A Caterpie wriggled out of the grass. Adeline began to draw like the wind, capturing the likeness of the Caterpie in a matter of seconds. She pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose in concentration. She sketched the details quickly as well before it scurried away. She then spend a few minutes hardening the lines and drawing in a few minor and memorized details. The finish Caterpie drawing was like a moment captured on paper. She smiled at Cedric, tucking her hair behind her ear.
"It's beautiful." Cedric said. "Your drawing." Adeline smile widened.
"Thanks." Cedric's 15th birthday was a week away.
"You should go." Adeline said. "You don't want to miss your graduation."
"Cedric Waldron is a remarkable student." Dr. Montgomery's voice filled the clearing in front of the school Cedric attended in Violet City. "His academic achievements have far exceeded the expectations of our school, as well as the top of his class. So it is my honour to present Mr. Waldron with his Certificate of Graduation." He offered a rolled-up piece of paper and his hand. Cedric shook it and took the certificate.
"Mr. Waldron now holds the title of 'Pokemon Connoisseur!' Polite applause filled the air. Cedric's mother and Adeline were grinning as the clapped. Then, Montgomery made a big speech about how Cedric was a smart, hard-working young man that everyone loved. How he excelled at everything he put his mind to. Blah blah blah. Having the title of "Pokemon Connoisseur allowed Cedric to be eligible to teach, judge battles, become a Pokémon breeder, maybe one day become a Gym Leader, etc. The whole ceremony felt awkward for him, having the whole town be there. Mrs. Vancouver, Beck's mom, even came up to give Cedric her congratulations. "Beck sent me this." She held out a package. "He said it's for your birthday." Cedric was surprised to get something from Beck, but he opened it. It was a brand new Pokégear. It was half red, half white. It had a flip screen and a built-in Holocaster. "How… how did Beck afford this?" Mrs. Vancouver winked at him. "He's earning quite a bit of money. He sends me part of his winnings and I've got to tell you, I'm loving the extra cash! We were able to redo that bathroom like we wanted. It's so nice!" Cedric and Mrs. Vancouver caught up with each other. Beck had challenged the Elite Four, but lost. "So he got a job that is training his Pokémon at the same time!" Mrs. Vancouver said. "He's going to train until he's ready to challenge them again, then he said he'll go on to the Kanto League!" Cedric felt a twitch of sadness. Did he even miss Cedric? Why would he with all his success. "That sounds great, Mrs. Vancouver." Cedric said with a forced wane smile.
It was Cedric's 15th birthday. He got lots of cards from people around town, saying things like "Good luck on your journey." And "Best wishes to you." He also got many gifts. Most were items that would help him on his journey. It seemed that over the years, he had grown quite popular in the small town of Cherrygrove. His mom gave him a sturdy bag to put all his items and clothes in.
"I know it looks small," she said, "but trust me. It's bigger on the inside." Adeline presented Cedric with a small package. He opened it and, laying inside, was a charm with two chains attracted. It was a small, golden pair of wings shaped like a heart and, around it, was a silver tendril.
"It's a friendship necklace." Adeline said, picking up the charm. "This middle piece…" She popped it out of the silver tendril. "Comes off." She offered her hand. Cedric picked up the silver trinket and examined it.
"Adeline…" It was a gift that spoke deeper than words. He knew Adeline would be there for him in the hard times during their journey. "Thank you." He said with a wide smile.
"So which one do you want?" Cedric asked.
"Cedric." His mom called. "Professor Elm's at the door."