"I tell you, it's him! He has the same clothes!"

"No way, you are right! He really is that kid!"

"Quick, let's take pictures!"

The youngster groaned, trying to ignore all the phones directed his way; they were waiting for him to explode or say something funny, and so long he didn't do either they would quickly lose interest.

Some minutes later the harassers finally left, grumbling and complaining. Once alone in Route 30 Joey could finally sigh in relief, slumping on the ground and caressing his Rattata's head. Hopefully, they would be the last jerks for the day.

His Pokémon eyed him with concern, rubbing his whiskers on Joey's chest. The young trainer smiled, rubbing Rattata's neck as his mind went back to a few years before, to the beginning of this mess: he had won a trip at the Goldenrod Radio Tower by pure luck, which also gave him the chance to be a guest in DJ Mary and Professor Oak's show. It was great, and he was excited for it.

He was also a dumb ten years old kid who loved his pet Rattata. Joey cringed; he remembered his words clearly.

"My Rattata is different from regular Rattata. It's like my Rattata is in the top percentage of all Rattata!"

He really believed it, and the world spent the following five years make him regret those words.

It all started subtle enough when his classmates simply parroted back to him his 'top percentage' line, and he yelled it back confidently; it was weird, but it felt nice. Then he searched his name online just for fun, and he was left speechless.

His line had been repeated in all corners of the internet, be it verbatim or through snowclones. There were also various comedic pictures about him or putting his words on other things and people, and even a music video remix of his statement that was actually rather catchy.

At that point, Joey understood; they had all been mocking him, and still were. Whenever he turned around he couldn't help but see people trying to take pictures, leading him into saying stupid stuff, or whatever else they thought would be funny. He tried ignoring them at first, thinking it would've just been a temporary fad; five years later, he wasn't quite sure of that anymore.

He could have even accepted being a laughingstock, if it weren't for the fact that even now he did actually believe his words: Rattata was his oldest and most trusted companion, and he wanted to make him the strongest in the world. But no matter how strong he became, no matter if the trainers of Route 30 trembled when they heard his name, for the world he would've still been the 'top percentage' kid.

Joey sighed. Maybe that was why Twenty Gyarados Bill ended up becoming such an infamous outlaw: he was the 'top percentage of Magikarp' kid and wanted to get back at the world, or something. (*)

Sure, he could've tried proving his mettle and show the world he wasn't just a joke, but how? He was in no way a trainer at Silver Conference level, and even if he gathered a few badges and lost the League at a semi-high position he wouldn't become the next Casey Snagem. He had heard of this place called the Battle Hall all about winning with your favorite Pokémon, but Sinnoh was a long way from his home. There was nowhere he could go and nothing he could do, or so he thought.

A piece of paper flew right on Joey's face, stopping his train of thought; he grumbled and removed it, sending an annoyed glance at it. As he read, however, his expression turned curious.

It was a rather minimalistic ad, with 'Cherrygrove City Tournament! Win a Pokémon Egg!' written in a large font. Joey brought the paper closer while Rattata tried to read as well. It was apparently a small, unofficial tournament open to everyone, sponsored by New Bark Town's Professor Elm and the wealthy Mr. Pokémon and with a rare Egg to be distributed to the winner. It didn't seem like a major event, but it would've still been televised.

Joey beamed, sharing a glance with Rattata. Trainer and Pokémon nodded at once.

The youngster shot back up and dusted off his clothes, running towards Cherrygrove. This was their chance to turn their reputation around.

Cherrygrove City was never a big community or an important city: throughout all of its existence, it had always been a quaint, small village with little of remarkable. If it weren't for their Quagsire festival, most people wouldn't even remember that the city actually existed.

As such, the tournament wasn't going to take place in some fancy stadium; all they had was a small wooden platform with a lot of people around and a television crew on the side, with the event's commentator on the platform and Elm and Mr. Pokémon on the sidelines. Most people would've called this a poor limelight, but the trainers gathered didn't care: all they wanted was to fight, or the Egg.

Joey kept on his toes, trying to get a clear view of the platform. Rattata did the same from the top of his trainer's cap. Their excitement was barely contained, and managed to drown out the calls of people calling him 'annoying' or appearing to recognize him as an internet meme. He didn't care: he was going to prove them all wrong, then and there.

After what appeared to be forever, the announcer finally cleared his throat and grabbed a mic. "Hello, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to the first edition of the Cherrygrove City Tournament! We're glad to see all of you here!"

