Ch2: Mysterious ENcounters!
Updated A/N: Hoo boi, This was rough. I had quite a few issues with my computer, and unfortunately I had to re-do and transfer everything back onto their respective Documents, and then my computer ended up buying the farm (Read: Dying), so I had to spend quite a lot on a new one. That being said, All chapters that were taken down will be shortly reposted, starting with this one!
Please enjoy! - LS
Harry woke up with a tired yawn. They were already almost to Meridian City, and they could see the outskirts of the city just outside of the trains window. He felt his heart begin to race with excitement. He could already see strange creatures fluttering about. There were butterflies flying around the train, in all manners of colors, shapes, and sizes. "Hey Hagrid, what are those Pokémon?" asked Harry, his eyes filled with awe. "Them there are a flock of Beautifly and some Mothim. Not very common fer them to be here, but there's a breeder 'ere in Meridian City that's been selling them fer a while now. As fer the reason there's so many of 'em? They're migrating fer the winter, most flying types aren't ter keen on the colder months, and it's pretty cold here in Zodia fer ta winter." Harry looked excited about their arrival in Meridian City, and was practically bouncing around in his seat. Hagrid chuckled at Harry, before guiding him out of the train and into the station… only to nearly bowl over a young teen with lime green hair that was long and tied back in a ponytail.
Harry immediately got up and began apologizing profusely for knocking the teen over, when a creature that resembled a small, black and red fox hopped up, and growled at him. "... hurt him… fight… mean human…" harry felt confused as he heard bits and pieces of English coming from somewhere. He noticed that the teen had sat up, a dazed look on his face, his eyes slightly unfocused. Harry walked forward, an embarrassed look on his face. "Sorry… I didn't mean to knock you over..." he said softly, holding out his hand to the young teen. The boy shook his head as if to clear his mind, before taking Harry's hand, a nervous look on his face. "... it's okay, I think… I wasn't watching where I was going..." he said quietly, before glancing at the small pokemon in his lap. "... calm down just a bit, Shadow… it was my fault, not his..." the small pokemon looked even more annoyed, but headed the words of her master and hopped on his shoulder as the teen stood up. Harry looked relieved, and made to tell the boy his name when hagrid finally appeared behind him, scaring the living daylights out of the young teens.
"Harry! There yeh are!" he said cheerfully, before looking at the green haired teen with a faint smile on his face. "Blimey, seems ter me that yeh already met N! Did yeh have a safe trip from Unova, N?" the newly named N nodded quietly, stroking his pokemon. "... Maybe things can be different this time..." he whispered, still stroking the little fox. Harry looked confused, and turned to hagrid about the situation. "He hasnt come from the happiest of homes, either 'Arry…" said Hagrid quietly, "He's here because his family was a horrid lot, and tried ter force him to use his abilities fer bad." Harry looked confused after Hagrid had said abilities, so hagrid let out a sigh. "'Arry, I would explain it ter yeh, but that's not my place ter do so. You'd have to ask N." Harry nodded, especially since it seemed to be a bit of a touchy subject for the Greenette, as he had a small frown on his face as he fussed over his pokemon. The Pokémon yipped at N, swiping at his nose, eliciting a cry of pain from the greenette, and the two began going back and forth while yipping, growling, and barking at each other, causing Harry to jump with surprise at the pieces of conversation that he was hearing this time. harry winced, rubbing his head while he listened to the two argue back and forth before they finally stopped. N looked up, with a sheepish expression… until he noticed harry seemed to be in pain from something, upon which his expression quickly shifted to confusion. "Are… you okay, Harry?" Harry winced again, before opening his mouth to reply.
"Just a headache, I think." he said softly, "Erm… what was that all about? The growling..?" N looked confused at first, before he facepalmed. "Forgot about that… Sorry harry." he said, an embarrassed look on the teens face. "I'm what most people refer to as a 'Speaker', a person that can speak the same language as Pokémon. I'd really rather not talk about it, though, since It's one of the reasons I'm here now, instead of in Unova…" Harry nodded, before looking up at Hagrid. "Where are we heading first, Hagrid?" Harry asked, before nearly jumping in fright when N's Zorua jumped on his shoulder, and headbutted him. "Shadow! Cut it out!" N cried, quickly pulling the tiny fox off of Harry before he could do anymore damage. Hagrid chuckled, before gesturing for the two to follow him. Harry looked to N, who simply shrugged before pulling out his Pokénav and selecting something on it, before showing it to harry. On the screen was a display involving different stores and restaurants in the area. "After we go get your credit card and Pokénav, we can go exploring around Diagon Alley. That's after you get your first Pokémon though!" He seemed genuinely excited about this, which made harry grin as well.
