Chapter Four: Final Preparations
The day had become golden in the time that it had taken Rin to discover and choose her partner, illuminating the laboratory brilliantly through all of its numerous windows. It made her blonde hair nearly white when she would pass beneath a pool of light, the silver halo it created dancing around her head. This was disrupted often however, seeing as she kept ducking her head down to peer at her Pokémon. Every time this would happen, he seemed to sense her gaze and blue eyes would meet green, staring at one another for immeasurable amounts of time. Then she would giggle, his tail would wag, and their eyes would both turn forward once again.
It had been an easy, natural, and instinctive gesture for Rin to extend her arms in the enclosure and gather the Poochyena mix into them, whispering as she did so, "Would you like to go on a journey with me?" Her answer had been a soft huff and a warm tongue swiped across her cheek.
And he had remained in her arms since, looking around interestedly as they made their way back through the laboratory, her pointing out some of the other species of Pokémon to him.
All of them, big or small, seemed to be a surprise to him each and every time he would look to where her finger was pointing. She soon discovered that they were a surprise to him because he had never opened his eyes before. Her appearance and sorrow had affected him to the point where he finally wanted to view the world around him. Now, each time his brilliant blue eyes were turned in her direction, she couldn't help the surge of humble gratitude that flooded her.
They had just passed by the last of the enclosures when the professor turned to the right and opened a door that was labeled with a large OFFICE] on the front of it. He politely gestured for Rin and her companion to enter first, saying as he did so, "Go ahead and take whichever seat you would like."
As girl and Pokémon entered the room, it didn't take long for both of them to agree on a comfortable looking armchair situated in front of an expansive desk. Cradling the Poochyena in first one arm and then the next, Rin slipped her backpack from her shoulders and placed it next to the chair before sinking onto the cushion, gently placing her new companion onto her lap. He rather quickly situated himself in such a way as to be able to turn his head back and forth in order to look between the two humans as they talked, which he did after interestedly watching Pine as he moved around the desk and sat in another chair. Rin couldn't help but notice that the little gray canine leaned away slightly from the professor, though she didn't understand why. He didn't seem too know why either, showing in the way he continually glanced at the man and tipped his head to one side a little. What ever the reason, she hoped he would relax soon.
Settling back into his chair, the professor smiled warmly at the pair, running one hand through his short green hair for a moment before saying, "Now that you have made your decision, one which I wouldn't have let any ordinary trainer choose, it's time to get the final pieces into place so that you two can hightail it out of here." As he spoke, he reached into a drawer and pulled out a thick piece of paper and a pen. The latter was tapped briefly on the surface of the desk before he continued. "I think we should start in that direction by filling out your trainer card. Sound good?"
Rin nodded her head and smiled softly. "I think that is a good idea," she said in agreement, a little embarrassed that he didn't think of her as an ordinary trainer.
Nodding his head, Professor Pine clicked the pen and began to write. "Trainer's name is Rin Hall," he said first, mischievously giving her a playful wink while she herself felt another rush of gratitude towards this man. He turned his eyes back towards his writing and continued to talk out loud as he moved the pen over the smooth surface of the paper. "Your age is seventeen... And your birthday is the 27th of October."
As he reached the next section however, he hesitated and glanced up once again. But instead of looking at Rin, he was studying her Poochyena, eyebrows lifted. Then he very carefully wrote the next portion. "I think, for the sake of simplicity, we will put your starter as a Poochyena mix. Is there a name you would like to give him?"
At first, Rin had opened her mouth to ask what specific species her Pokémon was made of. But the question was enough to give her pause and made her mouth slowly close. For a long minute, her bright green eyes flickered over the creature in her lap, trying to decide on a name that would be suitable for him. As she studied him, she noticed more details of his differences she hadn't initially seen in the enclosure. The first of these had actually been when his head was turned towards the Professor, listening intently to the sound of the pen scratching away and the words he was speaking. The backs of his ears were both a dark and rich plum color, the shading just beginning to spill over the back of his neck in an uneven v pattern until it began to blend with the natural grey and faded away completely. Where this coloring ended, a brilliant white stripe as wide as two fingers traced along the length of his spine, ending several inches out onto his bushy tail, just before the black coloring at the end.
