Pokémon XY
Chapter One – Taking Flight
"You're going?!" both of Luken and her younger brother exclaimed, releasing their bowls of Pokémon food that tumbled all over across the grass at their feet. Visiting the Professor's private lab sanctuary where some of the Pokémon of caught trainers played, the trio of them made a short visit there to visit and check some of Nani's most cherished partners as par to her request. Running up to munch up the remaining yet scattered pieces of food at the boys' feet, the eager and playful Pokémon's' excitement turned to glee, especially a certain little white and blue Pokémon that scampered up and down Devin's arm to stuff his little electrified cheeks.
"I've already decided, and I told Dad and Aunt Isa that I'm leaving first thing tomorrow morning for Lumiose City," Nani said, standing to her feet to where she had her hand resting against a tame Liepard's head. Looking up towards its trainer with a knowing gaze, the feline Pokémon gazed then up at Absol, who loyally stood by Nani, and too nudged its head against Nani's side in worry. "Purrs, I'll be alright. I promise."
Purring lovingly against its trainer's side, some of the other Pokémon that were also caught and cared for by their trainer rushed up towards her from the bushes and the nearby food plates that were now empty. Surrounded by little paws, tails, and looks of curiosity, Nani lowered herself to her knees as she opened her arms out to them and one by one they leapt themselves at her to be cuddled.
"Pokémon sure seem to love you," Luken said, smiling at her way with them as she sat them and either scratched them under their chins or petted them in the way they liked. "I still couldn't believe you managed to tame a Purrloin. I still remember the look on Cilan's face when we first came into the Striation City Gym with it, and you pulled it out against his Pansage."
"It was a little tense," Nani said, remembering that she had recalled Oshana in their first battle against Cilan, as the type matchup battle failed to give Oshana the advantage in their first gym battle. "After you guys convinced me to try again after we got back from the Pokémon Center, he was certainly surprised when I used Purrs in the next battle."
"You did more than that, remember? You won that makeup battle fair and square, I'll say," Luken said, inwardly smiling at the way Liepard came forward to sniff at Chiko, Devin's partner, licked it, and then ran off to lie down after it left Nani's side. "Purrs is exactly a pure example of just how you see Pokémon, Cilan even admitted that."
"I know a trainer can pick a Pokémon, but sometimes a Pokémon can pick a trainer," Nani said, remembering each of the ways and experiences she shared with her dear Pokémon.
"That's true," Luken said, agreeing with her as a keen smile crossed his own train of thought as Devin got to his feet, a bit tired.
"Sorry to interrupt, but …" Canon said, stepping in with Professor Juniper as they both watched the three of them turn to see them coming in, the Pokémon letting Nani get up as Oshana, Cinccino, and Absol nearby and ever at Nani's side noticed the two of them, too. "Isa-line sent me to come get you guys. Come on, dinner's all ready. You're welcome to join us, too, Luken."
"All right!" Devin shouted, hanging back as his sister rubbed his soft brown brow as she gave him a knowing smile. Leaning towards Luken to whisper something in his ear, he said, "Going with Dad, it was always a restaurant or lunch at the Pokémon Center. Out in the field, though, it was either berries or a protein bar. When it came to actually cooking … I was actually kind of relieved when he let me hang out at the Pokémon Center while he went off on some of his more adventurous and wily photo shoots."
"Devin," he heard his sister shush him with a knowing yet gentle scold, hurrying up to catch up with her stride as they both were followed by their partners.
"Thanks a lot, Mr. Archer," Luken said, walking alongside Nani now as a slight curious yet knowing gaze connected with her own. "I think I will."
Later that night after a hearty feast of lasagna and scones, Nani stood out on the porch of that mild yet chilly night with only one thought on her mind, together with her partners gathered by her feet as they all looked up to gaze at the same golden moon.
Hearing the door peek open, she turned her head enough to smile at who came out walking out, two small electric Pokémon chasing each other around his feet as he paused to let them by as they only stopped and grinned in reply. Side-stepping over them gingerly, Luken only smiled as the smallest of the two plopped backward and giggled, Nani joining in, too, as she then lowered herself to her knees a bit to sit more comfortably and held out her hand towards the little yellow darling.
"Come on, Sparkle," Nani said, revealing the little Pichu's nickname as it noticed her and smiled. "Pi-chu, Pichu!" It said, padding over to lay itself down into Nani's warm hands. Feeling Cinccino carefully slide down from Nani's right shoulder and down to look Nani's feet, it snuggled itself up into one of Cinccino's white luxurious scarfs that fell and simply draped across Nani's laps as it laid is head down to rest, its chestnut brown eyes sliding slowly shut as Nani let two of her fingers gently rub down its back in a comforting touch. "Pi … Chu …"
"What are you going to do?"
