Aaand...We're off!

[Onee-chan]

Akiko Sumeragi happily raced down the dirt path from her house to Professor Cherry's lab, leather mini-bag readily on her back, all her necessities packed. She had been waiting for this day as long as she could remember: the day she'd get her first pokemon. Nothing could bring her down right now.

"Yo, Professor? You in here?" Akiko called, peeking in the door to the old man's lab. She had met the guy a few times before, but they were all very brief meetings. She could never forget the two Ekans he had draped over him, but there was really nothing too remarkable about her to be remembered by such a marvelous man. "Hello?"

[MorriganFearn]

Hana looked up from the comfy broken down arm chair that she favored. <Yo? Um, Professor, I believe there is a new trainer here for you!> she called, turning her head toward the dark doorway at the other end of the lab.

Professor Cherry, resplendent in both his lab coat and a dark red apron that proclaimed: "I like 3.14," came out the back with a piece of toast in hand, and Haru looping over his neck.

<It's disgusting, I tell you,> the ekans was hissing. <Not only do you ruin perfectly good eggs by cooking them, but now you're putting vegetables in them?!>

The spry white-haired old man sighed. "Hana, can you talk some sense into him? I don't keep the two of you around for your cooking advice, you know."

<Well, you should,> Hana replied primly, <but that's not the point. We have a visitor.>

"Oh, right," the Professor turned distractedly to the new trainer. "Hello, hello. I don't suppose you would like a pair of ekans' as your starters? Very clean creatures, but extremely opinionated, I fear."