Pulling her thoughts back from the distraction of examining him when his brilliant blue eyes turned towards her, a look of curiosity within them, Rin hunted for the names that she had been thinking of, momentarily dropping her gaze to the faintest of brown coloring each of his toes.
"Toby?" she asked, looking up into those startling blue eyes.
Her response was a very evidently wrinkled muzzle and a soft snort.
She tried again. "Casper?"
This time she got a small growl followed by another snort.
"Okay. What about... Liam?" she continued, unable to help releasing a small giggle despite getting her names shot down.
A very simple but intent stare met this suggestion, his pointed ears turning back.
Going on the assumption that this was clearly a no, Rin thought for another couple of seconds before another name drifted to her, remembering her mother's Meowth she had owned as a girl. The same Meowth that had evolved into the Persian That had fought so desperately to save her life, only to succumb to his wounds and later die. The memory temporarily wiped the smile from her face, something close to an ache hitting her in the chest.
"Salem?" she tried, a nostalgic smile finally turning up the corners of her mouth.
All at once, the Poochyena's ears flew up and his expression seemed to become more intent at the same time. Slowly, he tilted his head slightly to one side. It was silent for several seconds before he suddenly huffed. Quick as thinking, he then placed his front paws onto her stomach as he arched his body to plant a lick squarely in the middle of her chin. He then sat back and proceeded to look rather proud of himself, maybe even a little bit smug as well. His tail started up a steady rhythm, thumping the side of her leg and the arm of the chair in turn.
Laughing softly as she proceeded to wipe off her chin with the sleeve of her shirt, Rin returned her gaze up to the professor.
"Salem seems to have won." She then gave a very generous ear scratching to the newly christened Salem.
"Salem it will be then," Pine finally managed to say after his own bout of laughter subsided, scratching the entry down onto the card. He made a few final notes, tapped something into the keyboard on the computer next to him on the desk, wrote a series of numbers across the top of the card and then held it out to her.
"You should be able to put that in the front of your Pokedex with the new design that they have. Congratulations Rin."
Gratefully accepting the rectangular piece of paper that would officially make her a trainer at last, Rin took a moment as she fished her Pokedex from the front of her backpack to let Salem get a chance to sniff it before she slid it into place on the inside cover. "Thank you, Professor," she said gratefully, running her eyes for a moment over the glossy piece of paper and his precise penmanship for a moment before shutting the device and slipping it back into her bag.
The site of her starter Pokémon's name and species had reawakened her curiosity from just a moment before. Running one of her fingertips across the middle most of a trio of dark stripes that cut their pattern in a crescent around each of Salem's forelegs, she found herself with an opportunity to finally ask the question that had been burning in her from the moment she had first met him. "Um, professor? ... what species exactly make up Salem's DNA?"
Pine looked up from where he had been putting the pen away in the drawer and seemed slightly surprised. Shutting the drawer with a soft thud, he straightened up in his chair and nodded his head. "A very good question to ask." He seemed to be absorbed by his thoughts for a moment, eyes growing distant as he thought over her question. There was no need to find a file with an exact list printed on it. He had had that knowledge burned into his memory the instant he discovered it. With a soft sigh, he leaned his long arms against the surface of the desk, supporting his weight on his elbows.
"As I'm sure you have already surmised, the majority of his DNA consists of that of a Poochyena. I believe that was what he was meant to be originally, what he was inside of his egg," he started. "The second greatest amount of data comes from the genetics of a Houndour. Smaller in quantity, but still playing a factor in his structural design are both the DNA of a Lillipup and a Growlithe, both with equal parts... And the last piece of the puzzle, as it were, and the most surprising to me is the small amount of DNA that comes from a Stunky. Quite the mix of typing he has there," The Professor concluded with a gentle smile.
As each different species was named, what they had contributed to the Pokémon sitting in her lap became evident one by one. Different aspects of his body structure clicked into place and finally made sense, completing the picture as a whole. Smiling gently, Rin gathered Salem into her arms once more and planted a kiss on the top of his head, right between his velvet ears. "Perfect," she said simply, the tempo of his tail increasing as he nuzzled himself up beneath her chin.
