"Now arriving in: Wedgehurst. Please remain behind the yellow line as the train boards. Again, please remain behind..."
The announcement on the train intercom rang, and its passengers stood from their seats in preparation to depart from the locomotive. A woman in business attire sighed in fatigue, glancing at her wristwatch. An elderly man was helped to his feet by his wife, clutching a cane in his left hand. A college student shelved her laptop in her backpack, eagerly awaiting home.
The diverse crowd shuffled quietly to the doors, clutching the overhead grips as the train slowly ground to a halt. An uneventful affair for the regular commuters, once again introduced to the familiar sounds of and wheels clacking and brakes screeching.
There was one sound that was not so familiar, however—the sounds of furious, frantic typing.
"Come on," a young man, still seated despite the announcement, anxiously spoke as he rocked nervously. His foot fidgeted up and down on the floor, emitting a small but noticeable squeaking noise that drew the subtle ire of the people around him. "Work, you stupid thing!"
A hand ran through a thick tussle of black hair. "How in the world do I not have service out here? I literally just saw a service tower!"
Jolted by the sound of the doors opening, the young man's heart dropped as he saw people beginning to exit. This was bad. Out of pure desperation, he turned to the nearest person he could find—some older office-worker type with a mean hunch—and made to grab his attention. "Uh, excuse me!"
If looks could kill, he'd have been dead ten times over as the hardened eyes of the man slowly met his own. "Hm?" The man grunted. At least he heard him.
He didn't have time to waste. "Um, hi, real sorry to bother you, but I was hoping you could give me directions? See I just moved here and I don't know where anything is and my phone is being a piece of shit right now and I'd really appreciate it if—"
"Hurry it up," the man scowled, cutting him off. "I don't have the time for a piss-eyed foreigner."
Piss-eyed... what? It took all of the young man's patience not to snap back at him. He was supposed to be asking for help, after all. "Er... right, sorry. When does the train arrive at... uh... Wickerpost?"
The businessman's brow raised. "Wickerpost?"
"I think that's what it's called?"
"You meanin' to say Postwick?"
His eyes lit up in recognition. "Yeah, yeah! That's what it's called!"
The man grumbled to himself, before grounding out an answer. "Trains don't go to Postwick. Wedgehurst's as far as they take you. Recommend you get off the train before you end up locked in it for the night." With one more mumble of "moron," the man trudged his way off the train, leaving the dumbfounded young man as the last train's passenger.
He stood in silence after the not-so-friendly stranger left, though not because of the rude remark. "They only go to Wedgehurst?" He murmured. "How am I supposed to get to Postwick then?"
The sound alerting that the doors were closing rang, snapping him out of his thoughts. Frantically grabbing his bag and suitcase, he all but lunged out of the train, blitzing through the station lobby before finally meeting fresh air and a quickly darkening sky.
Cassius William Hargreaves—eighteen years of age, born to two loving parents, and soon to become the talk of the entire region—was perhaps in the worst rut he'd experienced in his entire life.
A light breeze tickled at his chin. The air was cool and the sun was well through its descent, shielded by a few wayward clouds. In the distance, Cassius could faintly make out the shape of a few houses and what looked to be farms. The only audible noises were the sounds of swaying grass and fading footsteps of the fellow passengers who had gotten off before him.
He blinked slowly. There were some tiny figures flying some ways away. Bird Pokémon, by the looks of it. It had been some time since Cassius had seen a flock of Pidove. They had a tendency to fly south before the colder seasons, and Lacunosa was hardly the most welcoming of places during the winter.
Only they weren't Pidove. They were some other regional variant bird Pokémon Cassius didn't know the name of. Roughly the same size, but with blue wings and yellow bellies. They flew by harmlessly, and Cassius found himself gazing at them silently as they traveled in a great big group at their leisure.
He'd only been here for less than a day, yet everything felt weird. Not right, not wrong. Not anything he could have loosely labeled with the emotions he felt like he should have been familiar with. Just weird. Different.
Was he strange for feeling this way? He hoped not. He thought it was natural, given that he was in an entirely new environment and had only arrived a day ago. Thankfully, most of the unpacking had been completed prior to he and his family's arrival, and the only thing left for Cassius to do was sort his personal effects in his new room. It would hardly be a time-consuming task—he didn't have very many keepsakes to begin with.
