Chapter 1
Updated: 1/19/15
"Capture on!" I send out a disc from the green Styler in my hand. I point it at the Pikachu that I am supposed to capture and make circular moments and slashes, the disc following my movements. The disc leaves a glowing trail behind it, which closes up on the Pokémon and encircles it with a solid circle. Before the Pikachu can react, I speed up my arm movements, and there is a flash of bright light. I click the disc back into the Styler. The capture is complete.
"Congratulations!" Someone claps out of nowhere after my capture.
"Huh...?" I snap out from my concentration with a blank expression on my face. There is a man standing a few feet away, wearing a green collar shirt with a red handkerchief as a tie. The shirt is followed with blue jeans and brown loafers. The green hat on his head hide the color of his hair so I couldn't tell.
The Pikachu that I captured immediately scurry to his side and other his shoulder.
"My name is Kaplan, and you are now a member of our secret organization, Team School, planning to take over the world!"
"Wha...?" I blink. The hell? Did I miss something?
"You are now certified to keep your uniforms and the School Styler you used earlier! Together we will rule the world! MUWHAHAHA!"
"Pika pi..." The Pikachu shakes his head in dismay.
"Excuse me?" I say, not understanding what he is rambling about. Last time I check, I signed up for a Ranger school, not... whatever nonsense this man is talking about.
"Mr. Kaplan! Please don't tease my students with that ridiculous performance of yours!" says a female voice in exasperation. I turn around to see a lady with long brown hair who's wearing a green blouse and a white skirt, looking very professional. The laughing dies out quickly with her entrance.
"Heheh... Terribly sorry, Ms. April." The one name Mr. Kaplan scratches the back of his head sheepishly. "The timing was just too perfect to ignore! And it was amusing to see the student's face!"
I sweatdrop. Really?
"Ahem!" He clears his throat and beams at me. "Let me start over. Congratulations on passing the Ranger School's entrance exam with flying colors! It was quite an impressive sight."
"Um... thank you." I give him a little bow, but honestly, I can barely remember what I did. What I think I saw however... it was weird. It was just blots of red, purple, and green.
Oh well, it's probably nothing.
"Let me congratulate you as well!" Ms. April says and turns to me, gaining my attention. "Starting today, you will be officially enrolled in the Ranger School! I am Ms. April, and I'll be your classroom teacher from now on."
"It's nice to meet you, Ms. April!" I say, with a little bow for courtesy... again.
Ms. April chuckles subtly. "You're very polite, my class could learn a thing or two from you. Come, your new classmates are waiting and class is starting." She begins to walk for the exit. "I'll show you the way to our class."
"O-okay..." I reply nervously and follow her out, taking one last glance at the weird man.
"ENJOY YOUR SCHOOL LIFE!" He grins and waves goodbye.
And enjoy the mental asylum someday.
...
Ms. April tells me to wait outside until she signals me into class. I look around the hall, noting that this school have a traditional setting. Even when I was outside, the school didn't look like the modern ones that I have seen. I turn my attention back to the room in front of me. The door to the classroom is so thin that I can hear what they're saying through it which is impossible to avoid since they are pretty loud in there.
"Good morning, class, and sorry for the delay!"
"Morning!" reply the chorus of students back to Ms. April's voice.
"Today, we will start off with a new transfer student that will be attending our class!"
I start to feel nervous as the classmates-I-have-yet-to-meet start having little conversations about me.
"A new student?"
"In the middle of the school year?"
"Is that even possible?"
"Apparently."
"I hope it's someone cool or cute!"
"Is it a girl or a boy?"
"It has to be a girl! It will even out the gender ratio!"
"No, boy!"
"Girl!"
"Boy! We all know that girls aren't good enough to get into this school!"
"Excuse me?! Who do you think you're talk to here?!"
"Shaddup will you? Who cares! Wait, what are we talking about?"
"Keith, maybe if you start listening for once you would know!"
"As if, Rhythmi!"
Ms. April sighs loudly as the riot breaks out. "Just come in."
