A prosperous and well developed city rests on an island between the Sinnoh and Unova regions. The island has ideal climates and conditions for growing apricorns thus several large corporations have built processing facilities on the island to refine the apricorns so that they can eventually be made in to pokeballs. Soon housing sprouted up near the factories, and eventually roads became connected making towns, and eventually the towns evolved into a unified city. There was one drawback, the Darkrai. The nightmares let everyone know that it was there, but they did not know where. Luckily for the island's citizens a Cresselia was also nearby leaving feathers on certain parts of the island. They were fashioned into dreamcatchers to keep away Darkrai's nightmares. Parents always made sure that their children had the dreamcatchers nearby. They did not want their children to have to experience the power of Darkrai's nightmares. There was no exception for a young six-year-old boy named Aaron.
He stood by the docks holding his mother's hand while the other one waved to his older sister who was leaving the island to go to boarding school. On the island, the education was good, but for many parents they wanted their children to experience life outside of the island. That is why when they turned ten, their parents would send them away to boarding school. The boat's horn blew several times before it started moving. Several tears escaped the boy's yellow eyes. His mother pulled him in close and started stroking the messy, brown hair on his head. "I know that you're going to miss Sarah."
"Who's going to watch me?" Aaron asked. He had a few weeks of summer vacation left before his school started, and Sarah had been watching him while their parents worked.
"Jamie has agreed to watch you, along with her brother."
"Desmond's always mean to me."
"Hush. She's going to watch you. You're going to try and get along with Desmond and that will be it!" His mother held him closely as she watched her son sob a little bit.
"Fine." Aaron grumbled wiping a few tears from his eyes. She wants to make me miserable. I'll return the favor. His mother clasped his hand tightly as they walked away from the docks.
They walked to the marketplace together. "Aaron, your father and I need to buy some things. Stay put and be good." She pointed to a bench and sat him down on it. She bought him a strawberry ice cream cone and walked off.
"I hate strawberry." He tossed the cone aside and walked over to a stand selling fake dreamcatchers to tourists.
He pulled out his dreamcatcher and put it on the counter. "What's your deal, little one?" The shopkeeper asked. Aaron pointed to one of the fake dreamcatchers. "Oh, you want to make a little swap?" He chuckled looking at Aaron who nodded his head seriously. The man looked around cautiously and then back at Aaron. "Okay, just keep quiet about it." He pocketed the real dreamcatcher and handed Aaron a fake one. Aaron put it in his pocket and returned to the bench to wait for his parents.
Later that night, Aaron laid down in his bed with his dreamcatcher hanging off his bedpost. His mother tucked him in and kissed his forehead before switching off the lights and leaving his room. Aaron closed his eyes and started to drift off to sleep.
…
He was walking down a road houses lined it; all of them were on fire. This is a nightmare. He looked up at the sky and saw several Pokémon fighting each other. A fireball fell from the sky and hit the ground in front of him. The ground around him began to give way until he was standing on a single column. Another fireball fell from the sky prompting Aaron to jump into the pitch-black abyss.
He fell for what felt like a while until he hit the ground which was pure darkness. He stepped forward and watched a black fire sprout up in front of him. "Why do you not scream or cry?" The fire asked.
"I know that this is a nightmare." Aaron responded. "Are you Darkrai?" He asked reaching out to touch the flames. The flames dove into the ground. "No, come back!" He shouted jolting up in his bed. Sweat was running down his forehead.
Sun was beaming in through the window. "It felt so real."
"What felt so real?" His mother asked walking into the room.
"Nothing, just a dream." Aaron responded.
His mother walked over to his bed and put a hand on his forehead. "You're a bit warm. Are you feeling okay?"
"I'm fine." Aaron said pulling off the blankets and getting out of bed.
"Well, I need to get you over to Jamie's house." She said pulling clothes out of his dresser and walking over to him. Soon enough, she had him dressed and in the backseat of the car. Aaron groaned as they pulled up to the house. His mother knocked on the door which was answered by a girl who was twelve. His mother handed her a list and whispered something in her ear before sending Aaron inside and leaving.
"Desmond's upstairs. Try not to bother me." She walked off and sat in a chair beginning to play on a tablet.
