A bit of a short A/N before we get started. I'm writing this before the actual story, so I have no idea where this is gonna go. I wrote Memories of Starlight some time ago and as I kept writing, my interest in Hoshi as a character began to wane more and more. Eventually, I had to struggle to really get into his headspace. More intuitive characters like him are hard for me to write extensively for, and I was really beginning to regret some personality choices I made for him early on, but couldn't justify head trauma as a way for him to change since it seems too much like a cop out for me. So I stopped. Not to mention things sped up in life, and writing fanfics kind of became a thing of lesser importance; especially compared to the original works I'm planning.
This is going to be a blatant gary-stu kind of work, I think. If you hate overpowered characters, or original main character stuff, this story probably won't interest you much. Though given how much of this crap I tend to write anyways, you probably already knew that. I don't know how bad it'll get, since I really like starting my characters with practically nothing and making them flawed guys, but this is just a "just in case" forewarning.
Honestly, this originally was planned to be another Genshin fic, but I think part of me just... died a little trying to slam my face into wiki after wiki of Genshin lore. It's stuff that really requires some context with Chinese legends and history, and I'm completely drained from it. So I slid over to Pokemon. I've actually been rewatching a few movies with my wife and reading a few Pokemon fanfics and I actually know shit about Pokemon without having to constantly look things up. So here we are. I'm actually debating on whether or not to base this loosely on Pokemon Academy Life: Forever, which is a fanmade visual novel type thing and is pretty solid, go look it up, or if I want to shove myself into something like most SI fics go. Guess we'll find out in a sec. Anyways, this A/N has gone from a short notice to a long rant already 380+ words long. See you at the bottom!
I*P*C
Death was... certainly not what I expected. It was warm, and there was a soft thumping sound every few moments. I'd been hit by a truck trying to shove a child out of the way. He'd been playing street hockey with his friends, and had noticed too late that they'd cleared off the road. I'd walked out just in time to see what was about to happen, and just... acted. Some people call that a heroic trait. I'd like to believe them. Though I'm not sure that's really the case. In a moment like that, you have a split second decision to "do something" or "do nothing", and I've always raised myself to do the former. Even when it's a really, really dumb idea.
I guess saving a kid isn't what you'd call dumb, but to me it was. It was dumb because it was preventable. I could have come out earlier, like I'd originally planned, or even just warned the kids to be aware of their surroundings. I didn't really talk much with others aside from my coworkers and my wife, and what kind of creep would people take me for if I just walked out and talked to them like that? I know that inherently there wasn't anything wrong with it, but society...
Well, I guess I didn't really have to worry about that, now. I was dead. No getting around that. At least, I hoped I was. Don't get me wrong, I'd miss my wife and life, but she still had her family to help her get over me being dead, and I didn't want to saddle her with thousands in medical bills; especially since I was the only one of us who worked. No, this was probably the best possible outcome aside from me being able to get out of the way on time. Damn, if only I'd kept up my cardio.
I felt my world shudder. That was weird. I was dead. I was supposed to end up in Heaven or something, right? I mean, my faith isn't the strongest out of everyone I've met, but I was kind of banking on 'good enough' being a thing. This didn't seem like a torturous enough existence to be Hell. The world shuddered again, and I felt myself... sliding. My mind raced through the possibilities before it landed on one. The most likely. Warm space. Rhythmic beating. Finally, screaming as cool air and light began to hit the top of my head. I felt something cushion me as I gazed up at a sterile white ceiling and a masked man wearing scrubs held me aloft. I stared at him. He stared at me. I did the only thing I could think of.
I*P*C
"It's a very healthy baby boy, miss Halui!" the doctor, Doctor Kahu, told her. "And he's got quite the healthy pair of lungs on him!"
The child screamed into the open air. Not quite crying, but this was good enough for the doctor and nurses to determine the baby was healthy. The sun-kissed woman smiled over at her baby boy. Her precious baby boy. She gently held the infant in her arms. Nine long months, and here he was. After that silly one-night stand of hers, she'd been terrified of being a mother, but now he was here, and she couldn't think of being anything else.
"Do you have a name in mind for him, miss Halui?" Dr. Kahu asked. "We can wait, if you'd want. I'm sure you'd like some time to recover."
"No, no, I have a name," Kaliope Halui replied, still a bit breathless from labor. "Taiyo. It's from Johto, it means 'Sun.'" The doctor nodded, and the nurse wrote the name down for the woman. Taiyo Halui.
"A very interesting choice, miss," the doctor commented, but Kaliope opted not to explain further, much to his visible disappointment. Taiyo's father had been from Johto, visiting family in Malie City on Ula'Ula Island, and she'd been invited to a party by some old school friends. The twenty-year-old woman had had a bit too much to drink, met a very handsome stranger, and... well, here she was, nine months later. She hadn't even gotten the man's full name before he'd left. It was... unfortunate, but she'd have to make do. Thankfully, she had a job at the Hano Grand Resort, and they were quite kind to put her on maternity leave for a year or two until she could work again. She also had several friends and coworkers that she could rely on for help. It wasn't perfect, but it was a plan. Honestly, having a kid was always part of her plan. She was a pretty young woman, with silky black hair and soft brown eyes, as well as a lovely hourglass figure. Or at least, she used to. Still, getting pregnant this soon was the abnormality, here.
"Well," the doctor continued, drawing Kaliope from her thoughts when it seemed like she wasn't about to answer his curiosity. "You get some rest with your child, and we'll be right back to ensure he and you are both healthy."
"Thank you doctor," Kaliope responded, looking down at the baby boy resting in her arms. Little baby Taiyo. She cooed and gently bounced him in her arms, his screaming having since ceased as he looked up at her with soft green eyes. Like his mommy, but with his daddy's color. He was... oddly calm for a baby, not screaming or crying, but not babbling, giggling, or anything else those books had said he should be like. "You're mommy's very calm baby boy, aren't you, Taiyo?" she asked softly, not expecting a response. His eyes seemed to scrunch up, though, which was cute. "Are you gonna be a good boy for mommy and not cause her any more stress?" she asked as well, giggling at the pleasant thought. No, knowing her, her kid was going to be a hellion. Still, this would be nice while it lasted.
I*P*C
"I don't know, Cass," Kaliope muttered as she watched her little boy sit on the sand, gently poking at a visiting Pokemon Trainer's Shellder on its shell. Her four-year-old son seemed to be deliberately avoiding the Pokemon's tongue and body, and the Pokemon itself seemed to be indulging him by closing its shell whenever he poked it, and popping its face back into the open when the finger was removed. The Pokemon's trainer was nearby, but Kaliope was keeping an eye on her boy as well. Just in case. "The doctor says he's normal, and that it's probably just a phase, but... I'm really worried about him."
"You've been worrying about him since he turned two, Kali," Cassie told her friend, the cute blonde taking another sip of her sangria from its glass. "So he's a little quiet and likes to spend more time around Pokemon and their trainers than kids his age, so what? All kids think Pokemon are cool. Let him think they're safe for just a bit longer."
"But it's that he keeps asking questions that I have no idea how to answer!" Kali protested, lowering her voice after seeing a couple nearby shoot her a glare for yelling. "He keeps asking things like 'How smart are they', 'Do we eat them', 'If a Thunderpunch hits a Hydro Pump, does the move's typing affect how they interact', stuff like that! I wouldn't even know what type those moves are if they didn't include those little hints in the name!" Kali huffed, catching her breath as Cassie took another long sip of her drink. "He's four, Cass! He already has the type chart memorized, knows at least the bare basics when it comes to any Pokemon he comes across, and every time we watch those tournaments on the tv, at his insistence by the way, he always has some kind of idea who's gonna win and why!"
"I mean, so your kid is a genius?" Cassie tried to suggest with a shrug, earning an unamused glare from her best friend of ten years. "I dunno what to tell you, girl, he doesn't seem like some kind of sociopath, or psychic, or whatever."
"And that's why I'm worried," Kali finally admitted with a sigh. "You know my grades sucked in primary school. Honestly, I'm pretty sure his dad was some kind of hobo." She looked back out at her child, now commanding the Shellder to freaking use Water Gun. And it responded. "He has this... second nature with Pokemon. I've never seen anything like it. Even when my dad brought home an Eevee when I was a kid, he had a hell of a time trying to train it not to attack through the window every time it saw something it considered a threat. Tai just... picked it up one day from watching tv and passing trainers battling around the resort."
