"Florian, why did you agree to this?" Florian asked himself.
"Because what else do you have to do waste away in your house like a square"
He assumed that this is what listening to that voice in the back of his head gets him. He just wanted to spend time with his friends and now he's standing in the living room of some rich person's house for the sole purpose of trashing the place.
"Ey, ey, ey, Farbauti guess what I found?" Oort bounded over definitely having a bit too much to drink.
"No, I wouldn't know what you found"
"A pool table!"
"Sounds cool Oort but I don't know how to play pool"
"Oh, that's not a problem Farbauti do you know how to break a pool table?"
Florian didn't know how to break a pool table there was no chance that his 170-pound body could break a pole table. Mabey it was that he was under his Team Star nickname of Farbauti or the general drunken feeling in the air even Florian wasn't drinking himself he was fully convinced that he could in fact break a pool table.
"Fuck, ya of course I can" Florian followed Oort through a sea of bodies down to the entrance of the basement where an old-looking pool table was standing.
Florian took a calculated guess there was no way he could break a pool table with his 15-year-old body could break a solid piece of wood if he took a running start from the stairs he would have a better shot.
"Alright on the count of three, we jump" Florian got down in a crouching position if there was time to back down that was long gone.
"Uno dos, tres!" Florian closed his eyes forcing himself forward he leaped from the top of the stairs.
In an instant, Florian felt his entire body shatter. The shot of pain that rippled through Florian's body was well worth it when he was hoisted up by multiple screaming teenagers.
He and Oort had managed to break the pool table.
What followed after that was a haze for Florian he hadn't been drinking before but the throbbing pain in his thigh from body-slamming the pool table was what started it.
The combination of the pain and his tipsiness made Florian's mind do summersault's what happened the rest of the night flew through Florian's mind like snapshots in a PowerPoint.
One minute he was talking to somebody the next he was swaying his way down the stairs with no memory of how he got there.
He closed his eyes and when he opened them he was on his bike riding down a dirt road.
Florian began to panic if this was what being blackout drunk was like he wasn't doing this again.
Florian forced his eyes to stay open his hazy mind more concerned about his parents finding out than getting more injured.
His eyes finally forced themselves shut. When he opened them he was now in the middle of a cave battling something with Miguel.
Florian closed his eyes again when he opened them he was on his bike again in the middle of the woods overlooking A steep hill.
"Wow, I've never gone down a hill that steep before" Florian mumbled to himself in half-speech.
Florian closed his eyes as he kicked down the hill feeling the rush of air and the soft feeling of ferns brushing against his legs.
Florian lazily opened his eyes taking in his surroundings he realized that he was in his room.
"Ugh, Oh shit I'm never doing that again" Florian moaned as he tried to get out of bed feeling his stomach doing a summersault. Florian decided it was better to just stay in bed and hope it went away it wasn't abnormal for him to sleep in anyways his parents wouldn't question it.
His parents. Florian shot out of bed ignoring the bile rising in his throat. Did his parents hear him last night? they were both heavy sleepers but Florian was confident he was loud when he was drunk worst still was there rooms were right beside each other.
Florian stumbled out of his bed his thigh still killing him from the pool table incident Florian fumbled through his bag making sure that everything was there his phone Fuecoco and Smoliv's Pokeballs and Great Ball he had no idea how that got there.
Florian picked out the Great Ball with a burst of light a Nacli appeared at Florian's feet.
"What the were did you come from?" The Nacli nuzzled up to Florian's leg getting salt all over him.
Florian flipped through the events that had happened the night before in the haze of disconnected events he vaguely remembered battling something with Fuecoco Florian concluded that he must have caught the Nacli last night well he was out of it.
"Well alright then um, I guess I needed another team member anyway" Florian had never thought about catching a Nacli since the line's slow pace battle style didn't fit well in contests. But seeing the Nacli nuzzling against his leg Florian couldn't just let the thing back into the wild it would break its heart.
That wasn't Florian's biggest concern right now he was more concerned about if his parents knew their son was out drinking and destroying property last night.
Florian pulled out his phone to see a bunch of missed text messages from Oort and Kuiper.
Oort-Dude, we're the hell, are you?
Oort-Dude, are you okay?
Kuiper-Did you make it home?
Kuiper-Florian are you there?
Farbauti-Wow using my real name you guys must be pretty serious
Kuiper-We haven't seen you since that Tera Den raid
Farbauti-Wait Tera den raid? is that where I got this thing? Florian sent a picture of his Nacli sitting on his dresser " I named her Salada"
Oort-Ya dude do you seriously not remember that? Oort sent a picture of Florian battling Nacli an Ice-type Terra Crystal on his head.
