A/N: This fic is also crossposted on AO3 under the same name.
"And welcome back to the latest episode of Ultimate Pokémon Trivia Battle! The show where Pokémon trivia skills are put to the test for a chance to win big bucks! Yes, even you, the viewer watching at home, can win up to 1000 pokédollars by answering our phone-in quiz! And seeing as this week is the Battle Network's Galar League countdown, you might even win an endorsement for the Galar league! Remember, you need to be 16 years of age or older to play! You may be old enough to train Pokémon, but you're not quite old enough to take part in live TV shows. Ridiculous, I know, but that's the rules! Anyway, I'm your host Jeffrey Jones, and these are today's contestants!"
Ivy laughed. She had been preparing for this moment ever since she was little. It was her sixteenth birthday today, and she was going to ace this. The timing was perfect. Since it was her birthday, her parents had let her take the day off training and relax. Even then, they would never let her do this. Fortunately, they'd left to go run some errands. She'd sat through Champion Gloria and Hop's exhibition battle, but now was finally her time to shine. Jeffrey went through his usual schtick of introducing the contestants for the main event, with the help of some over-the-top special effects provided by his Hatterene. Usually, she enjoyed watching the flamboyant Jeffrey dramatise each contestant's background to absurd levels, but today she wished she could fast forward time.
"Thank you, Maya. And that's all our contestants for today! Before we get started with Battle 1, it's time for you folks at home to show us what you're made of! Get your phones ready people, our quiz taker is gonna be the first person to text us the correct answer to this question: Which gigantamaxed Pokémon is capable of using G-Max Gravitas?"
It was as if she had used Agility. Her fingers worked in a frenzy to type the answer out on her old brick of a phone. In a matter of seconds, she had sent the text, but could she really have beaten all the other people with their fancy new Rotom-powered smartphones?
"I can see all your texts are rolling in! Ah, here's the first one… Nope, it's not Hatterene! It's not Corviknight either! "Spotty red bug type Pokémon" is close, but not quite there. 'Itnwwflesfgk'? Sorry, are you okay? Here we go! Yup, the correct answer is Orbeetle! So, let's give our contestant a call and see if they pick up!"
Jeffrey was about to pick up the pink sparkly phone to ring the lucky contestant, when a distant rumbling was heard.
"Sorry, ladies and gentlemen, something seems to have happened nearby and we need to-" was all Jeffrey could say before the TV cut to the Wyndon stadium changing rooms, where the lightly singed reporter was dusting herself off. Ivy groaned in exasperation.
"Breaking news! There has just been an attack on Wyndon stadium! Someone just decided to try and blow up our beloved champion right here in the changing rooms!"
"Why are you so damn excited about that?" Gloria yelled from off camera.
Oh great, Ivy thought. If she were a trainer with some good strong Pokémon, she'd make whatever terrorist did this pay for interrupting her favourite show.
"Fortunately, everyone here is fine! Ooh, look over there!" the reporter seemed to forcefully turn the cameraman around to face one of the walls, where an eye symbol had been sprayed on the wall, "Are you seeing this? This here is the symbol of Team Miracle Eye! You know, those people who keep going around, causing trouble and taking Pokémon? Seems like they're upping their game!"
The reporter rushed over to Gloria and Hop.
"Sooo Gloria, how do you feel about all this?"
"I'd be feeling a bit better if you would get this damn microphone outta me face! Someone just tried to kill me ya know!"
"What about the Galar league?" the reporter continued, ignoring the champion's request to give her some personal space, "Will it be cancelled? What about all the trainers?"
Gloria let out a hearty laugh.
"Ha! Ya really think we'd cancel the Galar league because we're scared of some third-rate terrorists? Nah, this doesn't change anything. We Galarians are known for being damn resilient and that's not any different now than it was a hundred years ago! Rest assured, trainers! The Galar league isn't going anywhere!"
"That's nice to know! If you want to find out more about what just happened, tune into GBC news! You'll get the latest information as soon as we do!"
Finally, the TV switched back to Ultimate Pokémon Trivia Battle. Jeffrey Jones seemed to be doing a dance in front of one of the cameras, but stopped abruptly when he realised they were back on air.
"Okay ladies and gentlemen, sorry for the disturbance! Now, where were we? Ah, yes, we were about to call our lucky contestant for the phone-in quiz!"
He headed over to the pink sparkly phone once again.
