I was woken with a start by the family Fletchling crashing into my bed, trying to wake me up. Alas, it suceeded, and I groggily dragged myself out of bed, muttering profanities under my breath.
"Sorry, Jack, but you weren't responding! I did what I thought best." She said, landing on her perch next to my desk.
"I know, but I reserve my right to be pissed off." I asked her to turn around as I slipped out of my pajamas and into my usual outfit, consisting of some boots, jeans, and a blue jacket. "Oh, goodie. Today is the day I get booted out of the house and sent off to Arceus-knows-where to get killed." I murmured, putting on my cap and bag, slipping my sleeping bag and some bandages into it. "Meanwhile, you get to stay at home and do whatever."
"Look on the bright side, Jack! You get to go out into the world and make some new friends! Meet new Pokemon! Have an adventure!"
"Oh, pack it in!" I shouted, putting my glasses on and blinking a few times. "You know I don't even like Pokemon!"
"Hey! You keep me around, don't you?" She stared me dead in the eyes. My throat dried up.
"Th-that's different!" She chuckled, gliding over to my shoulder and resting on it. "What the hell are you doing." She lightly slapped my cheek with one of her wings.
"If you really don't like Pokemon, then you won't let your favourite little bird join you on your journey." She teased, not willing to get off of me. "But we both know that you're lying." She taunted.
"Look, Cinder." I said, smiling at her. "I keep you around because I don't view you as a Pokemon. I view you as a friend, nothing less, nothing more. Okay?" I saw the light in her eyes dwindle a little when I finished my sentence.
"Okay, fine. Though, if your mother is gonna make you take the Pokemon League Challenge, then you'll need a lot more Pokemon than me to get anywhere. You'll have to get over your bias in due time." I sighed, approaching the stairs and sliding down the banister.
"Ah, there you are! Have a nice sleep?" My mother shouted from the living room.
"Indeed I did, until you sent Cinder to suicide-bomb me!" I shouted in retort. In my effort to come up with an appropriate insult, I was interrupted by a knock at the door. I sighed and opened it, and was quickly dragged outside.
"Shauna, you could've been a little bit gentler with that, you know. We wanted to get him outside, not give him a heart attack!" One of the strangers shouted at their friend.
"Sorry! I'm just excited!" Shauna yelled at the other one.
"Can someone please explain to me what the fuck is going on here?" I shouted over the bickering girls, garnering their attention. "Who are you people?"
"Oh, sorry. I'm Serena, and the nutter who dragged you out the door is Shauna." The less-crazy one said, shaking my hand. "What's your name?"
"I'm Jack. Now, state your business here." I replied, looking over at Shauna, who seemed to be trying to work out what I had said meant.
"Your mother told the professor in Lumiose City that you were going to be taking the Pokemon League challenge, so he asked me to give you a Pokemon. Shauna's here because ... I don't know, to be honest. She just wanted to 'get a Pokemon and make some memories'." Serena told me, looking over at her dumbfounded friend. "How old are you, anyway?" All I could think was 'What the hell kind of question is that?', but against my better judgement, I gave an answer.
"I'm 15. If we're already diving into the personal questions, how old are you two?"
"16. Shauna's 11, even if she acts more like she's 5." Serena replied calmly. "It seems that I don't exactly need to give you your own Pokemon. You've got that Fletchling there." I looked over at Cinder, who seemed to be lost in her own thoughts, and decided to answer the question that she was obviously mulling over.
"Oh, Cinder's not my Pokemon. She's just a pet." Serena seemed satisfied with my answer.
"Fair enough. Come on, then. I've got some friends in the next town over who can give you a proper Pokemon." She grabbed my free shoulder and forcibly dragged me through the town gate, past the barren Route 1, and into Aquacorde Town.
When I was able to push Serena off of me and use my legs, I was stopped from walking away by a call from a boy sitting near a cafe.
"Oh, for fuck's sake, what now?" I turned around to see Serena and Shauna sat at the same table, along with the yelling fat child and a smaller boy who seemed to want to make himself scarce.
"Hey, Jack! Come on over!" Shauna yelled, waving like she was going crazy. Reluctantly, I trudged over and sat at the empty seat.
"Okay, now that we're all here, I have some gifts." Serena called to us, pulling out four Pokedexes and handing them to her friends, stopping before handing one to me. "Jack, this is a-"
"I know what a damn Pokedex looks like, Serena. I'm not completely inane." I shouted, Serena giving me a frown, the pudgy kid laughing, Shauna looking at the smaller kid confusedly.
