Chapter 2
"Catching 101"
Castelia City, Unova
The final bell rang, informing the students to get to their classes. As everyone in Professor Mosses' class assembles, the teacher walks into the classroom with his Minccino walking right next to him. Minccino notices Mosses' desk was a little dusty, so she takes it upon herself to dust off the desk using her tail. Meanwhile, Moss puts the suitcase he held in his hand on his chair and stands in front of his desk. He lets out a deep sigh before letting it all out, and brings attention to his class.
"Welcome everyone. I hope you are all having a fantastic day. Now before we begin, there's something that I want to talk to you all about… Field Research."
The students speculate among themselves. Sarah raises her hand, hoping to get her and the students' questions answered. "What's Field Research?" She asks.
"Excellent question as always Sarah!"
Sarah smiles, but Davey wasn't amused. He glares at his sister and growls. "My father... Principal Jones always told me growing up to always ask the right questions, Unlike my brother, Davey." Sarah turns back to look at Davey, and playfully sticks out her tongue.
"Now settle down you two." He starts. "Field Research is a requirement for all students at the Pokémon Academy. It's where you go out, observe and interact with people or Pokémon in their natural setting, collecting data in the natural way, instead of always being cooped up. In a way, it's allowing a student to get a good feel of what it's like to go out on a journey."
"So are you saying it's learning outside?" Spyro asks. The students laugh at him, which makes him feel insecure, so he scrunches down.
"More than that. Basically, students at the Academy can travel to different regions or across Unova to get hands-on experience researching." He explains. The teacher turns around and takes out passports and student identification cards. He hands it to them.
Davey looks at his card and was impressed with his picture. He tries to get a peek at Ashley's card to see what hers look like, but she barks at him. She had more important things on her mind. "Professor Moss, how are students who aren't wealthy going to pay for world travel?"
"Well Ashley, you're in luck! Using your Pokémon Academy Identification Card allows any student or facility member to travel with no additional charge."
Hearing that information puts a smile on Ashley's face. "Sweet! I love free things."
Sarah chuckles. "Of course, someone as poor as you would be excited about something as cheap as public transportation." Sarah begins laughing. The way Sarah talks had this arrogant and snotty attitude, which gave the impression that she was better than everyone else around her. The rest of the class didn't laugh, as they found that disrespectful and that angers Sarah. "Laugh!" She shouts, snaps her fingers, and the rest of the class follow suit.
Ashley was pissed. She gets out of her seat and her face turns red. She wanted to hurt Sarah. "I'm going to rip your head off!" She shouts, but Davey holds her back from attacking his sister. Ashley waves her arms around like a fish out of water.
Meanwhile, Sarah pets her Furfrou as the two laugh at Ashley. "Of course, someone from the "Ghetto" would use violence as the answer. This region needs to do something about its trash."
"Cut it out, you two!" Professor Moss says.
Ashley calms down and Sarah rolls her eyes. But they both agreed to stop their feud. For now. "Yes, Professor Moss," they say.
"Now… Later on today,l you will get information about who your Field Research Instructor will be through your email. You will report to them after lunch. Now in the meantime, let's all meet at the Central Plaza. Let's just say you are all gonna love our next lesson." The teacher winks. The students were all curious about what the next lesson was going to be.
"Okay class, let's gather together."
It was a charming, bright and sunny day with only a few clouds in sight. The Professor claps his hands and looks at his students, watching them gather like an army of ants. The number of students in the class was just about the right size. Not too big, and not too small. Only about nineteen students were in the class, all ranging from the ages of thirteen to fifteen. The Pokémon Academy wasn't restricted to age like normal schools. You just had to be above the age of ten. However, each "class" was divided into certain age groups, to make the students feel more comfortable.
The class was getting ready for another lesson. Professor Moss brought the class to Castelia Park, located in the Central Plaza of Castelia City. Due to what the students had to do today, it required them to be around nature. Moss stood next to a box full of empty Poké Balls. Harper, the teacher assistant, and his favorite student from last year was on his right, although he wouldn't tell anyone that she was his favorite.
"Listen up! For today's class, we will be learning about how to catch Pokémon properly! Welcome to Catching Pokémon 101."
"That should be easy." Spyro brags. "I'm the king at catching Pokémon."
"You're the king of being a moron…" Ashley mumbles underneath her breath. Davey, who was standing right next to her, overhears and laughs too.
Spyro's eyes twitch. He heard it too, and believes she was making fun of him, which irritates him. "What was that?" Spyro's partner Pokémon Timburr shrugs and shakes his head in disappointment at his trainer.
Unlike Davey, Ashley wasn't scared of him. "You heard me!" she says, "the king of being a MORON. In case you don't know how to spell it, M-O-R-O-N!" She gets in his personal space.
The two students glare at each other, and the teacher clears his throat to get the attention of his students. "Class joining us for today's lesson will be Harper Heart. She will be my teaching assistant for the year, joining us in our lessons from time to time."
Harper was a Great Class student. The school was divided into four levels depending on the level of the student. The Normal Class was for beginners, the Great Class was for students learning more about the different types of Pokémon training and the world. The Ultra Class was for students attempting to find their own footing and identity, and the Master Class was for coming into your own. Most students start at the Normal Class, although rare, certain selected students can get into a certain grade depending on their skill level, determined by an extensive test.
