Back to the A plot now that the B plot said hi for a bit! :)
"Wow! I mean, we have a couple Training Centers on the Islands, but...that's HUGE!" Tracey's eyes were wide with awe as he took in the shining, brightly lit and well maintained large two-story green and white building the group was heading towards after their arrival in Pewter City. It was sitting proudly next to a somehow even bigger two-story purple building that was apparently a museum named, appropriately enough, the Pewter Museum of Science according to Tracey's tourist guide. The quartet of James, Tracey, Gary and Ash had arrived early that morning after a hearty breakfast thanks to Delia and a long trip on foot, leaving before daybreak with Growlie and Aria walking along on either side of the group to both help them navigate through the pitch black, maze-like Viridian Forest with the assistance of Aria's echolocation and as a deterrent to any would-be thieves potentially lurking. James had hoped the combination of the rather intimidating-looking Growlie and making the trip at such an odd hour would prevent any issues with the various roving bands of lawbreakers that seemed to infest Kanto like a bad case of fleas, and his plan worked.
It had been just over three weeks since Pikachu and Eevee unexpectedly entered Ash and Gary's lives along with Tracey and James, the latter pair alternating between crashing on the couch (in James' case) and the floor of either Ash or Gary's bedroom (in Tracey's case) at Delia's and Samuel's in exchange for buying food and helping with various chores, and Ash now felt (mostly) confident attempting what was officially known as the Indigo-Silver Joint League Trainer Licensing Exam. Tracey and Gary's assistance with hitting the books had definitely helped a lot, along with James showing Ash a few things hands-on, like how Pokéballs and some various Potions and other items worked and what their various effects were through James letting Ash examine and in some cases actually use a few of his cheaper supplies. James also had his Pokémon team conduct some mock battles so Ash could get a feel for the battling portion of the exam and what it would likely entail, the Pokémon always either deliberately missing or greatly holding back during their attacks though Ash could still at least get a general idea.
James' Pokémon had been patient with Ash as the young Kantonian quickly learned that actually being there, right in the thick of battle working alongside his Pokémon partner and trying to formulate tactics on the fly was a whole different world from watching the spars on television, James' team trying to encourage Ash as he learned the broad strokes of battle strategy up close and personal. Ash also knew that they were only listening to him because James had asked them to, and Ash could only hope he'd have that kind of closeness with his own Pokémon as time went on, though he'd also always consider Pikachu and Eevee just as much Gary's as his- if Ash passed the exam and was able to get his Trainer's License and register them both, that was. Nurse Joy had finally given the green light for Eevee and Pikachu to leave her Center two days ago, and Ash wasn't going to let her or all his friends down- or Viridian's Officer Jenny, who had deliberately put off the paperwork reporting stray Pokémon to the League to buy Gary and Ash some time to get a license and get them registered.
"Ash, Gary, has either of you ever been in a Training Center before?" James asked brightly as they finished approaching the Center, the half-asleep Meowth uncurling himself from around James' shoulders and hopping to the ground with a wide yawn after they reached the safety of the Training Center's doors. James wasn't surprised to get a head shake and muttered 'Nope' respectively in response- if you weren't a trainer, you generally didn't have a reason to step into a Training Center, unless you were taking your Licensing Exam for whichever license you'd decided to pursue. Two female green-jacketed Pokémon League guards wearing black attack-proof vests were posted on either side of the automatic doors, a Mightyena sitting on its haunches eyeing the group with rapt attention by the heels of the left guard. James offered both guards a polite smile. "Hello there! Ash Ketchum is here for his Licensing Exam appointment. I'm his guardian, James, and these are his friends Gary and Tracey."
