Chapter 2

I yawned as I stretched, the sun was rising the next morning. As I sat up from my bed, the blanket that covered me slipped down, revealing my bare body. I shifted and turned my legs to the side of my bed, then grabbed my glasses off the dresser next to my bed. I was blind as a zubat without my glasses.

I stretched again, then stood to my feet. I was used to touching the cold hardwood floor when I awoke back in Kanto and was practically startled by the fact that the floor was warm. I remembered everything that had happened the day before with meeting the Professor and Lillie and moving to Alola. So, it hadn't been a dream, that was good.

Before leaving my bedroom, I reached over and grabbed my inhaler from on top of the dresser. It was one of those sorts that you take a certain amount of times a day as opposed to an emergency inhaler. I took a puff from it, then set it back down on my dresser. The Alolan air was quite a bit cleaner than the air was in Kanto, making me hope I would need my emergency inhaler less.

I stepped out of my bedroom and my mom greeted me, "Good morning, Mizuki.'

"Good morning, Mom," I responded with a smile.

"I was just about to go out the the patio and enjoy the morning sun. Do you want to come?"

"Ah... I should probably get dressed first..."

My mom smiled and pat me on the head. "You don't have to. I doubt there's anyone around outside. I picked this house for us so that you had a place to wander outside in whatever state you wanted." Mom stepped over to the sliding door and opened it.

"Thanks, Mom." I followed her out to the patio and leaned against the wooden fence. The Alolan sun felt amazing on my bare body, and I closed my eyes and allowed myself to soak it in.

"I almost feel like taking off my own clothes," Mom spoke, then giggled. "There's no way, right?"

"You could," I responded as I looked up at her.

"Thanks dear, but I'm old. No one wants to see my body." Mom sat down on a chair. "Still, I could relax in a bathing suit or something, I suppose."

There was a loud knock at the front door followed by a loud "Alola!" It was Professor Kukui's voice.

"Ah, I'll go get it." Mom stood to her feet and had only had enough time to walk to the sliding door before I heard the front door open.

"Ah, sorry, I'm used to just walking in," Kukui responded.

"Ah, no worries, come on in," Mom responded with a smile. "We're just out at the patio."

"Mom, I'm still naked!" I whispered.

"It's fine, hun. Honest, Kukui doesn't mind at all."

That was when Kukui came around to the sliding door and looked out to the patio. "Alola, Anju. Alola, Mizuki."

Embarrassed by the fact that Kukui could see me, I turned around and covered my body with my arms. "A-alola, Professor."

"Maybe we should let Mizuki get dressed," Kukui responded. "She seems a little embarrassed."

I turned around after a moment of silence to notice both Mom and Kukui had walked off. As I peered back into the house, I noticed them both sitting down at the table. Kukui was making sure to sit with his back towards the patio. I made my way back to my bedroom, then began to dig through my clothes. I dressed in a cute blue mini-skirt that was probably too short, then slipped on a simple blue halter top. As I was already dressing up, I went ahead and brushed my hair then tied a little blue bow in my hair.

Satisfied with how I looked, I stepped out of the bedroom. Now not only Kukui was there, but Lillie and another girl as well. The girl was dressed in what I could only guess was some sort of wetsuit, but it only came up to her waist. The rest of it was bunched up and tied around her waist. From the waist up, she was dressed in a gray tank top. Her hair was white and tied into a ponytail, but she didn't seem old, nor was her skin light or pale in color. In fact, her skin tone was much the same as Kukui's.

"Ah, here she is," Kukui spoke up. "Mizuki, I'd like you to meet my wife, Burnet. Burnet, this is Mizuki, Anju's daughter."

"Alola," Burnet spoke with a smile. "It's nice to meet you."

I squeaked before hiding behind my mom's chair.

"You'll have to excuse her, she's very shy," Mom spoke then turned to me. "It's okay, dear. She's nice just like Kukui."