Farbauti-No I have just a vague memory of fighting something at some point.
Kuiper- I think that's a sign that you shouldn't be drinking tequila.
Farbauti-Trust me after that I'm sticking to Ice tea
Oort-Lightweight :)
Farbauti-Ya, right now I'm more concerned about my parents finding out where I was last night. Florian cracked open his door all seemed quiet in the house if his parents did know about what happened they would be sitting in the living room telling him "Florian can come here"
Farbauti-Well I don't see them so I think it's all good
Kuiper-Man that must suck to have stuck-up parents like that
Farbauti-It dose they would be all "Florian do you have any idea what could have happened" or "Florian that's so irresponsible" do your parents seriously not care?
Oort-Dude my mom doesn't care she's usually at work or asleep on the couch.
Kuiper-Oh please my parents usually aren't here long enough to care.
Oort-Anyway I wanted to tell you that you killed it last night
Farbauti-Really?
Kuiper-Ya the Team Star bosses were super impressed with that little Pool table incident and your sweat-talking.
Farbauti-Was I sweat-talking people?
Kuiper- 100 percent you're quite charming when you want to be.
Oort-Oh looks like somebody's got a little crush "heart Emoji"
Kuiper-You take that back you little shit "angry face emoji"
Oort-No :)
Kuiper-Javier Torres, I swear to god if you don't take that back I'm gonna smack you
Oort-You can't punch people through the internet silly
Kuiper-Fuck you :|
"Alright, Iris, are you sure this will work?"
"Positively, Alright Emolga use, Volt Switch!" Emogla launched a ball of electricity at the training dummy switching out of the battle for Iris's Gible. Beside Emolga Ash's Wattrel watched with wide eyes.
"Alright, Wattrel now it's your turn!" Wattrel tried to launch the same ball of electricity as Emolga but ended up using Spark and thudding into the training dummy.
Since the team Galactic incident Ash had noticed his Wattrel seemed to tire quickly. Iris had suggested having Emolga teach Wattrel how to use Volt Switch to tag in and out of battle.
"It's alright Wattrel let's try again" Wattrel attempted to use Volt Switch again but ended up using Spark again.
"Alright, this is gonna take some practice" Ash sighed "Mabey practicing on a live target will help" Ash sent out Lucario.
"Alright, Wattrel aimed for Lucario" Without warning, Finizen burst from his Pokeball watching Lucario.
"Fin!"
"Lucario!"
"Alright, Wattrel try using Volt Switch on Lucario"
"Watt! watt!" Wattrel tried again but ended up using Spark again which Lucario easily blocked with his paw.
"Fin!" Finizen squeaked in excitement at watching Lucario battle.
"Finizen!" Finizen launched forward with Aqua Jet hitting Lucario who easily blocked it.
"Fin! fin!" Finizen kept launching Aqua-Jets that Lucario easily blocked.
"Well somebody's certainly an eager Bibarel to battle" Iris laughed.
"Do you think Wattrel should practice on Finizen?" Ash asked.
"That's a good idea they are closer to each other power wise"
Finizen and Wattrel lined up against each other ready to practice.
Finizen went for Double Hit his fins glowing white Wattrel went for Spark the two attacks canceling each other out.
Finizen went for Water Gun aiming the stream of water a Wattrel. Wattrel went for Quick Attack zipping across the battlefield and aiming at Finizen.
Wattrel smacked into Finizen with Quick Attack sending the Dolphin flying backward. Finizen went for Aqua Jet surrounding his body in water lunging at Wattrel and knocking her out of the sky.
Wattrel went for Spark before she hit Finizen she shot the electricity at Finizen switching out of the battle for Lucario.
"Alright, Wattrel you used Volt Switch!"
"Emol!" Emolga congratulated Wattrel.
"Fin! fin! Wat! wat!" Finizen and Wattrel pointed at Lucario.
"You guys want to battle Lucario?" Finizen and Wattrel nodded.
"What do you think about that Lucario?"
"La" Lucario gave a nod getting into a battle stance.
"Alright, guys knock yourselves out!"
Goh trudged across the schoolyard tucking his hands into his pockets as a cool breeze rustled over the grounds. Even if Paldea wasn't particularly cold winds from the south that blew up from the ocean still bit at Goh's hands.
Ash was training his Pokémon Finizen and Wattrel laying into Lucario with Aqua Jet and Volt Switch dodging Lucario's Reversal. It was clear that Lucario was going easy on them Goh had seen the jackal take down Raihan's Duraludon and Cynthia's Togekiss and Garchomp back to back he could one-shot both of them if he wanted to.
