Luna: This is just a little reflection piece that I wrote after beating Pokemon Moon for the first time and you could say this is kind of a Self-Insert mixed with an OC kinda thing. The Pokemon my SI/OC character mention in this piece is the very team I used in my run. Enjoy the story~!
Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon. I only own the nicknames I used through my first run of Pokemon Moon and the idea behind this piece. Pokemon belongs to Nintendo and GameFreak.
Reflections of a Champion
The metallic surface of the Champion's throne felt cool to the touch as my hands rested on the armrests of the said chair. To say the seat was uncomfortable was an understatement. A red soft cushion had been placed and sewn into the bottom of the throne so that the Champion of Alola may sit comfortably while awaiting challengers, but still, it didn't stop me from feeling a bit restless from sitting still for so long. It was customary that once a week, Alola's Champion would wait here in the Champion's room for challengers to come.
The room itself was fitted with bright electric panels that were currently dimmed down to make the room somewhat dark. The only thing a challenger would see upon first entering the room would be the small bright lights that would flash dimly, and follow the lines all around the room before fading into the dim darkness of the room.
The room itself, having been filled with nothing but the very throne I sat on before, was now filled with a few things that made the room reflect the personality of Alola's first ever champion. The walls had been painted a light baby blue color. A pool had been installed for my trusty partner, a mermaid-like seal Pokémon, a Primarina I nicknamed Lapis Lazuli. A small desk was tucked away in one corner of the room along with a bookcase. Despite being Alola's current champion, I still liked to read on occasion.
The Primarina was currently fast asleep, her upper body resting on the pool's edge, the light blue mane resting against her back and her eyes closed. A small pendant hung about the singing Pokémon's neck. It was a lapis lazuli stone, one that I had specifically made for my partner from a lapis lazuli stone I found in a cave.
Hearing me get up, Lapis Lazuli looked up and let out a soft happy chirp before pulling herself out of the pool. I couldn't help smiling at my Pokémon. I approached my beloved starter and sat down beside her. The Primarina chirped even more and began to let out a soft humming sound, leaning into my body.
"Eew, Lapis, you're wet." I teased, but I didn't mind. It wasn't like I never swam and Primarina can dry out quickly while somehow retaining a decent level of moisture—at least as long as they're not out in the sun for a long period of time. Lapis Lazuli barked softly as she pressed her pink nose to my face, giving me what people call a seal kiss. Her nose felt wetter and colder than the rest of her body, her flippers going around my waist as she drew me in a hug. I just chuckled and rested a hand on top of her head, gently stroking her sea green mane.
"You're so silly, Lappy." I said, softly calling by her shortened nickname, as I now buried my face into her mane. Lapis Lazuli started humming again, the song making all the tension in my mind disappear. As I remained in my Pokémon's hug, I felt a tear slip from my eyes and roll down my cheek. Lapis must've felt it for she shifted in my arms to looked up at me.
I was surprised that I was crying as Lapis, keeping herself propped up on one of her flippers, used her remaining flipper to wipe away another tear threatening to fall. I just laughed weakly, wiping at my eyes.
"Sorry, Lapis, I didn't realize I was crying. Sorry." I mumbled. I held my partner closer, burying my face into her mane even more. As I sat here, hugging Lapis Lazuli, I was unaware of all of my other Pokémon coming out of their pokeballs until I felt a pair of scaly paws grabbing my shoulders lightly and a slight pressure on my back. I looked up to find myself staring into a pair of lavender reptilian eyes. A large black and magenta lizard like Pokémon stared back at me.
The lizard was standing on its hind legs, its "hands" resting on my shoulders as it stared down at me, its tongue flicked out of its mouth with a small hiss coming from its throat.
"Kaa."
The lizard Pokémon hissed happily at hearing me speak her nickname. it's tongue flicked out, only this time it touched my cheek. My Salazzle nuzzled the side of my face. She was always so careful not to let out of any poison. A Salazzle is said to keep all of its poisons within a secret area in the pit of its stomach and the said poison leaks out with a quick lash of it's long thin tongue.
I just laughed at my poisonous fire lizard suddenly being so playful.
"Kaa! Stop that! You don't want to poison me, do you?" I laughed at feeling the light touch of her tongue on my cheek.
Kaa crooned, finally obeying my command. She settled on resting her long snout on my shoulder, just above Lapis's head. I just chuckled and stroked the side of her snout gently. Kaa's scaly skin was warm to the touch. It was a good thing she's able to control her body temperature or else I'd have burned my hand touching her. As I touched the side of Kaa's snout, scratching under her chin now, a familiar cold nose pressed into my nose as a pale orange furred Raichu jumped up onto my shoulder, using its tail to do so.
I just laughed at her and stroked the Alolan Raichu's ear.
"Moana!"
