This chapter, we get to explore Maddi's backstory and see what happened to her family. Some characters may be making surprise appearances… And since everyone seems to be doing it, "this should be interesting."

KedharS: Should be interesting.

Rosealine gold: Hopefully I can live up to your expectations.

Thunder Fire: Should be interesting.

Just a Bad Writer for Fun: Should be interesting.

JoshGamerV: Should be interesting.

Aquahaze675: Hopefully I can live up to expectations.

Pokemon Academy: Beginning of Beginnings

Chapter 403

"I live in the Johto Region now, but I used to live in Kanto," Maddi started. "It was just me, my sister, and our parents. I used to have a big family, a happy family, but that was half a lifetime ago."

Sango could see the tears begin to build up in the corner of Maddi's eye. But she was a tough girl, and kept on speaking without even taking the time to wipe them away.

"We used to live in Saffron City," Maddi laughed. "A big change from when I lived with my sister in peaceful Ecruteak." She sniffed the air. "I can still remember the smells of smog and stale street vendor food from when I was a little girl."

"I remember the same, to be honest," Sango sighed nostalgically. "I grew up in Castelia City."

"Big cities kinda suck, don't they?" Maddi asked. "Still, they do have their perks."

"I've never been to Saffron," Sango said. "From what I hear it's the star of the Kanto region."

"It's not that great," Maddi said. "But… I do have fond memories of it. That…"

Maddi remembered the familiar smell of her mother's cooking. And by that, she meant reheated take-out dishes because they were both too busy with work to cook. Her father's smiling face, as he showed her and her sister what he was working on on his computer. Countless other memories of their life in the apartment, those had been some of the best days of her life.

"My parents worked for a company known as Silph Co."

"Silph Co.?" Sango asked. "I think I've heard of it."

"They were a major corporation in their day," Maddi said. "I've been researching them here and there for the last few years. They were involved in all sorts of things on the cutting edge of technology. Pokemon transport, fossil restoration, genetic research, robotics, communications, anything that would put them ahead."

"And your parents, they… they worked there?"

Maddi nodded glumly. "I don't know what it was they were working on, honestly. I know that my parents worked in pokemon genetics, but I was way too young to understand any of that stuff when they were alive. I do remember that the two of them were having a lot of late-night discussions about someone named 'Adam' but other than that, I don't have any clue what research they were actually working on at Silph Co. After their deaths, their research was seized for being 'proprietary information' before I ever go a look."

"Pokemon genetics?" Sango asked, surprised.

"Specifically, my dad was working on pokemon types," Maddi explained. "I remember him showing me and my sister photos of pokemon like the ones in Kanto, but with different types than ours. Even if they were the same pokemon."

She smiled softly.

"My mom's favorite pokemon was Eevee. She used to show us all the different evolutions of Eevee that had been discovered. I know now that Eevee can evolve into pokemon of different types thanks to a peculiarity in its genetic code." Maddi reached down to her belt and removed one of the pokeballs, turning it over in her hands. "Vee… I hatched him from an egg my mom gave me for my seventh birthday. The last present I ever got from my parents."

"What… what happened?" Sango asked. "If you don't mind me asking… I know that it must be hard for you."

"It is, very hard," Maddi said, nodding. She gave Sango a reassuring smile, and shook her head. "Don't worry about me though. I came to terms with their deaths a long time ago. And I have Vee to remember them by, too. I wanted to tell you everything, after all. Let me tell you what I remember about my parents…"

It was eight years ago, during "Take Your Kids to Work Day" at Silph Corporation when Team Rocket attacked the company headquarters.

"Why doesn't Melicent have to come?" Maddi pouted. She was sitting in the back of her parents' car, not very happy about spending a day of her summer break going to work with her parents. She was wearing a cute black dress that her mom had bought her, so that she could look her best when she was introduced to her parents' coworkers.

"Mels is… doing other things," her mother said, looking back over the shoulder of the seat. "She's getting a little too old for stuff like this."

"Don't you like coming to the office?" Her dad asked, not taking his eyes off the road. "Last year you couldn't wait!"

