It was training day today.
Something Florian seriously needed to do.
He was falling behind on the power level even if he wasn't battling in gyms his team was seriously underprepared for contest battles.
The next contest was in Glaseado this weekend Florian was already cutting the training close as everyone else had been posting about their training for a few days now.
He was back in Porto Marinada at the basketball hoop behind the elementary school the most open spot he could think of to train.
The first thing he wanted to do was get control over Aceituna's fears.
From what he had researched online, Smoliv seemed to get sensory overloaded easily, something common in young plant Pokémon since keeping quiet and inconspicuous in the wild was their best survival strategy.
Most sights recommended to show your plant Pokémon positive reinforcement with sound showing them that it's not something to be afraid of.
For the last couple of hours, he had wrapped a pair of earbuds around Smoliv's Pokeball playing some old opera music loud but something he hoped wasn't too jarring for her to listen to, occasionally increasing the volume.
The next step was to get Smoliv to battle with loud music in the background.
First Florian started with the opera music well commanding Smoliv to use Razor Leaf on a stationary dummy which to his delight Smoliv was able to perform without any problem.
The next step was trying different music he started with some loud pop music other students had been listening to.
Smoliv immediately panicked and missed the target by a wide mark.
He would need to do some more work on Smoliv.
The next thing he wanted to do was train Miguel.
When he first picked Fuecoco he likened him to himself when he was a child oblivious and clumsy but ultimately enjoying himself.
Florian liked to think that he had matured since then and if Fuecoco was going to mature he needed to train him.
So he set up a series of wooden stands for Fuecoco to hit.
"Alright, Miguel, when I blow the whistle you run to and hit every target got it?" Fuecoco hissed in approval.
"Alright go" Florian blew the whistle Fuecoco ran to the first stand hitting it with Incinerate. Fuecoco bumbled into the next stand, hitting it with another Incinerate before tumbling off the ground.
Dios mío Miguel you really need to work on your coordination" Miguel stumbled back to his feet chewing on the wooden stand.
"Miguel are you even listening to me!" he really was like Florian right down to ignoring his teachers because of how easily he lost focus.
The next thing he wanted to do was see Salto do anything.
He had done next to nothing with his Nacli all he knew was her moves and that she had an Ice Terra Type.
The main problem with Nacli was that contests were very fast past and being a lump of salt meant that Nacli wasn't very fast.
"Alright, Nacli try and dodge this okay?"
"Nacli!"
"Alright, here we go" Florian rolled a tennis ball at Nacli hoping that she was able to dodge it. She didn't it hit her rate in the face.
"Alright let's try that again but slower"
Florian was there for about 30 minutes throwing a tennis ball at Nacli none of which she was able to avoid.
His day had already been wasted his father would be back from the fishing boat and would probably talk about it was dangerous to be walking on his own and that there were dangerous people out there.
That left Florian sitting in his room after dinner feeling tired.
It wasn't his team's fault that they couldn't do what he wanted.
That was all his fault a Pokémon is only as good as its trainer and Florian clearly wasn't being a good trainer right now.
What if he wasn't cut out for being a trainer what if his mom had been right what if this was all too overwhelming for him to handle something that his autism yet again excluded him from? what if he hadn't matured?
A text from his phone snapped him out of his train of thought.
(Oort)-how's that training coming?
No, he defiantly had matured he had friends now something that he would never think was possible before.
(Farbauti)-Good how about you?
(Oort)-Great! Oort sent a photo of him training at Montenevera with his Rellor, Skrelp, and Gumshoos.
(Farbauti)-Quick question do you have any recommendations on how to connect with your performance I'm kind of stumped.
(Oort)-Do you like music? Kuiper listens to music in her contest battles.
(Farbauti)-That might work were his Kuiper anyway?
(Oort)-She had something to plan with some other grunts the running of the Tauros is coming up and they're planning something around that.
(Farbauti)-Sounds exciting
(Farbauti)-Anyway do you know what Kuiper likes to listen to?
(Oort)-She likes Ivy Queen, Torero, and Daddy Yankee I think she's using Ella Me Levanto for her next contest.
(Farbauti)-What about you what do you do to get connected with your performance?
(Oort)-I like reading before the contest battles I like to picture a story in my head before well the battle unfolds.
(Farbauti)-Oh I see somebody is a little Scholler :)
(Kuiper joined the chat)
(Kuiper)-Don't let Oort talk you up I've heard his stories he's more of an over-dramatic Shakespeare want-to-be
(Oort)-Ouch Ana Hernández you have mortally wounded me!
(Kuiper)-See what I mean
(Kuiper)-Also how the hell did you know what song I'm using tomorrow?
(Oort)-Well you're not exactly quiet when you listen to music you sing like a Squawkabilly.
(Kuiper)-Javier Torres that was very mean of you
(Farbauti)-I hate to interrupt but can I ask what's happening with the running of the Tauros?
