Chapter 3

The calm walk to the Pokemon Center was just what Justin needed after the ordeal the kids and him went through. It was never fun to chased by a swarm of angry Beedrill after all. He made sure to check if either Joey or Larry got hurt during their getaway. If they did he'd feel terrible letting that happen to them and their parents would no doubt tell him off as well. Taking a deep breath of the fresh Aspertia City air, Justin saw the familiar red-roofed building come into sight. The Pokemon Center always looked welcoming to Justin since the design was generally the same across the world. Red roof, white walls, and a Pokeball symbol were the main identifiers of any Pokemon Center.

The three of them walked towards the entrance, its sliding doors parting automatically, allowing them into the building. Justin recognized the faint odor of antiseptic that always hung in the air in the centers. It wasn't unpleasant after you got used to it. Justin and the boys walked towards the front counter where Nurse Joy sat, her trademark kind smile on her face.

"Hello, boys," she said sweetly, "Back from some training I presume?"

"Well that's what was originally happening, but we got chased by some Beedrill and my Frogadier needs some help. It's exhausted and isn't feeling well from the Beedrill's Poison Stings." Justin explained while taking out Frogadier's Pokeball. "Joey and Larry's Pokemon need a checkup as well."

"I see, don't worry, we'll have them right as rain. Audino?" Nurse Joy called out towards the back room where a pink and cream colored Pokemon wearing a Nurse's hat appeared. "Bring some antidotes from the back please, we have patients to take care of. Please place your Pokeballs here and relax in the waiting room in the meantime." Nurse Joy motioned to the tray she had placed onto the counter and the three of them set their Pokeballs into it. Nurse Joy bowed slightly and carried off the tray into the back room calmly, Audino following soon after.

"Well, let's go sit down for now while we wait like Nurse Joy said and in the meantime we can hear what Scott has to say." Joey and Larry nodded and they made their way to the waiting area. The three of them looked around for the turquoise shirt clad man and they spotted him towards the back of the area sorting through some papers with a look of intense concentration on his face.

"Mr. Scott!" Larry called out to him, but he paid him no mind as he was still absorbed in managing the clutter of paperwork in front of him. Justin walked in front of Scott, waving his hand in front of his face to get his attention. That finally seemed to get his attention and he looked upwards in surprise. Upon seeing Justin's face, he smiled brightly.

"Hey there!" Scott said excitedly.

"Hi there Scott, I heard from the boys that you had an offer of some sorts?" Scott nodded and gestured for Justin to take a seat across from him. Joey and Larry grabbed two of the smaller stools and sat down next to him, trying to make out what the paper's in front of Scott said.

"I saw how you and Frogadier took care of that swarm of Beedrill. There was some great synergy between you two there!" Justin rubbed the back of his head and looked away embarrassedly as Scott praised him. "I saw the inklings of a great trainer when I saw you two battling together."

"Gee, thanks for the compliments, but I'm still a rookie." Scott nodded in agreement with Justin's statement.

"Yes you're still a rookie, but that can change with time and dedication… and a little instruction too." Scott dug through the pile of papers on the table and pulled out what appeared to be a brochure from the bottom of the pile. "I can tell from our earlier conversation in the Pokemart that you want to become an even better trainer than you are now and I can show you the way, you just have to take the first steps." Scott handed Justin the brochure and once the boys and him saw the writing on the front, their jaws dropped in surprise.

"P-Pokemon Academy!?" Justin fumbled over his words as he continued to look at the brochure in astonishment. He's read about Pokemon Academy a ton from when he surfed the web. It was a prestigious school located on an island. It was where some of the best and brightest young trainers attended to further hone their skills and understand Pokemon, with the help of top of the line technology and instructors.

"You've heard of it?" Scott asked.

"Yeah, I've seen a lot of videos and read a ton of articles about this place online. Isn't this supposed to be one of the best schools in the world?" Justin opened the brochure and scanned the pages, anxious for more information about the facility.

"We have a great reputation across the world, that's for sure." Scott said proudly.

