"Just, where is it!? I'm sure I placed it in one of these."
Hector fumed as he pushed nearly half of his body into a cardboard box.
An unrecognizable bunch of clothes flew through half the room a second later, followed by a pair of shoes, and some old cardboard games. Soon after, he switched to a different box and the situation repeated itself.
"We're never doing this again," he said to himself as frustration filled his head.
Once again, he couldn't find what he was looking for, and instead of going for the next, he simply sat next to the box and cleared the sweat from his forehead.
He turned to look around the room. It had become nothing short of a mess, clothes spread out everywhere, a bunch of half-emptied boxes on top of each other in the corners, and random stuff—from utensils to booklets—were all displaced on a nearby desk, some of them on the floor.
His eyes didn't care for the mess. Yet. He was instead looking for something else.
The box he just checked was the last he had left to go over.
Or was it?
He nearly jumped from where he was sitting to the nearby bed, quickly sticking his head under the bed.
"Fucking got it!" he yelled triumphantly, raising above his head a small leather box.
After getting in a more comfortable position by sitting at the edge of the bed, he slowly opened the box. It was made of leather, and although the cracks on it were noticeable and showed its age, it was in an okay-ish state all things considered. Within it, there was only one item, a watch, nearly as old as the box itself, but in a much better condition.
And still functional.
He sighed in relief.
"Almost gave me a heart attack there," he laughed. "How about we don't do that again, hm?" he told himself as he adjusted the watch on his left hand.
He gave the room and its disheveled state another look, caused by his careless search. Unintentionally adding another task to the 'to-do list' before leaving was not planned, but he couldn't leave like that. He'd get an earful for certain.
It took close to thirty minutes to place everything in the boxes, closets, or drawers in his new room. They'd just moved in no more than 5 days ago, so it didn't matter whether his stuff was in a box or not, it was going to be unpacked eventually. What mattered was that the room had a passable state before leaving.
'Leaving. To school.'
The thought made him shiver. No matter how common it was viewed in Paldea, he still considered himself a bit too old for it.
Once he was done, he took his phone from his pocket and opened the flying taxi app. It had the icon of a miniature version of the Paldean map with Squawkabilly's face on top, a Pokemon he wasn't very familiar with.
"Seems like I still have a couple of hours to check everything up,"
He approached a pair of backpacks placed next to his desk, unzipping one of them, and stuck his arm up to the shoulder into it, 'feeling' its contents.
"I might be missing a couple of things, might have to double-check just in case, but the essentials should be there. Don't you guys think so?"
He faced the only desk in the room, where a couple of freshly-polished poké balls rested. A few of them jerked at his question.
"Sounds like a yes to me."
After a quick look around and a bathroom rest, everything was ready. He grabbed both backpacks, taking one by the back and holding the other by the handle. Once he had the watch he was looking for earlier around his wrist, and the poke balls strapped on his belt, he was ready.
Even with all the Silph Co. miniaturizing tech, it was still a pain to carry everything. Not to mention the size was also kind of a problem. However, he had convinced himself to bring the necessary stuff to have a comfortable stay, wherever that might be. To his dismay, what he considered 'necessary' was no small amount.
The taxi he booked was bound to arrive in no more than 3 hours, according to the app, so he still had some time to kill, but aside from checking the contents of his bag a third time, he had nothing to do.
'Better to have time to kill, that being against the clock.'
He sat on a couch in the living room and pulled his phone out, trying to find a distraction. His eyes darted to the poké balls on his belt, tempting him to release his partners. Although that would only mean they would be bored waiting with him, plus letting them out in the living room was probably not the best of ideas.
"Hector! There you are, I thought you were still in your room," a female voice came from the stairs. "Are you ready for school?" the voice asked, a chuckle near the end.
"I don't know, mom. As ready as I'll ever be, I guess."
"Glad to know you're come to accept it now. Almost every kid in Paldea wishes to attend the Academy. That goes for adults as well," his mother said as she approached.
"I'm still not so sure about that. I'm 21, and it feels weird to wear a uniform," he said, not hiding his mild annoyance, "Which reminds me, what's up with those shorts? Did they give me a smaller size or something? I'm not wearing that."
"You will get used to it, don't worry about it."
Hector's eyes automatically rolled and babbled something back, but not high enough for her to hear.
The woman went into the kitchen but kept the conversation going. "Did you pack everything you needed? Did you make sure to double-check?" her voice echoed in the kitchen. "I don't want to hear you missed anything and want me to send it ba-"
"YES, mom," the man raised his voice to respond. "I double and triple-checked everything. I'm fine."