He'd never have the chance to do so if he kept moping around here, however. Shelving his thoughts for later, Cassius returned to his phone to try and get an idea of where to go. It seemed whatever had been afflicting his phone in the train was done bothering him, as a detailed map appeared on the screen.
It took a bit of calibrating to plot his next course of action. "I'm at the station, so I need to head to the main road east, and then head... south." That didn't seem complicated. "Should be a straight shot to Wicker—uh, Postwick from there."
Still, just to make sure, he kept his eye out for street signs while glancing back at his phone frequently. Street signs were a thing in this country, right? He was thankfully proven right when a large post pointed in the direction the map told him to go, confirming his destination. It did seem like a straight shot south to his new home, and his new life.
New life. The phrase left a weird taste in his mouth.
As the young man progressed south, suitcase and bag in tow, he noticed the marks of industrial society subside in favor of nature. The stone path became dirt, and the buildings became long fields of grass. A bridge approached, and as Cassius crossed it, he saw a winding river that seemed to split the landscape in two.
He continued undeterred until he was met with a path filled with what looked like... oversized cotton balls. A closer look revealed they weren't cotton balls—they were moving, breathing, and bleating.
Cassius froze. "Uh... hello?" He spoke lamely, coming within five feet of the creatures. They were undoubtedly Pokémon, but Pokémon Cassius had obviously never seen before. The nearest one eyed him with lazy disinterest, chewing on a patch of grass at its leisure.
The young man quickly pulled out his phone. It wasn't a Pokédex by any means, but he didn't need a comprehensive breakdown of the things in front of him. He just needed to know if they were hostile at all. Or if they enjoyed washing their grass down with human blood.
"Wooloo are normal-type Pokémon, typically found in the Galar region," his phone's built-in assistant relayed to him after he snapped a quick picture of the animals. "They are herbivores, and considered friendly. Do not engage without a Pokémon."
"Okay, so they won't guzzle my brains from my skull," Cassius sighed in relief. There were more than a few of them, and they were doing a stellar job of clogging the path in front of him, but as long as he minded his step and didn't intentionally bother any of them he'd be fine, right?
A quick look down at his waist revealed the lone, weathered Poké Ball in his pocket. Cassius quickly pondered to himself. 'I mean, I could...' He quickly shook his head. The internet had said these Wooloo things were harmless, and the internet never lied, right? It would probably do more harm than good if he did what he thought of doing.
So, with all the finesse expected from someone sneaking around harmless Pokémon for the first time, Cassius eased his way between the horde of docile Pokémon, taking care not to accidentally hit one of them with his luggage. He earned nothing more than a brief look from the group of Normal-types as he maneuvered through and around them.
Though, he would readily admit that they smelt terrible. "You guys don't have, like, a Wooloo shower or something anywhere? There's a river right there."
"Baa," the nearest Wooloo called from in front of him, before promptly turning around and defecating. Cassius scrunched his face in disgust as he moved through the crowd with a bit more haste. 'I already hate this place.'
Finally escaping, Cassius continued trekking through the dirt path, finally coming into contact with a few rustic-looking buildings. By the roadside was a wooden sign that read, "Welcome to Postwick—a farming town since days of old, where people and their Pokémon live in close harmony."
"Yeah, just like every other town and city on the planet," Cassius grumbled softly, before following his map and taking a right on the path.
The small town looked quaint enough, and much like it had been described to him prior to his arrival. There seemed to be green everywhere he looked. Farmland spread across the plains and hills, spots of various crops dotted throughout. More herds of Wooloo—domesticated ones, it seemed—were grazing in a pen to his left.
A stark difference from the chilly, stoney haven that was Lacunosa. 'Do mom and dad even farm?' More thoughts for later.
A brief uphill walk led to the address he was looking for. Near the end of the street at the top of the hill, next to a house that looked to be under assault from plants. His new home wasn't as disorganized—a standard white two-story, with a sizable backyard stationed behind the house. A garage, and his parents' cars, sat to the house's left, sandwiched between his house and the neighbor's.
Home. Or at the very least it would be, given time.
Approaching the front door, he thought about knocking, but quickly thought better of it. Grabbing the handle, the door opened with a soft turn. Stepping inside, he was assaulted with the smell of paint—and a strange sight.
