After that heartwarming moment, the Professor retook the stage and finished out his speech. He encouraged us to spend time with our new partners, do some battling, and gather any trainer items we might need. Tomorrow we would be allowed to start our journeys. Some people were already planning on heading out onto route 101 to get a head start, others were gonna wait a few days to get more comfortable with their new Pokémon or take care of some things at home. I planned to leave tomorrow, but figured I'd see how today went. As I made my way through the crowd, Sienna laid across my right shoulder and looked around rather anxiously. I made my way back to Ez and Marc. Ez immediately got right up to me and began playing with Sienna.
"Awww...she is so cute. I'm so jealous you have such a cute partner." Ez nearly pulled Sienna off of my shoulder, squishing her face and making kissy lips towards her. Sienna seemed uncomfortable at first, but seemed to relax and begin enjoying it after I pet her a little to try to keep her calm. Sienna seemed friendly, but a little reserved and nervous around others. After Ez seemed to run out of energy, she placed Sienna back on my shoulder.
The three of us made our way outside to see what the other trainers were doing. Some were standing around showing off there new partners, some were already battling each other, others were just spending time with friends.
Marc walked up and pet her as well, much calmer that Ez. "She is cute, can not argue with that. How she will do in a battle is a different thing all together."
"Yeah, you're right." I said. "I don't wanna rush it yet though. I want to earn her trust and see what she knows and can do before I start that."
Marc crossed his arms smiling and nodded. "That's smart. Looking at some of these guys all ready beginning to fight, they are not going to make good impressions with their new Pokémon. Whether they win or lose, the Pokemon will think that battling is all think about and they may feel used at times. Even if that's not the case, the feeling may be hard to shake. Then again, some Pokémon will prefer that, it's really up to what nature the Pokémon have."
"I couldn't have said it better myself" Said a voice approaching behind us. Professor Birch walked up to our group, with Roxanne right by his side.
"You were always very insightful and wise Mr. Wayne. There are many ways to become a successful trainer, you are free to choose your own path. We only hope you choose at path that is best for trainer and Pokémon alike." She looked across the three of us, then smiled. "I do not foresee an issue with the three of you." At that, they both began to make their way to other groups of trainers.
"Sooooo...who want to meet their new partner, cause I sure do" Said Ez in a very hyperactive manner. Before any of us could respond, she tossed out her pokeball. In another brilliant flash of light, out popped a small stocky brown and white dog with lightning symbols on it.
"A Yamper huh?" Said Marc. "Not a bad choice, definitely fits your personality." He raises his hand, which held his poke ball. "As for me..." He made a series of hand movements that vaguely reminded me of martial arts and tossed his ball. Out popped a grayish-blue skinned Pokémon with gray ridges in its head, red eyes, and a very humanoid looking body.
"Awww, what a cute little Machop you have" Ez beamed, the Machop surprises by her statement. He crossed his arms in a defiant "hmfph" look, then struck a flexing pose, which Marc ended up mirroring. Ez put her hand to her face with a defeated look. "Oh great, just what you needed: a reason to work out even more."
"Huh, I figured you worked out a lot. You are in really good shape" I said without really thinking. Marc looked at me, smiled, and struck another flexing pose. Out of the corner of my eye, I swore I saw Ez blush a little.
"Yeah, I train a couple hours every day. Running, lifting, parkour, even yoga. The mind mirrors the body, being healthy and strong isn't just for looks." He smiled, then returned to a normal stance while looking at me. "By the way Alex, have you been hitting the fitness center?"
"Yeah. I figured with this big journey to set out on, I wanted to make sure I was up to the task. I seemed to be in good overall shape, but I did do some training for the last two weeks. Mostly strength training with a good amount of cardio. I thought my cardio was pretty good, but I wanted to add some strength for carrying supplies and hiking." As I said this, I turned to look at Ez. She quickly looked away, blushing even more that she had at Marc.
"That was a wise move Alex." Marc said. "Many don't really comprehend just how much your physical condition will come into play. Many think it will be a leisurely stroll through the region. They don't consider the vast distances, mountains, forests, and even the weather. If you begin a journey knowing what to expect, you will never be fully prepared."
"I don't get it..." said Ez with a confused look. "If you know what to expect, can't you just be prepared for that?"
"In a way." I said. "What I believe he means is that if you set out in your journey expecting certain things to happen and only those, you will not take the precautions you should have for the unexpected." I looked to Marc. "Is that about right?"
"Exactly". Marc said smiling. "I am glad you have not lost your quick wit and intelligence my friend." I was taken aback by what he said, referring to me as a friend. He also mentioned losing my quick wit... "So, what shall we do now?"
