I do not own Pokémon.

.01

Dear Diary,

it's been a week since I got home and I'm being sent away once again. Grandma is officially tired of my shit and decided it's better to dump me somewhere else for a while than to deal with me, so that's cool. I mean, I can't really blame her. She's old and weary and wants to enjoy retirement in peace. Can't really do that when I'm in the equation. She's a nice person, maybe a little overbearing, but even so I can't be angry. I just feel bad.

That feeling, of course, has nothing to do with the fact I'm currently cruising at thirty six thousand feet in the air. God, I hate planes. Seriously, can't we all just… teleport or something? Wouldn't that be more convenient? I dunno. Not everyone has a psychic type and not every psychic type can teleport so there's that.

Life kinda sucks.

"No…"

Dear Diary,

I've been doing this diary thing as part of my outpatient program coping strategies stuff. Do I think it's stupid? Absolutely. Will I do it anyways? Yeah. I want to get better. I think. I'm scared of what being 'better' is like. Or what it means for me. Or if I can even do it. I've tried for years and instead I always seem to be getting worse. One step forward, two steps back. What is wrong with m

"No, Reina, none of that negativity."

i'm not supposed to write anything bad about myself but it's hard because i actually really suck a lot and its just a lot easier to point out every flaw than attempt to pick what little good qualities i have and even if i have them its not like its enough to offset all the shitty parts of myself so like idk

With a deep sigh falling from her lips, she shut the laptop lid closed and promptly decided this was something she could put to the side for now. It was hard to write with a chaotic head space. Of all the thoughts cycling through her mind, the one that stood out most was how likely it was the plane would crash.

It was, admittedly, morbid in hindsight, but the ethics of macabre musings were hardly at the top of her list of things to be concerned about. She had always hated planes, so much so that before she got on one she would research the likelihood of a crash occurring. It had come to a point where by now she had the numbers and formulas and calculations memorized, and while the advance of technology continued to decrease the probability of disaster, Reina only truly felt comfortable with absolutes. But because she knew better— that in the real world absolutes were more of a metaphorical safety net than an actual truth— she had to make do with the chances she was given.

"Attention passengers. We will soon be arriving at the Mistralton International Airport. Please take your seats, close your trays, and fasten your seat belts. It is currently humid and raining at a mild fifty-two degrees. We welcome you to Unova, and thank you for flying with Kalos Airways."

It didn't take her very long to realize the repeated pitter-patter on the window she sat beside was indeed from the aforementioned rain. As the plane adjusted its wings for descent, Reina glanced out the window, eyes the same shade as the clouds that made the city seem all the more dull. She kept her lips pursed as she stared at the expanding metropolis, carefully observing the cars that raced down the winding streets, people scurrying to and fro while clutching their umbrellas, and the airport that seemed to provide the only color in the city in the form of blinking orbs of reds and greens.

Reina sighed and pushed herself as far back in her seat as possible. There was a churning in her stomach that she couldn't think to get rid of, if only because she was unsure as to why she felt it at all.

"Ma'am?"

She turned her head to the flight attendant in the aisle who graciously had her hands clasped together, lips pulled into a tight, plastic smile.

"Please stow away your laptop and close your tray. Thank you."

With a listless nod, Reina reached down and pulled her laptop case up from between her feet. As she unzipped the case and tucked her device into it, she looked out the window once more and began to wonder if it was too late to turn back.

The moment she stepped off the plane, Reina had to take a moment to reteach herself how to stand and walk. Sitting for almost eleven hours straight in a cramped space was hardly ideal considering she had to now walk across the entire airport, but she was more happy with the fact she wouldn't have to worry about suffering a catastrophic blood clot. As soon as she slipped on her backpack and secured her laptop case, Reina made her way out of the gate and to the terminal, hoping she could quickly grab her suitcase and catch a bus to her destination.

