Chapter Three: Remembering Home
KEY:
"(blah blah)" – pokemon talking (I figured I'd make it easy on myself)
*Flashback* – a character is recalling a previous memory (written as the person recalling it)
Italics – Thoughts
Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.
A/N: I think when I post my stories on fanfiction my breaks aren't translating. I don't want to confuse anyone so I'm starting to put –transition- when the POV changes. I hope that helps. Enjoy!
"Skylar!" Barked a voice that held a certain level of authority in it that was hard to disobey.
"Calm your Rapidashes, sir. I'm here."
"This part of the plan must be carried out with the utmost care! If you fail me, this will be the end of your career! I hope you comfortable with a broom and mop!"
"Reeeelax boss! No one can resist the charms of 'Kyarls 'Ky' Rarst.'"
"The best you could come up with was rearranging the letters of your name?!"
"It'll work, don't worry," said the peon winking and making himself comfortable on one of the chairs in the office.
"Then get down to Littleroot before your only friends are sweeper and mop-head!"
"While I'm capturing the heart of the fair Champion Reina...work on your threats...'kay boss?"
-transition-
"Hello?" Answered Louis, annoyed that someone was interrupting his training.
"Son, it's your father. You need to come home immediately. There's been an accident at the Sorensen home...Mr. And Mrs. Sorensen are dead."
"Dead...?"
"Their house collapsed on them after an electrical fire started. Reina will be staying at our house until she returns to Ever Grande. Put your petty rival differences aside and be the friend that she needs right now. I'll be expecting you by nightfall." His pokenav clicked indicating the other party hung up.
"Reina's parents are dead...? How tragic... I can't fathom what she's going through right now...Just think of the ways this'll affect her." He paused and let a giant devilish grin spread across his face. "HOW PERFECT! I must challenge her as soon as the doors open." He recalled all this pokemon besides Tropius. "Larlah!" She turned to face her owner. "We need to fly to Littleroot, fast as possible." She climbed into the sky and began the speedy trip to his hometown. Distant storm clouds from the south could be seen creeping closer.
-transition-
Reina stood motionless in front of what was left of her old house. Burnt wood scattered the land, nothing was left standing. The outlines of her house were burned into the ground, forever a reminder that her house once stood here. She couldn't take her eyes away, her mouth in an open frown. Since the moment she landed she couldn't move or speak. The only thing that showed signs of life were in her eyes as they teared up as her mind automatically recalled the last time she was here: to pack.
*Flashback*
"Reina darling!" squealed mom running up to me outside the house. Giving me a famous momma bear hug, she quickly said more things in a high pitch voice that I couldn't understand.
"Mom...crushing...me."
"Oh, sorry honey!" she laughed. "Come on inside, love! Your dad is inside making us some lunch." Walking through the front door caused the all too familiar smell to fill my nostrils: home. An unmistakable smile spread across my face as the next most noticeable smell appeared: my favorite meal consisting of mashed potatoes, gravy, chopped up turkey, broccoli and Pineapple Orange juice.
"Dad! You didn't have to make that just for me."
"It's an honorary meal for my daughter because she became recognized as it the best trainer in Hoenn. I think that calls for celebration." He left his post at the stove to hug me and kissed my forehead. "Besides, we won't be seeing you much after today...you'll be busy." My mother sniffled.
"Aw, guys, this doesn't mean I'm just gonna leave home and never return. I'll always visit on the days off I have, and for holidays. Artemis can make it here in an hour, not even at her fastest speed, we just clocked it. So I can be here in minutes really if you think about how far away Ever Grande is."
"Really? That's amazing! You have to let me see your pokemon again before you leave. How's Apollo?" Dad always got excited over my team, being a Gym Leader and all.
"He's perfect, Dad." I answered. "Yesterday a pokemon coordinator came in to evaluate everyone and said that Apollo is the fastest pokemon he's ever seen. But don't let Artemis know that. The coordinator told me that it's mind blowing that Artemis is as fast as she is with her size. But that makes a deadly threat, size and speed! Oh, and Athena is special too, he said. Usually Gardevoir have one of two special abilities, and she has both! Zeus has the better special ability too for his type. He can't be knocked out by one-hit-KO's! Aries' fire attacks were measured at 1500 degrees Fahrenheit too. Which is utterly amazing. Poseidon is a beast in the water, too. He can swim up to 80 miles an hour so far and has room to improve!" I was breathless by the time I finished gushing over them and had sat down with everyone about to eat lunch.