"…Will the pokemon be there?" Maddi asked.

Maddi's mom smiled, and her dad laughed. They pulled into the parking lot.

Maddi held her mother's hand and looked down at the ground, not wanting to draw attention to herself. Her parents' work was so big, and it always made her feel a little nervous. That was why she liked the room with all the pokemon, she had spent a lot of time there last year, playing with the pokemon and the other kids.

Maddi didn't like her parents' floor that much. Unlike her father's office back home, their office here was… so empty and clean. It made her feel so nervous, like she should behave herself and stay quiet. As Maddi walked down the wide, empty hall with her parents, she noticed another man walking the other direction, wearing the same white lab coat as they were. He was tall and pale, and his hair was the same white as the coat he wore. He stopped to greet her parents, and she took a shy look up at his face. He didn't look like an old person.

"Doctors Whitmore, how is your day going?" He asked, shaking each of her parents' hands. They greeted him in turn, and that's how Maddi learned that his name was "Doctor Gleiss".

"Just showing Maddi around the office," her father said, reaching down and patting Maddi on the head.

"Ah! So this is your youngest!" The other doctor laughed. "I thought it was odd we were hiring assistants so young!"

The three adults shared a laugh, and the man turned to her, kneeling down. She peeked out at him from behind her bangs, and her blood went cold. She didn't know exactly why, but something about him made her feel nervous. It was his eyes. He peeked at her from behind wired glasses, with sharp green eyes that made her feel like he wasn't really smiling. They were so shiny, like an Ekans. His expression changed and his eyes widened, and Maddi flinched.

"She has heterochromia?" The doctor asked, glancing up at her mother. "One eye blue, the other red. Fascinating! Such a rarity in genetic development!"

Maddi swallowed, glancing away from the man. She had a complex about her eyes and didn't like the way he was looking at them.

"Why yes, Maddi's eyes are quite special," her mother said with pride. "Such a special little girl, to be born with such unique characteristics."

Maddi liked hearing her mom tell her she was special. But it didn't make her feel that much better about her appearance.

"Well, I'll leave you three to your tour," Doctor Gleiss said, standing up and turning his gaze from Maddi, allowing her to breathe a little easier. "I still have work to do on that other project of the president's, so if you don't mind…"

"Actually, Gleiss, I was wondering if we could speak for a moment?" Maddi's father asked. "I had some details about Adam I wanted to seek some clarification on."

"Certainly," the doctor nodded, glancing back down at Maddi, "but don't you think that such things should be kept private?"

"We can talk in my office," Maddi's dad said, gesturing the doctor to walk down the hall. Maddi followed after her dad, but was stopped by a tug on her hand from her mom.

"Mom?" Maddi looked up curiously at her mom, wondering why dad was going away.

"Let's let your dad get some work done, okay Maddi?" He mom suggested, smiling sweetly down at her. "I'll take you to the rec room where you can play with the other kids."

"And the pokemon?" Maddi asked.

"Of course, there are lots of pokemon," Maddi's mom said, nodding. She ushered Maddi the other direction, heading back the way they came down the hall. Maddi peaked over her shoulder to see her dad still talking with the scary white-haired doctor. If she had known it would be the last time she would ever see him, she would have pulled her hand free from her mother's grasp and run to him, and then give him a big hug.

Maddi's mother led her to a room where some other kids were. They were playing with pokemon, and Maddi's eyes brightened as she saw the small pokemon. She turned to her mother, looking hopefully at her for permission to go play.

"Go ahead, Maddi," her mom assured her with a smile, letting go of Maddi's hand. "I have a meeting to get to. Your dad and I will come pick you up for lunch!"

"Okay, mom!" Maddi said, nodding. She hugged her mom and the two said goodbye, Maddi turning to go play with the others.

