"You know you have to leave eventually, right?"

These are the words that jolt Erik awake, his eyes opening to stuffy darkness as he struggles to push his Gligar off of his head. Finally managing to shove her to the side, he sits up to see who had spoken.

It's his mother, standing at the foot of his bed.

"Mom- what…" She's never woken him up like this. But the stern look creasing her face tells that he's on for quite the talking to.

"Young man." Erik's mother raises a finger, pointing at him accusingly. "As of today, you have been freeloading in this house for three whole years."

"You-"

"Yes! Of course I kept track. At least after a while. And today you are leaving. It was great when you came back the first time, after leaving with a few of your friends… wasn't even a day before you showed up at the door with a Gligar and a nasty sting on your forehead." Her gaze rests on said Gligar for a moment, still resting peacefully despite being shoved away from Erik's face. "I appreciated it then, I did… I got more time with you and your new friend! But-"

Her voice catches in her throat. It's hard doing this, even after so long. "It's been three whole years."

Erik crosses his arms, fixing his mother with a tired glare. "You know you said-"

"That you needed a plan? Yes!" He doesn't get to finish his sentence as his mother shakes her finger. "But if I let you stay here, you'll never make one. You know that just as well as I do, mister."

"... Hm." She has him there. He's a practiced expert at putting things off, and he's honestly a bit surprised that it took this long to catch up with him.

"I just want you to make something of yourself. Your friends are off making the news with their attempts at challenging the Champion!"

Erik snatches his phone from the nightstand next to his bed while keeping full eye contact with his mom. Pressing the power button on the side, he glances down at it for a moment. No missed calls. No texts. No messages. "They're not really my friends anymore, mom. They forgot about me."

"Well- you get my point. Here." She reaches down and grabs a brand new backpack, tag still attached, from the floor next to her and tosses it onto Erik's bed. "Your old bag is collecting dust in the basement, so I saw fit to at least order you a new one. Your Town Map is already in there."

Erik resists the urge to roll his eyes. Even the first time around, his mom had pressured him to use her old Town Map from when she'd gone on her own journey, even though his phone had a better map by a long shot.

Still, the bag itself is nice. A mostly black daypack with red accents and plenty of pockets. Perfect for long hikes across Unova.

Which is what he'll be doing now, apparently. "How long do I have?"

"Three hours. I'll be nice. Pack some stuff, make some lunch, just- please. This is for your own good." She gives Erik a pointed look. "You need to do something with yourself. And poor Giggle!"

"Mom-"

"She's been cooped up in this house for too long!"

"But she-"

"You caught her. She deserves a journey."

"... She likes it here. I think." Erik glances to the side as Gig lets out a particularly loud snore. She's always been a heavy sleeper. And- well- just heavy in a lot of ways.

"You know as well as I do that she'd rather be outdoors. Or- well- flying around in a place that isn't this."

"You want her to stop tearing up the curtains." Erik smirks a bit.

"Not the point. Now get up! Your three hours start now." With that, she steps out of the room. As soon as the door is closed, Erik flops back down onto his pillow.

"Ugh…" He hates this. He knew it was coming, of course, but that doesn't change his outlook on it.

He stares up at the ceiling as Giggle- well, Gig, as he tries to call her, starts to stir. She pushes herself up into a sitting position, blearily looking over at Erik as he gives her a small smile.

"Hey, bud." At least he'll have her to go through this with. He'd never go anywhere without her, and despite the way they met, she seems to share that sentiment.

Maybe she still feels bad about stinging me, he ponders. It was so long ago. I've forgiven her.

He'll think about it later. Because right now, as he swings his legs out of bed to sit up, he has stuff to do.

He grabs his new backpack just in time to feel a set of claws drape themselves over each of his shoulders, Gig's face appearing over his left one as she gives him a look of concern.

She warbles at him inquisitively. He's never up this early! Something must be amiss.

"Yeah. Hi." Erik reaches back to scratch Gig's head a bit. "Mom says we're leaving today, so I gotta get ready."

Gig tilts her head, moving to sit down next to Erik. Her legs swing back and forth over the side of the bed as she thinks over his words. Leaving? Why would they leave the comfy box that's kept her safe for so long?

"I gotta go on a real journey like my friends. Make something of myself or whatever." He reaches for a shirt that had fallen on the floor next to his bed, an only slightly dirty graphic T-shirt with the smiling face of a Gengar on it. After slipping it on over his head, he stands up and stretches his arms to the ceiling. He can quite clearly feel a few vertebrae popping in his back as he lets out a yawn.