"They sound perfect to breed too," my mom had recovered and had become very interesting in all the perks in my team. "Not that I'm suggesting anything, but a lot of people would love a pokemon descended from Champion pokemon..."
"I think I'll pass, Mom," I answered laughing a little. "I'm flattered, though."
"They've grown so much too since you battled me," Dad said. "Granted you didn't have your whole team back then, but Apollo has improved triple fold at least."
The rest of the meal consisted of more pokemon talk as well as sharing childhood memories, gossiping about recent events, reminiscing with old photos and conversing about dad's gym and mom's breeding services. After helping with the dishes, Dad insisted he check out my pokemon along with Mom. We went to our backyard and I released my pokemon. Realizing all of them were at my home away from home, the mood elevated quickly. While Mom was checking out Zeus, Poseidon and Aries, Dad observed all the quirks and abilities from Athena, Apollo and Artemis. I looked at both of them and smiled. My family had many connections with pokemon, and maybe that's what caused my strong bonds with them.
Once the excitement finally ebbed over my team and they had examined every angle and quirk, the time for packing had arrived. Mom's mood dropped a little, but she did her best to hide it. My room was the same as I left it when I departed on my journey what seemed so long ago. More memories flooded my mind as my childhood flashed through my mind. Playing my NES on my TV, watching other region's championships...rearranging my pokemon dolls over and over...waiting for Dad to come home from the gym to give me my kiss goodnight...
We brought in Zeus to help with packing, which came in handy with the bigger stuff such as the Wailmer Doll that Lanette gave me. Mom broke out a sob every once in a while, but tried to cover it by coughing or sneezing and blaming it on allergies. Soon everything was downstairs, Zeus and Apollo started carrying boxes to the port off of Odale town where the League submarine was docked to transport everything to the headquarters.
"Promise to call and visit when you can?" Mom asked.
"Of course, as much as I can."
"I'm going to miss you so much, dolly." The mention of my nickname was enough to make some of my own tears to appear.
"I'm going to miss you too, Mom." I hugged her, and the momma bear hug made another appearance. After checking for injuries, I hugged Dad.
"You keep your eye on the prize whenever those trainers start coming. My daughter is a Champion. No matter what happens."
"You know me, Dad. Losing is not an option." He tightened the hug.
"Be nice though, honey."
"I will, Mom." Tears sparkling in my eyes, I gave my final goodbyes, hugs and kisses. Apollo and Zeus were back, signaling the time to leave was upon us. "I love you guys." I choked up.
"We love you too, honey," Dad responded.
"Don't forget to keep in touch!" Mom reminded.
"I won't, don't you worry Mom. I love you." I looked at them one more time, not knowing when I'd see them next. I saved the image in my mind of them standing in the doorway: my father's arm around my mother's shoulder...both smiling and waving me farewell.
*End Flashback*
Tears continuously rolled down Reina's cheek. Artemis nudged her slightly and wrapped a wing around her protectively. The last image she had of her parents stuck in her mind. She focused all her energy in preserving it. Maybe a little too much energy, Reina's knees buckled beneath her. Artemis moved her wing down to her trainer. And cooed softly as more crying started.
"I-I-I'm s-s-s-so sorry," Reina repeated over and over. Her schedule had been so hectic except for today that she never had the time to come visit again. The occasional phone call was made, but they only lasted a few minutes. The last words she heard her parents say were "We're so proud of you, honey. We love you!" on a message left on her answering machine. The tears rushed harder. Athena came out on her own. She laid a hand on Reina's free shoulder and cried with her. Artemis shed a few tears as well seeing her friends in pain.
"Reina?" At the sound of the voice, Artemis whipped around with lightning speed in a defensive pose with talons arched. "Artemis! It's okay, It's just me, Professor Birch!" He stumbled back a few steps. Artemis relaxed quickly and bowed her head ashamed. "Don't worry about it, I shouldn't have snuck up from behind. Honest mistake."