"So he's that smart, huh...?" Cassie was now watching her son with rapt interest as well. "So are you gonna bring home a Pokemon for him or something? I mean, that kind of skill has gotta be used, don'tcha think?"
"I don't know," Kali shook her head, already feeling hesitation welling up inside of her at the thought. Being a trainer... every kid wants to be one. But as you get older and realize just how dangerous it is... Well, Pokemon Rangers are a thing for a reason. Not only are wild Pokemon as likely to eat you as they are to leave you alone, but what if you get on the wrong side of some jackass who's had a bad day? It's not uncommon for trainers to go missing, never to be seen again. "I don't want to think about it right now. Arceus, the Island Trials themselves are going to drive me to an early grave. He's been asking about those, too, Cass. I don't want him to do them... Did you know that ten kids last year died from getting attacked by wild Pokemon!?"
Cass winced, obviously remembering. "Yeah, it was a huge scandal all over the news. Unprecedented, they called it," she remembered out aloud. "They had to shut the entire thing down because of it. I hear the remaining kids are gonna try again this year."
"Only four of them are," Kali corrected her friend, who took another sip from her now almost empty drink. Kaliope glanced back at the beach as the trainer with her son seemed to have left, leaving Tai to stand at the water's edge, staring out into the ocean. She watched as some kids invited him to play with them, probably a family on vacation, but he turned them away with a sorry expression. Not that the kids seemed to care. "The rest decided to drop out of it and not become trainers." Kali and Cassie remained silent for a few minutes, each of them caught up in their own thoughts.
"There are times when he acts like a normal kid," Kali spoke up, her friend's eyes wandering back to her. "At least, he pretends to. When we're with my family, or he's with me at the resort because I can't afford a babysitter for him that night. He smiles, he laughs, he asks these... stupid, dumb questions. Like what Pokemon is on the tv or whatever. I know he knows. He knows that I know he knows. It's just so... urgggh!" Kali growled in frustration, though the feeling was quickly lost. "I asked him why, and he just stared at me, Cassie. He told me he was sorry. For not being a normal kid. Arceus dammit, he fucking knows!" Kali didn't shout this time, keeping it hushed, but she wanted to. "He knows he's not... not normal, and he apologized to me for it! I don't... he was so sad, Cass, you don't understand. My son, my little Tai..."
Cassie was silent, obviously taken aback by the new information, but not knowing what to say. "Kali, I-" she tried.
"No, no, it's fine," Kali shook her head, watching as her son left the shoreline and slowly walked back up to the beach to where she and Cassie were sitting near the tiki bar. "I just needed to get that off my chest. It's been weeks, and it's just... it's been eating me up, you know?"
"Mom," her son spoke up before Cassie could respond.
"Yes, sweetie?" Kali asked, her previous indignations wiped from her face. She knew she couldn't hide them from him, though, but he let her pretend. "Is something the matter?"
He held out his left hand, where a bright red line raged across his palm. He pointed at the shore with his other hand.
"I got too close to a Tentacool," he told her, entirely too calm for a boy his age. Kali noticed in the corner of her eye Cassie staring at him like he'd grown a second head. "Does the resort have a first aid kit I can use?"
"Oh, honey," Kali sighed, but got up hurriedly from her seat. "Sorry, Cass, I'll be right back," she told her friend, who waved her off to let her know she understood. "Let's get you inside, alright sweetie? We'll get this looked at, and I want you to stay away from the shoreline for the rest of the day, alright?"
"Ok, mom," he replied entirely too easily. He should be throwing a fit. "Is it ok if I go see the battle courts?" Kali bit her lip as she carried her son back to the resort, the boy taking care not to close his left hand or press it against anything. "I promise I won't get too close. I just wanna ask some of the trainers some questions."
"As long as that's all you'll be doing," Kali agreed after some thought. They walked silently as she took him inside and to the clinic. The nurse, Leia, gave them a wave as she treated some guy with sunburn. She and Tai had been here far too often for her liking. She already knew where the antivenoms and bandages were.
Tai sat on one of the chairs as Kaliope knelt in front of him, already practiced in curing ailments from Tentacool stings and other minor injuries her son had acquired over the last year. They were quiet the entire time as Tai watched her.
"I'm sorry, mom," he spoke up as she was wrapping the bandages around his hand.
"Whatever for, sweetie?" she asked, not sure if she was going to like the answer.
"You and Cassie were talking about me, weren't you?" he answered her question with a question of his own. "I saw you two watching me on the beach. I didn't want to interrupt." She'd be ok with that. She'd be happy, even. She'd never be upset with him interrupting her. Pulling on her arm as she tried to talk to her friend. Running up to her with pure, unrestricted joy in his eyes. Kali said nothing. "I'm sorry I'm not what you expected me to be." Kali embraced her son before she could snip the leftover bandages, shaking her head slowly.
"Don't you ever say that, Taiyo," she told him, speaking softly to not be overheard while trying to hold back the tears in her eyes. "Just... stop saying you're sorry. You're my son, alright? I don't care what you or anyone else thinks. You're my baby boy, and I know sometimes I don't- I can't understand you or what you talk about or what you ask me, but I love you, ok?" She pulled herself back, forcing herself to meet his eyes, and forcing him to do the same with her. "You have nothing to be ashamed of. In fact... mom's sorry that she can't... I'm sorry I can't understand you. Will you forgive me?" The two were silent for a few moments before Taiyo nodded.
"Of course," he said. "You're my mom, and you take care of me and love me. I don't think I could ask for a better mom." That got the tears flowing as Kali hugged her son again, laughing through the crying.
"You're darn right, buster," she said through the laughter, and she heard her son laugh as well. It was short, more like a chuckle, really, but it was the first time she'd really heard him laugh at anything. She decided it was a beautiful sound.
I*P*C
Emmi stared at the weird kid reading the book all by himself on the playground. He had black hair, like she did, but his skin was a bit darker like her cousin's. He was supposed to be from Akala Island, which was interesting, but during lunch and even now during recess, he didn't really talk to anyone. He was too focused on that book he'd brought from home. The teacher, miss Luka, had taken a look at it and asked if he actually understood it, and he'd said yeah. Emmi didn't believe him, and neither did Kanu, her neighbor and best friend.
"He's still reading that thing?" Kanu asked, sticking his finger in his ear to clean it out while he held the basketball under his other arm. "I bet he's got a really dumb Pokemon. Like Caterpie or something."
"He said he didn't have any Pokemon when miss Luka introduced him, dummy," Emmi shot back before looking back at the boy. "He said his mom can't afford to buy any Pokeballs."
"That's dumb," Kanu spat on the ground. Gross. "Can't they just buy a Pokemon instead? It's way cheaper that way." Emmi couldn't argue that. He must be super poor, then. Weird. "What's he reading, anyways?"
"I dunno. Wanna ask him?" Kanu was quiet at Emmi's invitation. She shrugged, walking over to the boy. Taiyo, she thought his name was.
"Hey," she greeted him as she got closer, though he didn't raise his head until she was basically standing in front of him.
"Hi," he greeted back, not rudely, just... quiet. Like he wasn't used to being talked to. Double weird. "Can I help you?" Ugh, he sounded like her mom.
"Whatcha reading?" she asked, trying to turn her head so she could get a look at it. Kanu walked up next to her, still looking away from them. "It must be pretty cool if you're reading it for so long."
"I, uh, don't think you'll be very interested," Taiyo said, but didn't do anything to stop her. There weren't a lot of pictures from what she could see, and there were a lot of words she didn't understand. What the heck did divergent behavior mean? It was obviously talking about Beedrill, whatever that was, but she didn't get the rest. "Well, it's a book about Pokemon psychology."
"The heck's that mean?" Kanu asked, definitely not patient and not understanding a thing. Not that Emmi was any better.
"It's how different Pokemon think," Taiyo explained, setting the book down so they could see it better. Emmi was interested, and it looked like Kanu was trying his hardest not to look interested too. "See, Weedle is a Stage 1 Pokemon, and Beedrill is its Stage 3. Beedrill live in colony hives, but Weedle aren't found in those hives. Neither are Kakuna, their Stage 2 form. So researchers think that evolution changes not only how Pokemon look, but how they think and interact with the world around them, too."