Kukui may have been almost too nice, in my opinion. I had never met a guy before that was so outspoken and hardy, yet he seemed so kind and considerate. He also really didn't have any care about me being naked. Maybe I was just too young for him, or maybe he really just was that nice. But what reason was there for Mr. Muscle to be so kind? I peeked out and gave a soft "A-alola."

Burnet smiled and leaned forward a bit. "You remind me of Lillie when I first met her. She was so shy and quiet. It took me three days just to get her to talk, and even then, all she would say was 'Yes, ma'am' or 'No, ma'am'."

"You wouldn't guess it by how she is now, huh?" Kukui chuckled and Lillie turned red.

"W-well, I've gotten to know you two better," Lillie responded. She tried to put on a fake face as if she was annoyed.

"By the way, Mizuki," Kukui suddenly spoke up, "your mother tells me you always wanted to go on a Pokemon journey and face against the League back in Kanto."

I nodded silently.

Kukui grinned. "Well, Alola doesn't currently have a League, but starting today, construction of the Alola Pokemon League has begun. It should be finished in a few months. I'd be honored if you were one of the first to compete in it."

"I-I don't have a Pokemon, though."

"Not to worry. Kahuna Hala is in Iki Town today preparing for tomorrow's festival. I bet that if I take you to him and you ask him, he'd be more than willing to give you a Pokemon."

"Th-the Kahuna? Y-you mean... the head of the island?" I shrank back behind the chair more.

"Hala's a great guy, honestly," Kukui spoke with a big grin. "He's a huge softy! You'd love meeting him, I promise."

"I-I think I'll just stay here..." I practically whispered those words.

"You know... there is a legendary Pokemon that lives right there next to Iki Town," Burnet spoke up. "His name's Tapu Koko. I'd bet he'd be thrilled to see someone new."

"A l-legendary?!" I nearly shouted as I jumped to my feet.

"Oh yeah, Tapu Koko's our island diety," Kukui spoke with a nod. "He's a really strong Pokemon, but he loves humans. I could definitely take you to meet him."

"I... could meet a legendary Pokemon?" My eyes were probably sparkling with excitement. "I want to go!"

Kukui smiled again. "Alright, let's go visit Kahuna Hala, then. I'm sure he'll let us head to the Ruins of Conflict to meet him." Kukui stood to his feet.

"Go ahead, hun. I want to stay and talk to Anju some more," Burnet spoke with a smile.

"Alright, how about you, Lillie?"

Lillie nodded. "Someone's got to keep you out of trouble." She stood to her feet and grabbed her bag. Did the bag just shift around on its own? No, that couldn't be...

With that, the three of us left the house and headed onwards to Iki Town.

The warm Alolan sun felt so good as it cast its rays down upon me. The path between our house and Iki Town was a pretty scenic one with tall grass, palm trees, and even a beach not too far off. "That's where my lab is," Kukui told me. It must have been nice to have a beach-front laboratory.

Iki Town itself was a rather small place, which surprised me. According to the Professor, Iki Town was one of the first towns founded on Melemele Island, so I figured it would be bigger. "The people here live more natural lives. Because of that, they're relationship with Tapu Koko is a very close one." That's what Lillie told me. She quickly grabbed her bag. I swear I saw it shift again. Was I losing my mind, or was there something odd about that bag? I decided to ignore it for the time. I'm sure that, if it was important, the Professor or Lillie would tell me.

"This is where we'll be having the festival tomorrow," Kukui spoke as we arrived at a small stage-like platform. It was just big enough for two people to have a Pokemon Battle with low level Pokemon. "The main event of the festival, of course, is the Full Force Battles!"

"What are those?" I questioned.

"You don't know? Well, I suppose you wouldn't." Kukui rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "So, in Alola, people like to go all out in Pokemon Battles. Every year, we hold a tournament during the festival where several of our youngest and upcoming trainers battle each other with all of their might. It's quite a sight to see."

"A-are you going to battle?" I asked Lillie.

"No way. I don't even have a Pokemon." Lillie shook her head. "Besides, I just couldn't stand to watch Pokemon get hurt."