After the right-side guard consulted a clipboard and James and Tracey both proffered their Pokémon licenses for inspection, the group was waved through with friendly smiles from both guards, a cheerful "Good luck!" and "Best of luck!" both being offered to Ash as they entered into the building. The soft whooshing sound of the doors closing behind them was almost instantly overwritten by the quietly echoing sounds of Pokémon battling and crowd noise from various matches being displayed on several big screen TVs dotting the walls of what seemed to be a currently empty reception area, various green and white chairs, couches and love seats positioned for the best viewing of those televisions. Front and center in the back of the room was a large reception desk that effectively barred the way to the rest of the building with a large sign proclaiming 'WELCOME TO THE PEWTER CITY TRAINING CENTER' hung up behind it and an older, grey-haired woman wearing a green suit with her white hair in a bun who radiated commanding authority sitting behind the desk. Her face broke into a wide smile as the group approached.
"Aha! Our seven A.M. Mister Ketchum I presume? Right on time!" She hopped down off of her seat and walked around to the group with an efficient, crisp stride, her words carrying just the barest hint of a Kalosian accent within them. "Welcome! I'm Suzanne Proctor with the Licensing and Training Commission, though Miss Proctor is just fine. I'll be administering and grading the written portion of your exam." She eyed Gary, Ash and Tracey and laughed gently. "Er, which one of you is Mister Ketchum?" After Ash raised his hand sheepishly, the woman's decisive presence making him more than a bit nervous in spite of her friendliness, she nodded. "The rest of you, feel free to make yourselves at home in the lounge here- there's a bell on the desk you can ring and someone will come if you need anything. We also have both a Poké Mart and Pokémon Center just down the road if either is needed." She then gestured crisply to the televisions, pointing at them. "We've got The Lily of the Valley Conference, Sinnoh's championship series, on the biggest screen there in the middle, and for something a little closer to home we have the Tohjo Grand Invitational on a few screens as well." She then smiled at Ash. "And now if you'll follow me please, Mister Ketchum, we'll get underway."
"You can do it!" Tracey gave Ash a gentle clap on the shoulder.
"Yeah. You got this, Ash! Go get 'em." Gary gave him a thumbs up and grin, Ash beaming at them both.
James also nodded and smiled encouragingly. "Take your time. Don't rush yourself, and you'll have it in the bag."
His head happily swimming with confidence while his stomach clenched with more than a little worry- what if I mess this up? - Ash followed Suzanne up a set of wide white stairs, passing creamy white walls dotted with pictures of various Pokémon, Pokémon League events and famous trainers as they headed upwards. A brass sign screwed into the wall at the landing indicated that the Training Rooms were to the left and Pokémon Selection (Please Be Ready To Present Your License!) was to the right. Ash looked to both sides, trying to see anything and only noticing empty corridors exactly similar to what he'd seen coming up the steps before Suzanne gestured Ash directly ahead to a third, smaller hallway and pulled a door open. "Right in here. I'll need to have you remove your jacket and leave it on the hook here please, and if you have a Pokénav or similar I'll need you to give it to me so it can be locked up until you're done."
"I don't have a Pokénav." Ash hung up his coat and then found himself entering a small room with a handful of wooden desks and plush green chairs after also turning his pockets inside out at Suzanne's request, all of the desks having a well-worn, thick red and white tome laying on them Ash instantly recognized thanks to hours poring over its pages recently as The Beginner's Guide to Pokémon Species by now-retired Pokémon Professor Cedric Juniper, considered by most a seminal work containing basic information on every currently recognized Pokémon species on the planet. He guessed it was being provided as a tool for the exam, something Ash was actually grateful for, and he noticed as he headed over to take a seat that under that book was a slightly slimmer grey book Ash also remembered titled Battling Basics, an official Pokémon League publication that went over the League's rules for battling and type matchups. Just as Ash fully settled into his seat with a gulp, trying to dispel the Butterfrees flitting around in his stomach, Suzanne cleared her throat to get Ash's attention and pulled out a large, thick manila envelope sealed with the Pokémon League's logo, placing it on the large desk in front of her.