In the end, though, she was only playing with the pokemon. The other kids were all having fun together, but Maddi was too nervous to go play with them. She had more fun with the pokemon, anyway. She couldn't wait to get a pokemon of her own that she could play with. Her parents had given her an egg for her birthday, and she hoped it would hatch soon…

Maddi was lost in the soft fur of the Growlithe she was petting when someone came up to her. She raised her head to see who it was. It was another boy about her age. He had pale brown hair and dark eyes, and he was smiling. "Hello there," he said.

"Hi… Who are you?" Maddi asked timidly, confused why a boy would come speak to her.

"I'm Oscar," he told her. "Oscar Silph."

"Wow, cool! Do you know President Silph? He's my dad's friend!"

It looked like Oscar was trying not to laugh. He nodded his head. When he spoke to her, a chuckle slipped out of his mouth, though, "yes, he's my dad."

"Your dad's the president?!" Maddi gasped. "Cool!"

At only seven years of age she didn't understand what being the son of the president meant, to her it was just cool.

"That Growlithe likes you," Oscar said, sitting down next to her and petting the big dog pokemon nestled up on her legs.

"He's cute," Maddi said, smiling shyly and scratching him behind the ears.

"Growl," the Growlithe yipped, licking her face. Maddi giggled. Even the fire pokemon's tongue was warm!

"You still haven't told me your name, you know," Oscar said, laughing.

"Oh! Sorry," Maddi said, her cheeks flushing in embarrassment. "I'm Madison Whitmore, but you can call me Maddi."

"Hi, Maddi," Oscar said. "So why aren't you playing with the other kids?"

Maddi glanced timidly at the other children playing with the pokemon. She looked down. "It's… kind of embarrassing… I don't know them, so… what if they don't like me?"

She turned to the Growlithe and scratched him behind the ears. "Pokemon… pokemon are always so friendly."

Oscar blinked and stared at her.

"Hey, do you want to come with me?"

Maddi looked up at him.

"What? Huh?"

"I have a friend here who also doesn't play with others," Oscar said. "I was going to go play with her. Want to come with me?"

"Is she here?" Maddi looked at the other kids cautiously.

"No, she didn't come here," Oscar said, shaking her head. "She's in the lab!"

"Are… are you sure it's okay?" Maddi asked. It sounded like he was suggesting they leave the rec room and go exploring the building, but if that's what he wanted then she wasn't sure if she should. "I mean… my mom is coming to get me for lunch soon…"

"It'll be fine," Oscar grinned. "She's really cool, and she doesn't have many friends either. And we'll be fine, I go hang out with her all the time. Besides, I'm the son of the president," he boasted, "there's no problem with us wandering around."

Maddi considered what he was saying for a second. Playing with the pokemon was fun, but the way he was talking made it seem like they would be going on an adventure. But on the other hand, her mom had told her to stay put, right? Then she thought of her older sister, Melicent, who was always doing stuff her parents didn't really approve of. Her sister was so cool, she wanted to be just like her. Melicent wouldn't have stayed put just because their mom told her to. Melicent would go explore with Oscar and meet his friend.

"We can even bring Growlithe with us," Oscar suggested. "He's a really loyal little guy, he'll keep us safe! Not that there's anything that would really be dangerous for us, heh!"

Maddi glanced down at the pokemon in her lap, his big eyes staring back at her. That was what finally convinced her it was okay to go with him. As long as she could keep playing with Growlithe, right? Then everything would be fine, it sounded like it was going to be fun. Her mom would be okay with it, right? Melicent got to do what she wanted, so why couldn't Maddi?

"Okay…" Maddi timidly replied. "I'll go…"

"Great!" Oscar said, smiling. He stood up and held out his hand to Maddi. Maddi took it and he helped her up. The two kids headed towards the door, the Growlithe falling after them. Maddi gulped. She hadn't done bad things before, but following Oscar out of the rec room felt really bad. Her heart was pounding in her chest, and a smile was tugging at her lips. Playing with pokemon was fun, but rebelling like this was fun, too. No wonder Melicent did it!

"We're here!" Oscar said, stopping in front of a large reinforced door. They had taken the elevator down to the basement, but in spite of the lack of windows Maddi couldn't really tell, it was just as well-lit as the upper floors. Oscar took a key card out of his pocket and slid it through a panel on the wall, a clicking sound coming out of the door. Oscar reached up and pulled the door open, just enough for the two kids and the dog pokemon to slip through.