(Kuiper)-Okay, so get this Ortega and Giacomo think that it'll be hilarious if we stick the Tauros on that Levi and Bevin guy
(Oort)-I hate to be the Beartic of bad news but the Tauros are on a controlled path and how do you know those two will even be there?
(Kuiper)-1 They definitely won't miss something as big as the running of the Tauros 2 Do you think some gates will be enough to stop a rampaging Tauros
(Farbauti)-How do you get a Tauros to rampage?
(Kuiper)-You milk it obviously :)
(Farbauti)-But Tauros are all male you can't milk them.
(Oort)-Oh my god Ana that's fucking disgusting! Florian realized what Kuiper meant by "milking a Tauros" He had definitely matured Florian used to think that was juvenile and crass but now he laughed along with the joke.
(Kuiper)-Anyway's just be in Levincia next Friday.
(Oort)-Got it
(Farbauti) I'll be there Florian did have one obstacle to going and that was asking his parents.
"You want to go to the running of the Tauros?" Florian's mom asked turning her attention from the TV.
"Ya, I'm 15 I think I'm old enough"
"Florian I don't know about that" His father scratched his beard nervously.
"I don't see why it's a problem, Juan we both went to the festival when we were his age"
"Valeria we went to the festival, not the event I don't want my son ending up impaled or breaking a limb"
"Oh, por favor that's nothing" Florian's Abuela chimed in from watching Wheel of Fortune "When I was his age, you could fight the Tauros uno a uno when I was 17 one of the Tauros jumped the wall and ran into the stands it was chaos it took 5 men to tie it down with ropes"
"Exactly María that's why I don't want him going"
"I'm not going to the running Ana and Javier just want to hang out at Levincia during the festival"
"You should really invite your friends over some time I'd like to meet them" Florian's mom suggested. The idea of bringing two Team Star grunts over and telling his parents there his friends he knew how that conversation would go.
"Ya sure maybe after the festival" Florian hoped that if he never brought it up again it would slip his mother's mind.
"You can go but make sure that you text or call us and don't go anywhere near any of the Tauros okay Florian"
"Okay"
"That's all I wanted to talk to you about" Florian walked out of the living room for his family to watch TV.
There were three more signs that Florian had matured.
Uno, he would never have had the nerve to ask his parents for something like that.
Dos, because he would never have wanted to go anywhere he wouldn't have friends to go places with.
Tres, He would never have agreed to do something like stick a raging bull on someone or heaven forbid lie to his parents.
The rest of the night Florian was thinking about Oort's suggestions on how to get into performances.
He did like to read since his dad worked on a fishing boat he had always been fond of books involving the ocean.
Looking through the stack of books he had received from various birthdays and Christmases.
One book caught his eye in the stack The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway. He had written an SA about the themes in the story, particularly of Santiago and the Milotic.
The sea hides the Milotic from Santiago and when it finally gives it up to him he has to fight the Sharpedos to keep it.
Florian felt like he could relate to Santiago's struggle. Life had hidden things from Florian things that other children had picked up on their own socializing, communication, and friendship, and when it did give it up to him he had to fight his own lack of social skills to keep it.
In the story, the Pyroars on the beach in Africa represent virility and youth and the wish to return to it.
The problem was that Florian wasn't telling his story from the perspective of an old man wishing for the joys and return of youth he was only 15.
Dammit, now Florian couldn't sleep.
Try as he might he wasn't going to sleep this off when his brain was spinning like this.
So that's how Florian ended up walking through the hallways of his house at 1 am. Then riding his bike to the basketball court.
Once he was at the basketball court he threw out his Pokémon.
"Alright, you guys hold still for a moment" Florian flipped threw his playlist picking out the song he had selected.
He didn't feel like any of the songs Kuiper liked worked for the particular narrative he was going for he wanted something a bit more grandiose.
Considering that Paldean was the second most spoken language in the world and spoken across almost a whole continent he had a very large selection of music to pick from.
With all those choices why, not the song that was sent into space?
As the first guitar notes began to ring out Florian instantly felt the narrative rush through his head.
"Nacli use Iron Defense Fuecoco use Incinerate on Nacli!" Nacli's body started glowing metallic gray when the Incinerate connected, it set Nacli ablaze her body on fire in a bright display of gray, orange, and red.
The first few strings were joined by the triumphant calls of trumpets.
"Smoliv, use Sweet Scent! Fuecoco use Round!" the sound waves from Fuecoco's sound waves whipped the pink haze from Smoliv's sweet sent high into the air.
Florian could feel the narrative of the Old Man and the Sea flowing through him. He had to work harder than most people to get to this point the sea had hidden things from him things that he had thought to pry from its hands.
As the lyrics to the song began Florian couldn't help but start dancing and singing to the lyrics.
"Yo tenía mi cascabel! con una cinta! con una cinta! Yo tenía mi cascabel! Smoliv used Helping Hand Nacli use Smack Down!" a bright golden aura appeared around Smoliv and Nacli, Nacli's Smack-Down slammed into the cement with a massive golden burst.