Looking up into Luken's knowing eyes, Nani asked, "I don't know exactly yet. How did you know …?"
"I know you," he said, lifting up her chin a bit as she only sighed. "And, if you're thinking about going after her, you're not going alone."
"I'm coming, too!" Devin said, yawning a bit and coming outside with his glasses off, holding Chiko with one arm as he rubbed at his eyes. "I want to help you find her. Also, I'm ten now. I want to see what's out there … with my big 'Sis helping me out?"
"You want to go on a journey with me?" Nani asked, not surprised.
"Well, sure," her brother genuinely said, slipping his glasses back on so he could see a little better. "You've been out on a journey before, and … Who else do I know better to teach me the basics than my big sister?"
"Are you sure that's the only reason?" Luken tested him at the same time Nani also added, "I can think of one temptation that would make him want to come along." Connecting their eyes, Luken and Nani both laughed as Devin only looked annoyed.
"I'm serious!" Devin shouted a bit too loudly, chastening enough to see that his sister believed him as she only got up to come closer to come down to his level, cupping Sparkle up and into the crook of her arm, knowing she was almost asleep.
"I know you are, and I would be honored," she told him, serious now. "And, it could be dangerous, too. Are you sure?"
"I want to go," Devin said, hugging his sister hard with hidden tears ebbing out just past his cheeks, too, a secret signal that his sister picked up on as she held him tighter as he cried. "Please. And, like Luken just got done saying, there's no way I'm letting you take on this on your own."
"Guys …" Nani started to say, before a sudden crash inside made everyone and every Pokémon jump to their feet, including Oshana and Absol who looked up from where they had fallen asleep right next to their mistress. However, the jump was enough to startle even a certain little Pichu, who let out a startled cry and released a short discharge that electrified everyone out on the porch. Covered in a small layer of electrified char, Devin shook himself a bit to look at Luken, whose appearance was the least amount frayed.
"How?" He asked, looking down at Luken's insulated rubber socks he wore on his feet to which he had removed his strap sandals before. "Of course."
Giggling, Nani only shook herself off, too, as Oshana only pushed itself off the ground with a mild grimace, to which it felt Absol lower its horn to help it back up to its feet. Shaking both of themselves off, they both watched as Cinccino only remained asleep, to their shock. Picking the white-scarfed sweetheart up, Nani only giggled as she shook off daintily the rest of the soot out of her own hair.
"Ok guys, let's get some rest," Nani said, two of her sleepy partners now in her arms as she stood up to see someone missing. "Luken?"
"You guys go on and get some sleep, I have some things I have to pack and get ready for us to leave tomorrow morning," Luken said, standing in the doorway. "I kind of guessed that you were going to try to leave as soon as you could, so I went ahead and passed along your plan to go to the Kalos region to Professor Juniper. We leave on a flight to the Kalos region tomorrow at noon."
"You're amazing," Nani said to him, to which he only winked and left, leaving the siblings to get ready and to tell their guardians what they were planning to do.
"This is so cool! I can't believe we're up so high!" Devin said, seeing the view from his seat in the window seat just in front of Nani as he waved back at their father and aunt who proudly watched them take off from the terminal. Dressed in a thin trim yellow and olive-green long-sleeved undershirt under a basic collared and light green shirt, Devin buttoned up the single button of his black and green blazer vest, trying to keep the clasp from pulling on his leaf pendant that simply hung secretly down his neck.
"Yeah, but did you have to mention the ground?" Luken said, looking a little nervous as the plane rose ever higher off of the ground. Trying to not think about it, Luken instead looked out over the ocean where he saw the sun's rays dance on the top of the waters in a pretty glimmer as the Unova Bay got smaller and smaller and farther and farther away.
"You alright?" Nani asked her oldest companion as he wistfully sighed against the glass as he nodded in truth. "You never really cared to get on a plane, even Skyla's when she offered us a ride, if I can recall right."
"Yeah, but it's just because I like to keep my feet on the ground," Luken said, looking up at Nani with a wistful grin. "Plus between here and school, this will be my first time officially outside of Unova. I meant it before, though. You can't get rid of us."
"I didn't ask to," Nani said, feeling the ruffle of her bag next to her feet as she bent down to pick up Sparkle who poked out of the bag with a small smile. "Pi-pi-chu! Pi-chu?" Settling her little partner calmly in her lap, Nani looked up in quiet contemplation as Luken watched as Nani rubbed Sparkle's chin to its pleasure. "I'm glad we're doing this together," Nani said, genuinely. "Thank you."