There was silence for a couple of seconds before his mother spoke again.
"Are you taking the necessary clothes, school supplies, and camping gear?"
There was an audible sigh coming from the living room after that question. He knew it would come to that, and there was little he could do to avoid it. He knew his mother well enough.
"Yes, yes, and yes," the young man huffed, his eyes rolling for the second time.
"What about supplies for the team, you got those too? Surely you're not forgetting about them, right?"
"What? Of course not." He rebuked. "Just because I forgot the grooming kit that one time, you're going to be pestering me with that question every time, aren't you?
His mother nodded, keeping a smirk on her face.
Seeing as there were no further complaints, she continued. "Are you taking any food with you? What about protection?"
He rolled his eyes for the umpteenth time. "I was planning on purchasing whatever I needed over there. Dad said it wasn't too expensive, so it should be fine. It should work for the journey as well. Also, what do you mean by protection anyway? If it's the raincoat, I already packed it."
There was a brief period of silence afterward, however, the sounds from the kitchen hadn't stopped coming.
"Oh you know… in case you meet a pretty girl…" she mentioned in a dreamy way that nearly made him puke.
Hector winced in an almost unnatural way after hearing those words come from his mother. "I need to get out of here, the cab can't get here soon enough," he said after propelling himself from the couch. "I'm waiting outside."
As he walked to the door, he nearly tripped with a 'pointy' object in the middle of the living room's floor, causing him to fall to his left on a different couch.
The culprit? A tiny Maractus who had been silently listening to the dialogue between mother and son.
"Annette, what did I tell you about sneaking on people?" Hector spat out, trying to hide the faint annoyance and fear of almost falling on top of the cactus Pokemon. He knew from experience it wouldn't be pleasant.
The Maractus, not expecting the sudden response, took a few jumps back.
"Maa?" she asked, lowering her head.
Forgetting for a moment the Maractus easily gets startled, especially with those outbursts, Hector couldn't help but apologize, but still kindly remind her not to do it again.
From a corner in the living room, his mother was watching the entire scene unfold with a smirk. "Don't be mad at her, I told her to hand you a small gift after all."
Noticing the Maractus was holding a small metal box in one of her limbs, Hector extended his hand to receive it.
Maractus, now knowing she hadn't committed any wrongdoings, happily gave him the metallic box. "Mara!" she beamed once the task was done and hopped her way to the back of the house.
"I guess it's time for her daily sunbathing," her mother chipped in.
In the meantime, Hector opened the small box with little resistance. Inside, he found a small round device, with a dial and a needle in the middle, no bigger than the palm of his hand.
"A compass," was the only thing he managed to say, nearly murmuring.
"That's correct," his mother added. "I know that with all the tech these days, a compass doesn't have the same level of use as it did before, but you never know when it can come in handy."
"I guess, you're right. Thanks."
His mother only smiled back and returned to the kitchen, quickly wiping her face while her son was focused on the compass.
"I imagine you'll be gone before lunch. Do you want me to pack your sandwiches or anything?"
"You don't have to, but yeah, sandwiches will be fine," he said while storing the compass in one of the backpack's many pockets. "No pickles please."
Hector shared a few more words with her mother while she was there. Since he'd be attending the Academy, it was true that he would not see her for a while, and he didn't know how many times he'd be able to visit or if he'd have the time during the Treasure Hunt.
The concept wasn't very clear in his head just yet, all he knew was that students would be provided the time to participate in the League Circuit once the Treasure Hunt began. Since he only enrolled for a year in independent studies, he'd have fewer obligations than the regular student, so he was confident he could pull a good performance if it was only about the Gym Circuit.
'Gym Circuit? I can certainly do that,' he inwardly told himself.
At some point during their conversation, there was a knock on the door and both went silent.
"The taxi's already here?"
After a quick look at his phone, Hector frowned. "Not for an hour, maybe it's a delivery truck?" His mother had a habit of abusing online purchases, so he was used to it.
"I didn't order anything today… I think."
Without waiting for confirmation from his mother, who began to check her email for possible deliveries arriving today, he went and opened the door.
At the other side stood a tall, slender man, very likely in his 50s, maybe even peaking into his 60s. However, what stood out to him most was his presentation. Not only did he stand with a perfect posture, but also dressed himself impeccably, with a light brown suit and white pants, not a single stain or wrinkle to be found on them.
The trainer could also feel that he had seen that face somewhere but couldn't quite put a name to it.
The young man was slightly surprised, this stranger certainly didn't look like a delivery driver.