"¡Ay, cómo rezumba y suena! ¡Ay, cómo rezumba y suena!"
"Use Razor Leaf and Ember!"
"Rezumba y va rezumbando Rezumba y va rezumbando Mi cascabel en la arena"
The Razor Leaf and Ember collided creating a bright red and green explosion.
Yes, it was all starting to make sense the Pyroars on the beach didn't represent youth and the longing for being young not to Florian they represented the prime of his life. This was the time he was coming into he had left the embarrassing days of childhood behind and was growing into his own person. A new person a better person.
As the lyrics stopped and it returned to the sound of the guitar and trumpets Florian realized that this was the most alive he had ever felt dancing to old folk music behind a school at 1 in the morning.
This was truly what life was about living for the now commanding his Pokémon to do amazing tricks and combinations with rock, fire, and grass magic well the song blared threw the night nobody to hear it but himself just how it would be heard by no one but the voyager on its travels through the stars.
"Y como era de oropel, ¡Upa!"
"Se lo di a mi prenda amada!"
"Para que juegue con él!"
"Allá por la madrugada!"
"Use Razor Leaf and Rock Throw!" The sharp leaves cut threw the Rock Throw creating a shower of pebbles to rain down on Florian.
"¡Ay, cómo rezumba y suena! ¡Ay, cómo rezumba y suena!"
"Rezumba y va rezumbando!"
"Rezumba y va rezumbando!"
"Mi cascabel en la arena!"
As the song reached its climax Florian dropped down and did a half splits.
Once the song stopped Florian sat in his half-splits position breathing heavily Florian didn't even know that he had the leg flexibility to do that. Although judging by the burning feeling running up his thighs he defiantly couldn't do that again.
"Well... what did you... think about that... amazing right?" Florian panted.
"Smol!" Smoliv sighed sounding exhausted.
"Nacli!" Nacli hopped up and down in support
"Grrrar!" Fuecoco grumbled happily waddling over to Florian.
As Fuecoco got closer Florian realized there was something wrong with him.
One he was a lot bigger than Florian remembered and two he had what looked like a nest with an egg on his head.
Florian realized that in his passionate performance, he somehow missed that Miguel had evolved into Crocalor.
"Oh, my god Miguel you evolved that's amazing" Florian patted Crocalor on his head feeling the warm sensation of his fired nest.
"Graarr!" Crocalor below in happiness releasing a stream of white bubbles into the air. The bubbles floated over to Smoliv popping on her head causing her to fall asleep.
"And you learned Yawn this night couldn't get any better" Florian stumbled back to his feet his knees feeling wobbly he was barely able to walk over to his bag and get his team's Pokeballs.
"Alright guys good job lets go home"
Florian could barely keep himself balanced on his bike as he rode back to his house. He had been drunk (once) and well that felt nothing like this when he was drunk he was just stupidly happy what he was experiencing now was pleasureful more pleasureful than anything that he had ever done to himself.
This must be what it felt like to take LSD or ecstasy feeling drunk and high at the same time to feel like his body wasn't his to be so out of it he could miss the evolution of Miguel into Crocalor.
Florian could barely think as he stumbled up the stairs into his room and took his clothes off for bed.
He felt like he was coming down from a high as he sunk into his bed grabbing Waddles the stuffed Wattrel pulling the old stuffy close to his chest.
It was one of the most restful nights of sleep Florian had ever gotten.
When he woke up the next day and was on the train to Glaseado he felt more confident than ever.
When he stepped off the train into the crisp Glaseado air he saw a notification from Julianna.
(Jewel's)-Hey I was just wondering something
(Farbauti)-Okay what?
(Jewel's)-This Bevin guy calls my friend Nashi Hentai Boy do you know what that means?
(Farbauti)-Umm... you might want to look that up on urban dictionary but trust me it's not pleasant.
(Jewel's)-How bad?
(Farbauti)-Trust me not good
That was definitely the same Bevin asshole that called Florian a sissy boy for being a contest battler he was probably in Glaseado right now to cheer on Trinity and Audrey.
Well, Florian was tempted to give the guy a piece of his mind for Nashi's sake because from what Julianna had said the guy had too much patience for his own good Florian could wait for now.
Because he knew that Bevin and Levi would both be facing down the business end of 253 pounds of raging Tauros.
Was it a bit morbid yes but the idea of those assholes getting gored by a Tauros put an even bigger smile on his face as he walk towards the contest haul.
But before he could go there he had something else to attend to at the clothing store.
End Credit Song-El Cascabel by Lorenzo Barcelata the song Florian was listening to in his training and on Voyager 1's golden record.
Sorry, this chapter took so long more of my procrastinating but it was a tone of fun writing confidant Florian.
The next chapter is Florian and Julianna centered look forward to that.
Also, an important note aged up Julianna's friend Cherry from 9-10 to 13-14 it makes more sense for them to be friends this way.