Disclaimer: Do I own Pokémon? Well, no. If I did, I'd rework Gen 5 to make it one heck of a ShippingGame.

Do I own this fanfiction? Kind of, however, it was greatly inspired by "The Truth Will Prevail" by Mayday, so go, check that out (it's awesome, I swear)


Too Little Colours To Describe The World

Chapter 2

A Black beginning


It was the 25th of August and everything screamed that I'd be a wonderul summer's day. Yesterday, a certain young trainer had been supposed to leave her home to start her journey, after having received a lifelong partner in the form of a super cute Oshawott. Furthermore, the second deluge had threatened to drown Nuvema town yesterday and bury it's ruins in the sea for all of eternity.

Today the sun apparently tried its best to make up for yesterday.

Yesterday, Touko hadn't been able to stay in bed. Today, she couldn't get up.

Apparently, Ollie was scared of thunderstorms. Once they, meaning Cheren, Bianca and Touko, had made their way back home, the storm had only grown in strength. Thunders had come crashing down and lightning had struck the sky and Ollie had been absolutely terrified. Touko had been overjoyed by this, after all this was the perfect opportunity to spend the night soothing her starter and they could start the everlasting friendship all the stories about successful trainers promised (she had had somewhat of a guilty consciousness for thinking so though)! Instead of recalling Ollie back to her Pokéball, Touko had taken the Pokémon into her arms and cuddled it, trying to calm it with soothing words.

Her efforts had been in vain.

She had managed to hold out until three o'clock in the morning before she had collapsed from fatigue, only to be awakened by a screaming Oshawott, sitting at the other end of her room. At this point she had chosen to do the irresponsible thing and had recalled her starter back into her ball.

In Touko's defense, she had felt bad while doing so. Plus, she was really, really tired. And she had even held onto the small capsule all night long, pressing it to her chest! Touko had read somewhere that Pokémon could hear things while inside their Pokéballs, so maybe, just maybe, Ollie heard her heartbeat. Maybe it soothed her. Maybe...And then Touko had already fallen asleep.

She was rudely awoken the next morning by a ringing alarm clock, which had been quickly disabled, a grumbled "five more minutes" being the young trainer's only reaction. And a shift to the other side of the bed. Touko had then proceeded to fall asleep again and hadn't woken up for another four hours. Eventually, it had been the sun that had made Touko sleepily open her eyes and realize it was already 11 am. It had taken her a few seconds to comprehend just what that meant and then she had shot up, a "Shit, shit, shit" coming over her lips, while she hastily made her way to her wardrobe. Quickly she had snatched some clothes and her newly gifted Pokéball and had raced downstairs, almost toppling over in the process, her mind not focussed on where exactly she was going. And then she was downstairs already (in less than five minutes, a new record!), still not fully awake, blinking at a nicely decked table. At first, she was confused. What? Why was there breakfast? It was eleven o'clock! But then a grin started spreading on her face once the sleepiness was gone.

Her mum was simply the best!

Talking of which, her mother's face appeared in the doorway leading to the kitchen in that exact moment. "Oh! You're awake! I'm surprised you'd sleep in this long!", she exclaimed, stepping out of the hallway.

After a few short moments of taking in her daughter's appearance, Celine added:"Has...Ollie? been giving you a lot of trouble? She seems to be afraid of thunderstorms..."

Sleepily, Touko rubbed her eyes, processing her mother's question (she couldn't properly concentrate, as the smell of delicious pancakes had found its way to her nose), but then she nodded her head, a gesture quickly followed by a yawn. "Mhm...She's really afraid….I tried..." At once, her grin disappeared and she glanced at the Pokéball, still in her hand. Touko let her head hang low. "I...I didn't manage to calm her down", she whispered, disappointed by her own actions. She had been selfish when she had recalled her starter, putting her own desires and needs above the happiness of her partner. How was their friendship supposed to work out if she behaved like this?

But her mother simply laughed, approaching her daughter and giving her a big hug. Celine expected herself to be forcefully shoved away, an annoyed groan her daughter's only reaction. And maybe an, almost, disgusted sounding, "Mu-um! I'm 16!". But she was to be disappointed this time.

Or, rather, she was not to be disappointed

Instead of turning away, her daughter stayed in the embrace, sniffling a bit.

Celine shook her head, before stepping away and shoving her daughter towards the dining table. "Don't worry about it too much, Touko. It's been only your first day! You tried, didn't you? And I'm sure your Oshawott appreciates it..." She pressed her daughter into the seat and put a plate with a bunch of pancakes in front of her. "After all, she didn't break herself out again. So she can't have felt all too bad about it, right?" At this, Touko looked up, a hopeful glimmer in her eyes. She even dared to snatch the honey and pour a considerable amount of it over her pancakes.

Her mother was right. Ollie hadn't broken herself out of her Pokéball. So she...she wouldn't be too angry, right? But then her bad mood turned bad again. She was supposed to be a trainer. No, she wanted to be a trainer and she had failed to be one in the very first night of her new life.

"I know it sucks", Celine added, sitting down on the other side of the table, taking the cup of tea she had sat down there earlier."But trust me. She won't be angry." Celine smiled an encouraging smile, only to be met with a rather rebllious and somewhat arrogant expression. "How would you know?", Touko sneered. Pah. AS if her mom knew anything about being a trainer! She had made in mistake and her mum should simply let her sulk for a while now! Clearly unhappy, Touko started to poke the freshly made pancakes her mother had magically made appear.

Arceus, Touko loved pancakes.

"I was a trainer once too, you know?", Celine retorted, taken by surprised by her daughter's sudden anger. Well, she was a teenager after all.

But Touko wasn't done yet.

"Yeah. You were a "trainer". You completed a gym challenge and after a year…" "Two years", Celina interrupted, her voice taking on a sharp edge. She knew where this conversation was going and she didn't like it one bit. "Yeah. Two years. And after that you went back to school like everybody else to complete your schooling. That's not what being an actual trainer is, mum!"

By now, Touko had forgotten the reason for the entire conversation, but she didn't care as this conversation was ample distraction. Why couldn't her mum unde…

"Well, those two years are still a far cry from the time you have spent being a trainer so far. So, unless your reason for bringing this up was for sulking, I would appreciate you to at least try to listen for once." Startled, Touko looked up from her now shredded pancakes. Celine's chair screeched when it was forcefully pushed back and she got up, a disappointed expression distorting her usually calm features. "Now eat your pancakes. I made the just for your big day after all", were her parting words, as she made her way to the opposite side of the house. She couldn't wait for Touko to finally start her journey and grow up. She wouldn't be surprised if she'd get a phone call from her daughter midway through asking her to let her come back home. As spoiled as she was, the moment she'd have to camp out in the rain, she'd probably come crawling back, asking for help. Really, most teenagers didn't have the conviction to even master the gym challenge and Celine knew about the troubles she had encountered while she had collected her badges.

