I will definitely try to update this much more frequently from here on out. It should be finished before summer ends... hopefully... XD Regardless, here is the next chapter!

(-o-)

Samuel walked towards the small building labeled "Dodrio Grocery," the baby carriage's handle in hand. It was his first day alone with John and he was going to savor every second of it. Melissa was reluctant enough to let her father take him for the day and even then gave him an entire list of daily routines with multiple video phone numbers for home and work scribbled on a separate sheet. Sam felt the need to remind her that he did raise her when she was little to which she replied that Mom was still around then. But the new grandfather was going to prove her very wrong, that he was sure of.

"We are going to show your mother that she's not the only one who can take care of you. No we're not, no we're not," he said in a very childish and bubbly way to the infant.

"And here I thought you had some class, Samuel, being the student of a world-renowned professor and all!" a voice called out to him from behind. Emerging from its direction came a gorgeous dark-haired woman. She was wearing a nice day dress and a white head band for contrast. Across her front was a satchel which, as she walked closer, revealed that it was actually a baby carrier.

"Ah, Cecelia! Nice to see you!" exclaimed Oak as she came up and started to walk alongside him. "And who might this little addition to Pallet's family be?" he inquired about the baby.

"This is Jack, he's officially today five weeks old," Cecelia happily stated. "And I'm guessing this is her child? Poor kid, or kids now I guess."

Samuel laughed. "You still haven't forgiven Melissa for that one little incident? I mean it's been a few years now. Surely you both should have forgotten by now," he stated knowing full well that neither of them had. Cecelia and Melissa had been best friends for their entire lives and even closer rivals. Naturally, there was a constant competition between them when it came to school, athletics, and, especially, Pokémon.

There was a particular competition back when both women were going to the Celadon University that involved a tournament-style bracket. Mainly due to sheer one-upmanship, both traveled through their respective sides to face each other in the finale. Melissa won the battle leaving the two to be at odds with each other ever since. This especially did not help the fact that a few weeks later, Thomas and Melissa began dating. Yet, even despite their history, she and Cecelia manage to live in very close proximity to one another as they are next door neighbors in Pallet Town.

"As if! Someday, I know that Jack here will redeem me and be the ultimate victor over her son. What did she say the name was? Jake… John? One of those two."

Oak chuckled and said, "If your two rivalries continue across generations, I'll eat my hat!" and the two continued into the small super market.

On the way back, John began to squeal excitedly at something in the distance. Oak, using his continuously decreasing vision, noticed that there was a carrier Spearow perched on top of his picket fence. Now this he had only seen twice before. Once was an acceptance letter straight from Palmine, himself, stating that he would take Sam as his student. The other had an urgently scribbled note telling him to go directly to Palmine's lab on the other side of Pallet due to a rare discovery regarding a human-reaction induced evolution without any catalysts or items. Oak knew that whatever message Palmine's Spearow had for him was important.

The Spearow, upon noticing Sam's and John's presence, glided quickly towards them and re-perched on the baby carriage's handle. Oak approached the letter clutched in the tiny bird Pokémon's mouth, previously its talon.

Having opened the neatly folded message, Oak immediately ran into his home to his video phone taking with him the information that Melissa had left for him with John and began dialing up a number.

"Hello?" answered a relatively cheery voice on the other end. "Oh, hey Dad! Is everything okay over there? How's John?"

"Melissa. There's no time for idle talk. You, Thomas, and Roman need to get to my lab immediately."

"Wait, what? What is going on? Dad? DAD!" with that, Samuel hung up, his face stern as ever before as he approached his desk with John starting to wail in the background.

He wished with all his might that what Palmine said was not true. He wished he could go back to earlier in the day where he was enjoying the time he spent with his grandson. He wished that every day from that point on could have been that exact same scenario, but he knew it would not be possible for the foreseeable future. That's what scared him the most.

With many mixed emotions, Oak sat down and began writing his reply that he would later attach to Spearow and send back to his mentor.

"I thought everything had quieted down. Sure there were a few uprisings in Johto, but I could have sworn those had been contained. To think that this would spread to Kanto is practically unimaginable. Mr. Palmine, sir, what exactly does the government have in store for us? Are they drafting from all over the region? Has the outbreak really become this bad? I will help in any way that I can but first, I need answers. I just want to know what is going on.
Sincerely,
-Samuel Oak"

Sam gave the reply to the Spearow and let it out through a window. He approached John who had recently started screaming and picked him up, rocked him, and held him until the baby was overcome with tiredness. And he continued to sit there for what felt like hours. Hours that all came to an abrupt end with a knock at his door.