Reina kept her head down as she walked past the hundreds of people roaming around the airport, either looking for their terminal, getting food, or loitering around to kill time. She made a conscious effort to avoid eye contact, because eye contact brought an invitation for talking, and her brain had decided now was a perfect time to forget how to speak. With the anxiety slowly creeping within her, she used her free hand to rub her neck and hopefully give her fingers something to do. She recalled being told to keep herself occupied when the urge to scratch and claw began to emerge, but stray feelings of confusion and vulnerability led her to believe there were no other options.

So she walked.

She quickened her pace to the baggage carousel, hoping and praying she could grab her things and go. She cracked her knuckles at first, one by one, and then went to play with the loose threads of her shirt. It was idle work but efficient. It didn't really matter how brainless the activity was— as long as it did its job.

She followed signs and rounded corners and weaved through crowds of people to make it to the baggage carousel. The airport was massive, far larger than she previously thought, and throughout the entirety of her trek she thought of the place as a labyrinth of some sort, holding a mighty minotaur at the very end.

Her first priority was gathering her things, which, luckily, didn't take very long. She was able to locate her suitcase without much of an issue and proceeded to lug it behind her as she plodded toward the airport exit. The very last thing she expected upon reaching the pick up area was to be greeted by two men in suspicious black suits and shades, yet here she was, wondering what crime she committed to be approached by such individuals.

"Um… can I help you?" Reina asked, discreetly glancing around to see if anyone else noticed the interaction.

"Oshido Reina," one of the men spoke. "Please come with us."

Taking a step back, Reina furrowed her brows. "... Why? I mean, who are you? What do you want from me?"

"We do not want you. Inaba-sama does, however."

Inaba.

The name was not unfamiliar to her. If she were to be honest a small part of her hated the fact she knew it at all, but she knew better than to cast judgement over someone she only met through correspondence. Inaba was an eloquent writer, careful words reflected in pristine handwriting that made Reina think that perhaps her invitation to this institution was more thought out that she imagined; and as she followed the two men to a glossy black limousine, the same part of her dreaded what she had gotten herself into.

The door was opened for her and Reina cast a wary glance to the suited man before climbing inside the vehicle. The leather seats were cold and smooth against her fingertips, complementing the velvet carpet that lined the floor.

"It's so nice to finally meet you, Oshido-san," the voice said. Mature and smooth and eerily calm, appropriate for someone like the headmistress of one of the most prestigious academies Unova had to offer.

Or so Reina's heard.

"How was your flight?"

"It was fine," Reina muttered. Once she heard the muffled slam of the trunk lid behind her, the car pulled off, and the girl took the opportunity to relax her shoulders and lean back in the seat.

"Kalos is quite a way from Unova, isn't it?"

"Yeah."

"Well, if you need me to reintroduce myself, my name is Inaba Shiori. Headmistress of Fortuna Academy."

It was a title befitting of someone such as Inaba Shiori. An off white sleeveless blouse was tucked into a pair of cropped cerulean trousers, held in place by a black belt with a gold buckle and similarly colored heels. Elaborate silver earrings decorated her ears. Her silky black hair was tied back into an elegant bun at the nape of her neck, adorned with a gold clip to keep the strands in place. Ruby red lips lifted in a smile, bright blue eyes following suit, and that's when Reina knew to keep her eye on this woman, for she was a dangerous type of beautiful.

The younger girl said nothing. She opted to look out the window and at the ever changing landscape. It didn't take very long for the bland cityscape to melt into a scene of ever expanding mountains and lush green forests. In the far distance, an ominous tower loomed, barely noticeable with the clouds covering it.

"I hate limos," Reina murmured, though it was loud enough for Shiori to hear. Lips falling slightly, she sighed and folded her hands in her lap.

"Right," she said. "I apologize. I probably should have sent something less… conspicuous, right?"

For what felt like the millionth time, her response was met with silence. In an attempt to ease the admittedly tense atmosphere, Shiori cleared her throat and turned fully in her seat to face Reina.