N's Excitement was pretty contagious it seemed! Hagrid guided them to a large red and white building with a Pokéball emblem on the roof. It was one of the biggest Pokémon Centers in Meridian city, and catered to all manners of travelers. They walked in, and harry was almost floored with the amount of people walking around here. The building had two floor, the upper floor visible from below, and was chock full of several traveler shops, as well as a group of people around what appeared to be a massive globe. N noticed where Harry was looking before grinning. "That giant globe is what's known as the Global Trade Center, GTS for short. It's where people from all around the world go to trade their pokemon!" said N, his eyes glittering. "You can get fairly rare Pokémon just by trading something from your region! I know Regional starters are a favorite for trainers to breed, raise, and trade to other trainers, and the same goes for Pokémon unique to a specific region! It's an incredible system, that's for sure!" Hagrid chuckled at N's enthusiasm. "Aye, it's fer trainers who have the official pass ter use it though." he said, "It's mainly fer people wanting to start a Pokémon breeding business. It's also fer trainers who are looking to get an extremely rare Pokémon from tha official breeders, or even ter get a shiny Pokémon. Not many do that though, since its more rewarding ter find one in the wild or hatch one out of an egg!" N nodded, a worried look on his face. "I would probably never use it, even if I did get the pass for it..." he said quietly. "I can't ever imagine trading away my friends… especially one I've raised since it was only a baby Pokémon."
Harry looked around a bit more, noticing the red haired woman tending to various Pokémon alongside a large pink and white Pokémon. Harry looked around some more, before realizing that there was a line of people standing in front of a group of rather short men. It was a strange sight, as they all looked the exact same! Hagrid noticed his line of sight, causing the giant man to chuckle."There are many families in various regions that are attuned to a very specific job. We have the Joy family, who take pride in being Pokémon medical experts and running pokemon centers. Then we have the Jenny Family, which specializes in criminal justice, that lot usually ends up working as a police officer or as an Auror, depending on the region 'o course! Then yeh have the Don Georges, who run various fighting events and commentate fer them, Never been ter a tournament that hasn't been run by them before! Then we 'ave the Andersons, Those men there are the bankers of many regions, and usually run various bank branches from within the Pokémon centers in any given region. And Erm… They also have a real bad temper when yeh call 'em small, so I'd not call them that if I were yeh." Said hagrid, rubbing his shin absentmindedly. 'Apparently he must have found that last part the hard way…' thought harry, wincing at the thought of getting kicked in the shins. N nodded at hagrid's explanation, a thoughtful expression on his face.. "Then you have the Porter family, who run various battle cruise ships, though their family is a lot smaller than the Jenny and Joy families, though those two dwarf most families to be quite honest." he added, before gesturing to one of the lines. "You two go on ahead, My card is already set up." he said calmly, before wandering off with Shadow, getting looks from the occasional trainer, as well as getting quite a few gasps of surprise at his Pokémon. Harry turned to hagrid, confused at their interest in the small fox. "Tha Pokémon N's carrying is what's known as a Zorua. It's quite tha rare Pokémon, even in Unova where they live!" he said brightly, "course, There's a Variant that lives here in Zodia that has white fur. has a different ability and type though, so not many are as keen on having one of them as they are a Unovan one... Why don't we go get yer card from the Andersons fer now?" Hagrid guided Harry to the line where new students were. A boy was ahead of them with his Grandmother, and had a small Acorn-like Pokémon clasped within his hands. After they finished with the teller, Harry and Hagrid moved forward to collect Harry's credit card.
"Name?" asked Anderson, a bored look on the mans face. "erm, H-harry Potter!" said Harry nervously, while the man looked at his computer before typing up a few things, and pulling out a freshly printed credit card with Harry's name on it. "Please bear in mind that this card has the standard limits. you can only purchase four standard Pokéballs, a total of three regular potions, one of each type of heal, excluding full heals, and 5 revives. herbal restoratives, higher tier Pokéballs, vitamins, and higher tier potions are not available for purchase. It also gives you full access to Ollivanders, as well as access to upgraded school items, though you are not allowed to purchase a bike or skateboard due to safety reasons. so please keep these rules in mind while you use it, as they are in place for a good reason. Thank you for doing business with us, and we hope to see you again soon, Mr. Potter." said teller Anderson, nodding at Harry. Harry took the card, and walked off with Hagrid to find N... who was currently arguing with a trainer who looked like they wanted to snatch his beloved partner.
"... I told you to back off you Jerk!" N shouted angrily, glaring at the man. "What the heck is a kid doing with a Unovan Zorua here, they're too rare for some baby to take care of! Just let me have it, and I'll give you a nice Pokémon in return!" Hagrid walked over, a stern look on the normally friendly giants face as he approached the trainer. "I'd suggest yeh leave tha kid alone, he said no ter yer offer. Shove off." He said darkly, causing the trainer to go white before running off in the opposite direction. N seemed relieved about his intervention, and smiled at Hagrid. "Thanks, Shadow was getting really mad at him and might have attacked him if you didn't step in... though i was kinda debating on whether or not I should do that myself..." said N quietly, before turning to Harry. "Are you ready to go get your first Pokémon, Harry?" Harry nodded, before running out after N, the greenette somehow being much faster than he was...