Aaron sighed walking up the stairs and knocking on the door. "Password!" A boy shouted.
"Desmond, your sister said to let me in."
"Not without the password. Go away." He said.
Aaron sighed walking away. He went into the guest bedroom and jumped on to the bed. A nightmare is better than this place. He closed his eyes trying to take a nap.
…
Aaron was running through a war field. Pokémon were shooting deadly attacks at him. A Pidgeot swooped down trying to grab at him. This one's way worse. He ducked into a cave and saw the same black fire he had seen in his last nightmare.
"Why do you come back with hopes of nightmares?" The fire asked.
"I don't know." Aaron responded leaning against the cavern wall. "Are you Darkrai?"
"Merely an embodiment in your nightmare."
"Can I meet you?" Aaron asked.
"Why would you want to meet a monster?" The fire asked going down a bit.
"It sounds more exciting than what my mom has planned for me."
"Does she not love you?"
"She seems to, but she doesn't let me have fun."
"She tries to protect you. You are after all a small child, but something about you is a bit different I will admit, your willpower perhaps. If you truly want to meet me, three nights on top of the hill, eleven, by the abandoned lighthouse." The flames sunk into the ground forcing Aaron to wake up.
"Three nights, the hill." He mumbled to himself trying to plan how he would get out of his house. He tried to amuse himself for the rest of the day only growing bored with each passing hour.
This continued for three days. Aaron had begun to sleep more and more leaving his parents more and more concerned. "Aaron, we're going out tonight. Jamie's going to stop by to check up on you." His mother told him. She gave him a hug and kissed his forehead. His father scooped him up and gave him a hug. "Try to go to bed tonight." He tussled his son's hair.
"I don't think that will be a problem." His mother let out a small sigh. She waved to her son before leaving with his father.
Aaron watched the car pull out of the driveway and immediately ran up the stairs to his room. He started packing up a small bag and carried it downstairs with him to the living room. He sat down on the couch and flipped on the TV; he had some time before he had to go.
About an hour later, Jamie showed up and walked into the living room. "You're good?" She asked looking at Aaron who simply nodded his head. "Okay, try not to burn down the house." Aaron heard her walk out the door and get into a car with a bunch of people.
"Time to go have fun." He turned off the TV and went to his room. He placed several pillows under the blankets, put his shoes on and a coat over his pajamas, and opened the window. He made sure it was unlocked before closing it and climbing down the flower lattice that ran down the side of his house. He started walking towards the old lighthouse armed with a heavy flashlight. The walk to the lighthouse was not a bad one, but it was long.
Aaron climbed up the hill. There was a very large tree at the top whose leaves glistened in the moonlight. "Hello, little one." The familiar voice made Aaron jump. He watched the shopkeeper from the marketplace step out from behind the tree. "Darkrai was very intrigued when a little one purposefully swapped his dreamcatcher for a fake."
"I w-was mad at my parents." Aaron backed away a little bit.
"No need to be scared." The man walked little bit closer to Aaron. "If dark choices are what led you here, then perhaps you belong with us." He kept getting closer to Aaron who fell on to the ground while the man loomed over him with a menacing smile.
"Gastly, enough!" A familiar voice shouted.
"Oh, you're no fun." The shopkeeper transformed into the ball of gas known as Gastly as it hovered back off to the lighthouse.
"I'm sorry if he scared you." A dark figure hovered down from the tree.
Aaron looked into the Pokémon's blue eyes and examined his pitch-black coloring. "You're Darkrai."
"Yes, and you're the boy who wants to have nightmares."
"I don't mind them as much as other people." Aaron sat down on the ground and looked at the new moon in the sky.
"It's nice, isn't it?" The Pokémon asked sitting down next to the boy.
"I'm usually not allowed out this late."
"What's different about tonight?"
"I snuck out."
"I see."
"Do other Pokémon live in the lighthouse?" Aaron asked turning to Darkrai.
"Many who will be wanting to meet you in the coming nights. I just don't want to get their hopes up. Many humans are scared of them. That Gastly sells fake dreamcatchers to tourists so that they can buy food."