"Let's hope they stuck around after that little diversion!"
Ivy's phone began to ring. It was ringing. She'd been chosen. She was in with the chance of getting endorsed. She could get an endorsement. She was about to talk on the phone with the Jeffrey Jones. She could get endorsed for the Galar league by Jeffrey Jones himself. She picked up her phone, her hand shaking. Her heart was racing. This was it.
"Uuum, hello?"
The in house audience cheered.
"Welcome to the show!" Jeffrey greeted her, "So, would you mind telling us a bit about yourself?"
"Um, well, I'm Ivy. I'm from Postwick and I've been watching your show for years! It's my birthday today, so I can finally participate!"
"Ooh, well, happy birthday to you! You sound like a big fan of the show, but do you have what it takes to win our grand prize and an endorsement to the Galar league?"
"I sure hope so."
"Well, in that case, let the quiz begin!"
Okay, here we go, Ivy thought.
"As you could probably tell by our initial question, today's subject is Psychic types! Our first question is: Can you name three Pokémon that are both Psychic and Fairy type?"
The first question was always one of the easiest.
"Erm, okay, there's Gardevoir, Hatterene and Galarian Rapidash!"
Jeffrey's Hatterene looked flattered to have her existence recognised.
"Ding ding ding! That's one point to you, Ivy! Time for the next question: This Psychic type Pokémon supposedly has an IQ of 5000 and is capable of mega evo-"
"Alakazam?"
"Wow, that was fast, and yes! It's Alakazam!"
The audience continued to applaud. Out of the corner of her eye, Ivy noticed two figures approaching her house. Her parents were about to arrive. If she got caught doing this, they would not be pleased. She had to win, and fast. Unfortunately, the questions were getting harder.
"Okay, next question: The Pokémon Chingling requires two conditions to evolve into a Chimecho, what are they?"
"Erm… Friendship! Oh, and… Night time!"
"Correct, and correct! Three down, seven to go! Question four reads: Which three evolution lines can learn the move Heart Stamp through leveling up?"
"Okay, this is a tough one… Hmmm…"
"The time is ticking!"
"Erm, the Woobat line, the Smoochum line and…. Erm… Mime Jr.?"
"Wah-wah! You've got two lives left! Good luck!"
"Oh right! Luvdisc is the third one!"
"Nice save! Question five's up next and it says: In some of Xatu's Pokédex entries, it says that it stands still, rooted in the same place all day! Why does it do this?"
"Ah, I know this one. It does that because it fears the terrible things it's seen in the future."
"Correct! Woa-oh! We're halfway there!"
Ivy saw her parents approach the garden gate. She needed to up her game now, or she was done for.
"Anyway, here's question six: What is it that gives Malamar a reputation for being popular among criminals?"
"It's hypnosis is one of the strongest in the world."
"Yup! You're on a roll here!"
She could see her parents' silhouettes approaching the front door. They were almost in. She needed to act now or she'd be in for it. This was one of those times she wished her telekinesis would work properly. Then she could move something in the way of the door. But then it would be obvious she'd done it.
"Question number seven: A normal Exeggutor is weak to a whopping seven types! Can you name them all?"
"Okay, Exeggutor is a Grass and Psychic type… So that would mean it would be weak to Dark, Ghost, Bug… Ice, Fire, Flying and… Right, Poison!"
The bolt. She could bring it down and lock the door from the inside. It was leaning in slightly. She might be able to shut it.
"Nice one! Only three left now! Okay, here's the next one: In a certain region, one of the three Pokémon trainers can receive at the start of their journey evolves into a Psychic type. Which Pokémon-"
"Fennekin, the Fire type starter from Kalos," Ivy interrupted while simultaneously trying to focus on the iron bolt, "It evolves into Delphox, which is part psychic type."
"Nice one! Okay, second to last question. What's the difference between the moves Power Trick and Power Swap?"
Ivy's free hand was pointed at the bolt, willing it to tip over just a bit more. After what seemed like an eternity, it came down with a loud clang. That would buy her some time for sure.
"Hello? I'm afraid I'll have to deduct one of your lives because you haven't answered yet."
"Wait, right, I'm back, sorry about that. What was the question again?"
"What's the difference between the moves Power Trick and Power Swap?"
"Okay, so basically Power Trick swaps the user's attack and defense, while Power Swap swaps the user's attack and special attack."
"Impressive. Okay Ivy, this is the final question. You're down to one life, so it's all or nothing now!"