"I understand things have been… difficult as of late, Oshido-san," she began. The statement garnered a harsh glare from Reina, words wholly unwelcome and enough for Shiori to make a mental note of how to approach the student from now on. "But that's why I invited you here. You are an excellent battler. I would go as far as to say you're one of the best your generation has to offer."

Reina knew better than to give in to the praise. The same words were written in the personal letter Inaba-sama had mailed to her and all they promised were a false sense of security. They were merely dutiful statements bound to her title as headmistress, empty in the grand scheme of things, and thus, ignored.

"Fortuna Academy is a school that heavily emphasizes the mechanical parts of battling— the parts that most trainers seldom think about. Perhaps you're not entirely here by choice, but I can promise that you'll come to enjoy your time here," Shiori continued, finishing her sentence with a warm smile.

It was an effort made for her to lower her guard, Reina identified. Shiori was looking for the cracks in her walls to slip through, but Reina had spent years fortifying her defenses and keeping others at an arm's length. She had spent most of her life convincing herself no one was worth the risk, and it was a philosophy she held onto even now.

"Why did you accept me into your school?" she asked. Shiori recoiled slightly at the antagonistic tone, but allowed her shoulders to drop as she sighed.

"... It seemed like the right thing to do," the headmistress responded.

"I don't need your pity."

"Trust me, Oshido-san, I know. I didn't mean it like that— I meant, well…"

She was stumbling over her words and struggling to convey herself. Reina clicked her tongue and looked back out the window. The sky had long since turned blue, but if she looked out far enough, she could still see the lightning illuminating dark grey clouds.

"Welcome to Fortuna Academy! Ranked the top trainer school in all of Unova and placed similarly all around the world, Fortuna is a school made only for the elites! Your next three years will be spent honing your skills as a trainer so that when you graduate, you may go on to become a gym leader, a member of the Elite Four, or even the Champion! Fortuna is a school with its foundation based on the unity built between a trainer and their pokémon— one is only as strong as the connections they make! We once again welcome you to Fortuna Academy, and we hope you have a wonderful experience here! Ad astra!"

Reina couldn't help but cringe at what appeared to be nothing more than blatant propaganda. Exiting the school's website and tucking her phone back into her pocket, she looked upwards at the building before her as she stepped out of the limo, lips pulling into a frown. The academy was divided into two separate buildings, both massive and six stories tall, connected by a skyway.

There were obvious influences from Victorian style architecture, featuring tall spires, a series of windows all along the walls, and smooth bricks of a muted brown color to make up the exterior. It was settled on a hill, far enough from the bustling city life of Nimbasa to prevent distraction, but close enough where said metropolis was only a short car ride away. A wide cobblestone pathway led up to the front doors, protected by a gate that wrapped around the entire estate.

"Classes start tomorrow," Shiori informed, handing a pair of keys to Reina. "Would you like me to escort you to your dorm room?"

"I'll find my way around," she waved off, grabbing her suitcase with the intent of walking off. "Thanks, though."

"Right…" Shiori sighed. Nothing more could be said as the girl had already begun her trek to the dorm buildings, but even then, something told the headmistress she wouldn't have listened. She took in a deep breath and promptly exhaled, eyes traveling skyward for a few moments.

No doubts now, Shiori, she thought. Everything will be okay.

Similar to the school building, the dorms were a series of Victorian style edifices, though smaller in scale. They were a ten minute walk from campus, bunched closer together for the sake of conserving space. Reina managed to find her room without much of an issue, and upon entering it, was rather surprised by the luxurious space. It was more like a suite than anything, considering the living room space, kitchenette, and bedroom off to the side. A balcony overlooked the rest of the land, featuring the silhouettes of mountains in the far off distance.

Taking her shoes off near the entrance, Reina walked further into the suite to better familiarize herself with the layout. One could easily assume the amount of funding that went into the school, though the mere thought made Reina roll her eyes. She made her way to the bedroom and poked her head into the bathroom, instinctively squinting her eyes before stepping backwards and falling against the bed.

