"What? Another project, TK, are you crazy? You're never going to finish anything you've started."
You're damn right. Okay but for real, it's been too long since I touched some of my other projects and I want to finish them. But, because it has been too long, I need something to get me back into the swing of things.
This fic is the product of a lot of things, but if you care for those details, they'll be at the end of the chapter. Don't take this as an all-in writing effort from me, I'm mostly just having a little bit of fun here and trying to get back in my groove.
Here goes!
"Seven… eight… nine… ten…"
Cooled by the spring breeze wafting through the open window, the boy eased his way down from his final pull-up, touching down softly on the matted floor. Aside from his labored breathing as he undid his weighted vest, the room was completely silent.
Across the room was a desk bathing in the sunlight, an open book, Uva Academy Student Handbook, sitting on top. A product from last night's preparations, no doubt, as it contained all the information he would need for the upcoming few days.
"Julius! Time check! The director of the Academy should be here in thirty minutes or so!"
Wiping his sweaty hazelnut hair out of his light green eyes, he carefully placed the weighted vest on a rack that also held boxing gloves, hand wraps, and shin guards before calling back he was just about to take a shower.
Honestly, something about this is weird. The director of the Academy, coming to see us? If we were anyone important, sure, but we're just a run of the mill family out here.
Showering and putting on the admittedly incredibly variable uniform, considering how he had been provided both shorts and slacks (of course, opting for the slacks), Julius adjusted the blue tie that capped off the uniform as he headed down the stairs. Several portraits and pictures hung along the wall, depicting a family, a boy and man holding guitars respective to their sizes, a young boy standing at center stage, and other simpler times. Happier times, even.
The sound of glass lightly touching down on a granite countertop greeted him as he entered the living room as well as the smile of his mother, dressed in a loose long-sleeved blue shirt, light brown khakis, and topped off with a bright yellow apron that contrasted with her muted blonde hair tied back in a ponytail.
"Well, you certainly took your time. Already in your uniform?"
Julius nodded as he shuffled through the drawers, pulling out a fork and getting to work on the prepared sausages and eggs. "Hey, mom."
"Yes, Julius?"
"What's the deal with the director visiting us?"
"Hmm?"
"We're not super rich or anything, right? So it's not like we're exactly donating a decent chunk of their operating budget. It just feels a bit weird he'd be showing up to deliver whatever this 'very important' thing you mentioned yesterday was."
He let out a "Mghgmghgm" as his mother ruffled his hair, slightly ruining the side part he had styled it into.
She leaned in close to his face and put a finger up as if to admonish him. "So young and yet so worldweary already. You'll get wrinkles like that, you know."
"I'm just saying it's weird."
"I'm sure he has his reasons. Now come on, you need to finish eating. You've got a big day ahead of you. Even if we do have to wait for whatever this 'very important' thing is."
"Yes, yes…"
After waiting a while once breakfast was finished, the doorbell rang.
"It's unlocked!" Julius said, getting up from the sofa and turning off the TV. Turning to face the foyer as the door opened, he found a dignified older man with a briefcase stepping inside. His matching off-gray slacks and shoes paired with his hair and glasses, contrasted sleekly by a black button shirt and dark blue blazer and topped off with a white fluffed collar.
"You are… Master Merida, I presume?"
"That's my dad. It's just Julius."
There was a brief pause before a nod of acknowledgement. "Of course. I do apologize for the late arrival of your enrollment documents. It seems there was a mix-up as your forms said you were coming from the Galar region."
"Oh. Never been. Grew up in Kanto, but we had a school field trip one time to Johto."
"You should go sometime. Ah, I do apologize for the lateness of my introduction."
"Clavell, is that you?"
Julius' mom, emerging from the storage room, had leaned over and saw the man standing in the foyer.
"Helena, it's been a very long time."
"Oh, yes! Last time we saw each other, you were still aiding Professor Turo. If I had known, I would have prepared a little something. Ah, Julius, this is Clavell. He was one of your father's friends."
Julius blanked for a second before slowly nodding.
"Are you really the director of the Academy now?" Helena asked as she dusted herself off.
"Somehow." Clavell replied with a chuckle. "It was all very sudden. But Master Julius, do feel free to call me just Mister Clavell. I don't do very well being called 'Director' or anything like that. It's far too stuffy for me."
"Ah… right."
"Still!" Helena smiled brightly, looking at her son with a bit of a mischievous expression. "It's a little bit of a stretch to imagine they'd have the Academy send the director out for us. Was there a special occasion?"
Clavell looked back at Julius, who just glanced away. "I'm here to fulfill a request, first of all. Second, I thought it would be best to personally see this through. I am ultimately responsible for everything that happens in the Academy, including its failures. And there is no better way to ensure that Master Julius is ready for his first day there than making sure of it myself."
"Goodness, you've certainly become much more responsible."
If Clavell balked at the insinuation, he hid it well as he presented the briefcase to Julius. "Feel free to keep the briefcase, consider it a gift. It should have your corrected enrollment documents."
"Oh… thanks. What about the 'very important' thing?"
"Ah. It's best to handle that outside. Why don't you go and get your things and meet me out there?"
"Right. See you in a bit. And it's just Julius, I'm not important enough to be called anything but."
As Julius headed back up to his room, Clavell and Helena watched, the former frowning ever so slightly.
"Clavell?"
"I promised Dario that I would look after him. I'm sorry for being a little late to that promise."
"It's fine. I just hope the Academy is a good change of pace for him. It took about… three months of convincing for him to consider it. But there's only so much I can do for him."
"Were you hoping he'd pick up the Paldean guitar again?"
Helena smiled, shaking her head. "I don't need anything like that. As long as he's smiling again, that's what matters to me."
Meanwhile, upstairs, Julius slotted the admittedly small briefcase into his waterproof backpack he took on camping trips. Attached on one of its many loops was a checkered newsboy hat that had an adjustable strap with a faded Skitty patch sewn on it that shook and wavered as he put the backpack on before putting on a plain gray newsboy hat. As he left his room, he looked back at some of the portraits hanging on the walls, nodding once and mumbling a "See you later" to the guitar that hung on the wall as he closed the door behind him.
Outside, the morning sun was shining on a cloudless day. Helena was already trimming some of the plants in the garden as Julius closed the door behind him, finding Clavell waiting.
"Right. Julius, you may not know, but our Academy provides all new students with a Pokemon of their own. However, I must ask if you already have a Pokemon of your own."
Julius shook his head. "No, sir. It just… wasn't my thing."
