Attention: Since English is not my mothertongue you might find some spelling mistakes or syntax errors. I appologize in advance. My mothertongue is Swiss-German so I normally imagine a sentence in German and try to translate it as well as possible into English, sometimes there is a lack of vocabulary or I don't find a match or the appropriate idiom but I want to improve my English and become a better writer. Another thing I want to make clear is that I use „..." to introduce direct speech! „ are not commas but the German quotation marks, just to avoid confusion.
MASTER JAMES
Chapter 1:
The couple was sitting at a long table. She was wearing a pink ball gown, he was dressed with a tailored suit. Both enjoyed a sumptuous meal, lobster won-tons, scampi with a slightly sweet flavour, braised tomatoes, noodle soup garnished with a slice of lemon and Black Forest gateau for dessert. Their servants were busy complying with their every wish. They had a great time and nothing to complain about, but still, something oppressed them and kept them from rejoicing and living without worries.
The elderly lady put her cutlery aside and piped up. „Did they find him yet?" she asked.
Her husband harrumphed and shook his head in resignation.
„Still no sign of him", he said. He grabbed her hand and squeezed it gently.
„Don't worry, the days will come when he finally turns home" with these words he looked over to their butler Hopkins. Hopkins had been in their service for half an eternity and was given the task to find the only son of this noblemen.
The butler approached the couple and took a bow.
„My dear lady, Sir, I promise you to try any and every attempt to detect your lost son, James. My pot of ideas is not empty yet. We're keeping track of a hint that was given to us by an unknown source. It leads us to Fuchsia City. Master James was spotted at a PokéRinger tournament. If we are lucky, he might still be lingering in this surrounding area."
The gentleman nodded and begged the butler to leave him and his wife alone.
The lady was devastated and fully confused.
„A PokéRinger? What became of our beloved child? He gads around, all on his own, no friends, no family, living a miserable life without money or treasures. What went wrong, darling? Did we disturb his sense of well being? Did we..."
Her husband shushed her. „No, my dear. We've done everything correctly. James is just a free spirit and stubborn. He definetely needs consequential and consistent upbrining, a heavy-handed behaving. I know the right person to offer him a proper education. As soon as they found him, Hopkins will bring him back to our property, teach him good manners and marry him to a carefully selected partner."
The lady of the house smiled at the thought of James' return. She had met the young lady, who was going to be her son's fiancée. Her name was Jessebelle, strong-willed, determined and ambitious. An excellent match for her rebellious and blighter son.
„We want James to get married and continue the familiy line, whether he likes it or not. He's the only heir."
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James was getting ready for the upcoming PokéRinger contest. He had turned his hobby into his profession. He felt happy and encouraged to fight against other fellow campaigners, although it was a rather unprofitable activity. People cheered for him and he had to admit that he wasn't too untalented.
Today's competition took place at a sports hall. James registered last-minute and had to battle against Daisuke and his Zapdos, who were known for their cleverness, Hikaru and her Pidgeot, perfectionists and last but not least against Natsuko and her Taillow, who had been unbeatable so far. He himself owned a Dustox.
The first round passed by quickly. Dustox managed it to snatch the ring from Pidgeot by tackling the Pokémon and place the round object on the right pole.
Pidgeot got eliminated. Taillow and it's trainer Natsuko had to bear a loss when racing against Daisuke.
Zapdos wasn't a major hurdle either. James had trained his Dustox to be precise and incredibly rapid. It gained the upper hand and beat the electrical bird Pokémon at once.
The crowd went wild. They shook James' hand, pat him on the back, congratulated him on his victory and asked for autographs. James enjoyed the attention, he was finally free and able to do what he pleased.
Two men had been observing him very carefully. One was Hopkins and the other one his employee Fletcher. They made it toward James after forcing their way through the almost impenetrable crowd. They tapped his shoulder. James turned around and he smiled even brighter.
„Where do you want me to sign?" he asked them while pulling out a pen.
Hopkins shook his head.
„We're not eager to get your autograph, Master James. We're here for some other reason," the servant said.
James chuckled. „Haha, Master James. That's sure an appropriate name. Who are you guys?" he wondered.
Hopkins adjusted his tie and upstaged Fletcher.
„Master James, your parents entrusted us the task to track you down and bring you back to their property. They are sick with worry and want to know you're safe. Would you be so kind and accompany us?"
James didn't pay much attention to Hopkins' request. He lived his life to the full, far from his former home, surrounded by peers and fans. He hadn't given much thought to his parents during the last couple of months. He was certain to refuse their begging.
„I knew that I met you before. You're Hopkins, our butler. No, I reject their request, but thank you" he was concise in his answer.
Hopkins tried again to win James over. „Master James, your parents are at a relatively advanced age. You might fulfill their request and grant them their last wish."
He hoped that he would chasten James. Precisely at this moment a friend of James joined them. His name was Butch, or Hootch and sometimes even Clutch, he had short green hair and brown eyes. Butch laid an arm around his mate.
„Who are these two penguins?" he asked.
James turned around. „This is Hopkins. He used to be my butler and my only social contact when I was a kid" he explained.
Butch opened his eyes wide. „Your butler? You had a butler?"
James nodded. „I come from a rich and snobbish family but I ran away and decided to choose freedom over money. It was unbearable. Now, they want me to turn back and attend my duties, perhaps they even force me to get married," he couldn't finish the sentence when he felt a smash on his head. Butch grabbed his friend by the collar.
„You have to do it, man! They enable you to pursue your dreams, you neither have financial difficulties nor will you have a hard time with finding a place to sleep," Butch said.
James thought for a moment. He could really use an accomodation, food and a fire in the fireplace but was he willing to let his career rest and give everything up for a more pleasant life?
Hopkins seemed to read his mind. „Master James, instead of sitting in the cold, fighting for survival, there is a cosy warm bed, feasts and great entertainment waiting for you at home. Please, your family line shall not be interrupted, it has to continue and you're the ideal candidate" he tried to make it platable to his master. These words echoed in James' mind. He closed his eyes and tried to forget about his bleak past. Maybe his parents had changed, maybe they weren't as cruel and heartless as they used to be. Should he give them a second chance? He attempted to forgive them for his butchered childhood. In the end, he was a good-natured guy who didn't want to disappoint his family and he had to realize that there might be better things than struggling on the edge of survival.
Still, he would be able to flee in case of trouble; at least, that's what he thought.
„Well, I'm not only the ideal, but also the only candidate" James said.
He forced himself to take a decision.
„I'll do it" he said. Butch rejoiced and high-fived his friend. James didn't feel at ease.
What was the catch?