"Stupid," she muttered as she closed her eyes. She couldn't help but convince herself that agreeing to come here was a bad idea. Most people would jump at the chance to attend such a prestigious academy, but the only thing crossing Reina's mind was the fact high school was high school no matter where she went. There would be pushy students. Annoying drama. Teachers who cared too much or not at all; those parts in of itself would never change, whether she was here or at the small school down the street from her home.

Not that she particularly had one.

It was only because she knew she had nowhere else to go that she decided to swallow her pride and finish her education here, but under any other circumstance, Reina would have simply ignored the letter that invited her to the school. Her grandmother was furious at how easily she brushed off the offer, and it wasn't until she heard the words I'm done with you when she realized, yes, her grandmother actually was done with her. And slowly, the pieces came undone.

She was, by all accounts, homeless. Technicalities didn't matter because although she was dorming, she certainly wasn't going to call a school her home. It was a temporary stay, a glorified lodging that would be stripped from her by the end of next year. Meaning, in a year, Reina would have had to find a new home, wherever that was. An apartment, a shack, the streets— Unova didn't care. If its rampant homelessness problem didn't make that apparent, this certainly did.

Oshido Reina was a goner.

Rolling over onto her side, she thought of running back to Kalos and joining a roadside circus. Or perhaps she could start flipping burgers and save up enough to get herself a small apartment. Could she sabotage herself and be held back a grade until she had everything figured out? Maybe. She had been told that there was always a solution to her problems, but even she could admit that being a high school senior until she was twenty-one wasn't one of them.

Sleep. No matter the issue, sleeping was always a valid resolution. It was the truest form of procrastination, but in her eyes she wasn't putting off the problem— she was just resting so she could think about it when she was in a better head space. The jet lag was finally catching up to her, and the more she thought about it, the more the temptations of exhaustion pulled at her eyelids. It didn't take long for her to close her eyes, and when she did, she found herself returning to the familiar darkness that was nowhere and everywhere at once.

That night, she dreamt of a storm.

She stood in the middle of a deluge while dragons roared between striking clouds, barely audible over the deafening rumbling of thunder. The rain had come up to her ankles and it didn't stop. She watched the waves crash against darkened shores, as if the ocean itself was ready to completely engulf her. She saw nothing but darkness and decay around her, and of course, those massive shadows, haunting and horrifying— yet she couldn't find it in herself to look away.

And then she saw him.

He remained steadfast against battering winds and bitter cold droplets, unafraid of the lightning that threatened to strike him down, nor did he flinch at the ferocious wings that could have cleaved him with a single swipe. The beast stood him down, staring with eyes filled with wrath and fury. Its teeth were bared and lightning struck once more, but the man did not move. His sword was drawn and his gaze, absolute, and as he jumped towards the mighty creature, the tempestuous storm raged with all its might.

The wave washed her away and suddenly she was drowning; and even as she tried to swim towards the top, and reach for the shadows that fought and fell, she got nowhere closer than to where she originally was. She saw the lights before anything else, the small, ephemeral orbs she identified as stars, and right before her hand grasped one, the last of her breaths escaped her lungs.

The remnants of a scream still echoed in Reina's ears as she shot up. Her entire body was coated in a thin layer of sweat, every nerve in her body feeling like it had been set on fire, grim reminders of the nightmare she had. She was trembling and breathing heavily, still caught in both the moment and the aftermath. It was not the first time she drowned in her dreams and she fought to admit to herself it wouldn't be the last; she was always moments away from death, stopped only by the fact the brain was unable to conceive such a notion.

She sat in the darkness of her room and let out a long, harsh breath. She inhaled, counted to three, then exhaled again. Of all the coping strategies she's been taught over the years, it was this particular one that never seemed to fail her.

In the still silence offered by nighttime, her eyes flickered to the corner where a single figure pierced the tenebrosity. It stood in the shadows, staring at Reina. Throwing her sheets off, she swung her legs over the side of the bed and stood, the figure moving slightly.