"Oh, Cassius!" A woman with dark hair, similar to his own, called out upon his entering. "Over here, honey. Watch your step."
It looked like a scene from a cartoon. His mother, all five-foot-six of her, was almost entirely coated in paint. Still, a reserved smile lit up her slightly aged visage upon seeing her son. He would have been touched if he weren't concerned as to how she had ended up in such a state.
"Uh, hey mom," Cassius managed what was probably the most awkward side-hug of his life in an attempt to not smear paint on his clothes.
She didn't seem to mind. "How was the flight?" She asked. "And the train ride?"
"Good, I guess." He gave his mother an obvious once-over. "Uh, what's with the..."
"That's all her doing," another voice, deeper and more resigned, called from beyond the hallway. A figure appeared from behind the corner, a man, with sandy hair and glasses. He ran a thin arm over his scalp. "Your mom didn't like how one of the walls was colored, so she decided to fix it herself."
"Hey, dad." Cassius maneuvered over towards his father and wrapped him in a full hug. The taller man returned the gesture with a smile.
"It's not my fault that the previous owners had poor taste," Mrs Hargreaves rolled her eyes. "I mean, really, shamrock green for an office space? That was always going to be one of the first things I fixed once we had finished unpacking."
"But we're not finished unpacking yet, dear. Cassius hasn't even started yet."
"I'd be more than happy to help him once I'm finished painting over that abomination of a wall."
Cassius smiled amidst their bickering. It was good to see that the long move hadn't dampened their spirits any. Though, there wasn't much that could.
Lila and William Hargreaves. Both roughly forty-five years of age, and married to each other for just over twenty of them. His mother worked in real estate, while his father was an assistant station manager at one of Unova's prominent railways. Or rather, he had been—a promotion had come by way of a job opening for station master at one of the Galarian branches in Wedgehurst town. One referral and a few interviews later, Wedgehurst station had a new boss.
Which also meant Cassius and his family would be living a new life. After just under two decades of family life in their native Lacunosa town in the Unovan continent, they would begin anew in a different town, in a different country. The only home Cassius had ever known would be a memory.
Despite that, he wouldn't be leaving much behind. It wasn't as if he had particularly close ties to Unova to begin with. Sure, he cared about the region and its history, and was somewhat actively involved in his community (especially when those religious nuts in the weird robes started showing up), but it never really felt as though he had connected with his town. Lacunosa was as close as a place could get to a retirement hub, outside of Undella, and much of his time spent interacting with the townsfolk came with people more than thrice his age. Nice people, certainly, and more than pleasant company, but not people he could really talk to about things people his age liked to talk about.
For all intents and purposes, Cassius didn't have a reason to particularly care about moving. If anything, this shift to Galar was a chance at a fresh start. Yet the idea of beginning all over again felt like such an arduous and difficult task to him.
"Honey?" His mother reentered his line of sight. "Are you alright?"
Had he spaced out? Probably. He could just blame it on the trip. "Oh, yeah. Sorry. Jet lag must be getting to me a little."
"You and me both," his dad yawned, stretching his limbs. "Tell you what, why don't you put your stuff down and rest a little? We've already set up your bed. You can worry about unpacking and all that once you've reenergized a bit."
A nap sounded heavenly. "Sounds good. Thanks, dad."
"I'll have some dinner ready for you when you wake up," Lila planted a quick peck on his cheek. "Oh, is Hyla doing alright? I got some stuff for her while I was out."
"She's fine, just a bit tuckered out from all the traveling," Cassius replied. "She'll probably be out for a few hours. I'll show her around when she's awake. You can leave the stuff you got for her outside my room..." he froze in realization. "... uh, where is that, by the way?"
"Up the stairs, take a right, second door on your left."
"Cool, cool," Cassius removed his shoes, and got to lugging his belongings up the stairs. "See you guys in a few hours." With a wave, Cassius followed his parents' directions, and found the room that would become his own. Not too unlike his old room—carpeted floor, mounted shelves along the walls, a desk, a closet, and a bed near the corner. A lone window sat near the middle of the room, gazing out onto the winding fields of Postwick.
Cassius wasted little time, slipping into some comfort wear and flopping onto his bed. A shower could wait until later. For now, he just wanted to lie down after all the journeying he had done.
And what a journey it had been. He still remembered his last few moments in Lacunosa. Not so much as a wave goodbye, or farewell hug to anyone. A quiet, emotionless departure from the place he had called home for all his life.