Yep. It's definitely too early to essentially change how he's going to be living his life.

Packing is easy enough, though. Some crumpled shirts and hastily folded pants fall into Erik's new backpack first, all caught by Gig as he tosses them from his dresser onto his bed. "Thanks, Gig. Make sure they're pressed flat to the bottom…" A sigh escapes his lips. "I have a lot more than just clothes to fit in that bag."

Gig nods sharply, giving an excited chirp as she presses the various clothes down to the bottom of the bag. She's putting the idea of leaving through its paces again, watching Erik bend down to ransack the bottom drawer of his dresser. Maybe it's a good thing! This box has gotten a bit boring as of late. She misses flying. And battling! She's taken to picking fights with the Shinx that also lives in the box, but Erik's mother doesn't seem to like it when she tries.

Socks and boxers of various colors and patterns are tossed onto the bed next, Gig again doing an excellent job of making sure everything makes its way into the backpack. Erik doubts some of these are as clean as he wants them to be, but he doesn't have much of a reason to care at this point.

"Okay- that'll last me a few weeks." He scans around his room for any other essentials. His wallet, definitely. He grabs it from his nightstand and opens it to behold the two Pokedollars inside.

Eh. There's gotta be some rich kid walking around with nothing but a Pikachu somewhere nearby, no big deal. He slides the wallet into his pocket as his eyes catch another necessity sitting atop the bookshelf next to his dresser. A case of eight Great Balls he'd gotten as a gift when he started his first journey.

One of them is Gig's, indicated by the little notch she'd made in the top with her tail shortly after he caught her. He takes that one out of the case before turning around and facing the Gligar. He smiles a bit, seeing her with her claws raised and ready to catch whatever flies at her before she sees what's in his hand. Her eyes narrow a bit.

"Don't worry, I'm just separating this one from the rest. I can't try to catch another Pokemon with it. And- hey. I know that look." He raises a finger, not unlike his mother. "I know you haven't been in here for a while, but there might be times when you need to go in. I hope there won't be, but I can't be sure." He turns back to the shelf and grabs the case with the other Great Balls inside as well as a Poke Ball holstering belt he'd gotten as part of the same gift.

Placing the case on his bed next to his bag, he slips the belt on and slides Gig's Great Ball into a slot on it. It now rests just above his front left pants pocket, for easy access. "There. Do I look like a proper trainer now?"

Gig, having just finished stuffing the case of Great Balls into Erik's bag, looks up at him with another confused expression. What does he mean, "look" like a proper trainer? He's been one since he met her, he doesn't have to look like one!

Still, the thoughts behind the Gligar's eyes don't reach Erik. "Eh, I'll work on it. I could use a fancy jacket like all those Ace Trainers have. Wait- I do have something!" He rips open another drawer on his dresser, swiftly pulling out a black hoodie patterned with the faces of various Dark type Pokemon. It's cheesy, Erik knows that, but it's a start.

It's also far too hot outside to be wearing it right now anyways, so he just ties it around his waist. Unovan summers are almost as brutal as its winters.

Honestly… he's basically ready to go. He thought he'd have more to pack, but what else could he possibly take with? His phone and a charger, phone goes into his pants pocket, and the charger into the very front pocket of his bag. And… right! Deodorant. A quick spritz of Axew brand "Sweet Scent" does wonders when applied to the armpits, and the can itself goes into the bag.

He sits down on his bed again, bending down to put on the socks he'd worn yesterday. Once they're on, he pulls a dusty pair of sneakers out from beneath his bed. Just where he'd left them after his first try.

They still fit perfectly, so he hasn't grown out of them at the very least. And as he finishes tying up the laces, he catches a whiff of it. Not the shoes, but nostalgia. Just like that, he's excited to get out of the house. He wants to do this now.

He looks over to Gig, who waddles away from his bag to get closer to him now that he's sitting down again. Erik's face cracks into a small smile before pulling her into a side hug. "I think we're ready."

Gig beams up at him, giving a bit of a happy trill before wiggling free from his grasp and scampering back over to his bag. She tries grabbing at the zipper to close it up, but her claws are a bit too unwieldy to manage it.

"Here-" Erik closes the bag himself, but not before reaching to the very bottom and pulling out the Town Map his mom had left in there. It's far bigger than it should be in his opinion, with its clamshell design and clashing blue and yellow plastic. He cracks it open, scanning over the very much dated map of Unova.

