He could feel himself wake. His eyelids remained closed, but he could see the red hue through them of the suns rays passing through his window onto him. For several minutes, he lie there.

"Oh, crap!" He groaned suddenly, earning a tired grumble to his right. His eyelids fluttered open as he began to pulse with excitement. "Lu!" He exclaimed in anticipation, his head snapping right to look at his one and only Pokemon. a Lucario. "Lu!" He repeated, raising his voice at her. She opened her eyes and glared at him, pouting.

"Save it for later, it's today!" He grinned as her brows furrowed in thought as she tried to remember what today is. Her eyes widened and she shot up as realization dawned on her. "Come on, help me pack!" He said as he began going through drawers, yanking out various clothing items as he went, throwing them into a bag. Lu followed suit in packing, as she began to put other various items in a separate bag.

The two had been staying in a nice Hotel for the last week, getting rested and ready for one of the biggest days in their career yet. Elite Five of the Porto Region. Tourists to Porto are usually very confused about the Elite Five instead of Four. In all honesty, no is really sure about it, to be honest. It's possible because Porto is so huge, complete with its own 16 Gyms.

"Was that everything?" He asked. She gave a curt nod in reply, and he proceeded to zip the bags and slung them over his shoulders. After having carried these around for nearly two years, they were merely feathers to him. He would sometimes look back and laugh at his younger self. He'd started his Journey very late, and was just a weak, scrawny little guy. A lot can change in 2 years.

Lu quickly followed after him as they made their way through the Hotel and onto the streets of Hove City. "It starts in 10 minutes!" He exclaimed, looking at his watch. He turned to Lu. "Think we can make it?"

She gave him another nod, and they took off together, racing each other to the Porto League.

--

This may seem like the end, and you are right. Maybe we should backtrack here. Start at the beginning. Back where this all began. When he met her.

--

"It's outta there!" The Coach yelled, and the young boy cheered and whooped with his team as he began to dance from base to base, until he reached home plate. He high fived many of his team mates, receiving several pats on the back as the next player went up to the plate as Coach readied a ball.

Later that evening, the team had finished practice, and we're making their way to the parking lot to return home. "You really have gotten better." One boy complimented another. "Thanks, Wes." He replied, grinning broadly. "Heh, remember when you first joined the team? Wow, you were the worst player." Wes laughs. "Yeah..." The boy replies awkwardly, and Wes takes off at a sprint. "That's my mom. See ya!" Wes calls back. He waves in return. The boy glances around the lot to find it empty, even the Coach has left. Like always, Mom hasn't arrived yet. He could only assume she was at another party or something of the sort, getting drunk. With a sigh, he sat down on a rock, his back facing the forest behind him as he began to poke at the tiny rocks on the pavement.

"Hello!?" He calls out, suddenly standing as he whips around, staring into the Forest. "Who's there...?" He asks, receiving a small rustle in reply. With a gulp, the boy cautiously approaches the tree line, and comes to a stop as the bush rustles again. "Hello..." He says quietly. Taking a deep breath, he sticks his hands out, and pulls apart the branches of the bush to reveal...

"Hi!" He greets cheerfully to the Riolu, who begins backing away fearfully, her chest heaving, seeing out of breath. "Oh, don't worry... I won't hurt you..." He tries to sound reassuring. She looks into his Green eyes with her own Ruby ones. He sticks out a hand. "I'm Adam." He greets, holding his hand out, causing her to flinch away. She looks at his hand, then back up at him. He seems kind enough... but...

She holds out her paw cautiously, moving forward at a Snails pace, until finally, her small paw rests in his open palm. He lightly tugs, pulling her out of the bush. She complies, and lightly steps out of it, then looks back up Adam again once she's all the way out. He smiles down at her. She can't hell but... smile back.

"Adam!" A call from the lot calls, and he turns frantically to see his Mom, picking her head out of her window, yelling out at him. He turns back to the Riolu. "Do you want to come with me?" He asks. She turns to look back at the forest. Without a doubt, it is still theee, waiting for her. Watching for her. She'll take her chances elsewhere. Looking once again back at Adam, she nods her head, and his grin widens. "Awesome!"

She smiles meekly at him, stowing one last glance to the Forest as he leads her back to the Car. This wa she only way to escape him, but did she make the right decision? She let's out a sigh as she follows the boy, her new best friend, as he rakes her to her new home.