"Pleasure to do business with you, Mr Vera."
"Likewise, Miss Rees, and you can call me Vance."
"Then please call me Amelia," the girl who is only about a year older than me gave a sweet smile as she shook hands with my brother. This is Amelia Rees, a member of the secretive Dandolos family. There was a reason as to why she's not officially known to the public as a Dandolos and I'm not privy to it, but Leticia had assured me that the blood of the Dandolos flows through her veins. All that I knew was that such arrangements are needed to protect the members of the Dandolos family from the numerous enemies that they had made over their long history.
Looking at how Amelia exchanged words with my brother so confidently and expertly made me realise the differences between an ordinary person and a genius. I had the advantage of an adult's mind in a child's body, allowing me to grasp opportunities simply by using the time an ordinary child would use to play to study instead. People like Amelia are truly geniuses, people who could simply handle any kind of burdens on their shoulders with just a few years of study.
She's not even a full year older than me, and she's already spitting out business and legal jargon and fully understanding the complexity of those terms. Looking at her, I'm not even sure if seasoned businessmen would have conducted this business deal as well as she did. She is the representative that the Dandolos had chosen to represent them in our joint business venture and she clearly lived up to the praise that Leticia had given her in our last meeting.
The signed contracts were then handed over to our assistants for safekeeping. On our side, Sebastian was the one who kept the copy for our family. Amelia had her own assistant too, a female secretary who took the dossier in a very business-like fashion the moment the deal was concluded.
And to our surprise, whatever professional image that Amelia had presented herself as was immediately shattered the moment the deal was officially concluded.
"Finally, it's done!" Amelia stretched her arms up high before releasing a tired sigh. "Man, I lost too much sleep for this. Hey hey, Velda, I heard you are in the interpol? What is it like there? I heard you guys fought the Legendary Birds? What's its name called again… Zapmolcuno?"
Vance and I simply froze from the surprise thanks to Amelia's sudden change in demeanour. One moment she's a mature miniature adult who could even make adults squirm uneasily with her uncanny business acumen, and the next moment she's suddenly acting like a child her age. Leticia did mention that Amelia was interested in meeting me, but I wasn't expecting Amelia to be so… straightforward.
The female secretary that was with Amelia the entire time simply facepalmed and sighed. From the looks of it, this is probably a common occurrence for her.
"Lady Amelia…"
"Don't be so uptight, official business is already over!"
"Yes, that may be true, but-"
"Ah, who cares?" Amelia took my hands in hers, and I could swear that her eyes were sparkling as she did that. Even Amelia's gothitelle that was accompanying her the entire time had rolled its eyes in exasperation after witnessing Amelia's actions.
"So, did you really fight Zapmolcuno?"
"Personally, no, but I was at the scene," I replied and tried not to shudder from the frightening memory. I could never forget that suffocating presence that Zapmolcuno exuded simply for it being there, and I could never forget how everyone was almost wiped out in a single attack if it wasn't for Jasmine's effort to protect the entire city.
Kanto's Legendary Birds are its protectors and they are referred to as Legends simply because their power has withstood the test of time. The fight at Olivine simply cemented that fact and reminded the world why they deserved their title.
"Did the city's Gym Leader really take on the full attack of the Legendary Birds?"
"Yes, she did."
"Did-"
"Lady Amelia," Amelia's secretary audibly cleared her throat, the hem-hem loud and clear. "You are making Mr and Miss Vera uneasy."
"It's fine," I quickly assured Amelia's secretary because like Amelia, I am also interested in making a new friend and just by looking at her, I just knew that we would have a lot to talk about. Amelia is a lot like me in many aspects, be it in terms of our age, the kind of family that we belonged to, and the responsibilities that we will inevitably have to bear one day.
Besides, if even Rena did not react to Amelia suddenly grabbing onto my hands, then it would mean that Amelia harbours no ill-will. She's just genuinely curious about me.
"How about we have a nice chat over some tea?"
Amelia looked like she could have passed away from an overdose of happiness when I suggested that.
Ultimately, Amelia and I ended up spending the rest of the afternoon at a high-end cafe, doing nothing but to simply chat and gossip. Amelia had sent her secretary away and I did the same for Vance, since I don't think he would be interested in girls' talk anyway. For once, I suddenly felt like I can act my physical age. The last time I did so was when I was spending time with Liza and that was so long ago.
