AUTHOR'S NOTE: Alright, here's the next chapter! I feel I should apologize for how slowly the story is moving, hopefully it'll pick up after this! Once again, I do not own Pokémon, Nintendo does, and if you think of anything that might help the story or my writing, feel free to submit a review! Or, if, y'know, you think I should be fed to a pack of wild dogs.
Alright, to be perfectly honest, the relief that I felt after reading the article on the paper was something that I really needed, but it didn't stop me from feeling somewhat glum for the next couple days, and especially that night, on the way back home in Mrs. Sanders car, this time for real in absolute silence, and I spent it staring out the window, for no particular reason, actually, as it was dark outside, and I could see very little by the lights on the road, though I managed to spot a grand total of one Hoothoot on a tree limb. Finally, the car comes to a halt outside the house next to mine, and all that's left to deal with are the typical formalities.
"Would you like anything else tonight, Victor?" she asks me, already assuming I'm going to be depending on her for the next few days. Which is true.
"No, thank you very much," I decline; flashing a quick smile that I hope isn't concealed by the darkness. Bidding her farewell, I reach into my pocket for my keys and calmly make my way home, with all the papers I've got tucked under one arm as I fiddle around with the keys in my pocket and look at the moonlit ocean. During the brief walk, I mentally go over my schedule for the next week, and it's relatively simple. Study more than usual for a few days, and then next Saturday, get a ride to Jubilife and do my best. Depending on the amount of participants, it should take them a few days to correct the exams, but it is taking place at right the opposite time of the year of when most people start their Journey to keep the number at a minimum.
I open the door with an exaggerated turn of the key, and try various times, eventually succeeding, to lock it behind me in the darkness before I hit the light switch right next to the entrance. The house is intact, and I've got no clue why I expected something different. There's the sofa, the TV, a few pictures here and there of Mom, me, or both of us, or simply landscapes and replicas of more famous painters and artists.
It's empty, though. Void of any other person than me. I haven't been alone in the house for a full night since I was seven, and I can't remember the cause, but ever since the Ray was detected in Mom's body, she didn't think it'd be safe for her to spend a long time outside at night, due to some superstition of hers that she felt even worse outside when the sun was down. Leaving the paper on the coffee table in front of the sofa, with the picture of the skyscraper that the exam will take place in, facing up to give myself a reminder every time I pass by here. As I set it down, I notice a last paragraph I'd missed on the subject.
"The exam will take place at 4:00 PM in the fifteenth floor of the skyscraper located in Grace Street, Jubilife City. The maximum amount of applicants is fifty, and only the first to arrive may take the exam. You may not apply for the test unless you prove you have graduated a course at an official Trainer's School, so please take your Trainer's School Graduate card with you. If you get there late, though, you'll have to wait for another time to take the exam. Punctuality is important for Pokémon Trainers!"
All in all, I see that as a good thing. So long as I make sure I'm perfectly on time, I've at least got an assured chance at winning.
Exhausted, I trudge up the stairs, painfully aware for the first time of their creaking, which resonates through the vacant place. The day's length and emotions hit me all at once like a wave crashing down, and not the size we usually get on Sandgem's beach, and I feel only half-conscious already as I go through the motions of brushing my teeth and changing out of my clothes. Tomorrow, for sure, I'll have to start reading up again and make sure that my knowledge is up to snuff.
The night passes swiftly in a dreamless sleep, and before I know it, faint daylight is filtering in through my almost-but-not-entirely closed blinds. I blink lazily a few times, fighting back both the luminous invasion and the returning creep of sleep over me. As it is, though, I simply spend the next ten minutes in bed calmly before I can finally muster up the energy to stretch my arm out and reach for my watch.
"Half past nine," I mumble groggily to myself as I return it to its place, and stare intently at it for a few seconds, appearing intensely concentrated when in reality, the only thoughts running through my head are 'Man, I really don't feel like getting up now,' and then 'What are you gonna do in the meantime?'