But then again, despite the bugs, the rain and bad food, Touko was way too stubborn to just turn back, regardless of how much she'd eventually grow to despise a trainer's life.

Touko didn't dare to move until her mom had already left the room for a solid two minutes. Then she swallowed the piece of pancake and looked at her plate in defiance.

Pah. Her mum didn't know anything. She had dreamed to become a trainer, just like Touko's dad, but she hadn't had the guts to pull through. She didn't know anything about the life Touko wanted to live. She had simply tried to complete the gym circuit and then she had, halfheartedly tried to take on the Elite 4. Celine hadn't even made it through Victory Road. How would she know anything about the way Touko had to prepare for this journey? But, while Touko kept thinking this, she couldn't shake of the nagging feeling that her mother, well, wasn't wrong. And, that maybe, Touko had been rather rude this morning. But there was no way she'd admit that, so instead she continued tattering her pancakes, suddenly not being all that hungry anymore. She was unsure what she was supposed to do now, until the Pokéball, now laying to her right side, started shaking, successfully catching Touko's attention.

Oh.
Yeah.
Right.
Her starter.

How could she have forgotten about her?!

Clattering a fork fell to the floor as Touko gripped the Pokéball and released the Pokémon inside, worried biting her lip. Was Ollie going to be angry because of yesterday? Was Ollie going to be angry because Touko hadn't let her out first thing in the morning? What if she hated her, what if she didn't want to be her…

Ollie was none of the above.

Instead of sulking or glowering at her, the young Pokémon simply yawned and rubbed her eyes, just like Touko had done this morning. Then she finally turned to her trainer and...simply blinked. Ollie didn't do anything else for a few seconds (why was this weird girl starring at her again?!) before a small, delicate nose noticed a certain, sweet smell. It didn't take long for the Oshawott to discover the plate filled with pancakes. Pancakes with honey, to be more precise. I took the Oshawott even less time to practically beg Touko to hand them over. Not, that her trainer minded the Water-Pokémon to devour her breakfast. She wasn't hungry anyway. So, without as much of a word, she shoved the plate to her Pokémon and watched as the pancakes slowly disappeared.

Her Oshawott ate a surprising amount of food for being this young. But Touko had saved the majority of the last two year's pocket money for her journey, so she should be good to go.

Plus, she didn't plan on losing anyway.

Talking of which, she had to get going. Her pancakes were eaten (not by her, but her mum didn't need to know that), her bag was packed (it had already been packed for a week or so) and both, Cheren and Bianca, would probably already have left. Maybe they had waited for her for some time, but this long? Impossible!

Thus, feeling a bit more energized (really, Touko had just forgotten about her bad consciousness), she got (jumped) up, startling her starter in the process. Apologetically, Touko patted Ollie on the head, a gesture Ollie seemed to...appreciate. in fact, it almost seamed as if the small, blue Pokémon stretched its head towards Touko's hand as she reached down.

How strange.

Luckily, Ollie wasn't too angry about the whole thunderstorm ordeal (or maybe having been gifted a full plate of pancakes had simply convinced her not to be mad anymore), so Touko decided to leave the Sea-otter Pokémon be (eating more pancakes) and raced up the stairs, to get her suitcase and bag.

.o.O.o.

Absent-mindedly, N solved yet another Rubik's Cube and put it on the stack of Rubik's cubes he had already solved throughout the day. It were days like these in which he missed his small, black companion. He was used to Zorua strolling around his room, but today, the Tricky Fox Pokémon was nowhere to be seen.

A sigh escaped N's lips as he his gaze shifted toward the predominant window, showing nothing but cave walls. The window actually lead to a balcony and if it weren't for the castle to still be underground, one would have a spectacular view over the garden. A garden N could see Zorua and himself explore in the near future. If Zorua was there.

Another sigh escaped N's lips. Zorua (his real name was Big Spot but for some reason, Zorua preferred to be called Zorua) was his own master. N couldn't stop him from doing whatever his heart desired and he had no intention of changing that. Although, he wouldn't have minded his best friend's presence. After all, today was special. Well, yesterday had been special, but today was the day after the special day and just now all the realization truly set in, with all the celebration going on yesterday and the congratulations (half the sages had tried to get him drunk) and the whole awkwardness between his sisters and him and also he was tired, as he had refused to sleep in (his father would have never allowed such lack of discipline) and…

He was now the King of Team Plasma.

For some weird reason, N felt the urge to get up and move around in a certain way to express his feeling of happiness. But he didn't. He knew that dancing was a common thing done by humans, but it didn't mean he had to do it too.

He was free to choose after all.

So, instead he tried to focus on the equations in front of him once more. Simple algebra. Nothing special. He had pondered whether he should get some analysis problems, as they seemed to be the exact opposite of life sometimes, but he had already solved all of the ones given to him by the sages, so that was out of the question.

N liked maths. You had a function. You had a matching graph. You had a formula describing a process and this simple function would give you all the answers you needed. You didn't get blind sided. You didn't get surprised. You didn't suddenly get crowned king.

N sighed again as he, by habit, looked around the room for his small, black companion, just to be met with nothing. Zorua could have, at the very least, stayed until N had left the castle. There was a tour scheduled, through all of Unova, introducing Team Plasma to the region once more and it was going to start rather soon. They had already held such a tour so a few years prior, however Ghetsis had informed him that another tour would do good to gain them some more traction again. And they needed the publicity right now. After all, N being crowned King brought him closer to getting recognized by the legendary dragon of truth, which in turn would bring him closer to free all Pokémon from the terror that was modern society. In addition, once the tour was started, N was to have his journey. The goddesses and Ghetsis had for once agreed on this, however, the way he was to experience Unova had been a topic of heated discussions. They had eventually agrred to let him experience the routes by himself, but not all at once. He was to return to Team Plasma's safe embrace ever so often, to ensure his well-being and to be educated on what he had learned.

N bit his lip (but just for a split second - biting one's lip wasn't a proper habit for a prince and most certainly not for a king). He wasn't too fond of his sisters' idea. He didn't mind seeing more of Unova, but they had insisted that he was to interact with other humans. Technically speaking, he knew how to do that. He spoke several languages, he knew of all the social standards and societal rules that were so vital to abide by. He was aware of the many milieus making up human society. But, applying all this knowledge to the real world would prove to be a challenge. Or so the goddesses had told him. Thus, in conclusion, he'd stick out like a sore thumb. And while he was a king, this thought alone made him feel uncomfortable (although it didn't make sense, but, as he had pointed out earlier, humans don't make sense).