"I see. Well, that makes it all the more easier, then."
Clavell reached into his pocket, producing Pokeballs that he threw into the air, each of them expanding to be roughly palm-sized before opening up and releasing what was inside.
Six feet ahead of Julius now sat a green cat that appeared to be wearing a mask with how its fur was colored, some kind of red reptilian creature with an expression that made it look like it wasn't even mentally present, and a blue bipedal duck with a hell of a hairdo.
Though, Clavell didn't even get through introducing each one to him before they all slowly waddled forward, looking up at Julius who towered above them.
"Ha, isn't that something? Normally they—that is to say, Sprigatito, Fuecoco, and Quaxly—don't want to leave my side, but they seem naturally drawn to you. Unfortunately, you can only pick one." Clavell turned away, pointing to the house down the street. "I have another house call to make, though. So take your time to decide who your partner will be and meet me there."
"Uh, no one lives there, though."
"Hm?"
"Yeah, we've knocked a few times and while there's some people maintaining the house, apparently whoever actually lives there isn't uh, there." Julius explained, though he didn't get a chance to expand further as Sprigatito bolted up his pants leg and began climbing his side. Before he could coax the cat off of him, Quaxly had leapt up and planted itself on his shoulder, throwing his sense of balance off. "W-whoa!"
"Well, I'll see if anyone happens to be present today."
Leaving Julius to his fate, Clavell left, an air of poise still around him despite his mischievous exit. Julius let out an exasperated sigh as he tried to regain his balance and upon finally doing so, found Fuecoco looking up at him with expectant eyes.
"Haaaa…"
Letting out another long sigh, he slowly stooped down and held out both of his hands.
"Need a lift?"
It let out a cry as it walked onto his hands, with Julius standing up and cradling the red reptile in his hands. From the side, his mother giggled.
"It seems you've got your hands full."
"Tell me about it."
"Hehehe. Well, allow me to put a little bit more on your shoulders then, Julius. I got you something for your big day."
Julius gently moved Fuecoco to his left hand to receive what his mom handed him, blinking in surprise as he held the red box in his hands.
"Mom." He said flatly, looking down into her eyes.
"Yes, Julius?" She asked back with a smile.
"This is… not a Poryphone, right?"
"No, it isn't."
"...are we secretly super wealthy or something? Mom, I've seen the cost of a PokeTech. This is several steps up."
"Off you go, Julius."
"Mom!"
She lightly pushed him down the path, waving him off.
This is the weirdest day ever. He mentally grumbled as he carefully walked along the downhill path, making sure not to lose his balance. However, such a goal was constantly thwarted by Sprigatito continuing to climb all over him or Quaxly saying something before flipping its hair and nudging his cheek with its elbow as if asking him to respond. At the very least, Fuecoco seemed to just be enjoying the ride… though the occasional spew of fire from its mouth made him anxious about his uniform catching fire.
While the walk to the neighboring house should have taken five minutes, he was sure fifteen minutes had passed by the time he made it through the open gates. All the weight suddenly left his body as each of the Pokemon leapt into action. Quaxly dove straight into the fountain to stylize its hair, Sprigatito began to play in the flowerbed, and Fuecoco rammed a tree with its head to knock down some fruit before flambeing it.
Oh come on already…!
Before he could let out another long sigh, a female voice laughed, its owner reaching down and petting Fuecoco on the head, her back turned to Julius.
The owner of the female voice stood up and turned her torso around, her hands on her hips with an amused look on her face. She was dressed in the Uva Academy uniform, but the customization of a dark red bracer on her right arm was readily apparent, contrasting with the dark green highlights in her hair. A light breeze blew her ponytail and tie around as Julius shook his head.
"Not quite. Master Julius has yet to make his choice, you see." Clavell said, exiting the house.
"Sorry about your garden. And I just said like half an hour ago that I don't need to be called that."
"My apologies, Master Julius, but this is how I professionally address all of my students."
The girl looked at him and blinked twice before laughing. "Don't worry about it. And trust me, that's not a battle either of us are winning any time soon."
The two watched as Fuecoco began rolling the charred fruit down the stairs, where it audibly bounced due to the hardened char shell, all the way up to Julius' foot where it then looked up at him.
"...thanks, buddy."
Feeling like it might cry if he didn't take it, Julius picked up the fruit, holding the ball of char in his hands.
"We haven't met yet, have we?" The girl asked as he stood back up straight.
"I tried once, but you weren't home. Sorry for taking so long, Mister Clavell."
"Haha, it's fine. They seem to be more troublesome than usual as I was watching from the window. But congratulations on making it."
"Gee, thanks. I could've used the help."
"Think of it as a valuable learning experience."
"Wait, Director… is this who I think it is?" The girl asked, crossing her arms and tilting her head.
Julius swallowed any remarks he was going to make, instinctively already feeling trouble looming at that sentence.
"Yes, he is a new student to our Academy. Master Julius will be attending as of today. Well, the opening ceremony for the year isn't for a few days, but those are minor details."
"Oh, so you're the one who moved up the road!" The girl said, excitement already beginning to radiate from her. "I've been dying to learn more about you, but I haven't been home in a while!"
She put a hand on her hip and flashed a smile. "I'm Nemona! Normally I'm in the school dorms, but I had to drop home for something. But what do you say, neighbor, wanna be friends?"
Somehow, I don't feel as if I have a choice in the matter. What a day.
"...sure."
"Heh. You don't seem like the excitable type, but I think we'll get along just fine."
"Miss Nemona is the president of our student council and the first and only Champion-ranked trainer in Paldea ever since the system was introduced."
"Mhm! I absolutely love Pokemon battling!" There was a brief pause as she locked eyes with Julius. "In fact, we should battle right now—you and me!"
"Easy now, Miss Nemona. You two may not be direct classmates due to the experience gap, but you'll both be attending the Academy together. There will be plenty of time for battling."
"So we get to be neighbors, friends, and classmates? Nice! We'll be able to battle all we want!"
Julius could feel his precious free time already slipping away. Somehow, he hoped for mountains of homework like that one teacher in Kanto, if only to have something to deflect her with.
"On that note… Master Julius, have you decided on which one of these three will be your partner?"
The three of them had long since moved to stand in front of him, each looking up with expecting eyes. He looked down at the charred piece of fruit that he had yet to take a bite out of when out of the corner of his eye he saw Fuecoco looking down at the ground, its expression falling.
That's not a face I want to see.
He knelt down, lightly tapping Fuecoco on the head with the charred fruit.
