Chapter 1 – A Visit from the Unbeatable Champion
Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon. All rights belong to its proper owners.
"Are you seeing this? Tell me you're seeing it, Kai!" Leap practically shouted into his ear as she held her Rotom Phone in front of him, her hands trembling with excitement and shaking the screen. In the rare moments when she was still, Kaelan could see what his friend was so eager to show him.
Surrounded by a sea of adoring fans in a massive stadium, the roars of their cheers like waves crashing against the shoreline, stood Leap's older brother Leon. Tall and tan, with a shaggy mess of purple hair framing a strong face set with a pair of pale green jewels for eyes, the Unbeatable Champion seemed like a force of nature as the powerful wings of his Charizard buffeted the air behind him, causing gusts of wind that made his long, regal cape wave like a flag. Above him, the orange dragon roared in anticipation, its muscular tail slicing through the air, the flame at the end a bright and powerful orange.
"Isn't he the coolest?! That's Lee for you!" Leap said.
Kaelan looked away from the screen for a moment, to the face of his friend as she sat next to him on the couch. Younger than Leon, and at least a good foot shorter, he figured, Leap looked a lot like her brother. A tangle of purple curls crawled its way over her head, tumbling just below her shoulders, with a long curved ahoge extending from her head like a crescent moon; her eyes were a brighter green, almost like emeralds instead of his twin jades; and the smile she wore, rather than Leon's roguish, confident grin, was shy, and almost cute.
"I can't see if your hands keep shaking, Leap," Kaelan pointed out, reaching out and placing a hand atop hers to steady the phone. His eyes fixed back to the phone screen for just a moment, long enough to see Leon's challenger.
However, as his hand covered hers over the back of her Rotom Phone, Leap let out a squeak, and he immediately let go. Her cheeks turned a deep shade of red as she looked at him, suddenly shy.
"What's the matter, Leap? Purrple nip at you or something?" he asked, concerned. His mother's Purrloin was a bit of a handful, to say the least, and had a bad habit of biting when he wanted attention, though when Kaelan looked he couldn't see the lanky cat Pokémon anywhere. The only Pokémon in the house was Chomp, their tiny Munchlax who was dozing off by the heater. "I don't see him…"
"N-No, it's nothing," Leap said, shaking her head and tossing her purple curls about. She turned her attention back to the phone, her cheeks a fierce red and her hands steadier. "Thought I was losing my grip."
"On your sanity, huh?" he teased, grinning at her as his eyes moved back to the phone screen just in time to see Leon's Charizard hurling his opponent's Duraludon into the sky. His mouth dropped open in shock as the Steel-type Pokémon soared through the air, its metal body gleaming dangerously, like a sharpened knife. That had to have been heavy, but Leon's partner threw it like it were a rag doll… "Wicked."
"On my phone, you prat," Leap replied, jabbing his side with her elbow, though the blush refused to fade. A grin lit up her face as she drank in his awe, tilting the phone further toward him. "Incredible, isn't he? There's a reason they call him the Unbeatable Champion. Nobody is a match for Lee!"
The front door opened, bright midday light from the outside spilling into the living room. Kaelan's mom poked her head in and called, "Leap, dear! Your mom wants you home, it's almost time for Leon's train."
"Already?!" Leap leaped from the couch, nearly knocking Jordan back against the arm of the sofa thanks to the shockwave she threw off. Half a second later, she grabbed his hand and hauled him to his feet, practically jittering with excitement. "Come on Kai, you've gotta meet him! He always brings amazing presents when he comes to visit!"
She began dragging him toward the open door, bound to break into a full sprint at any second. Kaelan followed along awkwardly, trying to keep up, before his mother stopped them.
His mother wore blue overalls, covered in dirt from working in the garden all day, her dark brown hair drawn into a long, messy ponytail that she tied with a green scrunchie and threw over her shoulder. Beneath her glasses, her blue eyes twinkled with amusement as she looked between her son and his friend.
"Kai, dear, don't forget your glasses. And your jacket, it's a bit chilly out," she said, glancing outside at their group of Budew that stood huddled together in the garden. "Leap, you can wait out here with me. Arceus knows what you two would do alone in a bedroom."
Leap's face turned as red as a Cheri Berry and she began to sputter some sort of response, and even Kaelan couldn't help but turn his head away to hide his own embarrassment. Their hands separated in an instant, falling to their sides limply.
His mother laughed loudly, throwing her head back and practically howling. "I'm sorry, I couldn't resist. You two…" she wiped away a tear of mirth. "Go on, Kai, I'll keep her entertained."