"As you know, students at the Pokémon Academy are divided into classes depending on their grade. These grades are the Normal, Great, Ultra and Master Classes. Harper here is a Great Class student, you are all one of the many Normal Class classes."
"Nice to meet you all." She nods. There was something about her posture that gave off an aura of confidence. You knew just by looking at her that she was large and in charge, but that's what made her feel powerful. She changes her stance by putting her arms behind her back and steps in front of the box. "I'm blessed to assist Professor Moss in helping you guys through your first year at the Pokémon Academy. One year ago, I was in the same shoes as you guys, a Normal Class student, so I understand some of you might be dealing with fear and anxiety, but if we work together, we can achieve anything."
Ashley rolls her eyes, and the rest of the class pay close attention to what the assistant teacher was saying. "Boy, her speeches are just as corny as the Professor." Ashley mumbles.
Harper had sharp hearing and heard everything she said. Harper didn't even have to say anything. Just by looking at her face, Ashley knew she was messing with the wrong girl and backtracked her statement. "Uh yeah, Harper is astonishing!"
Davey recognizes Harper and waves. She waves back at him. "I see Harper hasn't changed much."
"Yep." Ashley replies. She steps closer to be next to him.
"Why are we learning about catching Pokémon? C'mon Moss, we're not little kids." Spyro protests.
"Because Spyro. Practicing the basics, even if you already know about them, can help improve your skills as a trainer." Sarah replies. "Besides, my twin brother needs all the help he can get. He's clueless!" Sarah's pets her Furfrou as the two of them chuckle at the incompetent Davey. Sarah's Furfrou was a unique Pokémon. It had different forms depending on the type of haircut it has. Sarah's Furfrou cut was the Diamond trim.
Davey growls and barks at his sister. "What was that?" He asks, but his sister chuckles.
"Davey, your sister is such a bitch." Ashley whispers.
"I know… That's what happens when you get spoiled all your life." Davey replies. The two friends laugh. Sarah feels someone was talking about her and concludes it must be her brother and his friend. She rolls her eyes and continues paying attention to the lesson.
Harper got impatient. She looks at Moss and nods at him, giving her an okay to start the lesson. "As you all already know, today's lesson will be catching Pokémon. Professor Moss instructed me to give a tutorial on how to capture a Pokémon in a successful way." She explains.
She grabs a Poké Ball from out of the box. The box didn't contain only regular Poké Balls, but an assortment of balls from all over the world. "This device that I have in my hand is a Poké Ball. Poké Balls are tools used for catching and storing Pokémon. Poké Balls come in many forms, for example, the Love Ball can be used to capture Pokémon that are the opposite gender of the user, while the Lure Ball can be used to capture Pokémon that you fish up."
"But enough exposition, Abra showtime!" She quickly grabs an Ultra Ball, throws it Girlish Style, and Abra releases from her ball. Abra floats in the air, displaying peace and calm.
"Who's that Pokémon?" Ashley asks. She pulls out her Rotom Phone. It was an enhanced Smart Phone with a Rotom inside it. The Rotom Phone was all the rage! Everyone who was everyone had one! Ashley normally had a black Rotom Phone, but she had a case on it. Her phone case looks like a Togepi's eggshell.
The Pokédex scans Abra and analyzes her:
"Abra, the Psi Pokémon. A Psychic-type. It senses impending attacks and teleports away to safety before the actual attacks can strike."
"Oh, such a cool Pokémon." Ashley puts her phone away.
Harper waits patiently for a Pokémon to come out, so she can demonstrate. Luckily, she didn't have to wait too long as a Venipede crawls out of the bushes. "Here's my chance!" She thrusts her arm out. "The first step to catching a Pokémon is to battle it. Abra uses Thunder Punch!" She orders.
Abra swings her arm as her arm clouds itself in electricity. Abra charges towards Venipede. Anticipating the upcoming attack from his enemy, Venipede curls up into a ball and rolls like a bowling ball.
"That's Rollout!" Davey points out.
Venipede inches closer towards Abra, but Abra swings its fist and punches Venipede, sending it flying back. Venipede lands on the ground and uncurls, but screeches loudly. Everyone covers their ears, as the sound frequency from the screeches was just too loud to handle. Now with them distracted, Venipede spits out three gunks of poison.
Harper gets back on track and starts focusing on her opponent. How am I supposed to count it? Oh! Wait! Knowing that she needs the upper hand, Harper hatches a quick full proof plan. This should work. "Abra use Zen Headbutt!"
Abra stretches, so she can be more flexible for the attack. Abra's head glows blue and becomes surrounded in a light blue protective shield. Abra then starts running and charges headfirst, slamming into the balls of poison, destroying them, and headbutting Venipede too.
"Poké Ball, Go!" Seeing this as an opportunity, Harper grabs one of her Poké Balls and throws it Girlish Style at Venipede. Venipede took in significant damage, so it was weakening. The ball opens, turning Venipede into a glowing red light. The light enters the ball, closes and lands on the ground, only to begin shaking.
"NICE!" Harper's Rotom Phone comments, scoring the average of Harper's throw.