"Not bad for a first flambe attempt. Let's practice a lot, yeah?"
He looked up, hearing some chuckling from Nemona.
"What's so funny?"
She lowered the hand covering her mouth that stifled her laughter. "You're pretty grumpy, but you're all right."
He pocketed the charred fruit before Clavell handed him the Pokeball for Fuecoco.
"Pokemon like to walk around a lot, but you can also safely store him inside a Pokeball. I would say raise him with love and care, but it seems that won't be a problem."
Julius shrugged, with Nemona's eyes lighting up. "Hey, Director! Can I choose one of these Pokemon, too!?"
"Hm? Did you not receive a Pokemon when you entered the Academy?"
"No, I was focused on raising other Pokemon at the time. But, now I want to raise a new Pokemon—no, a new team, alongside Julius while he raises his new partner!"
Clavell thought for a second, looking between the two as if he was calculating something before nodding. "I don't see why not. No one should be able to complain, anyways."
"Hmmm… well, since Julius chose Fuecoco, I'll choose… you!"
She knelt down in front of Sprigatito who happily pounced onto her side, clinging to her shirt.
"I'll be waiting for you down at the beach! Come join me when you're ready to battle!"
Oh. So it was already decided.
An idle thought crossed the already exhausted Julius' mind. He could already foresee the trouble he was going to find himself in if he just continued to be swept away by the flow like this. Not that it was a particularly bad sort of trouble like getting involved in something criminal, but if he didn't put a stop to it now, then it would only get harder and harder to get out of the situation as it developed.
If he turned around and walked away, made an excuse that he forgot something at home, then stood up Nemona, it would smother the flames of his involvement with her. She was clearly in a whole other league compared to him; their classes would likely never intersect, so the awkwardness would be kept to a minimum. Besides, she probably already had plenty of friends at her level, it would just be weird to be hanging around a complete newbie like him.
Internally nodding to himself as this conclusion, he steeled himself to take a step back and make an excuse.
—but something gripped his right hand, pulling his arm up.
"The beach is this way, and it's got a great view."
Her grip was relatively strong, stronger than he would have expected for someone of her stature. But he was probably far stronger than her, with this grip being easy to break out of.
He looked up from their joined hands into her eyes, readying to tell her to let go of him. If he could just do that, then all of this would come to an end.
But there was a gleam in her eyes. It wasn't pure excitement or a raging battlelust, as a tiny ember of anxiety seemed to be laced in with sincerity. She wanted this battle and surely, she loved battling as much as she claimed, but there was something more.
Julius swallowed. Whatever he did now would surely change how his Academy experience would be forever. All he had to do was walk away and this would be all behind him.
Clavell's voice snapped him back to reality. "The tradition has been a little muddied in Paldea, but did you know in other regions when two Trainers lock eyes, they are supposedly obligated to battle?"
After about five seconds of contemplative silence, Julius slowly, but surely nodded. "...lead the way."
Nemona removed her hand and his arm fell back to his side. The two silently looked at each other, as if continuing to process the events before Nemona nodded vigorously, snapping out of whatever funk she was in.
"This way! Oh, and make sure to return your Pokemon back to its ball. It's no good if your opponent already knows what you're about to send out, right?"
"Wait, but if we each only have one—"
It was already too late, as Nemona took off.
"Well, Master Julius, it's no good to keep a lady waiting. If you'd like to return Fuecoco to its ball, just press down on it to fire the return laser while pointed at him."
"Right, thanks for the tip."
"Miss Nemona is a little overly fond of battling, but it is perhaps the fastest way to get to know your Pokemon. Might I also add a suggestion that when you have a moment, do give your Fuecoco a nickname. Pokemon under a Trainer seem to enjoy that."
"Got it… well, wish me luck."
"Good luck, Master Julius."
Following the path Nemona had sprinted down, Julius found her waiting on a solid raised blue platform in the middle of the sand. It looked similar to a tennis court, saved for the ubiquitous Pokeball symbol in the middle that cleanly divided it in half.
"Over here!"
"I'm coming, I'm coming."
She asked "Ready to battle me?!" the moment he stepped onto the platform. Even with the mental toll so far, Julius couldn't suppress one snicker.
"Sure thing."
"Perfect! Then, I think I'll use…!"
Clavell cleared his throat before calling out from the sides. "Miss Nemona, please do consider that Master Julius is wholly inexperienced with Pokemon battling."
Nemona blinked twice, looking at Julius, then Clavell, and then back to Julius. Something seemed to be racing through her mind, a momentary flinch of foreseen pain flashing across her face. But she put on a smile, the kind of smile he knew he had forced on before, and Julius felt a frown starting to form on his face. It was evident to him now that there was something more to her, but despite the trouble it would bring, his conscience rested easy in knowing he probably made the right choice.
"Ahahaha! Whoops, I was going to send out one of my usual partners right off the bat."
Reading the mood, Julius opted not to go for the easy remark of having no mercy.
"Well! I guess it's a good time to try out my new buddy instead! C'mon, Julius, let's have a good battle! Sprigatito, I choose you!"
Nemona turned her hips, then raised her left leg and right arm before bringing her foot down, throwing the Pokeball in her right, kicking up her back leg as a counterweight and extending her left arm for balance. The Pokeball hit the ground, sending out Sprigatito on her side of the field, before bouncing back into Nemona's right hand.
Julius closed his eyes, mentally processing the movements as if he was about to try and perform a new exercise or martial art technique for the first time. Barely raising his left leg and preparing to swing it forward to he could throw it back to the ground with a good amount of momentum—
"Master Julius, each Trainer has their own way of sending their Pokemon out. You can send out Fuecoco however you'd like."
Julius tried not to flinch as he reflexively dropped his foot back down to the ground. He took a deep breath, unsure of how hard to throw the Pokeball, and settled on a toss that swung his arm from left to right, looking almost like he was running a guitar pick across all the strings of a guitar with a bit of flourish.
"Let's do this, Fuecoco."
"Looking good, Julius! It's your first Pokemon battle, so just cut loose and have fun!"
I have zero idea what I'm doing, though!
Fuecoco looked back at Julius and nodded with its full body before whipping around to face Sprigatito. While seemingly absentminded, as soon as it was time for a fight, it seemed to snap to attention, already keeping a stance to move left or right at a moment's notice.
Uh, well, I guess it spits fire?
"Fuecoco, uh, do what you did with the orange!"
"Sprigatito, get ready to dodge!"
