[color=f7941d][h2][center]Kelci Barlow
Stellanova City[/center][/h2][/color]

Another telltale jingle rang out from Cici's guitar case as a red-haired gentleman dropped a few coins in. He gave her a brief smile, crinkling the beginnings of crow's feet around kind eyes. Then he strolled back to a young woman waiting with her arms crossed and a light scowl on her face.

"See?" Mr. Barlow said to the girl as they continued on their way. "You don't need to battle with your Pokemon. You can even find ways to get coins with them if you'd rather not focus on TP."

Kelci responded with stony silence, training her hazel eyes straight ahead. Oh, her father KNEW how she felt about basically being kicked out and forced to become a Pokemon trainer. Over the past couple days, she had thrown at her parents every sound argument she could think of. But alas, all her arguments failed to breach the impenetrable wall of "This will be good for you in the end, we promise." There was nothing left to do but stoically accept another unjust fate.

Soon, the duo reached their destination: the Pokemon Lab. Kelci's perfectly coiffed hair bounced in time with the clacks of her heeled shoes against the stone steps. She paused to look back and saw her father, smiling proudly yet watching her every move in case she tried to turn back. What was she, a kindergartner? Kelci turned back to the elegantly designed doorway and smoothed her clenched jaw into a convincingly friendly smile. No reason to make enemies with the people at this lab; her predicament wasn't [i]their[/i] fault.

[center][color=f7941d]***[/color][/center]

Kelci emerged from the Lab, fiddling with the settings on her new Pokedex. She half expected to see her father still waiting at the bottom of the stairs... but apparently he had finally decided she was capable of handling herself and gone home. Her mother's warning words echoed in her mind, though: 

"If you don't come back with a Pokemon tonight, you'll just have to find somewhere else to sleep. With your [b]own[/b] allowance."

Kelci sighed and looked east, toward the park where she planned to catch her first Pokemon. The windows of the tallest buildings glistened with the rays of the afternoon sun. She had PLENTY of time to find a Pokemon she could live with.

[center][color=f7941d]** Almost dark **[/color][/center]

Damp with sweat and nearly shaking in anger, Kelci finally found a tree stump large enough for her to sit down for a minute. She had followed the trail for a long time, but the only Pokemon she encountered there were Pidgeys and various gross rodents. Then she decided to tromp through the underbrush in search of better options. She found an adorable blue cat-like creature, but her Pokeball throw went wide (the sun was in her eyes) and it ran away before she could take a second chance. The final straw came when Kelci tried to find it again and ended up stepping in some sort of Poké-poop.

"If only all those casting directors knew talent when they saw it," she grumbled to herself in her thin soprano voice, "I wouldn't even BE in this situation."

Before Kelci could even scrape the dung off her shoe, a strange yell resounded through the trees. The woman's heart raced and her first instinct was to run away. But then she realized... that sounded like some kind of Pokemon, and probably one she hadn't seen before! Kelci quietly approached the noise and peeked through the tall grass to see what was going on.

In the clearing, a Totodile and some black Pokemon that Kelci didn't recognize were fighting a bloody brawl, seemingly over a large half-eaten berry. The Totodile gripped its opponent's leg with its crushing jaws, while the smaller Pokemon furiously pounded on the water type's neck with its stubby arms. The Totodile jerked its head and threw its bleeding foe onto the ground. As the bigger Pokemon loomed over, the black Pokemon growled in anger. Its bow-like appendages rustled a little, and suddenly, the Totodile howled in pain and clutched its head. Both combatants recovered from their recent blows, turned to face each other anew, and--

[center]*poof!*
*
*
*
*ping!*[/center]

The Totodile gaped in disbelief for a moment, staring at the Pokeball laying where its enemy had stood. Then it caught scent of the nearby human and turned to glare at Kelci. The young woman froze, fearing the sharp-toothed Pokemon would attack her next. After a minute, the Totodile snatched up the remainder of the large berry and walked off, apparently counting its enemy's capture as a victory.

Kelci picked up her now filled Pokeball and consulted her Pokedex. Apparently this thing was called a Gothita, and it was a psychic type.

Kelci headed back to the main path, still not excited about being a trainer but proud of her catch. She was glad to be able to intervene in a violent battle--she hated seeing creatures in pain. Also, her Gothita was uncommon and looked like a born performer. Surely, a Pokemon covered in cute bows would also prefer Contests over Battles.

...Right?

[hider=Kelci]
[b]TP:[/b] 5 (first monthly post +5)

[b]Pokemon Party:[/b]
Currently unnamed, Gothita, male, lv 4 (1 + 3 first monthly post)  

[b]Pokemon Reserves:[/b]

[b]Inventory:[/b]

[b]Rank:[/b] Beginner

[b]Organization:[/b] N/A
[/hider]

CP: 1 (+1)