"We?" Justin asked inquisitively, "You work there Scott?"

"That I do. I'm a student counselor, so I take care of scheduling, problems, and anything else my students have to throw at me for the most part."

"Wait, if you're a counselor at the school, shouldn't you be there right now?"

"It's actually the break season right now for classes so most of everyone has gone home to visit family or just relax. It's also the time for me to perform the other half of my job."

"And that would be?" Justin asked.

"Talent scouting." Scott replied simply. "Before I became a counselor at the academy, I wandered around the Hoenn region in search of talented trainers to challenge the Battle Frontier. I have a knack for finding people with potential and that's why I'm offering you the chance to come to the academy because I believe that you've got what it takes."

"You invited people to the Battle Frontier before all of this?" Joey asked. Justin had heard of the Battle Frontier before. It was full of tough trainers called Frontier Brains that had specific stipulations placed on their battles that were designed to challenge their opponent's skill.

"Yep, after all I was the one who made it after all!" Scott laughed heartily at his statement and Justin and the boys looked at the man in surprise. He was the founder of the Battle Frontier?

"So wait," Justin interjected into Scott's laughter, curiosity burning through him, "Did you scout out the Frontier Brains as well?"

"Yep, I couldn't just let any random trainers be the Frontier Brains , so I had to make the verdict and I did a pretty bang up job if I do say so myself." Justin had to agree with him there. The Frontier Brains were no joke and some were even at the International tournament recently as competitors. He wouldn't have guessed that Scott was such an impressive person based on the first time he met him. Guess that old saying "don't judge a book by its cover" was as true as ever.

"That's… really amazing." Justin said, still in shock from the sudden reveal. He turned his attention back to the brochure in his hands and more questions formed in his mind about Scott's offer. "Um, so I'm happy and all that you think I'm a good enough trainer to go to Pokemon Academy, but would the administrators approve of me going there, I mean it's a really elite school that really only accepts people who already have a good track record as a trainer and not to mention the tuition cost is high as well."

There were a lot of complications that Justin saw with this offer. As much as he would like to, blindly agreeing to Scott's offer wasn't the smart thing to do. There were tons of factors to consider before hastily making a decision.

"Oh I'm well aware of the costs of the academy and I know how daunting they can seem, but you don't need to worry about those." Justin raised his eyebrow at this statement. Scott dug through the pile of papers for a few seconds and pulled out an envelope. He handed it to Justin with a smile and Justin held it gingerly in his hands while looking over the front of it. It had the official Pokemon Academy emblem which consisted of a golden Pokeball surrounded by black laurels. Justin looked to Scott, visually asking him if it was ok to open the envelope, to which he nodded in reply.

Justin carefully unsealed the envelope, careful not to rip it unnecessarily. From within, there was a folded piece of paper which he promptly removed and unfolded. It was a letter of some sort and the Academy emblem was emblazoned on it as well. Justin's eyes wandered to the top where the bold writing was located and read the text aloud for the others to hear.

"Pokemon Academy Scholarship Program." Justin looked towards Scott and asked, "Scholarship?"

"Yes, for you to attend the Academy. The scholarship would cover the education costs and the boarding fees, that would solve your problems wouldn't it?"

"But aren't there prerequisites for scholarships like writing an essay or having an exceptional trainer record?" Scott simply shook his head in response.

"That's what the admins would tell you, but to me, all of that extra stuff doesn't matter."

"What do you mean? Wouldn't you get in trouble for bending the rules like that?" Justin inquired.

"Well… yes I suppose, but the whole point of the Academy is to give talented trainers the best education possible and there is a lot of talent out there that may struggle to meet the tuition out there. The scholarships are there to help people with that, but having people write extensive essays or have some other form of entry just seems unnecessary to me."

"Why do you think that?" Scott tipped his glasses down, revealing his small yet energetic eyes.

"If it were up to me, just someone who loves their Pokemon as wholeheartedly as you deserves a scholarship." Justin already knew that Scott was passionate about Pokemon, but he never thought he'd be this passionate about it. He really believed in that philosophy of his, even if it meant risking his job. "So what will it be Justin?"