Can't argue with my own logic, so in a few minutes, I've managed to haul myself off my bed, shower and have breakfast. I nearly make both the mistake of warning Mom I'm going to use the shower and of preparing a second breakfast, for her. It gets me down for the meal, and it's needless to say it goes in silence, save for the scraping of my fork, which leads me to thinking having a Pokémon here would make this all a lot less lonely, which brings me back to the subject of the upcoming exam.
After breakfast, I try to study on the couch with the article in front of me for motivation, and make it through around seventy per cent of my textbooks, all the easy ones, in just an hour. It's no surprise that even I know by heart at this point the eighteen types of Pokémon, which can be more effective against which, known evolution methods, and other things I cover really quickly, like refreshing myself on the Sinnoh Region's geography before reading the paragraph below that states that most trainers get some sort of a Town Map for their journey anyway.
The rest of the morning, I spend on my laptop, looking at the list of Abilities that Pokémon are known to have in one of my final grade's books, and seeing their effects live on videos online. I remember having had quite a rough time in that exam, as there was just so much content to remember, and it was around the time my mother started showing signs of weakness, so I had that on my mind as well.
That lasts a few more hours, and I feel pretty satisfied with myself, all things considered. The whole episode yesterday is concerning me a whole lot less than I thought it would, and I've practically convinced myself that what I'm doing is the first step towards getting my Mom back healthy. And I always thought I was a negative thinker. Finally, when I can hardly hear a Charizard roaring on the screen over the sounds of my stomach doing the same here, I grab my keys again, and head out, walking the short distance to Mrs. Sanders' house and ringing the doorbell, which is answered before I even have time to remember I haven't combed my hair today at all, and results in her catching me frantically trying to fix it.
"Good day, Victor. Come on in!" She says, without asking any questions, stepping aside with a chipper smile to let me see into her house.
Their residence is much like mine, only decorated instead with pictures of her, her husband, and their son Kyle. A pleasant aroma lingers in the air, coming from the small kitchen connected to the living room, and I would soon find out that despite not having had any way to know for certain I was going to rely on her for meals, she'd made more than enough for the two of us anyway.
This became a routine, and for the next few days I followed that schedule, more or less. Study in the mornings, lunch and dinner at Mrs. Sanders' place, and in the afternoon, a bit of relaxation or workouts, which would be nothing serious, like a stroll halfway up Route 202. Since I never really went anywhere nor had to do much physical ability in my life, I'm in a good enough physical condition, and I don't mean my looks, which are average at best, but that I probably can't walk nearly as much as I hear Pokémon Trainers usually do, not to mention run and jump, and generally do most of the things that cause many mothers to say that Pokémon Journeys are too dangerous for ten year olds.
Today, though, after an unbelievably good dish of pasta, courtesy of Mrs. Sanders, and the longest digestive period I can remember following it, the mere idea of going up the hills and then down the ledges of the Route to the north appalls me, so I decide to take it easy today, and go on a brisk walk to Lake Verity once again. It must be at least seven months since the last time I was there, and along the way, I might even, with immense luck, meet a more experienced Trainer, though I say luck because there's no real reason for an experienced trainer to even be in Route 201. I've learnt how to stay clear of most wild Pokémon, however, and should be fine on my way to the lake.
Route 201 is the kind of place that you'd feel perfectly safe in nonetheless just by looking around you. Green grass that's miraculously and gratuitously free of any Bug-type Pokémon crawling around within it, the chirping of Starly on tree branches and soaring overhead, and, well, yeah, the occasional Bidoof, but they're harmless in pretty much every single way. I groan as I jump down a particularly irritating ledge that's the main reason why I don't like heading to Lake Verity, as I find it rougher than the ones on Route 202, but it lets me completely avoid an area where I can already see a few wild Pokémon, so it's worth the inconvenience.
