Spring 2011
Volo was verrrrry glad he didn't wimp out when the twins asked to exchange numbers on that first day of class. Their schedules wouldn't have otherwise lined up at all for the rest of their time in school and Volo would've entirely missed his chance to befriend them. And he had befriended them. He'd doubted himself quite a few times but he was pretty sure people who weren't friends didn't plan trips to other regions together.
"Hurry up! We're going to be late!"
"We're ahead of schedule, Emmet. There's no need to ignore our safety checks."
"Running is perfectly safe!"
Volo looked up from his book just in time to see Ingo and Emmet stumble into one of the terminal's many waiting rooms. Ingo was right. They were well ahead of schedule and Volo was already getting bored. Better early than late though, he supposed.
"Loon!" the Pokémon in Volo's lap chirped, drawing Volo's attention. "Swadloon."
"A whole week of this," Volo told her, unable to keep the fondness out of his voice.
"Swadloon!"
"Ingo! Emmet!" Volo called without getting up, waving the twins over to where he was sitting. "I think I found us a good spot."
"Bravo!" Ingo congratulated, taking Emmet by the hand to drag him over. "Well done, Volo!"
"Is Elesa here yet?" Emmet asked as he dumped his backpack on the seat next to Volo. Surprisingly, it wasn't white. Most of the twins' clothes weren't black and white but just about everything else they owned seemed to be. A white backpack didn't seem all that practical though. Volo suspected Emmet learned that first hand.
"No," Volo told him with a shake of his head. He leaned back in his seat, letting Swadloon crawl out of his lap to investigate Emmet's backpack. "I'm still not totally convinced she's real."
"Elesa is verrrrry much real!"
"Won't believe it until I see her," Volo singsonged, trying his best not to react to Emmet's annoyance or Ingo's bored eye roll. "A trainer and a model? No way you're not just making it up."
"You'll believe it when you see her," Emmet pouted, crossing his arms.
"Elesa told us she had some scheduling conflicts," Ingo pointed out. "She isn't on a university schedule like we are. She might not be able to-"
"Shush." Emmet put his hand over his brother's mouth. "You are just feeding Volo's suspicions. He will see."
Ingo's eyes flickered to Volo who just shrugged. He wasn't nearly as invested in this game as Emmet but he was too deep in to let it go. Elesa was probably real, even if it was totally unbelievable Ingo and Emmet would be friends with such a person. They wouldn't invite an imaginary person on their trip just to maintain a lie, not after knowing Volo for so long. Granted, it hadn't actually been that long but it felt like it and Volo didn't think that was just because of his lack of memories.
"Emolga! Don't-"
"Emol!"
Volo looked up just in time to see Emmet get absolutely nailed in the face by a little flying Pokémon. Instead of checking on him, Ingo openly pointed and laughed. Loudly. Volo didn't bat an eye.
"Sorry Emmet!" a woman's voice said and Volo turned to see a woman in a puffy yellow coat running over. Running over in heels, Volo noticed. This was definitely Elesa and she was definitely a model. Volo was pretty sure he'd never worn heels before but he knew enough people who did to know not just anyone could run in them. "Emolga got excited to see you."
Emmet peeled the little electric-type off his face. "I am Emmet. I am excited to see her as well."
Elesa collected Emolga from Emmet and Volo realized he was staring just as Elesa's eyes fell on him. "You must be the train guy Ingo and Emmet told me so much about."
"I don't think I like trains enough to be known as 'the train guy,'" Volo said, unsure exactly how to proceed. He'd never met his friends' friend before. Most of the people he hung around were pretty antisocial. "I like trains a normal amount."
"Compared to Ingo and Emmet? Definitely. But it's gotta mean something if you impress these two," Elesa told him, flashing a smile, and Volo wanted to sink into the floor. "I'm Elesa! I'm a trainer at the gym here in Nimbasa."
"They didn't say you worked at the gym," Volo said, somewhat surprised. That felt like something Ingo and Emmet would mention.
"She hates her boss."
"The Nimbasa gym kind of sucks."
Volo felt like there was more there that he was missing but he didn't push. They were spending a week together in another region. Complaining about work was inevitable. He'd hear about it sooner or later.
"So what did they tell you about me?" Elesa asked and it seemed almost coy. Volo was having a hard time reading her. Maybe it'd just been a long time since he interacted with anyone like… Well, Volo couldn't say anyone like her because he didn't think he'd met anyone like her before. She was absolutely brimming with personality and Volo couldn't make any sense of it.