"Where is Hala?" Kukui questioned as he glanced around. "I thought for sure he'd be here..." He rubbed his chin. "I'm going to look around. You two stay here. If Hala shows up, let him know I'm looking for him, okay?"

"Okay." Lillie nodded then sat down on the stage.

I slowly walked over and sat down next to her. My hands sat in my lap as I looked down. Suddenly, my mind went blank. I couldn't think of anything to say. We sat their awkwardly silent, I don't even know for how long. I looked away and was about to get up and walk off when Lillie suddenly spoke up. "I've been meaning to ask since yesterday..." I turned to look at her, confused. "Why do you..." Lillie began to fidget with her hands. "Y-you know..."

"I... don't know what you're trying to ask..."

Lillie's face turned red. "Clothes... yours... y-you know..." She turned away from me and began to fidget with her hair now. She sighed, I assumed to try to calm herself. "Why don't you... like them?"

I turned red now that I understood. "I-I just... don't... They're uncomfortable." I tugged on my shirt. "I only really wear baggy clothes because I don't like how clothes feel rubbing against my body. It just... bothers me..."

"But... you get embarrassed about people seeing you without clothes on?"

"W-well... I mean... just because I like being naked... doesn't mean I want everyone to see, you know?" I covered my chest despite that it was covered by my shirt.

Lillie slid next to me which made me turn a bit more red. She placed her hand on mine and looked at me. "Even so... no one's going to complain unless you're out somewhere like Hau'oli City. While I can't think of anyone who walks around naked, there's a lot of people here who walk around in bathing suits all day."

I was about to respond when Lillie's bag moved. I don't mean it shifted, I mean it physically moved across the stage on its own. "L-Lillie!" I shouted.

"Hey, get back here!" Lillie reached out and grabbed the bag only for a strange creature to pop out of it. I only caught a glimpse of it as it rushed off to the north. "Nebby!"

"What was that?" I jumped to my feet.

"No time, help me catch Nebby." Lillie scrambled to her feet and chased after the weird little creature. Unsure of what else to do, and maybe out of curiosity, I rushed off to help her.

We chased the creature down a long winding pathway until we got to the edge of a cliff. There was a rickety wooden bridge that spanned a gap between the cliffside we were on and another in front of us. "Nebby, come back!" Lillie shouted.

Now that I could get a good glimpse of the creature we were chasing, I noticed it was very small, like ridiculously small. It couldn't have been more than a couple centimeters in size. The creature looked almost like a gaseous cloud, except that its body was completely solid. Parts of it were light blue that then changed to dark blue and then into violet. It even sparkled and shined almost like stars.

"What is that thing?" I asked as I saw it begin to cross the bridge.

"Please, you have to help Nebby," Lillie spoke as she grabbed my hand. I turned beat red. "I... I'm too scared..."

I nodded. The bridge looked very old and had several broken boards. Too much weight, and the whole bridge would probably shatter apart. The weird little creature seemed to weigh nothing, though. I slowly stepped over to the bridge and placed my foot upon it. The whole bridge creaked loudly. With another step, my other foot, and all of my weight along with it, was now on the bridge. I felt it creak again and I bit my lip.

"C-come here, little guy," I called out to the strange creature. "I'm not going to hurt you." I took another step and I felt the bridge sway and creak. I nearly had a heart attack. A couple more steps, the creature seemed to have stopped in the middle of the bridge and was happily bouncing. "That's it, just stay right there."

The bridge creaked again and I held firm onto the sides. I hoped that if the floor gave out, I might still be able to keep myself from falling into the river that was several meters below me by gripping the sides. "Nice and-" I heard a loud SQUAWK and as I looked up, I saw three spearow suddenly fly out from the forest in front of us. One of them slammed into me, knocking me back as the other two began to circle around the creature.