"Of course it's a yes for me, but…"

"But?" Scott repeated in a questioning tone, obviously wondering why Justin was having second thoughts about the amazing offer placed in front of him.

"I'd have to talk it over with my family first." Scott facepalmed and laughed heartily.

"Oh, of course! I forgot all about what your parents might've thought about this whole arrangement. Well if it isn't too much of a bother, I can come with you when you talk with them. I'm sure it'd help if I was there to explain the experience for them." Scott's suggestion was sound and it was the best course of action to take.

"Well we should get going once our Pokemon come back from their treatment, my dad should be back home by now and my mom won't have to go to work just yet." Justin checked his Xtransceiver for how much time they would have and it there was still a few hours before his mom would have to leave.

"Excuse me?" Nurse Joy's voice rang from around the corner and the group of four turned their attention towards her. She motioned behind her and Audino walked into view, carrying the Pokeball tray which contained the boy's Pokemon. "Your Pokemon are all patched up now, they should be just fine."

"Thanks Nurse Joy." Justin said as he picked up Frogadier's Pokeball.

"It's no problem at all, how's the family doing?" Nurse Joy asked with a smile.

"Just fine, Reese is still a handful sometimes, but there's never a dull moment with her around." Placing Frogadier's Pokeball back into his backpack, Justin motioned for the others to come along. "Well, we've got to get going now, there's some business I need to take care of."

"I see, stay safe you three." The group waved farewell to Nurse Joy and Audino and exited the Pokemon Center, relieved that their Pokemon were feeling better.

"Justin, me and Joey are gonna go back to houses now." Larry proclaimed with Joey nodding at his side. "We'll let you and Mr. Scott handle talking to your parents."

"Good luck Justin, Your parents will let you go I just know it! Oh, and thanks for saving us!" Joey said excitedly.

"No problem you two, I'm just glad you're not hurt. Tell your parents hello for me." The two boys nodded and ran off around the street corner and suddenly, it was very quiet. It certainly was a lot more noisy when they were around.

"Are you sure now would be a good time for me to stop by your house Justin?" Scott asked.

"Yeah, it shouldn't be a problem, when do you have to go back the academy?"

"Towards the end of the month, ample time to come up with a decision if we can't get an answer by today." That would be plenty of time for his parents to mull it over.

"Well, let's get this over with, follow me." Justin lead Scott to his house, a cozy two-story with its walls painted a light beige color. "This is my humble abode." He knocked on the door and could hear the footsteps of his mother come towards the door.

"Justin? You're back already?"

"Y-Yeah, some… things came up that made me come home early."

"You're not hurt are you?"

"No Mom."

"..." His mother paused and Justin waited patiently for her to speak again. "You didn't get into trouble did you?"

"What? No! Just open up Mom, I brought someone over and I have something you need to hear."

"You brought company? The house is a mess, just give me a few minutes to tidy up alright." His mother stormed away from the door before Justin could protest. He was sure that she was cleaning up whatever mess was inside at a lightning fast pace. Justin looked back slowly at Scott who lightly chuckled.

"Moms will be Moms I guess." Scott said as he shrugged his shoulders.

"I suppose so…" Justin sighed deeply and his thoughts drifted towards the idea of attending Pokemon Academy. He hadn't had the chance to really let it sink in that he might be able to attend that school. All the amazing things he'd be able to learn and all the experiences that could come from being there excited him greatly. He wanted to tell his parents as quickly as possible, but from the sounds of the vacuum within the house, Justin would just have to wait a little while longer.

Hey guys, been awhile! Been really busy with some end of the semester work for College and finals will be next week as well so I haven't been able to put a lot of time into writing, plus the Overwatch open beta is out and I've been dying to play it since last year so that cuts into my time too, but my schedule should be freed up after next week so long waits for chapters like this one shouldn't happen very often. Please leave a review if you have anything to say and favorite this story if you really like it, see you guys next time!