Subject: [PW!] Somewhere old, somewhere new, someone traded, someone blue Date: 22 Dec 2001 04:22:02 GMT From: therunt411@aol.com (TheRunt) Organization: AOL http://www.aol.com Newsgroups: alt.games.nintendo.pokemon (For your convenience, a summary of this episode appears at the bottom) Runt wakes up to the end of a beautiful sunrise, the Pokémon Center still relatively quite. "You know," he says to himself as he gathers his things, "I haven't used Bulbo much since he evolved. Maybe I should take him with me to Johto." Quietly, he goes over to the computer and downloads the Ivysaur from the ranch. The pokéball plops out of the chute and into the tray. He grabs the ball and slips it into his fanny, "No time like the present," then heads to the Nurse's Station After a minute or two, Nurse Joy walks over to him, still rubbing the sleep from her eyes. Upon seeing the trainer, the obviously groggy woman perks up to her normal level of cheeriness. "Good Morning! Are you here to pick up your Pokémon?" "Yes, please" The lady reaches beneath the counter and produces three distinct pokéballs. "Your Pokémon have been returned to perfect health," she says, handing them over. "We hope to see you again." "Thanks," replies Runt as he heads out of the center. Once on the street, he releases his friends from their balls. "Dra'nair!" chirps Tiny as he comes into existence. After stretching out the kinks in his body, the slender dragon nuzzles against Runt. "I'm happy to see you too buddy," he says, patting Tiny's head. "So, you guys ready to take the train to Goldenrod?" Roo does a few neck rolls then looks at his trainer, "Skhan." Meanwhile, Tank has been scaling the kangaroos back and has positioned himself on his adopted brother's shoulders. "san!" he cries holding up his thumb. Roo just shakes his head and grabs the Sandshrew's ankles. The small group heads across town to the train station. "The Magnet Train will be along shortly," announces the ticket attendant, "will you be boarding?" Runt flashes his rail pass to the man, "I believe we will." "Thank you sir. If you'll just have a seat over there, you may begin boarding as soon as the train gets here." As they wait, Tiny and Roo chat about their previous adventures while Tank takes in the all the new sights and sounds. "So, Bulbo, are you excited about going on this adventure?" asks Runt. "Ivee," he states, swatting an errant fly with a vine. "The Magnet Train from Johto now arriving," booms a voice over the p.a. system. Runt is startled by a sharp sound near him, he looks to see that his Ivysaur has merely knocked a feather out of the air. "Oh boy -- Saffron at last!" cheers a blue haired girl as she gets off the train. "Isn't this exciting Flint?" she looks down at her site, but is confused by the apparent lack of something. Looking behind her, she sees a young Cyndaquil. "Come on Flint, I want to get the whole Kanto experience." A lack luster "daquil" is all she gets in return as the tiny fire mouse trudges to her side. Suddenly, both her and Flint's attention is drawn to a loud snap. She finds the source as a clever Ivysaur sitting in the waiting area. Quickly, the girl scoops up her Pokémon and rushes over. "Hi," says the girl to Runt, "is this handsome Ivysaur yours?" He looks up at the stranger, "Yes," he says with some hesitation, "and you would be?" "Oh, sorry. My name's Crystal, and this here is Flint." Flint does a half nod before redirecting his attention to the feather on the seat. "I'm Runt and this is Bulbo." "Nice to meet you Bulbo," coos Crystal as she pats him on the head. "Saur vee," growls the Ivysaur happily. "I wish I had a big, tough Pokémon like Ivysaur," says Crystal, "something tells me it's going to be a while before Flint gets strong enough." She sighs. "Besides, Cyndaquil are so...'Johto'." Meanwhile, Flint has knocked the feather to the floor and begun wrestling it. "Well then, why don't we trade?" suggests Runt, "This is the best mood I've seen Bulbo in for a while, plus I have other tough Pokémon." "Really? That would be so cool," she replies. "The Magnet Train will soon be leaving for Goldenrod," declares the voice on the p.a. "All passengers please board now." "We better do this now," prompts Runt, "that's my ride." The trainers quickly swap ownership, then Runt and his friends hop on the train. From the platform, Crystal and Bulbo wave good-bye as the train leaves the station. Lots of beautiful scenery passes the window as the Magnet Train speeds along to its destination. Tank and Flint play with each other with Roo keeping an eye on them. Tiny curls up on the seat next to Runt and takes a little nap, and the trainer soon joins him. "We are now arriving in Goldenrod City," announces the conductor, waking Runt from his sleep. "Thank-you for traveling by train, and we hope to you ride us again." The crew rise from their seats and exit the train, ready to explore a new world. <To Be Continued...> Summary: Waking up in the Saffron Pokémon Center, Runt decides to withdraw Bulbo (his Ivysaur). After picking up the rest of his Pokémon from Nurse Joy, he goes to the Train Station. A girl disembarking from the train notices Bulbo and excited to see such a 'Kanto' Pokémon. Runt then trades his Ivysaur for the girl's Cyndaquil and takes the train to Goldenrod City. The Runt _______________________________________________________________ "Slow and steady wins the race."