She took Leap gently by the arm and pulled her outside, the door shutting behind them, leaving Kaelan all alone in the entry, standing on the door mat that ordered people to leave their shoes at the door in a rather rude manner.
The door to his bedroom was only about ten feet from the front door, so it didn't take long for him to cross that distance. Opening the door and flipping on the light, the first thing he saw was the dark form of Purrple curled up in a ball in the center of his bed, snoozing in a tangled nest of what were once freshly made bedsheets. Not wanting to get scratched, he decided to leave the Purrloin where it lay.
Kaelan's tennis shoes rustled against the carpeted floor as he stepped his way across the room to his closet. Grabbing his glasses from the dresser nearby, he eyed himself in the tall mirror that spanned nearly the entirety of the sliding door, suddenly a little self conscious; he was about to meet the Unbeatable Champion, did he really look presentable?
Running pale hands through his waves of dark brown curls, a pair of gray eyes stood out against his heart-shaped face like a set of storm clouds in a clear sky. Tall and lean, Kaelan's mother had always compared him to a scarecrow, but as he travelled through his teenage years with only Leap for a friend, he couldn't help but wonder if it was crows that he scared. He had pleasant enough facial features; a small, round nose and round cheeks, and what he always found to be an easygoing smile, though his eyes… he always thought they were a bit large…
He shook his head, tossing his dark hair back and forth. This wasn't the time to get into a mental argument about his looks, Leap was waiting for him. He slipped his black plastic-framed glasses onto his face, reached for the jacket that hung from a peg on the other closet door and shrugged into it. It was a light jacket, mostly solid black with the torso colored white, and could be surprisingly warm thanks to the insulation provided by Wooloo wool, though for some reason it always seemed to bear a slight static charge.
Leap always criticized his style, but he felt it went nicely with the purple shirt he wore. Checking himself over in the mirror one more time, he pumped his fist once to try and psych himself up, and he hurried out the door.
Outside, Leap was waiting impatiently at the wrought iron gate, shifting on one foot and hopping about like a Buneary, her purple locks bouncing. As the door closed with an audible click, she turned and brightened up, smiling widely at him.
"Took you long enough, Kai!" she said, lunging at him and grabbing his wrist again. "Come on! We've gotta stop by my house to see my mum."
As she began dragging him along, he heard his mother call out from behind them. "Be careful you two! And don't go into the forest, I know what teenagers do in there!" she teased.
"Mom!" Kaelan's cheeks turned a furious red as he looked back at her, the sight of their house shrinking the further Leap pulled him.
His mother stood in the garden waving, a playful grin on her face as the ivied stone walls that surrounded the pathway covered her. Soon the red roof of their house disappeared behind the stone walls too, the ivy that carpeted the roof becoming one with the ivy that blanketed the old walls.
The sky stretched out above them, placid and blue like a calm sea. Here and there, a tiny puff of white cloud drifted lazily through the air, like the herds of Wooloo that swarmed over the rolling green hills of Postwick. Around the pair that hurried along the dirt path, a few houses sprung up in between the army of lush green trees that dotted the landscape. The tiny town was like something from a painting, quaint and inviting, and oh so tiny.
One time when they were younger, he and Leap had counted the people that lived in Postwick. There were more Wooloo than people, and he couldn't imagine the numbers had changed much since then—if anything, the human population had dropped, while a Wooloo was likely to become the mayor soon.
Heading down the path, they came to a section where a gap appeared in the stone wall, with a fork in the road leading westward, though not far down it was blocked off by an old wooden gate. Beyond, the pleasantly round-topped trees that sprung up on the green hills joined up with a legion of tall gray-green pines, jutting up from the ground like spears. Heavy mists wreathed the forest, and it grew darker and darker to the point where it would be a very unwise idea to try and traverse it. Looking at it always gave Kaelan the chills.
They called that place the Slumbering Weald, an area where fearsome Pokémon were rumored to lurk. Leap and Kaelan had been told time and time again to never go in there—even to this day, where Kaelan's mother had woven in the warning with her teasing.
A Wooloo bleated at their approach, followed by the sound of the old gate creaking against its hinges. The two teens came upon the scene, spotting one of the fluffy round Pokémon rolling hard into the gate.
Leap stopped mid-sprint, Kaelan digging his heels into the ground to prevent from faceplanting.
"Hey, Wooloo!" Leap called out, waving her arms to try and get its attention. "Stop that! There's lots of dangerous Pokémon out that way, you'll get hurt!"