An orb of fire was spat out from Fuecoco's mouth straight for the stationary Sprigatito, who sprung out of the way, leaving the spritz of flame to explode on the ground. Julius' eyes narrowed as he looked at the distance between where Nemona's green cat was versus where the fire burned before swiftly petering out, instincts quickly building another mental picture.
How intelligent is this thing? No, I can't make assumptions. Julius thought, watching Sprigatito circle Fuecoco before it leapt in, scratching it with its claws while darting past it so that had Fuecoco tried to turn around its opponent would have already been gone.
"Hey, Mister Clavell. Do I have to stay in this box?"
"Yes, during official matches you won't be allowed to go on the pitch."
"I see." Julius replied, heading to the left side of the space he was allowed. "Fuecoco, turn your back towards my voice."
"Oh, come up with a plan, Julius?" Nemona asked as the small fire Pokemon turned slightly, with Sprigatito walking to remain directly in front of it.
"It's just a plan."
He had already gotten a rough idea of Sprigatito's movement ability. They had maybe one shot at this; otherwise Sprigatito would just run circles around them. Fuecoco wasn't fast by any means, so he had to hope that his new partner would hit hard enough to settle this in one strike.
"Fire again!"
"Dodge it, Sprigatito!"
Fuecoco let out a light grunt after taking a second attack, with Sprigatito passing by it—
"Fire at the corner to your left!"
—right into the second fireball.
"Don't let up!"
He didn't really know what else his Pokemon was capable of, but maybe that command would be enough. With a loud war cry of "Fueeee!", Fuecoco charged the still reeling Sprigatito, ramming it with its body mass.
The green cat let out a cry before sliding along the pitch. At the corner that Fuecoco had fired at, it tried to remain standing, but its legs gave out as it closed its eyes.
"Sprigatito is unable to battle! The winner is Master Julius!"
"Wow! Not bad, neighbor!"
Julius let out a relieved sigh, somehow feeling pent up despite the fact he wasn't the one in the ring. Returning Sprigatito, Nemona started to walk across the field, with Julius mirroring her.
"Look at you, winning your first battle ever! You've got more potential than I thought! You're going to be a strong Trainer for sure!"
They shook hands in the center and Julius thought that the storm had passed until Nemona's eyes lit up and she ran back to her side of the field.
"But I want to try a different strategy! Let's go again—just one more battle!"
She needs to cut back on the caffeine. Julius thought as he saw Clavell step onto the field, clearing his throat.
"Master Julius and his Fuecoco are surely weary already from the battle, Miss Nemona."
"Ah, sorry! I got kind of caught up in the excitement…"
Julius fought the urge to raise an eyebrow as an unusually serious look settled on Nemona's face as she turned her whole body to face him, looking straight into his eyes.
"I'm really sorry, Julius. Same to Fuecoco, too."
He paused, weighing his next words carefully before nodding nonchalantly. "Don't worry about it too much. We all get excited over something, yeah?"
Her smile back was a bit subdued, but was a genuine smile nonetheless.
"Hmm. You two seem to be getting along just fine, despite having just met. Can I count on you to take him under your wing and safely escort him to the Academy, Miss Nemona?"
"Yes, sir! Oh, and if Julius is new to training Pokemon, there's an app he'll definitely need! Julius, do you have a smartphone?"
"Uh… I guess I do now." He muttered, taking out his newly given Rotomphone.
"Whoa, a Rotomphone!?"
"Yeah, I'm just as surprised, too. Mom sprung it on me out of nowhere. What's the app I'm looking for?"
"Let me share it with you!"
"I'll leave you two to it. I still have a few matters to discuss with your parents if they are present, Miss Nemona, but I trust I'll see you two at the entrance ceremony. Try not to dillydally too much on the way."
"Of course, sir." The two chimed together, Clavell taking his leave with Quaxly in tow.
After being introduced to the Pokedex app and importing his old settings to his new Rotomphone, Julius followed Nemona back the way they came and past the gates of her house. Not exactly one for a lot of talking, he simply listened to her parrot some words Clavell supposedly said about the wonder of meeting new Pokemon and how each of these meetings makes one grow and change.
"Come on though, I'll show you the ropes of catching Pokemon on Poco Path."
"Julius!"
Just before making the right to go down Poco Path, his mom's voice called out to him. Approaching with a small basket in hand, she smiled at the two while waving.
"Oh, hey mom."
"I almost forgot to give you these. I just had them in the wash."
She handed over two small dark red handwraps, carefully wrapped into a roll for easy storage.
"And oh my, who's this?"
"Oh, I'm Nemona! Sorry for not introducing myself earlier, but this is the first time I've been home in a while. I'll be helping bring Julius to the Academy."
"Oh my."
Helena turned a bigger smile to her son who simply shrugged.
"Now, before I turn you two teenagers loose: Julius, I know you'll be staying at the dorms, but I want you to promise me you'll eat proper meals. You can't just have a protein shake and call it dinner."
He let out a soft sigh before nodding. "Yes, mom."
"Anyways, I've transferred a little spending money for you and I packed your lunch for the first day. You do a lot of exercise, so I made three sandwiches that should last you more than just one day. But share one with Nemona later, okay?"
"The Rotomphone wasn't enough?"
Julius let out a huff as his mom ruffled his hair. "Let me spoil my son every now and then, okay?"
He didn't bother fighting back before taking the sandwiches that were encased in a plastic bag, placing them in his backpack.
"I know every day at the Academy is going to be full of exciting experiences, both good and bad. Make sure to savor all of them, Julius. And if it ever gets really tough, mom is always here to listen, and your bed back home will always be ready for you."
She let out a light "Wah!" as Julius reached around and pulled his mother in close for a hug. With their height difference, she had to stand on her tiptoes as her son tucked his head into her neck.
"Hehehe. You've grown very big, Julius." She whispered, patting him on the back.
"Thanks for taking care of me all this time, mom. I know I've been… kinda rough on the edges."
"You say it like you're not coming back."
"Sorry."
She gave her son a final squeeze before he pulled away. "Have fun,both of you. And don't forget to call home every now and then!"
"I won't."
Waving one last time, Helena returned back to their home.
"Your mom's really nice, huh?" Nemona said, a sliver of disbelief in her voice.
"If you ask her, she'll give you a goodbye hug, too."
Nemona blinked twice before looking at Julius, then the direction of his house, and Julius again.
"Considering it?"
There was a momentary pause before she swiftly changed the topic. "Oh right, I was going to teach you how to catch wild Pokemon! C'mon, this way!"