"Fine then. Okay, Shauna, I have three Pokemon in my bag for you two. Since Jack seems to have the most experience with this stuff, he can have first choice." She pulled out a glass case with three Pokeballs inside, labeled Chespin, Froakie and Fennekin. I didn't even think. I grabbed the Froakie with a quick snatch. Serena looked bewildered. "Well, that was quick ... and a little rude. I'll take the Chespin, Shauna can have the Fennekin." Shauna audibly whined, taking the last Pokemon from the glass case, before sending out her fire-fox and doing a complete 180.
"Oh my Arceus, he's so cute~!" She screamed, picking up the terrified fox and drawing it into a visibly painful hug. I stifled a laugh before turning back to face the two boys I had yet to talk to.
"So, what are your names?" I asked the duo."
"I'm Tierno, and that's Trevor." Tierno answered, gesturing to the cowering kid next to him. "He doesn't talk much. Like, at all." He laughed his annoying laugh again.
"Um, sure. Now, if Shauna has finished 'squeeing', I think I'm gonna take my leave." I got out of my seat, walked away from all the commotion and, at Cinder's instruction, sent out my Froakie.
"Hello, Froakie." I said to the frog in front of me, trying to feign a smile at the worried frog.
"Um ... hello, human. I suppose that you're my new trainer?" I nodded. She seemed to calm down a little. "Well, you don't look too bad. What's your name?"
"Jack. I hope we can get along." She looked at me quizzically.
"So, you're one of those humans who can talk to Pokemon?" I nodded slowly, not wanting to scare her. "I suppose you're going to give me a new name now?"
"Nope." I replied, to her surprise. "You can tell me your own name, and I'll call you that."
"R-really? Thanks, human. My name in Shinobi." I used my thumb and index finger to gently shake her small right hand, but she quickly pulled away from me. "What are you doing to me, human?"
"It's called a handshake. It's a social greeting, nothing else. Don't be scared. Also, I'm giving you the courtesy of calling you by your own name, so please extend the courtesy to me." She looked at me apologetically.
"Sorry, um, Jack. Who's the Fletchling on your shoulder?"
"I'm Cinder!" She stated proudly, before I could give a response. "I hope we can be the best of friends!" Shinobi looked at her judgingly, before returning her gaze to me.
"I suppose that she's a house Pokemon, then?" I nodded my reply to her. "No wonder she's so friendly. Also, Jack, your friends are waiting for you." I looked back to see Shauna waving at me.
"Bloody hell. Shinobi, be on your guard. I know what comes next." I walked back over to Shauna, who had put her Fennekin back in its ball and was jumping around like a toddler about to wet themselves.
"Hey, Jack!" I flinched at her ear-piercing voice. "You're gonna be my opponent in my first ever Pokemon battle!"
I sighed at her before agreeing, against my better judgement, to her challenge. She jumped for joy and threw her Pokeball at the ground, releasing her terrified Fennekin. Before I could say anything, Shinobi had appeared in front of me, adopting a fighting stance.
"Please, Shinobi. Don't do this. I don't want to be this girl's Pokemon. If I battle you, she'll never let me go." The Fennekin whispered to her friend.
"I'm sorry, Vix. This is how things have to be. I wish they didn't, but that's how it's gone. I kinda like this human. I don't want to disappoint him." She replied, leaving me confused and somehow, a little pleased. Vix sighed and nodded.
"I see. Just, don't hurt me too badly." He whispered back, running away and taking on his own stance.
"Okay, Kinniekins, use Ember!" Vix sighed at the degrading name and used all his might to conjure a small fireball and fire it at Shinobi, who punched through the flaming projectile with ease. "Oh no! I'm wide open!" Shauna mumbled, grabbing both sides of her face.
"Good defense, Shinobi." I said to the frog in front of me, who nodded weakly. "Now, give it a Bubble." I informally commanded. Shinobi muttered something under her breath that sounded suspiciously like 'Sorry' and shot a barrage of watery projectiles at the Fennekin. He didn't make any effort to dodge or defend against them, simply standing his ground and letting himself get hit by the bubbles, which burst on contact and coated him in water, which caused him to collapse on the ground with a pitiful groan.
"Oh no! Kinniekins! Get up!" Shauna shouted at Vix, who gave her a death-stare before shooting a small Ember at the girl looming over her. "Ow! Bad Kinniekins! Back in the ball for you!" She pointed her Pokeball at him, dissolving him into energy and putting him inside. I looked down at Shinobi, who was shaking in fury at the girl.