"Just that you're a trainer. And you're a model?"
Now it was Elesa's turn to look embarrassed, covering her face with her hands. "Guys! You really mentioned that but not that I'm a gym trainer?"
"Your boss does not see your value. It is better that we tell people about the accomplishments you are actually proud of!"
"I've only done a few gigs…"
"So are you a model?" Volo asked, feeling the need to clarify.
"I want to be," Elesa told him, looking out from behind her hands. "It's a rough industry though. It's hard to find gigs and it's too risky to devote a lot of time to it without a steady job…"
That made sense. Kurt's son wanted to do dance or something, if Volo recalled correctly, but ended up giving the dream up after college to work at Silph Co. It was more secure for the family, he said. Volo didn't know a lot about modeling but he imagined it was a similar game of chance and opportunity, maybe even more so.
"Maybe you'll get something while we're in Galar," Volo offered, not really knowing what else to say. He'd have to Goodrle Galarian fashion once the conversation died down. At least with Ingo and Emmet, there was always trains to fall back on when Volo didn't know what to say. Volo sensed he didn't have that with Elesa.
"That'd be nice but I don't have an agent or anything like that. I don't even know where I'd start looking for gigs in another region…"
"Let me give it a shot," Volo suggested before he knew what he was saying.
Elesa looked at him incredulously. "If you're a business major, I'm not talking to you for this entire trip."
"What? No. I'm a history major. But that's not important." Maybe he should've been a business major. Volo was pretty sure he had some business skills buried somewhere in the back of his mind. Most of the old memories he had of Ingo involved selling him something and he'd handled most of Kurt's sales back in Johto so at least he knew he wasn't bad at it. "As much as I like trains, I'm not Ingo and Emmet. I think we're both going to need a side-project if we're going to survive a week in Galar with the trains."
"I resent that."
"It's true though. No one can keep up with us."
"Come on," Volo coaxed. "It won't hurt, right?"
Elesa looked doubtful. "I don't know. We just met."
"How about a battle then?" Volo suggested, rising out of his seat. "Someone I knew always said a battle was the best way to get to know someone. If I win, you let me be your agent for a week."
"And if I win?"
"I don't know. Uh, you probably like clothes, right?"
"Do you really think that's a good question?"
"Sorry. If I lose, I'll go shopping with you in Galar and carry all your bags. Giratina, I'll even pay for you to have extra luggage on the way back."
Elesa raised an eyebrow. "You really that confident you can beat me?"
Volo put his hands on his hips and tried to look as confident as he felt. "Just because you're a gym trainer doesn't mean you're stronger than me."
"You know Nimbasa City Gym is a Flying gym, right? And I know that Swadloon isn't Ingo or Emmet's."
Volo picked up Swadloon, cradling her close to his chest. "She's new. And I have more Pokémon than just Swadloon. Pokémon that aren't weak to Flying-type moves."
"I also did a gym run and got all eight badges," Elesa countered, matching his stance. "How many have you got?"
Volo was fairly certain he never did a gym run in any region. He was pretty sure the League was founded within the past hundred years or so. "I did a trial run in Alola? I won too."
"That sounded like a question. You sure you beat it?"
"I have amnesia," Volo said without thinking, caught up in the banter to keep the quip back. "Can't really be sure of anything."
Elesa froze and Volo sensed he killed the mood. "I can't tell if you're kidding or not."
"Retrograde amnesia," Volo said quickly without pause. He tried to keep his tone the same, trying to get back into the swing of things. He didn't really want to get into that right now. "Don't worry about it."
Volo saw Ingo and Emmet exchange a glance in the corner of his eye. In front of him, Elesa wasn't reacting. Volo really hoped he hadn't messed things up. It was a silly fear, he knew, but every moment felt like he was one slip up away from losing everything he'd gained.
"So a trial run, huh? Bet it doesn't compare to a gym run," Elesa said finally and pulled a Pokéball from her pocket. "How about a Double Battle? They're Emmet's favorite but I don't get a lot of chances to practice."
Volo tried to hold back his excitement. It'd been a long time since he had a good battle. "You're on."
Elesa really hadn't expected to lose that battle.
She was a strong trainer, okay? Not just anyone could say they'd beat all eight gyms in Unova. She'd even made it through half of the Elite Four before she was defeated and decided to focus her career elsewhere. The Swadloon had been really misleading. Elesa wasn't expecting Volo to have a Sneasl with a plethora of Ice moves to hit her Emolga with or an insanely over-leveled Spiritomb that could tank any hits that her Zebstrika tried to land.
