The slow, warm air of the evening was heavy with the sweetness of tropical flowers that made it feel as though Boa was breathing into a paper bag with an air freshener in it.
"Dear Mom, why did you pick possibly the least comfortable climate to live?" Boa huffed to herself while hauling her body up the dirt road that was at a slight upward incline. "Even a desert would have been better, at least it wouldn't be so humid. Feels like I'm walking around in a sauna, just with less wet person smell."
Boa continued to mumble and wheeze her way along, silently wishing her mom was more of the sedentary type who would just pick a place to live and root herself there instead of the fickle, move-happy mother she was who had on a whim decided they would leave Sinnoh for Unova, then Unova for Kanto, and now Kanto for Alola.
Now, Kanto has never been known for its cool climate but neither had it ever attempted to suffocate anyone for simply existing unlike Alola which seemed to be trying its best to be as unpleasant as possible.
Boa stopped walking for a minute, leaned against a palm tree, and reveled in the shade the plant provided. Her and her mom had arrived the night before and Boa had spent the whole morning running around the house, carrying boxes, and unpacking. She was afforded a break when a man in a tattered lab coat and hardly anything else practically invited himself in and invited Boa to attend the festival that was happening later in the day.
That had been a few hours ago, and Boa began to regret accepting the moment she stepped out of the house and realized that it was one of the hottest days of the year outside and that she was overheated as it was given all she'd done that morning. However, Boa was determined to at least attend for an hour or so and she knew she would have to acclimate soon anyways.
Shielding her eyes from the sun, Boa gazed up the path and noticed a few houses scattered up the way. "That better be Icky Town, or whatever it's called," she murmured and wiped the thin layer of sweat from her brow. Boa pushed her hat down to keep out the sun and trudged up the remaining bit of the road, ignoring a young trainer who seemed interested in a battle but upon seeing the concentration on Boa's face decided to scuff the ground with his shoe instead.
Boa stepped up the handful of stairs that led up to the town and let out a grand sigh while Professor Kukui shuffled over to her in his sandals.
"You look pretty worn out, kid. Alolan weather sure can take a toll on foreigners, yeah?" The professor placed his hand on Boa's shoulder and they walked to the center of the town where a large wooden platform had been laid. The surface was painted with markings that reminded Boa of the floor of a gym. "Anyway, I want you to meet the kahuna. He's already heard a bit about you, yeah, and that you were something of a trainer in Kanto. Got a couple of badges, do you?"
Boa nodded half-heartedly. "I've got one from Unova and four from Kanto. Doesn't add up to a full set, but I probably could if I gave it a shot," or if she'd been given the time, though Boa kept that to herself since she didn't want it to get back to her mom.
"Cool stuff," Kukui said and patted Boa on the shoulder while he searched around him for the kahuna. "Has anybody seen Hala?"
A man in a white t-shirt who leaned on the door of a building close to the stage looked up and said, "just missed 'em. Somebody came around complaining that his tauros got into their yard again and was diggin' up some of the berry plants, or was bothin' their pokemon, or somethin'. You know how that ornery thing is. Might've charged its reflection again, too."
Kukui smiled and put his hands on his sides. "Yeah, I figured just as much. Guess we'll just wait 'til Hala gets back. You can have a look around since the festival won't officially start 'til the kahuna's around. In fact," Kukui reached into the pocket of his lab coat only for his hand to go through a hole, and then stuck his hand in an adjacent pocket and pulled out a red berry that filled his palm, "why don't you go to Tapu Koko's shine and leave an offering? It'll be a new experience for you since I don't think there's anything like that in Kanto!"
"Well, there are some shrines for the three elemental birds, but I never took the time to see any of them," Boa said as she took the berry in her hand. Looking at the crimson fruit, Boa couldn't help but feel a bit remorseful that it was going to go to waste at a shrine since, as far as she was concerned, these mythical creatures probably had something better to do than accept the meager gifts from worshippers.
"Just follow Mahalo Trail up that way and you can't miss it." And with that the professor was swept up by a couple of kids who were eagerly waiting to ask questions about the moves their pokemon could learn.
Boa circled around the platform to the path over which a tunnel of greenery grew and provided an escape from the heat. She sighed under the shadows of the plants, strolling slowly along to draw out the relieving experience. Here the flower's fragrance wasn't as overpowering, or perhaps her nose had gone blind to the smell.
The tunnel, however, was short-lived and soon Boa was thrust back out into the summer's grasp, though there was a mild breeze there that breathed some coolness into the air. But there were also more steps.