"I wouldn't have let you take him as a partner if I didn't know that you felt that way," Pine said seriously, though the smile was still present in his features.
Rin studied his expression for a moment before she smiled herself, burying her face into Salem's soft fur. "I know... Thank you."
• • •
Rin and the professor stood in the open doorway of the laboratory several minutes later, the first with her backpack squarely situated on her shoulders once more and the latter with his arms folded across his chest as he had started asking any final questions before she would finally leave. Both of them had paused for the moment however, watching as Salem got his first chance to romp around the grass.
Having finally relaxed, he was happily and curiously attempting to sniff every square inch for minute details, but was quickly discovering that much of it smelled the same. Every now and then, a blade of grass would accidentally insert itself in one of his nostrils, resulting in a bout of sneezing. After about the third time this occurred, Nugget, Who had been brought outside after being collected from a cushion in the main room,slowly lifted her head from her front paws to quietly make a comment to the other Pokémon.. Whatever she had said, it caused Salem's ears to fly up and his expression to change to that of surprise. After a moment, he carefully lifted one of his own front paws and rubbed it against his nose on the side that the grass had been invasive. All at once, his expression changed to that of delighted surprise and he quickly sprinted over to the Slowpoke's side and seemed to launch into a series of questions, tail moving about a hundred miles a minute behind him, rocking the back half of his body slightly.
"It looks like Nugget can give some good advice," Pine commented with a slight chuckle, enjoying the site of the once broken Pokémon starting to become so full of life.
Rin felt herself smiling warmly, Green eyes flickering up to look at the professor. "It's because she has such a good trainer."
The professor looked surprised for a moment, before his expression melted into another smile and he slowly shook his head a few times. "Ms. Hall, you will one day discover that it has to do with the Pokémon and their own personalities too."
As her expression took on a thoughtful quality, he decided to ask the final questions before letting her go. As much as he enjoyed having her here and being able to talk with someone openly, especially about beings such as Pokémon, he shouldn't keep her much longer if she were to make any progress out of the valley today. "Are you sure you have everything that you need? What about pokeballs? Do you have enough healing items? Do you have enough food?"
Rin thought carefully over the supplies she had in her backpack that rested on her shoulders, going over everything twice just to be safe. She shook her head slightly and widened her smile. "I discovered a box that my mother had planned on giving me three years ago for my birthday. It had healing items, pokeballs, berry containers, and even a few accessories for Pokémon. I'm pretty much set on those grounds. As for food, I have a small stove and some dehydrated food that I can cook. Besides Professor, I'm sure there are a lot of people on the way and in all of the cities and towns that I will pass that wouldn't mind giving me something to eat."
"Fair enough," Pine responded, feeling some of the anxiety lift from his shoulders. "Are you also sure that your arm and eye are functioning properly?"
At this, she gave an experimental rotation of her robotic arm and concentrated on moving her similarly robotic eye. Both of them moved smoothly. "I made sure to have them in top shape status a few days ago. I'll get them checked out when I reach Goldust City."
Giving a nod of approval at her words, the professor finally had to admit that there probably wasn't anything that he himself could do more to help her. She had the items, she had the Pokémon, and she even had the right kind of attitude. He wouldn't be surprised if in the end she decided to become the Pokémon Champion. Sighing, he opened his arms wide to give the teenager one last hug before she would leave. Rin gratefully stepped into them and wrapped her own arms around his middle, giving him a gentle squeeze. There was a moment of silence before he finally patted the back of her head affectionately and they stepped away from each other.
"Be sure to keep Nugget and I updated on your progress."
Rin laughed, wiping away a few tears that had begun to spring up in her left eye. "I promise," she said simply, finally turning away and walking over to her Pokémon.
The Poochyena was watching her with concern and interest, tilting his head slightly as he peered up at her with his bright blue eyes. She smiled at him in reassurance before opening her arms. Salem didn't hesitate as he sprang into them. Fighting the feeling of breaking into tears, she held him close to her chest as she began to walk away, pausing only to give one last wave over her shoulder to the man and his Slowpoke that were waving back to her.