"That's missing, they made a new route there that's missing… and of course there's no Blueberry Academy."

One location has actually been pinged, to Erik's surprise. When he zooms in, he finds that it's the Abundant Shrine. He doesn't remember marking it down as a place of interest the first time around…

Well, he can just ask his mom. He slings his backpack on, standing up as Gig slides off the bed to stand beside him.

There. He's definitely ready now!

He feels the familiar clamp of Gig's claw on his pant leg as he walks over to his room's door, stopping to scratch the top of her head a bit before he opens it. To his surprise, his mom is standing there with a fist raised as if to knock and a brown paper bag in her other hand.

"That was fast." She smiles, a bit of smugness in her tone as her fist drops to her side.

"Well- um." He scratches the back of his head. "Better to get done quickly than wait out the three hours doing nothing?"

"Good. I like the initiative." She presses the bag into his hands. "This is lunch. A sandwich and a soda for you, and two Aspear berries for Giggle."

At the mention of berries, Erik can feel Gig straining to reach for the bag. He gently bats her claw away with a chiding smile. "Lunch isn't now, bud."

"So!" Erik looks back up as his mom speaks again. "You look ready. Are you heading out now?"

"I think so. I've got everything I need, but…" Erik holds up the still-open Town map, pointing to the highlighted location still flashing on one of its two screens. "Did you mark this? I wasn't planning on heading there-"

"Why not?" His mom's face creases into a stern frown. "It's tradition for every trainer who starts their journey from White Forest to go to the Abundant Shrine first! I went there, my mom and dad both went as well… "

"But I need Surf to get there, it says so on the-"

"And White Forest is a hub for experienced trainers looking to take on the White Treehollow! Just ask one of them to take you, you'll be fine."

Erik grimaces. The very thought of walking up to a complete stranger to ask for a ride doesn't sit well with him. "... I'll see what I can do."

"Don't give me that look, mister. You had a perfect opportunity the first time… it was Marvin who had the Gyarados, correct?"

"Yeah. I'll- listen. I'll see what I can do." Erik holds up his phone. "I'll even call you when I get there. What am I supposed to do there, though?"

"Well, you have to pray to the Forces of Nature, perhaps leave an offering or make a wish. People usually just forage around for berries and wish for safe travels or whatever. It's just important that you pay the shrine a visit."

"Gotcha. Well… bye." Erik tentatively extends his arms for a hug.

She pulls him in, crouching a bit to also include Gig in the hug. "Good luck. I know you'll need it if you march straight back into Gligar territory."

"Not happening." Erik pulls back, pointing down to Gig. "I already got one. The best one, if we're being specific."

Gig strikes a goofy pose. Of course she's the best one!

There's a short moment of silence, Erik's mom standing there with a small smile on her face. "Okay- get out there." She steps aside, letting Erik pass by and open the front door.

He gives her one last look before stepping through and closing it behind him, blinking in the midmorning sun. It's hot, and he can certainly feel it now that he's beyond the confines of an air-conditioned home.

Thankfully, the abundant trees of White Forest provide an ample amount of shade as he gets to walking, keeping an eye on his Town Map as it leads him north toward Route 14. Just as his mom said, plenty of experienced-looking trainers are hanging around. Some of them even shoot a glance his way as he hurries past, almost making a point to not talk to any of them.

Gig, to her credit, does try to pull at his pant leg to direct him to ask for help, but Erik stops her. "Look- I just want to scope the place out first. On the map-" He holds it lower to the ground for the Gligar to see. "There's a bunch of trees in the way of the Shrine, that's why everyone needs Surf to get there. I'm- I think I'm skinny enough to squeeze through them, though. D'you think you can help me out if a few branches get in the way, though?"

Gig gives him an affirmative nod and an excited warble as he brings the Map up to his own eye level again. "Thanks. Now- we're not far from the gate…" He can see it as soon as he looks up. "Yep."

He quickens his pace to a steady jog as he approaches the gate, giving the attendant inside a quick nod before going through and emerging into Route 14. The sound of rushing water greets his ears as he adjusts to the environment, slowing to a stop as he lays eyes on his target.

"Hm." It's definitely a tightly packed thicket of trees. It's almost as if they were planted there deliberately to prevent easy access.

But there are definitely gaps.

