CHEREN
Accumula town was just as I remembered it. Inside a shallow valley and surrounded by trees. Touya and Touko used to attend the public school here before they transferred to Liberty on scholarships. I decided I would check out the different schools as I traveled around Unova, it would be interesting to see how they vary across the region.
We walked down the main road of the town together. Nobody from Nuvema could say they had never been to Accumula, it offered different services not available at our hometown.
Before long, we found ourselves in front of the local Pokecenter. It was only a few years back they started to incorporate the pokemarts inside the centers.
Inside we were greeted by the security guard assigned to the center. The lobby was small, and only a few trainers could be seen sitting at the waiting area. Chatter could be coming from a deeper area of the center, and a Nurse Joy was standing at the counter straight across from the entrance. Touya told us he had promised to call the Professor, and we agreed to meet up at the town square in an hour. Bel and I handed over our pokemon to be inspected.
We decided to not waste time and go have lunch at the canteen connected to the center. It would be a pleasant change from the five days of surviving on travel rations across Route 1.
The canteen was long square room consisting of a long buffet with a few other visitors checking out the dishes served today. Tables were arranged in long lines across the room, chairs on both sides, with a few groups sitting together and some alone in corners or at the few smaller round tables. In the far corners there were some bigger sofas with coffee tables and a big screen broadcasting the League's tv station. It was showing a match between Gym Leader Elesa and a challenger. I remember in my junior year the League network hit a viewer record when the mock battle between Elite Four Caitlin and Gym Leader Elesa got live broadcasted. It was rare such prominent figures battled each other due to the risk of having their team crippled and thus their position incapacitated in the process.
We walked up to the cashier point and scanned our VS Recorder. The national sponsorship covered the League subscription, so most of the services provided would be free of charge. A plate was handed to us each, and we got informed to come exchange it for a clean one, in case we wanted seconds.
After filling our plates, we sat down across from each other at a round table. For a while we sat there eating in silence. The food was alright, nothing to write home about.
"Come on, it's just the leftovers on my plate, it's not like I'm stuffing my pockets with the cashier money."
"I'm sorry, sir, but your subscription does not include bringing food outside the canteen." One of the service workers at the center answered. A trainer had taken the leftovers from his plate and stored them in a container.
The trainer across the hall raised his voice. "So what? It was already on my plate. I can either bring it or it'll just be thrown in the trash."
"I can offer you to upgrade your League subscription, or I'll have to fine you."
Bel's attention had also been caught by the squabble, then turned to me. She lowered her voice. "Isn't that a bit brutal? If it's just gonna be thrown out otherwise."
I shrugged. "It's the rules. He should've known what his subscription entitles him to by now." I stood up from my chair. "I'm going to get another plate to bring with me to Route 2. I don't plan on staying in Accumula for the night."
"Aww, come on Cheren. We finally have access to a shower and bed."
That was a tempting. I would be a fool if I liked sleeping on the ground or showering in cold water, but reality was, if I wanted to beat Touya, I would have to stay a step ahead. "Suit yourself." With that, I went up to exchange my plate.