Ivy saw the bolt begin to shift. Her parents had figured out it was down and were using their (actually working) telekinesis to lift it up.
"Your final question is: A certain effect on the battlefield can be invoked with only one move, and one G-max move. It grounds flying or levitating Pokémon and makes moves more accurate among other things. What is the status I'm talking about, and can the Pokémon who can use the G-max move that invokes this status also use the normal move?"
The bolt was rapidly returning to its rightful place beside the door. She had to finish this now. Luckily, the question had given her all the information she needed.
"You're talking about the gravity status! It can be summoned with the move Gravity, or G-max Gravitas. Orbeetle can use G-max Gravitas, but not Gravity."
"That is…."
The bolt was back up, the door was unlocked.
"...The correct answer! Congratulations, you win 700 pokédollars, and an endorsement from me for the Galar league!"
The audience went wild.
"Yes! Thank you so much!" Ivy exclaimed, right as her parents came through the door, "Oh no, I think I'm losing the signal… Bye!"
"Oh well, we all know about Postwick's phone signal issues, amiright?" Jeffrey laughed, "Anyway, congratulations to Ivy. We'll get in contact with you soon so you can claim your prize."
Ivy's mom approached her, a stern look on her face.
"Ivy, who were you calling?"
"A friend. They were wishing me a happy birthday."
"A reasonable excuse," her mom said, "If the door bolt hadn't inexplicably fallen down while we were trying to unlock it."
"Really? I didn't notice. Must've been the wind."
"You're trying to keep us from finding something out, aren't you?" her dad continued, "You weren't trying to call that game show guy, were you?"
"No, I was just watching the show, I swear!"
"We'll talk about this later, sweetie," her mom said, her angry expression suddenly turning to a smile, "Because we've got you an extra special present!"
"Really? What is it?"
Ivy was suspicious. Her parents were acting uncharacteristically happy.
"We've decided to let you go on your own Pokémon journey!" her dad said happily, "We're even going to give you a Pokémon!"
Ivy became even more concerned. There were definitely going to be some strings attached. They would never give the family disappointment a free Pokémon without any extra requirements.
"But how about we wait until your favourite TV show finishes?" Ivy's mom said condescendingly. Her parents had never been fans of her favourite trivia quiz shows.
"Okay, I guess…"
After the program ended, Ivy's parents led her into the kitchen, where there was a cheap store-bought birthday cake on the table. They went through the motions of the happy birthday sing song and ate some slices of cake, before Ivy's mom took a Poké Ball out and placed it on the table.
"Okay sweetie, this is the Pokémon we got for you! All you need to do to get it is use your telekinesis to lift it towards you!" Ivy's mom told her.
"This should be easy for someone like you, after what you did with the door earlier!" her dad helpfully commented.
He was right. Something like this should be easy for someone like her. She'd trained for years to try and master her powers. Focusing on the Poké Ball, she lifted it into the air. That was the easy part. Now all she had to do was pull it towards her. She tried to focus all her power into getting that dang ball to move, but like every other time, nothing happened. About half the stuff in the room had started to float, but nothing useful was happening. It was just like every other time. She had failed. She tried one last time to get the Poké Ball to come to her, exerting all her mental force to pull it into her outstretched hand. She had to do it. She had to.
Ivy woke up a few minutes later on the floor. Her parents were staring down at her, disappointed. She had clearly failed, again. She picked herself up and her parents handed her a large blue rucksack that had clearly seen a lot of use. She knew this because it was in fact her rucksack that she'd had for years.
"We've packed your bag with everything you'd need for a journey!" Ivy's mom said, "Since you're the trainer and not us, we've given you a couple hundred pokédollars, I'm sure you'll know how to spend them. You'll also find we've given you a Pokémon perfect for someone of your caliber, and a couple gifts from some other relatives."
"Uhh… Thanks?"
"So, we hope you have lots of fun on your journey!" her dad added.
"Wait… I can leave now?"
"As soon as you want, sweetie!" her mom replied.
"Lemme just go pack a couple things," Ivy said, heading to her room with her bag.
After finding her map of Galar and a couple books she wanted to take with her, she decided to take the opportunity to check out what was in her bag. True to their word, her parents had left her a small amount of money to buy her own supplies, and someone had given her a pair of socks. Then there was a single Poké Ball, and a wrapped up gift with a card on it. She eagerly tore through the wrapping paper to find a battered old box. Inside said box was a dynamax band. It was obviously second hand, judging by the custom paint job inflicted on it, but someone had taken the effort to at least clean it.