"Something wrong, Shinobi?" I asked her, getting down on one knee in an effort to get down on her level. She looked back at me, some of her rage dissipating upon seeing my concerned face.
"I'm fine, Jack. It's just that humans like that girl disgust me. She treats him like a child. I can't stand her."
"It's the name, isn't it?" Shinobi nodded angrily. "Don't worry. I'll deal with it." I stepped toward Shauna, who was pouting like she was three years old and clicked my fingers in front of her face to get her attention. "Oi, Shauna. Got something to tell you."
"Go away, you meanie!" She replied, punching my shoulder and crying a little.
"Shauna, your Pokemon doesn't like the way you treat him. He's a strong and proud creature, and you treat him like he's a kid."
"Who are you to criticize the way she raises her Pokemon?" Serena yelled at me, walking over and staring me daggers. "She can raise her Pokemon the way she wants. She doesn't have to listen to your opinions."
"It's not my opinion. Frankly, I don't give a crap. I'm going off of what Shinobi and Vix said." The two of them looked at me in confusion. "His name is Vix, by the way."
"You should listen to him." Trevor whispered, having slunk into the conversation and uttered the first words I had ever heard out of him. I liked that kid. He seemed smart.
"How the hell do you two know any of that?" Serena shouted at me.
"Because I can talk to Pokemon, you dolt!" I told her, laughing internally at their confused faces.
"Well, you're full of surprises. Come on, Shauna, we're leaving." Serena grabbed her friend and dragged her, kicking and screaming along the way. In her place, she had dropped two empty Pokeballs. I picked them up and pocketed them. In the corner of my eye, I saw Tierno ordering something from the cafe, completely oblivious to anything that had happened around him. Trevor slinked away, smiling weakly at me. Shinobi walked back up to me.
"Hey, Jack?" I looked down at Shinobi, who was smiling back at me. "Although I wish I was still back in the wild, if I'm going to have a trainer, I'm glad it's you." She hugged my leg, and I picked her up and hugged her back.
"I'm gonna put you back in your Pokeball, now. I need to have a private conversation with Cinder. Is that okay?" She nodded and hopped down to my bag, pressing the button on her Pokeball and going inside. I grabbed Cinder off my shoulder and put her on my arm, pulling out a Pokeball with my free arm.
"Well, for someone who says that they don't like Pokemon, you certainly have gotten quite close to Shinobi in a short time." Cinder teased, chuckling as I turned away in embarrassment.
"I don't quite know how I feel about her. It might be the same way I feel about you, but it feels ... different, somehow. I like her, but I don't have the foggiest which way."
"I don't think I'll ever quite understand your distain for us. Getting back on topic, I see you're holding a Pokeball there." She gestured to the sphere I was holding in my spare hand.
"It's up to you. Unless you become my Pokemon, I can't take you any further. I'd prefer it if you joined me, but the choice is yours." She flew off of my arm and smiled down at me.
"Fair enough, but I want to do this properly." She landed on the ground and stared me down. "I want you to battle me first!" She tried to keep a serious expression, but she started smiling at me
again eventually.
"Well, if that's what you wan't, guess I've got no choice." I grabbed Shinobi's Pokeball from my bag and threw it to the ground, sending her out.
"I'm guessing that you two have finished talking?" She asked me, looking over at Cinder.
"I suppose you could say that. Now, this may sound odd, but I need you to battle against Cinder." She considered the meaning of what I had said.
"What, we're training now?" I shook my head.
"Cinder wants to come along for the journey, but she also wants to battle you first." Shinobi quickly diverted all of her attention to Cinder and went back to her fighting stance.
"Ready, Cinder?" I shouted to the excited bird.
"Ready!"
"Okay, Shinobi. Use Bubble." I calmly instructed her, looking on with pride as she held nothing back and forcefully launched a spray of bubbles at her opponent. Cinder took flight and dived toward her, going through the water like it wasn't even there and crashed into Shinobi, who was sent flying back. I reached out and caught her, but she was quite badly bruised. "Can you keep going?" She jumped out of my grasp and nodded. "Okay then, we're gonna use the direct approach. Use Pound, quick!" Shinobi dashed towards her avian foe and, anticipating it flying over her attack, jumped into the air and delivered a swift punch to her left wing. She crashed into the ground and was pinned by Shinobi. Seeing my chance, I threw a ball at the two of them. Shinobi jumped out of the way and the ball landed on Cinder, who was brought into it.
The ball didn't even shake. It just sat there and eventually made a loud beep, declaring that she had been caught. I walked over, rubbed the side of Shinobi's head as a reward and picked the ball up. I hoisted Shinobi onto my shoulder and smiled at her. She smiled back. I slowly walked off towards Route 2, feeling accomplished.
