Nick and Alice walked through downtown Heahea, heading from their house to the docks on the Western side of the island. The pamphlet said that in order to become one of Kukui's licensed assistants, all you had to do was sign up for it in his lab. The only hiccup in that was that his lab was on Melemele Island, which was west of where they lived, and there were only two ways to cross between the islands. You could either Mantine surf, which Nick wasn't coordinated enough for, or you could just ride one of the ferries. Nick and Alice had, of course, chosen to ride the ferry. Nick had called ahead and booked a couple of spots on the soonest departure. Nick was surprised to hear that tickets for travel were free, as long as the destination was one of the two neighboring islands.
Nick and Alice walked further along the road, passing by numerous restaurants, tourist traps, and even a couple of boutiques. And no matter how much Alice begged him for a new dress, Nick adamantly denied the shopping spree. They didn't have much time before the ferry left, and Alice could shop for hours. Along with the time restraints, Nick didn't want to risk spending that much money. While it was true that common residents could live for almost no cost, trainers still had to pay for adventure supplies. And since Nick didn't currently have any potions or other supplies for adventure, he was going to have to buy some after they arrived on Melemele Island.
After about thirty minutes of walking, they were both standing on the docks, the sea breeze here even stronger than it was at their house. Alice was the one who spotted where the ferry was docked, and they both began to board the ship when Nate noticed a little boy watching them with an in gaze. After everyone had boarded, the ship had began its trip, and Nate was approached by the same little boy from earlier. The child was clutching a pokéball in his hand, and had a determined look on his face.
"Hey mister," the boy said in a voice just as determined as his look, "I want to battle you." Nick looked around, spotting a small arena near the front of the ship. "Alright," Nick agreed, "but only if there's a Pokécenter on board." The little boy looked around, soon spotting a small medical center near the arena, then he and Nick walked to opposite ends of the battlefield. The little boy tightened his grip on the pokéball, then proceeded to lift his arm and throw the little plastic sphere towards his side of the field. The ball bounced off the ground, a flash of white light burst from the orb.
The first thing Nick noticed about the opponent was the smell. Almost everyone within sight was visibly nauseated by the smell, except for the child. The stench reminded Nick of a landfill, except ten times worse. The second thing Nick noticed was the noise. Instead of sounding like an ordinary pokémon, the opponent made a semi-wet plop when it landed. "Grimer," the pokémon practically belched out. Nick's face changed to one of visible confusion. Soon, Nick noticed that there was something wrong with it, though.
"Kid, I think something's wrong with your pokémon," Nick said, Alice still standing beside him. The child looked at him, a perplexed expression visible. "What do you mean? He's perfectly healthy," the kid replied, gesturing to Grimer, who was blissfully grinning while rocking with the ship.
Nick pointed at Grimer, still confused. "Yeah, but he's so… green," he said, waving his hand to try and get some of the stench away from his nose. The kid then seemed to understand, recognition crossing over his face. "You're not from Alola, are you? The islands make some of the pokémon here, different than other places," the kid said, proud that he knew that. Nick sort of understood, but they still haven't battled yet, so Nick suggested they begin soon. He turned to Alice.
"Are you going out there," he asked her, gesturing to the field. A look of disgust crossed her face before she pointed at the sludge pokémon. You want me to touch that thing, she said to him telepathically. "What do you mean," Nick replied, "You won't even touch him. You only use special attacks."
Fine, Alice groaned, floating to her spot on the battlefield, straightening out her dress before the battle commenced. The little boy decided to go first, having his Grimer use Acid Spray on Alice. She dodged with ease, doing a twirl to move out of the way. Alright, Alice. You know what to do, Nick thought. A determined nod from Alice let him know she heard it. She raised her hands towards Grimer as her eyes began to glow blue. With a bright flash, she used Psychic on the Grimer, but to both her and Nick's surprise, Grimer was completely unfazed.
The kid noticed their confusion, and went to clarify. "Not only do some of the pokémon around here look different, but some also have different types. Like my Grimer here. He's a poison type as usual, but he's also a dark type," the kid said, and Grimer smiled after hearing his name called. After hearing that, both Nick and Alice looked at each other, a new plan already formed. Alice raised her hands to the sky, and a pink orb started forming between them. She then pointed her arm directly at the Grimer and unleashed the Moonblast which raced straight towards the pile of gunk.
The impact of the orb created a cloud of smoke to erupt from the enemy pokémon, cloaking the entire side of the battlefield. When the smoke cleared, Alice and Nick breathed sighs of relief, seeing the Grimer having pretty much melted where it was. "No," the little boy said, distressed. "My daddy said his pokémon was super tough. Well, mommy's pokémon always won," he said, pulling out a second pokéball. "Go, Oricorio," he exclaimed as he tossed the ball. When the white light cleared, Nick saw a little pink bird wearing what seemed to be a hat of feathers and a similar looking skirt. He recognized this pokémon from brochures and travel guides. Oricorio was an avian dancer who changed appearance and type based on the nectar it drinks. The pink one was a psychic type, if he recalled correctly. Based on that, he knew exactly who to use.
Alright, Alice. You can come back. I'm gonna let Danny get some practice in, Nick thought, to which Alice nodded, then gracefully floated off the field. Nick reached onto his belt and grabbed one of his pokéballs, tossing it towards the field. "Go, Danny," he said, the Duskull floating around the field once the light cleared. The little ghost snickered, his single red eye focusing on the Oricorio, which caused it to shiver. "Alright Danny, let's go ahead and hit it with a Shadow Sneak!" Danny's entire body turned pitch black except for his eye, which still glowed red, before he melted into the floor and almost immediately reappeared behind the small bird, striking it directly in the back. The bird recovered, and jumped away from the Duskull.
"Oricorio, use Feather Dance!" The bird began to do an energetic dance, quickly shaking its hips and head, loosening some of its feathers. At the end of the dance, it forcefully flung the loosened feathers, which flew straight towards Danny. They clung to most of his body, coating him in a layer of feathers. Alice giggled at the sight, while Nick tried to hold back a smile. Danny was visibly irritated by this, and his gaze towards Oricorio became a glare. "Alright, Danny. Let's try and finish this quickly. Use Shadow Sneak again," Nick commanded. Danny once again dissolved into darkness before quickly reappearing near Oricorio. This time, though, his anger caused him to strike so hard that Oricorio was sent straight to the ground. After a couple seconds of stillness from the dancer, the battle was ended.
After everyone had been healed, the little boy approached Nick, a handful of cash held in front of him. "Here you go," he said pushing his hand forward. Nick only took half of it and slipped it in his wallet. "Keep the rest. I have enough cash to make it for now," he said, patting the kid on the head. The child looked sad that Nick had refused his payment, then he had an idea. He reached into his backpack and pulled out a book. "Then you can have this. It'll help you learn about a bunch of the stuff around here," he said enthusiastically, handing the book to Nick.
Nick took it and looked at the cover. It had a picture of a white, fluffy Vulpix surrounded by a floral print. At the top of the image was the title, A Local's Guide to Alola. He opened it up to the glossary, seeing that the book had descriptions of all sorts of things, such as Alolan forms, local pokémon, points of interest, and much more. He went to thank the little boy, but by the time he had looked up from the book, the kid had already scampered off, probably rejoining his parents. Nick just shrugged and put the book in his backpack, noticing that the ferry had arrived on Melemele Island. He put his arm around Alice, excited to finally be on the road again.