"As you know, Mister Ketchum, you will shortly be undertaking the written portion of the Indigo-Silver Joint League Trainer Licensing Exam. It will contain a mix of multiple choice and essay questions. You may fully utilize both books provided, but no other reference materials. Any discovered use of outside materials will be considered cheating, and you will immediately forfeit the exam and be unable to retake it for a period of three years." Suzanne used a letter opener to slide open the sealed envelope, then examined the test before turning to the computer on her desk and speaking more directly into it. "Proctor, badge 185, verifying at 7:10 KST that the exam was in a completely sealed envelope and fully unmarked before presentation to Mister Ketchum." She then stood up and walked over to Ash, continuing what was obviously a required spiel as she placed the test down on his desk. "An 80 or better is required to be considered a passing mark, which will let you move on to the battling portion of the exam. You'll have two hours starting from when you first put pencil to paper, and any questions left unanswered after that time will automatically be counted as incorrect. If you need a restroom break, please let me know so we can get you a male escort, and there's bottled water and some light snacks available inside of your desk."
After an hour and a half of writing, erasing, rewriting, choosing answers before then erasing and selecting them again, punctuated by the occasional referral to one of the books, one trip to the bathroom and two chocolate almond snack bars along the way, Ash held the test up to indicate he was done. The Butterfree were now storming in his stomach, battering it mercilessly, as his concentration on the test itself broke now that he was finished. Suzanne walked over and collected the test with a smile. "Feel free to stretch your legs and chat with your friends while I get this graded. It usually takes me about half an hour. If you pass, we'll get you into one of our arenas with a battle evaluator right away, so please don't wander too far!" she finished brightly.
"Thanks Miss Proctor! I'm going to wait downstairs." Ash wandered his way back downstairs to the lobby to find Gary, Tracey and James paying rapt attention to the largest television while Meowth was curled up asleep on the sofa, the Kantonian noticing that while Tracey and Gary looked shocked, James looked almost...angry for some reason, a hard glint in his guardian's green eyes and stern expression that Ash had never seen before on James' face as Ash walked over and muttered "What's going on?"
"Some people calling themselves Team Rocket just tried to take over the Lily of the Valley conference!" Gary stated in a tone full of disbelief, eyes still wide, not looking over at Ash as he spoke because his attention was still so focused on the television. "A bunch of 'em marched right out into the middle of all of the stadiums and were using their Pokémon to grab the competitors and their Pokémon to try and kidnap them!"
Ash's eyes widened, his tone about the same as Gary's as he replied. "Whoa, WHAT?" The stress over his test now completely forgotten, Ash quickly looked over to the television, noticing the crowd pouring out of the central stadium and outlying stadiums in a panic, a blonde female reporter chatting with the headline 'LILY OF THE VALLEY CONFERENCE NEARLY TAKEN OVER BY CRIMINAL GROUP CALLING THEMSELVES TEAM ROCKET' scrolling across the bottom of the screen.
"Yeah, they had on these black uniforms with big red Rs on the chests," added Tracey quietly, his rapt attention clearly still on the television as well. "The Sinnoh League seems to have stopped them, but it sounds like there's still three trainers and a bunch of Pokémon missing."
Ash didn't even hear his name called by the person currently manning the desk at first about half an hour later, so wrapped up in watching the developing story about Team Rocket with James, Gary and Tracey that the man calling for him wound up having to go over and tap him on the shoulder. "Ash, right?"
After leaping up a bit and being snapped out of watching the TV so closely, Ash let out a breath as he turned to face a man with a blue and white catlike Pokémon standing by him, Ash recognizing it as a male Meowstic after he racked his brain a bit trying to recall the species' name. "Yeah, that's me! Sorry." He stood up a bit sheepishly and offered a nervous laugh.
The sandy-haired man, who looked to be in his twenties, snickered. "You're fine! Pretty crazy stuff out there in Sinnoh, eh?" He then waved a piece of paper. "I'll start out by saying congratulations on passing the written! You got a 90, so now we need to get you into one of our arenas with us!" He grinned widely as Ash broke out into a wide smile and let out a victory whoop. "I'm Derek Valuator, and this is my partner, Claude. We'll be your judges for the battling portion of your exam." Derek gestured to the Meowstic at his side, who gave Ash a smile as well before bowing a bit.