It takes a few minutes of strolling down the road to the west, but I can finally start to see the path leading towards Lake Verity, and, to my left, there is another one which leads to Twinleaf Town. It's a curious place. I've been there once or twice myself, and it has this homely ambient, even though my hometown is Sandgem, something about its quiet atmosphere and the constant smell of fresh leaves transmits the feeling. Additionally, it's located right next to the tranquil, as previously stated, Route 201, and Lake Verity, being even closer than Sandgem Town. All in all, it must be a fantastic place to retire.
However, it's not my destination right now, so I follow the other path for another few minutes, having to slide down yet another ledge and nearly stumbling on my face as I do, and then, the actual sign of entrance to Lake Verity comes into view, which lets me know I'm currently in what can be considered the lakefront. Walking closer, I take a moment to read the sign aloud to myself, one that I've read many times before.
"Lake Verity Ahead:
According to legend, the lake is home to the Pokémon said to be "The being of Emotion". It is because of this Pokémon that people can experience sorrow and joy."
I don't know how I feel about that legend, truth be told. There are not many places where I can see a Pokémon which is that unique living in the Lake, so it must be some sort of aquatic Pokémon that lives in the water itself, though so far I've only seen Magikarp and Psyduck in the water. The latter are especially entertaining to watch, holding their head due to mysterious headaches and generally living life without a clue of what's going on.
Today, it's the first Pokémon I see as I reach the actual Lake, a mass of sparkling water in a near-perfect circular shape surrounded by trees on every side save, of course, the path that I just came through, which itself is just cutting through the forest, so you can make of that what you will. The unmistakable yellow figure of the Duck Pokémon is a short distance away, searching desperately for something in a patch of tall grass right by the water. If I didn't know any better, I'd say it looks even more confused than usual, and just a tad angry, so I make a point out of moving further away, yet remaining close enough to observe.
The Psyduck doesn't do very much more, though a few others join its search in the grass, around a few of the trees bordering the lake, and, after they all seem convinced that whatever they're searching for isn't there, they all simultaneously hold their head in their hands and make for the water, swimming back to wherever all the rest are, I presume.
It's only when they leave that I realize that I'd actually been somewhat nervous about them possibly focusing their anger on me, and I let myself relax some more, sitting down near the water's edge and winding down from the trek to get here. Maybe it's the supposed presence of that 'being of Emotion', but I feel myself get calm very quickly, and before I even know it, I fall asleep on the lush grass of the waterfront…
Only to be rudely awoken an hour or two later. I quickly jerk my left hand towards the corresponding pant pocket; I could swear I just felt something in there. When I find nothing, though, my eyes dart open. The first thing I see is the blue sky above me, with a few clouds and orange hints. I sit up, and, true to my suspicions, the sun's beginning to sink under the tree line, sending out the last few warm rays it can. But none of that explains the strange sensation I just had.
"What the…?" I mutter when, turning my head to look to the left, all I see is a few bushes at the very edge of the forest shaking with some creature's, probably a Bidoof's, movement, and then, there's nothing.
Either way, I figure it's time for me to head on back home for the afternoon, so I stand up completely off the ground. Much as I'd like to witness the sunset here at the Lake, must be a lovely sight, I can't take the risk of being around Route 201 at night without anyone else or a Pokémon, so I turn back and head through the forest path, spend five minutes climbing up one of the ledges on the Lakeshore (and falling down it twice, resulting in a hurting foot), then half-walk, half-limp back to Sandgem Town following the usual path.
Friday morning, I already feel a lot more confident about taking the test, and there's not more at my disposal that I could do to prepare for it. On the bright side…
At around noon, I walk outside and simply stand there near the road, looking up at the cloudless blue sky with a small smile. Five minutes later, I'm in the same place, only without the smile and instead looking down at my watch.
"Man, where is he?" I ask nobody in particular, and my question is soon answered by a figure, initially in the distance, rushing towards me, or, more like, towards the neighboring house.
After two more minutes, a Staraptor finally touches down a few feet away from me with a relieved squawk and a stretch of its enormous wings; it must've had a long flight.