"It wants through for some reason," Kaelan said. "It wants to be free."
His eyes travelled up the path toward the dense forest, a shiver running up his spine as always, though this time it was accompanied by a sense of… longing. The desire to explore, and find things in those mists nobody had ever seen, and fight against, but also befriend, the Pokémon that made the weald their home. He'd never felt that before.
Leap looked at him for a moment, then burst out laughing. He liked the sound of her laugh. "Come on Kai, you're looking too much into this," she said, nudging him. "It's obviously so boring here that the Wooloo doesn't have anything better to do than Tackle the fence."
Kaelan's cheeks burned, a little embarrassed. "Time does stand still here," he agreed.
I'm the one that wants to be free… he thought. He and his mother first came here ten years ago, when his father was transferred to the Galar Region for his job. His father worked in Hammerlocke, however, so Kaelan didn't quite understand why they were stuck in Postwick.
Not that it wasn't a nice town. Just… small.
Pausing for a moment, Kaelan added onto his thoughts, I should stop pretending to be philosophical. Leap never takes me seriously when I do.
She let go of his arm and walked over to the Wooloo, gently picking it up and turning it around, away from the gate. "Go on, you. Roll off into the fields," she said soothingly, patting its fuzzy back as she placed it back on the ground.
Again the Wooloo bleated, and rolled along down the path. Leap smiled as it rounded a turn and disappeared.
"They're so silly sometimes," she commented, her hand brushing against the tiny red-and-white capsule at her belt. Leap turned her head to look back at him and gave him a grin; rolling his eyes slightly, Kaelan stuck out his hand, and she grabbed onto it, and they went off again, Leap dragging and Kaelan wondering why he just went along like this.
"Why do we always manage to get sidetracked when we have things to do?" Kaelan asked rhetorically as they followed in the Wooloo's tracks and rounded the corner.
"Maybe that's nature's way of trying to make us spend more time together~" Leap teased, her cheeks a soft pink.
The sun was in their eyes now, a bright orb of gold that swam through the deep blue sky like an egg yolk that someone had dropped in the ocean for some unknown reason. Shielding himself from the sun with his hand, he saw Leap's house springing up ahead of them.
Built of slate gray bricks and capped with a red roof and a Fletchling weathervane, the building sprang out of the ground a full two stories, with several rectangular windows shut tight against the cool outside air. The old stone wall that bounded the residential area wove around the property, fencing in the rickety old garage that housed Leap's late father's old car, as well as the small pond, patio area and the tiny chalk rectangle that they used for imaginary Pokémon battles as children. Behind the tall tree that shaded the pond and battle arena, an old windmill grew like a looming white flower with a thick red stem.
"Do you think he's here? Maybe that's why my mum wanted us to stop by first," Leap suggested hopefully, her eyes sparkling as they turned into her yard.
A few leaves drifted from the shady tree, torn from their perch by a cool gust of wind. Kaelan's eyes followed them as they fluttered through the air before Leap pulled him ahead and his head jerked forward. It was getting to be autumn soon, he recalled, soon that tree would be bare.
"Leap!" her mother's voice drew his attention. She had opened up one of the windows and poked her head out, her purple hair long and tied back in a ponytail that slid down her back. She and her daughter looked surprisingly alike; emerald green eyes and a pleasant smile, it wasn't hard to tell where Leap got hers from. Laugh lines traced her cheery face, and she beamed at them as they came to a stop at the window.
"Mum! Is he here yet?!" Leap asked, still holding onto Kaelan's hand as she bounced on the balls of her feet, yanking his arm up and down while he stood there a little awkwardly.
"Leap, dear, you need to be patient! You've asked twenty times in the past hour," her mother scolded softly, reaching out and messing up her daughter's curls. "He's probably just arrived in Wedgehurst. Perhaps you should go meet him?"
"That's a great idea! Lee's awful with directions," Leap replied, shaking her head out from under her mother's hand and throwing her curls about.
"Will you be going as well, Kai dear?" her mother asked, looking to him… and then down at their interlocked hands, and grinned even wider. I don't like this smile… "Oh my, did you two finally get together? I'll have to see your mother then, Kai, I believe I've won the betting pool…"
"MUM!" Leap covered her face with her free hand.
"I, uh…" Kaelan was at a loss for words, his cheeks burning as if he'd just been hit with an Ember. What was it with their mothers lately? It wasn't like Leap dragging him around by the hand was new, she'd done it for years. "Uh… come on, Leap, we should probably go… to Wedgehurst, I mean. I can't wait to meet Lee. Leon."