The only serious talk we had was about my recent experience at the underground auction where I had spectacularly lost to Team Plasma's agent, because it was information that I felt the Dandolos would want to hear with their own ears even if I'm sure Looker had already told them about it. After which, the direction of our conversation took a lighter turn where the both of us were able to truly act our age.
Amelia did share a few things about her family's history that she's able to divulge, like how her family's traditional role in the region placed them in an awkward spot where they are feared but at the same time, well-accepted as a necessary presence. She is not a trainer, at least not officially, but she does have a musharna and a gothitelle and I can tell that from a single glance that these pokemon are at the very least, strong enough to be at the high end of the Advanced level spectrum.
This might not seem much when compared to a trainer like me, but it is a very impressive achievement since Amelia is not a trainer at all. Even more so when you consider the fact that only less than ten percent of each batch of trainers would ultimately be qualified to participate in an annual Pokemon League Tournament. Given enough time, maybe just about five more years by my estimate, Amelia's pokemon will soon be able to match Elite level pokemon comparable to those trained by trainers who had competed in a League tournament before.
I was of the impression that the Dandolos are historically a family of Dark Specialists, so it seemed out of place that Amelia had a team of psychic pokemon instead even if she only had a team of two pokemon. Amelia explained that it's true that her family are a family of Dark Specialists, but it's also true that their family had a very long history with pokemon. As such, they were also many Dandolos who turned out specialising in different pokemon typings throughout the centuries and they had documented their individual training secrets and methods into their family's archives in hopes that one day, their hard work might be of use to one of their descendants who decided to not take the traditional path of becoming a Dark Specialist.
Coincidentally, the current generation of Dandolos members have individuals who each specialise in different typings, making their generation a diverse one in terms of pokemon type specialisation. Despite that, Amelia proved that she hails from a family of Dark Specialists by easily befriending Kel, to the extent that Kel actually allowed Amelia to comb her fingers through her sleek fur and Kel is notoriously picky as to who gets to touch her at all. To date, only Mum and I were allowed to help comb and groom her fur.
The fact that Amelia knew the ways to easily befriend an absol spoke volumes on the kinds of training and exposure to dark types she had experienced ever since she was a child, and only a family like the Dandolos could provide such experiences for anyone to be able to handle dark types with ease at Amelia's age. Now, I can truly understand why the Dark Specialists in Team Liepard had chosen to work for the Dandolos if this was what Amelia is capable of despite not being a trainer.
Amelia was very interested in whatever I had seen and experienced in my travels. Be it the good experiences or the bad kinds, she listened to it all in great curiosity. She is a genius who thrives in a world of numbers, someone who will become an asset to her family for her talent in the field of business and negotiation and that also happens to be where her interest lies. That said, it doesn't mean that she had never dreamed of doing the things many of our peers had at least attempted before giving up, which is becoming a pokemon trainer and going on our individual journeys.
Amelia did not have such a luxury. She mentioned that if she was adamant enough in her choice she could have become a full-fledged trainer like I did, but she does not possess the same kind of talent in pokemon training as she did for business. Despite how childish and flippant she may act outside of professional settings, she does have her mature side and is very well aware of her responsibilities she bears as a Dandolos. In that end, I felt that I paled in comparison to her because I only started taking up such responsibilities recently while she had been doing it ever since she was a child.
It was then I realised how well my family had protected and shielded me from the responsibilities of being a member of the Vera family and how much work Vance must have been undertaking in secret as the heir apparent. For as long as I could remember, Dad would always find time to pull Vance away to give him "lessons" whenever he was home. That did not change after Vance became a pokemon trainer and he would sometimes return home when Dad asked him to for whatever reasons Vance had to be there as the heir. That persisted even after Vance was actively involved in his duties as an ACE operative, and I can only imagine just how little free time he must have had throughout his entire childhood.
I never needed to be involved in whatever Dad had Vance take part in, because I wasn't the heir and also due to my fragile health back then, but now that my worldview had expanded and now I had a newfound understanding of the duties that family like mine and the Dandolos had to undertake, I am starting to realise just how narrow and simplified my view was. Be it in terms of my family's influence in our homeland or the kind of responsibilities we have to bear in times of crisis; we were given and trusted with power so that when our region needs it the most, we can become their sword and shield.