Another sigh escaped his lips before turning back to his simple and logical equations.

At least he'd get to know some more Pokémon.

.o.O.o.

She stood in the doorway, her pink satchel hanging from her shoulder and a big, black suitcase standing behind her. Ollie sat on top of it, curious eyes staring at her in wonder. What were all those weird feelings her trainer was sending out about? Was she scared of leaving too? That's great! So was she! They could just stay at the lab and spent their days playing and being safe!

A smile overtook Ollie's face and she sat up properly, hope lighting up her eyes, as she watched the girl and her mother do human stuff.

"So, it's time!", the girl said, her voice shaking while sounding as if she was about to get the biggest shell in the entire world. There was a certain sadness to it though. Probably because her friends couldn't have the biggest shell in the world. If Oshawott was ever to get that shell, she wouldn't be sad that Fireball and Green parade wouldn't get it. Heck, she'd rub it into their stupid faces!

The older woman's eyes softened (was she on the verge of crying?), as she hugged her daughter and whispered a choked "Yes. It is." Then she added an even more silent "I'm so proud of you". And, finally, she couldn't hold back her tears anymore, the tears that every mother spills when their children must leave (or so Professor Juniper had said and well, Professor Juniper knew everything, so she had to be right, right?).

Was Celine proud? Sure. Was she scared? Even more so.

A touching scene, really. Ollie wanted to get up and pull the woman's trousers, smile at her and tell her everything was going to be OK, although the young Water-Pokémon knew nothing was going to be okay (and also that woman looked kind of scary). Tepig had told her of all the dangers of the world (there were murderers and people stealing Pokémon too!) and Soft Wave was simply terrified. She didn't want to go. Her trainer didn't seem to want to go either. Why...Why couldn't they just stay?

For a moment, Oshawott was on the point of crying until she remembered all the mean things Fireball could say. It would only get worse if she stayed behind. So, maybe they should go on this journey. Have some...maybe even have some adventures. They had to be safe of course, but a bit of, uh, action surely wouldn't be to bad, would it? Surely, they could figure things out, that terrified yet terrifying girl and her. Oshawott didn't really got to finish that thought though, as suddenly the suitcase snapped back and she almost lost her balance. The girl had suddenly let go of her suitcase and had hugged her mother back, patting her on the back.

The girl was shaking.

But then, the tender embrace was broken apart as the girl leaned back. Swiftly, she wiped her eyes with the hand of her back, a hesitant smile trying to cheer up the older woman. It didn't work. To be fair, her smile wasn't all that convincing.

"I will miss you", the older woman murmured. "I'll miss you too, mum", the girl sniffled. And then she threw her arms around her mother once more, this time properly embracing her.

She was leaving. She was finally leaving.

Who would have thought that, after all those years of hard work, she'd be frightened by this prospect?

"It...It's not like I'll stay away for long...", the girl choked, this time rebellion mixed in with her feelings Ollie noted. She had to stay on Route One for a week. A whole week. Her mother wanted to make sure she would get along with her starter and that she was capable of camping out all on her own for a few days. And Touko had to check in after the first three days.

A week was a third of the time most trainer's spent on getting their first badge, including training and traveling. Touko had discussed this topic time and time again, but her mother had been unrelenting. Her daughter planed to become a trainer after all, thus, she didn't have to worry about not completing the gym circuit within a year.

"Enter Accumula Town before the end of that week and I'll revoke your trainer license", her mother mused (though there was a sharp edge to the woman's voice). Again, the embrace was broken up and now, Touko's feeling of sadness had most definitely taken on a rebellious tone. "But...but what if I need to buy items? Then I'll have..." "As I said earlier, Cheren stopped by and told me he's to hand you five Pokéballs." "What if I ne… "It's the first route!" "And potio…?" "Touko!"

The girl sighed and took a step back, grasping for her suitcase's handle. She knew there was no point in arguing. But she really, really, wanted to just...go. Prolonging it surely would make everything worse than it already was.

"Well, then", she said, turning sideways to look at her starter. Curiously, her Oshawott sniffed the air and then looked at her, wonder filling her eyes. "See you in three days, mum!" She tried to smile again. And once more, she failed. "See you in three days", her mother responded, waving at her daughter and waiting for the girl to depart. And depart she did. She murmured a last "See you", before she took firm hold of her suitcase and turned it around (minding her Oshawott's balance, of course) and making her way out of the front yard.

Three days weren't much, both woman thought. In fact, they had been apart for much longer than that already. But, once Touko had turned around and waved her mother a single last goodbye, they both knew it was so much more than just three days. And Ollie came to the realization that, although the girl was terrified, this journey was going to happen. They were leaving. They were actually leaving.

Ollie couldn't help but gulp.

.o.O.o.

Alone, N wandered through the castle's corridors. Well, no. He wasn't actually alone. In fact, there were quite a lot of people surrounding him, a total of six guards, but he felt alone. Well, no. He felt lonely. Yes, lonely. That was probably the most fitting word.

The guards didn't even look at him! Not even a single glance. Sure, N was used to people cladding themselves in silence whenever he entered a room (N didn't want them to do that - how was he supposed to learn things if they fell silent whenever he laid an eye on them - but they never ceased this rather annoying habit of theirs.) but at least their eyes didn't shy away from him. At least he could pretend they were somewhat familiar.

Usually, they'd look at him curiously and usually he despised it however the feeling of being observed was better than this feeling. Whatever it was.

N could, of course, just order them to chitchat. But he, although he was Team Plasma's King, did not enjoy forcing people to do things they didn't want to do. And he knew of his father's orders. He didn't want to get any of them into trouble. Thus, instead of bothering the grunts, they kept going. In utmost silence, that was. As if they were frozen in time, as if their surroundings changed and nothing else did. But that was, mathematically speaking, impossible of course.

They were on their way to Victory road. For some fresh air. To escape the boundaries that his father had set him (though N understood why). N had requested to be brought here and the sages had demanded that he was to be accompanied by at least six guards. At all time. Except for his room. N should really thank the goddesses for that.
Speaking of which, he hadn't seen them all day long. His lessons had been canceled for the week leading up to his journey and he was left to do whatever he wanted to.

They passed some grunts. They bowed. N hung his head as he followed his entourage.

Maybe he could visit them later? But then again...They had behaved rather strangely after the coronation. Maybe they had been just as excited as he had been? Although, it was strange they hadn't kicked him out of his room this morning, demanding for him to do more than just maths and talk to Zorua.

.o.O.o.