"Can I help you?" Hector asked, slightly taken aback.
The older man's eyes shifted to him as soon as the door opened, and for a fraction of a second Hector detected a faint change in his expression. "Pardon for the intrusion, is this the Reid residence?" he asked in a posh tone, his tone neither too low nor too high.
Hector couldn't help but raise an eyebrow after hearing the term 'Reid residence.' An odd way to ask for who lives here, or at least, one he wasn't used to.
"If you mean the house where the 'Reid Family' lives, then yeah, this is it," he said cautiously, taking another look from top to bottom at the guy standing at the door. 'What an interesting character.'
The man, clearly pleased with the reassurance he was at the right house, continued, "And would you perhaps be Master Hector?" he asked, unfazed by the words that just left his mouth.
Hector tried hard not to grimace, but a little of it probably showed. 'Is there people who actually talk like that?'
"That would be me, yeah."
A small smile appeared on the man's face, turning it into a more welcoming expression.
Seeing as no more words were coming from the young man, the guest at the door proceeded. "Sorry for the abrupt interruption. I'm sure you must be getting yourself ready to depart soon." Hector raised an eyebrow again. "Oh, where are my manners? I am the director of the Naranja Academy, I am sure you are familiar with it. You may call me Mr. Clavell," he said proudly.
Hector took a couple of seconds to properly process every word that came out of the man's mouth. Then it clicked.
"The director?" Hector cocked his head in surprise, "What-what are you doing here—I mean, huh, how can I help you?" He composed himself mid-sentence, to somewhat match Mr. Clavell's approach and presence.
'No wonder the man looked familiar. I knew I had seen that face before.'
Naranja Academy was one of the most, if not the most, prestigious educational institutions in all of Paldea. Becoming the face representing the Academy was not a position that would go under the public's eye. Hector faintly remembered a few magazines in the airport mentioning the change in leadership after some scandalous allegations. He didn't bother reading the articles however.
"Hector, who's at the door?" The voice of his mother came down ringing from the living room. "It isn't for me, right?"
Turning half his body inside, he craned his head and responded. "No mom, it's, huh," he exchanged glances with Mr. Clavell, unsure how to introduce him, "It's the director."
A panicked and confused 'The what?!' could be easily heard from the door as the woman approached, walking fast and nearly tripping a couple of times.
In no more than a couple of seconds, the woman in question showed up at the door and the expected greeting and pleasantries were shared.
"Mr. Clavell," the woman began, while she fixed her hairstyle, "to what do we owe the pleasure? There wasn't any problem with the enrollment, right?"
The well-dressed man gave a light chuckle in return, bringing one of his hands to cover his mouth. "Not at all, I simply have some business in the area that needs to be attended to. The school didn't send all the paperwork to some of our students. I'm responsible for all of their procedures, so it seemed only fitting for me to come here and deliver them," he said, raising a white paper bag he had been holding. "However, on the way here I remembered that one of our new students' residency was nearby and I saw it fit to pay a visit. It is not every year that we have a student with such a remarkable record joining our Academy."
After hearing this, Hector couldn't help but feel a small sting in his chest. 'It's not worth mentioning," a voice inside of his head echoed, making him shift his eyes away from Clavell. If he noticed, he didn't show it.
"Really?" The woman questioned, surprised. "Given the Academy's status, we thought it was common for all types of trainers to enroll."
"The Academy has worldwide fame, that is correct, we pride ourselves in that. However, it is not every day that a trainer with a resume like your son's enrolls in our classes. I must say, I'm quite intrigued with the effect your presence might have on the students. I believe it would be a positive experience for all. The Unova League has their fair share of fans around the world after all," He finished with a gentle smile at the trainer.
Amongst the many Leagues of the world, Unova wasn't a particularly famous one. Although ratings had been going up ever since Iris took the mantle of champion a couple of years ago. Everybody loves a young and attractive face representing the best a region has to offer. However, even with that, the change in the global rating wasn't big enough to bring it anything closer to the days of old.
From a regional perspective, the local tournaments remained as popular as ever if not more, and have not been affected by the lack of international relevance. In the end, the Unovan League had nothing else to do but resign themselves to that outcome.
His tardiness in responding to the director earned Hector a not-so-light elbow to the ribs from his maternal figure.
"Was this information shared with the students?" he asked with a hint of concern, even though his expression changed little.