Goh skulked past hoping that nobody noticed him heading inside the main doors.
There was a certain sense of coldness that lingered around the lingered around Naranja academy. The dull brown walls were built long before anyone alive today was born and seemed to suck in all the joy from the air. The hanging fluorescent lights made Goh feel more tired and more awake while feeling unnatural within the old stone windowless walls of the academy.
Without the flood of students in the hallways and classroom, the school felt more like a hospital cold, sterile, and unwelcoming.
Goh had always hated schools he hated sitting still for hours at a time after a few minutes he just wanted to run out of the classroom and never look back getting into Project Mew and being able to leave school was one of the best things to happen to him.
"Excuse me Mr. Jacq are you busy?"
"Oh hello, Goh comes in" Jacq was on a stool reorganizing a display case of Pokémon bones "The little ragamuffins are busy on the treasure hunt so I'm just reorganizing the classroom" Jacq replied as he fumbled around with the lower jaw of a Sawsbuck.
"How are you feeling? I heard about what happened at the ballpark with the Paradox Pokémon"
"Oh, I'm feeling okay hurts like hell though" everything above Goh's torso still hurt even the muscle cream the doctor had prescribed him made didn't make the pain go away.
"Also how did you know about Paradox Pokémon?"
"You don't think a biology nerd like me wouldn't own a copy of the Scarlet and Violet book?" Jacq walked over to his desk and pulled out a copy of the Scarlet and Violet book.
"Let's see ah, here it is Iron Hands it's an Electric/Fighting type said to be a cyborg modeled after a certain athlete"
"Do you believe that stuff that's written in there?" Goh asked.
"Who's to say most people think that those things don't even exist and that there just the stories of some dead guy but your story shows that these things are very real just as much as any legendary or mythical Pokémon"
"But anyways I'm getting sidetracked what was it that you wanted to talk about?"
"Well when I was knocked out in the hospital I um had this dream and well I was at the port of Vermillion City it's the place that I first met Ash"
"Uh, huh" Jacq turned the conversation in his head "Well what was the dream about?"
"That's the thing it was where I met Ash, it was the day that I met Ash but Ash wasn't in the dream, I mean I was out of it in the hospital you'd think that I would be dreaming about my grandmother or my parents or my Pokémon or something"
"Hm, well that's not my field of expertise I'm a biologist I focus on the material things we can see I could tell you why you dream but I wouldn't know what they mean I think that you should see Hassel about that"
"Hassel? like the Elite Four member?"
"Ya he's the art teacher his big on the arts and stuff his room is down the hall to your left"
"Well, okay then thanks for the help Jacq"
"Anytime!"
"Hello, Mr. Hassel can I come in?" Goh knocked on the door.
"Uh, why yes Mr. Goh be my guest" Hassel assured Goh inside. The art class walls were strung with paintings of various qualities some of them of landscapes others of Pokémon or people.
Hassel was sitting on a stool in the middle of the room a paintbrush between his teeth beside him a Baxcalibur was sitting on the floor with its tail neatly curled up presumable what Hassel was painting.
"You seem surprised?"
"Oh, um I just wasn't expecting a dragon trainer to be an artist" Goh stammered.
"Yes, I do get that a lot I know it isn't as regal a profession as one would expect a Dragon tamer to have" Hassel put down his paintbrush.
"But it's what makes me happy and I would never give this up for anything else" Hassel stroked Baxcalibur's dorsal spine the Ice Dragon Pokémon grumbled in delight.
"So tell me what brings you here today?"
"Well I was talking to Jacq about this thing and he said to talk to you because you're big on the arts"
"I see" Hassel laughed "So I assume that it's not anything to do with your physical health?"
"Ya well, The other night I had this really strange dream and I was wondering if you might know what it might mean?"
"Well I'm not an expert but every dream does have a meaning so please go on"
"Well I was at the port of Vermillion city and I was pushed off the dock and then before I hit the water I was in the sky and then I was riding on Lugia. The thing is that's how I meet Ash but Ash wasn't there" Goh spilled the entire thing out at once like an overzealous child describing a story to their parents.
"I see" Hassel muttered "May I ask was this when you were in the hospital?" Goh felt his body freeze how did everyone know about that? it brought the painful memory of getting backhanded by an electric robot into the front of his mind.
"Well, ya that's when it happened well I was knocked out and I just I don't know do you think that's weird to dream about your friend in a serious situation like that I mean wouldn't you dream of like your parents, or grandmother or someone in your family"
Hassel's eyes shimmered thoughtfully "Ash is he a close friend?"