He turned around before speaking again. "Many trainers have gathered here for a chance to obtain a rare Egg! Which Pokémon lies inside it? Only one way to find out, people!"

Joey grumbled as Professor and philantropist brought the Egg at once, followed by some boring scientific talk about the reason of the tournament. Joey wasn't interested: for all he cared, they could've boiled the Egg and ate it for breakfast. He mentally counted, trying to hide his bored expression.

Several weird terminology later, the two finally left, and the announcer took the microphone again. "Thanks a lot to our benefactors! But I guess you trainers have waited too much. So, without further ado, let's get on with the tournament!"

"About time!" Joey grumbled, as a box was brought up to the platform. The announcer placed a hand inside, and took two names out.

"For the first round, we have Kevin against Joey! Please take your places on the platform!"

Joey beamed, scampering ontop of the platform as Rattata jumped forward; on the other side, his opponent calmly walked in, holding a Poké Ball.

The youngster could feel many looks bearing into him. Curiosity, confusion, and of course, mockery. He grinned, knowing it would be the last time he felt that.

Kevin squinted his way, then frowned. "Wait, I know you. You are the 'top percentage of Rattata' kid! That meme! The heck are you doing here?"

"Five years ago." Joey grumbled, then grinned while kneeling and tying something to Rattata's head. "And I'm here to win."

"Win?" His opponent chuckled. "For real?"

Joey crossed his arms. "For real!"

"You seriously think I will be beaten by a damn meme?" Kevin laughed. "I will show you! Ariados, come out!"

The spider Pokémon came out of the Poké Ball. It and Rattata glared at each other, as did their trainers; the announcer took his place in the sidelines, raising both arms.

"The first match will be Ariados and Rattata." He lowered his arms, grinning. "Begin!"

"Let's make this quick!" Kevin pointed onward. "Ariados, Sludge Bomb!"

The ball of venom shoot towards Rattata almost instantly, and the Normal-type couldn't dodge or deflect it. The impact blew him back, and Kevin shrugged.

"Pathetic. What did you expect to accomplish with just a Rattata?" He smirked.

Joey was calm, adjusting his cap. "I'd look if I were you."

Rising an eyebrow, Kevin glanced at Rattata. Then his eyes widened, as the Rattata crawled out of the venom pool, hurt but still able to battle.

"What the-" Kevin squinted his eyes, until he noticed what Rattata had on his head. He frowned. "A Focus Sash? You aren't planning to-"

"Oh yes I am!" Joey grinned. "Rattata, Endeavor!"

Rattata tackled Ariados away, the impact reducing it just as badly as Rattata. Kevin bit his lip.

"Ariados, use-"

"Quick Attack!"

Rattata hit Ariados at light speed, throwing it out of the battlefield. It didn't move.

"The winner of the match is Joey and his Rattata!" The announcer said.

Joey crossed his arms. That strategy was the basic trick of every Rattata trainer, but it never got old.

Kevin stared first at Ariados and then at Joey, while the audience did the same. Joey quietly smiled and sprayed a potion on Rattata, leaving the platform for the next matches. All around him people whispered, impressed or dumbfounded.

Joey grinned. This was going well.

The rest of the tournament wasn't as easy as the first match, but it still wasn't that challenging for Joey and his Rattata.

One advantage of being a mono-Pokémon trainer was that you really got to know the ins and outs of your Pokémon, and Joey certainly knew how to use a Rattata: it was a Pokémon derided as trash so often that very few people knew what it was actually capable of.

Joey would've loved to show off and unleash the true power of Rattata, but that wasn't his aim. He had to show himself as competent and no-nonsense, and he tailored Rattata's moveset for that: Endeavor and Quick Attack were useful to deal with almost everything, and Crunch and Grass Knot were good for variation and to deal with pesky Ghost-types and Rock-types.

And thus, before he realized it, he finally reached the finals. All around him, the mocking calls had morphed into surprise and even cheer towards him. Joey grinned and flipped his hat while he walked up to the platform again, ready for the final battle.

In front of him stood another boy, kinda short and about his age with frizzy brown hair and tan skin, wearing sandals, blue shorts and a white shirt, alongside a Poké Ball pendant. He looked ready to go on a beach more than anything. Was he a foreigner or something?

The announcer raised his arms once more. "And here we are for the finals of the Cherrygrove City Tournament! The final match will be between our local Joey and Tristan, from the Alola region!"