"Nicely done, Max," says the boy on the Pokémon's back as he clambers down onto the ground, taking an unsteady step before pulling out a Pokéball and recalling his friend. The Staraptor's body turns a misty red, and quickly loses its shape as it returns to the capsule.
"Well then," he says, turning around with a large, goofy smile on his face. "It looks like you're not getting any prettier, Victor."
"Jealousy is a bad thing, y'know Kyle?" I answer, and we both take a step forward to exchange a brief, tight handshake.
I've mentioned Kyle quite a lot, right? There's not much to say about him. Growing up, he was my neighbor and best friend, and although he didn't spend as much time with his textbooks, he loved, and still does, Pokémon every bit as much. Since he left on his Pokémon Journey, we've had much less communication, but we remain friendly. The truth is that the Journey's done him good, he's perfectly fit from travelling all around Sinnoh, and he's just a little less dumb than when he left. I've yet to see it for myself, but he likes to harp on and on about how good he is at Pokémon battles, and though I take it with a grain of salt, I'm sure that there's a degree of truth to that statement.
"Hey, dude, I heard about what happened to Ce-… to your mother. I'm sorry," he says in a lower tone after the introductions are over and we're simply headed towards the beach for…well, I've got no idea what for.
"It's alright; I've had plenty of time to prepare for that, anyhow." Though it's still a subject I'd rather avoid, so I make sure to change it with a well-placed "So how come it took you so long to get here?"
"Oh, man, you've no idea. I got the call from Mom yesterday, you know? I was in Pastoria City, but I couldn't make it here because I had to head to Sunyshore for a trade I'd scheduled with another Trainer, and after that I had to rush back here. Poor Max's had a hard time recently," he explains, and I do my best to keep up with the geography, nodding during his explanation.
"So you got a new Pokémon then?" Kyle beams in response to my question, and enthusiastically pulls out a Great Ball.
"I was thinking that it would be a good time to start getting friendly with her, too, show her where I come from an' all that," he mutters as we finally reach the edge of the water of Sandgem Beach.
"I traded away Caleb..." When he notices my confused look, he fills me in "He was a Floatzel that I'd met only recently, but…" he pauses, frowning and staring at the capsule in his hand. "It was my first time losing a Pokémon in any way, and I'm not sure how I should feel."
Before I can say anything to try and console him or pursue the matter of Caleb any further, he shrugs off the matter and cheerfully proclaims "Anyway! Come on out," he struggles for a moment to remember something, then continues as a red beam shoots out from the Great Ball, "Mienfoo!"
I blink, surprised, and watch the red mist closely as it begins to take form. Mienfoo is the name of a species native to the Unova region, that up to now I've only seen online, and not actually physically.
On the sand before us, the Pokémon finally takes shape. Red and yellow fur, whiskers, that's definitely the Fighting-type Martial Arts Pokémon. I smile subconsciously when I see it…her, apparently, look around curiously at its surroundings, taking in the sea with a wondrous expression, and she seems to take a while to remember her manners and bows deeply to both me and her trainer. Then, she 'speaks', which is to say, I hear a few squeaks and other noises, and can't even form a basic idea of what she means from it, while Kyle, being her Trainer, understands what she's trying to say to near perfection.
It turns out that her name is Lin, and she does indeed come from the Unova region, from what Kyle's relaying to me. We spend the rest of the morning and a while after lunch, which we have at his house, (complete with embarrassing childhood stories from his mother) on the beach, with the two of them training and learning new moves and techniques, and generally just coming together. It's an endearing sight in its own way, and something to do when I look up from the notes I'm going over today.
We then spend an entire hour talking about nothing in particular, mostly about the stuff in the textbooks and how stupid it seems to a Trainer like him with a few years of experience under his belt and, heck, even to me, and he assures me over and over that I've got the test in the bag.
"And hey, who knows? Maybe one day you and me can finally have a Pokémon battle! Even if we both know I'll win!"
"Oh, yeah?" I retort, chuckling and shoving him lightly. "We'll just have to see about that. So, hey, when were you leaving?"