They squawked and squeaked and the creature began to glance left and right quickly. It was panicking, and I had to help it, but I was beginning to panic myself. The spearow that had knocked me back attempted to dive bomb me and I quickly ducked. The bridge creaked loudly at my sudden movements and I felt a board under my foot break.

I gathered up every ounce of courage I had and leapt forward, using my body as a shield to block the spearow that were circling the creature. "I-it's okay, I'll get us out of here."

Suddenly, the creature let out a loud screech as a strange bubble of light began to swirl around us. The bubble of light cut through the bridge and it was as if everything began to slow. We began to fall and I grabbed the creature tight, pulling it against my chest. I then turned so my back was to the water. I hoped that I could reduce some of the impact for the creature with my own body, even though I knew I was going to likely die upon hitting the surface of the water.

My laugh flashed before my eyes and I smiled. This was it, I was going to die. I hoped that my mom wouldn't mourn too hard.

Suddenly, I felt something grab onto me and slow my descent. As I looked up, I saw a strange sort of creature holding onto me. It's body was black, but it had several markings on its body that I could only call tribal markings. I couldn't see it very well, though, as the creature was speeding us through the air. It brought us around and set us on the ground next to Lillie.

Immediately, I reached into my skirt and pulled out my emergency inhaler. I took a puff of it to try and help myself breathe. "Oh my gosh, are you okay?" Lillie asked as she crouched down to my level and placed her hand on my back.

"Y-yeah, I am now." I smiled but in my mind I was still freaking out. I looked up at the creature that had saved my life.

"Tapu Koko," Lillie spoke as she looked at the creature. Now that I could see it better, I noticed the creature had two large yellow objects on its shoulders that were covered in a number of markings. The creature crowed, then pulled the objects together around its body. It reminded me of a face on a totem pole.

"Th-that's... Tapu Koko?" I asked.

"The guardian diety of Melemele Island." Lillie stood to her feet then gave a bow. "Thank you for saving my friend and Nebby, Tapu Koko."

"Y-yeah, thank you." I gave as much of a bow as I could while still on the ground.

"TAPU!" the Pokemon called out, then it zapped away like a bolt of lightning. As it did, it shot through the spearow, causing them to screech and fly away.

"That was amazing." I smiled, then began to hack. I took another hit of my inhaler.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Lillie asked as she bent down next to me. I nodded. She then turned to the creature I had rescued. "Bad, Nebby! You know not to wander off!" She picked up the creature by one of its... hands? "Honestly, what am I going to do with you? You know you have to stay hidden!"

"What... is that?" I asked.

"Nebby... he's a Cosmog." Lillie put the creature back into her bag and zipped it partway. "He's a very special Pokemon. I've been caring for him but... I can't let anyone know... Professor Kukui and Burnet are the only people that know." She turned to me and grabbed my hand. "Please don't tell anyone."

I didn't know what was so special about this creature, but it was clear something was. I nodded. "I won't." I smiled.

"Thank you." Lillie helped me to my feet. "What's this?" Lillie picked up a strange sparkling stone off the ground that had been sitting next to me.

"I've never seen it before."

"Tapu Koko must have given this to you." Lillie handed me the stone. "It's probably important, so you should take it."

"Alright." I smiled and took the stone.

"And, Mizuki... thank you for saving Nebby."

"Hey, for a cute girl like you, I couldn't refuse." It wasn't until after I said those words that I realized what I said. My face burned red and I quickly began to wave my arms around frantically. "I-I mean... th-that is..."

Lillie giggled. "Come on, let's head back. Professor Kukui is probably worried about us."

I nodded silently and we returned to Iki Town.

"Ah, there you two are," Kukui spoke up as we came off the path into Iki Town. "I thought you were going to stay here?"

"We did at first, Professor," Lillie spoke up. "But then... you-know-who decided to wander off to the Ruins of Conflict. We had to go catch him."

"Oh my, hopefully that wasn't too much trouble?"

Lillie told Kukui the whole story.

"Ah, so Tapu Koko saved you. Good thing he did. I'd hate to think of what I'd have to tell your mother..." Kukui sighed. I didn't respond. "Well, anyway, let me introduce you to Kahuna Hala."