"What're you doing out of your ball?" Reina asked as she moved to the bathroom. "Did you let yourself out again?"

It didn't respond. Reina stared at it for a few fleeting seconds, wondering if maybe she was still caught in a nightmare, imagining this entire interaction. She at times struggled to figure out what was reality and was a figment of her mind. She slogged towards the sink in the bathroom and turned the faucet, splashing some water onto her face, but when grey eyes were reflected in the mirror the realization hit her like a truck.

"You… woke me up," she muttered, tramping out of the bathroom. "You sensed I was having a nightmare, Hatterene?"

It moved closer to the window as a beam of moonlight filtered through the curtains. Alternating hues of pink and blue reflected in the pale white glow, the slight glimmer of its eyes sending a shudder up Reina's spine.

"I need to go for a walk," she muttered, searching around for a pair of sweatpants and a jacket she could throw on. "You comin'?"

When Hatterene didn't respond, Reina's lips lifted into a begrudged smirk.

"Yeah. 'Course not."

Reina shivered as she zipped up her jacket and quickly rubbed her hands together in an attempt to generate heat. If anyone had told her Unova nights were so cold, she would have dressed warmer, perhaps stuffed a winter coat somewhere in her suitcase. The coldness betrayed the springtime warmth she basked in earlier, yet was somehow familiar. Traces of her nightmare flashed behind her eyelids, but Reina shook it off and continued her aimless roaming.

The only lights came from the streetlamps lining the sidewalks, and, of course, the moon above, and while neither did much in offering her the solace she needed, she could appreciate the light provided.

A slight movement from the corner of her eye caught her attention. Reina stopped and turned her head towards the roof of one of the buildings, eyes narrowing slightly. When she saw nothing else, she continued her slow pace, but paused once again when she noticed something directly in front of her.

"Hello?" she called out. Her voice echoed within the empty streets and she opened her mouth to speak again, but was quickly silenced when something dashed past her. A yelp escaped her throat and Reina dropped to the ground, looking over her shoulder in time to see something skid across the ground before racing towards her again.

"Wait— stop!" she called out. A pair of sharp claws gleamed in the light as the creature hopped onto one of the lampposts and rushed at her. Reina gasped and tucked into herself, squeezing her eyes shut as she was wholly prepared to be slain by the creature, but the sound of a small explosion is what caused her to open her eyes again.

Stunned, Reina looked upward as her Hatterene stood in front of her, its tentacle-like appendage forming a large, inky orb of black energy. There was a cloud of smoke that obscured their sight, but the moment the creature emerged from the cloud, Hatterene threw the Shadow Ball at it. The pokémon smirked, red ears twitching as its claws became coated in a dark purple energy, taking on the form of terrifying blades. It swiped at the ghost-type attack, creating another explosion. It used the momentum of the attack to propel itself towards Hatterene, its sleek, dark blue body almost fully concealed even with the glow of the orange lights.

"Hatterene!" Reina shouted. Hatterene shot out its appendage, grabbing the attacker by the face and slamming it onto the sidewalk with enough force to create a crack underneath it.

"Wait, wait!"

Another voice called for their attention. The creature writhed and let out a strained cry, only prompting Hatterene to grip its head tighter, but when another figure— this time, a human— showed himself, Reina's pokémon scoffed and loosened its hold.

"Weavile!" the stranger exclaimed. Weavile immediately jumped to its feet and zipped past both Reina and her pokémon to its trainer. Reina got to her feet and dusted herself off, locking her arms firmly across her chest.

"Mind explaining why your pokémon decided to attack me randomly like that?" she asked, voice laced with annoyance.

"Ah, I apologize," the stranger said, dipping his head. "We're on patrol and it's past curfew. If you're out this late, we automatically assume it's because you're an intruder."

"Curfew?" Reina raised a brow. "I'm eighteen. I don't need to be told when to go to bed."

"You do while you're on campus grounds."