"Don't worry, Julius, you'll get the hang of it. It's a real art to weaken a Pokemon just enough so it's easier to capture."
A very dry "Thanks for the encouragement" was thrown back as Julius finished inspecting the now fainted Hoppip.
"I guess I shouldn't underestimate that whole Type advantage thing you were mentioning, either."
"Some Pokemon also just aren't naturally inclined to taking hits, either. Sprigatito's not that sturdy, but uh… Hoppips are kind of made out of paper. If you want to catch one, you should probably just have Fuecoco Tackle it instead of using Ember."
"Oh, is that what the fireball attack is called?" He asked. Thank goodness, I don't have to come up with a weird nickname for it.
"There's a whole system for what Pokemon moves are called. If you check the Pokedex app, you can log which moves you've seen any Pokemon you own have used and identify new ones that you encounter."
"Handy. Hoorah!"
He reached up, planting the fainted Hoppip back on a branch. As he pulled his hand away, the rest of its cohort slowly peeked out from behind the other branches.
"Hold him back next time, yeah?"
"Still, that was one punk Hoppip!" Nemona said with a laugh as they resumed walking down Poco Path. "I can't believe it leapt from the tree to fight you!"
"For a moment I thought that it might be fate. You know, so I could finally catch a Pokemon like you've been trying to teach." Julius grumbled back, earning another laugh from Nemona, who put her hands behind her head as the breeze blew by to feel the wind rushing past her. "That was the tenth Pokemon I've failed to catch."
"Like I said, it's a real art. You'll get it eventually. Oh, you could also have a Pokemon learn the move False Swipe, too."
He just let out a sigh in return, earning another chuckle from Nemona.
Poco Path wasn't particularly long, but then again, he had always made the trek out to the town by bike when it was time for groceries. Checking the time, about an hour had gone by.
"Let's take a break once we get to the lighthouse."
"Sounds like a good idea. There's usually some Pokemon hanging around there, so maybe you'll be able to catch one!"
"Gee, thanks."
He wasn't particularly enthused by the idea, but at the very least, he could humor Nemona for now. Had it been up to him, he probably would've just powered through to Los Platos without any detours or breaks, then after eating, gone straight to Mesagoza. But he had a feeling that Nemona wouldn't let up until he caught at least one.
In between where they were and the lighthouse, he certainly tried to catch another two Hoppips, but it seemed that Fuecoco was rapidly gaining strength and even a light "love tap" was knocking them out.
"Oh?"
Both Julius and Nemona let out a curious sound as the "yellow-orange crawling-mouse thing" Julius had found was still raring to go after a hit from Fuecoco. Not that the hit had come easy, as it was fairly nimble, resulting in a few counterattacks after Fuecoco had leapt down, trying to tackle it head on.
"Guh-GYAOOOOOH!"
Feeling the air and ground rumble, the entire battle came to a stop as everyone tried to regain their footing.
"Whoa, what was that!?" Nemona quickly turned her head to the sky, looking around as a flock of Flying-type Pokemon made themselves scarce. "I've never heard a cry like that before! It could be some kinda strong Pokemon or something!"
"I'm still a little preoccupied, so take a look around."
He was starting to get the hang of commanding Fuecoco, at the very least, but the idea of finding a very strong Pokemon that would obviously wipe the floor with him wasn't exactly top of mind.
"I think I see something on the inlet there… it's hard to make out from here. I'll go in for a closer look."
"Don't lean too hard off of the cliffside. Last thing I want is for you to—"
That loud cry pierced the air again, causing even the pebbles along the ground to rumble. Julius looked around, noticing the ground looking a little looser, perhaps from the pounding it had taken and the general footstomping of the battle.
"Julius—?!"
That was as far as Nemona got out before she heard the return laser as the ground crumbled beneath Julius. With his reflexes, he managed to grab onto the rope railings, but the ground underneath him hit the water with a loud splash, leaving him dangling in the air. Taking a glance at the two stakes in the ground holding the rope, he quickly deduced they wouldn't hold for much longer either.
"Gotcha!" He yelled out, managing to snag the yellow-orange rat before it plummeted into the waters.
"Julius!"
"Don't do anything rash, Nemona!"
She made an expression of exasperation. "I should be the one saying that! Hold on, let me see—"
"Don't get any closer! The stakes are about to get yanked out of the ground and if they take out any more ground, then we'll both be deep in it! Hmgh… this guy's pretty light. I could probably toss him to you."
However, the yellow-orange rat in his hands quickly shook its head. Clearly, it had some hesitancy about being flung through the air where a bad toss would send it hurtling into the waters below.
"Okay, that's out of the question. Right. Nemona! Head a little further along the cliff! I can see that inlet you were talking about."
"What am I going to do there?"
"Just keep shouting for me. Once I resurface, I'll swim towards your voice. Look, I know we're in a tough spot, but we don't have a lot of time and it's the best I have."
She looked down at him, Julius returning her gaze with a nod. "I thought I had you figured out, but clearly not. Okay, we'll do things your way."
"Let me know when you're ready. I'll drop… at least, hopefully this rope holds out."
She pulled away from his view, with Julius taking a few calming breaths as he looked at the ocean below. He tried to gauge how deep it was, estimating his likely thirty foot fall. With a good entry feet-first, he had a good chance of not injuring himself. They were close enough to land that the riptide shouldn't tear him away, either.
Man, what a day. Wish I had stayed in bed.
And yet, despite the voice of lethargy regretting ever having woken up this morning, a small spark had formed into an steadily burning ember in his mind.
"Julius! I'm ready!"
"Got it!" He held the yellow-orange rat close to his chest. "Close your eyes."
It tucked its head into his chest, signaling it was ready.
"Nemona, I'm dropping in three! Two! One!"
Nemona started shouting the instant she heard the large splash. She didn't quite know what to shout, so anything that came to mind would do. "Over here!", "Julius!", "This way!" all were thrown out to the wind.
Julius heard her call as soon as his head broke through the water, though he could barely see through his squinted eyes. But his ears were working just fine, so he began his slow, one handed crawl towards her voice.
Soon enough, he felt his fingers dig into the sand and his knees scrape the ground. Shaking, but steadily, he managed to stand up, finally able to rub his eyes.
"You're crazy, Julius!"
"I'm all right, Nemona."
"Here, I have a towel! Dry yourself off!"
A crumpled green towel was thrown down the cliff, with Julius catching it and using it to dry his face and hair, though he noted that his hat had washed away. Considering everything that just happened in the last five minutes, it was a small price to pay.
"What's that big guy, though?"