The Poké Ball shakes a few more times, before finally stopping. The center of the ball glows and three stars surround it. "Venipede has been registered to your Pokédex." The Rotom Phone informs.
Harper shrugs as she didn't find it that impressive. "That's how you catch a Pokémon. If you want full success in capturing a Pokémon, do what I did. Battle, weaken and then throw, it gives you a better success rate, though it won't always work." She lectures. She puts the Poké Ball away and walks over to the Professor. "Two factors will determine your grade. On how you catch the Pokémon, the way you throw the Poké Ball and what type of Pokémon you catch."
"Release!" Harper turns around and releases the Venipede she caught back into the wild. The light Venipede came out, indicating the release process. While releasing a Pokémon, lets out a blue light instead of the standard red or white. "If you ever want to release a Pokémon, just say the word release, and the Pokémon will no longer be under your ownership. However, it will still count as a registry in your Rotom's Phone's Pokédex App, which I know the Academy gave all you when you got acceptance letters. So no one here should be short of a Rotom Phone."
The class watches as Venipede runs away. This confuses a few classmates, as they didn't understand what was going on. "Do we have to release them after we catch them?" Sarah asks.
"No. You will get to keep the Pokémon you catch." Harper responds. "You see, my goal is to become Unova's first Psychic-type Gym Leader. Having a Poison-type Pokémon like Venipede has no use for me." She explains it to her classmates. And I show you Mom and Dad that I don't need your reputation to get ahead in life, Harper thinks about her parents for a quick second. Her phone begins ringing as she gets a text message from Professor Cotton. The Professor had sent the girl a provocative image of a certain body part, and asked her to meet up. She texts him back telling him that she's in the middle of class.
"Now who wants to go first?" She asks.
"I'm gonna sit this one out. I want my first Pokémon to be shiny." Ashley shrugs.
"But Ashley, you should always do your school work…" Davey responds. But he wasn't that shocked by her not wanting to do a classroom assignment. "The point of coming to the Pokémon Academy was to try and improve my skills as a Pokémon Trainer."
"It's only the first assignment of the school year. We've only been in school for three days. It's not that big of a deal! Besides, my goal is to have a shiny Pokémon as my first Pokémon."
"Okay Ashley, that means you're going to get a zero on this assignment." Moss reveals, but felt sad that one of his students didn't want to participate.
"That's okay! There's plenty more assignments coming up, I assume, so it's no big deal!"
"Now I'll let Professor Moss get back to teaching the class. My work here is done." Harper bows. She walks over towards the teacher.
Moss claps his hands slowly, giving Harper a round of applause for her assignment. He looks at Harper, dead in her eyes. "Thank you, Harper!" Harper shrugs it off as the teacher looks at his students. Harper blushes a bit, but she didn't want to show a sign of weakness in front of the younger students so she nods her head and doesn't say anything.
Moss moves on and claps his hands. "So, let's begin." Moss points at Davey. "Come on Demetrius, why don't you go first?" Moss suggests. Moss was eager to help Davey get over his fear of Pokémon, and figured this lesson would be perfect as a first step in that goal.
Davey was taken aback. All eyes were on him, wondering if he would accept the teacher's unorthodox request. "Um… Why me?" He froze.
"Come on man, don't be a little bitch. It's just a Pokémon. You throw the ball and then boom! Capture!" Spyro pushes Davey, and like the clumsy fool he was, he trips and falls into the box loaded with capture devices. A Luxury Ball got in his mouth, and Davey spits in his mouth as the class teases him again.
"Deshawn Marcus!" Moss growls at the football player. "This is your classmate; how can you do something like that?"
Spyro rolls his eyes. "This is the problem with this generation, so soft and a bunch of pussies."
Ashley clenches her jaw. Her face turns red, and she balls up her fist. Steam comes out of her ears as her face flushes to a pinkish red. "And acting like a stereotypical bully from a Saturday morning cartoon from the 2000s is so much better. Bravo!" Ashley claps. She wasted no time in defending her friend.
The teacher breathes in and out. Feeling more relaxed, he steps up. "Now class, let's all relax. We are all friends here." Moss puts his hand on the scared boy's shoulder, as he assures the boy that he was there for him. "Davey, this will be good for you. Maybe finally getting a partner Pokémon of your own can help you come out of your shell."
"But I don't-" He starts. "I don't even know what I wanna do. How is adding in a partner Pokémon going to make this any better?"
"Because Pokémon are our friends." Moss smiles.
"CORNY!" Spyro shouts, but Davey's sister nudges him in the stomach. She wants to hear her brother out and steps up a bit, so she can hear their conversation more clearly. Spyro pouts a bit. He was noisy too, so he follows Sarah's actions.
"Like, oh my God. Professor Moss, my brother, is too weak to even open a door. How do you expect him to handle a Pokémon?" She asks. She starts to giggle, and her Furfrou follows suit. The laughs of the duo got more and more obnoxious, as Ashley glares at the duo.
Davey looks down. "She's right."
"Come on Davey." The Professor ignores Sarah's comments and focuses on his student. "I know you can do this… All you have to do is just be one with the Poké Ball…"
Out of nowhere, a jolt of confidence strikes Davey. He didn't know if it was from Professor Moss' motivational speeches or striving to prove his detractors wrong, Davey knew he had to do this. His eyes got sharp, he balls up his fist and holds his head up as he makes a declaration to capture a Pokémon today.