Emmet told her on the plane that he'd seen Volo Goodrle what an agent was supposed to do. Elesa was not feeling good about the week ahead of them.
Then, only a couple days into their trip, Volo got her a job.
"You got me a gig with Macro Cosmos?" Elesa gaped, staring at the email Volo had forwarded to her xtrans. That was the Macro Cosmos Media alright. She checked it about a dozen more times just to be sure.
"They're shooting an ad for Macro Cosmos Energy," Volo explained. "The model they had twisted her ankle getting out of the Corviknight Taxi."
"Serves them right! That's why trains are superior! No one's ever gotten hurt on a train."
"Did you learn nothing in your train history class, Emmet?"
Volo ignored the twins and continued with his story. "I sent them that picture you took with Zebstrika at Steelix Railcars yesterday and it turns out you're exactly what they were looking for. We just need to get to Ballonlea and the job is yours."
Elesa couldn't believe her ears. "Alright!"
"Ballonlea?" Ingo echoed and Elesa did not like the way he said that. "That's just North of Stow-On-Side."
"And?"
"You have to pass through the Glimwood Tangle to get there. No trains go through the Glimwood Tangle."
"Dragons above," Elsa sighed. "We can go to one place without riding a train, Ingo."
"Not by taxi though," Emmet jumped in. "We're not letting you fall off a Corviknight before your big break."
Elesa tried to force down the excitement bubbling up from her belly at Emmet's words but a huge smile still made its way to her face. "You're right. This really could be my big break!"
"Focus!" Ingo barked. "Volo said you were filling in for someone? That suggests this is time-sensitive."
Shit. He was right. "Okay, um, what Pokémon does everyone have? Anyone fast?"
"Durant, Eelektross, Archeops, Klinklang, Conkeldurr, and the Orthworm I traded a Joltik for at the airport."
"Crustle, Garbodor, Excadrill, Haxorus, Chandelure, and Boldore. And several of Emmet's Joltik."
"Spiritomb, Mime Jr, Sneasel, Swadloon, one of Emmet's Joltik, and the Zigzagoon I caught when we got here."
"I have both my Emolga, Zebstrika, Stunfisk, the Yamper I just caught, and the Wattrel I traded Emmet's Joltik for at the airport."
"Wait, you did what?"
Elesa ignored him. Emmet had a million Joltik and Elesa knew which ones he was planning on giving away anyway. All the ones they'd brought to Galar were just to fill empty party slots. Except Volo. He seemed to like his Joltik quite a bit. "I can ride Zebstrika. My Flying-types can scout ahead for the best path."
"I can ride Haxorus," Ingo said, "but we'll have to do a few Dragon Dances to keep up with Zebstrika."
"I can ride Eelektross. He can hold onto Haxorus's tail and Haxorus can just pull us along," Emmet said and that sounded like a terrible idea. Elesa loved it. "Volo can ride my Archeops then."
"Aren't Archeops famously bad flyers?"
"He mostly runs," Emmet told him innocently, holding up Archeops's Pokéball like an offering.
"It's Archeops or my Excadrill," Ingo added, "and I don't think you want that."
"Fine," Volo groaned, accepting the Pokéball with a glare at Elesa. "I regret beating you in that battle."
"I don't!" Elesa replied, throwing her arms around Volo for a quick hug. It clearly caught him off guard but she didn't care. "Thank you so much for this! I'll give you a cut of the pay, I promise! Unless the pay is bad. Then you'll just get another hug."
"Just get on your Zebstrika," Volo sighed. Elesa could tell he was trying to look mad but he was smiling. "You won't have any pay to worry about if we don't get there."
"Right." Elesa took a step back and tossed her Zebstrika's Pokéball. "Full speed ahead everyone!"
Lllllllllllll
Volo felt like a complete and utter fraud but they were here and Elesa was doing her thing so it was probably fine? He'd fallen off Archeops multiple times in the Glimwood Tangle and his new Zigzagoon had run off for what felt like hours so Volo felt pretty shitty right now but the joy on Elesa's face made it all worth it.
"I thought modeling was, like, clothes," Volo said from the sidelines where he, Emmet, Volo, Swadloon, Eelektross, and Haxorus watched Elesa… Volo had no idea what she was doing. He should probably figure out what exactly models did if he was going to try to be friends with Elesa. Back to Goodrle tonight, it seemed.