Sleep did not come as easily as he hoped it would.
"So," William spoke between mouthfuls of food. "What's your impression of Galar so far?"
"It's very... green," Cassius replied after a moment's hesitation. Which was true, and one of the biggest early differences he had noticed between his old and new homes. Lacunosa was almost eternally gray and white, whereas the expanse of green in Postwick was almost unlike anything he had ever seen before.
"That's part of the appeal, don't you think?" His mother chimed in from the kitchen, putting the finishing touches on her own plate. "It was so gray and dreary back in Lacunosa. All this fresh air here is wonderful."
Cassius nodded blankly. "Yeah."
His father, ever the astute, didn't miss the lack of energy in his response. "Cassius, I know this must feel like a lot, but I promise it'll get better." A comforting smile overtook the man's features. "I remember feeling a little bummed when I first moved to Unova. I ended up making a great deal of friends there—including your mother."
"Oh, I remember it like it was yesterday," Lila sighed dreamily as she sat beside her husband. The only time she ever got like this was when she reminisced on when she and his dad had first started dating. "We met at a mutual friend's wedding. Your father was so handsome in that suit..."
Cassius would sooner off himself than hear the whole story again. "Okay, okay, I get it, I'll keep an open mind. Please, I'm trying to eat."
It would take a lot more than a rushed and forced acceptance to get him to come to terms with Galar, and he knew that. For now, he hoped it would simply placate his parents. The last thing he wanted was to worry them when they had their own new lives to adapt to.
"Just give it time, son." William maintained his smile. "You'll settle in before long." Cassius nodded, and that was that.
"Speaking of," his mother chimed in. "Yesterday, the neighbors stopped by to say hello. Only two of them, the mother was sweet, and the daughter was the cutest young lady I've ever seen!" A devious eye came Cassius' way. "She looked to be your age, dear. You should go introduce yourself tomorrow."
Only his mother could be as stoic and chaotic as she was. "I know what you're thinking, and it's not happening. I just got here yesterday."
"Complain all you want, but all joking aside, you should introduce yourself. They seem nice, and it wouldn't hurt you to get a new friend your age."
Yeah, because all it took was for him to walk up and introduce himself for him to find a new best friend. He never even made a best friend back in Unova. "Fine, I'll go tomorrow. If only to get you to stop pestering me."
With a beam, she returned to her dinner. "That's my boy."
"We'll both be out tomorrow, so it'll be good for you to get out a bit anyway," his father interjected. "Explore the town a bit, introduce yourselves. Maybe see if Hyla wants to go with you."
She'd be coming regardless, but sure. Taking a quick look around didn't sound all bad either. "I'll do that. What's happening with you two?"
"Your father's got his first day tomorrow. I'll be out and about on errands. Unless you want to unpack the rest of our stuff, I'd suggest you go out and make a few friends to pass the time."
Scary. "Yes ma'am."
Yeah, just make a few new friends. How hard could it be? According to his mother, all he had to do was strike up general conversation with someone to become intimately acquainted.
He sighed. Tomorrow would be a nightmare.
Tomorrow came, and it wasn't a nightmare. Not yet, anyway.
Cassius, resting upon a grassy hill a good distance away from his new home that still didn't quite feel like home yet, grabbed a tiny rock and chucked it into the creek, watching as it skipped twice before plunking pitifully into the water for good. He frowned—he wasn't even able to skip rocks properly in this place. It was sad to admit, but it was one of the few things he was particularly skilled at. Yet Galar had robbed him of even that.
It was hard to make sense of. Everything was hard to make sense of. Then again, was anything in Galar supposed to make sense?
Laying back down, Cassius allowed himself an audible sigh. The midday sun shone brightly upon him, occasionally shielded by the occasional wayward cloud. He had to admit, it wasn't often he got sunny days like this back in Lacunosa. He should have been happy, rejoicing even. He had always thought he was too pale.
No such joy came. It wasn't difficult to discern why.
Another rock was tossed, only this time it didn't even bother skipping once. "Guess that's enough of that," Cassius muttered to himself. He couldn't sit around moping forever—his parents had shooed him out of the house in an effort to get him to familiarize himself with his new community, though it sounded more like an excuse for them to finish up the house without him being in the way. Even so, he was curious to at least see what the town was like. If only so that he still wasn't getting himself lost a month later.