I took a few tentative steps through the route, hiding in some shrubbery and waiting for the people this world had decided would be my friends. Shauna, the one Shinobi and I hated the most, was the first to walk by, followed by Tierno, who had decided to ignore food for a little while, with Trevor close behind, almost melting into Tierno's back. Serena decided to be observant and noticed my hiding spot in the bushes, grabbing my by my jacket and pulling me out.
"Okay, Jack. I'm not gonna pretend like I know anything about you or the way you raise your Pokemon. All I'm asking is that you let Shauna handle Vix the way she wants." She told me sternly, with me being a little thrown off by what she had called Shauna's Pokemon.
"Fine. I'll just watch as Shauna ruins the lives of her Pokemon." Serena was about to make an outburst, but I interrupted her before she had the chance. "Why are you using Vix's proper name?" She sighed at me, before giving a small smile.
"I know that you can talk to Pokemon. After all, so can I." She threw her own Pokemon out, Chespin. "That's how I know that this little guy's name is Paladin." I looked over at Shinobi, who nodded in agreement.
"Hello there. You must be the one my trainer calls Jack." The Chespin stated.
"Yeah. Nice to, uh, meet you, Paladin. So, Serena. If you can understand Pokemon too, why are you so adamant about letting Shauna train Vix like that?" I asked with a hint of anger in my voice. She returned Paladin to his Pokeball and looked at the ground.
"I know that what she's doing to Vix isn't exactly fair, but she's just a kid, Jack. It's not our place to criticize, even if we disagree with what she's doing." She stage-whispered to me, before walking away. She turned back to face me. "I hope we can be friends, Jack. You seem nice." She smiled weakly before turning back and fleeing the scene.
Whilst training Shinobi and Cinder against some of the wild Pokemon in the area, and against one stupid kid and his Zigzagoon, I had some time to think about my relationship with my Pokemon. While it was true that I didn't like Pokemon, and that I wasn't taking the League Challenge of my own volition, I felt some sort of connection with my Pokemon. I couldn't describe it. I had long since realised I genuinely cared for Cinder despite my general disdain for Pokemon. My feelings revolving around Shinobi were ... something else entirely. She moved with a certain grace, her voice was calming, and despite that, she could still take care of herself. We seemed to have the same negative view of each others species, and yet both found exceptions. In that way, we were both like each other, and you know what they say - you're always attracted to those similar to-
"No! Bad thoughts! Bad thoughts!" I slapped my cheek, grateful that both Cinder and Shinobi were in their Pokeballs when I shouted at my incredulous thoughts. However, after reviewing my own thought patterns, I realised that if I was having these thoughts at all, then my feelings must have been genuine. Granted, I wasn't gonna bring this up to her, but it was nice to think about. Hugging her, kissing her, telling her how much I loved her, putting her on her back and ... I realised at that point that maybe it wasn't such a good idea to think about it after all. Once my deviant and illegal thoughts had gone, it was night-time and I was far, far away from Aquacorde. I sighed, realising that I was sleeping rough that night. I pulled a small tent from my bag and hammered in the pegs, pitching the tent, and with the return of my horrible thoughts, pitching a second tent somewhere else entirely. Once the tarp was down and my sleeping bag and pillow were out, the other tent was gone and I considered it safe to grab my two Pokeballs out of my bag and send Cinder and Shinobi out.
"Okay, you two." I told them, getting down on one knee to talk to them properly. "I'm gonna let you two work out the sleeping arrangements between yourselves. I'm off to fix dinner." I stepped back into the tent and emptied my bag. I had brought some beans, spam, a few kinds of fish that I didn't want to begin to consider the source of, and a large bag of chocolates. Those were important. More important than any sort of fruit or vegetables, it seemed, as my mother had packed none of either the previous night. It wasn't like I would be able to work any sort of confectionary magic, anyway, as all I had were some bowls, plates, a knife, some forks and a camping stove. However, there were some sweet berries in the bottom of the bag, which I was eternally grateful for, as they were each quite large and would fill up the girls nicely. Speaking of the girls, while waiting for my dinner to cook on the crappy little stove, I could hear that their conversation had drifted away from the sleeping arrangements and had arrived at Cinder speculating that Shinobi harboured feelings for me.
"Be honest with me, Shinobi. You love him, don't you?" Cinder teased, making me double-take.
"N-n-n-n-"
"No? You don't? Because it seems that you do."