Alola. The region with all those weird Pokémon? It definitely explained the look, at least.

Tristan smiled, tossing his Poké Ball up and down. "I'm happy we are going to battle! I was looking forward to this!"

"Yeah, I get that a lot." Joey rolled his eyes while Rattata taking his place on the battlefield. "Can we get to business? I didn't come here to chitchat."

"Yeah, you are right." Tristan kept smiling, throwing his Ball. "Let's start!"

The Ball opened, and a Pokémon materialized. One that felt familiar and foreign at once for Joey.

It looked like a Rattata, but was black instead of purple, the whiskers were different, and stood on its hind legs instead of being on all fours.

Joey squinted his eyes. "Wait, is that-"

"A Rattata from my region, yup." Tristan nodded. "I thought it would be fitting."

Joey grumbled under his breath, but refrained from complaining. At least he had the battle to ease his nerves.

"May the best one win!" the announcer then said. Joey and Tristan pointed on at once, and the fight began.

"Rattata, Crunch!" both youngsters yelled at once.

The two Rattata sprinted at each other, biting at once; both yelled, but Joey's Rattata did so for longer, Tristan's one overpowering him and tossing him aside. The purple Rattata grimaced and squealed as he got back up, a visible bite mark on his side.

Joey squinted his eyes. As Rattata, that Alolan one couldn't be too much stronger than his. Then why did it hurt so much?

As if reading his mind, Tristan folded his arms and smiled. "Normal/Dark."

Right. Regional forms could have different types. He frowned; he knew all about Rattata, but an Alolan Rattata was new. He grinned briefly; this would be interesting.

"Good to know." Joey adjusted his cap. "Quick Attack!"

Rattata rushed at full speed towards his Alolan counterpart, head down.

Tristan pointed. "Ice Beam!"

Rattata dove quickly to the side to avoid the ray, and half of the platform was frozen solid. He stood again on shaky legs. Joey blinked, confused.

Tristan shrugged. "Way too many people underestimate what a Rattata can do."

Joey blinked once more, then, he chuckled.

"Yeah, they do." He stared at Tristan, grinning. "Grass Knot!"

Grass formed near Tristan's Rattata, and the Alolan Pokémon fell down.

"Now, Crunch!"

Joey's Rattata leapt above the ice, incisives ready.

Tristan flinched. "Dark Pulse!"

The beam of darkness blew Rattata back, almost throwing him out of the platform. He bounced back and ran on again.

"Endeavor!"

The Kanto Rattata pounced down the Alolan one; he kept it pinned on the wood, about to strike once more.

"Sludge Bomb!"

Joey's Rattata jumped a hair away from the point blank blast, only to slip on the ice and lose his footing. Tristan's Rattata rushed his way.

Joey frowned. "Crunch the floor!"

Incisives sunk in the wood, and Joey's Rattata braked, turning to face the other Rattata.

"Now, Quick Attack!" Joey punched on.

"Quick Attack as well!"

The two Rattata clashed, and both were blown back. The two rodent Pokémon panted, staring at each other: both were hurt, but neither would give in.

Tristan beamed, arms akimbo. "You aren't half bad."

"Neither are you." Joey smiled again.

This match was turning out rather interesting. He had several strategies he could go, and knew exactly the right one now. He pointed on and tried to order.

Then he heard the voices in the crowd.

"Are you seeing this?"

"Yeah! I'm totally uploading this!"

"I already see the title! 'The battle for the top percentage'!"

Joey froze, eyes widened. He turned around wishing, begging to have heard wrong.

"Really! A Rattata against Rattata match!"

"Seems legit."

"I swear this was done on purpose!"

Joey heard several people laughing, while the others kept staring at him, mocking him. He stood there, trembling.

Tristan tilted his head. "Joey?"

Joey looked around, trying to drown out the voices. He only heard more and more, with the silent ones staring at him in confusion. Nobody was cheering for him anybody. Maybe no one did at all. Joey shook his fists.

"Uhm, is everything alright?" The announcer asked.

Joey stood there, hearing everything around him. Then, he stomped the platform.

"Stop!" He yelled, glaring down.

Everyone's stares were on him again. Joey's face was frozen in a rictus, while his Rattata rushed at his side. He could hear the snapping sound of phones and cameras.

"Do you believe it's funny? It was a damn stupid line! I was an idiot! You don't need to repeat it over and over!" Joey shouted, his body tensing up.