He checks his Pokétch, also known as every Trainer's best friend (alongside Pokémon Centers, Repels, and Growlithe), and his eyes widen as he seems to remember something. I don't have one myself, since I'm not a Trainer, so their usefulness would be wasted on me.
"Uh…I should get going soon, actually! Shoot, I'd scheduled a rematch with someone near Floaroma Town tomorrow, and I know that if I stay here tonight, Mom's going to make me stay another three! Just stay right there!" He commands me, and he sprints towards his house.
Because I can, I decide to follow after him at a brisk pace so he doesn't have to run all the way back to the beach, the poor soul, and I've yet to cross the road to get to his house and I can already hear his mother shouting something at him in the yelling room. Outside is Max, his Staraptor, and it seems impatient, though I can't imagine it is craving another long flight so much as it wants to get away from the noise.
"-but you actually came all the way over here and your friend Victor's going to finally become a Pokémon Trainer and he's got nobody else and…" it lasts for a minute after that. Then Kyle comes back out, appearing a little shaken up, though he gives me a triumphant smile and a thumbs up.
"That wasn't so hard," he comments, and I chuckle when Max glares at him and screeches dismissively, it's easy to get what he means. Kyle glowers at him then looks back to me. "It was good to see you again, though. Honestly, I think a Pokémon Journey is just what you need. You'll find friendship, adventure, and all that stuff. But most importantly…" he takes a deep breath.
"Money." I cut off his phrase, and the breath is let out in a chuckle with an embarrassing snort, then he instantly gets serious again when he remembers why I want it.
"Well, yeah, that too, if you save it up. Anyhow, you've got my number, right? Let me know how that thing goes."
"Will do!" I promise, and he nods, patting my shoulder before he gets back onto Max, and, with a squawk that screams 'Finally!' the two of them take off.
Thanks to Mrs. Sanders, I arrive at the only skyscraper on Grace Street at 3:30 PM, half an hour earlier than the test was scheduled to begin. The receptionist looks somewhat surprised to see me, but quickly recomposes herself.
"Ah, are you here for the event hosted by the Pokémon League?" She asks, reaching out with her right hand for a stack of papers.
"Uh, yeah, I am. Unless all the spots are taken?" I wince inwardly when I consider the possibility, and can't hide a sigh of relief when she shakes her head.
"No, it seems you're in luck." She smiles and takes one of the sheets from the pile, handing it to me. "Fifteenth floor, as I'm sure you know. You have to fill that in and hand it in along with your test when you're done. If you have more questions, I'm afraid that I can't answer them; you'll have to ask whoever's in charge up there. Best of luck, champ-to-be!"
"Thanks, you too!" I exclaim, noticing that she looks at me funny for some reason as I walk away and towards the elevator on the other side of the ground floor. I'm sure she gives the same encouragement to everyone, but I'm not going to complain, I appreciate it.
As I ride the elevator up, I feel myself getting nervous, as you would before a test, and more so when I look over the sheet, it has a really official look to it, obviously. At least it asks for things that are easy to answer, such as name, address, age, and that sort of thing. I put my hand in my right pocket to make sure that my Trainer School Graduate card is there, as was requested in the newspaper article.
When the doors finally swoosh open, I can only see a long row of seats lining the wall of a hallway, which looks uncomfortably like a hospital, with two doors at the middle of the rows of seats. A fair amount of them are occupied, and-
My field of vision is blocked by a middle aged man with a receding hairline of graying hair, a firm jaw, and piercing hazel eyes. His stare can only really be defined otherwise as strict, and I freeze in place. He cocks an eyebrow, but, unlike the receptionist, he doesn't stop himself from saying, in a raspy voice with a bit of an accent, "Yer a little old for not having started yer Journey yet, son." And that's it, as far as greetings go. He holds his hand out expectantly, and my intuition tells me that he wants to see my card.