Finally able to take a breather, he looked around and saw a large purple mass washed up on the beach. Two smaller black and gray dogs with red tints—Houndours, he recognized, from some occasional transfer students from Johto—to them were harassing it, but the purple mass let out a roar that caused them to scamper off. It held out just long enough before collapsing.
Julius carefully approached, taking a good look around from many angles, the yellow-orange rat staying close to his heels. If he had to hazard a guess, it looked like someone from one of Kanto's Cycling Road biker gangs really had a thing for science fiction and dragons couldn't decide which one they liked more so they put them together and it ended up coming alive. It certainly had the wheel of one in its chest, almost like those Cyclizars he saw some kids have at Los Platos. This one definitely had a more sci-fi spin to it though, with its sleeker angles.
"I think he's out of juice." Julius called back, taking off his backpack. "...think it's friendly?"
"Only one way to find out, right? But it doesn't seem so bad."
"Well, if you're out of energy, only one thing to do."
Taking his still soaked backpack off, he looked through it and dug up the sealed bag of sandwiches. Fortunately, the bag had kept them dry, so he opened it up and unwrapped a sandwich.
"Hey. Need a pick me u—whoa!"
He reflexively let go of the sandwich and pulled his hand back as the purple creature lunged forward and ate it almost in one go.
"Someone's hungry."
Letting out a cry, the purple creature sat up on all fours, letting Julius get a better look. It definitely looked like a Cyclizar now, but its head looked like it had radio antennas and its eyes looked less like eyes and more LED lights lit up to look like eyes.
And were those thrusters on its rear legs? Julius idly wondered as it walked towards the entrance of the cave. His thoughts were interrupted by it suddenly radiating a blinding blue light, which after subsiding revealed the washed up creature to be in some kind of battle form, the antennas replaced by yellow and purple lightning, claws extended, its tail crackling with electricity, and—oh shit, they are!
He held his left arm up as sand kicked up from the creature as it slowly floated over the sand back, steadily advancing towards the cave. I guess it doesn't have enough power to go straight back up, huh?
"I think it wants you to follow it, Julius! That cave leads back up here, so I'll wait by the other entrance!"
"Got it!"
Scooping up the yellow-orange rat in his arms, Julius took a brief moment to think about how insane this day was getting. Praying that every day would not be like this at the Academy, he followed the floating purple Pokemon—was it even a Pokemon? It definitely didn't look like anything he had seen on TV aside from a Magnezone. It probably was, though—into the cavern.
Still, whatever it was, it exuded power. The Houndours that were harassing it before kept their distance in the shadows, illuminated only slightly by the purple and golden-white glow of electricity. In his arms, Pawmi was clearly tense, its hair standing up on edge. Julius held it a little closer as if it were a child, causing it to calm down ever so slightly.
At one point, they ran into a seeming dead end. Julius could see the Houndours crowding behind them, only for the purple Pokemon to smash the wall and create an opening. The shaking caused the pack to scatter, giving them more time to move forward.
"—lius!"
"Nemona, is that you!?"
"This way!"
Julius looked over at his godsend bodyguard which nodded back. Thankfully, it seemed smart enough to understand what was going on.
As they passed through one more open area, the purple Pokemon kept its eyes locked with a Houndoom that stood high atop the rock formation. Julius didn't want to think about fighting that thing right now and just kept close to his guard, since if worse came to worst, he'd just have to run. He wasn't too confident he could outrun a full pack of Houndours let alone one led by a Houndoom, but the cave was complex enough in formation he might be able to lose them. Fortunately, though, the Houndoom seemed content to watch… at least, for now.
Following Nemona's voice, they eventually came to another clearing, with sunlight filtering in from above.
"Whoa, am I glad to see you!"
"I should be saying that!" Julius yelled back, his voice echoing, looking up. "How am I going to get up there? You got a rope or something?"
"Uh… we'll figure something out? Maybe if you keep going you'll find a way up?"
The yapping that was coming down from the tunnel they emerged from told Julius that they weren't going to get the time.
Five, ten, fifteen, twenty… and the pack leader, too. Julius mentally counted as they quickly found themselves surrounded. There's no way Fuecoco can win against this many. Might be able to take down one, two, three max. But that Houndoom basically seals the deal.
As he looked around, evaluating the situation, the purple creature looked around and saw the metaphorical walls closing in. Its eyes traced the path up, but it just needed an opening.
"Tauros, bail 'em out!"
The formation of Houndours was thrown into disarray by the raging black bull that suddenly emerged and then charged straight for the leader of the pack.
Before Julius' thoughts processed the idea that he was thankful Nemona didn't sic that thing on him as it made short work of the pack, the purple Pokemon leapt, one of its arms wrapping around Julius who only managed to make sure he was still gripping onto the yellow-orange rat in his own arms before letting out a heave as he was carried off into the air. The purple Pokemon dug its free claw into the stone, using it to slow its descent before pushing off the wall and using its thruster legs to leap up again, making it to the exit.
"Julius!"
Pulled from his guard's arm, Julius found himself dragged along by Nemona to safer ground, where he simply collapsed and looked up at the sky.
"Are you hurt? If you had gotten hurt because I said we should go looking for whatever made that cry, I…"
"No, don't worry about that, just… what a day."
His left cheek was nuzzled by the yellow-orange rat he had rescued, at the very least bringing a soft smile to his otherwise normally neutral face.
"...at least this guy's okay."
"I still think you're crazy for doing that. I mean, it was the right thing to do, but you seriously took a risk."
"Well, I don't think I could sleep easy at night, knowing I just left him there like that."
"Her, actually."
"Eh?"
"Yeah, this Pawmi's female. You can tell from some of the markings."
"Ooooh. Pawmi, huh?"
Nemona snickered as she sat down next to his head. "You really should get used to using that Pokedex app."
"It's my first day, cut me some slack."
"Not too much, though! Otherwise you'll never learn."
"Great, you sound like my mom." Julius huffed, turning his head over to face Pawmi. "Anyways little guy, er, little girl, you're good to go. Try not to go cliffjumping again, I might not be there next time."
The Pawmi paused for a moment before leaping upwards, settling itself on Julius' chest.
"I think she's taken a liking to you."
"Huh. Well… is it fine like this, too?"
"Only one way to find out, right?"
Julius sat up, Pawmi falling into his lap, so he could reach over to his bag and take out a Pokeball. He held it close to Pawmi, who looked up at him with wide, sparkling eyes. After a moment, he lightly tapped it on Pawmi's head, with Pawmi vanishing. The Pokeball shook once, twice, and then came to a stop.