"I don't get it. Doesn't evolving just make them stronger?" Kanu asked, lost. Emmi nodded in agreement, not quite sure what everything Taiyo just said meant. "They get bigger and stronger and that's that, right?"
"Not really," Taiyo said, shaking his head like a disappointed teacher. "It's ok. I had to read a lot to really get any of this, too. Trainers and most people aren't expected to know this kind of stuff, anyway."
"So why are you reading about it?" Emmi asked, now genuinely curious.
"Because I want to know everything," he said back quickly. "I'm going to be the strongest ever Pokemon Master. To do that, I need to know everything I can about Pokemon and how they feel, fight, and think." She guessed that made sense.
"Hah! How can you be a Pokemon Master without a Pokemon?" Kanu asked, grinning. He pointed a finger in Taiyo's face, shoving it against his nose. "I bet you've never even been in a Pokemon battle before! I already have two Pokemon, so there's no way you'll beat me!"
"I guess you're right," Taiyo said, shaking his head. Emmi felt kind of bad for him. "I don't have a Pokemon, and mom can't afford to waste money on Pokeballs. I don't dare ask any trainers, either. That'd just make her look bad." Kanu seemed surprised, probably hoping for some kind of angry response. Emmi definitely would have been angry if it were her. "Maybe someday when I have a Pokemon, we can battle. But I guess that won't be today."
"Wait!" Emmi shouted, getting the boys' attention. She unclipped her sole Pokeball from her skirt's belt loop, and offered it to Taiyo. "Here, you can battle with mine," she told him. "I mean, I know it might be hard to get her to listen to you, but it's something, right?" Taiyo stared at the Pokeball, then at her, and he smiled. She felt Butterfree in her belly at the sight.
"Thanks," he said, taking the Pokeball from her. "I owe you. I'll make sure to take care of her during the battle."
"Alright! Here we go, then!" Kanu shouted excitedly, getting the attention of other kids as he raced a few feet away and grabbing his first Pokeball. He flung it into the air. "Go, Scratchy!" A red beam of light shot out from the Pokeball, illuminating the small playground as a small crowd gathered to watch the battle. From it stood a brown furred creature with a blonde stripe, a Yungoos. Kanu caught his Pokeball as it recoiled back to him, stumbling a bit from the force. Emmi watched as Taiyo glanced at her and nodded, before sending his own Pokeball out.
"Time to battle," he shouted, and from this beam of light was a Caterpie. Kanu shot Emmi a look before pointing at the little green bug. Before he could get a word in, though... "Caterpie, use String Shot across the ground!"
"Wha- hey, what!?" Kanu shouted, not sure what was going on. Emmi thought that her Caterpie, Chiipii, would definitely have no idea what to do, but with a squeak, the Caterpie did exactly as Taiyo asked without a second thought! That was so cool! "Uh, Scratchy, use Tackle!" The Yungoos bolted towards the tiny Caterpie. While it should have been an easy hit...
"Out of the way, Caterpie," Taiyo commanded, and the bug moved aside with plenty of time. "Good. Now String Shot directly!"
"Hey, Scratchy, dodge!" The Yungos, as much as it tried, didn't seem to move fast enough to avoid the String Shot. "What gives!? Why are you so slow, Scratchy!?"
"Heh," Taiyo grinned as the sticky string wrapped around the Yungoos. "Reel that string in and give 'im a good Tackle, Caterpie." With a high-pitched squeal, Chiipii launched herself at the Yungoos, slamming into it at a speed Emmi never thought was possible for her little bug. She definitely had to figure out how to make that work! The Yungoos tumbled across the ground, and didn't move. In a flash of red light, Kanu returned Scratchy to his Pokeball.
"What the heck was that!?" He shouted at Taiyo. The other boy shrugged before pointing to the ground, where Chiipii's String Shot lay.
"The String Shot move creates sticky string on all sides. Enough to slow down other Pokemon," the boy explained. "It might not slow down a Pokemon permanently, or for very long, but it makes them slow enough for a Caterpie to react in time." Kanu was obviously not happy about that.
"Yeah, well how about one that doesn't need to touch the ground? Let's go, Flappy!" Kanu tossed out his second Pokeball, and out popped a small bird with a very sharp beak. A Flying-Type Pikipek. Kanu's expression was smug, and Emmi felt her heart sink. Flying Types were super effective against her Caterpie's Bug Type! Taiyo looked worried, but he didn't say anything about giving up. He just... stood there, staring at the flying bird Pokemon. "What're you gonna do now, huh!?"
"Taiyo..." Emmi called out weakly, not sure she was willing to let Chiipii go through battling a Pikipek.
"Just trust me," Taiyo said, his voice calm. He didn't sound worried, and something about that made Emmi feel better. "I have an idea."
"It's over! My Flying Type beats your Bug Type! Flappy, use Peck!" The Pikipek let out a shrill cry as it dove towards the little Caterpie. "You're finished!"
"Caterpie, spray your gas from your antennae!" Taiyo shouted. Everyone around them had various stages of confusion on their faces, but Chiipii didn't. The people closest to the battle gagged as a horrible smell came from the Caterpie, and Pikipek flew away from it, trying to get away from that awful smell. "Now String Shot it before it can get away!"
"W-Wait!" Kanu shouted, coughing and unable to look directly at the fight, his eyes watering. "Flappy!" Emmi turned just in time to see Chiipii spit a line of string at the fleeing Pikipek.
"Reel it in and Tackle!" Taiyo shouted. Emmi couldn't believe her eyes as her little Chiipii dragged down a Pikipek with her String Shot, leaping partway through to Tackle the bird out of the air. The Pikipek landed hard on the ground as the smell started to get weaker. The bird stood back up, battered and hurt. Chiipii...
"Chiipii!" Emmi ran forward, embracing her fainted bug. After a few moments, the bug opened her eyes and looked up at Emmi, making light squeaking noises.
"Sorry," Taiyo walked towards her, offering his hand to help her stand up. "I didn't realize how much those extra-hard Tackles were recoiling on your Caterpie. Um, on Chiipii. Sorry about that, Chiipii. Are you alright?" In the background, Kanu celebrated his win with Flappy as the two kids talked over the loser. The Caterpie wiggled with a soft squeak, about as close to an affirmative as the two of them figured they would get. "You battled hard and almost won against two opponents. One a Flying Type. You should be proud."
"You were really cool," Emmi said, cradling her Pokemon in her arms as she gave Taiyo the compliment. "I never knew String Shot could be used like that! Or that... whatever Chiipii did!"
"Caterpie have a natural defense mechanism where they let out a noxious gas when they're threatened," Taiyo explained. Most of it was lost on Emmi, but she got the idea. "It's not technically a move they can use, but its closest approximation is probably Poison Gas or something similar. I just... figured it could be used." He looked over as Kanu and his buddies celebrated, obviously taking the win for what it was. "Lots of Pokemon can do extra stuff like that, but they don't count as moves. Or at least, they don't have names. It's something people never seem to take advantage of."
"Can you teach me?" Emmi asked after a few seconds of thinking it over. "I want Chiipii to get a lot stronger and become a beautiful Butterfree! If we can fight better, that'll happen a lot quicker!"
"Yeah, I can do that," Taiyo nodded. "Um, I might have to ask mom first, though. Is that ok?" Emmi nodded with an 'Mhm!'. "Cool. I'll let you know tomorrow if we can hang out. Um. Play. Train. Whatever." Taiyo looked away, staring at the distant ocean. He looked really cool like that. "I'll see you then, ok?"
"Ok!" Emmi nodded, excited. Sure, she was excited to help Chiipii get stronger, but Taiyo seemed like a nice boy, too. He walked away to Kanu, and she thought for sure there would be a fight, but Taiyo just put a hand on the boy's shoulder and told him it was a good battle. Kanu seemed to think it was weird, but thanked him anyway.