Route One looked way less promising (and menacingly, in Ollie's eyes) if there was no rain pouring down Touko figured as she laid eyes on the small pathway once more. In fact it looked rather peaceful. There were some patches of wild grass that probably housed some Pokémon. Flowerbeds adorned the route and a river quietly flowed by (at some point, Touko had promised herself she'd explore the Route laying ahead more thoroughly). There really wasn't anything special about it (except for the many puddles that made traversing it so much more unpleasant).

For a moment Touko regretted taking her first steps yesterday instead of patiently waiting. However, patiently waiting wasn't one of Touko's strengths, so the pay-off had most likely been greater this way. It still sucked though, that she was so devoid of any real emotions. The fact her mother made her wait for another week before she was allowed to actually start surely didn't help to make her feel the sense of adventure that she was longing for either and Touko huffed once more. That her mother had to be this stubborn...And the shilhouette of Accumula Town laying ahead was teasingly visible against the horizon, easily made out in such pleasant weather. The town itself was merely a stone's throw away, not even a day's march. More like half an hour. Touko's old school was there and she had traversed this path with Bianca on a daily basis. When they has still gone to elementary school Cheren had been there too, but once they had entered middle school things had changed. Cheren had gone to Striaton City, as he had been accepted into the prestigious Trainer school there due to his academic excellency. He had needed to get up so much earlier because of it and maybe this had played a role in the three friends slowly estranging themselves. They were still friends, of course, but, well, Cheren somehow always ended up as the third wheel whenever they went anywhere.

But it didn't matter anymore. Now, all three of them were on equal footing.

Talking about Cheren, where was he? And where was Bianca? Her mother had said Cheren was waiting for her, to hand over some Pokéballs, a gift from Professor Juniper, maybe she could ca… "Arceus, how long did you stay in bed today?", a familiar voice scolded, successfully interrupting her thoughts, and a black haired teen made his way out of a patch of wild grass. He dusted off his clothes and adjusted his glasses, before facing the younger brunette. "I've been waiting for hours! I was planning to get to Accumula Town today, not tomorrow!"

Cheren shook his head as he saw Touko nervously scratching her back, an embarrassed smile on her face and seemingly looking at her starter for help. Ollie didn't seem to notice her trainer's pleas for help, as she stared off into the distance, sniffing the fresh air. Cheren let out a mildly annoyed sigh before closing the distance, holding Snivy's Pokéball in his hand. Touko's eyes lit up at the sight of it. "Have you named it yet?", she asked, curiosity sparkling in her eyes. Now it was up to Cheren to be embarrassed.

Oh. Yes.

He had forgotten about this tiny, teeny, minny little promise. He shied away from Touko's questioning gaze as he knew what promises meant to her. You couldn't break promises. That was against the rules. And you didn't just simply break rules.

Well, rules like those. Touko had never had had any trouble ignoring rules that she deemed irrelevant. Like, say, that you'Re not supposed to enter this building ("But guys, it just smelled like a mystery to be uncovered!")

"Well, no", Cheren ended up murmuring once he had gotten a hold of himself. "I didn't." And then he quickly added:"Not yet, that is." Blushing he starred at the Pokéball in hand, brows furrowed. He hadn't even thought of a name so far. What did you call a starter? What did you call a Snivy? Were there any rules to follow? Any to go to names?

Cheren's train of thoughts got abruptly interrupted though, as Touko simply chuckled in response and mused: "If you don't hurry up, Bianca will name it for you and unless you want a name ending on a "-y", you better decide!" And then she stepped forward, snatching the Pokéball out of his hand and called out the Snivy. A weak "Hey!" was the only response Cheren could muster, cheeks still flushed from embarrassment.

Upon seeing her friend, Ollie jumped off of the suitcase and, essentially tackled, the other Pokémon. Not that the Snivy seemed to mind, as they both started – talking? - giving off a series of incomprehensible sounds. And while the two Pokémon seemed to chat just fine, an awkward silence spread between the two teenagers, only to finally be interrupted by Touko (who really didn't like awkward silences):"Well, my mum said you stopped by earlier?" It was a simple question, but enough to, well, get a conversation going once more.

"Oh, yes". Hastily, Cheren grabbed his back and took out five Pokéballs (not all at once, obviously) and then handed them to Touko. "Professor Juniper gave them to me. She wants us to fill the PokéDex after all and thought getting some firsthand experience might help. Obviously, she already knows everything about the Pokémon on this Route, but we may be able to catch another team member. Talking of which, are you going too?", he inquired, his voice unusually fast.

Obviously, he wasn't going to catch anything on this Route. The Pokémon around Striaton City were the same and they were just a tad bit stronger, so, if anything, he'd get himself one of those.

Touko shook her head. "I won't. For the same reasons as you do. Though, getting some experience might help", she added, knowing Cheren didn't need any of that. Catching Pokémon had been part of his curriculum after all, unlike Bianca's and Touko's. Their school wasn't specialized on instructing future trainers and instead was more open-minded. Getting a degree at Touko's school meant you'd go off to university or college or you'd start an apprenticeship. Getting one from Cheren's school meant that the one year break was mandatory (in Touko's school merely ten students in her grade had decided to take it) and you'd have to come back afterwards to finish your schooling. It meant you got supported by the school throughout your journey and it meant you might just become a gym leader or Ace Trainer or anything related to training Pokémon really. Touko had dreamed of going to that school, but, well, Touko simply didn't excel in school like Cheren did.

"I bet if you catch one here, you'll never want to let it go again", Cheren mused again, knowing his friend. He didn't get why Touko had made all those elaborate plans on when to catch which Pokémon to use for which gym.

"Knowing you, it would break your heart to not put it on your team", he added, almost feeling sorry for the brunette, as she now took on the expression of a kicked Lillipup. "That's not true", she murmured, looking anywhere but her friend and shoving her cap into her face, trying to hide the blush forming on her cheeks. "Just because I'm not as heartless as you are..." Cheren frowned, thrown off guard by that comment. "I'm not heartless!", he insisted, feeling strangely insulted by this small remark. "Yes, you are! You didn't even name your starter! How isn't that heartless?" "What if it already has a nam..." "A name you'll never know! Just imagine a bunch of aliens would kidnap you! I bet you wouldn't like being called "human" all the time just because they don't know your actual name!"

Touko huffed and crossed her arms in front of her chest. Cheren simply grinned.

"But that's not what's happening. First of, I wouldn't even know what they call me anyway. After all, I don't speak their language. And second, if I ever get kidnapped by aliens, the way they call me is my last concern", he responded coolly, while rolling his eyes. Coming up with a scenario like this was so typical Touko. Then he glanced at their two starters, sitting in the grass and watching the waves of the nearby river wash ashore.

A few birds sang in the distance.

"I bet Ollie loves her name. Isn't that right, Ollie? Ollie?". Touko turned and shouted her starter's name, triumphantly glancing at her friend.