Wiping the tears away, Reina slowly stood and faced the Professor. "Sorry for my condition, Professor. How are you?"
"No one expects anything grand from you right now, Reina. We're all grieving with you. My wife has prepared our guest room for you, and is open for you if you'd like to stay with us through this whole ordeal."
"Thank you, Professor. I appreciate your hospitality." Along with Athena and Artemis, Reina followed the Professor to his house. The short walk only took them around the corner from her old house. Upon entering, Reina called Artemis back to her poke ball after thanking her for the company, and promised to take a flight on her soon. Athena stayed her which was for the best due to her ability to keep her emotions intact.
"REINA!" a little boy darted from the living room couch to the door once she stepped through. "I can't believe it's you! YOU RULE! And you have...A-the-Athena!" the boy was star struck.
"Joey!" called Mrs. Birch. "Don't bug her, honey. Hello, Reina. I'm sorry about him, he gets really excited very easily."
"It's no problem," she managed to smile. "Always nice to meet a fan."
With eyes still wide, Joey stuttered out "C-c-c-can I t-t-ttt-talk with Athe-Athena?"
"Sure you can," answered Athena. All heads turned.
"You can speak now?" exclaimed Reina.
"I've been working on it for a few weeks now. I've picked up on a lot that everyone has said, and I finally put everything together. Joey, was it? It's a pleasure to meet you." Athena had a higher toned voice that sounded like a crystal clear bell chime. She could have been singing. With eyes still wide, he brought her to the living room where they could talk more.
"Your pokemon never cease to amaze, Reina," chuckled Birch. "Even though Louis is Joey's brother, he still roots for both of you. I don't know what he'll do when Louis takes you on."
"I'd hope he'd root for his brother," Reina said. "I know Louis will need it. Not that I'm saying that your son is a bad trainer, he's not." She grimaced. She started an apology before being cut off.
"It's quite alright, dear," Mrs. Birch smiled. "Would you like something to drink?"
"No, thank you," she replied. "Professor? Have any...plans been made?"
"Just the basics. They wanted to ask you about specifics once you arrived. I'd expect them sometime later tonight...but if you'd rather handle everything tomorrow, I'm sure they wouldn't mind."
"Tonight is fine," said Reina. "Would you mind assisting me though, professor? I've never really done anything like this before."
"Of course," he smiled. "If you'd like, I can show you your room so you can unpack."
"Thank you." Birch led her up the stairs into a hallway with three doors.
"This door on the right is the bathroom. The first on the left is your room, and the second is Louis'. He should be here tonight as well. Make yourself at home, and if there is anything you need, don't hesitate to ask."
"Thank you again, professor." She managed a smile. He smiled back, so it must have been convincing. The room she was staying in was small and quaint, but made her feel at home. Which brought tears to her eyes, she tried her hardest to fight back. However, whenever she started crying, there was no way to stop it. She sat on the bed looking out the window, the remains from her house were visible. There was nothing left. All the memories had in that house were limited only to life her memory gave them. This fact shook Reina to the core, causing more and more tears to make an appearance.
-transition-
"Hello, you've reached Reina's voice mail. I can't answer at the moment, I'm probably busy doing Championship stuff cause I'M CHAMPION NOW! Haha, leave a message after the beep!" At the sound of the beep, Steven hung up, frustrated again. This was the fourth time he tried calling her, and fourth time to reach her voice mail. He had urgent instructions he needed to give her about opening day. He sighed and looked around his office. About the size of a classroom, there was plenty of room for anything he needed. He turned in his chair to gaze out upon the city. Looking out upon the quaint city of Rustboro always relaxed him. He could see everything. Even to the tunnel that laid a mile and a half away.
"Steven, sir," came a voice. It was his receptionist. "You have a call on line two from Slateport Industries."
"Thank you, Carlie." He responded. He answered the call about the Slateport Industries' need for one of the Stone Corporations' ships for a huge load being taken to Lilycove. Accepting, he arranged the details and thanked them for their business. "Carlie," he started. "If a representative comes from Slateport, allow him to do what is necessary for the ship. It's docked in Odale town."