Aaron yawned and laid down on the grass. "I'm glad that I got to meet you, Darkrai."
"I'll take you back home for tonight." Darkrai scooped up the small boy and began flying away into the night. Aaron mumbled something as he drifted off to sleep. "Shhhh, more time to talk later."
The next few nights Aaron would sneak out to meet Darkrai on the hill. His nighttime outings led to him sleeping more during the day which concerned his parents slightly. "Do you think he's depressed?" His mother asked worriedly. "He sleeps all day and all night long."
"Maybe we should call a therapist." His father said looking at his son who was passed out on the couch.
Later that night, Aaron snuck out of the house once more and walked to the lighthouse. He opened up one of the doors and wandered inside with his flashlight that soon died out as if on command. Something grabbed him from behind and began carrying him off into the darkness of the old building. Lights started to flicker on giving Aaron an opportunity to see several electric Pokémon charging up several generators. "Hi." Aaron said shyly to the Pokémon. A Rotom was the first to greet him. "Cool." He smiled eagerly hugging the Pokémon.
"Welcome, Aaron." Darkrai entered the room. He turned around and looked back. "Relax, he's fine. He won't hurt you. If anything, we would hurt him." He looked at Aaron who shook a little at the thought. "Relax." He calmed the boy while a Litwick wandered into the room.
Aaron sat down on the floor and began patting the floor with his hands. "I'm not going to hurt you. Come here." He watched as the Pokémon wandered over to him. "You're warm." He giggled a little bit laying down next to it. A Spinarak then wandered over and jumped on the boy's chest. "Hi." He smiled patting it on the head. The Rotom grew a bit unhappy as Aaron changed his attention. He hovered in front of the boy and started dancing around trying to capture his focus once more. Other Pokémon soon filed into the room to play with the small boy who was giggling at all of the attention. The Pokémon also smiled as they played with Aaron.
This continued for weeks. The Pokémon now came to Aaron's house and took him to the lighthouse at night. His parents remained oblivious to the fact that he had been sneaking out. They were also oblivious to the fact that several of his things were now in the lighthouse, toys, pillows, blankets, and a few other items. On one of the nights, Aaron was sitting next to a Gengar leaning against his side. The Pokémon had a wide grin on its face as it watched the small boy closely. "I'm going to miss you." Aaron said weakly. The Gengar propped the boy up and looked at him with concern. "School starts tomorrow. I'm not going to always be able to play. I guess on the weekends I can." The Pokémon hugged him tightly as did the others showing sadness for their friend. "We can still play, just not as much."
Darkrai hovered over to the boy and scooped him up; he knew that it was time for Aaron to leave. "Try not to tell them too much." He sighed watching the boy enter a nightmarish state yet remain calm. "Such a strong will. One day, you will do something great."
Aaron woke up to his mother in his room. She looked nervously at her son. "Are you feeling okay dear? You don't have to go to school today if you don't want to."
"It's the first day. I'm going." Aaron got out of bed and started dressing himself, something his mother normally did for him.
Aaron was ready to walk down for breakfast, but his mother stopped him. "Sweetie, I've also arranged for you to meet with a nice man who just wants to talk to you and play some games. I'll take you to him next week." Aaron did not respond as he walked down the stairs, had breakfast, grabbed his backpack, and walked outside on his way to school. "I wonder what's going on in his head right now." She sighed grabbing a cup of coffee before heading out the door to work.
…
"Okay class, let's introduce ourselves and share the most exciting thing we did over summer vacation." The children began talking about their trips to the beach, different regions, and spending time with their families.
The conversation stopped when the teacher stopped at Aaron. "I don't want to."
"Oh, come on, Aaron. There has to be something fun you did over your vacation." The teacher looked at him hoping for some form of participation.
"There is, but I don't want to share it."
The teacher watched as he put his head down. They sighed moving on to the next student. Recess eventually came; Aaron had not participated in any of the icebreakers the teacher had planned for the day. "Aaron, can you come up here?" The small boy paused at the door, turned around, and walked over to the desk. "Do you want to tell me what's wrong?"
"Nothing's wrong." He responded headed for the door only to be stopped once more.