I*P*C
Six years. Six years and barely a damn thing to show for it. I gazed out listlessly over the water as the small ferry took Emmi and I from Melemele Island to Akala Island, where my house was. Pods of Wailmer swam by, much to the awe and amusement of the many tourists riding the ferry as well. They all eagerly took pictures of the Pokemon, but those pictures would lack a single critical detail that only I knew was missing. The Aether Foundation. The massive floating... reserve present in the Gen VII games. It wasn't here. Not yet.
Which meant that I was at some point in Alola's past; before the games took place. Considering how large that structure was, it had to have taken nearly a decade to build. I was pretty much on my own in a world I barely knew. Code and numbers meant very little in this world, and I wasn't sure where simulation ended and reality began. Stats now had only vague meanings. Same with move descriptions. Something like Scary Face, which lowers a Pokemon's speed stat, would mean something completely different here. Hell, String Shot had been far more versatile than I had originally imagined it could be in that little battle I had yesterday. Only my intuition and quick thinking allowed me to consider using it as a makeshift slingshot against Kanu's Pikipek. It was not something I was confident I could pull off twice. Not without more planning and knowledge.
I glanced over at Emmi, the little girl clearly enjoying the sea breeze and salty ocean air. Her eyes met mine, and I turned away, not wanting to feel like some creep staring at a little girl. "Is everything okay, Taiyo?" she asked, gently nudging me on the shoulder. "You've been super quiet all day!" I guess I was. I just... really didn't have a lot to talk about that a kid like her would understand.
"Yeah, everything is fine," I told her, hopefully easing some of her concerns. "Just thinking is all. I hit a bit of a roadblock in my studies, so I need to find a way around it." Her face was blank for a moment as she tried to figure out what I just said, and probably if there was anything deeper to them. I guess showing her and Kanu my book yesterday gave her the impression I was some kind of super genius. I didn't have the heart or courage to tell her that I kind of cheated by having knowledge from a past life. She'd probably not believe me, to be honest.
"What if... you... uh," she tried to give me some kind of help, but it was probably hard since I didn't actually say what I was studying, or what was stopping me. "Did you read the pages miss Luka told us to?" I froze for a moment, not out of fear or anything, but just surprise. Did she think I was having trouble with the schoolwork? Well, gift horses and all that.
"Yeah, but I was still having a little trouble," I partially lied to her. To be quite fair, some of the stuff we were reading just went in one ear and out the other. History, despite being one of my favorite subjects, was just so boring to have taught at you. We were going over the tribal history of the four Alolan Islands, and the way we were being lectured- Ugh, I just couldn't really give a damn. Not to mention there was so much more than what the games and anime had.
Yeah, I got it, each island had three or four tribes that all hated each other, then the islands found out about each other, and they hated those tribes even more. It was all stuff I'd normally love, but... miss Luka had the most annoyingly flat voice I'd ever heard. God love her, but I can't stand it. Thinking about her, if I was still an adult, I'd probably leap at the chance to flirt with her because damn was she a looker. I think I tried to my first day of school, and she just laughed at me like I did something cute.
My left thumb idly rubbed against my ring finger, and I mentally apologized to my wife from my last life. When was the last time I'd thought of her...? Damn, was I really this much of an asshole? I mean, there was no way I could go back, right? Me moving on... that was just normal, wasn't it? I put the thought to the side, not ready to open that can of worms. I glanced over at Emmi to distract myself, but found myself caught off guard by her smile
"Well?" she asked me, and I became very aware that she had been talking to me while I drifted off into my own little world. Shit. Uh, what were we talking about again? Right, history and tribes. Ok, she probably offered to help because she's good at that stuff. I hope? Agh, I should have at least kept an ear listening.
"Maybe we should wait until we get to the docks?" I suggested feebly, hoping she didn't notice anything amiss. "It's kinda hard to hear you over those people talking, and the waves, and everything else." Please buy it, please buy it, please buy it-
"Oh! Okay!" she said back, none the wiser to the fact I hadn't listened to a single thing she'd said to me. Instead, she turned back to happily gaze out over the ocean. Bluffing – 1. Bad Listening Skills – 0.
It took us another twenty minutes to pull up to port on Akala Island, and it was all spent in silence, thanks to the excuse I gave Emmi. As soon as we reached land, though... "So what do you think?" she asked immediately as we stepped off the ferry. Part of me was still in awe that two kids using the ferry didn't so much as bat an eye from the adults around us. I guess Alola really was just that safe and friendly a place.
"If you remember, I was having trouble hearing," I reminded her of my fib, just in case she'd actually forgotten. "You'll have to repeat yourself, sorry."
"Oh! Right!" Emmi smiled anyways, absolutely not bothered at all as we walked. I knew my way to the apartment from these streets, so I was relying on just second nature. "I asked if you wanted me to help you. Since you're gonna help Chiipii get stronger too, right?"
"Yeah, that makes sense," I replied easily enough, not even having to think twice about it. It was only moments later I realized what I'd just agreed to. A six-year-old girl was going to try and tutor me in history. I held back the groan I felt welling up inside of me. Me and my big, stupid mouth.
The way home, while in actuality was only a scant twenty-minute walk, felt like twice that length of time as I dreaded the rather horrid position I'd put myself into. Emmi was none the wiser, talking enough for the both of us about something inane and silly, surely. We paused for a few minutes to buy her an ice cream cone, and continued on our merry- her merry way.
I spotted the apartment that Kaliope and I lived in, feeling relief fill my mind. As much as I loved the heat, spending several hours walking, then sailing, and now walking again in the humid Alolan evening was definitely draining. Something I'd have to take into account when I finally decided to take a Pokemon for myself. There were several options in the back of my mind, but each of them presented their own set of problems.
"Oh! Is that where we're going?" Emmi asked, her ice cream partway melted, but thankfully almost finished. It took a considerable amount of control for me to not just grab some tissues from my backpack and wipe her hands off. The thought of her small, sticky hands touching any of my books or research papers or, God forbid, my chunker of a PC made me cringe internally.
"Yeah, apartment unit 137," I confirmed, waving to a few of the neighbors and giving them a halfhearted 'Alola' in greeting before we reached the door. It wasn't the most fancy place; living on a single paycheck was bound to have its issues. I remembered how I had gotten by with only relative comfort in my previous life from a single income. It wasn't easy, but I was able to make things work in my favor. Kaliope, unfortunately, lacked any kind of monetary savviness. Unfortunately, I was unable to take over simply because my physical age made her and other believe I was incapable, never mind that I had stashed away a clean 100 pokedollars, bucks, whatever the hell this stupid currency was called. Shit, what was it called again? I glanced at the small card sticking out of Emmi's skirt pocket. Credit. Right. The word alone was a sour taste on my tongue.
"Welcome home," I greeted the empty apartment after unlocking the door and letting Emmi in. It was a simple unit with a small foyer that led into a living room with a dinner table, and attached to that was a small kitchenette to the right side from the front door. There was a small hallway beyond where those two rooms met, and a bedroom on either side of the hallway with a singular bathroom at the very end. It was small, cheap, and served its purposes just fine for a single mother.
"Kaliope won't be home for a few hours," I told Emmi, setting my backpack beside the door and taking my shoes off as well. "Go wash your hands in the kitchen sink, and then meet me in my room. It's down the hall on the right, can't miss it." Emmi shot me back a cheerful 'Ok!' before doing as I'd instructed. I walked down the hall, peering through the open door into Kaliope's room before sighing and taking the right turn towards mine. Of course her window was still cracked open. I glanced into my room for just a moment to make sure everything was where I'd left it before turning around and walking into Kaliope's room.
It was messy. Far messier than mine. As much as Kaliope nagged me to clean my own room, she did a shoddy job of following her own instructions. Clothes from the last week laid scattered on the floor, and her bedsheets were tossed all over the place. Not due to extra guests, thankfully. I guess she'd learned her lesson from having her first kid. I walked around the bed to the window on the opposite wall, taking in the view of the community garden behind the apartment complex, before shutting the window. I heard a crunch underfoot as I turned, stepping on a discarded beer can. Gingerly, I picked up the empty can and tossed it into Kaliope's overflowing bin by the door. For not the first time, I took in the absence of insects like flies, ants, and even cockroaches.