He tried wriggling his hand free of hers, but she kept it in an iron grasp as she nodded, dropping her other hand away from her Tamato-red face. "Y-yeah. Let's go, Kai," she agreed, quickly turning and pulling Kaelan around with her.
"Oh, off to introduce your brother to your boy—" Leap's mother didn't even get to finish the sentence as the pair bolted out of the gate, turning right onto the dirt path and heading toward Wedgehurst.
The two didn't say much to one another as they began the walk up a small pimple of a hill that rose up a half mile down the road from Leap's house. There was an uncomfortable awkwardness between the two of them, with Leap staring down at the road, lips pursed and her entire face an embarrassed red, and Kaelan remaining as stoic as he could with his cheeks being as deep a scarlet as they were.
Leap was the first to speak after they crested the hill. Before them, the world unfolded like a blanket of green and brown; they weren't too much higher than the rest of the land around here, from this spot they were hardly halfway between the first and second floors of Leap's house, but it was beautiful nonetheless. Unlike the army of trees that guarded the entrance to the Slumbering Weald, the land here was a patchwork of hedges, ivied stone fences and tilled fields, and long, branching paths filled with tall grass.
"You've never met Lee before, right Kai?" she asked, looking over at him for the first time since they tore out of her yard. As he looked back at her, he noticed that the redness of her face had faded somewhat, her tan skin glowing in the light of the golden sun.
"Surprising, isn't it?" he confirmed, feeling his cheeks doing the opposite of hers as he looked into her eyes. His mother always taught him eye contact was key, but Leap's eyes always made him embarrassed for some reason. "Ten years we've been neighbors, and I've never met him once. Are you that embarrassed of me?"
"You know it," Leap snarked back, giving him a playful grin. Their moms always managed to make things so awkward, but the moment they were out of sight things could return to normal just like that. Kaelan was glad for that. "If I brought somebody like you to see Lee, he'd never let me live it down."
They began their descent of the hill, Leap still holding a tight grip on Kaelan's arm, not showing any sign of wanting to release him. He didn't mind so much; they'd gone around like this since they were little, it would feel weird to him if they didn't hold hands like this.
About a half mile down the steadily widening road, groupings of houses sprung out of the ground around a cobblestone path that wound through the town, branching off like a stone tree. At the furthest edge of the town, one house rose above the others, with a round tower off to one side of it, the roof a deep purple, like Leap's hair. Wedgehurst was close enough to Postwick that more often than not, it was easier for Kai and Leap to tell people that they lived in the former town because very few people realized Postwick existed.
"Kai, look!" Leap pointed ahead, and following her finger Kaelan spotted a brick building with a red roof, surrounded by a steadily growing crowd of people. Kaelan had only been to Wedgehurst a handful of times before, usually with Leap and their mothers on a trip to the market, but he knew enough to recognize the building as the small town's train station.
"Quite a crowd there," Kaelan commented, feeling his stomach churn a little as he began counting the people. Already they outnumbered Postwick's Wooloo population. "Think his train came in yet?"
Before Leap could even answer, the crowd gave loud shouts of excitement, every man, woman and child among them throwing their hands in the air, thumbs, index and middle fingers outstretched in the famous "Charizard pose" that had become as good as Leon's signature. Cries of, "Champion!" "Leon!" and "Champion Leon!" seemed to echo for miles around as they drew nearer.
Through the mass of bodies churning and tossing about like a choppy sea in a storm, a long orange neck became visible, as well as a mane of wild purple hair.
Beside him, Kaelan heard Leap's breath hitch in her throat. Her hand tightened around his until the grip became almost bone-crushing, her face lighting up with a brilliant smile. "Kai! He's here! He's here!" she shouted, bolting again and dragging Kaelan along with her.
They dove into the crowd, Leap pushing and shoving with one hand to forge a path while Kaelan followed behind helplessly. Soon they were at the front, standing in front of the army of fans gathered to welcome the Galar Region's champion, more than a few annoyed eyes turned their way from Leap's insistent hurry to reach the head of the crowd.
Leon was taller than he looked on broadcasts; if Kaelan was six feet even, then Leon was easily six-three or more. Though his cape made him look regal, like a proper king reigning over Galar, his cascading waterfall of purple hair and worn baseball cap—which Leap had mentioned was a remnant from his original Gym Challenge—gave him the air of adventure, as if he had given up his royalty to be a wanderer. Muscles rippled under the same tan skin as Leap's, and his eyes flashed with a sort of brilliance that made him seem a worthy adversary.