"So why aren't you participating today? Don't you want to make some new friends?" The teacher's eyes were full of concern.
"I don't want to be their friend. I have friends!" Aaron ran out the door leaving the teacher at their desk.
He sat at the top of a hill, under the shade of a tree, watching the kids play in the field and on the playground. He looked up at the tree and jumped a little bit to see that a Spinarak was watching him. "Did you come out to see me?" He asked. The Pokémon nodded its head and jumped down landing in the boy's lap. "I guess the lighthouse gets quiet during the day." Aaron started petting the Spinarak while he relaxed against the side of the tree. He noticed a group of kids starting to walk over. "Hide." He told it as it scampered up the tree.
There were two boys and a girl standing in the middle. She looked down at Aaron with her arms crossed. "Why didn't you talk in class?"
"Yeah, what's your problem?" One of the boys chimed in.
"I don't have a problem." Aaron said looking at the ground.
"My mommy says that you should look at someone when they talk to you." She was glaring at Aaron who still had his eyes fixed on the ground.
"Just go away." He mumbled.
"Start with your name and then what you did over summer vacation." She had her hands on her hips waiting for an answer.
Aaron's head looked up at her with an angry scowl. "Spinarak, use string shot!" A web of string shot from the leaves and landed on the girl's face. She was screaming and running around as she tore at the webs eventually leading to her tumbling down the hill with her lackey's following after her. Aaron looked up at the Pokémon in the tree and smiled. "Thanks."
The bell soon rang and the students filed inside. The girl from earlier was sobbing to the teacher about what had occurred outside. She took her seat while the teacher pulled Aaron into the hall before allowing the other students to read freely. "Aaron, Devlin says that you have a Spinarak that you made attack her. Is that true?"
"It's not mine. It's wild."
"Did you convince it to attack her?"
"She wouldn't stop bothering me."
"Did you convince it to attack her?" They repeated the question again.
"Yes." Aaron mumbled.
"One more thing, how did you convince it?"
"I don't want to talk about it." Aaron mumbled.
"Look, I'm more than happy to let this little incident slide, but you have to do something for me. I need you to tell me how you convinced that Spinarak to attack."
"No."
"Your parents told me that you're a very bright boy, but lately you've been acting differently. Is there anything that I can do to help?" The teacher was running out of ideas at this point; everyone wanted to know what was going on with him.
"I'm fine." Aaron returned to class and took his seat while the teacher began to teach once more.
The next day, the power went out in the middle of class. While the teacher began taking roll to make sure that everyone was there, Aaron snuck into the hallway to see the Rotom snickering. It paused and hovered over to Aaron who smiled at his friend. "Did you make the power go out?" It nodded its head still smiling. "Did you miss me?" It nodded its head nuzzling Aaron. Aaron looked back at the classroom and then back at the Pokémon. He ran down the hall with the Rotom playing games in the empty halls.
…
Aaron was sitting next to Darkrai looking up at the night sky. "Am I a bad person?"
"No, just misunderstood, like a lot of darker things."
"Everyone seems to think that there's something wrong with me."
"There's nothing wrong with you. You're just not like them."
"Thanks for making me feel better." Aaron smiled a little bit continuing to look up at the night sky.
…
It was Saturday, and instead of doing what any normal kid would do on the weekend, Aaron was sitting in a therapist's office. He sat in a beanbag chair while the therapist sat in a larger one with a clipboard and pen in their hand. The room itself was rather colorful and inviting. There was a desk and computer in the corner, several posters on the wall and a closet full of games and toys.
The therapist stroked his characteristically scruffy beard and looked through his clipboard one more time before turning to Aaron. "So, how are you doing today, Aaron?" He smiled invitingly.
Aaron scowled at him. "I'm fine."
"Really, you don't look fine. Do you want to tell me what's bothering you?"
"You. I tell you that I'm fine, my parents, and my teachers, and all of you think that something is wrong with me! Maybe you just don't understand me!" Aaron crossed his arms while the therapist simply jotted notes down on his notepad.
"Maybe you would like to play a game? Let's play a game." He quickly changed the subject and turned his request to a command as he picked a board game from the shelf, Talking Teddiursas. "This game will help us get to know each other. Every time we land on a space we draw a card and say something about ourselves based on the color of the space."