Apparently, I can't even reach into my pocket to pull it out without messing up. I grab it and begin to take it out, but it slips from my, admittedly sweaty due to nerves, grip, and falls to the floor of the elevator. I get on my knees and mutter inanely to myself as I fumble to pick it up and show it to the man from the floor. He pinches the bridge of his nose between his index and thumb, sighing, but he steps aside to let me into the hallway.
Not two seconds after I step out of the elevator, it closes behind us and I hear it go back down. The man, now with his arms crossed, clears his throat to get my attention.
"Ya see all those kids sat down, son? Ya hafta know only two things about 'em: one, you should go and join 'em in the chairs, and two, the oldest of 'em can't be more'n thirteen and all of 'em look more capable t'me than ya t'be a Trainer."
I hold my tongue, both because he might be the one doing the correcting and I don't want to get on his wrong side, and partly because he's got a point, I haven't really made the best impression. I'm more than glad to turn away from him, though, and while he returns to his job vigilantly staring at the elevator doors, I scan the rows for a seat that's free, and it's not difficult to find one, there must be more than fifty here, plus all of the kids are sat mostly together. Just like the man had said, most of them looked to be ten, eleven, perhaps a bit more. Nobody my age at all here, so it's only fitting that I take a seat that has nobody else in the three seats on either side of it. The kids don't spare me a second glance, either, with half of them, the ones that must've been here the longest, having their noses buried in books, and the others filling in the same sheet that I've been given on their laps, using their books for writing support.
I haven't brought any with me, which, looking back, was a stupid move, but I just use the chair to my right and set the paper on there, taking a pen out of my left pocket (this time without any embarrassing complications) and fill in the sheet with my personal information. Once that's done I take a deep breath and lean back, staring up at the ceiling of the hallway and going over random information in my mind to prove to myself that I've prepared as best I can, but I just can't manage to actually feel that way. Great, I think the man had a point. Look at me, being intimidated by all these ten-year-olds fresh out of the Trainer's School.
I am knocked out of my 'meditation' by the arrival of another boy. I hear him before I see him, shouting before the doors of the elevator are even entirely open.
"BOO-YA! I'M NUMBER FIFTY! JUST IN TIME, LADIES AND-" I hear a light smack, and then the same voice hissing "Ow, what the…?"
Along with everyone else in the hallways, I stare towards the elevator now to get an idea of what's going on. Some of them have irritated expressions, but I'm on the other gang, being more curious than annoyed.
Getting a harsh talking-to by the man at the door is another boy, and, judging by his looks, he could be my age, or maybe a little younger, definitely not older. He mutters a quick word that looks like 'Sorry' and shows the man his card before he's allowed into the room. He begins to approach the seats by my own…then stumbles as another kid tries to trip him, but catches himself and sits down on my left without further incident.
"What's the matter with Gramps over there?" He complains to nobody in particular as he lets himself fall onto his seat.
"I've no idea; maybe he isn't used to people screaming whenever they enter a room?" Suggests a small girl sitting in the row across from us, her voice oozing with irritation.
He sticks his tongue out at her and looks at me with an innocent expression, throwing his hands up in the air with theatrical frustration and grins, then pulls out a pen (with the non-writing tip bitten on more than a bit) and begins to fill in his form, apparently the last in the stack I saw earlier. I note that he writes his name in as Justin Thyme, which might explain why he said what he did. To act as I'm not deliberately staring, though, I lift up my left hand and check my watch. 3:59 PM, no, wait…
4:00 PM. The door on our wall opens and a large woman steps out. She's wearing a hot pink dress with matching makeup that makes staring directly at her for too long similar to looking at the sun.
The man by the elevator clears his throat loudly again, to bring all attention to him, and I'm more than glad to peel my eyes off the bright clothes of the woman.
"Alright, all you youngins listen ta me fer a minute. M'name's Clyde, and this here is Gemma," he waves an arm to the woman, who nods and smiles, showing a row of perfectly, and flashy, white teeth. Next to me, I hear Justin mutter "Good heavens…"
The ma… Clyde, continues. "We're gonna be supervising ye during the test, as well as correctin' it later on. Half of ye will go with Gemma, the other half with me. If there are any questions, ya ask 'em durin' the exam, just hold yer hand up. The time limit is two hours."