"You know what Professor Moss, I'll do it! I'm going to catch a Pokémon!"
"Yes!" Ashley cheers. "Prove those haters wrong!"
Davey bends down and studies the Poké Balls inside the box. If I'm going to catch my first Pokémon, I'll have to figure out what would be the best Poké Ball for my first partner. He sees the Luxury Ball. A light bulb clicks in his head. Perfect. Davey grabs the ball. "By using the Luxury Ball, I can ensure the first Pokémon I catch will have a high boost of friendship with me, making for a perfect combination."
"That actually sounds smart…" Sarah compliments.
"That's my bro, always using his brain! Now go on, try and find a Pokémon and catch it!" Ashley yells.
Spyro snickers. "Yeah, and remember once you get all comfortable with the Pokémon, it might touch you, or worse, attack you!" Spyro shouts.
Fear rushes through Davey's bones after Spyro's comments. He knew that Spyro was trying to torture him like usual, but what Spyro was saying was correct. I'm going to die, aren't I?
Now, sweating like crazy, Davey closes his eyes and tosses the Poké Ball. His throw was terrible, but effective, as he hit some Pokémon inside one of the bushes. The Luxury Ball hits that Pokémon and consumes it inside. The ball closes, lands on the ground and begins shaking. The ball shakes three times, as everyone stares in anticipation, waiting to see what happens next. The ball stops. Sparkles and yellow stars surround the Luxury Ball, as a loud clicking sound it made. The Pokémon was successfully caught.
Everyone was shocked.
Davey's Rotom Phone starts beeping. Davey grabs his smartphone and stares at it. Oh, no… He wasn't stupid, he knew what was coming, and couldn't believe it as he froze up. "Piplup was registered into your Pokédex." The Pokédex informs the box. He kept staring at the picture of Piplup. He gulps. I… I… I… caught a Pokémon.
Ashley was excited. She rushes up to her friend and grabs his hands. "Come on bro, let's see your new Pokémon!"
Davey was still processing the recent turn of events. "I… I… I… don't know about that..."
"Come on bro, I wanna see it! I always imagined that between the two of us, I would be the one to get a Pokémon first."
"You want it?" He asks nonchalantly.
"What… no? You know my stance on the subject!"
"Right…" Davey turns around and looks at the Luxury Ball. He sees Spyro and Sarah laughing at him. I can't make a fool of myself in front of those losers. He sighs. He gains the courage to start trekking. I can do this! I know I can! Davey bends down and stares at the Luxury Ball for a quick second. He had second thoughts. He looks back at Ashley, who was holding a thumbs up.
Knowing that he can count on his friends, Davey slaps himself in the face, picks up the Luxury Ball and walks back over to his classmates. "You can do this…" He says quietly. "Piplup, I chose you!" The ball opens up and Piplup is released. Piplup was elegant and moved like a ballerina. Piplup does a swirl and rubs her head up against Davey. Feeling Piplup touch him made Davey feel like he had been hit with a Thunderbolt that paralyzed him.
Piplup feels guilty and backs away. Davey runs all the way to a nearby tree and hides behind it, fearing for his life. He takes a quick peek and notices that Piplup was still staring at him, which terrifies him even further.
Ashley laughs and gets down to Piplup's level, looking at it in the eyes. Ashley could sense that Piplup felt like it did something wrong to make Davey not like her. "Piplup, don't mind him. You see, something happened three years ago that made Davey become afraid of Pokémon. He's just going through some things, but I know if you give it some time, you two will be friends in no time." Piplup listens to what Ashley says, and it gives her hope. But Davey, however, was still scared.
"Hey, Davey! Why don't you come over here and make friends with your Piplup!" Ashley encourages. But she then remembered something important. "How exactly did a Piplup come to the Unova Region anyway?" Ashley looks at Piplup and wonders where it came from.
A mysterious young adult was driving in his car in the busy streets of Castelia City, searching for something. He felt defeated and angry, while also worrying about his features. His name was Utah, and he was a Pokémon Hunter. "I can't believe I lost that Piplup! Ugh!" He screams. He slams his face into his steering wheel, which lets out a loud honk. "I'm going to get fired!"
Utah's purple Rotom Phone starts buzzing. He gulps. "Oh no… Please don't be the boss." Utah grabs the phone and flips it over. "Oh no… It's her." His worst fear had been realized, but he calms down and bites the bullet, picking up the phone and answering the video chat request. "Hello… Mom-I mean, Miss Vanjie. How are you? And hello to you too Doug…" He sounded nervous when speaking to Miss Vanjie but when it came to his Doug, he sounded jealous.
She didn't look too thrilled as she taps her fingers on the desk. Standing right next to her was a handsome muscular man and Utah's older brother. She glares at Utah, while he glares at his brother. "Where in the hell is that Piplup? You were supposed to be here one hour ago!"
"I know, I-"
"He totally doesn't have it mom." Doug whispers into her ear.