Reina rolled her eyes and moved her hands to stuff them in her pockets while she took another look at the stranger. Ah, just another one of those pretty boys, she thought to herself. He stood taller than her at six feet even, with black side swept hair, the sides and back cut short. Hazel eyes were protected by a pair of round glasses, but out of everything, it was the smile he gave that annoyed her the most.

"Anyway, I'm sorry that my Weavile attacked you," he continued. His Weavile skittered up his body and balanced itself on his shoulder, sticking its tongue out at Reina and Hatterene. The dual type bristled, but Reina held her arm out in front of it.

"Uh-huh."

The stranger looked at her, tilting his head to the side, an expression of confusion spreading across his features.

"Have I seen you before? I don't think I've seen you around the school."

"I'm new."

"Oh! Are you a first year?"

"Third."

"Third! That's odd!"

"Why?"

The boy smiled. "It's not often that seniors are admitted. It's more of an age thing, you know? Since we're almost done and everything."

Taking note of his wording, Reina deduced he had to be a third year as well, which made her dread the idea of them being in the same class.

"Right…"

"Are you in the psychic dorm? Or fairy dorm?" He gestured to Reina's pokémon. "Hatterene are pretty rare, even in Galar. Are you from there?"

"You're asking a lot of questions."

"Oh! Sorry. I guess I just like getting to know people! By the way, my name's Suzuki Mahiro. What's yours?" he beamed.

She didn't care about or have time for formalities. Reina's objective was, before anything, to figure out what she was going to do about her tentative future, and the last thing she wanted was to be distracted by someone she knew she wouldn't care for. It's precisely why she didn't answer him, but rather, turned on her heel and walked back to her dorm building. Her lack of a response gave Mahiro distinct frostbite, not due to his pokémon or the weather, but even as he watched her walk away with her Hatterene in tow, he still managed to get the last word in.

"Curfew is at ten, by the way!"

The morning after proved itself to be a brutal one.

The walk Reina took did little in clearing her head of the nightmare. The darkness she hoped for was instead overtaken by flashes of brandished claws and blood splattering, the whats ifs constantly coursing through her tired mind. What if she didn't move? What if Hatterene didn't save her? What if that Weavile sunk its claws into her neck? She didn't know if it had the intent to kill, nor did she know of Unova's laws in regards to pokémon and self defense, but she knew it wouldn't matter if she met her fate last night. She knew better than anyone that money could buy people's way out of anything, and she also knew this school had more than enough of it.

She thought of how this school was referred to as one for the elites, and it made her nose scrunch up at the realization of the double meaning.

She had slept a full half hour past her alarm, and although she usually would have scrambled to make it to her first day of class on time, she couldn't gather the energy or motivation to try now. She took her time getting ready, and when she was ready to go, she looked in the mirror and used every ounce of strength in her body to not go right back to sleep.

Reina was a relatively average height, at least for native Kalosian females, standing at five foot seven. Her black hair was tied into its typical messy bun while stray strands flittered in her face and eyes. Her outfit was a dark green bomber jacket she left open, with a white tank top underneath and form fitting skinny jeans that featured rips around the knee area. White trainers topped off her outfit. With a frown, Reina traced her fingers over the dark circles underneath her eyes, an obvious testament to her lack of sleep.

"God, my life..." she groaned. She patted her pockets to make sure she had everything, grabbed her bag, and was out the door.

By the time she reached the school building's gates she was almost a full hour late to class, and she considered skipping it altogether. She wasn't necessarily opposed to waking up in the morning, but after her experience last night, coupled with the nightmare and overall feelings of uncertainty, the warmth of her blankets seemed much more appealing than the cold chair of a classroom.

The halls were nearly empty when Reina made it to the school building. The interior boasted a modern and open layout, another reminder of the type of institution she was attending. Was it too late to turn back? Maybe, no, most certainly, and when she arrived at her classroom she knew she had reached the event horizon.

Reina placed her hand in the door grip and slid it open, immediately wanting to combust at the sea of eyes that immediately landed on her.

"Excuse me?" the teacher questioned, stepping away from the blackboard. "Who are you? Do you know how late you are?"