"I don't! Honest!" She whispered, although it wasn't enough to stop me from hearing everything. "Cinder, why are you looking at me like that? I'm serious! Those thoughts would be wrong!" She objected, trying to get Cinder to believe her.
"Wrong, but not necessarily false." From the shadows cast on the tent, I could see Shinobi recoil in horror. "I know your secret. Don't worry. I won't tell." She said, Shinobi sighing with relief.
"I don't know why I feel these feelings, Cinder. I mean, I know why I like to be around him. He's kind, he looks after us, and unlike those other humans, his , erm ... 'friends', he actually knows what he's doing. The fact that he's one of those humans who can understand us probably helps. However, I don't know how those feelings of 'like' have transformed into feelings of 'love'." She explained, occasionally looking at the tent to see if I was listening in on her. "I need your help, Cinder." She pleaded.
"Well, I can't make you fall in love with someone else, I can make sure that you have some more confidence in case you ever work up the courage to explain to him how you feel. Normally, Jack doesn't actually like Pokemon, but-"
"How is that moral support?" She yelled, quickly covering her mouth and looking back at the tent.
"Let me finish. But, he feels something different about you and I. He's told me that he sees me as a friend, not a Pokemon. However, he told me during our private conversation that he liked you too, but in a different way." Shinobi perked up. "A way he can't explain. Take that as you will. In my opinion, I think that means he loves you back. Just know, if you ever need someone to talk to, share your feelings with, or need help when you confess how you feel about him, I'll be there." She said, wrapping a wing around her.
"Thanks, Cinder. I know we haven't known each other long, but I think that we're gonna be good friends." She told her in a low voice. "I'm not gonna tell him how I feel yet. Maybe I'll wait until I evolve. Maybe I won't tell him at all - I'm still not sure if I want to stay as a trained Pokemon or not. I might end up asking him if I can be released into the wild." She sighed and sat down, wallowing in her thoughts.
Thinking it was safe, and the food being done, I poked my head out of the tent and yelled to the girls that it was dinnertime. They walked into the tent and set down, eyes lighting up upon seeing the Pecha berries.
"Eat as many as you want, girls." I told them with a smile, looking on as they tore the bag open and grabbed one each, eating them with extreme gusto. Meanwhile, I was indulging in a dish of spam and beans. Not the most extravagant of dishes, but it would have to do until I could get to a shop in the next town. All I knew is that I was going to have to rush to Santalune City the next day. I polished off the salty and not-at-all healthy dish within time,wishing I hadn't even touched them and opened the bag of chocolates. when I offered them some, they were more than happy to accept the confectionary. I didn't blame them. Who would turn down free food? We enjoyed an entertaining night of swapping scary stories and daring each other to do stupid things, culminating in them managing to convince me to eat one of their Pecha berries. I stupidly accepted the dare, thinking that someone must have laced my dinner in all kinds of alcohol, and grabbed one of them, stuffing it into my mouth and biting into it.
I instantly regretted every life choice.
I ran outside the tent and threw up my dinner, and possibly every other meal I had eaten since the age of 9, into a nearby bush, listening to the girls laughing their asses off. I joined in on their laughter after realising I had vomited on a sleeping Zigzagoon, which ran off to Arceus-knows-where. I got back into the tent after wiping the rest of it from my mouth and rubbing my hand into as many scented flowers as possible. The laughter quickly died down when I brought up the sleeping arrangements.
"So, where are you two sleeping?" I asked, flattening out my sleeping bag.
"Well," Cinder started. "I was gonna sleep on the tarp and rest my head on the pillow."
"Fair enough." I turned to face Shinobi. "Where are you gonna sleep?"
"I'll tell you once you're in your sleeping bag." I gave her a funny look, but nodded anyway. "Turn away, you two." I said, starting to slip out of my clothes. Cinder gave an immature grin but turned away regardless. Shinobi, however, seemed to be determined to turn around and get a look at me getting undressed. I knew she was doing it, and I knew why she was doing it. It didn't matter to me. I already knew how she felt about me. The only problem was that she didn't know that. Luckily, I was able to avoid asking any awkward questions and told the girls that it was safe once I had gotten into my sleeping bag and had the pillow under my head. Cinder collapsed onto the ground and put her head onto the pillow.
"Okay, Shinobi, I did what you asked. So, where are you going to be sleeping tonight?" I asked her. She answered with her actions, jumping onto me and curling up on my lap. "Well, okay then. Goodnight, Cinder." She chirped in response, drifting off to sleep. "Goodnight, Shinobi."
"Goodnight, Jack." She whispered, smiling and falling asleep, as did I.