Cassius brushed off his sweatpants as he stood up, stretching to get the feeling back in his legs. Once he was sure that he wouldn't unceremoniously fall over while he was walking, the young man made his way up the hill and back on to the winding dirt road that led through town. There was a plain of tall grass near the front of town that looked interesting, and given his sudden abundance of free time he supposed it wouldn't hurt to check it out.
A quick beam of light briefly brought his attention to the Poké Ball latched securely to his belt. It was an old, withered thing, given to him as a gift. That had been a long time ago, but the memory remained all the same. Now it sat comfortably on his person, shaking slightly in the wind as he walked along the dirt path.
After a minute of quiet walking, Cassius stopped. Pausing, he took another glance at the ball. "Well..." he said aloud, mulling something over in his head. "I guess it couldn't hurt." Just as he palmed the contraption and hovered his thumb over the button, a voice from seemingly nowhere announced itself. Loudly.
"Excuse me!"
At first, Cassius didn't think the voice was addressing him. It didn't seem like it belonged to either of his parents, and seeing as he hadn't met anyone else in town yet, the idea that some stranger would be calling out to him specifically seemed nonsensical. Cassius was about to continue what he was doing until the voice announced itself again.
"Hey! Guy in the sweatpants!"
Cassius then stopped and looked down. He was indeed wearing sweatpants. Taking a look to his left and right, he saw that there wasn't anyone else wearing sweatpants. There wasn't anyone else period, excluding the voice. Which was still behind him, getting closer, and apparently talking to him. Slowly, Cassius turned to look behind him.
The voice, followed by its owner, was currently in the middle of huffing and puffing in apparent exertion. The voice belonged to a teenage boy of a similar height, adorned in a blue jacket rimmed with fur and black joggers. The stranger's shining yellow eyes eventually fell on Cassius, and after one last gulp of air, the new presence made to address him. "Your name's Cassius, right?"
Being called out by a stranger was one thing. Having the stranger already know your name prompted a whole slew of potential problems in Cassius's mind. Hesitantly, he made to answer. "Um... yeah?"
The boy seemed relieved. "Oh, thank goodness! I was starting to think I'd never find you!"
Running his left hand through his purple hair, the stranger extended his right in an invitation to shake. "Name's Hop! I'm your neighbor, mate! Pleasure to meet you!"
"Uh... Hop."
"Mhm?"
"You're... a guy, right?"
The young man didn't seem at all fazed by his question, which was kind of weird in of itself. "By all traditional terms, yes."
"Oh." His mother had mentioned someone coming over to visit, but that it had been a girl. Was this a different person, then? "My folks told me that someone came to introduce themselves a few days ago. It was a girl."
"Ah, that was probably Gloria," Hop answered immediately. "I guess you two would be next-door neighbors, huh? Not to worry—she's a little raucous, but she means well. Most of the time. I'll see if I can introduce you two some time."
"Thanks... I guess," Cassius attempted. It had only taken a few minutes before he had been entirely swept up into the stranger's pace.
Hop Dande. Also eighteen years of age, and apparently his other neighbor. He lived down the road, barely a minute from his house. As it turned out, his house was the biggest in town. Either he wasn't an only child, or his folks had pretty lucrative jobs.
Cassius' first impression of him was that he was talkative. "Well, I know I'm a little late in saying this, but welcome to Postwick! Place is pretty quiet, but I figure that's a good thing these days, yeah?"
Cassius supposed that being talkative wasn't the worst thing to find in a person. It would take some getting used to, though. He shook the young man's outstretched hand. "Thanks. I guess it is."
Relief swelled over Hop's face. "Man, you've no idea how happy I am to meet a new face my age here! Don't get me wrong, Postwick'll always be home, but I'd be lyin' if I said that we've a surplus of folks my age here."
That caught his attention. Cassius thought a sunny place like this would be full of young people. "Really?"
"Yup. Including you, that makes three teens in Postwick, with me and Gloria." Hop grinned sheepishly "Don't get me wrong, I love Gloria to death, but it's nice to get a change in perspective now and again, wouldn't you say?"
That made sense. Cassius was finding Hop a relatively easy person to talk to so far. "That's true."
"Ah, but enough about me!" Hop quickly deferred. "What's your story, Cassius? You're from... Unova, that right?"