No one replied, but the snapping sound continued. Some people did nothing at all, while others were filming him as well. To make fun of him again, no doubt.

"Just..." The rictus faded, and he placed a hand on his cap. "Why can't you leave me be? Please, that's all I ask."

Nothing changed; everyone still stared at him. Someone even laughed. He had no escape.

Joey sobbed, staring at the crowd once more. Tears running down his cheeks.

"Fuck you." He turned around. "Fuck you all!"

He then ran away, from the platform, the tournament, everyone. Rattata rushed after him, wordless.

The crowd fell silent, and the announcer didn't know what to say. A few seconds later he cleared his throat.

"Uhm... looks like Joey... forfreited." He forced a smile and pointed to Tristan. "As such, the Cherrygrove City Tournament winner is Tristan!"

Very few members of the crowd whistled, while others clapped slowly. Tristan, however, just observed Joey running away. He frowned in worry.

Hidden behind a trash can in one of Cherrygrove's alleys, Joey cried.

He cried for all the times he refused to in the last five years. For all the times he believed he could finally leave that stupid line behind.

He could improve all he wanted, defeat everyone, maybe even become Champion, but they would still consider him the top percentage kid. It would follow him forever, and no one cared for him beyond that.

As he sniffed, he could feel Rattata worriedly rubbing his face. He gave a sad smile and petted him.

"Sorry, I suck. I don't think I will ever manage to turn you into the strongest Rattata." Joey wiped his eyes.

Rattata shook his head as he nuzzled his trainer. Joey just kept sobbed quietly. They remained like that for a while, until they heard steps closing in on them.

"Joey? Are you here?"

Wiping his nose and turning around, Joey could see who talked: Tristan, the Alolan kid, now with an Egg in his hands.

Joey's stare grew cold, facing the other way. "What do you want?"

"I was worried for you." Tristan stepped closer. He then glanced at his Egg. "I also wanted to give you this, I didn't win it fairly."

"Well, I'm fine," Joey lied. "And you can keep that stupid Egg."

"I insist, really." Tristan got even closer. "I don't deserve it."

"And I don't need it." Joey scowled. "All I wanted was to stop being seen as a joke, and I only became an even bigger joke."

Tristan looked downward, placing the Egg away. "If you say so."

Joey kept staring at the ground. He sighed, and then realized that he heard no steps leaving.

Scowling, he turned to Tristan again. "What do you want? You need to mock me now? Too bad, everyone else did already."

Tristan shook his head. "I don't want to mock you. Actually, I want to thank you."

"I'm not in the mood for jokes." Joey kept giving his back at Tristan.

"I'm not kidding." Tristan smiled. "Me and my friends owe a lot to you."

Joey paused, turning around and blinking. "What?"

Tristan kept smiling, hands behind his neck. "That line of yours about your Rattata being in the top percentage helped us a lot when we were little."

"How?"

Tristan chuckled. "Me and my friends are about your age, and everyone we knew kept making fun of us for wanting to start out with weak Pokémon, 'nuissances' like Yungoos, Patrat and Bunnelby."

He stopped chuckling, giving instead a sincere smile. "Nobody was on our side, but you were there, saying without any humor that your Rattata was different and stronger. Everyone found it stupid and mockable, but we didn't."

Joey blinked. "So, that Alolan Rattata..."

"He's my starter." Tristan nodded. "My parents tried to get me a stronger one, but I only wanted him. Without you, I would've probably given in."

He beamed. "Thanks a lot. I'm sorry to hear how those jerks treat you, but there are better people out there."

Joey remained wordless, blinking at Tristan. He didn't seem to be joking or set him up for something. He seemed actually sincere.

His eyes became wet, and he wiped them before looking back at Tristan, smiling. "Thanks, I'm glad to hear that."

"You are welcome." Tristan smiled back. "There was something I wanted to ask, though."

"What is it?" Joey tilted his head.

Tristan grabbed a Poké Ball. "We never finished our battle, so..."

Joey looked at him, then at Rattata. They grinned and shared a nod, and Joey turned back to Tristan, adjusting his cap.

"Sure, we can do it." He fought back a giggle. "But I will warn you, my Rattata is in the top percentage of all Rattata!"

"Well, so is mine!" Tristan giggled back. "Let's see who actually makes the cut there!"

Tristan walked out of the alley, finding a corner to battle in. Joey and Rattata slowly followed him, a big smile on their faces. Maybe being a meme wasn't so bad after all.