Chapter 49: Old School

Lucas sat in the screening room, tugging at his lip rings nervously as he waited for the screen to come to life. The tattooed, Mohawk-bearing, teen Trainer was generally not a self-conscious person, though his brain tended to shut off around people he found attractive, it was rare for him to get genuinely embarrassed. Yet here he was, dreading what he was about to view.

The Trainer had come to Rustboro City to seek his second Hoenn League badge, but had decided that his brisk pace from city to city earned him a day of sightseeing. He had come to the Silph/Devon Inc main office to revive his Cranidos from a fossil. A new Pokemon that was now sitting contently in the Pokeball next to Lucas in his seat. While waiting for the scientist to give him his new Pokemon, he started talking to the fancy dressed man in line behind him, only to discover that his new line buddy wasn't just the company's young CEO, Steven Stone, but also the original owner of the high end mansion Lucas had received back in Sinnoh. And that was how Lucas got suckered into doing Steven's bidding. Through one part charm and another part good ol' fashioned guilt, the business mastermind convinced the teen Champion to become the new spokesman for the Pokevice, the official release now only a few weeks away.

Steven sat right next to Lucas in the viewing room, his wide, easy-going, and not entirely innocent smile beaming triumphantly on his face. With a gesture to the employee in charge of the projection machine the commercial started. The ad started with a bang as a pair of Pokemon clashed in a brightly lit arena. A Charizard was battling a Victrebel and with a magnificent fireball from its throat, the flower Pokemon went careening across the stadium as a shadowed out figure slumped his shoulders in defeat. The camera panned towards the other opponent who had pumped his fist in the air in victory and the lights came up on the figure to expose who the victorious fighter was.

"Hi, I'm Lucas, the new Champion of the Sinnoh League. I became Champion through hard work, trusting my Pokemon and never backing down from a challenge. But along my Journey to the top, I got a lot of help from this, the Pokemon Device," the onscreen Lucas pulled out the red and white Pokevice from inside his vest. This was not his actual Pokevice of course. His was scuffed and scratched from being actually used, for the commercial the marketing department insisted he used a specially polished mock-up that would look better onscreen. They also hadn't let the Trainer use his actual Charizard, "The Pokevice is the latest in Trainer technology. Whether I want to use the map to figure out where I'm going or use the call function to rechallenge old opponents, the Pokevice is the best and most convenient tool for a Pokemon Trainer on the go. And with downloadable apps and functions, there are no limits to what the Pokevice—or me can do,"

Lucas groaned and watched through his fingers. I used to take lunch money from dorks like that and now I've become one, he thought to himself. He hadn't been this embarrassed since the time about a year ago when the principal of his high school caught him making out with his daughter. Lucas had been waiting in the principal's office to hear the punishment for his latest transgression when the principal's daughter had come in. She was cute, but not his type, so he was easily able to talk to her and charm her with his bad boy persona. Before he knew it she had climbed on his lap and started kissing him only to have her father walk in a few minutes later, catching her straddling Cherrygrove City's Public Enemy Number One. It was not Lucas' finest moment, and afterward the principal looked for any and all opportunities to throw out the thug who had seduced his precious princess. As the first commercial ended and a few variations of the commercial followed it, Lucas was mentally kicking himself for not being more insistent in giving the keys to the Sinnoh mansion back.

With the final commercial ended and a few of the magazine mockups shown in a slide show, Steven gestured to the workers to turn off the projector and bring the lights back up. Unlike Lucas and his desire to crawl under a rock, the young CEO couldn't contain his excitement, "This campaign is going to be major success. I think we should even increase the orders of devices for the Pokevice launch! In a few short weeks we are going to change the face of Trainer technologies, and you're going to be the one responsible, Lucas!"

"So does this mean I'm off the hook for the house?" Lucas grumbled.

"Hey, not are we even on the house, if this goes as well as I know it will, in another few months I'll want you to do another campaign and this time I'll pay you handsomely for it!" Steven clapped his hand on the teen's shoulder again, "Thanks again Lucas. And if you ever need anything else from Silph/Devon, I put my personal number in your Pokevice contacts,"

"Er, thanks," Lucas said skeptically, "It's been a real trip, but I need to get going now. I still want to explore the city and tomorrow I'm facing the Gym Leader,"

"Good luck Lucas and keep on winning! I'll be seeing you again soon," Steven said confidently. One of the CEO's assistants lead the teen back out the building. It was already dark when he left the corporate office, the photo shoots, screen tests and takes taking agonizing hours to finish. It wasn't too bad, but he was still dreading when those cheesy commercials would air. It would take a lot of his ambition to not have his reputation damaged, and he didn't even want to think about what his brother would say to him once he saw them...