"Yeah. I'm from Lacunosa town, up north. Kinda near the Pokémon League." He tacked on the end as a means of courtesy. It was weird having to specifically say where in Unova he was from—he hadn't a need to do that back home. He'd need to get used to that.
Hop seemed particularly intrigued by the last part of his sentence. "No bloody way! You lived near the Unovan Pokémon League?"
It seemed a bit disingenuous to say he lived near the League. It would still take a few days at minimum to reach the League by foot—if you weren't a trainer daring to take on Victory Road, you flew. It wasn't as though he could go visit the League on a whim.
Still, Hop seemed interested in the idea. He felt a little bad for lying, but his mom had told him to make friends, hadn't she? "Sort of. I've been a few times."
"That's wicked, mate!" Hop leaned in close, eager for more. Cassius was keenly aware of the invasion of his personal space. "Suppose you've watched plenty of strong trainers in action then, right?"
"Uh, definitely. Like... Iris?"
Hop seemed about ready to burst. "No way! You saw Iris beat Alder in person? That was one of the greatest battles in history!"
To be fair, Cassius had seen the battle between the two. It wasn't every day that someone with a legitimate chance to become Champion issued a challenge to the reigning best trainer in Unova. He'd been a bit younger, and hadn't really understood what was going on, but he enjoyed it. From the comfort of his own couch, anyway.
"That kinda stuff is inspiring," Hop continued. "Makes me wanna work that much harder!"
He seemed pretty passionate. "You wanna become a trainer?"
"Absolutely! It's all I've ever wanted to be!" Hop allowed himself a determined grin. "My brother's a crazy strong trainer. One day, I'm gonna beat him, and eventually become champion!"
Champion, huh? That seemed like all anyone who was a trainer wanted to do. Though, as Cassius thought on it, he supposed it made sense—champions of the regions were almost universally adored and hailed as heroes, and the perks and fortune didn't sound so bad either.
Most of the time, when he heard people proclaiming their desire to become champion, it was out of pure desire to become the best. The number one trainer in any given region. Hop seemed to attach himself strongly to that desire. Cassius could certainly respect that—there were plenty of people out there who had worse reasons for wanting to become champion.
It wasn't really something that Cassius himself could understand, but friends didn't put down each other's dreams, did they? "Your brother must be pretty strong for you to want to beat him so bad."
"You bet!" His smile turned sheepish. "Well, more than you might know, actually. This might surprise you, but my brother's actually the—"
A twig snapped beneath his feet, guiding him away from whatever he was going to say. Cassius bothered to take a look around for the first time since Hop had started leading him—the two had entered a slightly dense forest, with trees many times taller than the both of them. Patches of grass dotted the shadowed landscape beneath them, swaying with the gentle breeze. A light fog had set in slightly.
"Hop, where are we?" Cassius asked. He didn't have a reason to believe that Hop didn't know where they were going, but he wanted to be on the safe side.
"Relax, mate. We're in the Slumbering Weald right now! Postwick's landmark, you could say."
Slumbering Weald? "Why's it called that?"
"'Cause if you fall asleep here... you die." For the first time, Hop's face was dead serious, without a hint of a smile. Cassius actually felt a shiver go down his spine before Hop's expression broke, and he started laughing. "Should've seen the look on your face, mate! You look right horrified!"
"Haha," Cassius deadpanned, a dust of red on his cheeks. Apparently Hop didn't need to know someone for long to tease them.
"Just joshin' with ya. Truthfully, I don't really know why it's called that." The Postwick native took a long look around them. "I wanted to take you here because of the peace and quiet. I always come here when I want to be alone, or when I want to think. It's a great place to recollect yourself, and I figured you could use a little recollecting."
That was... actually really nice of him. "I appreciate the thought, Hop."
"Don't mention it," Hop waved off with a smile. "I've lived in Postwick my whole life, so I can't imagine what it would be like to just up and leave everyone I've come to know. I imagine it's hard, having to start all over again. Thought I could at least soften the blow, if only a little."
Hard might have been an understatement. Still, it was the sentiment that counted, right? "Uh..." He wanted to thank him without sounding like a creep. "Thanks, Hop. You didn't have to do all this, but I'm thankful. Really." And he really meant that. If there were more people like Hop, then maybe this transition to Galar wouldn't be so bad.
