Astrid wasn't sure what she'd expected from the abandoned bureau, but what she found was far from it. The light green wallpaper that covered the top half of the walls was peeling and faded, while the wood on the bottom half was decaying quickly. The square shaped white flooring with blue diamond tiles were scuffed and faded. There were a couple built-in bookshelves in the same condition as the rest of the place, and held a few beat up books. Also, there were two desks, one placed straight across from the entrance, and one off to the left.

Astrid sighed with discontent. This wasn't what she needed that day.

She'd wanted for years to go out on her own. To live her life and seek out adventure. Her family didn't see her ideas as logical.

Her mother said that she would never make it on her own.

Her dad said that she would be killed on any adventure she found.

And her grandmother, who resided with her family, told her that she was too old to have adventures and should just settle down.

Astrid didn't have plans on settling down. She wanted to go and live. Sure, she was sixteen, which is older than the average ten year-olds running around, but she was ready!

She walked slowly to the center of the dingy room, the floor creaking loudly under her flip-flop clad feet.

The other issue with her new "adventure" was her location. Astrid wanted to get as far away from Hoenn as possible, and the ad for the rundown detective's bureau all the way in Kalos seemed perfect!

Until she got there.

Astrid sighed again, her vibrant blue eyes finally adjusting to the dark room. She saw a mirror over to her right, completely out of place in the room. It was consumed primarily of rust on the right side, but Astrid could still see herself on the left.

She ran her hands through her mid-length caramel colored hair, studying herself harshly with her vibrant blue eyes. She was wearing a mint green tank-top and jean shorts that ended halfway down her thighs.

Sighing for the third time since entering the old bureau, Astrid walked back to the entrance, where she'd left her backpack. She picked it up and turned back to the room, still displeased.

How was she supposed to make a livable home out of this?

Astrid jumped at a sudden knock on the door behind her. She turned around quickly while backing cautiously away from the door. She waited a moment before walking to one of the windows, which took up much of the wallspace on either side of the door, and peeked out at the unexpected visitor.

The man looked about her age, wearing a light blue golf shirt and a red bow tie. He had on long tan pants and brown dress shoes. His blonde hair was borderline glowing and he wore thick glasses. The guy was holding a pen and notepad, looking like a reporter.

Astrid sighed.

Her father was a gym leader, so she wasn't a stranger to reporters, but that didn't mean that she liked reporters.

After all, they ruined her dad's career.

More knocking from the man ripped Astrid's train of thought off of its tracks. Frustrated, she grabbed the tattered green curtains and swiftly pulled them shut. She then repeated the process for the other window.

Astrid growled in frustration, walking towards the back of the room, dragging her backpack with her. She sat on the floor and took out her phone as a source of light. It seemed quiet outside for a while and Astrid began to think that she was in the clear.

Then…

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK!

"Son of a-" Astrid started to swear but stopped herself. She stormed over to the window again and pulled back the curtain a little bit so that she could see through.

The reporter was still there!

"Who is this guy?!" She whispered to herself and closed the curtain again. She went to the door and locked the deadbolt, which appeared very frail and as if it wouldn't hold if the guy decided to knock down the door. However, given his scrawny physique, Astrid didn't think she'd have to worry about the door.

Rolling her eyes at the trouble the single reporter was causing, Astrid went back to her backpack, ready to ignore the guy.

"Excuse me?" a muffled voice suddenly called from outside, stopping Astrid in her tracks. "Is anyone home?"

Finally, she'd had enough. She stormed back over to the door and opened it, keeping the deadbolt on so that she could see him but didn't have to open the door the whole way. The reporter looked very shocked at Astrid, and she didn't suppose she looked very attractive when she was angry. However, she wasn't in the mood to care.

"What the hell do you want?!" she snapped. The reporter shaked his head, trying to rid himself of his surprised expression, Astrid supposed. He cleared his throat.

"Uh, I am looking for an Emma, would she happen to be here? I believe she knows some things about Team Flare." the reporter inquired. Astrid recognized the name as the woman who'd owned the bureau before she got it, but was too angry to have a conversation. Besides, he was a reporter, and you never knew what they'd publish.

"No, she isn't here. Will you stop knocking on my door now?!" Astrid continued to speak angrily at the reporter. He gave her a nod of understanding.

"Well, if you know of anythi-"

HOOOOOOOOOONK!

A car horn from a black car in front of her house interrupted the reporter. The window was down and another male shouted out, "Dammit, Ryan! Hurry up!" Then, the horn sounded again. The reporter, Ryan, sighed and digged into his shirt pocket.

"Here's my card," Ryan said, holding out a business card to Astrid. She sighed and rolled her eyes, but snatched the business card. Then, the car horn sounded again. Ryan started to walk away, but turned back to Astrid. "Have a good day!"

Astrid watched in astonishment as the car drove out of sight. At least the reporter was nice. She took a few deep breaths and reopened the curtains. Then, she went back to her spot in the room, sitting back down on the floor.

With sunlight streaming through the large windows, the place didn't actually seem so dismal anymore, and Astrid could feel her spirits slowing lifting. Suddenly, she felt a pang of guilt for how mean she was to the happy, scrawny, reporter guy.

She looked at the business card that Ryan gave her and began to type a text message, apologizing to the young man. She pressed send and placed the phone a little ways away from her. Astrid wasn't the type for sappy apologies, and the message she sent left her feeling embarrassed.

THe weight off of her conscience, Astrid went about unpacking her bag, and planning what to do with her new home.