Walking back to my room across the hall, Emmi was already there, peering curiously at everything I had on my bookshelf, my desk, and especially at my massive PC beside my bed. It was an old model, standing at about six feet tall from top to bottom, and weighing in at probably over five-hundred pounds. I just vaguely remember Kaliope had paid an arm and a leg for it and it'd been a pain for the movers to bring in. They'd had to flag down a trainer from the street who had a Fighting-Type Pokemon to help.
Pokemon in this world were not common in daily life, as the tv show and games would have led one to believe. They were mystical and powerful creatures, but the ability to capture them was saved for a select few who had the money and time to do so. Trainers, especially experienced ones, caught Pokemon. They sold them to researchers and marketers, who in turn sold them to businesses. Pokemon were bred for anything from battling, to competitions, to domestic pets and workers. Entire markets thrived around Pokemon. Despite this, though, they were still an expensive acquisition due to being the trade of a living creature with the potential to destroy entire city blocks when trained properly.
It was why I only partly believed Kaliope when she said that we couldn't afford a Pokemon. I knew the real reason she didn't get one for the house as a pet. I'm pretty sure our unit was the only one without a Pokemon pet. But she and I both knew what I would do if we had one. Us not having enough money was a convenient enough excuse, however.
"Hey, are you ok?" Emmi asked, tugging on my shirt sleeve. I blinked, returning my focus to her. "I asked if you wanted to do anything before we started training Chiipii. you have all sorts of cool stuff in here, but I don't get what a lot of your books are about." She looked back at my bookshelf, and I noticed idly that my PC screen was on; along with various tabs. she'd been snooping while I was distracted, I see. I stomped down the annoyance forming in my gut. She was just a kid.
"Do you want to watch videos of some official matches on the tv out in the livingroom or something?" I asked her. I'm certain it would have been easier to go down to the battle courts behind the Hano Grand Resort, but to be honest, I was feeling rather lazy at the moment.
At my suggestion, Emmi shook her head, a bored expression falling across her face. Weren't kids supposed to love everything about Pokemon? "That's something we already doo in school!" she whined, and I had to concede the point. "Don't you have any games or something we can play?" I blinked, looking around my room again. Did I...? I vaguely remember Kaliope buying me a console a year back. It was old, beat up, and definitely bought at a second hand shop, but she had been so excited about it. I remember her telling me that she'd always wanted one as a little girl. The memory of her disappointment when I'd told her that she could play with it made my stomach drop, even now. I think I played with her for an hour or two after that just to make her feel better, but...
She never asked if I wanted to play with her again, after that. I felt my lips curl into a frown. I'd have to make it up to her. Right now, though...
"I think... mom got me an old Porystation last year," I told her, motioning out the door. "We can play with that for a while, if you want? Then we can train Chiipii and get something to eat, after. Mom should probably be back by then, so we can get something to eat when we walk you to the ferry."
"Oooo, what games do you have!?" Emmi asked, now excited once again. She ran out of the room, with me walking after her. It only took her a few moments to find the Porystation beside the box tv set, unplugged and dusty. So, Kaliope hadn't used it recently. I moved over to plug it in to the old tv, gently wiping down its surface of dust.
"It looks like we have Pokemon Arena, Pokemon Snap, and Legend of Mew," I said out aloud, not recognizing the last one. "I think Pokemon Arena is the only- oh, wait, here's Pokekart." I held up the cartridge hiding behind the television stand. "What do ya say, Pokekart?"
"Heck yeah, my daddy got me the newest one for the Porystation 3, but I think the controls are the same," Emmi cheered, watching me blow into the cartridge and stick it into the console. I turned on the tv, then the console, and the game started up. This looked vaguely like Mario Kart from my past life, and the controller was... familiar, at the very least. I wondered vaguely if I still had the skills to demolish in videogames despite having not played for a year, most of that I barely remembered. I probably had similar thoughts when I'd played against Kaliope.
The game booted up, and it was a cartoonish start screen that met us. In the foreground was a Pikachu in a small go-cart mid-drift, with other Pokemon like a Charizard, a Roselia, and even a Dragonite hot on his bumper. Behind all of them was a wavy checkered flag with the words "Pokekart Superdrive" splayed in big, blocky red letter overtop of it. I pressed start.
Nostalgia filled my ears as that weird soft, electrical music played from the cruddy speakers of the tv, and I selected Single Race to the sound of a little pleasant sound effect that sounded like... err, well, it sounded like an ascending, warbled note. It brought back memories. There were a few characters, well, Pokemon, unlocked on the select screen, but probably a good fourteen were still blacked out as silhouettes. I recognized Garchomp and Machoke immediately, but the others were a bit harder to place. The only ones we could pick from were Pikachu, Charizard, Grovyle, a Kantonian Meowth, and a Wigglytuff. I guess that meant Roselia and Dragonite were also among those locked away.
Emmi immediately shot towards Wigglytuff, which tracked in my mind given how she wanted Chiipii to evolve only because she liked how pretty Butterfree was. I, however, decided to pick Charizard. Once a fire specialist, always a fire specialist. We chose our track, which was called Altomare Waterways, and started the countdown to the race. I let myself go into autopilot as I considered what kind of trainer I wanted to be.
As I'd said before, in my previous life I'd been a Fire-Type specialist when it came to the Pokemon games. I was a pretty good all-rounder, but Fire and Dragon were the types I knew better than any others. That... unfortunately didn't apply here. Pokemon were living, breathing creatures, and each Type had a specific way of going about things. A culture, if you would.
I narrowed my eyes as Emmi took me off guard, using a Squirtle Shell item to knock me from my precarious first-place position as I rounded a corner, sending me into the waterway beside the track. She giggled beside me, kicking her feet in excitement and mischief. Little brat. I fell back to sixth place and let myself focus on the game, instead. The first race ended up with me as the loser, much to my annoyance. After being hit by that shell, the COM racers did all the work for Emmi in keeping me off balance and knocking me into the water. While she had come in eleventh place, I came dead last in twelfth. I obviously wasn't going to take that sitting down.
Seven single races and a Grand Prix later, we finally ended it all with my ultimate victory by a measly one point. I was out of practice. By this time, the sun had already set outside, and the only light came from the tv screen. I heard the front door unlock, and Kaliope call out 'I'm home!' into the apartment as she turned on the foyer light.
Dressed in the grunge clothes she wore before and after work, that being a black t-shirt a size too small for her and jeans about the same, Kaliope was the dictionary definition of MILF. She'd not regained her hourglass body from before she'd had me, but it was damn close; about as close as she would reasonably get without some intense physical exercise, dieting, and who knew what else. She had pretty and soft eyes as well as curly hair that made her seem like some innocent little waif, but this woman was an absolute hellstorm when she wanted to be. So unlucky that she was my mother.
"Hey mom," I greeted her, standing up to help her with the paper bags she was carrying. I guess she'd hit the grocery mart on the way back. We were lucky that there was one only a few blocks away. "How was work?"
"It's mommy, sweetie," she replied as if practiced, gently pushing a finger to poke my nose as she handed me one of the grocery bags. In front of the tv, Emmi had stood up. "And it was alright. Andre, the guy who's mommy's coworker? He's kind of part of the reason I'm late." Ah, right, the guy who's second head controls more of his body than the one on his shoulders. I'd relate to the guy if he wasn't such a sleaze about it. "Oh, they didn't have any hotdogs at the market, today. Leslie said they'd get another shipment tomorrow, though, if you want to check while mommy's at work. Oh, she says hi, by the way."
"That's fine," I told her, not that bothered. Hot dogs were a treat ad easy to make, but little more. Meat. It'd always been glossed over in the tv show what the humans actually ate, but it was one of the first things I looked into when I got that PC. Apparently animals existed in this world. The people called the world Regdon, by the way. Some kind of ancient combination of Regigigas and Groudon, apparently. anyway, but to animals, they fucking existed. Just not on a widespread scale out in nature. No, most of them existed in large, protected farms so Pokemon couldn't get at them. Apparently Pokemon were just... good at hunting normal animals to near extinction. Some guy named Dr. Henson in Hoenn wrote a few papers about it, actually. It was in my backlog to look more into later.
"Oh right, mom," I glanced over at our guest. "This is Emmi, from school. We were... supposed to train her Caterpie today, but we got a little distracted," I admitted, looking at the results screen of the grand prix we'd just finished. Emmi waved nervously at Kaliope, but the older woman smiled widely.