"Thank you, sir." Speaking to her reminded him of the old receptionist back at the League he had. He mentally berated himself for not thinking of this before. He hurriedly pulled out his pokenav and dialed a number.
"Hello, Pokemon League Headquarters in Ever Grande City this is Lola speaking, how may I help you?"
"Hello, Lola, this is Steven. Is Reina available? She's not answering her pokenav and there's some last minute Champion things I need to instruct her on."
Lola hesitated before continuing saying, "She's not here in the City anymore. She left for Littleroot after she received a letter. She instructed me not to release any details I may uncover. But she did seem very distraught."
"Thank you, Lola." Steven hung up. "Interesting..." Steven dialed another number.
A female answered with a slightly saddened tone. "Birch residence, this is Beth."
"Mrs. Birch? This is Steven Stone. Is your husband available?"
"Oh, hello Steven! One moment please." He waited around for a few minutes and tried listening to background noise. He heard a faint laugh from a high pitch voice along with one slightly deeper one. And then "She's all set, but I suggest we wait a few minutes before asking her about dinner."
"Hello?" Came the professor's voice. It sounded very down.
"Professor, it's Steven."
"Oh, hello!" he sounded like he was trying to sound happier. "What can I do for you?"
"I was wondering if something happened in Littleroot...I need to talk to Reina about last minute things and she isn't answering her pokenav. The receptionist at the League Headquarters said she went immediately to Littleroot for some emergency. Do you know where she is?"
"Uhm," stuttered the Professor. "She is here in Littleroot...but I'm unsure how much she wants everyone to know. She's staying with us this weekend...Why don't you come here and try talking to her? I'm sure she'd love to have you here."
"I'll be right there, thank you." After hanging up he grabbed his pokemon and left a note for his father on his desk saying he's making a quick trip to Littleroot to check out something. He instructed Carlie to hold his calls and take messages if needed. He left the Stone headquarters and took flight on Skarmory.
-transition-
"I'm hoooooome," called out Louis looking around to see if Reina was nearby. "Oh, hi Mom, Dad."
"Son!" Mrs. Birch ran out to the doorway and hugged Louis. "Oh, I've missed you so much!"
"I've missed you too. Hey, Dad," he made the hugs short.
"Hello, Son," he smiled hugging him. He could tell he was looking for Reina. "Thank you for coming. Reina is in the guest bedroom right now. I wouldn't bother her, though. She's unpacking."
"Of course," he showed a small smile. He paused as he heard the sound of rain beginning to fall which turned into a downpour. Distant rumbles of thunder could be heard. He smiled again. "How is she doing?"
"Best she can, I guess..." the professor responded looking out the window at the change in weather. "For what all has gone on so far. By the way, Steven just called. He should be here in a few minutes as well. He said he needed to talk to Reina about some things. So let them have their privacy."
"Oh, I need to prepare more food!" Exclaimed Mrs. Birch. She ran off to the kitchen and busily pulled out more food.
"Big Brother!" shouted Joey running over to hug him.
"Hey, Joey," he said trying to not sound too annoyed.
"Did you know Athe-Atheeena can talk! It's amazing!"
"Of course she fucking can." He growled in his mind. "Wow, that's pretty impressive."
"Can your pokemon do that?"
"Not yet..." he said furrowing his brow Maybe Joey wasn't lying.
"Let me know when they can! I wanna talk to them!" Reina and Athena came into the living room.
"Hello, Louis," Reina tried smiling. Her eyes were slightly red; he could tell she had been crying. "Sorry to invade your house like this..."
"It's quite alright, Rei." Reina flinched slightly at the use of her nickname. Inside, Louis smiled. "Anything we can do to help we will do in a heartbeat." He came over to hug her. Reina looked more uncomfortable as he approached but accepted the hug. Athena growled quietly, she could sense the secret joy he was having. Louis smiled at her smugly. A knock was heard from the front door. Professor Birch hurried to answer it.