"I don't want to play that game." Aaron clenched his fist as one of the lights flickered. "Relax, he didn't do anything, yet."
"Who are you talking to?" The therapist pulled out his pen ready to take more notes.
"My friend." Aaron responded.
"Well it's very nice to meet your little friend." The therapist pretended to shake hands with an invisible body.
"What are you doing?" Aaron looked at him quizzically.
"Just meeting your friend." The therapist grew a little nervous hiding his fear behind a fake smile.
"Well he's up there." Aaron pointed to the light.
"Wait, he's dead!?" The therapist was clicking his pen repeatedly waiting for a response.
"No, he's hiding."
"Well can you tell him to come down? I'd love to meet him."
Aaron looked up at the ceiling and then back at the therapist. He stood up and walked over to the wall hitting the switch turning off the lights. "Okay, you can come out now." The lights crackled a little bit before the Pokémon floated down and sat next to Aaron. "This is my friend, Rotom."
"Oh." The therapist looked a little disappointed as he scribbled something in his notes and stroked his beard. Rotom grew curious and floated over to him. "No, this isn't for you." He pulled his clipboard close to his chest. Rotom touched his beard and watched as the static made it split down the middle. "Do you know how hard I work to groom that every morning?" Aaron giggled as he hugged his Pokémon. "Please excuse me for a few seconds." He stood up and walked into the waiting area.
A few moments later, his parents walked into the room. Aaron held the Rotom closer to him fearing what his parents would do. "Don't take him away from me!" were the first words to escape his mouth as tears welled up in his eyes.
His parents looked at the therapist who looked at them reminding them of the talk they had in the waiting room. Taking away that Rotom could be detrimental to the boy.
Why couldn't he have been hiding a Lillipup or something that a normal boy would have?
Just try to accept it. It might help him to know that his parents support him.
"We're not going to take him from you." His father put a hand on his shoulder trying to soothe the crying boy. "We'll let him stay in the house with us." Aaron's mother shot him a look while his father gave her another. "Do you want to come stay with us, Rotom?" The Pokémon started floating around the room excitedly before landing back in Aaron's arms. "Let's go home now." Aaron's father scooped up the small boy and wiped a few tears from his eyes carrying him from the therapist's office with him. Aaron's Rotom floated behind him watching him drift off to sleep. "I guess this was pretty emotional." His father sighed rubbing the boy's back.
Aaron's father strapped the sleeping boy into his car seat before getting into the passenger seat. Rotom snuggled closely to Aaron. "They do look rather cute together." His mother smiled a little bit looking back before starting up the car.
"Very." His father said snapping a picture with his phone.
…
Aaron's grades and participation in school went up with the addition of Rotom to his family. Every day, the Pokémon would wait for him after school, and snuggle closely with him at night. While his parents showed concern for a wild Pokémon living in their house, they brushed off the thought knowing that Aaron was happy. They had tried to catch it, but it would not let them.
His father sat in a bar with a couple of friends from work. They talked, had drinks, and watched the TV. "So Dave, word is that your kid has a Rotom?"
"Yeah, I don't know where he found it, but the two are inseparable. I'm pretty sure that it's picking up on his brainwaves or something. Sometimes they don't even talk and they breakdown laughing."
"Only place I know that might have a Rotom is the lighthouse, and that place also might happen to house Darkrai." The bartender said setting down a few more glasses.
"Do people ever go there?" Dave asked pushing his drink aside.
"Who would want to meet Darkrai face to face?" The bartender asked looking at him then some of the other patrons who shook their heads.
Aaron's father then recalled the times that his son had been sleeping during the day. He also remembered the lattice in the yard having several crushed flowers on it. "I need to get going." His father put some money on the counter and ran out of the bar with worry in his eyes. As soon as he got into the house, he ran to Aaron's room and grabbed the dreamcatcher on his nightstand. He held it in his hand, closely examining it. He trembled setting it down. "Honey, where's Aaron?"
"He's at a sleepover with one of his little friends. I dropped him off an hour ago."