"Well" I spoke up. "I know my parents are going to want to meet little Sienna here" I petted her as I said this, making her growl cutely. "Maybe we could meet up later and have a chance to hang out? I...I don't know much about who I used to be, or you guys in general. It would be nice to be around some friendly faces."
"That...sounds nice" Ez said smiling warmly. "It's been too long and given our adventure tomorrow, it may be good to spend some time together. Why don't we meet up at the restaurant in town for dinner, say six o'clock?"
"That should work for me" said Marc.
"Same here" I added. "Well, I should probably get going. My parents are expecting me for lunch and I don't wanna make them wait. I'll see you guys later." They also said their goodbyes and we parted for the time being.
The walk home took about an hour, but seemed to go by quickly. I was...actually unsure what to do regarding Sienna. She seemed to understand me, but I couldn't really hold a conversation with her. This was something I hadn't really thought of at first. Pokémon are generally smarter than the pets I'm used to, and that made it tricky.
"So..." I began to say awkwardly, getting Sienna's attention. "Are you ok with Sienna? I know you seemed happy before, but I wanted to make sure."
"Ee" she said, looking up at me smiling. I took that as a yes.
"Ok, good" I smiled back. "So tomorrow we are gonna set out on an adventure. My dream is to gather a good team and see how far we can all go together. How does that sound?"
"Ee vee vee". She jumped up and down as she spoke, looking even happier at that.
"All right Sienna, that's what I was hoping to hear. So, once we get out of Littleroot town, we can start battling to help you get stronger."
"Eee..." she seemed sad to hear that as she looked down.
"What's wrong Sienna? Do you not like battling? Or have you never really had a battle before?"
"Ee Ee" she nodded as I said the last part. She must have doubted her abilities."
I stopped and kneeled down to her. "Don't worry Sienna. We will go at your pace. You just let me know if you are up for a battle or not, ok"
She beamed back a smile and nuzzled against me. I was glad to figure that out now rather than later. I would hate to push her past where she was comfortable. I wasn't worried about being the strongest trainer ever, I wanted to make sure I had a team that trusted me more than anything else. This little conversation gave me hope.
As we arrived at the house, I looked down at Sienna. "So, are you ready to meet my parents?" She smiled and nodded. I opened the door and headed in.
"Alex honey, is that you?" My mom said in her usually upbeat tone.
"Yep, and I brought a guest." I said, chuckling a little under my breath while Sienna was more occupied with looking around the house. My mom poked her head out from the other room with a slight look of confusion, but sudden came running out at seeing her.
"Aww. She so cute." My mom said, sending down to pick her up and hold her. Sienna seemed to be more comfortable with this than she was with Ez earlier. My father came in around the same time and walked over to pet her.
"So, an Eevee Huh? Not a bad choice." My dad said, walking up to pet her. "She'll get a lot of options down the road for evolution. Can really help fill out your team later when you know what else you need." Sienna looked a little nervous hearing about evolutions, and began to squirm a little in my mom's hands
I reached to bring her back. "Well, that is a way's off. I have an idea for a team, but we have plenty of time. When the time comes, we'll see what happens." That seemed to relax her a little bit.
"So, who's hungry?" My mom asked. All of us perked up at that. We sat and ate, having a nice time just chatting. I slipped Sienna more human food than I should have, but I knew this wouldn't be the first time I spoiled her. As we began to all fill up, the conversation turned to the adventure.
"So Alex, are you planning to leave tomorrow morning?" My dad asked.
"Yeah, I think so" I said, with a hint of hesitation. "That's the plan anyway, but things might change depending how dinner goes."
"Why?" My mom asked. "Are you doing something special for dinner?"
"Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you guys. Sorry. I met up with Esmerelda and Mahrkus at the lab and they mentioned about getting together to...try and reconnect."
"Oh, that is a relief. They have been worried sick about you, but insisted they give you your time to get ready. I'm glad you guys are back together. Maybe you all could travel together?"
"Yeah, that's what I was thinking as well. We didn't really discuss much about our plans to leave, so I figured it would come up tonight anyway. I'll see how things go, see what there plans are..." I looked down to Sienna. "And see where we are. I don't wanna rush her out if she isn't ready."
"That's smart" Said my dad. "A lot of trainers just rushed out into the world with no real plans as to what they would do and ended up having a much harder time that they needed to. It can be enough to make them give up, so I'm proud that you are thinking this through. I'm sure whatever you decide will be a good choice."
"Thanks guys". I said as we finished up dinner. I helped clear the table, then decided to go out for a little bit. "Hey, Sienna and I are gonna head to the nearby park for some time together. If I'm not home before supper, just assume I went to meet Ez and Marc." My parents simply said ok and wished me luck as I headed out.