And then, as Leon's eyes fell upon his sister, a bright grin stretched across his handsome face. The Unbeatable Champion had been in the middle of an impassioned speech, walking around constantly striking his Charizard Pose as his Charizard trudged along behind him, but he stopped mid-stride then and paused.
Kaelan couldn't believe how different he seemed in person than in all the battles he had watched; if anything, Leon was more impressive. His voice was deeper, movements more fluid, and there was an evident bond between him and his partner Pokémon that gave him a very formidable aura. When Leon's gaze fell on him, he couldn't help but shudder slightly.
After just the briefest of moments, the pause ended and Leon continued, though his speech had taken on a tone that suggested he was very interested in wrapping it up.
"In short—I hope that you will all continue training your Pokémon to bring out the best in you and them! And then, come and challenge me for the Champion title! My mate Charizard here is a right powerful one, but you can't let that deter you. Reach for greatness—show the world that the best trainers come from Galar!" He declared passionately, once again striking his Charizard pose. His Charizard flapped its wings and roared loudly in agreement, shooting a large burst of flames into the air above its head.
The crowd around them cheered, and steadily began to disperse once it became clear that Leon had no intention of continuing. Taking a deep breath, Leon sighed happily, and then went over to Leap and Kaelan, who were still holding hands.
"There she is!" Leon shouted with joy. He leaned down and scooped Leap up into his arms and spun her around; being at least a foot shorter than him, she looked quite a bit like a ragdoll. "There's my baby sister! My number-one fan in all the world has come to pick me up!"
Leap laughed like a little girl as her brother twirled her around. "Come on Lee! Put me down!" she complained, although she certainly didn't seem to mind.
After a few more spins, he set her down and seemed to totter about, perhaps a bit dizzy himself. He laughed, beaming at her. "Look at you, though! You've grown up so much since I last saw you… let's see, I reckon you've grown… exactly three inches since then!"
"Right on the money, Lee!" Leap said ecstatically, moving her arms wildly. She radiated excitement. "That's the sort of eye that's kept you undefeated for so long, isn't it? See, Kai?! Isn't he the greatest?!"
Kaelan soon found Leon's eyes locked on him again.
"So… you're the mysterious Kai? Or, Kaelan—is that right?" the Champion said, giving his sister's friend an appraising look.
"Er, Kaelan is fine. Sir." Kaelan found himself saying, more out of habit than anything.
"Sir?" Leon repeated, blinking several times, and then started to laugh. "Leap! You didn't tell him to call me 'sir,' did you? Your boyfriend is a riot!"
Leap and Kaelan both began sputtering like old cars in response to this. The two looked to one another, flushed Tamato red, and said in unison, "B-b-b-b-boyfriend?!"
This, of course, caused Leon to laugh even harder. "Calm down you two… sorry, Leap, Kaelan. Mum told me to say that," he explained after he calmed down, wiping a tear of mirth from his eye. "Then again, with a reaction like that… am I wrong?"
"LEEEEE!" Leap whined, winding up and delivering a surprisingly devastating punch to her brother's gut. He doubled over, still grinning, though there was a bit of pain held within that smile this time. "I-it's not like that! We're not like that! I…"
"Okay, okay," Leon choked out as he stood back up, coughing slightly. "I'm sorry… it was just too funny… anyway. Let's get on back to Postwick, eh? It's been too long since I've been home."
"Yeah… that's probably a good idea," Kaelan interjected, hoping that any further punching could be avoided under the gaze of their mothers.
"Let's have a race, shall we?" Leon suggested.
The word 'race' brought Leap out of her spluttering state, causing her to cease babbling and look up brightly. "Come on Lee, you know I always win! You don't even know your way home on your own!"
"Who says I haven't gotten better at directions? It's been almost two years, hasn't it?" Leon remarked with a grin. Behind him, Charizard shook its head in a manner that suggested that its partner had not, in fact, gotten better at directions.
"Let's go then! Prove it!" Leap shouted, before turning quickly and bolting back the way that they had come. She raced over the stone bridge and in no time was climbing the hill up toward Postwick, leaving Kaelan and Leon in the dust.
Leon chuckled softly and shook his head. "That's my sister for you… always the competitive type," he said, beginning to walk at a steady pace.
"So she's not just like that around me, then?" Kaelan asked, his eyes tracing the cloud of dust that had been kicked up by Leap.