She was met with indifference. Ollie didn't even as much as look at her. Touko's smile froze on her face. Cheren chuckled. "I see. Ollie must really love its...er, her nickname", he remarked, grinning smugly. "Hmpf", Touko huffed, crossing her arms:"You're just being stubborn." And thus she decided to let the topic rest and moved on to the next on her list. One that was way more important than a stupid name anyway.

"Where's Bianca?", she asked, watching her starter now play in the river's waves, the Snivy peacefully sitting next to Ollie and watching the waves crash onto shore. "Bianca?", Cheren questioned, a brow raised,"I don't know. I haven't seen her all day. Really, I just wanted to go to Accumula Town and settle down in the PokéCenter, so I can start training. After all, we wanted to rendezvous there, didn't we?"

He had asked that question intentionally. He knew of Touko's deal with her mother and he wanted to know if she had gotten out of it.

"Well...You know..." "Yeah, I get it", Cheren interrupted. Touko's mum could be just as stubborn as her daughter.

Both trainers didn't really know what to say after this. It was...The three of them, Bianca, Cheren and Touko, they had dreamed about it. Leaving together, going on a journey, making all those happy memories, but...they knew, they wouldn't travel together. Cheren and Touko both wanted to become successful trainers and neither of them would hold back for the other's sake, so traveling together was out of the question and Bianca...Well, Bianca didn't know what she wanted. Which is why she went on this journey. To figure out what she was going to do with life.

And while the three of them had said goodbye to their families (at least, Cheren and Touko had), saying goodbye to their lifelong friends...It felt different. More absolute. Who knew whether they'd see each other again all that often.

Who knew if they'd see each other again in the first place.

So, instead of tackling that topic now, they instead decided to stare off into the distance, under the pretext of watching the Oshawott and Snivy, both their thoughts lingering on future adventures and soon-to-be success. Until Cheren broke the silence, that was. He clasped his hands together before he nervously started to clean his glasses and muttered:"Well. I need to get going." Then he asked cautiously, not wanting to upset Touko anymore:"See you in a week then, I guess?"

He truly felt sorry for her, but then again, he couldn't let her problems affect his training and progress. Plus, they'd probably meet each other on the Route plenty of times during their journey. They had to take the same paths after all. Which meant he had to train. He didn't want to lose against her, even though he knew he was better prepared for this journey than she was. But Touko could be stubborn. Who knew how many battles she'd win just with her conviction alone.

"What? Oh!" Touko was jolted by the black haired teen's words but didn't need long to get what he meant. "Oh, yeah. You need to get to Accumula Town...Well, good luck, I guess?"

Cheren chuckled and snatched his Snivy's Pokéball out of Touko's hand, before returning the Pokémon (considering Ollie's disappointed expression, they had been in the middle of something). "And you? What are you going to do? Considering...you know?" Immediately, Touko's heart sank, but she tried not to let it affect her too much.
"I...I guess I'll wait around here. Train a bit. Maybe I'll be able to find Bianca, I don't think she'd wander off all to far without someone by her side..." She chuckled at that last statement, before shaking her head and looking up to the sky, letting the sun warm her face.

Today was too beautiful to be sulking about some stupid rule, Touko figured. Plus, it could be worse. After all, she was allowed to leave. And surely, Ollie would be a handful.
So, deciding she had enough of being sad, she turned to Cheren and said: "The next time I see you, I'll battle you. And you better come up with a fitting name for that Snivy of yours by then or else I won't just kick your Pokémon's butt!"

Not it was Cheren's turn to chuckle, as he turned around, facing the direction of Accumula Town, and shouting a quick "See you!" before disappearing between grass and flowers and trees and just all the things you could find on Route 1, really.

For a few moments Touko decided to watch her friend go, feeling somewhat elevated, before turning to Ollie, hands on her hips. Her starter watched her curiously and, well, terrified, as Touko prepared to give her first ever prep-speech.

Technically speaking she had prepared one, but, well, whatever.

"It's our first day as team, Ollie! And, although half of it has already gone by, we need to make the best out of it! I want to see you beat every single Pokémon on this route with ease because we can only allow the best of the best to grace the amazing team of me, the reincarnation of Red himself!"

Of course, Touko's tone was over dramatic and too any human her gestures seemed just a tad too much, exposing them as a joke. But, well, Ollie wasn't a human. And all Ollie saw were pictures of battling and training and some more battling and…

By all the shells of the ocean, what had she gotten herself into?

.o.O.o.

Touko didn't wait for her threat to become a reality. Yesterday, during the...spontaneous fight between Oinky and Ollie, Touko had gotten a good picture of her new partner's abilities. However, she had never been able to really put them to the test by battling her two friends, no, rivals, so Touko had decided it was time to find a new victim. Maybe some teenager that got too cocky. After all, she had gotten the greatest Oshawott in the history of all Oshawotts. Well, maybe not exactly. Maybe she was the cocky teenager. But then again, they needed to train and really, the Pokémon around this area were so weak, they weren't even worth the effort.

Except, that Touko was about to be proven wrong. By her new partner's scared actions at that.

It really had a timid nature.

Touko had let Ollie practice her Tackle time and time again as a start. She wasn't all to sure what else she was supposed to do as training. As the teenager encountered a severe lack of any trainers and of any wild Pokémon that were wiling to leave the tall grass, she decided to let her starter practice on her (emptied) bag. Maybe for ten minutes or so.

It took Touko a total of five minutes to feel bad for her starter. The poor Oshawott kept practicing and practicing and she, well, she sat in the grass, resting and watching the birds.

After considering the pros and cons (surely, she'd make a fool out of herself by joining her partner), she decided to make a game out of it. Every time Ollie hit the bag, so did Touko.

Luckily, not a single soul traversed the Route while they were...training.

Well, not a single human soul that was.

There were quite a lot of Pokémon though. And one of them was a rather curious Patrat. It kept watching them, coming closer and closer in the process, until it eventually sat right next to them, it's weird eyes starring directly into Ollie's soul. Now, Touko didn't mind the Patrat. In fact she thought about catching it and she had almost grabbed a Pokéball before she realized – Professor Juniper didn't need a Patrat. And she didn't plan on getting one for her team. No, she was going for a Lillipup and then she'd sent it to Professor Juniper after getting her first badge. Which, well, that plan sounded mean. Arceus, why did she feel so bad thinking about boxing a Pokémon? A Pokémon she hadn't even caught yet at that?!

So Touko let the Patrat be. And while she herself didn't mind the Pokémon (and was too caught up with her own morality), Ollie did mind it.