"Congrats on your first capture."
Julius let out an amused huff as he stood up. "Gee, thanks. Where's our purple friend?"
A weak cry came from the side, with Julius and Nemona shuffling over to take a look just in time to see it lose its glorious form and instead returning to its appearance from when it was washed up on the beach. Julius knelt down and put a hand on its head.
"Hey, thanks for getting me out of there. Need another pick me up?"
It slowly nodded, with Julius feeding the purple creature another sandwich as well as taking out a water bottle and what appeared to be a small box of plastic packets.
"What's that?" Nemona asked as he tore one open after opening the water bottle.
"Electrolyte powder. Useful to have after a workout, plus it'll probably cover everything that sandwich doesn't have. Here, wash it down with this."
After feeding it the entire contents of his water bottle, Julius opened up to the Pokedex app and finding its user interface quite intuitive, tried scanning their purple companion.
"...error, likely unidentified Pokemon, no contents found. Closest match: Cyclizar. Gee, so much for that, Nemona."
"Hey, I didn't say it was a catch-all. Still, running into a completely undiscovered Pokemon on your first day? And it saved you? I think you two were meant to run into each other."
"Ha, as if. What should we do with him, then?"
"We can't just leave him. You could try catching him, but I think the safer thing to do would be to bring him over to the Academy and talk to the Director. He'd probably know what to do."
"Then I guess we better get going."
Sensing that the duo were about to get a move on, the purple Pokemon hopped up onto its feet, clearly ready for action. Whatever exhaustion it had seemed to have been completely wiped away by the meal, though it seemed to also have smelled the third sandwich in Julius' backpack as its head veered closer.
"Oi, you just ate. We're gonna starve too if you eat everything." Julius muttered, lightly pressing a palm to its forehead and giving a gentle push. "Just wait until we get to town, okay? I like my mom's cooking, so I'll get you something nice."
That seemed to placate it as they walked along the path, continuing towards the lighthouse.
"Though, hey, if you do become its Trainer, you've gotta let me battle it sometimes!"
Ah, five minutes. That's a new record. Julius thought as he quietly waved her request away. Though, the noise attracted attention from the person he noticed standing by the lighthouse.
"Hey! What are you doing out here!?"
Based on what he was facing, the young man who came running at them before taking up an aggressive stance was talking to their purple companion. He was taller than Julius and fairly well-built, carrying a large yellow rectangular backpack that somehow managed to not match his also yellow vest. His wavy light brown hair with the occasional darker brown highlight was unkempt, matching up with how his tie was worn loose over a long-sleeved version of the Academy's uniform.
"I'm not talking to you two. You can shove off."
"Now that's just rude." Julius muttered, earning him an annoyed stare.
"Hey, I know you. You're Arven, right? Enrolled in the humanities track." Nemona paused, crossing her arms. "Oh, and you're the son of that Pokemon researcher—Professor Turo?"
The young man named Arven whipped around, teeth clenched and fists balled. Instinctively, Julius took a half step in front of Nemona, left foot forward before quickly shifting his weight to be on his back foot. "Doesn't matter who my dad is!"
"Let's calm down." Julius said, a hint of frost in his voice. "That's not what Nemona said."
"Yeah, yeah, whatever. The real issue is what this Pokemon is doing out here! And what's with this form that it's in!?"
"Well for one, if you're the one watching over it, you've got a ways to go. He was crashed down on the beach."
"Let's not forget the part where the cliff edge collapsed and you fell from said cliff."
"I was getting to that. But he ended up saving me. If it's a he, anyways. Looks like he got worn out in the process. We were taking him to Los Platos to get him something to eat."
"Yeah, he looked unbelievably strong after eating a sandwich! Whatever your mom put in there was awesome, Julius!"
It was just a normal turkey and ham sandwich… He thought to himself.
"It can't fight while it's like this, though." Arven grumbled, turning back around. "The form Miraidon takes in battle is its true form."
"Miraidon? That's this Pokemon's name? How'd you know it?"
As if to answer her question, the creature called Miraidon gestured with its head towards the lab.
"No, you can't go in the lab." Arven said, crossing his arms. "It's locked."
Julius wanted to open his mouth about how Miraidon was probably strong enough to just break down the door, but decided Arven was not in a joking mood.
"I don't remember seeing you around, though."
Julius tensed up as Arven turned to face him as Arven squared off his feet and raised both of his fists.
"But given the uniform, you go to the Academy too."
"I'm enrolling this year, yes."
"Ha! Miraidon isn't the sort of Pokemon any old sort of Trainer can hope to command. It's special."
"Huh? How do you know that?"
Arven completely ignored Nemona, focusing on Julius who was directly in front of him. "So you think you're up to ordering Miraidon around, huh? How about I test your worthiness!?"
"Can it wait?" Julius asked, exasperated.
"I'm saying I want to test you, you can't leave me hanging here!"
Julius grit his teeth, losing his patience. "I just fell off a cliff and nearly got mauled by Houndours ten minutes ago, it can wait."
However, Arven seemed to be on autopilot, shaking his head and stretching his arms. "Don't try to make me laugh. Falling off a cliff and then getting rescued by Miraidon, that heap of trouble? Try to at least come up with a better lie! Anyways, I've been feeling all out of lately, so I'm going to use this battle to blow it all away!"
Nemona looked down, seeing Julius clenching his own fist as Arven patted his cheeks with both hands as if to psyche himself up. "Julius, I…"
"...there's a good ice cream place in Los Platos. Tulera's, you ever been?"
Nemona put a hand on her hip, chuckling. "Heh. Sure, my treat. I owe you for the loss earlier, after all. Go out there and win."
"Mhm. Fine, Arven, I'll take your stupid challenge. I don't particularly care about being considered worthy of anything if it's you judging, but if it'll shut you up." Julius muttered, hand over his ball to send Fuecoco out.
But before he could, the ball containing Pawmi burst open in a flash of white light, the yellow-orange mouse taking to the field just as Arven sent out a gray squirrel-like creature.
"Let's do this, Skwovet!"
"MIIIII!"
Julius didn't even have to command Pawmi, which had popped out in an already aggressive stance, as it lunged for its opponent and delivered a scratch to the squirrel's face. Noting it looked like a right hook, his instincts kicked in.
"Tch, just get 'em, Skwovet!"
"Pawmi, step back, arms up!"
Following his explicit commands, Pawmi was able to guard its face against the ramming tackle from Skwovet. As Skowvet pulled away after its attack, Pawmi let out a burst of electricity.