And with that, we're divided. Justin and I both go with Clyde's group of twenty-five, while the other half follow Gemma back into the room she came from.
Past the door lies a room which makes me forget we're in an office building and makes me think I'm back at the Trainer's School. It looks just like a classroom, with twenty five desks ordered neatly, five rows of five, and a larger one at the front of the room. There's a blackboard on the far wall that reads 'Time limit: Two hours'.
I finally get separated from Justin as we all grab a seat, and the room is covered by an absolute silence once the scraping of chairs on the floor dies down. The ambient is incredibly tense, and all the mental preparation I did before the exam seems to fly out the window…I should've used the restroom back at home. Already I feel a few things escaping my mind…what happened to Pokémon with the ability Guts, again?
We all leave our sheets facing upward, and one by one, Clyde hands out a stack of more papers, face-down. Nobody dares turn them face-up until he says so. Once everybody has theirs, he sits down at the desk in front and smiles.
"Easy, everyone. Y'all have more'n enough time for this. Any questions, just raise yer hand. G'luck. Time starts…NOW!"
Frantically, there's a burst of noise as everyone turns their exam around and scribbles down their name, and so it begins.
Overall, the questions begin being simple. What types of Pokémon there are, filling in certain scenarios with what would happen (eg: You are facing a Mightyena. Which Pokémon do you send out, Kadabra, or Machoke?) and relating an item to the effect it has. I still miss a few, having the effect of the Dire Hit on the tip of my tongue, but not remembering it exactly.
I can't help but grin when I notice the question "Apart from using the move Attract, how else can an opponent become infatuated during a battle?" As I write down the answer (having the ability Cute Charm), I mutter "Thanks, Maria." Amazingly, Clyde looks up from his book and gives me a death glare, and I make a note to shut up for the rest of the exam.
Two hours later, Clyde stands up from his chair and clears his throat yet again; it seems to be a habit of his.
"Right, everyone, put yer pens down, time's up. I'll be takin' the exams now, you'll have yer results tomorrow or the day after."
Speaking of habits, Justin spring up from his seat as he slams his pen down loudly on the table, causing everyone to look at him with a bewildered expression, myself included, and, for good measure, he yells "JUST IN TIME, LADIES-"
This time, he's cut off by a collective "SHUT UP!" from most other kids and a very red-faced Clyde. Disappointed and pouting, he sinks back down onto his chair. After that, Clyde finally goes around and picks up the papers, along with the sheet we filled in earlier. When he comes to my table, he jerks a thumb towards Justin's general direction.
"I was wrong, kiddo, that boy ain't right. Got a screw loose or somethin'," he whispers.
I just smile uncomfortably and he goes on.
On the ride back, waiting a fifteen minutes after calling Mrs. Sanders the moment I got back to the ground floor, she seems cheerful.
"I've been to the hospital and for now, they say everything is going just fine with your mother. But never mind that. How was the exam?" She asks, and not just out politeness.
"It went quite well, thank you. And thanks for the ride," I add, smiling as I stare out the window and see a Shinx staring wondrously at the cars passing by.
"You don't need to thank me, really. Any kid should be able to go on a Journey, these days, they learn more than in any school…" she looks like she wants to add something more, but stops herself.
"That really depends. At least I'm going to have the League's help starting out." I think of the advertisement, some money, advice, Pokéballs, not a lot more I could ask for.
That night, I fall asleep the moment my head touches the pillow after a fulfilling dinner from Mrs. Sanders. The last thing I say before my eyes shut is "And now…"
"We wait."
END NOTE: I am aware that writing a Pokémon fanfiction in which, two long, boring, badly-written chapters in, the protagonist doesn't have a Pokémon is both a bad idea, and, as I've said before, boring, but I think that I might get onto that next chapter. See you then!