"Not a problem," Hop smiled. "I know we just met, but I feel as though we could be pretty solid friends, Cassius." He laughed. "Though, my brother's always telling me that I've a tendency of being a little too trusting."
He was probably right. Were people supposed to become friends this quickly? Were they even friends? "I'd be cool with being friends," Cassius attempted, before hastily adding, "That is, uh, if you're cool with it."
Hop extended a hand with a smile not even a second later. "As if I'd mind something like that. Here's to a long, lasting friendship, eh?" Tentatively, Cassius shook it. He still had little to go on in terms of friends, but everyone had to start somewhere. For the first time since Cassius had arrived in Galar, he smiled.
Heart-to-heart finished, the two found a small log to sit on, and took a moment to rest their feet. Cassius took the time to admire the scenery. "You're right. This is a pretty nice place to relax. I could take some pretty good naps in this kind of silence."
"Well, I wouldn't exactly recommend that," Hop spoke from beside him. "This is still a weald, and there are plenty of Pokémon that call this place home. Most of the meaner ones live deeper in, off the paths, but we occasionally get a rare few that venture outside. Running into 'em wouldn't exactly be a pleasant experience."
Hop ran a hand over the back of his head, in what looked like a nervous tick. "And, technically, this place is off-limits. Safety and all that. But you should be fine if you don't go in too far, and if you have a Pokémon of your own on you."
That made sense. "I'm guessing you have your own Pokémon, then?"
"Sure do! You're looking at a very proud owner of a top-percentage Wooloo!" The pride on his face was hard to miss. Cassius kept his blanch internal—it didn't seem like he would be escaping those things anytime soon. 'They're like this region's Lillipups. Except bigger, and smellier.'
"What about you, mate? I imagine you've got a Pokémon of your own?"
That he did. "Yep. Had her since I was twelve. She's a bit of a handful, but I wouldn't trade her for anything."
"Right on, mate. What is she?" Cassius had been in the process of answering when a sharp sound echoed throughout the forest. Immediately, the two boys were at attention, scanning their surroundings.
"What was that?" Cassius spoke with a low voice. He didn't want to sound afraid, but the building dread in the pit of his stomach betrayed his true feelings.
Hop looked a similar kind of unnerved. "I... I don't know. I come here a lot, but I've never heard a cry like that before."
The boys were quiet for a moment more, eyeing every rustle of grass and sharp movement of a tree branch. Slowly, Hop got to his feet. "We need to leave."
Cassius agreed wordlessly, slowly following his companion. The two took a few more cautious steps, before the sound of a twig snapping filled the clearing again—this time, however, the sound didn't come from under Hop's foot, nor Cassius'.
"You hear that?" Hop whispered. "Something's here."
That seemed obvious, but from where, Cassius couldn't hazard a guess. The fog was starting to set in now, and it was becoming increasingly difficult to see more than a meter in front of him. Another snap sounded, sounding a little closer this time.
"Shit!" Hop cursed from beside him. "I forgot my Poké Ball at home! Oh, of all the times...!"
Cassius didn't want to jump to a worse-case scenario. It could have very well been nothing, and that they were being paranoid. Even if it was a Pokémon, not all of them were hostile. It might have simply been one of the many Wooloo he had seen in town, accidentally wandering into the weald.
But if it wasn't... then what? What would they have to defend themselves with? Hop had left his only Pokémon at home, which meant that if it came down to it, it would be up to Cassius to defend them.
His thoughts were interrupted by a roar. Unlike any he had ever heard before.
"Lrrroooaaarrrdd!"
Cassius nearly jumped out of his shoes. The roar felt like it was right beside him, and upon turning in its direction he saw that it was. Though the fog had thickened, Cassius could make out a shape—a quadruped, silhouetted in black. It stood barely a few meters from the two, seeming to eye them.
"What is that?" Cassius could barely breathe out. A wild influx of emotions had begun to overtake him. Fear, most prominently.
"I have no idea!" Hop sounded frantic. "But we need to leave, now!"
Hop began running, Cassius following not too far behind. Hop had no idea which direction they were running in—they could have been going deeper into the weald, for all he knew. His main priority was getting him and Cassius away from the fog, and away from that thing.
