Serena shouldn't have been this scared. Moving to the Kalos region with her mom and Rhyhorn and leaving everything that she knew was scary, but not as scary as explaining – or, at least, trying to explain – that she was mute. Her hometown had often teased her about it, and so had her father. The only person who ever stood up for her was her mother. For a while, Serena guessed it was because nobody else, besides Rhyhorn, did. Later on, she found out her mother did this because she didn't care whether or not Serena could talk, unlike everyone else.
Unfortunately, Serena realized on the plane to her new town, that people in the Kalos region might tease her about being mute. That small thought made her worry and prevented her from sleeping. She didn't want to go through the torture of those remarks again, it had hurt more then she had let on. She just wanted to make friends now, friends that she could rely on. Eventually, she stopped worrying about it, but as soon as she had woken up that morning, the worries came back. Today was the day she would meet the other teenagers, and she was sure that they would start teasing her as soon as they found out she was mute. And she was terrified.
"Serena, honey, there's someone at the door for you!" Her mother called, pulling her out of her thoughts. Serena was about to run downstairs, until she realized that she was still in her pajamas. Feeling her face heat up in embarrassment, she quickly changed into her clothes that she had, luckily, unpacked the night before. She tied her long, honey blonde hair into a pony tail, quickly slipped into her black top and red skirt dress, put on her black socks and shoes, and, as she was running down the stairs, placed on her pink hat and bag, resting her white framed sunglasses on her hat. Serena quickly signed a 'good morning' to her mom before opening the door. She panicked a little when she saw two people, one boy and one girl, about her age, standing outside.
The boy wore a light blue sweater with white stripes down the sleeves and grey stripes along the zipper and the edge of the sweater. He had a black messenger bag, the edge of the flap a dark blue with two half circles on it. He had blue jeans and black sneakers – similar to her own, she noted – making him look like he was going on a run or something. His straight, shoulder length hair was a dark brown, no hat or sunglasses on his head. He was fair skinned and had light brown eyes, and Serena couldn't help but wonder how often he went outside. He seemed like he was about her height, about five and a half feet tall.
The girl, however, was a different story. She wore a pink t-shirt, with three black bows on the front, a black scrunchie on her wrist, and a black bow on her white and pink bag. Her blue short-shorts had black ruffles sticking out. Serena noticed that her light brown hair had a unique style to it, one that she didn't even want to guess how long to put up in the morning. She had some pink boots – if those could even be considered boots – that matched the shade of her shirt and bag. Her eyes were a light green, her skin was the a couple shades lighter than her hair, and Serena noted how short she was compared to the boy.
"Hiya!" The girl said, a happy smile now upon her face. Serena gave an awkward smile and a small wave to the girl and boy. Even if she wasn't mute, Serena realized that she still wouldn't know what to say. She had never been great with people, her mom always told her that she was much better with Pokémon. The boy raised an eyebrow, looking unimpressed with her.
"Well, go on, say something." The boy said, Serena clenched her fists, trying her best not to react from her anger. She felt a hand on her shoulder, and immediately relaxed, knowing it was her mother.
"I should have told you both while you were waiting for my daughter. Serena's mute." Her mother explained. The boy didn't look too surprised, while the girl looked shocked for a moment, then turned to the guy.
"See, Calem? I told you it was a good idea to learn sign language this summer!" The girl said, a small smile on her face again. Serena looked at the boy, Calem, and watched his reaction.
"Yeah, you were right. I guess I owe Trevor now." He muttered. Serena looked back at the girl, who now had a small frown on her face. The girl looked at Serena, still frowning slightly.
"How are you going to communicate with Pokémon if you're mute?" The girl asked. Serena gave her a small smile, then pointed at Rhyhorn.
"Watch this." She signed. Serena tapped her knees twice, one softly, and the second one loudly. Rhyhorn rose, and walked over towards Serena slowly. It sat down about a foot away from her, and she climbed on to it. The Rhyhorn rose, walked around the girl and Calem once, and sat back down. Serena climbed off, and the Rhyhorn went back to its spot. "I have to communicate differently, but it's easier than expecting Pokémon to learn sign language." Serena signed. The girl looked amazed and Calem looked impressed.
"Wow, that's amazing! You're going to be a great trainer!" The girl exclaimed.
"Shauna's right. How long did it take you to get Rhyhorn to learn that?" Calem asked. Serena shrugged.
"A while. I needed my mom to translate what I was trying to say for the first week or so." She signed. Shauna, the girl, gave Serena a smile.
"I can translate for you, if you want. The only time I won't be of use is if we're battling." Shauna said.
"Battling? Tell me you're not kidding."
"She's completely serious. Professor Sycamore wants you to a Pokémon trainer, despite the difficulties. He believes you'll be one of the best. And after meeting you, I think he's right." Calem said. Serena looked slightly shocked, remembering the words the people in her hometown used to say.
"Can I think about it for a bit?" She signed. Calem and Shauna exchanged looks, and Serena wished she could tell what silent conversation they were having. Eventually, Shauna nodded at her. Serena relaxed and gave them a smile. "Thanks."
"If you decide to come along, we'll meet you at the gates before Route 1. We'll be going to Aquacorde town in an hour or so to meet the others there. So you've got an hour to think about it." Calem said, turning around and waving at her, walking away.
"Calem, wait up!" Shauna called out. She quickly turned back to Serena and gave her another smile. "I hope to see you soon, Serena!" She said and gave her a wave before running to catch up with Calem. Serena smiled softly.
"I hope to see you, too, Shauna."