She gets even more irritated than before, her face turned red. Doug simply stands in the background with a cocky look on his face. "I'm tired of the excuse! My client wants a Piplup for their daughter, and I'm tired of him blowing up my phone. Bring me that Piplup or I'll have your ass! You're lucky you're my son, because if you were anyone else, I'd fire you in a heartbeat!" She slams her phone on the table, shatters it and ends the phone call. Luckily, since she was rich, she could totally buy herself a new one.
"That seemed tamer than usual." Utah comments. He shakes his head, realizing he had more important things to do. "I need to get back on track. Piplup, where are you?" He asks.
He drives off, searching for Piplup. But he had angry drivers shouting at him for holding up traffic. "Why the hell are you holding up traffic?" An angry driver yells. "Charmander, use Flamethrower." Utah didn't say a word. Not wanting to get hit by a fire-type attack, he drives off. Even breaking the speed limit.
After they were done with their catching Pokémon lesson, Moss class headed back to the classroom. Some students did well with catching Pokémon like Sarah and Spyro, but others did pretty terribly. But no one did as extreme as Ashley, who got a zero on the assignment because she refused to participate. Once they headed back to the classroom, everyone kept staring at Davey and his newly caught Piplup, circling around them, which made Davey nervous.
"Why are you all staring at me?"
"Because… you caught your first Pokémon." Spyro responds.
"It's not some big deal… Besides, it's just a Pokémon!" Davey looks over at Piplup, who was standing next to him. Davey notices Piplup was close to him, so he scooches over to the side, not wanting to be next to the Pokémon. Piplup keeps trying to get closer to Davey, and Davey keeps moving away.
Piplup sighs. Ashley pats Piplup on the head and smiles. "Everything's going to get better, remember what we talked about?" She asks.
Piplup did and felt terrible about Davey not wanting to do anything with her. Ashley felt sorry for the penguin Pokémon and offered its condolences. "How are you feeling, Piplup?" Piplup squawks. Ashley figures out what was going on with Piplup and sympathies. "Hey Piplup, I know how you feel. I know what it's like to feel like you have no one." She attempts to hold herself back from crying. "But you always have to remember that there's always someone out there that cares and loves you! When I was at my lowest and felt like no one was there, there was Davey, always there to make me feel better and cheer me up." She explains.
Piplup felt a little better. The talk with Ashley boosts its confidence, and the Pokémon smiles. Ashley was glad to see Piplup feeling better, and it made her happy. "Now that's the Piplup, I know!"
Everyone found it strange that Davey wasn't interacting with his Pokémon. To cope with their feelings, Spyro thinks of another way to release his feelings. "I guess you're still scared of Pokémon… loser!" Spyro points and laughs at him.
The rest of the class follows suit and makes Davey feel guilty of not being man enough to get over his fear. Professor Moss had enough of the class constant taunting, and shouts. "Enough!" The class stops the teasing and pays full attention to the teacher. "I've had enough of the constant mockering of Davey's fear. I won't tolerate it anymore! One more peep about his fear in a negative light and you will be sent to detention. Now, do I make myself clear?"
"Yes, Professor Moss!"
"Dope! Remember, in this classroom we are all teammates. Just like all of you and your Pokémon Partners. Now go sit down all of you." He instructs. The students listen to what their teacher tells them to do, and they all sit in their seats.
Davey was pleased he had someone on his side and smiled. "Thank you, Professor Moss. I appreciate the support."
"No problem! I want to help you with your PokéPhobia. That's why I personally asked for Vice Principal Willow to be yours and Ashley's Field Research instructor."
Ashley and Davey looked at each other and were surprised. "Wait… What?" They asked.
The Professor nods his head and hugs Ashley and Davey. He was thrilled to be spending more time with his students. "This is going to be the best year ever!"
"Yay…" The two students weren't as excited.
The day went on pretty regularly. Davey and Ashley finished up the rest of their classes, and were now on their way to Rare Candies, a popular sweet shop in Castelia City. It was the go-to place for all the students at the Pokémon Academy, and it was where Davey and Ashley loved to hang out. Mostly it was Davey who loved going there. Despite his insistence on eating healthy, he had one hell of a sweet tooth. Though, Ashley would never turn down ANY food, especially since Davey always paid for it.
As the two were walking, Ashley couldn't help but notice Piplup was still following them. All day, Piplup has been outside its Poké Ball. Which sounds fine on paper, and makes sense, but unlike other Pokémon Trainers, Davey didn't want to be anywhere near Piplup. All Davey's been doing all day was running away from Piplup, and Piplup is still following Davey. It was like a game of cat and mice. But it wasn't funny anymore.
"So, um Davey, what are you going to do with… that?" Ashley points to Piplup.
"I don't know, okay." He responded. The Pokémon moves closer to his new trainer, but Davey keeps pacing ahead, not wanting to be touched by him.
Ashley giggles. She grabs a hamburger she saved from lunch out of her backpack. "This is hilarious." First, she takes a bite of her cheeseburger. But since the cheeseburger was so messy, she got some mustard on her shirt. As she reaches into her pocket to pull out her phone, she lets out a fart that stank so much, Davey and the Pokémon both pass out on the ground. Ashley burps, shrugs, and then takes another bite out of the burger, all without saying "excuse me."
"Never mix, put two layers of baker beans on your double bacon pizza cheeseburger." She farts again.