"Oh, isn't she just adorable!" Kaliope cooed, making the girl blush. "And I see you broke out the Porystation! It's so nice to meet you, Emmi. You know, I've tried getting Taiyo to play that thing with me before, but he's never given it a try! I'm glad he's got a friend like you at tra- um, school." Kaliope's eyes met mine in a brief panic, but I ignored her slip up.
"Actually, it's getting late," I said, looking at the clock beside the fridge. "We should probably get her to the ferry before they go down for the night. I suggested we grab some dinner on the way, but we might not have enough time for that. Can we grab her a snack instead?" Kaliope shot me a guilty look for coming back so late, but I shook my head dismissively. It couldn't be helped, and I hoped she knew I didn't blame her.
"Oh, right," Kaliope smiled instead, continuing the conversation as she put colds and frozens away. "Let me get these and we'll head out, ok? Sweetie, why don't you and Emmi get your shoes on and her backpack? I'll be just a minute." I nodded with an 'Okay, mom,' before doing as she'd asked. In the foyer, Emmi joined me as we put on our shoes.
"Your mom is really pretty," she whispered to me, and I had to agree. Just my luck.
"Yeah, she's alright," I said back, not bothering to whisper. Emmi looked back to where the kitchen was before shooting me a dirty look. What the heck did I say? Kaliope was ready for us as Emmi picked up her backpack. she gently rubbed her thumb on Chiipii's Pokeball, though.
"Sorry, Chiipii," she said to the thing. "Maybe next time, okay?" The ball gently rattled from its hanging perch on her skirt's belt loop, which I figured was some kind of sign of forgiveness.
The walk back to the ferry was much cooler than it had been hours prior. Both Kaliope and Emmi chatted with one another happily about some topic or another, ranging from how she got her Caterpie, to what Emmi wanted to do, to what Kaliope did at the resort she worked at. There were no shortage of stories about Pokemon getting loose in the hotel, trained and wild, and causing trouble for everyone involved. I listened offhandedly, paying more attention to our surroundings than whatever the girls were talking about. I guess it was an old habit, keeping an eye out for creeps, drunks, anyone that might prey upon a lovely woman and two kids in the middle of the night.
I found myself sorely disappointed, like every other time Kaliope and I walked out this late. Alola was safe. It was civil. It was nothing like my old home. Oh, sure I'd never had a problem with drunks or muggers back in my last life, either, but this one... In Alola, it wasn't even considered an option. The law enforcement was lax. Extremely so, if the fat cop leaning against the railing and giving us a friendly wave was any indication. Beside him was a single Poochyena, likely imported from another region and trained how to chase down criminals. One might expect that at least the Poochyena might be alert, but no, all it did was give the street we were on a cursory glance every couple of seconds. Despite this blatant ease on the part of the law...
It was like nobody committed crime. Oh, sure, there were petty thefts every now and again, but most crime fell into one of two categories on Regdon, petty and organized. I'd probably shove terrorism as a third category, but that was near impossible without a hell of a leader. As it turns out, when everyone has a Pokemon capable of killing someone by complete accident, criminals tend to think of other options.
The main exceptions were small towns where Pokemon Trainers tended to skip over, and crimes of passion on the part of both humans and Pokemon, where feelings overtake logic. It was still strange. Foreign. In the games and tv show, it seemed like the Pokemon world was at both times a utopia and a megalomaniac's dream world. This world, however, had laws and standards. All of which gave my six-year-old, underdeveloped brain a headache. That was yet another drawback that had stonewalled any progress I could make in this world.
My brain simply didn't have the capacity to learn any more new things. I was likely already pushing it with all the life experience I had from before, but trying to cram books upon books of theory, law, technicalities, and research papers into it as well? I just simply could not learn more until I got older, and my brain developed more. At least, that was my hope. It could also be just as simple as... my brain just can't learn anything else without forgetting other things. That I'd reached my limit. That thought alone filled me with an existential dread, but I found it to be unlikely. If I truly couldn't learn any more, then I wouldn't be able to form new memories, which obviously wasn't the case.
"Say goodbye, Taiyo!" Kaliope urged me, a hand resting on my shoulder as Emmi waved from just a few paced ahead of us, a kebab in her other hand. I blinked, instinctively waving to her as her worried expression melted into a smile. I felt Kaliope's grip tighten on my shoulder in an uncomfortable tightness, and I winced at the sharp pain that followed. Uh oh.
"See you in school tomorrow, Emmi," I called out to the girl as she waved back, running for what I assumed was the last ferry to Melemele Island for the evening. "God, I hope," I muttered under my breath, Kaliope's nails digging slightly into my skin.
"I had to make excuses for you," I heard her mutter under her breath from behind me. "You zoned out again. Tai, you can't just do that. Not when there's other people around you. Now when someone is talking to you, sweetie." She sounded exasperated, as if speaking to an unruly child who simply didn't know any better. It was irritating, and I felt my fists clench at my sides.
"I'm sorry, mom," I said simply, hoping she would let it be. She let out a sigh, and her grip on my shoulder lessened. I let out a breath of relief as the pain gently subsided as well. "I was thinking about... some things."
"I know, sweetie. I know," she said, reaching down to take my hand. I let her. She led me back the same streets we'd just walked, her head swiveling to find a good place to eat at this time of night. Most places were packed with tourists, and Kaliope knew I wasn't exactly fond of large and loud crowds if it could be helped. "What do you feel like eating tonight, Taiyo? Johtonian, Galarian...?" She asked, trailing off at the end to give me some time to choose.
"How about the burger place down on Tiki Street?" I asked, pointing down the way where the turn off to said street was. My suggestion was met with a 'Sounds good, sweetie,' from Kaliope. She didn't sound upset anymore, but I still had the feeling that the discussion wasn't quite over.
We enjoyed a comfortable silence on the way to the burger place, called Pidove's Delights. It was more of a general, normal Unovan place, but because their burgers were so good, most locals went for just those. The closest approximation would be like going to an American style restaurant from Earth. All the stereotypical fixings on the menu, with none of the deeper stuff like biscuits and gravy, grits, or anything of that manner on the menu. Hell, they even had fish and chips on there, a Galarian dish.
The place itself wasn't empty, but empty enough that we could get a seat within the first ten minutes of waiting. It was a dimly lit place with neon lights, brick walls, and black cushioned seats and booths. The tables were polished and there was a bar against the back wall where Pokemon League Circuit matches from all over Regdon were played as reruns. Basically the equivalent of a sports bar.
We were seated at a booth, and one of the waitresses took our drink orders; a cola for Kaliope, and some nomelade for myself; made from a berry very similar to a lemon called a nomel berry. Yes, it was just lemon spelled backwards. We got comfortable, and both Kaliope and I browsed over the menu, though I already knew what I wanted, and chances are she did as well. We'd been here enough times to have a thing or two we'd just get every time.
"What are you thinking of getting, sweetie?" Kaliope asked, glancing at me over her menu. Hers was the same as mine. She'd given up trying to get me to order from the kid's menu almost half a year ago, so anything I couldn't finish we usually just took home as leftovers.
"I think the Double Royal Swablu Burger," I told her, and her frown was all that I needed to know she didn't approve. "Just the single?" I amended, which she nodded at. I rolled my eyes, hiding it behind looking at the menu again. A moment of silence. "Uh, what about you?"
"I think I'll get the Bacon Barbeque Burger," she said, setting her menu down in front of her. I did the same, laying mine on top of hers. She stared at me, arms resting on the table. The murmuring of the crowd around us seemed to fade away as her eyes bored into mine. "You were very rude to Emmi on the walk to the ferry," she said. Her tone was even, giving away her displeasure at the fact. "She tried to talk to you, like, four times, and you didn't respond to her at all. What on Regdon were you thinking about that made you ignore your friend like that?" I slowly shrugged, not sure what I was supposed to say. I tried answering, anyway.
"What kind of Pokemon I'd like as a pet whenever I can save up enough money," I half-lied. She knew it, too, but she sighed anyway. "I already have a hundred Credits, mom. If I can save up a hundred more, I can get a Pokeball, or even fifty more I could buy a... a Caterpie or something." My voice trailed off as I thought more about that second option. My displeasure must have been evident on my face, because Kaliope laughed a little bit.