His father ran to the phone and dialed the house. The woman had no idea who Aaron was. "I have a bad feeling about this." He drove to the police station with worry in his eyes.
Meanwhile…
Aaron was sitting on the floor watching a movie with the other Pokémon in the lighthouse. Darkrai sat behind the boy keeping a close eye on him.
His head perked up to a slight banging noise. Aaron looked over at him and paused the movie. "What's wrong?"
"Get down!" He bellowed with his telepathy making the other Pokémon duck in cover while the door burst open.
Police officers, townspeople, and Pokémon stood in the doorway with fire for battle in their hearts. "Darkrai, give back my son!" Aaron's father shouted holding a baseball bat in his hands.
Darkrai stood up from the other Pokémon. "I don't wish to cause any…" He was cut off by someone ordering a flamethrower attack from an Aggron. "Very well. I see that there is no reasoning with you." He began channeling his power causing black spheres to form in the air before hurling them at the people and Pokémon.
"Rotom, discharge!" Aaron shouted watching the people get shocked.
"Aaron! We're trying to save you." His father shouted.
"From what?"
"From that!" A man shouted pointing at Darkrai. "Beartic, icicle spear!" He shouted. Aaron jumped up to protect Darkrai. His body received several of the icicles as did his eye. Aaron fell to the floor crying.
Darkrai scooped up the injured boy and carried him up the stairs of the lighthouse to the top. "You risked your life for me. It's time I repay you for that and everything else you have given me." He opened a crate and pulled out a medical kit and a small, ornate box. "Bisharp, I need you!" He called out as the Pokémon ran up the stairs to aid his friend. "Hold his eye socket open." He instructed. "Aaron, I'm going to make you better. I promise." He touched the boy's forehead putting him to sleep. He opened the medical kit and cleaned off several of Aaron's wounds before bandaging him up. He then opened up the small box and produced a small black sphere. "Prepare to receive a gift, a burden, and an experience like no other." He inserted the sphere into the boy's eye socket and bandaged it up. "Only remove that bandage in your most dire battle, the one where it's more than your life on the line." He whispered into Aaron's ear waking him slightly. "I must leave now. The other Pokémon shall remain here. They will be safer without my presence. Goodbye." He wrapped Aaron tightly in his arms not wanting to let go. "I will always watch over you."
"Promise?" Aaron mumbled trying to hold on to Darkrai who was trying to put him down.
"I promise." He reluctantly put Aaron down as he hovered out the window into the night sky.
The fighting downstairs seemed to come to a stop once Darkrai had left. The Bisharp brought Aaron down the stairs and presented him to the people who appeared to be relieved that he was okay. His father held him closely. "I'm so sorry for letting this happen. I'll never let you out of my sight again." Tears welled up in his eyes as he looked at his injured son. The Rotom floated over to look at Aaron. "Let's get you home."
…
Everything seemed to change for Aaron after that night. He was unhappier. Everyone was more scared of him. Apparently being friends with a Darkrai made you some sort of freak. The bandage on his eye never came off. No one dared to know what the Darkrai had actually done to him. His life seemed to get a bit rougher. Trips to the therapist were more frequent; this made Aaron all the more irritable. He would miss days of school at a time; he would leave in the middle of the day and sometimes not return home for days, and when he did return, there was always blood on his clothes and or on him. The only thing that remained constant was Rotom who seemed to be his best friend.
When his sister came back home for vacation, she was shocked to see the changes that had transpired in her little brother. He spent most of his time with her when he could. It encouraged his parents to try and get her to come home more often; anything was better than watching their son walk into the house caked in mud and covered in cuts and bruises. He listened to her more than his parents, and his new state didn't mean as much to her as it did others. She still saw her little brother inside of him.
…
Years passed. Aaron was ten now. It was the night before Aaron would be heading off for school. His parents told him that it was a nice school where his sister could come visit him. He would be taking a boat to the Kalos region, and someone from the school would pick him up.
Aaron was currently asleep. He awoke on a pitch-black plane. He saw Darkrai nearby. "It's been awhile." Aaron ran over to hug it only to phase through it.