Maddi followed Oscar into the room, looking at it in surprise. There were long wires and cables trailing the ground, and electronics filling the walls. It looked like a mad scientist's lab, there were even large tubes running from floor to ceiling filled with suspicious liquids.

Maddi was quickly wondering if this was a mistake. She shouldn't have come, should she have? This room was just… no.

She was so busy looking around that she wasn't paying attention to where she was going. She tripped over something and fell on her face, surprised.

"You okay?" Oscar asked, looking back at her over his shoulder. Maddi stood up and brushed off her dress, nodding.

"Yeah, I just tripped over a wire… or… something…" Maddi looked down at what she had stumbled over. It was a human arm. Her face went pale and she screamed in fear, falling on her butt and scurrying backwards, bumping into one of the tanks. She clenched her eyes shut tightly and began shaking, still wailing.

"Maddi, Maddi, it's fine," Oscar assured her. She cracked her eye open and saw him kneel down and pick up the arm. She gulped and clenched her eyes tightly shut again.

"That's an arm! It's an arm!" Maddi cried.

"It's not real," Oscar said.

"…Huh?" Maddi opened her eyes again. She took a closer look at the arm. He was right. It looked real, but she could see wires coming out of the end. "What… what is it?" She asked.

"It's one of my dad's inventions, just a spare," Oscar said. "I don't understand it that well myself, but it's pretty cool, huh?"

Now that Maddi knew that it wasn't real, she had to admit that yes, it was cool. She nodded her head and scooched over, taking a closer look.

"Come on," Oscar said, tossing the arm aside. "Let's go!"

Oscar took helped Maddi up and the two walked further into the strange lab, the faithful Growlithe walking loyally at their side.

"Hey, Misato, are you here?" Oscar called out.

"Affirmative."

A soft voice caught Maddi by surprise. She whirled around to see a small girl sitting on a table in the corner, dressed in a small white dress. It kind of looked like the kind that people wore in hospitals, Maddi recognized.

The girl had hair the color of the sky, falling down past her thin shoulders. It highlighted her pale skin, making it shine in the dim light. The small girl was about their age, but to Maddi she looked more like a doll. There was something strange about her. It was her eyes. They were a deep gold, but they weren't looking at Maddi, not really. She didn't see anything in them.

"This is my friend Misato," Oscar said, leading Maddi over to her. "Misato, this is Madison Whitmore."

"I am told that when meeting someone it is customary to greet them with a hello," Misato said, staring at Maddi with those weird eyes of hers. "I am the unit designated as Misato Daini. Spelled with the characters for 'Beauty' and 'Wisdom' as well as 'The Second'."

Maddi didn't understand what this girl was saying, she was using a lot of words that she didn't quite understand.

"Um, hi… I'm Maddi…" Maddi held out her hand to the girl. The girl continued to look down at her, she didn't even take the hand Maddi was extending. She wasn't moving at all.

"Misato, aren't you going to shake her hand?" Oscar asked, confused.

"I do not understand what that means," she replied, turning to look down at him. Oscar sighed.

"When someone sticks their hand out like that, you're supposed to do this," Oscar said. He took Maddi's hand and shook it up and down in an exaggerated manner, so Misato could see what to do. The girl stared at the two of them with a completely serious expression on her face, much to Maddi's embarrassment.

"See? That's what you're supposed to do," Oscar said, turning back to Misato.

"Is that another example of a customary human greeting?" The odd girl asked. "I am supposed to move the hand of another up and down when it is extended to me?"

"Only if they want you to shake hands," Oscar said, nodding.

"How do I know when they want to shake hands?"

"Well, it's complicated…"

As a boy not much older than Maddi explained to the other girl how shaking hands worked, Maddi stared at her with a stunned expression on her face. Oscar had said she was weird, but… she really was weird.

So what comes next for a young Maddi? It's going to be very interesting, that's for sure.