"No, she's been like that since she was little. Everything I did, she wanted to do, but better. She's always looked up to me."
The two were in no hurry as they walked back up the trail, knowing that they had no chance of catching up with Leap at this point. They seemed as if they were out on a Sunday stroll, with the leisurely pace they took.
"She talks about you constantly," Kaelan offered, looking to the Galar Region's Champion. He was in his early twenties, no more than twenty-five at most, yet he had already accomplished so much more than many people would in a lifetime; it felt weird to be having such a casual chat with him. "Leap does, I mean. Every time you have a match, she's always over to watch it."
Leon's lips quirked into a slight smirk for a moment. "She's my number one fan in the whole world. Not even Arceus could keep her from seeing one of my battles," he replied. "She talks about you constantly, too. Every time I'd call, she'd go, 'Kai did this,' or 'Kai did that,' or, 'You really should have seen what Kai did! It was really ace of him!'"
Kaelan felt his cheeks reddening again. "Is that so…"
"Quite so. I can't believe I'm only just now meeting you, as smitten with you as she seems."
"What?!"
"Oh, nothing, nothing," Leon stated with an airy wave of his hand. "But… I think Leap could really stand to mellow out a bit. Know what I mean? Well, perhaps 'mellow out' isn't the right phrase. What I mean is, she needs an outlet for her competitiveness. A rival."
Kaelan had the sudden feeling that he knew where this was going, and why Leon seemed perfectly content to walk alongside him instead of chasing after Leap. "And that's where I come in?"
"That's where you come in," Leon confirmed with a smile, putting a large, gloved hand on Kaelan's shoulder. "You're someone she cares about… a lot. I think that if you too were competing against one another, it would do you both some good. Maybe if her boyfriend was stronger than her, she'd strive to be even stronger than that."
"I-I'm not her boyfriend," Kaelan complained, kicking a rock off the path and into the tall grass, which began to rustle slightly. "She's my best friend… that's it."
"That's what you say," Leon said, waving his hand airily again. "Well, whatever it is between you two… take care of my sister, will you? Be good to her."
The duo reached the top of the hill, and without giving him even a second to answer Leon took off down the road. Their house was only a little ways ahead; Kaelan could see the windmill, and just a bit further beyond was the tall tree that grew over the pond and battle arena. He watched Leon dash off, Charizard flying overhead to make sure he didn't lose his way.
For a moment, Kaelan pondered Leon's words. Rivals… he thought, still walking steadily on. Does that mean that he brought us…?
Take care of my sister, will you? Leon spoke in his mind, interrupting his prior thoughts. Unless he was misunderstanding, that request seemed to imply a… certain kind of relationship between the two.
Go away, you. Kaelan reprimanded. He'd known Leap for half his life, surely she wouldn't be interested in him like that. He had to be misunderstanding Leon.
Sighing, Kaelan began running too, not wanting to keep them waiting any longer.
The coals on the barbecue glowed red-hot beneath the grate as Kaelan turned the kebabs over again. Beads of sweat dotted his face as he bent over the hot grill.
While the phrase, 'if you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen' came to mind, Kaelan never minded the heat. He loved to cook; it was something he had been doing since he was twelve, a few years after he and his mother first moved to Postwick, and he had come to the horrifying realization that his mother couldn't cook. He had never thought much on it, but it must have been his father who did most of the cooking—but he was in Hammerlocke now, working his life away, without so much as a phone call, or even a text every now and then.
"Kai, can I help?" came Leap's voice from beside him.
Kaelan looked up from the grill. They were in Leap's yard, the soft orange glow of sunset washing over them. A few feet away, Leon had his back to them while he talked to their mothers.
On the other hand, their mothers were looking past Leon, at the two teenagers standing at the grill. Kaelan's mother had a distinctly conspiratorial smile on her face; he stuck his tongue out at her in response.
His attention then went back to Leap, as he remembered what she had asked him. Nightmares of failed cooking attempts flashed through his mind as he remembered multiple times in the past where she had tried to help, only for something to go horribly, horribly wrong, and the meal to be ruined.
Apparently sensing her best friend's apprehension, Leap added, "I promise I won't burn it this time!"
Kaelan was skeptical that she could keep that promise, but a saving grace from answering arrived in the form of Leap's mother walking up toward them, Leon beside her. "Kai, dear, why don't you take a break? You've been working so hard on our meal, I can cover for a bit," she offered.
He began to shake his head. "It's alright, I'm almost done—"
"Then it should be fine, yeah?" Leon asked, putting his arm around Kaelan's shoulders and turning him toward the tree and the pond. "Come on, you two. I've got something I want to show you!"