"Come on in, come on in. Crazy weather right?" he answered. Two men in blue suits entered the house and did their best to dry themselves without getting the floor wet. Reina approached the door.
"Hello, you must be Reina." said the first man. "My name is Daniel, and this is my partner Chris. We're with the Odale Funeral Service. May we talk to you in private?" Reina nodded solemnly and added that the Professor would be helping her with the arrangements. Professor Birch directed them to the living room where they could have some privacy.
"Who are those men, Mommy?" asked Joey.
"They're here to help Reina with a ceremony we have to go to soon."
"Is the ceremony in honor of Reina?"
"No, of her parents."
"Because their house burned down?"
"Yes, Joey," she answered trying to prevent herself from crying. "Reina's parents won't be coming back for a long, long time. So she has to honor them in a special way." She herself fought back a sob. "Come here and help me with Dinner. We're expecting another guest."
"I can help too, if you'd like," called Athena. Everyone jumped a bit at the sound of her voice. "I've helped Reina cook many times on the road."
"That'd be lovely, Athena." Mrs. Birch said slightly shocked. Louis' mouth dropped. So Joey wasn't lying. The sound of rain became more audible as it increased in strength. Flashes of lightning and rumbling thunder followed soon after. Louis began setting the table for six, which took some special maneuvering on their circular table. He planned to sit next to Reina, smirking to himself. Any discomfort he could cause her would only aid his cause.
"Should I get the door?" asked Athena.
"I didn't hear any-" a loud knocking on the door interrupted Mrs. Birch. "Oh," she laughed. "Go ahead." Athena glided to the door opening it quickly and beckoned the guest inside attempting to keep as much water outside as possible. Steven appeared in the living room, soaking. She closed her eyes for a brief second before opening them. Steven was completely dry. She took his coat and hung it on the nearest peg.
"Thank you, Athena" he said with an impressed tone.
"You're very welcome," she replied smiling. Steven's eyes widened slightly, but smiled anyways. He muttered something, which could only be made out to sound like 'very talented.'
"Hello, Mrs. Birch," he greeted her with a hug. "It's been such a long time. Louis, hello. Where are Reina and the professor?"
"They're in the living room talking with representatives from the-"she caught herself before finishing. "They'll be finished shortly." She assured. He didn't have time to ask her to clarify before a small boy entered from the kitchen.
"Hey mom can I-It's STEVEN!" gasped Joey. "Before Reina, you were my idol! You battle so good! THIS IS THE BEST NIGHT EVER!"
Steven smiled. "Thank you, you must be Joey?"
"HE KNOWS MY NAME!" he exclaimed. "MOM! HE KNOWS MY NAME!"
"Honey, quiet down. We don't want to disturb our other guests. You'll join us for dinner, won't you Steven?" asked Mrs. Birch.
"I'd love to, thank you."
"STE-" started Joey. "I mean, Steven! You can sit next to me! And then Reina can sit on the other side of me! It'll be so awesome!"
"Sounds like a plan, Joey." He said ruffling Joey's hair. Joey nearly fainted from the excitement.
"So you're the guy Rei beat, huh?" inquired Louis trying to downplay the situation as much as possible. Athena growled again quietly. Steven gave her a side look before answering.
"That'd be me."
"You must have been pretty good to only leave her with one pokemon left. I saw the battles. Athena, you were knocked out first, weren't you?" Athena scowled, but resorted back to her calm face as quick as the scowl had appeared.
"Athena battled beautifully. As you should recall, she fainted two of my pokemon. She also was able to set up protections for her whole team."
Louis pouted a little bit and scoffed. Before a retort could be made, the two men, the Professor and Reina, whose face was a tad redder, came into the kitchen/dining area. The two men said goodbye to everyone before running out in the rain to their car.
"Steven!" Reina said surprised. She wiped her eyes again trying to make herself look presentable quickly. "I didn't know you were here..."
"I've been trying to reach you all day, important League things…" he said gently seeing her state. He had an overwhelming urge to hug her. "I decided to call Lola and she told me you were in Littleroot. So I called Professor Birch and he told me you were here, but not why...Who were those men? Not any pesky news reporters or anything I hope."