"Rai~!" Moana squeaked happily, the yellow spots on her cheeks emitting soft sparks of electricity. The sparks of electricity coming from her cheek that touched mine, left a light tingling sensation in my face but I barely felt it.
Before Moana could do anything, something like a veil of darkness surrounded all four of us. When I looked up, I saw Alola's Night Guardian Pokémon, Lunala, or Nebby as a dear friend of mine had called her. Nebby was once a Cosmog belonging to a friend of mine. Before she left for Kanto, my friend, Lillie gave Nebby to me. While I had officially registered Nebby's name as Nebula in the Pokémon registry, I still called her Nebby out of respect for my absent friend.
I smiled even more at seeing Nebby looking back at me. I also saw my Alolan Marowak, a black Pokémon with a skull head staring at me as she leaned behind Lapis to look up at me with her grey eyes. And to my surprise before I could reach out and pet Gigeu, a something, that felt like a hand, touched my head. I looked over and saw a purple and white ape Pokémon that held a fan-like leaf in its free hand. It was my Oranguru, Sage.
Sage never did much, er, that is to say he never seemed to hold any emotions in his expression. He always wore a seemingly dull and inquisitive look on his face but since he was a psychic Pokémon, I did feel how concerned he was for me. My hand reached up and touched his, feeling the soft white fur on the back of my Pokémon's big paw.
"Alright, no more tears. I won't cry, you guys." I said to my team. All of them seem satisfied with my words for they let out happy yips, barks, and chirps. I stood up with the help of Kaa and Nebby. I finally got to take a good look at my team. It was these Pokemon who carried me through my many trials throughout my Alola challenge and it was them who protected me from Team Skull and Miss Lusamine and her Ultra Beasts.
It was the seven of us, with the help of Lillie and her brother, Gladion, and my friend, Hau, who averted the crisis that Miss Lusamine had caused by trying to take control of the Ultra Beasts. My Pokémon relied on me and I relied on them. The seven of us were a team. When my gaze rested on Nebby, I smiled and reached out a hand to touch her nose, or what I thought where her nose was. It was hard to tell where Nebby's nose was due to the dark space pattern of her body but Nebby still pressed her face into my hand with a happy purr.
"Nebby," I said softly, gently petting her.
Nebby blinked her eyes at me, lifting her head to tilt it in questioning.
I then looked to my other Pokémon, "What do you all say we call it a day and go home a bit early?" I asked.
My entire team seemed happy to leave this dark, cold room. As the champion of Alola, I was seen as a strong trainer, a leader, a role model to all young aspiring trainers. But being in this room, waiting for a challenger, day after day – it was tiresome and dull. I felt cut off from the rest of the world, just waiting for my next challenger. And so many expectations were placed onto my shoulders. It was unnerving.
As I called back all of my Pokémon, except for Lapis Lazuli, clipping all of their balls onto my bag, the lights suddenly turned on. The lights flooded the room with a staggering brightness. It only took a few seconds for my vision to adjust before I was able to focus on anything. A familiar voice greeted my ears.
"So you're still the Champion of Alola, Missy?" that voice made my heart jump.
I quickly spun around on my heels to face the only way in into my room when I saw him. He was grinning at me with his arms behind his head. His dark brown hair seemed to melt into his caramel skin. His hair had certainly grown out a bit since we last met but he still kept it in that familiar ponytail fashion.
"Alola, Hau, have you come to challenge me and Lapis Lazuli?" I asked. Lapis sat straight (as much as she could on her flippers) at the mentioning of a battle.
Hau just laughed and shook his head, that big grin never leaving his lips. "Not today, unfortunately. I came to get you."
"Get me?" I blinked now. He almost never came here to just fetch me unless it was important.
He nodded and grinned even bigger. I swear if his grin grew anymore it would become his entire face.
"Yeah! You know what today is, don't you?" Hau asked excitedly.
I just blinked again, unable to piece together what would be so special about today. "Ah, no, not really. Being in this room day in and day out makes time a big blur."
For a split second, Hau's excitement disappeared but then his grin returned. He approached me and grabbed my hand. "Just come with me and you'll find out!" He said. And with that said, he barely gave me time to recall Lapis and my other Pokémon before dragging me out of the Champion's Room and to where he said I would figure it all out.
Meaning behind my Pokemon's nicknames:
Kaa - named after the snake from The Jungle Book (esp the book version since the book version was actually female).
Lapis Lazuli - named after the Steven Universe character since Primarina is the water type starter (even though it doesn't have water wings lol)
Sage - Just a name I came up with because it's usually associated with people who are quite wise and Oranguru are said to be the same.
Moana - Because the Alolan Raichu practically surfs on its own tail, I just kinda associated the water/beach theme with the Disney character.
Giegieu - Just the name of the main villain of the Earthbound/Mother series (though he's called Giygas in English) but my Alolan Marowak was a girl and not a male. And Mewtwo is the one who looks more like Giegieu/Giygas).