"I'm sorry, but there is not much time. I'm very weak at the moment. Your parents are planning to send you to a mental institution. Most likely, you will be spending your days in a chair, heavily medicated, with no grasp of reality. I do not want that for you. Tomorrow, when you get off the boat, run. You have the opportunity to do incredible things, don't let anyone take that from you, and don't let them know you know what's happening. I'm sorry, I have to go."
Aaron jolted up from his dream and saw sun beaming in through the windows. "I can't let them lock me up." He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly before getting out of bed, getting ready for the day, and heading downstairs for breakfast.
"Are you excited to go to school?" His mother asked watching her son eat his breakfast.
"Very." He mumbled sarcastically.
"Oh, it will be fun. You'll make plenty of friends, and you'll get to see your sister so much more."
"You're right. That does sound nice." Aaron put on a fake smile before taking his plate to the sink and running up the stairs to finish packing. He opened up his desk drawer and pulled out a pokeball. "Rotom, it's time." Aaron held up the ball while his Pokémon floated over and eyed it curiously. It tapped the ball and jumped inside shaking a little bit before finally being captured. "Everything's all packed up." He grabbed his bags and began to head down the stairs.
…
The goodbyes were short and fake. The boat ride was spent repacking several items into a backpack. Then the time came when the boat finally docked. "Get ready, Rotom." Aaron whispered to the Pokémon who was hiding in his bag. The boy walked down the ramp clutching his bag tightly. He could see the nurses standing by a van with a Machamp by their side. He walked off the ramp and saw the nurses wave at him as they began to walk over. He threw the bag in his hand at them catching them off guard. "Rotom, discharge!" He shouted as they were shocked by the blast of electricity. "Those nights of training finally paid off. We have to get out of here." Aaron ran down the docks and saw a large boat preparing to leave. He climbed up the ramp just as it was leaving. He let out a sigh of relief knowing he had escaped. He recalled his Rotom.
His relief was short-lived as a man in a suit holding a clipboard walked over. "Name?" he asked.
"I'm not on the list." Aaron said rubbing the back of his head.
"Well, this happens to be a private party, and if you're not on the list, or dressed to be on the list…"
He paused as a man in a crisp, black suit walked over. His sunglasses hid his eyes, but not the relaxed smile on his face. "Bertram, what are you doing to my guest?" He lowered his sunglasses a little bit and winked at Aaron.
"Nothing, sir. Just adding your guest to the list." He looked a little flustered as he pulled out a pen and flipped through the clipboard.
"Aaron." He said while Bertram copied his name down. He quickly ran off with the modified list in his hands.
"Aaron, come take a little walk with me." Aaron followed the man feeling that he owed him something for saving him. They walked up some stairs and took a seat at a bar. "Get me a steel wing surprise."
"Yes Mr. Knight, right away." The bartender began mixing together several things and shaking them for a brief while before pouring the cocktail into a glass.
"Where are my manners? Do you want anything?"
"No, I'm fine. Thank you, Mr. Knight." Aaron smiled weakly.
"Please, call me Tristan. So, you put on quite the little show out there with that Rotom."
"Just trying to protect myself. My parents were trying to put me in a mental hospital."
"That would be a shame. I see a chance for great things to come from you. That's why I saved you. I always feel great talents should never be wasted. Who knows, maybe this meeting was destiny." He looked at the expensive watch on his wrist. "Sadly though, I have to get going. Quite a few people who want to schmooze me. Go check out the casino. Something tells me this is your lucky day." He handed Aaron a coin and motioned to his bag before standing up and leaving.
"What's one of the most powerful and richest men in Kalos doing with some kid?" The bartender asked raising an eyebrow.
"He saw something." Aaron said walking away and down several rooms until he reached the one full of drinking, talking, laughing, smoking, and luck, the casino. He pulled out his pokeball and called out his Rotom who floated into the slot machine. Aaron put the coin inside and pulled the lever. His Rotom began to mess with the outcome of the machine as it landed on jackpot.
A small piece of paper slid out telling him to take it to the front. He walked to the front counter and handed the woman the ticket. "Cash or check?" She asked.
"Cash." Aaron responded. She reached under the counter and produced three briefcases. She opened them all and showed them to Aaron before closing them and locking them.
That moment kick started everything.