The teen spent his evening going to a nice restaurant and wandering around the city with his Pokemon before going back to the Pokemon Center to prepare for the next day's challenge. Having just about as much of Rustboro as he could handle, the teen headed bright and early the next morning to the Gym. As he had discovered yesterday, the Gym was not far from Silph/Devon's headquarters. The sign in front announced the city's Leader: Roxanne, the rock-steady teacher. All indications seemed that this Gym's specialty was rock-types. Rock types were simple enough to fight with grass types and water types. And after the near-disaster in Petalburg, Lucas knew he had to have high-level Pokemon, as the Leader would be required to use an advanced team for such an advanced Trainer. His training in the Petalburg Woods guaranteed this. His Mudkip and Turtwig had evolved to their next stages, as had his Tailow and his Beautifly had increased significantly in level. Only Diablo remained just shy of his eighteenth level. As the teen Trainer approached the doors of the Gym, he noticed a sign just above the handle: Attention Trainers who wish to challenge the Leader. You must report at the Pokemon School first.

Lucas let out a snort. It had begun again. In Sinnoh, almost every Gym Leader required the teen to track the Leader down before he could actually challenge them, and it appeared the tradition was going to remain in tact. Lucas didn't mind too much. It gave his Journey a comforting sense of familiarity. The school was quite a bit away from the Gym, being closer to the front of Rustboro, whereas the Gym sat closer to the town's exit. After a few minutes the teen arrived and walked into the school. It had been years since he'd set foot in a Pokemon School. He had dropped out of his own in Violet City when his brother John had become a Trainer.

Contrary to a lot of outsiders' understanding, the people of the Pokemon League had normal educations. It was expected that a person would graduate high school and move on to a normal, mundane career. Pokemon Training was viewed as a rite of passage, and thus most kids took a year or two off to go on a Journey. After their Journeys, even if they became extremely successful Trainers, kids would go back to school and complete their educations. Depending on their families and interests, many people never even went on a Journey, or simply got their Trainer licenses to keep Pokemon as pets, thus Pokemon Schools were more like cotillion or religious classes, additional education that didn't interfere with the math and science classes of regular school. Here in Pokemon School, kids would learn what they needed to do on their adventures: battle etiquette, how to catch Pokemon, what they can and can't do while traveling and what to prepare for as they go out on their own.

Lucas walked into the classroom silently while a teacher at the front of the room was lecturing about statuses and Pokemon items. She was a surprisingly young woman, probably only a year or two older than Lucas was, a far cry from the eccentric teacher he remembered from his own Pokemon School days. She had long black hair tied up with ribbons into an elegant updo, and light brown eyes behind wire frame glasses, "What happens when a Pokemon gets poisoned?"

A student shot up her hand, "They continue to lose health points until they faint in battle,"

"And?" the teacher prodded.

"The status continues outside of battle and will continue until healed or the Pokemon faints," another boy answered.

"What can we do to get rid of poison?" the teacher pointed her marker at a shy looking boy who hadn't answered yet.

"Use an item like Full Restore, Full Heal or a Pecha berry," the small boy stammered. When the teacher smiled he seemed more encouraged, "There are also Pokemon Abilities that can heal themselves like Shed Skin and Natural Cure,"

"Very good everyone!" the young woman clapped her hands and when she looked up she finally seemed to have noticed Lucas in the room, "Hello there, how can I help you?"

"Hi, I'm a Trainer and I'm looking to challenge the Rustboro Gym Leader. The sign on the Gym said I need to come here first," Lucas replied.

"Ah yes," the woman nodded, "I am Roxanne, the Leader in this city. I also teach at the Pokemon School, which is why I ask people who want to challenge me to come here," she turned to her students, "Class, we are heading down to the Gym now. I want you all to take notes about the battle and write an analysis of what this Trainer will do correctly and incorrectly during the match. Excuse me, could you do me a favor and introduce yourself, Mr. Trainer?"

"Sure, my name is Lucas,"

Roxanne's face brightened as she seemed to recognize him, "You mean the new Sinnoh Champion?"

"Yup, that's me,"

"Class, we're in for a real treat today. This young man is the recent Champion of the Sinnoh League. Does anyone know what that means?"

"I do! I do Miss Roxanne!" A little boy waved his arm furiously, "It means he got all the badges from the Sinnoh Gym, faced their Elite Four and beat their Champion,"

"That is correct. It also means because he is a Champion of another League I have to use my advanced team for our battle. That means I will be using Pokemon I normally don't because they are much higher level them my usual challengers," Roxanne then turned her attention back to Lucas, "But before we battle, Lucas, could I ask you to talk to my class a little bit about what it's like to be a Champion and what it took you to get there?"

"Um, sure, that's fine. What kind of stuff should I talk about?" Lucas asked. Even as hard as he worked when he was in Pokemon School, school was never his element, let alone teaching it.

"Why don't you talk about how you passed your test to get your Pokemon Trainer's License, and how the professor gave you your first Pokemon," Roxanne turned back to her class, "Remember everyone. When you pass the test on your tenth birthdays and get your license from this school, you'll be allowed to get one of the special starter Pokemon from Professor Birch,"

"Uh..." Lucas started sheepishly and dug his hands into his pockets as he walked to the front of the class, "Actually, I found my first Pokemon. This is Gizmo, an Eevee. He was abandoned in the woods because his first Trainer didn't think he was good enough. I didn't get my Trainer's License by passing the Trainer test, I got it because Professor Oak pulled some strings for me. In fact, I never even actually finished Pokemon School,"

Roxanne looked dumbstruck, "Wh-what do you mean, you never finished Pokemon School? But you became Champion! You could have only done that by going to Pokemon School,"

"Well, I did go when I was a kid. But I dropped out when I was seven. Some drama with my older brother, not anything you're interested in. But yeah, I never finished the full education," Lucas continued.