Still, the fog maintained its density. It seemed to get progressively worse the more the two ran. Before long, Cassius could barely make out Hop's backside from a few feet in front of him. Hop stopped, and Cassius ran into him, sending them both tumbling to the ground.
"Sorry!" Cassius yelled, trying to see where Hop had fallen. He could faintly make out the sounds of Hop getting to his feet gingerly. "No worries. Did we lose it?"
It was hard to make out much of anything, but still, Cassius eyed his surroundings. Repositioning himself directly beside Hop, he tried to find anything that might have indicated where they were, or if they had been followed. A sign, trail, even a tree. Still, nothing.
He turned towards Hop to ask if he had seen anything, before his blood ran cold. "Hop!"
Alarmed by the other boy's voice, Hop frantically looked for the source of his distress. He didn't need to look long—the familiar silhouette returned, standing silently. It had followed them, despite their frantic running.
It made no immediate move to attack them, but Hop knew better than to wait. He'd begun to wrack his brain for a solution when he was yanked backwards. "Cassius? What are—"
"You need to get out of here," Cassius could practically feel the fear coming from his voice. He imagined he was shaking pretty bad. Still, he couldn't falter, even if he was scared beyond all reason.
"And leave you behind? Not a chance!" Hop said stubbornly. He had been the one to lead them into this mess, and it was going to be up to him to get them out of it. Regardless of what Cassius thought about the matter.
There wasn't any time to argue. And a small part of Cassius appreciated Hop's willingness to stay. "Fine. I've got an idea. It's a long shot, but it might work."
"Right then. What've you got?"
In all honesty, it wasn't much by the way of an actual plan. But it would have to do. "I'm gonna make a distraction. Once it's done, we run."
He could feel Hop tense up beside him. "I'd call it simple, but I'm not really in a position to think of anything better. When do we run?"
"I'll tell you when. Just stay behind me." Even now, the silhouette observed the two with an almost calm eeriness. It hadn't moved from its spot, not even to pace around them like a normal predator would. It simply stood before them, watching. Waiting.
Well, it was now or never. Cassius hadn't the first idea of how to go about this—but it was either wing it, or potentially get mauled to death. He wouldn't allow his new life to end after less than a day.
Taking one last breath, Cassius steeled himself, before clutching the Poké Ball in his pocket. With a yell, he clicked the center button, releasing its sole inhabitant.
He had no idea just how much his life would change with that one decision. "Hyla!"
A flash of red, before a Pokémon began to materialize. On four legs, with blue skin and black fur, the Pokémon stood ready, awaiting orders with what looked like a complete lack of fear.
Cassius knew better, though. "I know I'm asking a lot, but I could really use your help. Think you're up for it?"
Hyla the Deino nodded. "Ein!" And the battle for survival began.
Slalem here. Welcome to my biggest undertaking yet—a full-length Pokémon story.
A few ground rules. As you can probably guess, I'm going to be following the plot of Gen 8's Sword and Shield. Sword, specifically. And while I'd adhere to the Galarian plot, obviously, it won't be a step-for-step copy. Wouldn't be much of an original story if that were the case.
Second, as you may have already noticed, the ages are a little bumped up. My goal is to write a somewhat realistic take on a traditional Pokémon story. Obviously, no sane person would have twelve-year-olds wielding powerful creatures with the capacity to level cities, so one change entails the protagonists being a little more mature in that regard. This doesn't mean I'll be throwing in an abundance of drugs, sex and gore for the sake of "maturity" (though it would be kind of funny), but the kiddie gloves will be coming off.
On the topic of the protagonists, expect the majority of Sword's cast to make an appearance. With regards to my OC, Cassius, I'm taking my time to really flesh him out. The point (or gimmick, if you prefer) of his character is that he isn't readily handy in a fight, as the story's description mentioned. He is inexperienced. He will make mistakes. He isn't going to catch every Pokémon and defeat God. He's going to be a take on a normal person attempting to learn his way through what is essentially a professional, multi-billion dollar sport.
In any case, if you've made it this far, thanks for giving my story a chance. There will be plenty of fights, laughs and drama along the way, and I hope you'll stay for it all. I've got a lot of plans for this, so I appreciate every view and piece of constructive criticism. My AN's in the future won't be nearly this long, and I'll likely implement a current team roster or something later when the story really gets going.
Again, welcome to "The Long Con". Strap in, and enjoy the ride.
~Slalem