Of course Ollie knew what a Patrat was. She had seen plenty of them in Professor Juniper's laboratory after all. But...They had never been this close. They had always been somewhere else, Ollie and her two friends had rarely ever managed to catch a glance of the brown-furred Pokémon. But most importantly: The Patrats in the lab didn't stare at her. And Ollie greatly disliked being starred at. She greatly disliked it.

So, at first, she tried to tell it to go away, but the Patrat just stupidly snickered and hissed something about humans, weird humans and weak Tackles.

Now, Ollie was proud, but not proud enough to attack the Patrat just because it had insulted her. That was something Fireball would do. And maybe Green Parade. But not her. However, her reaction, or rather the lack of it, just seemed to encourage the Patrat to come closer, until it was just mere inches away from her. Of course Touko reacted to this (she couldn't let some Pokémon hurt her starter after all), but Ollie reacted first. And, using her recently trained move, hurled the Patrat across the grass.

Or, she imagined she had. In truth the Patrat had essentially only been pushed on its butt, but...The battle was on.

And thus started Touko's first real Pokémon battle ever.

Not Ollie's though. Ollie had had plenty of battles already. And while the experience may have been useful...In this very first fight it proved to be a hindrance.

.o.O.o.

"Go, Ollie! Use Tackle!", Touko shouted, her heart pounding in her ears as her eyes were glued to the two Pokémon in front of her.

The Patrat had gotten up by now, hissing at Ollie and using an attack that seemed to be Leer. It hit Touko's Oshawott and made her stumble back, before shaking her head and...then it sent her running to hide behind Touko.

Sure, she had fought before. But that was against her friends. Not some wild beast that was obviously trying to murder her!

But, sadly, her trainer was having none of it and shoved her back to the "battlefield" a reassuring smile on her face. She knelt down, patting her on the head and whispering:"Don't worry, buddy, we..." Except this was the real world and not some stupid TV show where everyone awaited their turns and thus, the Patrat simply attacked again.

This time it used Tackle.

It hit hard and made Ollie and Touko scatter, the latter starring at the Patrat in bewilderment. Then she frantically leapt to her bag, searching for her PokéDex, while commanding Ollie to use Tail Whip. Except that Ollie was already busy trying to tackle the wild Pokémon. That's the way they had always fought. Using Tail Whip had always proven to be rather useless so far and therefore, she had resorted to her last move. However, Ollie also knew that Touko was a trainer and Green Parade had always said that trainers knew everything. Which was why the Snivy couldn't wait to finally meet his. So...If her trainer knew everything, but her own judgment…. And then she got attacked again.

Ollie yelped in pain and jumped back, rubbing its elbow. Tears started to form in her eyes. That Patrat was such a meany, calling her weak and all! And that stupid trainer of hers was still doing something. Probably something useless.

So, she was now stuck with this Patrat, that was getting ready to attack again. But Ollie had had enough. Crying out she leaped forward, tackling the wild Pokémon once more, breaking its focus, before attacking again. The Patrat got to attack once last time (it hit pretty hard, but nothing too dramatic), before it got knocked out and then stumbled back into the tall grass.

Jerk. That's what you get for calling Soft Wave stupid!

Exhausted, the Oshawott sat down, rubbing her bruised elbows and angrily starring at the grass the Patrat had just disappeared back into the grass. Now who was the coward?! Jerk.

Still. That fight had hurt. Not all that much, but it had hurt nonetheless.

She had known it! She had known it all along! She had known going on this journey was a bad idea! She was hurt and...and...and Green Parade had said you should always listen to your trainer! And she hadn't! She wasn't even a good trainer Pokémon! And her trainer wasn't even a good trainer! What, what if they wouldn't like each other? Sure, her trainer had been, well, she had tried to be nice, but still! This...all of...it...She wanted to got back to the lab! She...She wanted to rest! She wanted to be left alone! She didn't want to get hurt! Of course, she wanted to get stronger, but...She...This was all so scary! It was new and fresh and scary and terrifying! And...And...And…

She had failed her trainer.

Green Parade had always said they had to listen to their trainers aaaall the time if they wanted to get strong and Green Parade was by far the most clever of the three of them. And now her trainer wasn't even talking to her and...and she didn't even and...and...and...

Ollie couldn't take it anymore. She was still a rather young Pokémon after all and all of this...it was too overwhelming.

In was this exact moment in which Touko had finally managed to snatch her PokéDex and swiftly turned around to support her starter (and to check that Patrat) only to be met with a different scene. The Patrat was gone and Ollie was crying.

She was crying. Arceus, what had she done?!

The teenager dropped her PokéDex immediately and ran over to the Water-Pokémon, sitting down next to her, checking it time and time again for injuries, but finding none.

It made Touko worry even more.

Her weird (and by now not so terrifying) trainer was saying weird things. Her eyes were wide with shock and her mouth agape as she kept gently pushing (or, as gently as someone could push while suffering a panic attack) on her skin. Her trainer's fear terrified Ollie. Which then made her cry louder. Which then lead to Touko feeling even worse and starting to panic more which then made Ollie even more scared and on and on and...wait.

For a moment, Ollie sat up and stopped her crying (which, amusingly, sent Touko into another frenzy of panic) as she….she saw her trainer say something else. It felt...warm? Warm and nice and gentle and, well sad. Ollie, of course knew that feeling, as Fireball had sent it out all the time (Fireball might be stubborn and proud and a jerk most of the time, but no one could say he didn't care about his friends). It remembered her of more careless days, before, well, before she had been given the task t travel with this trainer. But most importantly, it made her feel good.

Ollie decided she liked that feeling. Unfortunately, Touko couldn't understand Pokémon and therefore, had not idea why her starter was smiling all of sudden.

"I...I need to get you to the Poké...but….I can't...What...What...", Touko panicked, her voice at least an octave higher then usual, while she desperately tried to prevent tears from forming in her eyes. Her starter was hurt. Because of her. Because of her incompetence. Maybe this one environmentalist group was right, maybe she…maybe she should le-let her Pokémon go free. M-Maybe it was b-better that way. O-Ollie had known so much better what she was supposed to do after all...

Touko wiped her tears away with the back of her hand (she still sniffled though), as she starred at the Pokémon next to her. No, she knew Pokémon liked humans. It was why they had paired up in the first place! But then, Ollie started crying again (suddenly the warmth was gone, replaced by cold dread and loneliness) and that send Touko over the edge.

She picked up the Oshawott, pressing it against her ribcage (Ollie felt like she suffocated, but the feeling of protectiveness was too nice to complain about it) and then she started running towards Nuvema City, as fast as her two (shaking) legs could carry her.

Leaving both, her bag and suitcase, behind.

They weren't important anyway.

.o.O.o.