"Then how did you learn everything you needed to know for Training?" one of the class asked.

"I learned as I went. A lot of trial and error. I figured things out as I needed to and discovered a lot of stuff that the school doesn't cover," Lucas explained.

"Wait, wait, so we don't actually need to go to Pokemon School in order to become Trainers? We could even become Champions without having to do all the reading and homework?" one boy said hopefully.

"You still need Pokemon School to pass the Trainer test. You can't Train Pokemon without a license. It's illegal," Roxanne said huffily, her voice become slightly higher pitched as she struggled to contain her shock and outrage.

"But Mr. Lucas got his license without the test. And he was able to become a super important Trainer without even a special starter Pokemon," another little girl pointed out.

It was all the young woman could take. As far as she was concerned the idea of Lucas being a first class Trainer without Pokemon School was heresy. Sure, lots of Trainers passed the test without having the special education, but they never amounted to much more than Youngsters and Bug Catchers, mediocre Trainers who usually went back to regular school in less than a year. But a Champion, it was unheard of! "Mr Lucas may have become Champion of Sinnoh without Pokemon School, but he's about to face a Trainer who was top of her class during Pokemon School. Still the only Trainer in Hoenn history to get a perfect score on her test. Then you kids will understand the difference—and importance—between good Pokemon education, and just 'winging it',"

Now Lucas was completely insulted. This woman was insinuating that he was somehow an inferior Trainer simply because he never finished the voluntary and optional classes offered by the Pokemon League. Sure, he may have made a lot of mistakes and errors in his Journey, hell, he was still making them now, but it didn't make the information he knew any less valid than what this girl had read in her books. He took an active effort not to swear in front of the kids, but his tone made his intent clear, "Listen you...very unpleasant woman. People don't become Champions of any League by pulling stuff out of their...ear. I worked my...butt off in order to get where I am now. So you can take your Pokemon School and your attitude and shove them straight up your...nose,"

"It really is time to get to the Gym, children. We're in for a very important lesson,"

The interior of the Rustboro Gym was much like the one in Oreburgh. A large, stone covered field that gave the impression of a cave. Unlike a cave, however, there was a bleacher full of wide-eyed school children dying to learn the answer to the ultimate question: can experience really trump education? Both opponents who stood and faced each other in the arena had very different views on the subject. Roxanne made her Leader speech, addressing her class just as much as her adversary, "I am Roxanne, Leader of the Rustboro City Gym. During my school days I was top of my class, able to be a Gym Leader even during my education. I'm the only one in Hoenn to get a perfect grade on my Trainer Test. My specialty is rock types. Though it appears as they have many weaknesses, rock types are a clear cut and easy to understand type whose recorded strategies have stood the test of time. With a combination of the things I learned in school and the devotion I have to my Pokemon, I will show you the power of a first-rate education,"

Lucas had a little speech of his own, "My name is Lucas and I am the Champion of Sinnoh. I am originally from Cherrygrove City. I was never a good student. I was never good at math or science and I can't spell worth...poop. But I love Pokemon. So I learned everything I needed to my own way and I'm every bit as good a Trainer as those who did graduate Pokemon School,"

"Go Graveler!" the Leader announced.

"Go Bruce!" Lucas threw out his own Pokemon. Like he had planned for, the Graveler was in its mid-twenties. A level that Lucas had trained for and was confident his Marshtomp could handle. Surprisingly, the Leader paused before she attacked.

"Marshtomp. Quickly, someone give me this Pokemon's strengths and weaknesses," Roxanne commanded.

"Marshtomp is a water type, so it's weak against grass, electric and dragon types,"

"No, it's also a ground type, so that means electric won't hit it. But that means it's doubly weak against grass types and it can't hit flying Pokemon,"

"Excellent my students. Duel type Pokemon may have twice as many advantages, but they typically have twice as many weaknesses as well," the Leader responded before turning her attention back to the battle, "Graveler, use Magnitude!"

"Bruce, Water Gun!" Magnitude was a fairly powerful ground move compared to the lower level water attack, its power attributed from very low to being able to knock out even high-powered Pokemon with a type advantage. But with the type matches both Pokemon ended up with equal damage. Lucas called out the attack again, "Another Water Gun Bruce, finish it off!"

"Graveler, also use Magnitude again!" Roxanne commanded. Once again the Pokemon attacked. But unlike the previous earthshaking attack, this time the Graveler's move barely trembled the building. Bruce on the other hand took his Trainer's order to heart and managed to land a critical attack. This time the rock Pokemon was KOed.

Lucas pumped his fist, "Nice work, Bruce! This Gym match may be our fastest victory yet. There are some things a fancy education just can't match,"

Roxanne was undisturbed. In fact she turned back to her class as though this were all still just merely a lesson, "Class, do you remember one of our first lessons on battling? A match is never determined by the first round, only the final one,"