A bright look came over Leap's face, an expression that sent Kaelan's stomach to somersaults. "Lee… did you bring us Pokémon?!"
"You'll see!" was Leon's reply as he guided Kaelan toward the little practice field. It wasn't a direct answer, but it was clear as day all the same.
Leap ran ahead and started bouncing around like a Buneary once more, standing right in the middle of the field. "I knew it! I told you, Kai, I told you!"
Her excitement was infectious. He didn't want to seem presumptive, but the thought that he was about to receive his own Pokémon after so long was… well, he wasn't sure what it was like. He'd never felt something like this, not even when Leap smiled at him. It was the feeling that he was about to get the freedom he always wanted. The ability to leave Postwick, and seize everything that Galar had to offer. An escape from monotony. The potential for glory.
All that, and more existed in the promise of a Pokémon. The idea that so much could be contained within a tiny red-and-white capsule that hooked onto his belt should have seemed absurd, but as Leon reached into his coat and withdrew three of those small capsules, and then tossed them into the air, any thoughts of absurdity went out the window. Not even his normally reserved nature could keep the bright smile off Kaelan's face as the balls expanded, burst open in the middle, and sent three jets of red light shooting out.
"Come on out, everyone!" Leon called proudly. "Time to show off!"
The first of the three creatures to appear was a small green monkey-like Pokémon, with a long brown tail and a small tuft of fur on top of its head that looked like the seedling of a berry tree. It closed its eyes as it appeared and let out a cute, "Groo!" before hurling itself toward the tree and clambering up quickly. After finding a suitable branch, it shimmied out and pulled a Sitrus Berry from a nearby arm of the tree, and began to drum on it with a small stick it pulled from the tuft of hair on its head.
The second was much smaller, and more like a lizard, and also blue in color. It had a thick curly tail, enormous, watery blue eyes, and a yellowish frill poked up from its head. The Pokémon looked around at the new surroundings, and let out a nervous, "Sooooob," before diving into the pond and appearing to melt away.
Last on the scene was a white rabbit, with large ears that were colored in a gradient of reds, like little flames. Between its dark eyes, covering its nose, was a yellow-brown mark that looked like a bandage. Smiling brightly, the bunny Pokémon began running around the field, its footsteps singing the grass slightly as it ran. It wasn't vocal like the other two, but it didn't need to be.
Kaelan's mouth dropped open. Leap let out a gasp.
Quietly, Leon explained, "From today on… one of these three will be your partner."
One? Only one? Kaelan supposed he couldn't have hoped for more, but… how was he supposed to choose? They were all too adorable! He wanted to comb his fingers through the monkey's fur, to nuzzle the soft scales of the lizard, to hoist the bunny onto his shoulders and let it ride there like a child. He wanted all of them, but he could only have one.
But which one was it going to be?
As he tossed this choice around in his mind, the berry the monkey had been drumming on slipped from its perch on the branch and splashed down into the water. Immediately a pair of enormous blue eyes popped open, and as the ripples rushed toward them, the lizard leapt from the water with a terrified yelp. It landed on the field near where the rabbit ran, the white Pokémon making a circle around it before continuing its route, and the big eyes quickly filled with tears.
"S-S-Soooooob!" sobbed the lizard, tears erupting from its eyes. The cries echoed around the yard, bouncing off the moss-covered fencing and the house.
Without even thinking, Kaelan took a step forward and went to one knee in front of the Pokémon. "Hey," he crooned soothingly. "Hey, don't cry, bud. It's okay."
He slowly extended his hand as the Pokémon opened its eyes and sniffled, though a flood still threatened to leak from those staring blue orbs.
"You're alright," Kaelan soothed again, moving his hand a bit further and gently touched its head. The skin was so smooth and glossy, and wet from the water.
Behind him, he heard his mother comment, "That's my boy—so gentle."
"He's good with small creatures," Leap's mother agreed. "He's got some fatherly instincts to him."
"Just what a son-in-law should need, huh?" his mother teased, but Kaelan ignored her.
After a moment's hesitation, the Pokémon leaned into his touch, pushing its round head against his hand. The tears seemed to disappear, and a smile quickly appeared in their place.
"Sooob?" the Pokémon said.