"Well, that's my cue," I murmur. My stomach churns as I slide open the classroom door and walk up through the big space in the middle of the two rows of desks. I feel chills going down my spine as everyone falls silent and gives me a stare. The atmosphere is unbearable, with the silence looming over as I face the entire class.
The girls high five while the boys groan quietly. I roll my eyes, temporarily forgetting my nervousness and the tension that I felt in the class.
"This new classmate of yours traveled to our Almia region to-" Ms. April is interrupted by a yawn from a boy with spiky red hair, but she continues as if it didn't happen at all. Was this a normal everyday thing then? "She is here to study on becoming a Pokémon Ranger."
I feel all eyes on me again as if they're trying to bore a hole in me, making me tremble nervously while my eyes take dart around quickly. I wish they can stop gawking at me like I'm something on display for the entire public to see.
I then take notice of a boy, with brown hair and a haircut that looks like a Buizel's. He's the only one that isn't paying attention – well, besides the rude boy with red hair. He's looking at the window to his side.
"Why don't you continue with your name?" Ms. April turns to me. "I'm sure they are excited to know."
Why don't you just finish it for me? I sigh inwardly then look at the bored class. Boy, are they excited.
"Hello." I put a hand on my hip. "My name is Kate Hitomi, and I'm so sorry I disappointed you boys; you can't have everything, now can you?"
The girls giggle and the boys burn red, knowing that I had overheard their little argument. Only the red-haired and brown-haired boy remain undisturbed.
Ms. April chuckles. "Let's make our new friend feel welcome. As you might not have heard, Kate has passed her entrance exam with- Keith Dazzle, what is with that face?"
I look to see who she is frowning at and see the same boy who yawned smirking widely at me.
He's annoying.
"Anyways, Kate, we'll have you sit..." Ms. April looks around for an empty desk. "...there."
I look to where she points, it's the first one on the second row to the right. I nod and walk past a blonde girl who smiles at me as I pass her. She sits in front of me and next to the boy with spiky red hair. I'm seated next to the boy who still isn't paying attention. The space between the desks is pretty roomy, so I set my school bag down on the floor at the side of my assigned seat.
"Alright class, I will change the schedule for today; this will be a study hour." Ms. April says affirmatively. "And Rhythmi, will you be kind enough to show Kate around the school?"
"Absolutely!" The blonde girl chirps.
"I will be in the staff room if anyone needs me," Ms. April says. As she leaves, every other student in the class encircles me with curiosity written on their faces. I start to panic inwardly. Why am I the center of attention?!
I look over at the silent boy, envying him.
Wish I could be as calm as him.
"Hey, new kid," The spiky-haired boy says, wheeling around in his chair. "How long did it take you to capture that Pikachu?"
"Um... what?" I ask blankly.
"With how you responded just now, I say... an hour, minimum!" He chuckles. That was so not funny. Alright. Time for a come back.
"Keith, stop being a show off." The blonde girl puts her hands on her hips, giving him a stern stare. I notice that all of the students are wearing the same green and blue uniform with a yellow tie.
"It's fine." I smile at her, then turn to the red-haired boy.
"Ha ha," I answer sarcastically. "Is that the time you took to capture the Pikachu? Then I'm pretty sure I top yours by far since I got 3.7 seconds."
The redhead drop his jaws in shock while our classmates laugh out loud.
"The new girl got you there!" says one of the surrounding classmate of mine.
"Really?" inquires a girl. "You really did it in that short of a time?!"
"Uh... yeah." I reply awkwardly.
"Then you have the second highest capture time, next to Hajime's!" Rhythmi remarks. "Oh! I'm Rhythmi Sinclair, I'm studying to be an Operator, and I'll be your tour guide for the school so let's get started!"
"Um... Okay."
I follow her as we walk out of class. Before we reach the door, she whispers to me.
"Sorry about Keith, he can be cocky at times but you sure did set him in his place!"
"I noticed," I reply, then look over my shoulder to see Keith pale with his jaw still dangling. If he keeps it open like that, he's going to catch a fly.
Then I look at the quiet one.
"That's Kellyn Hajime, the one I was talking about a minute ago." Rhythmi notices where I'm looking at. "He's cute, but also anti-social, serious, and he pretty much acts cold towards everyone except maybe Keith."