"You ready, Gig?" Erik approaches the trees as he feels his Gligar release her grip on his pant leg, walking in front of him as he scopes out an appropriate path for them both. He stretches his arms out, waiting for Gig to go in before sliding himself into the largest gap in the trees he can find. Immediately, there's resistance. He can feel the rough bark of the trees against his exposed skin, scratching and scraping at him painfully as he pushes through. His new backpack is also buffeted quite a bit, almost holding him in place at certain points by getting wedged between branches and trunks.

Gig, to her credit, does help Erik out quite a bit. She has an easier time navigating the thicket thanks to her smaller frame, and is able to snip away any errant branches that block his path.

Erik grins a bit as he watches her flit in and out of his vision, then looks past her to see that the open air just a few trees away. He starts to go faster, pulling forward with fervent vigor until he finally breaches through-

But his feet meet no ground as he stumbles out of the thicket. Erik's grin falls from his face, metaphorically crashing to the ground below as he's granted a short moment to look down at the steep cliff beneath him, and gravity takes hold soon after.

A panicked screech echoes behind him as he starts to fall, his shoes scraping against jagged rock for a split second before he feels something yank him up by the armpits.

It's Gig! Thank Arceus. Erik looks up to see her straining to stay in the air as she holds him with her feet, making for a slow glide down to a patch of grass just outside what appears to be the entrance to his destination.

As soon as his feet touch the grass, Gig collapses on top of him, sending them both to the ground.

Erik shakily holds up the map. It never left his hand. "Right. There was a cliff there."

That earns him a bonk on the head from Gig before she gets off of him, allowing him to stand back up and marvel at the- thankfully much more spacious- stretch of woods he's about to traverse.

"Eh. We still made it." Erik begins to stroll forward without so much as a second thought. The canopy isn't as dense here, so he can already see the shrine itself. He'd imagined something like a massive statue depicting all four of the Forces of Nature, maybe covered in moss and eroded a bit from age.

But no. As he approaches close enough to reach out and touch it, with Gig following close behind… it's just a little house. Hardly even a shack, really. It's reminiscent of those little libraries that Lenora was pushing to have placed around Unova a few years back, with a little wooden door on the front and everything.

When he tugs at the handle and opens it, he can clearly see where all the offerings from other new trainers have been placed. Berries that have long since gone bad, little trinkets, someone's retainer… Erik doesn't really have something to put here.

Sure, there's his lunch, but that's his. And Gig's.

So instead, he kneels down in front of the shrine with a sigh. "Alright- Gig?" He looks around to see her already sitting at his side. "So. Mom said I have to pray at the shrine."

He doesn't really know, though. He places his hands together like he's seen a few people who pray to Arceus do. Then he closes his eyes, letting the ambient noise of the forest filter into his ears.

He doesn't say anything. Because he doesn't know what to say. But he can't stop his brain from thinking.

I can't even remember all of their names. Am I supposed to start with them? Landorus… Thunderguy, Eternatus, and the tornado one. That's close enough. I… Mom said most people just pray for safe travels, but that's lame. I want more than that. If I came all the way out here just to pray to a stupid shrine, I better get something good out of it. I want… I want to be strong. But not in the same way all those other trainers are. They've all done the exact same thing, beating all the gyms and then going after the Champion. I want to do something else, because if I do what everyone else has done I'll just be another face in the crowd of promising young trainers. That's my wish- my prayer, whatever. I want to do something different.

There. Prayer over. Now he can get on with his-

We have heard your plea.

A voice. It feels like it rumbles forth from the shrine, but Erik can tell it's echoing around in his skull just as his own thoughts did. He opens his eyes to see the Shrine in front of him shuddering, its contents rattling about like an oversized maraca.

"Um-" He looks back over to Gig, who returns his stunned gaze. "Did you hear that too?"

Gig nods.

He's not crazy.

Despite your lack of an offering, we can grant you a new path. The voice rattles through his head again. Does he respond? Is he supposed to?

"... What do you mean by that?"

A new path. A new way to grow strong. Another existence. Another chance. Steam begins to seep from the seams of the Shrine, swirling around Erik and Giggle as it completely obscures the area around them. All that's left to their eyes is the Shrine. We have decided.

The voice splits into a chorus of four separate speakers, each chittering and grumbling indecipherably as they echo around both Erik and Gig's heads.

"Ngh- ah!" Erik slaps his hands to the sides of his head, holding it firmly as if the voices might crack his skull in half.

Similarly, Gig's claws claw and scrape at her own head, trying to remove the unwelcome voices by force.

Away with you. Have your different existence.

And just like when he'd fallen off the cliff, the ground vanishes from beneath Erik's feet.

Gig can't save him this time.