"There we go. Nothing to cry about, see?" Kaelan asked, carefully scooping the Pokémon up into his arms. It felt so light, so thin that he worried he might crush it if he so much as tensed his muscles. As he raised it toward his chest, it started to scramble up his arm and perched on his shoulder. "H-hey! That tickles…"
"Guess your choice is made then, huh?" Leon chuckled. "Sobble's a good Pokémon, she'll serve you well."
"Sobble?" Kaelan repeated. The small lizard rubbed its—er, her, head against his cheek. He giggled again. "Looks like we're friends now. Is that okay with you?"
Sobble let out a cry as her tiny arms moved to hug him.
Behind them, Leap made an "Aww!" noise. "Kai, you're really cute with that Sobble!"
"Sobble… I think I'm going to give you a nickname," Kaelan said softly. "You've got a really loud cry, so… what about Echo?"
She seemed to think about it for a moment, and then her mouth opened in a bright smile as she nodded. "Sob! Sob!"
"Echo. That's a right champion name," Leon commented. "What about you, Leap? Who do you want for your partner? …Aside from the obvious."
Their mothers began to snicker, but Kaelan wasn't sure why. Echo clutched tighter to him, though, and he thought he felt a distinct aura of menace rolling off of Leap.
"Lee…" she said warningly.
Leon held up his hands defensively. "Hey, hey…"
She breezed past him and went to one knee in the middle of the field. The small rabbit stopped mid-run to look at the person who had moved into its path. "Scor?" it asked, tilting its head.
"Hi, Scorbunny!" said Leap brightly. "Do you want to come with me? We'll have lots of fun!"
The bunny blinked a couple of times, and then began to nod its head vigorously. Its ears flopped this way and that, before it bounced twice and jumped up to hug Leap.
"Taking the disadvantage, baby sister?" Leon inquired.
"Of course," she replied, standing up with the Scorbunny held in her arms. "Gotta show Kai that even if he has the better type matchup, I'm still the better trainer!"
Kaelan felt a grin tugging at his lips. "I can't wait to make you eat those words."
Leap turned to face him. Her eyes seemed to sparkle as she looked at him, and once again he felt heat rushing to his face.
"We're in this together now, Kai… I hope you know I'm not going to lose. Not to you… not to anyone," she answered. "And not just in Pokémon battles either."
"Time to eat, you three!" called Leap's mother. "Food's done!"
Leon, who in the middle of their exchange had gone to scoop up the green monkey, walked past them. "Come on you two—wouldn't do to let dinner get cold after Kai worked so hard on it! Ow—and you too, mom."
"What do you mean, Leap?" Kaelan asked.
"This Scorbunny… he's going to help me achieve my goals. All of them." Leap began to blush as a thought seemed to surface in her mind. "You'll see exactly what I mean some day… when I take that cloak from Lee, and become the Champion of the Galar League!"
We're cutting it there for now! Welcome everyone to a project I've been working on for quite some time. My name is Chase, some of you might recognize me from other fics I've written—my most popular currently being my story loosely based off of the Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's anime and game Stardust Accelerator. If you are a reader of that, I apologize for the lack of an update on that, to put it simply, I've just run out of motivation for it for the time being. If you aren't a reader of that—I do not at all have any sort of writer's block, and should probably, hopefully, be pretty regular with updates on this one.
Anyway—welcome, again! This is going to be a vague retelling of the Sword and Shield games, but with quite a few differences. I'm attempting to write this in the style of an anime almost, since, as far as I'm aware, Galar hasn't been given its own anime series. (Journeys may have given it a few episodes? Idk, I don't watch Journeys.)
Probably the first difference you'll be able to see—they're meant to be older than in the games. For reasons I intend to explain later in the series, Kaelan and Leap are in the age range of 17-18. The second difference you'll likely notice, Hop is actually named Leap. Oh, and he's also a girl, because all good animes need the childhood friend with an obvious crush on the protagonist. Another thing you may have picked up on—Kaelan is currently one of the few protagonists with a known father, though he lives in a different city. What's the deal with that?
As for other things that you'll see in future updates, one of the main things I've been working on is revamping Galar's Gym Challenge in an attempt to make it more interesting. Reworking Team Yell so that at least a few of them are more than just glorified cheerleaders. Better motivations for certain characters. Oh, and a harem. What good anime doesn't have a harem in it? Aside from Demon Slayer, but every other good anime has a harem.
Anyway, that's all I've got for you! I hope you enjoyed, and I hope to see you again soon when I next update! For the time being, this will be my main project, so once I work out a schedule I hope to bring regular updates.
So, as always,
Take care, brrrrush yo hair, I'll see ya when I see ya, PEACE~
~Chase