Smiling with her friends, the plane from Unova continued on its course past the region sky and as the three looked on as their world got a little bit bigger. The approximate and estimated flight of ten hours from Nuvema Town to the Lumiose City airport junction of Kalos would put them right where their journey would begin. Settling down for the ride, Blaze and Luken both fell asleep as Nani felt herself start to doze off, too, right as a tiny head looked up from its trainer's lap to see that Nani's hand fell from its side. Curious, the little mouse Pokémon slid down the edge of Nani's long blue skirt to the ground and bumped up against the bag, where one of Nani's other poke balls rolled out of the bag (unseen) as the little mouse Pokémon caught the attention of little Minnie, too. "Mi?" she said, peeking up from Luken's shoulder, revealing that she had climbed up there earlier as they sat down.
"Pi-pichu," the little mouse Pokémon murmured, catching the smell of something sweet passing right by them on the side of the aisle as a mild flight attendant pushed a small snack cart on by.
Tackling the little Pokémon down on the ground in her curiosity to join her, the both of them ran down the concourse and underneath the seats right as the sight of a Absol emerging from its Poke ball caught the attention of some of the passengers and the flight attendant in a fright, as it rushed past them all in pursuit of the two little sneakers right as they scampered onto the retreating snack cart that disappeared into the small kitchen galley with a clatter.
Hearing a sound of a tapping foot, Nani stirred just enough a few minutes later to realize that someone was missing. Looking down towards her hands where Sparkle was not, she almost got up to her feet enough to then realize that someone was looking straight at them in a spectacle that had everyone in the other seats snickering away. Looking right behind her, Nani caught sight of her partner as Absol gently held the two others by the scruffs of their frosting-covered necks in a cross yet fatigued deportment that revealed what these two had done.
"Are these your Pokémon?" the attendant asked politely, all covered and splattered with frosting and icing that was the evidence of a mess-gone-dash situation.
"Yes, I can vouch for this two, but …" Nani started to explain, seeing Luken still asleep amidst the roaring laughter as they attracted the attention of the trainers across two seats from them and to the left (Or, at least one of them) as the boy that was sitting with her was asleep, a Pikachu looking over in slight sleepy curiosity just atop his lap and suddenly erupting in a cute series of giggles that woke up his trainer, too.
"Pikachu, what's so funny?" The older girl said as she turned her head around to see the tense yet humorous scene. "Oh dear. Excuse me for a sec, guys, I'll be right back."
With Luken now awake due to Nani tapping him on the shoulder, the two each took their small partners in hand as Abby nosed Nani's bag closer to her feet and nosed its poke ball closer to it, looking up in time in recognition at the trainer behind the attendant as she said, "These three made a complete mess of the galley kitchen, and now … Well, look at me!"
"No doubt it looks like these ones were tempted by one your complimentary desserts of this flight, am I right?" the red-and-black clad yet slender older trainer said. "Look, what happened was no doubt an accident and no one got hurt. Now, I know this girl personally, and I know, without a doubt, that her partners would never mean to cause any trouble."
"Fine," the not-so-chippy attendant said as she then just turned and left, no doubt recognizing who it was that standing in front of them all, even as Nani's eyes lit up.
"Alexa!" Nani said, earning a wink from her as she felt a tug on her skirt a bit to look down and saw that Abby was splattered, too, with a mix of white and blue frosting that was no doubt starting to get dry.
"Hey Nanalog," Alexa said, realizing something else, too. "You guys heading to Kalos, too?"
"Yep," Nani said, Devin looking up from his seat to see the other trainer smile up at them, too, but only briefly as Alexa connected her eyes towards her charge and his Pikachu in a nod.
"It's great to see you, again, but … It looks like you're busy," Alexa said, a little bit amused, too, as Nani then reached into her bag to remove some water and a cloth to clean up her partners. "We'll talk later."
"Alright," Nani said, starting to wipe at Sparkle's sticky fur to her delight. "Thank you!"
"How did she know you?" Luken said, burrowing one of the wipes to wipe just below his little partner's stubborn cheeks.
"Luken, that was Alexa," Nani said, recounting briefly how Alexa knew her from briefly travelling through Unova. "We met her briefly under my aunt when she came through asking about when that contest on Harvest Island was to be held."
"Oh yeah, I remember now," Luken said, remembering. "Trish wanted to enter that contest, too, with Ledian, but she didn't last very long."
Still reminiscing about the past, the two of them continued to talk as Devin just listened with his journal out. The flight continued on into the night as it had to stop down briefly to refuel, but it was clear, that would continue to make even more friends and meet old ones on their way into Kalos.
Sorry for the wait, but here's the next in sequence chapter before Nani's first steps in Kalos. Due to a redirected plane route idea that kinda spawned when I was putting together the ending of this chapter, we see some familiar faces (one that Nani knows and yet she has to meet) and hear mention of some friends that will also have a part in this story. Next stop, the Kalos region where we meet a new character and possibly an old rival. Until then, enjoy!