"I'm literally dying." Davey says. He pinches his nose, and so does Piplup. The fart was so horrendous, that it made Piplup's eyes water. Piplup jumps onto Davey's shoulders as the stench of the fart starts to evaporate. But more problems arise when Davey freaks out over Piplup touching him. Davey grabs Piplup and places Piplup down, six feet away from him.
"Piplup, why don't you wait over there?" He suggests.
Davey takes out some hand sanitizer and uses it to wipe away all the germs from her touching him. Piplup felt discombobulated over Davey's feelings. She felt Davey didn't like him. Though the situation was much more complicated than that. She looks down, but Davey sighs of relief. "That was easy!" He cheers.
Davey steps over to his friend, but his behavior was still puzzling to Ashley. "What could go wrong?" She shrugs.
"Ashley!" A voice shouts. Davey and Ashley turn around to see Zack standing tall and proper with his Electivire standing next to him. Both Zack and Electavire wave at the girl. Ashley smiles and runs up to Zack. Zack and Ashley hug, and he gives her a kiss on her forehead. "How has the Pokémon Academy been treating you?" he asks.
"Good. I miss you, dummy." She hugs her boyfriend tighter. "And you too Electivire!" Electivire smiles and flexes. He was delighted to see her too.
"I miss you too, sucks were not in the same grade." He responds. He lifts his head up and gives Davey a death stare. Davey gets scared, while Piplup starts barking at Zack. There was something about him that she didn't like. "By the way, why haven't you been answering my texts?"
Ashley recognizes she messed up. She takes out her phone and recognizes that Zack has been texting and calling her repeatedly. "I'm so sorry, Zack. I've just been busy."
"Busy with what?"
Ashley didn't have a valid excuse, so she lies. "School."
Zack growls, feeling like his girlfriend was making a fool out of him. "We've only been in school for almost a week. You can't be that busy unless you're an Ultra Class or Honors Student." He responds. He felt frustrated, seeing as this wasn't the only time she's made silly excuses to not spend time with him.
Ashley gives in and tells him the truth, somewhat. "Look, I simply don't have time right now. Come on Davey and Piplup." She starts walking. Things were complicated between her and her feelings for Zack, and she wasn't sure how she was going to express that. Especially to him.
Davey and Piplup follow him, with Davey trying hard to not get close to Piplup. Zack glares at Davey as he feels betrayed by his girlfriend. "Are you spending time with him again?"
Ashley runs up to Zack and gives him a quick kiss on the cheek, which causes him to blush. "We'll spend time together again, soon. I'll make it up to you!"
"Okay…" Zack giggles like a schoolgirl and forgives his girlfriend for a quick second. Before Davey and Ashley run off.
Davey and Ashley headed to Rare Candies, with Piplup still walking next to them… But six feet away. It sounds insane, but Davey's mental health was starting to get him. His fear of Pokémon was no longer a simple phobia, it was now serious, and things were getting intense, taking a toll on Davey's mental stability.
Davey and Ashley got a booth at Rare Candies. They ordered some food, and were only now waiting for their orders to be finished. Piplup stares at the two of them from afar. Davey took quick glances to see if everything with Piplup was okay. Ashley takes note of this and starts agonizing her friend. "You do care, don't you?"
Davey blushes. "What?! I-" He gives in. "Of course I do! I feel ashamed that I have to deal with this." He looks at Piplup. Flashbacks from when he was a child, thrilled with when he wanted to go out on a Pokémon adventure of his own, flourishes him. He wishes he was still that child. "I just want to go back to simpler times… When I DIDN'T have to deal with this stupid fear of mine."
Ashley worries about her friend. "Look Davey, I think you should go back to seeing your therapist…before you start, you know…"
This pisses Davey off. He takes a quick peek at his arm, which was being covered by his black blazer. Luckily for him, he was wearing his school uniform, so he didn't have to be reminded of any painful memories. He looks back up with his friend, giving her a sterner expression. "I don't wanna talk about it."
She regrets bringing it up and consoles Davey. "I'm sorry for bringing it up."
Davey clears his throat. "Why don't we change subjects…"
Cole and his Kirlia come barging in by sitting down next to Ashley. He was holding a giant chocolate cake, and Kirlia was scrolling through her phone. Cole was another student at the Pokémon Academy and friends with Davey and Ashley. Cole was an upperclassman, an Ultra Class student with a dream, aspiring to become a Pokémon Coordinator.
"How are the Fresh Meats doing?" He chuckles. Meanwhile, Kirlia rolls her eyes and starts taking selfies.
Angry, Ashley pulls the overweight boy's blonde hair. "Call me that again, and I'll show you what fresh meat looks like." She threatens. She lets go, but leers at him, showing off her dominance to remind him what sort of person she was. She goes back to playing on her phone, almost as if nothing truly happened.
Cole scoots down a tiny bit. After that experience, he grew weary of his friend. "Okay, I won't do that again…" He pleads.
Kirlia laughs. She caught everything on camera. "What are you laughing about?" Cole asks. He studies at the Fairy-type smartphone and realizes she was replaying the video of Cole getting his hair pulled. He didn't take kindly to this. "Delete this!" Cole tries to grab the phone, but Kirlia fights him off. "You know the only type of videos you should be shooting are of you for DingDong."