"It is," Ingo told him, lazily scratching Haxorus's neck behind her blades. "Most of modeling clothes is advertising though. A lot of what they do overlaps with acting but with more emphasis on appearance than character."
"You should know that," Emmet said, poking Volo in the side. "Elesa's going to ask you to do this for her again."
Volo was not looking forward to that. He'd been naive when he challenged Elesa to that battle. None of the email addresses he'd found online led to anything, let alone anything on such short notice. It was sheer luck the Zigzagoon he caught was clever enough to sneak into a Macro Cosmos Media business building and snatch a wad of papers out of the trash, and that was only after multiple attempts to give Sneasel his xtrans to take pictures of people's computers. Probably not a good sign he started this job by planning a heist to get a contact.
But, he had and how Macro Cosmos thought he and Elesa were professionals. Hopefully slapping a Macro Cosmos shoot into Elesa's profolio helped her get more gigs back in Unova. It was a bg company afterall.
"Thank you for coming so last minute," a woman said and Volo sat up straighter, immediately putting on his professional face. Why he had one, Volo did not know but he knew he needed it. This lady was important, even if Volo failed to catch her name. He thought it was Olive or Oleana or something but that might've just been something he read online in his desperate scrabble for information. "Honestly, I wasn't expecting the talent to suit the role but I'm really impressed with Elesa's work so far."
"Oh?" Emmet leaned forward and Volo wanted to swat him back. "Do tell."
Olive or Oleana or whatever smiled. It was a professional one, not a genuine one, but Volo thought that was a good sign anyway. "Macro Cosmos Energy deals in power, yes? An Electric-type specialist is more than we could ever hope for. Her aesthetic fits the product perfectly. Her Pokémon too. Her Zebstrika is powerful enough to catch the attention of trainers and her Emolga are cute enough to appeal to a wider audience. Pokémon often get nervous in front of the camera but the dynamic Elesa has with them on screen is the best I've seen in quite some time."
Volo tried his hardest not to look too excited. That was high praise. He thought Elesa was good but he had no reference to gauge her talent. This woman was telling him Elesa's aspirations were more than just a pipe dream. "That's good to hear."
"We're actually planning on launching another round of Macro Cosmos Tech advertisements," the woman continued. "I think Elesa could be a good fit."
It was really hard not to start grinning right now. Stay professional, Volo. Come on. "We're from Unova, actually. I don't know Elesa's plans for Galar but I think she'd like to diversify her portfolio with some jobs overseas."
Volo hoped Emmet and Ingo were listening in. He was killing the game right now, judging by how Olive or whatever her name was nodded along. "I'll get the details to you."
Volo nodded and that was that, the woman drifting off to go talk to someone else. The moment she was out of earshot, Volo slumped and let out a long breath. "That was so stressful."
"You did so good though!"
"It really looked like you knew what you were doing," Ingo agreed with a nod. He looked over back at Elesa who had her Pokémon put away and was now shooting something or another all on her own. "This is huge for Elesa."
"I know," Volo said, even though he really didn't. Ingo and Emmet probably understood what this meant for Elesa far better than he ever could, even if he read every Bulbapedia page on the industry that he could find. Volo expected that to make him a little sad. Ingo and Emmet were his best friends but he wasn't theirs. Elesa was. It didn't upset him though. Their friendship was plenty strong already. Hopefully the four would be hanging out much more in the future.
"How did I look?" Elesa asked when the shoot was done, sauntering over to them with a huge smile on her face. She threw her arms up and both Ingo and Emmet hurried over to hug her.
"Verrrrry good!"
"Really excellent! Bravo!"
"The woman who organized this thing was really impressed," Volo told her once the initial excitement died down and they began walking away from the set. To the Pokémon Center for the night, it seemed. "I think you can get some more gigs with Macro Cosmos if you want."
Elesa bit her lip. "I was hoping to do more in Unova but it's not like working for Macro Cosmos would hurt that… and they pay the big bucks."
"You found out how much they pay?"
"Yeah. I've got rent for the next few months! Maybe I can look at getting a better place, even. I have way too many roommates for a shitty apartment." Elesa paused. "Hey, you three have housing plans yet? You guys get kicked out of the dorms after your first year, right?"
Volo did not know that. Ingo and Emmet, apparently, didn't either and that was how the four of them ended up renting a house together for the next few years.