She had a look at the card that came with it. Of course, it was from her cousin Laurie. That would explain why the band was an obnoxious shade of pink. As usual, he had crossed out the generic happy birthday message on the inside of the card and replaced it with his own message:
Hey Ivy!
I hope you have a great 16th birthday! Your parents let me know you were going to try and do the Galar league, so I thought you might want my old dynamax band! Don't worry about me, I can just ask Avery for another one. Did I mention I recently became one of his gym trainers? I doubt you'll get to the eighth gym, but if you do then it'll be nice seeing you there!
From Laurie
Of course he had. Laurie was the darling of the family, with his potent psychic powers and battling skills. He was that sort of person who succeeded at everything, but was too nice to justify feeling jealous about. Ivy almost wished he was secretly evil or something, just to give her an excuse to hate him. At least she had a dynamax band now.
The last thing left to do was to look inside the Poké Ball. Ivy wondered what Pokémon she would be getting. It probably wouldn't be anything good, but hopefully it would be decent. Imagining a dramatic song playing in her head, she picked up the poké ball and pressed the button.
Out popped a small, blue and yellow bug Pokémon. It seemed happy to have been let out, and crawled over Ivy before falling off her arm and landing on the floor. It looked around the room, examining its surroundings.
Ivy stared at it, half perplexed and half annoyed. A Blipbug. Her parents had given her a Blipbug. They expected her to take on the Galar league with a fricking Blipbug. Wait, no they weren't. They were expecting her to fail miserably and come crawling back to them like a bug. Well she wasn't going to be squashed so easily. There had to be a way and she was going to find it. She would be the one who took on the world with all the odds against her and won. She was Ivy McKee, the world's worst psychic, and this was the start of her epic journey!
...It was then she realised she should probably get to know the small bug Pokémon she'd been saddled with.
"Erm, hey there, little guy?"
Ivy offered her hand to the Blipbug. It happily scuttled on and she placed it back on her bed.
Hi, she heard a small voice saying. Ivy stared at the Blipbug.
"Wait… You can talk?"
The Blipbug shook its tiny head.
"Wait… Some Blipbug have telepathy, right?"
What's a telepathy? The small voice responded.
"Erm, it's where you can tell what someone else is thinking and talk to them with your mind and stuff."
The Blipbug seemed to gasp in realization.
Oh, right. So you giving yourself a speech was real… Ivy looked awkwardly at the perceptive little bugmon.
"...I guess?"
You said you were called I freed the Kee? The Blipbug asked.
"Not quite, it's Ivy McKee."
Oops, sorry. Hello Ivy McKee. The Blipbug looked extremely pleased with itself.
"You can call me Ivy."
Okay. I'm Blipbug, the Blipbug said matter of factly.
"Right, I should give you a proper name. Hmm… You seem like a Marcus. How does that sound?"
Sure. So what now?
"We're going on a journey! Do you want to go back in your Poké Ball, or do you want to sit on me or something?"
Marcus responded by crawling on Ivy's head.
"This is going to take some getting used to… Okay then, let's get going."
Ivy slung her rucksack on and stopped to look in the mirror. She looked like a proper Pokémon trainer now, but she felt kind of weird with a Blipbug sitting there on her head.
What does weird mean again? Are you thinking mean things about me? Marcus said. This was going to get tiring.
"I'll tell you later…"
Ivy headed to the entrance hall, where her parents were waiting to see her off. The door was already wide open.
"I see you got the Pokémon! Isn't it cute?" her mom said.
"I've heard Blipbug are very smart Pokémon!" her dad added.
"Yeah, this is Marcus," Ivy said, heading through the door.
"Heey, aren't you going to give your mommy a hug?" her mom said condescendingly.
"Fine," Ivy said. Her mom immediately squeezed her in a warm and aggressively tight embrace that left Ivy gasping for air. Ivy said goodbye to them both and headed out of her front garden.
"Bye sweetie!" her mom yelled, waving.
"Don't forget, you can always come back and learn to be a better psychic if you fail miserably!" her dad chimed in helpfully. Ivy tried to ignore that last comment.
Finally she was off, heading out of Postwick and onto Route 1. There was going to be a long road ahead, but she'd manage it, somehow.