"You have a DingDong account?" Ashley asks.
Cole looks at Ashley, after successfully getting Kirlia's phone. "Yeah we do. You see, since DingDong is all about creating and sharing short videos. It allows people to express themselves through singing, tips, dancing, reviews, comedy, lip-syncing and so much more! It's perfect for Coordinators and Performers." Cole explains. "Maybe you can make DingDong videos once you start Shiny Hunting! Speaking of which… Why don't you just get a Pokémon from a professor already?"
"Because!" She starts. "My goal is more than just simply wanting to capture every shiny Pokémon. I wanna capture all shiny Pokémon, so I can build an army of Pokémon to battle the "alleged" creator of the universe, Arceus. I want to prove that Arceus is real, so by catching every Pokémon, this alleged so-called "creator" would have to appear in front of me, deeming me worthy, since no one has ever been able to catch every Pokémon."
Cole and Kirlia were a bit confused and looked at each other. "Ashley… Have you heard the theory that the more Pokémon you catch, there's a chance that a shiny Pokémon might appear?"
"Hmm… that's an interesting theory." She starts thinking, but she gets distracted as she looks at Piplup, who looks gloomy, staring into the window. Ashley gets up and runs out of the restaurant to observe Piplup. "Hey, Piplup!" She says. But Piplup didn't respond. Ashley sighs. She reaches into her pocket and pulls out a PokéPuff, a famous Pokémon themed treat from the Kalos Region. "Why don't you eat this?" She hands the Poképuff to Piplup, and Piplup was thrilled.
Piplup starts munching on the desert and Ashley smiles, thrilled to see Piplup enjoying something for once. "Are you enjoying it? It's a Supreme Spring Poképuff!" Piplup nods. She wants more and starts begging Ashley for more. "Okay, okay, I'll give you some more. But first, we need to drag your trainer out here to bring some sense into him."
Ashley storms back into Rare Candies pissed, as she grabs Davey by the shirt. "Dude, you need to get your act together. I get you're afraid of Pokémon, but you're literally neglecting poor Piplup. Either you keep Piplup or release it! Leading someone on is horrible."
Davey sighs and recognizes what she was saying was true. "You're right. I've been a terrible Pokémon trainer. This wasn't how I imagined bonding with my first Pokémon. It's just, whenever I get near a Pokémon, I feel like I can't breathe. My palms get sweaty, and I freeze up. I hate it." He explains, almost wanting to cry and looking over to the side.
Ashley nods and puts her hands on Davey's shoulders. "I get it, I do! But bro, you can't keep hurting people just because you have a phobia. It doesn't excuse it, man! You need to make the right decision."
"You're right, you're right. I've been such a terrible trainer to Piplup." He felt remorse for what he did. He grabs Piplup's Poké Ball and stares at it. "I need to make things right." Davey says. The two leave Cole and Kirlia alone at the booth and head outside, but they don't notice Piplup anywhere.
"Where did Piplup go?" Ashley asks, she was concerned for the Pokémon, and so did Davey too. But Ashley had never felt this way about a Pokémon before, and was determined to find it.
Davey turns her head and sees Piplup getting carried away by a man. That man was Utah. Piplup struggled to get out of Utah's arms, and Utah struggled to put up a fight. "Stay calm, you little twerp."
Ashley and Davey get pissed off with Ashley stepping up in front. "Hey! Give my friend his Pokémon back."
Utah hears the voices of the two teenagers and turns around. "Your Pokémon?" Utah laughs. "You must be mistaken… This is my Pokémon. It ran away from my cage like a coward!" Utah checks up on Piplup, who was trying to escape, but Utah holds a together grip onto the penguin Pokémon.
This upsets Ashley. "Well it ran away for a reason!"
"Who are you anyway?" Davey asks.
"Who am I? Who are you? I'm Utah Salavador, the world's best Pokémon Hunter. This loaded patron wants this Piplup for his daughter's tenth birthday and will pay a ton of money for it."
Ashley growls. "I don't care if it's for the richest person in the world. Stealing Pokémon is wrong, no matter what! Now give me back my friend's Pokémon!" Ashley was passionate about getting Piplup back, and she noticed. Piplup gets teary eyed and smiles, loving the fact that there was someone out there who cared for her.
"You're both getting annoying and super cliche. I'm going to have to take-" Utah tried reaching for a Poké Ball, but he realized he didn't have any Pokémon on him. "Shit! I forgot to grab one of the Pokémon at Headquarters." He felt dumb for not being more prepared. "I guess, I'm going to have to do it the old-fashioned way… Run!" Utah begins running.
"Hey, get back here!" Davey replies. Davey and Ashley chase after the cowardly Utah.
Piplup had enough. Appreciating how Ashley and Davey cared for her gave her enough courage to peck Utah with its beak. Utah screams in pain and finally escapes the clutches of Utah's arms, and returns to Davey and Ashley. They were overjoyed to see Piplup, but Davey was still scared and hid behind Ashley. Utah gets pissed off. "Come back here, Piplup or else!" He threatens. Utah struggled to find a weapon in his arsenal.
Ashley knew that there was only one option left and she wasn't sure if Davey would be up for it. But she had to take the chance. "Davey, you have to attack him! That's our only choice!"