"MOM! MO-OM!", Touko shouted, as she came to a halt in front of her house. "MO-OM!" By now, the Oshawott was shivering in her arms. Not because of pain, but because the experience of getting pressed against a ribcage while the person carrying you was running high speed wasn't necessarily a pleasant one.

Ding, ding, ding, ding, ding, ding, ding, ding.

"Mom, mom, mom!" Touko had, by now, reached the front door and frantically rang the bell, her fingers pressing the button time and time again.

Not a cloud was in sight. The birds were chirping and a nice breeze made the grasses and flowers sway in the wind. A few elderly couples made their way through t…

"MOM! MOM! OPEN THE DOOR! MOM! MOM!"

The moment Celine heard her daughter's screams she hastily sat her book aside, looking out of the window and trying to catch a galnce at her daughter. then she jumped up and made her way to the door, worried eyes fixed on its handle. What had happened? She tore open the door only to be met with a panting Touko, an Oshawott that had fallen into shock and didn't move anymore and four eyes red with tears.

"What...", was all she managed to murmur before Touko pushed Ollie into her hands, eyes wide with fear. "She's...She's hurt mom! She fought a Patrat and now she's hurt! And…And that's all because of me!"

Celine, by now she had decided the situation wasn't as dramatic as her daughter made it out to be, looked at the Oshawott. Turned it around once. Then she looked back at her daughter, still panting while new tears welled up in her eyes.

Then she sighed.

Sure, there were a few bruises on the small Pokémon's body, but nothing serious. Arceus, Celina knew why she made her daughter stay on Route 1 for a week. But then, Touko's mother realized something else. What...A sigh escaped her lip as she could vividly imagine the scene that had played out in front of her eyes.

"Touko, where's your bag? And your suitcase?", Celine asked, not even bothering to sound angry or surprised or like anything, really. Arceus, she really knew why she made her daughter stay close.

The girl's face froze for a moment, then she glued her eyes to the ground, not daring to look up. She even bit her lip. And pulled her hat into her face, a nervous habit of hers. Celina sighed a second time. Then she took her daughter's Oshawott into her arms and ordered:"Go, get them and pray to Arceus nobody else gets to them first. In the meantime..." She looked at the Oshawott which seemed to have recovered from the shock of being close to her daughter. "I'll...take care of her. And now go. I won't buy any replacements." Touko nodded hastily and dared to look up, glancing at the now moving Oshawott in her arms. Celine, guessing what her daughter was up to ask, responded: "Oh, she'll be fine. And now move it. Now replacements. You can buy it yourself." And then, just to make her daughter finally leave and get her stuff, she added cheekily:"Or, you now, you can ask your father to..."

Celine had never seen anyone turn around faster than her daughter in that exact moment.

"See you", her daughter shouted, glancing at Ollie once more, before making her way back to Route One (and indeed praying to Arceus that she was the first one to find the deserted items).

Celina chuckled. It was too easy to play her daughter.

.o.O.o.

Krrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.

Ollie enjoyed the steady rhythm of the suitcase's wheels turning on the cobblestone. She was back on her place atop it, watching out for any stone or branch that might send her flying off.

She was feeling much better now. That weird girl's mom had handed her a berry and then she had been allowed to snuggle up to a stuffed Pikachu until her new trainer had come back. They had stayed at the house for some time and had played, which had been nice, but then the girl had decided to leave again, which was sad. The girl's mom was pretty cool and that stuffed Pikachu had been pretty soft. Plus, there was an overall lack of aggressive Patrats.

By now it was well over noon and Ollie wondered where they were headed. More training? She really didn't want to...but then again, she didn't know this way yet, so maybe they were just exploring things! Which, thinking about it, didn't sound all that exciting either.

They weren't exploring. In fact, Touko was walking down a path she had walked ever since she had been able to. It was the way leading to her best friend's home and Touko knew that right now, she needed some best friend interaction. After the traumatic event that was her first real battle, Touko had decided to go a bit softer on both, her starter and herself. They needed to get to know each other first.

And they probably needed to learn how to deal with battles too.

So, instead of going straight back to Route One, Touko had decided to call Bianca. Two times.

The blonde girl hadn't answered her VisoCaster once. If it had been Cheren that kind of behavior would have been normal (heck, anything else would have been weird), but Bianca practically lived on social media. And shady meme websites apparently. Her not picking up the phone was the equivalent of...well...well...Actually, Touko didn't have a good comparison. Still though. And thus, Touko had decided her next course of action was to visit her friend, if she was still at home that was. Maybe Ollie and Oinky could have a battle. They had had one yesterday, but really, it didn't count. And Touko planned on showing her friend the almighty power of type advantages. They didn't really matter yet, because none of the two already knew an elemental typed move, but whatever. She was going to win regardless of type advantages.

But all of that was still laying ahead of her and right now, Touko was following a well-known path, humming a happy tune while occasionally glancing at her starter. It was a nice day. An eventful day maybe, but a nice one nonetheless. She...Well, she enjoyed it. She had had a panic attack and she had needed to say good-bye to her mom, but it was a nice day.

Five minutes later they had finally reached their destination and Touko knocked on the door, knowing the door bell didn't work at the moment. Then she turned to Ollie halfway (the Water-Pokémon's ears were perked up as it closely listened to steps approaching), saying:"Hey, buddy, we're going to visit a friend of yours! Aren't you excited?"

Touko didn't get to add anything else, as the door was opened (rather violently at that) and a middle-aged man stared at Touko, his lips pressed together. Touko, of course, knew this face all too well and gave her brightest smile. And a short wave. "Hello Mister Grayson. Is Bianca still home or has she already left?", she asked sweetly, knowing of the man's temper.

Bianca's father didn't answer at once. Instead his eyes moved to Ollie who had stepped back a bit, right to the edge of the suitcase. Something about that man...She didn't like what he was saying. They had to . Couldn't her stupid trainer hear the man's anger? What if he did something bad?! What, what…

"No", Mr. Grayson interrupted Ollie's thoughts sharply.

Surprised by the sharpness of Mr. Grayson's voice Touko took a step back, before she remembered Bianca's dad had never been to keen on his daughter leaving the house. So, instead of getting scared, she simply smiled and nodded thankfully. "Oh, so she already left? I'll call her again then...Than..."

"NO!", he hissed again, his eyes nervously twitching while he kept starring at Ollie.

Ollie decided she greatly disliked this man.

"She...Bianca hasn't left yet. And she won't. She's not supposed to be a trainer."Again, he glanced at Ollie, his expression darkening, before he hissed:"Now get away with those dangerous ideas of yours!"

And then he slammed the door into a stunned Touko's face, who couldn't help but look at the man in bewilderment. What..?

But it was too late anyway. The door was closed and Touko was too scared to knock a second time. Confused she turned, facing her starter that scrambled back to its spot in the middle of the suitcase, looking terrified (like she always did).