Mr. Clavell, unphased by the question, calmly fixed his glasses as he let another smile show on his face. "The school will never divulge a student's information, not without their consent. It matters not if it is already public knowledge, we have no say on this matter. However, most of the teachers are probably aware of this fact, and it would only be a matter of time before most..." He made a small stop, letting out a small cough, "battle-eager students find out about it." he replied, almost tripping on the last words.
"That's reassuring," the trainer sighed, "but I guess it was only a matter of time. I only hope it doesn't interfere much."
He knew that was a lie. He was fairly acquainted with the level of acclaim the trainers that performed fairly well on the Gym Circuit received, eventually peaking for those that made it to the Vertress Conference. Hoping for the public to forget that by only changing regions was a tall order.
"Rest assured Master Hector, if you find anyone or anything disturbing you during your stay in the Academy, you need only let us know and we will assist you to the best of our abilities." He replied, his face hardening. "The last thing we want is for one of our students to feel unsafe."
"Thanks, director. I'll be sure to keep that in mind," Hector said, not expecting the shift in demeanor.
The director's relaxed expression returned soon after, "That is all I wanted to hear. Now." he turned his eyes to the watch on his wrist, "there are still a couple of 'errands' I have yet to finish. I hope you can excuse my sudden departure and arrival."
"Not at all Director Clavell, please feel free to come by again if you're nearby," Hector's mother replied right away.
The director hummed, "I will be sure to keep that in mind." His eyes then turned to Hector. "Very well Master Hector, I will be seeing you on campus. Have a good trip."
Hector nodded back, still weirded out by the title 'Master' the director was fond of using. "Thanks, Mr. Clavell."
Mother and son remained at the door until the director was out of sight. He walked 2 blocks down the road and made a sharp turn to the left, after dodging a girl and her friendly rockruff.
"He was an interesting character, huh?" his mother asked, trying to follow the path the man took even though he was already out of sight, "I suppose what they say about people in high positions having odd personalities is true."
"Something tells me I'll find out about that eventually," Hector quipped, making a 180-degree turn into the house.
After the unexpected encounter, both mother and son returned to their previous small talk while they made time for the taxi to arrive. The latter also went over the contents of his backpack one more time due to stress induced by his mother.
After verifying everything was where it should be, he closed the bags once again, not so happy by the fact that he was forced to check everything to ease his mother's worries. Even with the energy and space-expanding technology the bag had, it was still a royal pain in the ass to take everything out and put it back in.
Hector took a look at his phone after zipping the bag close and opening the taxi app.
The map on the app showed him the current location of the flying taxi, which was represented by a cartoonish icon of a passenger's seat being carried by a couple of Squakabilly, a flying Pokemon he wasn't too familiar with.
'Your ride will arrive in 7 minutes.'
"Looks like it's almost here," Hector announced as he was about to pick up both of his backpacks by the door.
His mother, who had gone upstairs for a second, didn't take long to reply. "Already here? I'm coming!" she yelled from the second floor before rushing down the stairs, nearly tripping on the last step.
Hector, who had already stepped outside, dropped both of his bags on the floor. "It's not here just yet, but the app says it should be arriving soon," he said as he began looking at the sky, seeing if he could spot it from afar.
"So I guess this is it, huh?" his mother said as she stepped outside, wearing a pair of gaudy red sandals that hurt Hector's eyes more than he would ever expect.
"Guess so," he said, pushing away from his mind what he had just seen, "well, it's not here yet, but yeah, it should be any minute now." He shrugged, his eyes still focused on the empty sky.
Without a warning, he felt a warm embrace. The hug was tight, not unwelcome and he reciprocated it shortly after.
"I'll be fine mom, it's just a one-year study, and I can take a flying taxi any time to visit you," he said, pulling away from the hug, "plus it's not the first time I leave the house and you know it."
"I know," she nearly snorted, "it doesn't mean it gets easy. You know more than anyone else the world out there is dangerous. So please, take care of yourself," she said, resisting the temptation of starting another hug.
Hector could only roll his eyes and pick up one of the bags he had accidentally dropped from the sudden hug.
The flapping of wings could be heard from afar, but instead of one big, menacing flutter of wings from a Skarmory or Corviknight, it was replaced by many, much smaller, less intimidating ones.
Squawk!
Up in the sky, a flock of bird Pokemon could be spotted. There were about nine of them, and almost each one of them sported a different feather color from the other. Although it was hard to see, they all had one end of a rope tied to them, the other end tied to the top of the 'carriage'. The carriage itself wasn't all too different from the flying taxis in Unova, it looked like the passenger portion of a small car with no engine, crystal clear windows to all sides, and thick metal bars instead of wheels.