"Seriously?" I ask in monotone. "How do they even get along?"
I can't really picture someone like him to interact with Keith but that's just me since I only met them just now; one directly and the other, indirectly.
Rhythmi shrugs, then claps her hand together excitedly. "Enough about that, let the tour begin!" She pulls me out of the classroom. We go to another class, which is taught by Mr. Kincaid though i'm not really sure if we should be in his class while he is teaching. But Rhythmi didn't seem to bothered by this fact as she explains to me that Mr. Kincaid is really uptight and strict and has a motto of 'No running in the hallways.' Ms. April is different, but she has a stern side too, if you get on her nerves.
"What's with his hair?" I whisper to Rhythmi, seeing most of Mr. Kincaid's hair curled up to a corner and seem to be held in place, defying gravity.
"No idea, but that is a lot of hair spray and time that he has to invest to make it look like that," Rhythmi replies. Mr. Kincaid looks like he is going to give us a detention if we don't get out of his class, so we do.
"There's only two classes?" I ask after walking from Mr. Kincaid's class.
"Mhm, mostly because a lot of people fail the entrance exam," Rhythmi explains. "Though it's kinda of weird to have a new student in the middle of the year."
"Oh, really?" I say nervously. We visit the staff room, where I get to meet the principal, who's named Lamont. We talk with Ms. April for a few minutes, then we're out the door.
DING-DONG! DING-DONG!
"Sounds like class is over already," Rhythmi says, then leads me upstairs, where I'm introduced to Janice, the school-house keeper. On our way down the stairs and to the library, Rhythmi starts explaining other things that I should know. But my mind has switched its focus to my Styler. I take it out. It's green and complex, and I wonder how it works. So I tinker with it a tiny bit – well, okay, maybe not just a tiny bit- annndddd... it breaks.
"...Whoops," is the only thing I can say.
"What's wr-" Rhythmi looks back at the broken Styler in my hand and turns pale. "You broke it?!"
"S-sorry!" I straighten up. "I'll fix it!"
We are standing in front of the library door as I scramble to fix my Styler.
"Um..." I don't know where to start... I never had to fix a Styler before.
Aw, dang it! Why did I even tinker with it! The library door swings open. I stand frozen and panic inwardly.
Please don't be a teacher, please don't be a teacher, please don't be a teacher!
Both of us look up robotically to see who opened the door as if our life depends on whoever they see in front of us.
"Oh, it's you two," the boy says coldly. Rhythmi and I relax.
"It's only you, Kellyn." Rhythmi says with a sigh of relief.
The quiet boy turns his attention to me and I stiffen up, feeling a tad nervous and scarlet in the face, but his stare narrows down to my broken Styler.
"C'mon." He walks behind us and pushes us into the library and to an empty table. He snatches the broken Styler from my hand.
"H-hey!" I start to complain, but he goes right to working on my Styler. Kellyn takes out some tools and screws my device back together after inspecting the problem and fixing it. In no time, my Styler is as good as new.
He's good.
"Here." He hands it to me. I stare absentmindedly as he gives it back. I look up from my hand to see Kellyn reading a book. I can already read the atmosphere he is giving off and it says 'DO NOT DISTURB.'
Reclusive is right. But why did he bother to help me?
"Let's... just go." Rhythmi whispers, and I nod in agreement. Before we go, Rhythmi explains things about the library and that it's also known as Keith's nap room... aaaannnnddddd Keith is right there... napping... Also, the smartest student, Isaac, hangs around here during free period, and so does Kellyn.
How did he fix it so quickly? I look at my Styler from every angle.
"Don't even think about doing it again," Rhythmi seemingly reading my mind and scowl.
"I-I won't!" I straighten up and rub the back of my neck.
"Let's go outside for some fresh air!" she chirps, taking on her cheerful persona again.
I smile and nod. We walk out onto the grassy front lawn. The air is so refreshing that I immediately relax and stretch. Rhythmi points to a warehouse-looking building and explains some more things such as how the entire school is built on a remote island, connected by a bridge to Vientown and how long the school has been around. I nod in understanding. She clap her hands together after a few moments.