A large man, and I don't mean that height-wise, stepped up to us. His hair was gray and tied up into a small ponytail. He wore a tropical button-up shirt over a light blue shirt. Around his waist was a white rope and his pants were white as well. He had a pair of sandals on his feet and a moustache on his face. "I am Kahuna Hala," the man spoke with a big grin. "Happy to meet you."

"H-hello," I squeaked out quietly as I hid behind Lillie.

"Ah... got a shy one on our hands. Well, Kukui says you wanted a starter Pokemon, yes?"

I nodded silently.

"Come on out!" Hala shouted as he tossed three pokeballs into the air. Out of the first pokeball came a little brown bird creature that was egg-shaped. It had two giant eyes along with, what looked like, a green bow tie. Out of the second ball came a black cat-like creature. It legs with red strips and paws along with a small bit of red on its face. It also had red whiskers. The third one was a seal like blue creature with a big red nose. "Let me introduce Rowlet, Litten, and Popplio."

"They're so cute!" I shouted as I rushed over to them. I pet the bird-like Rowlet on the head and cooed happily. I turned and reached for the cat-like Litten, but it growled, hissed, and tried to swipe at me. I then turned to seal-like Popplio and it happily chirped and let me scratch its head.

"You can have any one you want, if that one chooses you as well."

"What do you mean?" I asked as I looked back at Hala.

"I always say, 'It's not the trainer that picks their Pokemon, it's the Pokemon that picks their trainer.' If the one you want also wants you, then you can have it."

Litten turned its head and looked away. I immediately guessed it wasn't interested in having me as a trainer. Well, I guess it was a choice between Popplio and Rowlet, then. Both seemed happy to be around me, and I liked them both. It was hard to choose. That's when Popplio slid over and laid down on my lap.

"I guess I'll take this one," I spoke with a smile. Yeah, out of the three, it seemed Popplio wanted to be with me the most, so I'd accept it.

"Very well then. Here is Popplio's pokeball." Hala handed me the red and white ball and I quickly attached it to the belt on my skirt. I stood to my feet and Popplio jumped up onto my shoulder. "You two look great together. Would you like to give her a name?"

"Shiru," I spoke with a smile.

"Tomorrow is when the island festival is going to occur," Hala spoke. "If you wish to go on a journey, the winner of the Full-Force Tournament will win this." Hala pulled out a small amulet that had four triangles on it. Each was a different color, from left to right they were were yellow, red, pink, and blue. "It's an island challenge amulet. With it, you can journey around the four islands and challenge the seven Island Trials. Complete all of an islands trials and you can battle against the Kahuna for your Grand Trial."

"The Pokemon League I am opening up will be based off of that," Kukui spoke up. "If you can beat all four Grand Trials, you will be allowed to compete in the League."

"Then I have to win that tournament." I turned to Popplio. "Do you want to help me win?"

"Bwar!" Popplio shouted happily.

"Alright, then we'll compete in the tournament tomorrow!" I jumped and the sparkling stone fell out of my skirt pocket.

"Is that...?" Kukui gasped.

"It is!" Hala quickly snatched up the stone. "Young lady, where did you get this?"

Lillie quickly explained about the encounter with Tapu Koko.

"This sparkling stone... it is the main component of making a Z-ring... If Tapu Koko gave you this... he must think you're important. If I may, can I have this for a day? I shall rework it into a Z-ring for you."

"A... Z-ring?" I tilted my head.

Kukui chuckled. "It's a special item that allows you to bring out a Pokemon's full strength!"

"That sounds great! You can do that, then?"

Hala nodded. "No problem. I'll give it back to you before tomorrow's tournament."

"Thank you, Kahuna Hala." I smiled. Things were looking up. Sure, I had almost died, but because of that, I had met a Legendary Pokemon and was now going to get something even greater. I had no idea what things were in store for me in the future, but I hoped they would be fun and exciting.