The taxi approached little by little, aiming to land on the street in front of the house.
"Looks like it's here," Hector said, taking his eyes away from the taxi to look at his mom.
"Why don't you take one of your Pokemon with you? The trip is long, you could use some company on the trip," she suggested, shooting a glance at his belt. "Don't tell me they don't like to fly."
Hector took his hand over to the belt, fondling the poké balls attached to it. "I suppose I could…" he muttered. He pondered the situation for a bit. It was not in his plans to take any of their team members outside of their balls for the trip.
After thinking about it briefly, Hector detached a poké ball from his belt, one with a small dent and a few scuffs. It burst open in his hands, a flash of white light coming out. The energy focused on a point in front of him, forming a bipedal creature with pointed ears, its height reaching his waist.
"Za!" the Pokemon huffed.
It took him a second to direct his eyes to his trainer, softening his expression just a little.
"Hey buddy, We'll be departing to Mesagoza soon. How do you feel about joining me for the ride there?" Hector asked nonchalantly.
The Pokemon in question, a Zangoose, turned around just in time to see the taxi land. He wasn't a stranger to that kind of transport, having joined his trainer boarding one countless times in the past.
After spotting both trainer and Pokemon, the driver greeted them with a wave and began unstrapping himself from the saddle. The bird Pokemon flying the carriage slowly descended, with a few of them resting on top of it and others on the ground.
Zangoose turned back to his trainer and nodded, "Zan."
Hector smiled, "Sorry for not asking sooner, I'm aware long flights can be kind of boring."
Zangoose shook his head and squinted his eyes at his trainer.
"Okay, my bad. Geez."
Feeling the reply all too well by the look, Hector sent him a sheepish smile before walking towards the taxi.
The trainer left both of his bags next to the carriage so that the driver, who had already unloaded the vehicle, could load both of them into the taxi.
"Remember to call me once you get there!" his mom shouted from the door. Next to her was the little Maractus who had decided to join her.
Shaking his head, "Yes mom, I will," Hector grumbled.
He was more than old enough to take care of himself, even with a couple of journeys collecting dust in his closet, but he knew better than to try to argue against his mother's caring nature.
He waved to her mom, before opening the carriage's handle, letting Zangoose board first.
Once the driver had loaded the two backpacks and secured them, he gave a small treat to the bird Pokémon before their take off.
Hector took a seat near the window and Zangoose the one on the opposite side. He had almost forgotten how much the normal type liked to look out the window.
As he was getting comfortable on the vinyl car seat, he noticed a high-pitched sound coming from two speakers located in two different corners of the carriage.
"Testing, testing…" the voice of the driver came through the speakers, "Hello, and thank you for choosing the Paldea Taxi company for your flying services. My name is Alejandro and I'll be your driver today." He halted for a moment, by now he already had the attention of both trainer and Pokemon. "Right now it's 11:14 am in Cabo Poco, we will be landing in Mesagoza approximately at 5:32 pm. For your own safety and the one of the driver, please refrain from opening a poké ball or using any type of move that might disturb the travel. We will be departing soon. If you require to get in contact with the driver, press the blue button located on each of the doors. Once again, thank you for selecting the Paldea Taxi Company for your traveling needs, please enjoy the flight." The driver ended with a monotonous and boring voice, a clear sign that he had done this hundreds of times.
'This is much more professional than the ones in Unova, what the hell.'
Hector gave both sides of the carriage a quick glance, easily locating the tiny blue buttons the driver spoke of. He probably wouldn't need to use them, but it was always useful to know.
Just as he finished adjusting in the seat, he felt the carriage quiver from side to side, followed by the hard flapping of wings. A second later, the carriage began to slowly rise from the floor.
He looked through the window to his house, his mom still standing by the door, waving at him.
A smile made its way to his face and he waved back. Behind him, Zangoose did the same, keeping his usual amicable frown.
'It will be different this time, It has to be,' a voice echoed within him.
The wave between mother, son, and Pokémon was brief as the taxi began picking height fairly quickly once it elevated itself from the ground. It didn't take long for the taxi to reach a decent level, nearly kissing the clouds.
Paldea awaits.
I've no idea why I wrote this. You can blame the incredible amount of free time I get at work and Pokemon SV for it.
Worry not, I do have an idea of where to take this story. Kinda.
Stay put and find out.
Also, a big thanks to Cavik for assisting me with the editing. He wasn't obliged to waste his time on this thing but did anyway, what a Chad.
You can find me on the Fanfiction Treehouse Discord server if you want to talk.
/u89gs745gn