"Ya he's my best friend I've spent more time with him in the last year than I have probably with my parents in the last four years"
"Has anything happened between the two of you did you guys get into an argument or a falling out?"
"I mean, I think, I think that it all comes back to when I missed his final battle against Leon because I was on a Project Mew mission, and I've just never been able to tell him how sorry I am that I missed it"
Goh could feel the tears brimming in his lashes threatening to spill. Before Goh could make a public embarrassment of himself his phone suddenly went off in his pocket.
"Sorry do you mind if I take this?"
"Not at all"
Goh stepped out of the room to see who was calling him.
Mom.
Goh froze.
His parents rarely called him the most he would get was a voicemail on his birthday or Christmas not that it mattered since he celebrated both of those with Ash and Chloe at the Cerise lab.
"Hello?"
"Goh, hey sweety how's it going?" Goh felt sour at the word. She didn't deserve the honor to call Goh "sweety" like she was close to him sweety was something reserved for his grandmother she was the one who raised him she alone was allowed to call him sweety, not his mom.
"It's going okay"
"How are you feeling We have been up all night worried about you" Goh scoffed his mom sounded like one of those people who say "thoughts and condolences" in that hollow parrot voice.
"I'm doing okay it still hurts like hell but the doctor said I didn't break anything so that's good"
"Aw, great sweetheart. Anyway I have some exciting news to tell you"
"Uh, hu what is it"
"Me and you're dad got a week off work and were going to come to visit you guys in Paldea it's going to be so fun I can't wait to try some authentic Paldean food I hear their spicy food is amazing!"
"Huh ya that's great I look forward to seeing you" Goh had to physically swallow the bile rising in his throat.
"That's great sweety I can't wait to see you we're coming on Monday"
"Okay love you, sweety all see you on Monday"
"Yup love you see you on Monday"
"Buy!" Goh's mom ended the call with an annoyingly high-pitched voice.
"Who was that?" Hassel asked.
"That was just my mom there coming to visit on Monday"
"That a surprise?"
"Well ya I guess there always at work even on my birthday or Christmas they only care when I was almost killed" Goh scoffed.
"I mean I know what it's like to have a complicated relationship with your parents. If you're asking me I think the reason that you're dreaming about Ash and not your family is that you feel like Ash is more of a family member to you than your parents" Hassel returned Baxcalibur to its Pokeball.
"I think that you need to talk with Ash and your parents"
"What like together?"
"No, no not together separately but you can't just talk to one and not the other the only way you can release what's on your chest is by talking to both of them"
"I know, I know that's what Tulip told me it's just so hard to try and talk to Ash I try to talk to him and I just, freeze up and I can't even imagine talking to them"
"I know it can seem hard to do but be thankful you have people who will listen to you I would have loved to have people like that when I was your age. May I suggest which one would you feel more comfortable talking to?"
Goh thought for a moment there was no way he was going to apologize to Ash that straightforwardly and he was more comfortable with his parents he felt like he could let his mouth run a bit loser.
"I would say, my parents"
"There you go talk to them first that's half the battle already"
"Alright then Hassel I'll do it if you say this will help me then I will do it"
End Credit Song Freaks-Surf Curse
Sorry this chapter took so long I was procrastinating and time just kind of flew by.
To make up for it here's a Team Recap :)
Florian
Fuecoco (M) (Miguel) Ability-Blaze Nature-Relaxed (Ember, Round, Tackle)
Smoliv (F) (Aceituna) Ability-Early Bird Nature-Timid (Razor Leaf, Tackle, Sweet Scent, Helping Hand)
Nacli (F) (Salada) Ability-Purifying Salt Nature-Docile (none used)
Juliana
Quaxly (M) (Tulio) Ability-Torrent Nature-Sassy (Aqua Jet, Water Gun, Pound, Wing Attack)
Paldean-Wooper (F) (Salvador) Ability-Water Absorb Nature-Carful (Mud Shot Toxic Spikes, Poison Tail, Poison Sting)
Charcadet(Rebelde) (M) Ability-Flash Fire Nature-Rash (Ember, Clear Smog, Fire Spin)
Ash (Along with Journeys Team)
Wattrel (F) Ability-Volt Absorb Nature-Hasty (Spark, Pluck, Quick Attack Volt Switch)
Finizen (M) Ability-Water Veil Nature-Adamant (Aqua Jet, Water Gun, Double Hit)
I'll do these from time to time also to remind myself what moves everyone has