This time after receiving another round of encouragement from Tracey and Gary, James having had to take a phone call, Ash headed back upstairs and was gestured to the right, towards Pokémon Selection. "You'll find that this is pretty different from the written." Derek had a mischievous twinkle in his eye as they approached a small desk neatly labelled 'POKÉMON SELECTION', Claude gracefully hopping up onto the counter as Ash and Derek were greeted with a smile and wave by a green-jacketed older, mustached man manning the counter. Behind the man appeared a vast array of Pokéballs of all varieties, organized neatly into sections: "No Badges', 'Zero to One Badges', 'Two Badges Minimum', 'Three Badges Minimum'- as Ash studied them, he realized the sections ran all the way up to 'Eight Badges REQUIRED, NO EXCEPTIONS' on the far right, that particular section behind thick glass plastered with warnings and also secured with a few various locks.
Derek nodded to the man behind the counter. "Heya, Alan." He then turned his attention to Ash. "I'll give you a quick rundown of how Pokémon Selection works at our Training Centers. As you can see, the Pokémon you can borrow for training from our Centers are dictated by the amount of badges you possess, both for your safety and the safety of your and our Pokémon. Pokémon respond almost directly to your skill as a trainer, and we've historically found that the amount of Badges you have tends to be a fairly reliable indicator of your training skill, and therefore which of our Pokémon will be safe for you to use or fight against." He gestured to the left side of the room behind Alan. "In this case, obviously, you'd be able to choose from either the 'No Badges' or 'Zero to One Badges' sections." Derek grinned. "And this is where the first part of your evaluation comes in. You know Claude is my partner, and you'll be sparring against him. I'll also be asking our resident Squirtle, Bubbles, and our Fennekin, Ember, to help out. Now, knowing that information, I'd like to know which three Pokémon you'll choose for our evaluation match, and please explain your choices."
"Hmm." Ash intently studied the list of Pokémon available that he was then handed by Alan. "Squirtles have a hard shell that helps them stay protected, so I'd want a Pokémon that doesn't have to physically hit Bubbles to do damage. They're also a pure Water-type if I remember right, which would make the weaknesses Electric and Grass." Ash grinned as he spotted that a Pachirisu was available. "I'd choose Deecee, the Pachirisu for my first Pokémon for those reasons. For Ember...hmm." He immediately honed in on a Geodude named Pebble. "I can't imagine a Fennekin being too good at physical fighting, so I'd choose Pebble because Fire-type attacks wouldn't do too much and even if Ember did try to scratch him it wouldn't do much. And for Claude..." Ash tried to recall Psychic-type weaknesses as he scanned the list. There were no Ghost-types or Dark-types, the two he easily remembered, but he knew there was a third... "Bug!" Ash happily exclaimed as he pointed to a Sewaddle named Nibbler. "Nibbler would be my third choice, since Psychic-types are weak to Bug-type attacks."
"All excellent choices with great reasons," replied Derek. "I'd definitely say you passed that part with flying colors." He then nodded to Alan. "Alan, let's get Ash set up with Deecee, Pebble and Nibbler for his evaluation! And I'll need to borrow Bubbles and Ember, please."
"Coming right up!" With a clear amount of practice, the older man expertly navigated through the sea of Pokéballs and plucked three Friend Balls from their slots, two from the 'No Badges' section and the third from 'Zero to One Badges' before holding the currently shrunken Friend Balls out to Ash. "Here you are! Good luck, Ash!" He then grabbed Derek's two requested Pokémon and handed them off to the evaluator.
Ash took the three into his hands, electricity generated by excitement and adrenaline shooting sparks down his spine as he realized he was about to have his first full-out, real Pokémon battle- no Pokémon holding back or trying to miss. He took a few deep breaths to steady himself as he now followed Derek to the right- towards the Training Rooms, towards what he knew would be the most difficult part of getting his Trainer's License.
Here goes nothing- no. Here goes everything.