"I'll... see what I can do," she lied. I pretended to believe her.
"Thanks, mom," I told her. Her smile didn't reach her eyes. Neither did mine. Dinner was quiet.
I*P*C
Mukanu Ulapi was a Pokemon Trainer who prided himself as a master of Dark and Psychic Types, two kinds of Pokemon that normally shouldn't get along. From Abra to Raticate, there wasn't a single Pokemon of those Types that he couldn't eventually catch and train. So imagine his surprise when this little kid, who couldn't have been older than six or seven, dragged his little friend to the battle courts behind Hano Grand Resort to watch the trainers. The little squirt looked enthralled at the spectacle of so many battles, and his little girlfriend even more so.
There were six fields to choose from, and not a lot of room between them for spectators. Most normal people didn't come to the battle courts, now that Mukanu thought about it. Just the two kids and what looked like the little boy's mom and her friend. He looked over the women appraisingly, taking in the cute blonde with nice hips. Both of them wore very cute bikinis, but wow, that blonde. He'd have to make sure to get her name before they left.
Mukanu resumed grooming the crimson red fur of Roarscher, his Incineroar that he'd raised ever since it was a little Litten. Roarscher was his best friend; well, best Pokemon friend, and they'd had each other ever since Mukanu had been a kid. Despite being a bit of a battle hungry Pokemon, he was watching the matches on a nearby field even though they'd just finished trouncing some smug Fairy-Type trainer, Mukanu knew that his Incineroar was as gentle as they came. It was why he wasn't at all concerned when that kid he'd seen from earlier and his little friend walked up.
The boy had guts, he'd give him that. To walk up to a scary looking Pokemon like Roarscher without any fear, and next to a field where a Rapidash was fighting a Kadabra? Well, not even many adults had that kind of courage. "Sup, little dude?" he greeted the kid, raising his hand momentarily before going back to combing his Pokemon. The kid had on a pair of shorts and a t-shirt, and his hair looked like it was growing out. His mom probably planned to tie it back into a ponytail when it got even longer. "You can tell your little friend she can come say hi. Roarscher won't bite." The Incineroar grinned, showing off all of his sharp teeth. Mukanu noticed the boy's mom walk a bit closer, obviously more unnerved than placated. He couldn't really blame her.
Said little girl he'd mentioned before was a few steps behind her friend, obviously a lot more hesitant to get close to the big, bad, Pokemon with sharp teeth. The boy had no such issues, though, and reached out slowly to pet the Pokemon's arm, looking him in the eyes as if asking permission. Roarscher nodded, and the boy pet him.
"Taiyo..." the kid's mom called out, obviously worried.
"It's alright, miss," Mukanu called back, raising his hand to try and get the woman to calm down. "Roarscher's a big softie with kids! No need to worry, he's perfectly safe." His words stopped her approach, but he could still see concern etched on her face. He really couldn't blame her, to be honest. Dark Types, even with their reputation among the learned for being anywhere between evil to unlucky to be around, were just scary looking. He remembered practically soiling his own pants as a kid when his dad dressed up as a Malamar for Fallfest. Still, that fear of Dark Types drove Mukanu to start training them.
"Come here, little miss," he called to the girl, hoping to break her fear as well. The boy was doing just fine, petting the attention-Lechonk of an Incineroar. Roarscher's fiery belt blazed with delight at the attention, and the boy seemed enthused by it. "See? He's not so scary. Roarscher here's as gentle as can be."
"Incineroar are actually very loving to kids and small Pokemon," the kid said to his friend, turning to face her. "They like to show off a lot, though. They're known as the Heel Pokemon because of it."
"A heel?" the girl asked, her curiosity slowly overtaking her fear. "What's heels got to do with anything?" Mukanu was about to explain the concept, but the kid actually beat him to it.
"A heel is a term used in wrestling," he said, taking Mukanu by surprise. "It's like when someone pretends to be big and mean and scary as an act, but isn't actually." That... was actually a pretty good description, Mukanu thought to himself, a little impressed that a kid that young knew so much. "See? I'm petting him, no problem. His fur is really warm. Don't you wanna feel how soft it is?" The girl slowly inched closer and gingerly reached her hand out, looking away as she brushed her fingers against Roarscher's other arm. Her shaking stopped as she slowly began stroking it, her eyes no longer clenched tight.
"I-It really is soft!" the girl exclaimed, surprised and amazed. The action obviously pleased Roarscher if his unconsciously flexing arms had anything to say about it. Mukanu looked back up at the boy's mom, shooting her a smile in hopes she'd relax a little. Her friend, the blonde in the tiny blue bikini, slapped the other woman's back.
"See? I told you there was nothing to worry about, Kali!" she told her friend with a playful roll of her eyes. "Trainer Pokemon are all super chill. Here, I'll go get you a margarita."
"Hey, mind if I get one too?" Mukanu saw his chance and took it. "Roarscher and I just finished up a battle, and I could use a drink. Thirsty work, ya know?" He shot the girl a wink, and was all too happy to get one in return.
"Only if you pay, cutie!" the girl fired back. It might put a little dent in his wallet, but damn she was definitely worth losing a few bucks for a few hours of lost sleep. "Don't wait up!"
"Hey, you behave, alright Roarscher?" Mukanu asked his Incineroar as the kids pet him. He flexed into a few poses, dazzling the little girl and making the boy smile in amazement. "I'll be over there by the bar, so I'll be right back." The Heel Pokemon growled in acknowledgement, so the trainer made his way over to where the blonde girl stood near the bar. "Sup?" he asked her, sliding in next to her and leaning back against the bar. "Name's Mukanu. My friends call me Mu. Can I get a name from the sexy babe I'm about to treat to a...?" He trailed off, giving her a chance to answer him.
"The name's Cassie," his new friend replied, gently moving a strand of long, curly blonde hair out from in front of her face. "The killjoy over there is Kaliope, but call her Kali." She motioned to the mom, who was keeping a few paces away from Roarscher and the kids as they dangled from his arms. "And a martini works, cutie."
"Hah, a martini it is," he told her, waving down the barista. "Strawberry martini, boss!" he asked, getting a finger-gun pointed back at him in response. "So, uh," he turned back to the woman beside him. "What's a gal like you doing around a place like this? Doesn't look like you or Kali are trainers."
"Nah, Taiyo just wanted to see the Pokemon while little Emmi's visiting," Cassie told him, rolling her eyes, but with a smile on her face. "They do this, like, at least once a week. Last time was like, six days ago."
"Probably why I haven't seen him running around here," Mukanu acknowledged out aloud. "I rolled in about three days ago."
"How long ya staying?" Cassie asked, turning to face him. Her chest pressed against his shoulder and arm. Very nice.
"As long as I like," he told her, leaning closer. She did the same. Damn, this chick knew what she wanted. He liked that. "I was just passing through to Paldea, but I'm sure I can find a reason to stick around for a few more days."
"I'm sure I can give you a few reasons to make it worth your while," Cassie shot back, her voice low and husky. Man, he hadn't met a girl like her since Kalos. "Ikuapa Street. House 157 on the left off Old Orange Road. I'll see you for dinner and desert, after." Cassie winked and grabbed the martini glass as the bartender sat it next to them. she made a move to walk away, but Mukanu wasn't finished. He wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her back against him; not hard enough to spill her drink, but enough to make sure she didn't leave. The little minx didn't even resist. "Oh my! Such a brute!"
"What can I say? My Pokemon aren't the only things that are Dark," he said, desperately hoping she found that hot and not as cringy and stupid as it sounded out loud. Arceus, that sounded so much cooler in his head! Luckily, Cassie laughed.
"You'll have to show me how you Play Rough, then," she told him. That was a Fairy-Type move, but he wasn't about to correct the hot girl in his arms. "Say, is that a Diglett in your pocket or are you just-"
"Taiyo, get out of the way!" Kali's shout grabbed both Cassie's and his own attention. While he'd been flirting with the blonde, it seems like that battle between the Rapidash and Kadabra had gotten heated, and the latter was using a Psybeam attack which the Rapidash had avoided. Unfortunately, it looked like it was headed for the netting around the field, right where the kids were behind with Roarscher. Kali was lunging towards them, and the kids only seemed to have just noticed what was happening.