"My name is Oshido Reina," she deadpanned. "Please excuse the interruption."

"You're an hour late on the first day of school. Do you realize that?" the teacher continued.

Reina nodded once. "I overslept."

"That is no excuse. It's both irresponsible and rude of you to just waltz in here like that!"

"I'll do better next time."

The exchange ended at that. Reina trudged to one of the empty seats in the back, ignoring the few murmurs and whispers that rang out, and dropped her bag by her feet. The urge to scratch came again; instead, Reina rubbed her hands and prodded her jeans.

The reason she was in this situation at all was because she messed up. She knew this, of course she did, and although she understood where her priorities lied, not knowing how to tackle them made her feel like her life was both tedious and difficult. Did it have to be both? One or the other was quite enough.

Absentmindedly, she reached into her pocket for her Hatterene's pokéball, brows furrowing slightly when she realized something about it was off. She enlarged it and pressed the button, eyes widening when she saw that it was empty. Her heart leaping out of her chest, she looked around the room and then jumped to her feet when she heard a scream coming from the hallway.

The life of Oshido Reina wasn't a particularly easy one.

"Hatterene!" she called, rushing as quickly as she could out of the classroom and into the hall.

Especially not with a homicidal Hatterene involved.

A/N:

Hi, you guys have permission to shoot me. It's been... almost a year since I even touched this account and a lot has happened. And by a lot, I mean I fell out of the Pokémon fandom for a while and writing quickly followed. This is the first thing in a very long time I've written. So, what changed? Well, I played Shield completely blind, finished it in a day and a half, and liked it way more than I thought I would. I essentially found my spark and passion for the series and with it, a whole bunch of ideas came to me. I decided to condense all of them into one and, ta-da! This story was born. Granted I'm not completely satisfied with this prologue, but it's better than nothing.

I'll go as far as to say this is my passion project. I actually want to take the time to sit down and work on this and see it to the end. I'm working on better and healthier strategies for writing, especially in regards to writer's block, so I'm hoping that'll carry me through this story. I really hope so. I've put a lot of thought and planning into this one so I hope it all works out.

So, a couple things. One, this story is, for once, not a SYOC story. I realized that as much as I enjoy them, I do much better when working with my own characters. I know exactly how I want to write them, what I want to do with them, how I want their story lines to develop, things like that. It's tricky planning SYOC stories because you have to adjust the plot according to specific characters that are something like wild cards, and sometimes plot lines don't work out how you want them to when that happens. So, by using my own characters, the story can advance and evolve exactly how I want it to. I hope that makes sense. Two, this story is something of an amalgamation of most of my old stories. I'll be recycling similar plot points, concepts, ideas, etc. Some you guys may recognize, others may be entirely new, I dunno. Reina herself is a mixture of old OC's of mine as well.

Speaking of Reina, her story isn't gonna be a light one. Full disclosure, this story will explore dark and mature themes because that's kind of my thing, it's what I write about because a lot of those themes hold true to me in real life. I used to care a lot about how people would react to those things, but now, I'm just like meh. If you like it, cool. If not, also cool. The Pokémon world in this story is not a utopia, far from that. Not to say it's completely lawless, but there's a reason some of these characters are how they are. Reina is kind of a product of that. And she has a lot of flaws, some of which are more prominent than others, so it may be difficult to read about her at times because she can be pretty unlikable. I intentionally designed her that way. Oops.

Anyway, that's all I really wanted to say. Sorry for disappearing, but I think this is finally it, new story, my own OC's only, please forgive me, new story old ideas, and so on and so forth. I hope you guys enjoy this one enough to stick around, because honestly, a big reason why I still write is knowing someone out there enjoys it. That being said, I hope these characters and this story will be interesting enough for you to follow.

I'll end this author's note here because it's already long enough. Thanks so much for reading, and I'm excited to get this story off its feet. Bear with me; I'm always godawful at beginnings. Thanks again, and see you next time!