"Nice, it's got Static!" Nemona yelled from the side.
"Ugh, that's not fair!"
"Hit 'em hard, Pawmi! Right hand, uppercut!"
Pawmi heard the command and followed, delivering another scratch to Skwovet.
"Come on, hit him back just as hard!" Arven yelled back, frustration evident as he had been the one to pick the fight in the first place.
However, as Skwovet tried to move, electricity visibly ran across its body and froze it in its tracks.
"Come on already…!"
"Pawmi, knock 'em out! Swing high and then down!"
While there might be some room to correct its form, Pawmi swung its right paw back as it stood up on its back legs, leaping in while delivering an overhand scratch that sent Skwovet's head straight into the dirt.
"Got any more for us?"
Arven grit his teeth, looking away and covering his face with his left hand while tightly clenching a Pokeball in his right hand.
Pawmi was already running back to Julius' ankle, looking up at him as Nemona put a hand on his shoulder. "Wow, that was awesome!"
"Ugh, I guess I was never going to stand a chance using some Pokemon I just caught…" Arven grumbled. "Fine, here. Seems like you can handle Miraidon, so you can take it off my hands. It's a real brute, anyways."
Julius reflexively moved his hands, catching the Pokeball that was whipped at him. Sore loser, huh?
"So why do you have it?" Nemona asked.
"...whatever. That thing's your problem, not mine. Good luck, you'll need it."
With that, he immediately took off.
"What?! Oi, can you not hear me or something!?" Nemona shouted, taking a few steps to give chase but stopping. "Agggh! Fine, be that way! But you better actually show up for class!"
Julius only let out another sigh, but Miraidon came running up to him. "Looks like you're coming along with me, then."
After it nodded, he returned Miraidon to its ball, but noted that his Rotom phone wasn't registering it as one of his team members. If the display was right, it seemed it was registered to Professor Turo.
"I guess that solves that."
"That Arven guy definitely knows more than he's letting on. I'm going to wring some answers from him next time!" Nemona declared, raising a clenched fist to the sky. But after a brief moment, she frowned. "Hey, are you okay, though? He kind of forced you into that battle, so…"
"I guess I'm okay. I could use some time to just simmer down, though."
Nemona turned her head, looking towards the lighthouse. "There's a good view up top. Come on, this way."
Deciding not to let her know he had been up on the lighthouse multiple times at this point, Julius quietly came along with her, climbing up the ladder to the top.
It wasn't an unfamiliar view, to say the least. Everyone knew what Uva Academy was, even if he hadn't been intending on going at first. However, with a little push from his mom, he ended up deciding to take the plunge. Admittedly, part of him always wondered what it would be like. School in Kanto had been fairly mundane and up until the move back to Paldea, he had been working as an eclectic mix of a personal trainer, martial art instructor, and lifeguard. For Uva Academy that hosted students from all walks of life and almost all ages, maybe he'd find something…
…let's not get hasty. That's expecting too much. Wait a second, is that Director Clavell on a motorcycle? That's not a Cyclizar. That is an honest to goodness motorcycle I'd see in Kanto on Cycling Road.
"Not over there, Julius."
"Hm?"
Nemona laughed, her voice causing him to turn around from the unusual sight. "You can see Mesagoza from the hill, too, and everyone can see Uva Academy from Los Platos. It's going to be a blast being classmates, but over here."
Directing him over to the other side, he looked out at the long outstretch of ocean. Just barely, he could see his house from here. His mind wandered to what his mom was doing right now, what might be for lunch, and how she'd probably never let him out of her sight again if she knew what happened on the cliff. Somehow, all of his worries slid away.
"You know, something about what Arven said I do agree with."
Julius turned his head, an eyebrow raised to Nemona.
"That when I'm feeling down, a battle really can just blow it all away!"
He tried his best to hold back the snort of amusement, but it came out anyways.
"I love battling, Julius."
He paused, the otherwise easy-to-follow-up-with-a-punchline phrase coming out oddly serious. "...nothing wrong with that. Gotta have something to love doing, right?"
There wasn't an audible reply, so he didn't bother following up. But it seems the point had gotten across.
Under a soft, partly cloudy sky, the two of them rested against the railings, listening to the ocean below and Hoppips flying above.
Wowwee, a pretty beefy first chapter which is not usually my norm. So a few things I wanted to mention.
First, I was trying to shoot for a more aware Nemona. While her battle-crazy tendencies are still there, I wanted her to be more aware of her isolation and take action in ways as someone who's been hurt by it. Rather than have it just be dropped on you in Area Zero (assuming you take none of the negative options in her dialogue) from what I remember. Things like having Nemona really try and get him to battle by taking his hand with an indirect invitation to battle, which I thought gave a slight sense of desperation, or having her flinch when she realizes that crushing Julius right at the start with her normal team might have pushed him away from battling or being friends after they started to get along with end all of that.
Second, I wanted to build an MC that would fit along the lines of the whole "discovering your treasure" business, and by extension, the other three main characters also having something similar. While playing Violet, I thought only Nemona had anything close to a moderately strong throughline and that's stretching it, at least in execution. I can understand what they were going for with Penny and Arven's, but they didn't feel as earned. So, with Arven, I started him off being much more aggressive in his tone with Miraidon and being clearly more eager to get rid of it.
Third, I wanted all four main characters to have an intertwined story. It was nice to have all four in Area Zero, but it also felt kind of… eh, because it's the first time these four have really interacted in each other's stories. And to me, their paths should have crossed earlier, similar to Octopath Traveller 2.
Also side note I did also kind of want to involve the parent a little more, especially because parenting is one of those weird themes that touches on two of the four main characters and it feels kind of wasted to not have it actively used as a foil to your character? All it really got was a few minor lines in the epilogue DLC about how nice your mom is and I think we can do better than that. Hence, Nemona's ambiguous hesitancy about actually getting a maternal hug from Julius' mother and whatnot.
I wouldn't call this story super high effort; while I do plan to take a majority of general cues from the games, I wanted to put a little spin on it. You can think of it as if I had to adapt SV into a proper anime, I suppose, and how I would expand on things or fix particularly egregious items in the game such as the gym challenges which range from "barely passable" to "boring" to "absolute waste of my time". I don't want to get ahead of myself too much, but uh, the entire Team Star fiasco I felt was a plotline that was in need of a serious overhaul. We'll probably get more into it whenever I get to that point.
Anyways, let me know what you think, if you'd like to see more, or what I can improve.