"Anyways, let's head-"
"Wah!" I'm suddenly pushed to the ground face-first, which hurts if I may add.
"Kate!" Rhythmi squeaks and runs over to help me up. I look to see some really upset Bidoof in front of me.
"Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear!" a voice screams in panic. "Someone please help!"
"Huh?" we both blurt out in unison. Then we see Janice stressing over the already-scattered Bidoof. With all of then running around, I couldn't tell how many of the Plump Mouse Pokemon there are.
"Oh no! Looks like Janice needs help ASAP!" Rhythmi shouts and turns to me. "Kate! Please help!"
"M-me?" I say, pointing at myself with a startled look. I duck as another Bidoof jumps at me.
"I was wondering what all the ruckus was about," a familiar voice rings in our ears.
Rhythmi and I turn to see- "Keith? Kellyn?"
They are at the front of the school entrance and a few meters behind us, looking at the scattered Bidoof running around.
"So you woke up from your nap?" Rhythmi crosses her arms while looking at our classmate in disapproval."Well, don't just stand there with an amused look on your face, Keith! Do something!"
Keith scowl and cross his arms. "You're not the boss of me Sinclair, so don't tell me what to do. If you think you're so high and mighty, why not do it yourself? Oh wait, you can't because you barely know how to handle a Styler!"
Rhythmi looks as though she is irked by the redhead. "Dazzle I swear, when I get my hands on you -"
"Okay, enough!" I start, seeing that this is going to get nowhere with the blooming argument. Bidoof running and screaming around if already enough so I don't need something more to add to my current headache. "Let's just capture the Bidoof first and then you can do whatever the hell you do as old married couples!"
That left Keith and Rhythmi speechless and Kellyn stands there with a raised eyebrow.
"Kate!" Rhythmi exclaims after coming back to reality. "We're not even close to being like that!"
I roll my eyes and takes out my Styler. "Whatever, let's just get this over with!"
Keith whistles mockingly. "Confident now are we? Why don't we make things interesting and make it a contest?"
"Is this really the time for a competition?!" Rhythmi shouts in disbelief at Keith's words.
"Anytime is good for a competition!" He grins and gives a peace sign. "So New Girl, you ready to pit against the two of us?"
Two? Don't tell me... I look at Kellyn's expressionless face. He's going to be a ranger too? I hadn't put that together yet... him fixing things threw me off.
"Geez! At least learn your classmate's name!" Rhythmi pouts.
"I'll learn it when I feel like it!" he shouts back. "Ready?"
He looks at Kellyn, who nods silently in response, and then they both look at me. When I meet Kellyn's gaze, his lips tug into a small smirk, as if silently saying 'let's see what you can do.' Though it didn't seem like the mocking kind, he looks as though he's expecting a challenge in this game.
"Um..." A Bidoof comes at me again and I duck and cover. Keith nearly falls over laughing. "How are you going to be a Ranger acting like that?!"
That sudden comment rings through my ears and mind.
The little...
"You're on," I say calmly. We spread out and run around, herding Bidoof as fast as we can. When the three of us all get close to one, we shout simultaneously: "Capture on!"
...
"Capture complete." Right after I say it, the other two say it as well, one after another.
"That's all the Bidoof!" Rhythmi sighs in relief as two columns of six Bidoof line up obediently.
"I got four, what did you guys get?" Keith asks.
"Five." Kellyn answers simply.
"Three." I answer in the same way.
"That means I won!" Keith exclaims. "I knew you having the second-shortest time was just a fluke!"
That snaps me out of my concentration. "Wha..?"
Rhythmi sweatdrops. "Technically, Kellyn won."
"Thank you so much for calming the Bidoof for me!" We see Janice walking up to us. "You students were outstanding in your capture!"
Keith forgets about the competition as he takes the praise.
"At least be a little humble..." Rhythmi mutters under her breath.
"And as for all you Bidoof, I'm so sorry for upsetting you earlier," Janice apologizes, petting one of the head. "I'll make you all some tasty Pokémon treats!"