"Come on, Louis, Joey, let's go make your beds." Mrs. Birch rushed them out of the room. "Honey, keep an eye on dinner for me." The professor nodded going back to the kitchen, understanding the underlying request.
"But Moooom," whined Joey. "I helped you make them earlier today!"
"We need to help your brother get settled!" She said changing her strategy. "Now come on, dear. You can show your brother your pokemon trading cards…" Joey's eyes widened and ran up the stairs.
"Did you notice anything on your way here?" asked Reina once they were alone.
"No...it was raining too hard to see. Weird how the weather crept up on us. Must be a front coming from the south."
"There was a fire just around the corner a few days ago." Reina stopped and began crying. "It was m-m-my hou-ou-se. My parents b-both died." She broke down again.
"Oh my," gaped Steven. "Reina...I'm so sorry." She embraced him with a secure hug, placing her forehead on his shoulder due to his height. Shocked slightly, he slowly wrapped his arms around her. Athena stood beside them and concentrated on trying to make her master feel better.
"I'm s-s-sorry I haven't checked my poken-n-nav today...I totally forgot about it."
"Don't worry about it," he replied. He was unsure how long the hug should go on for. "I can understand why."
"Do we need to talk about whatever you needed to now?" she asked still in the same position trying to recover from her recent bit of crying.
"Not at all," he said still slightly unsure of what to do or say. "It can wait." Steven loosened his embrace ever so slightly in case she wanted to stop the hug. She didn't move. He smiled slightly.
"She wants to be comforted." Echoed a voice in his head.
He looked at Athena, who smiled, going back to the kitchen. Still slightly puzzled, he went with what he felt he should do; he absent mindedly rubbed Reina's back while laying his head carefully on hers. Reina blushed slightly, only quietly sobbing now.
"It's going to be OK," assured Steven quietly. "I'll be here to do anything you need me to. I want to make things easy as possible for you."
"I really appreciate it," she sniffled and straightened up. Steven gave her room. "I should probably inform the Elite Four…and the other gym leaders…they knew my dad really well…"
"When should that be done?"
"You don't have to," she replied looking away.
"I'm here to help. You making all those phone calls won't help you feel better. I'll get started tonight after dinner." Reina nodded in reply looking at the floor. He realized the men from earlier must have been the funeral planners.
"Thank you, Steven," she said turning back to him trying to smile.
"It's the least I can do. Why don't you go relax? I'll see if the professor needs any help."
-transition-
Mrs. Birch, Louis and Joey had come back from the bedrooms and helped put dinner on the elongated dinner table. Steven helped the professor make the table bigger to accommodate everyone, much to Louis' dismay after setting the table previously. Athena had gone to find Reina and bring her down for dinner while everyone took their seats. Joey reminded Steven that he was sitting next to him and Reina on his other side. This left the open seat for Reina between Joey and Louis.
Reina entered and took her seat. "I'm sorry I wasn't down here right away. I hope you weren't waiting long." Athena moved to the living room to meditate to the falling rain.
"Not at all dear, everyone eat up!" proclaimed Mrs. Birch starting to pass around the food. The meal started in an uncomfortable silence until Joey was overexcitedly asking his brother, Steven and Reina all sorts of questions about their adventures. It helped lighten the mood slightly.
"Louis called home after you beat him in Fortree," said Joey shoving his mouth full of potatoes. Louis rolled his eyes. "He said your Lairon evolved into Aggron DURING the battle! HOW COOL WAS THAT?!" He struggled slightly with the names but everyone knew what he meant.
"It's always a proud moment when you see your pokemon evolve," replied Reina trying to cover up how she was actually feeling. "Raising that evolution line isn't an easy thing to do, so when I saw Aggron it was an amazing feeling. I can help you catch an Aron sometime if you'd like and you can see for yourself."
Joey nodded excitedly while he swallowed. Louis scowled at his meal as he recalled the battle.
"I remember watching that battle," Steven said seeing the look on Louis' face. "They almost battled right in the middle of the city. Winona let them use a practice arena after hearing all the commotion. It's a shame that you, Louis, didn't stay after the match. I showed Reina how to use a new product I was showcasing there called the Devon Scope that could reveal the invisible Kecleon that were plaguing the city. A few were even blocking the exit to the next route. Reina handled those quickly, though." Reina smiled slightly.
