adopted the life in laboratory in a while. She was communicating with everyone in the laboratory, but mostly Oak and Fennel. She was also helping out with errands and other things in the laboratory. She was able to communicate with Pokémon even better. All the Pokémon in the laboratory loved her. Pikachu and Fireball would never leave her alone. Oak thought that Light improved herself a lot since she joined them.

Oak told Fennel to bring Light in his office. Fennel found Light in the backyard, feeding a Butterfree. Fennel told her that Oak wanted to see her. They walked back at the office. Oak was smiling when they walked in the office. Fireball and Pikachu were there, too. “Is everything alright, Professor?” Light asked. Oak showed the chair, asked her to have a sit. Light sat on it.

“You know, Light, I see you improve yourself quite a lot since you got here.” Oak said. “I am very proud of you. I believe that you can accomplish so many things if you want to. That being said, I talked to the authorities and asked them to give you a Pokémon Trainer Licence earlier. Normally, you are unable to receive one before you are 15. But you are an exception.”

Light was surprised.

Oak took the licence and lifted it. “Here, you have a Pokémon Trainer Licence.” He said. He handed it over Light.

“What am I supposed to do with that, Professor?” Light asked. She sure seemed surprised. Oak nodded. “I have expectations from you. Therefore, I want you to go on an adventure.” He said. “I want you to compete in Kanto League.”

Light was shocked. She never saw something like this coming. “I don’t know, Professor… I never thought of it through.” She seemed worried rather than excited.

Fireball and Pikachu made noises, tried to convince Light that she was the one. Light looked at the licence. It had a picture of herself and other information about her. “Going on an adventure… Competing in the league…” She thought. “I will… I can do that… with the courage and power I receive from my friends, my Pokémon…”

“That’s the spirit!” Oak crowed. “As your first mission, I want you to catch Pikachu!” He said, giving a Poké Ball to him. Light grabbed the Poké Ball and looked at it carefully. It was real.

“Poké Ball, go!” Light said, as she threw it towards Pikachu. The Poké Ball hit the Pokémon’s head and grabbed it inside. The Ball had shaken once… and twice… Pikachu was officially caught!

Light pushed the button on it and called her out.

“She is officially part of your team!” Oak said. He did not look like he was going to hand her over a new Poké Ball. “What about Fireball?” She asked. Oak smiled. “She is not ready yet. You know, she is still recovering.”

Light remained in silence.

“I promise you, though.” Oak said. “She will join you as soon as she is fully recovered.”

Light nodded. She understood how important health can be, especially for those, who were in a serious danger shortly before. For the rest of the morning, Oak and Fennel prepared a backpack for Light with supplies and guide books for the journey. She set off her journey at noon. Professor reminded her that she could contact him any time if she needed anything. Light had the full support of the laboratory.

“Thank you, Professor Oak and Mrs. Walker.” Light said. “Thanks to you, I once again began to live like a human. As much as I don’t complain about my days in the jungle, it sure is something different now.”

“Hang in there and be safe.” Fennel said. “The rest is just easy for you to deal with.”

Light and Pikachu waved goodbye at them, as they walked outside of the Pallet Town for new adventures and experiences.

Humans

 * Professor Oak
 * Fennel Walker
 * Light Yellow
 * Martha (One of Oak’s aides)
 * Light’s Parents (mentioned)
 * A group of travellers (mentioned)
 * A doctor (mentioned)
 * Men in black uniform (mentioned)

Pokémon

 * Butterfree (at Oak’s Lab)
 * Wild Onix (mentioned)
 * Wild Ekans (×2; mentioned)
 * (mentioned)
 * Wild Ekans (×2; mentioned)
 * (mentioned)