Boa tilted her head up to gaze at the hill past the rim of her hat and considered how much she actually cared about getting the berry to the shrine. When she had just about decided to turn around and sit in the tunnel until the kahuna person arrived, she noticed someone further along the path heading up the hill.
Normally Boa wouldn't have cast a second glance, but who she saw seemed too perfectly out-of-place not to. The girl wore all white, from the wide-brimmed hat atop her head to the simple dress that she carefully maneuvered to avoid getting it caught on a branch. Everyone else Boa had seen thus far wore what looked like the first thing they found in their dresser that morning, so seeing a bit of class wandering further into the more remote regions of the island seemed plenty unusual.
Curiosity in hand, Boa pushed her brown hair from her face and mustered up the energy to scale the incline in pursuit of whoever that was, and to leave the fruit at the shrine of course.
Boa lost sight of the girl up until she had reached the crest of the hill and the girl in white stood just beyond the where the path opened up to an old hazardous bridge that swayed and groaned just loud enough to be made out over the gentle crashing of the waterfall.
From where she stood Boa couldn't see past the girl, but Boa could hear that the girl was yelling something indistinguishable to Boa except for the soft yet firm chastising tone, like a mother to her child. Leaning from side to side, Boa tried to glance past the other girl to see what she was fussing over but could only make out a small thing upon the bridge.
"Uh, is everything good or do you need some help or…?" Boa managed to speak over the shouting and the groaning and the waterfall to the result of the girl turning around wide-eyed and looking particularly startled.
"Oh my, I didn't know anyone had noticed me leave!" the girl exclaimed, covering her mouth with her hand and turning away worriedly. "But since you're here and you offered, I do indeed need help. If you can see there," the girl moved out of the way and pointed to the bridge, "my Nebby's gone off on his own again and won't listen to a thing I say! If you could, would you please go up to him? I'm sure he'll listen if you go up to him."
Boa gave the girl a puzzled look. "Why don't you go after him yourself?"
The girl gave a look equally as puzzled. "Why, my dress would get caught on the planks! Look at how some of them jut up, being as broken as they are. That and.." the girl again covered her mouth, this time bashfully, "I don't deal with heights very well."
"And what makes you think I'm any better?" Boa responded bitingly and sighed immediately afterward. "Sorry, I'm just kind of tired, sweaty, and not in any mood to be decent. I'll try to get your pokemon back for you."
"Oh, thank you so much! The name's Lillie by the way"
"Gretchen, but I prefer Boa," Boa replied as she slid past Lillie and approached the bridge with rising apprehension. The thing appeared beyond battered, with several planks missing and those that were left looking in no condition to support the weight of a person, even a 17-year-old girl who was thinner than some.
"Why did the professor even send me this way in the first place? Maybe he doesn't want to deal with another trainer and though this would be a surefire way to make sure that didn't happen," Boa muttered to herself, placing a foot on the nearest plank and gauging whether or not to continue. "You know, this really doesn't seem like a good idea. Like, at all," she called over her shoulder to the girl waiting patiently behind her (at a safe distance, of course). "Could you maybe just catch another one? Or, I dunno, just wait a little bit for yours to come back on his own?"
Lillie was fairly offended, though Boa couldn't see it. "Nebby is one-of-a-kind! I really just want to make sure he's safe and he might fall through the planks if we just leave him there," the girl in the white dress exclaimed, throwing her arms down to her sides in frustration.
"Alright, geez," Boa huffed just soft enough to make sure Lillie didn't heard. Inching forward, the first plank groaned and bent slightly under the pressure but seemed to hold steady. Boa grabbed the rope which was covered in a thin layer of moss that made the surface slippery and generally unpleasant.
Breathing as steadily as she could, Boa took a step, and another, and another, stopped at an exceptionally loud creak, cursed, and took another few steps until at her feet was a small gaseous creature that reminded Boa of the night sky. He gazed up at her with pink star-like eyes and smiled.
"I'm glad you're cute, otherwise this wouldn't of been worth the trouble!" Boa smiled back at Nebby and picked the thing up as best she could, though it was particularly difficult given that he wasn't solid. "Now, I'll just get you back-"
Boa had only just turned around when something delivered a firm blow to the back of her head. Violently swatting the air above her, Boa yelped and ducked her head to avoid further attack. The fluttering of wings alerted her to another incoming blow but she was unable to dodge it or to reach for the pokeball at her side thanks to Nebby. Boa attempted to run back towards the cliff but tripped over a plank that jutted out. Without time to think, she turned to her side and embraced the small pokemon in her arms.
The rotted planks snapped under her and the two of them began to fall.