"Isn't that why you called us Louis?" asked Mrs. Birch. "You couldn't figure out why you kept running into things?" Louis' face turned a slight red before changing the subject completely.
"How's that Mudkip doing, Dad?" Everyone faltered slightly at the change in conversation.
"He's a Swampert now!" Professor Birch said proudly once he recovered.
"Swampert?" questioned Reina. "You mean the starter neither Louis or I picked is now a Swampert?"
"Yea," he smiled even bigger. "I go around sometimes and battle too."
"Way to go, Dad," Louis scoffed. "What's Joey going to use for a starter?"
"I'll get more starters in a few years. There's a special island that hosts all of them."
"Does that mean I'm not going to have a pokemon to start?" he was tearing up.
"No no no, son," he started. "You'll get to have first pick from a whole new batch! That means you can pick torchic like your brother if you wanted."
"Or treecko like I did," added Reina.
He lit up immediately. "Okay!" Content, he finished his meal while whispering quietly about his decision for what starter he wanted. Steven picked up the mood for the rest of the meal talking about the professor's newest research or the hobbies that Mrs. Birch had picked up. He noticed Reina smiling occasionally too, even though she barely touched her food. He did his best to involve Louis in all topics, who gave little more than two or three worded answers.
"They say that the Legendary pokemon are going to become active again sometime too, as they do every 100 years or so," said Steven. He turned to Joey. "Have you heard of them, Joey? There are a lot of them."
"Only about Rayqu-uaza," he stumbled out.
"Oh yes," smiled Steven. "He's the big guy. Legends say the Regis, Regirock, Regice, and Registeel, need to be unlocked by a special combination of moves and pokemon. The Latis, Latios and Latias, will appear to only those worthy of their abilities. However, they still have to go through the trickery of catching them. And the right hands of Rayquaza: Kyogre and Groudon. Kyogre represents the Legend of the sea, while Groudon the Lord of Land. You have a chance of finding and capturing them by following bizarre weather patterns that correspond with their type. If a sudden drought appears, then Groudon is near that area. Same with a sudden heavy rainfall in another area with Kyogre. The easy part is finding all them. The real challenge is trying to capture them, no one has managed it so far. But you look the man for the task, Joey."
Joey's eyes lit up. "I'm gonna get Rayquaza! Oh My Gosh! I SAID IT! Rayquaza Rayquaza Rayquaza!"
"Good job, Joey. Now finish your potatoes before they get cold" said his mother unenthusiastically. Without Joey asking all sorts of questions, the dinner fell into a somewhat comfortable silence. The sound of falling rain was soothing background noise that most everyone was in tune with. Once Mrs. Birch got up to bring her dishes to the kitchen, the tension was broken.
"Would you like my help in cleaning up, Mrs. Birch?" asked Reina standing up.
"No, thank you though, dearie. Louis will help me." Louis groaned turning around and gathered more plates.
"It was a lovely meal, Mrs. Birch!" thanked Steven. She smiled from the kitchen. He turned his attention to Reina who had moved to the living room, staring out a window facing what he assumed to be where her house was. "I'll start on the phone calls."
She jumped a little bit at his words, having been in deep thought. "You really don't have to..."
"I want to," he said "You don't have to go through this alone. I could tell you were very close to your parents." Reina just nodded looking away again to hide her tears. "I'll start with the Elite Four."
"No," Reina said turning around. "I should call them. No offense, I think it might come off as weak if someone else told them something like this. I need to show them I'm strong and I'll be okay." She walked off to the living room. Steven stood there dumbfounded for a moment before smiling.
"She certainly is champion material."
A/N: This chapter isn't my favorite, mostly just filler character development. Originally the next chapter was a giant dedication to Reina's parent's funeral, but I'm not sure which way I'll go yet. I don't want to stay in this down-heartened state for too much longer. There is exciting darkness brewing on the horizon :) Stay tuned! Chapter 4 will be here shortly :) Thank you all so much for reading :)