"Roarscher, move!" Mukanu shouted, but it was too late. All he could do was watch as Roarscher tried to cover the kids with his own body, but was shoved to the side, children and all, by the boy's mom. She took the full brunt of the Psybeam attack. Before he could think twice, he was already running towards the woman as she collapsed onto the ground, eyes staring dead ahead and foaming at the mouth. Blood trickled from her ears and nose as people gathered around, the battles nearby having stopped.
"We need a doctor!" Cassie shouted from beside him, panicking. "Please! Someone call a doctor!" Mukanu looked over at Roarscher and the two kids. At Taiyo, the boy. He stared at his collapsed mother, completely in shock.
"Mom?" he asked, his voice weak and quiet. "Mom, get up. It's... It was... Mom..." Reality seemed to hit the kid all at once as terror etched itself across his face. "Mom! Mom wake up!" He ran towards the woman's downed form, and Mukanu had to get in his way. He scooped the boy up in his arms, even as the kid tried to punch and kick him just to get to his mother.
"Come on, kid," Mukanu tried to reason with him , his voice low and calm. "Hey, we're gonna get your mom some help, ok? I need you to calm down and- ow! Fuck!" Mukanu bit back a snarl as the kid bit his hand, forcing him to drop him. He looked at the bite mark, blood seeping from it, before moving his foot to trip the kid as he tried running past. "Hey, hey, no, we gotta wait for the paramedics to get here!"
"Taiyo, stop!" Cassie shouted, trying to help push him back away from his mother. "Please, just stop!"
"I'll kill you! I'll fucking kill you! Mom! Mom! Mommy!" The boy screamed, flailing wildly as his mom's friend hugged him tight against her. Tears fell down her face as she looked up at Mukanu, looking for some kind of answer on what to do. For the first time in a long while, Mukanu was completely at a loss.
I*P*C
The steady beeping of the heartrate monitor was the only sound that echoed in the hospital room. Outside the open door, doctors, nurses, patients, and other people walked and talked and went on like it was just another day. Maybe it was. For them. Pokemon, mostly Chansey, passed by the door sometimes as well. Once upon a time, I'd have found that novel. Interesting, but not worth noticing. Now, it wasn't even interesting. But it was the only thing left to notice in this place. I'd already counted the ceiling tiles ten times. Already stared outside the large window overlooking Heahea City. Anything to distract me from the woman laying pale in the hospital bed.
Kaliope. My mother. My mom. My... mommy. Fuck, who was I to call her that? Mommy. Of all the things. She'd asked me so many times to call her that, but I always said it was too embarrassing. Not in front of Cassie. Not in front of Emmi. Not in front of that guy at work who liked her. I always had an excuse. Now, I might never get the chance to call her that again.
I felt my eyes drift back to her face. Her expression was scrunched in pain. Probably a nightmare or something similar. Psychic Type attacks often invoked hallucinations, or intense feelings of dread, agony, confusion, or straight up lobotomized their targets when strong enough. Humans especially were susceptible to Psychic Type attacks. I read that in a book. I felt my fists tighten at the thought. Too bad that knowledge was useless. All the knowledge in the world, and I can't do shit about it.
I'd spent all seven years of my life trying to figure out how this world worked. Where I was. When I was. And yet... My eyes drifted back to my comatose mother. My hero. The woman who loved me enough to run into a Pokemon's attack without a second thought of her own safety. All I could call her was mom.
In my life before this one, I'd been adopted. My birth mother had given me up, and as far as I was ever concerned, my family tree was just a seed. A random seed out in the middle of nowhere, yet to grow. I was never particularly attached to the family that raised me. But Kaliope... She gave birth to me. She loved me, even without my dad around, and treated me to the best and safest life she could possibly offer.
"I'm sorry," I ground out to her, even though I was pretty sure she couldn't hear me. "I'm sorry, mommy... I'm... I'm such a bastard...!" Just what was a second chance at life worth if...?
"Hey Tai, is... is it ok if we come in?" the familiar sound of Emmi's voice entered the room, and I looked up to see her, Kanu, and their parents at the doorway. "We can go if you want?"
"No, it's okay," I told them, standing up from the chair beside mom's hospital bed to greet them. "Thank you for coming over. I think she'd be happy knowing you did." I looked at the parents specifically at that, then the other two kids. Kids my age. "She hasn't gotten any worse. Just not better, either."
"Emmi told us that it was a Kadabra's attack that hit her," her dad spoke up first. He was a lanky man with short, greying hair. Honestly, she looked nothing like him. She looked more like her mom, who had curly black hair, almond-shaped brown eyes, and a very light tan to her skin. In fact, she looked almost like she could be Emmi's older sister.
"Yeah," I said, not knowing what else I could respond with. "The trainer already came by to apologize. He's paying for the hospital fees, and had his Trainer's License revoked for a year for negligent battle etiquette." A year. That was all my mom's life was worth, apparently. I glanced back up at the adults. "Is there- ...What do you-" I bit my bottom lip, trying to think of what to say. "What's going to happen, now?"
"For now, we were told that your mother's friend, Cassie, will be taking care of you," Kanu's dad said. He was a large, burly man who wore a shirt with ripped sleeves. He had a bald head and a large cigar sticking out of his mouth. Unlit, thankfully, but having met him once before, it was probably because a nurse had yelled at him for it. "We offered to take you in as well, but they said that the decision's yours, kid." So that probably meant the hospital wasn't sure when mom would wake up. If she woke up.
What should I do? Cassie was in no shape to take care of me. She had a tiny house with a single bedroom, and was going to be too shaken up to take care of a kid. I mean, it was lucky I wasn't some normal kid, but still... Even so, could I really leave her all on her own during a time like this? Could I stand to be with anyone else, at that?
I just... didn't know. My brain refused to think. All it could focus on was my mom laying in the bed not two steps away from me. "When do I have to have an answer?" I asked them.
"Probably before tonight," Emmi's mom said, her voice soft and understanding. "We don't mean to rush you, but..."
"I understand," I told them, saving them from having to try and explain what I already knew. I looked out the window at the setting sun. I didn't have any time. That was fine. I always worked best under pressure. I took one more look at my mom, then took a deep breath. I'd spent the entirety of my seven years of life trying to learn and read and prepare to begin a Pokemon journey, but what had I actually done? When had I actually lived? When had I treated my mom like an actual mom, and not just some distant caretaker?
Heck... were Emmi and Kanu actually my friends? Or just kids I hung out with because it was expected with me? I was repeating the same mistakes of my life before this one. This was supposed to be a fresh start for me. It was about time I treated it like one.
"I think I'd like to stay with you guys," I told Emmi's parents. Their faces betrayed the relief they must have felt, and I felt a weight lift off of my shoulders as well. I turned back to my mom. "I'll be back soon, mo-mommy. I'll visit as much as I can. I'll train as much as I can. I'll be a son you can be proud of. I promise." With those words said, I gave her comatose form one last hug before walking up beside Emmi and Kanu. Emmi gave me a smile and a hug, while Kanu... picked his nose. That was fine. As far as I was concerned, they were my friends from this moment on. As we left the hospital bedroom, I waited for a moment and mimicked the movement of pulling a ring off of my left ring finger and setting it on the table beside my mom. I stared at the place I'd rested the imaginary ring for a good few moments, before following my friends and their parents out of the room.
I*P*C
This was... far longer than I intended it to be. You can probably guess why, but for those still guessing, it's the Taiyo-PoV section in the middle. My editor suggested I add that in to give the ending a bit more 'oomph' and I got a bit carried away. She's a big fan of show don't tell, and I tried leaning into that a bit more. I binged the entirety of Borne of Caution during the writing of this, so if you notice any similarities... well, yeah, I took some inspiration. By the way, go check that story out for those who haven't already, it's a banger. It's #1 on the favorites list of Pokemon stories, I'm pretty sure. Fuggman is far more a proficient writer than I am, In fact, there's a few things I considered taking out of my story when I realized that he'd delved into those same aspects and themes before I will. We'll see what stays in. Anyways, this was fun to write. Same schedule as always, but reviews definitely help the inspiration linger.