"What...Why did he sign her..." Why did he sign her...Oh...Wait. Touko remembered. She had been surprised when Bianca had handed in the signed letter, that she was allowed to take a one year leave. It had been signed by her mother, which had been rather unusual. But Touko hadn't asked. She knew what her best friend thought of her dad.

Touko wasn't really sure what she was supposed to do now. She had hoped to train with Bianca, but...well...they'd find a solution, right? Bianca would still be able to tackle the gym challenge, right?

She had to. Just like Touko, the Blonde had dreamed about...well...traveling.

The three of them had always been a rather curious trio. Cheren wanted to be the Champion, Bianca wanted to see new Pokémon and, well, make friends and Touko...Touko wanted a team of six Pokémon she could trust and simply become a trainer. Maybe she'd try to take on the Champion at some point. Maybe she could become a gym leader. But just like her dad, (she only begrudgingly admitted to this similarity), she wanted to become a trainer. Simple as that.

And while Bianca may have had different reasons to take on the journey, she had wanted to do it no less than Touko had.

So...She was still going, right?

Absentmindedly, Touko patted Oshawotts head, as she glanced at the silent house behind her. There wasn't much she could do, right? Maybe Bianca's dad had…He hadn't. When Touko went to knoch another time and ask if she could talk to her friend, he hadn't even bothered to open the door. Instead Bianca's mother had showed up, giving her a vague half-smile and stating it was best for Touko to leave now. Maybe spent some time with that...Oshawatt? It was called an "Oshawatt", right? And, you know, do whatever it was that trainers were doing. Then she too had closed the door and Touko (after sneaking into the garden and looking at Bianca's window – the curtains were drawn) had been left with no answer whatsoever.

What had changed? What had happened? Maybe, if she stuck around for just a little bit longer...

.o.O.o.

Touko had made her way back home after Mr. Grayson had slammed the door into her face a second time (yes, she had knocked a third time – Bianca was her best friend after all), seeking comfort in the promising "KRRRRRRRRRR" of her suitcase's wheels.. On her way back she had called Bianca a total of three more times, before eventually giving up.

Once she had made it home, her mom had then sent her away too, telling her "You want to be a trainer, don't you" and insisting she couldn't just show up at her doorstep every time something didn't go quite as planned. If you were a trainer, things never went the way you prepared them.

Celine had gracefully ignored her daughters snarky question on why she had forced her to plan out her journey then. She'd understand. One day, Touko would understand, Celine thought to herself. Then she, too, slammed a door into her daughter's face.

Touko's mood had been dampened by that quite a bit (also, she was getting hungry already), but she begrudgingly had made her way back to Route One.

This, however, had sent Ollie into a frenzy of fear once more. They were going to camp?! They were actually going to sleep outside?! Unprotected from all the evildoers (Fireball had always talked about bad evildoers that endangered anyone daring to step away from civilization) and danger's that cowered in the dark?! How where they going to survive the night?!

So, Touko had needed half an hour to calm down her starter. At least by now she had gotten a hang of it. And she knew she was never ever getting another timid natured Pokémon ever again. Could a Pokémon's nature change? She sure hoped they could.

But, once that was done, they trained a bit. And played. And Touko opened a can of Instant Noddles and shared it with Ollie. It was a special mixture, made for Pokémon and humans alike and it was made by this one brand claiming eating the same food as your Pokémon made you bond more easily.

Touko sure hoped they were right, because that stuff was disgusting.

It was the first time in her life Touko actually missed her mom's overcooked pasta.

She kept calling and texting Bianca countless times, but no one picked up the phone and her texts were left on "read". She had even called the landline once, hoping her friend would pick that one up, but instead a rather pissed of Mr. Grayson did. So, at some point Touko decided to let the issue rest. Well, for ten minutes that was, the total amount of time Touko needed to unfold her two second tent.

God, she had gone camping before! Why was all of this so much more difficult all of sudden?!

At least Ollie seemed to like the tent (it was blue after all) and had already snuggled into Touko's bedroll. And it didn't look like she was going to get that bedroll back. Which was fine with Touko, really. It was summer, so she hadn't planned on using it anyway. Time went on and she slowly started to settle in fro the night (she didn't want to sleep just yet - it just seemed like the wrong thing to do), when, finally, finally, her VisoCaster rang.

It was exactly 21.00.

The teenager didn't think she had ever picked up this quickly.

"Bianca, what's go..." "You need to help me run away."


A.N.

I just realized that both, Touko and Bianca (and technically speaking N too?) have daddy issues. Insert that one "Nice" meme here*.

Anyway, first of all, thanks to the six people that followed and gave it a favorite (and of course thank you to the people that actually clicked on it too ^^) and special thanks to AliceYvonneYuno and CrushFruits for giving me a review ^^ It really made my day =)

Besides this, this chapter and the following one were supposed to be one, but at some point I had already written roughly 18 pages and I don't want to make the individual chapters too long (A tendency I have, as you might experience fairly soon). Also, this way it ends on a nice cliffhanger (I mean, not really, but still).

So, yeah, the next chapter is already started. Hopefully that will make the next update faster, but I can't promise anything. I currently work as an AuPair, so I don't necessarily have the strictest of schedules.

Also, the next chapter won't have the first meeting between N and Touko in it either, but the one after that will (I promise!). I just like to give the characters time to settle in and I didn't want them to meet straight away (and, making N go on a journey the day after he was crowed would be weird).

Also, also, the whole Ferriswheelshipping won't really get going that quickly. It's going to take at least till Nacrene City. However, it's going to be hinted at, so don't worry ^^ In addition, I will change some things, as in, there are probably going to be some more meetings and the individual plot points will play out a bit differently (e.g. like Bianca leaving or the whole starting your journey part), but the story (for the first half) will follow the game's story. Just not exactly. You have been warned.

And the last thing I wanted to say (I forgot to do that in the first chapter – might add it in later) is, that I read a lot of fanfiction. There are some ideas I probably have picked up somewhere else. I don't intentionally take someone else's idea without giving credit, however it might happen that something in my head canon comes from someone else's imagination. If so, please tell so I can give credit where credit is due.

So yeah, that sums up all I had to say, I guess.

Have a pleasant day and enjoy the last days of summer (I sure as heck won't) and, if you find the time, I'd highly appreciate a review ^^

PS: I noticed that I wrote the first chapter using British English. I changed it to American English for this chapter (and all the chapter's following this one) except for when the sages/N/the goddesses speak, simply because, well, Unova is based on New York. I'll probably go back at some point and change the spelling accordingly.
So, yeah, I didn't quite think that trough.

Anyway, have a pleasant day ^^