"But-" Davey was still scared of Piplup.
"Ugh, fine! I'll do it then! What moves does Piplup know?" She decided to take charge.
Davey takes out his Rotom Phone and starts searching for information on Piplup's moveset. He finds it. "Piplup knows Bubble, Peck, Ice Beam and Headbutt." He informs and puts his smartphone away.
Ashley nods. She quickly starts to think about strategies on how to handle the situation. If I use Ice Beam I can freeze him and then send him flying away with Headbutt. "Thanks bro! Now Piplup, use Ice Beam." Piplup nods and opens up its beak. A light blue ball appears from inside. Piplup fires multiple light blue beams from the ball at Utah and it freezes him. "Headbutt"
Piplup jumps into the air and headbuts Utah, breaking the ice and sending him flying into the air. "Looks like I'm blasting off again!" He screams. He flies off so far that he could no longer be seen from the distance where Davey and Ashley were standing.
Davey looks at Piplup. He knew he had to do the right thing. He walks a bit up to Piplup and bends down, staring at it, face to face. Piplup was angry at Davey. "Piplup, I'm sorry I haven't been treating you right. You see, three years ago something happened to me and it caused me to become afraid of Pokémon. It's why I've been distant and tried my best to avoid you, so I understand why you're mad at me." Piplup looks at Davey and recognizes that he was scared and accepts his apology. "Truth is… I don't think I'm ready to own a Pokémon yet, heck I don't even know if I'll ever be capable of owning one. But you know, that's for me to decide. But at the same time, I shouldn't be dragging you or any other Pokémon into this. So that is why I have to release you. I'm sorry, but it's what has to be done."
Piplup nods and Davey smiles. "Thank you for understanding Piplup. For what its worth, I know that you'll made some trainer happy someday." Davey grabs Piplup's Luxury Ball and recalls the Pokémon back inside. Davey sighs, gets up and felt more confident in his decision. "Goodbye Piplup." The ball opens up and a light blue light is released, containing Piplup. The light dissolves. Piplup was now a wild Pokémon again.
Davey looks at Piplup, happy to be free from the shackles of his fear. "Best of luck Piplup." Davey starts walking and Piplup smiles.
Ashley feels bad for Piplup and stares at her with Piplup staring back at Ashley. Ashley catches up with Davey. But Ashley couldn't stop staring at Piplup. Davey notices that Ashley was getting distracted by the Penguin Pokémon and smiles. He stops walking. "Go ahead!" He understood what she really wanted and that was to catch Piplup. She kept thinking back to information
Ashley was happy that her friend understood what she wanted. "Are you sure? It won't bother you?"
"No, it's okay! Go ahead Ashley." He nudges her forward.
Ashley hugs Davey and then runs towards Piplup. Ashley grabs a Poké Ball. Piplup was thrilled to Ashley coming back for her and she runs towards her. Ashley stops and throws the Poké Ball. Piplup goes inside the ball and it falls on the ground. The ball shakes a couple of times before stopping. Ashley successfully captures Piplup and she couldn't be more thrilled.
"Piplup has been registered to your Pokédex." Ashley smartphone Rotom informs.
Ashley couldn't believe what just happened. She rushes and grabs Piplup's Poké Ball. She jumps into the air with her right hand holding the Poké Ball up high, striking a pose. "I caught a Piplup!" She lands back on the ground and tosses the Pokéball and then catches it. Ashley and Piplup couldn't wait as they both hugged each other, smiled and giggled like little schoolgirls. She might've been adamant about catching a regular Pokémon first before a shiny, but she knew she made the right choice.
Author's Note: I apologize for this taking so long, but it took me a while to edit! But, I'm happy that it's finally finished. Honestly, this was one of the best chapters I've written in a while. So much character development going on between Ashley and Davey. Plus we got introduced to a few more story elements: The introduction to Field Research, Ashley's boyfriend, Zack, so many new things and she caught herself a Pokemon! Shoutout to the first OCs to be introduced in this chapter: Cole and Zack! Cole was submitted by MaMcMu and Zack was submitted by electriuser. Update (7/18/2021): Thanks to Deutschland 1871 for doing some touch up for the chapter!
Though honestly while writing this, I couldn't stop thinking about when we will get more information about BDSP and Legends? Like it's been four months and I'm starving for some sort of information about those games!
Also thanks so much for the reviews, I really appreciate the support!
Naruto1999: It's complicated, kind of a normal school and kind of a college/boarding school.
yuman28: A lot of infodumping on stuff like that was planned for chapter 1, but decided to introduce it gradually as the story process.
SerpentFeather: You perfectly predicted this chapter's plot lol.
Question of the chapter: Since this chapter revealed the secret about this story taking place in ALL regions and not just Unova, what region do you wanna see and what element of that region would you like to be included?
Next time on Pokemon Academy: "Seasons of Sawsbuck!" - Davey and Ashley have become field research assistants for Professor Moss. Their first assignment is to investigate the rumblings of all four different seasonal forms of Deerling appearing all at once in the Lethal Region. So they go there and investigate. But…
See ya next time, and I hope you all enjoyed the chapter! Chapters should be up every other Friday! So expect a chapter in two weeks! Things are finally going back to normal in my life, and I'm happy. Bye!