The group of Plump Mouse Pokemon cheers happily before trailing before the Caretaker as she walks away.
"Hey, new kid." Keith turns to me. "I would rate your capture... 65 out of 100. But to be honest, you might make a pretty decent Ranger someday."
"Me?" I point to myself. I can't really remember what I did... it's all kinda... jumbled up. Why can't I remember? I never have this problem before so why now? It makes no sense.
"Hello? Earth to Kate!"
"Wha?" I snap out of my daze as I see a hand waving in front of my face. "Did you say something?"
"So you do remember her name!" Rhythmi speaks.
"Well... it's just a guess." Keith says sheepishly with his hands behind his head. "I was going to call her Katherine but that's way too long."
"Oh Keith, for goodness's sake." She gives him a smile and a shake of her head.
"Oi," he calls my attention again and jabs a thumb towards the silent boy. "If you haven't met him yet, this is Kellyn. He's pretty much a genius!"
Rhythmi coughs. "Smarter than you."
Keith glares at her.
"Oh! I forgot to show you one last place on campus!" Rhythmi says, ignoring Keith's glare easily.
"Is it Ascension Square?" Kellyn asks in monotone. Oh hey, he finally spoke after the whole Bidoof incident.
"Yep!"
"Then we'll tag along too!" Keith exclaims.
"Why?" Rhythmi asks, eyeing him strangely.
"Nothing else to do." Keith shrugs nonchalantly. "And the more the merrier right?"
"Fine, then let's go!" Keith and Rhythmi lead the way, seemingly racing each other to our destination.
I sigh. Can this day get any longer?
I saw Kellyn starting to follow but I stop him.
"W-wait!" I reach my hand out as if to grab his arm, but I don't. That would be awkward, seeing that I don't know him enough to do something like that.
"What?" He turns to stare at me, and I don't want to look back. I get a bit nervous and can't get anything past my mouth. When I don't say anything, he turns to start walking again.
"Um... Thank you!" I take a hasty bow. Kellyn turns to look at me with a questioning look.
"For what?" This time, I look into his crystal-blue eyes which is a bad idea because I became flustered. My mind race for any words to use for the moment.
"For um... for fixing my Styler a while ago!" I answer quickly. "I didn't get the chance to thank you while we were at the library, since I kinda spaced out there."
"It's fine. Not that big of a deal." he reply nonchalantly. I couldn't help but feel chills running down my spine when I hear the coldness in his tone. But there was also a gentleness to it.
"Hey! What's the hold up!?" Keith calls from way over by the stairs. We make our way over to them and walk down the stairs together to a monument with a large Ranger symbol on it.
"This is Ascension Square; later on in the school year, there is going to a special speaker coming here." Rhythmi explains. "That monument is the Pledge Stone and over there is the small port area that we have for boats."
I glance at the wooden platform extending out to the ocean before We head over to see the huge statue.
"If you make a pledge here with your friends, it will come true! At least, that's what we were told." Keith nods.
"And we're done with Rhythmi's School Tour of Wonders and Excitements!"
Keith sweatdrops. "You actually have a name for that?"
"I heard that!" Rhythmi starts chasing Keith around. Kellyn and I watch as they run around in circles and then I hear Kellyn sigh besides me.
"Do they act like this all the time?" I ask Kellyn. He only nod in reply.
DING-DONG! DING-DONG!
The two stop, with Rhythmi sitting triumphantly on top of Keith, after hearing the bell.
"Guess it's time to head back to class," Rhythmi states. "Anyways, Kate, I hope we get to be great friends!"
"Don't forget about us!" Keith grins. I smile and nod.
...
Later that night, I flop onto the bottom bunk of my bed, which is on the right side of the girl's bedroom. Then I remember something and look for a pen and paper. I have to write everything down so I can tell my little sis about my first day.
"Who are you writing to?" Rhythmi asks, peeking over my shoulder.
"My little sister," I reply.
"How old's your sister?"
"She's six. I promised her that I would write to her whenever I could after I left."
"You guys must be very close!" She smiles. I nod and tell her about my family and how my little sister and I like to do things together.