I was fortunate enough to live a comfortable life as a Vera, too spoiled by my family's love and protection to the point that I was ignorant of just how much burden we had to bear, that Dad and Vance had to bear so I wouldn't need to. One reason was indeed because I was never truly taught about it until very recently, but also because I had never met another person who comes from a similar background to mine as the only other family left in Hoenn with a similar standing to mine is the Stone family and unfortunately, Steven had a tendency to coddle me like Vance would.
With Amelia, there were no such considerations because in terms of both capabilities and backgrounds, we are equals. Thus, we can truly be friends of equal standing to each other. She is the rising star in the field of business and finance and I am a trainer who is starting to gain influence in the PWL ever since the founding of the interpol. We will be people that would one day have a significant presence in the sphere of influence that we had chosen to be involved in thanks to the responsibilities that we have to bear as members of our respective families.
As such, we can truly understand and empathise with each other, and was why we were able to hit it off almost immediately after we warmed up to each other.
"You… read this?"
I looked at Amelia, then back at the book in my hand which Amelia had taken out of her handbag. We were telling each other of our hobbies, and it was then I realised my hobbies amounted to nothing much other than pokemon training, grooming my pokemon, and the occasional reading if I wasn't busy travelling from place to place. Amelia loves to read, but I will have to admit that her taste in books is a little… questionable.
In response, Amelia simply leaned forward in my direction from across the table, replying in a low whisper as if revealing to me the greatest secret in the world. Honestly, that wasn't needed since we were in a private room, but it does add to the secretive vibe that Amelia wanted to portray. Apparently, indulging in such books is one of her greatest guilty pleasures and she is not afraid to share it with those she trusts.
"Trust me, this book is really good."
I stared right back at the book in my hand, titled I am the childhood friend of the Yellow Flash and I suspect he is trying to seduce me. The title is a needlessly long title that seems to be the new trend for light novels published in recent years. If I squint at the fine prints really hard, this seems to be the first volume out of many, and who knows how many volumes this series might have.
The kicker?
One, after quickly reading through the prologue I'm very certain that this book clearly belongs to the yaoi genre. Now, I don't judge somebody else based on their sexual orientation or their choice of literary works, but I had never been much of a fan of such works myself. Still, I will admit that the author has some really impressive writing skills because even if I'm not a fan of such a genre, the author still managed to catch my attention and a desire to continue reading after reading through the prologue.
Now, here's the true kicker. Remember the name of the long-ass title? I am the childhood friend of the Yellow Flash and I suspect he is trying to seduce me. I had definitely heard of that moniker back in Indigo and there's only one person I knew of with that lame moniker. That is the same person who I changed the contact name in my xtransceiver's contact list from "Fourth Hokage" to "Hokage wannabe".
Someone had written a freaking light novel about Volkner, in the yaoi genre, and it is taking all I had to not burst out in uncontrollable spurts of laughter and pass out from laughing too hard. This is only the first volume from what I was told. Childhood friend of the Yellow Flash, there's only one other person who could fit that bill and that would be Flint of Sinnoh's Elite Four.
Oh boy, this is gold.
"See? It's good, right?"
"I'm very sure that this book technically qualifies as fanfiction, because I personally know the original model of which the main character is based on," I replied dryly. I mean, come on, the name of the main characters in the book were Finn and Volker. Anyone who paid any mind to the famous trainers in Sinnoh would make the connection.
Amelia simply waved my concerns away with a dismissive wave of her hand.
"What's he gonna do? Make the journey to Unova to electrocute Shauntal?"
So Amelia does know that Volkner is the original model of the main character. Still…
"Shauntal? As in Elite Four Shauntal?"
Good grief, an Elite Four writing a yaoi fanfiction about a Gym Leader from another region? Similar to Indigo and Hoenn, Sinnoh's current stance on LGBT issues, while getting increasingly more open-minded and inclusive in recent years, are still a lot more conservative and traditional when compared to other regions like Unova or Kalos. Wouldn't the mere presence of this novel spark some sort of conflict if Sinnoh accused Unova of tarnishing the image of their Pillars whatsoever? What has the world come to? What gave Shauntal the guts to write something so controversial, yet so brave?
Shauntal really has some nerves of steel, I will have to give her that.
"Anise is her pen name," Amelia pointed at the cover of the book where the author's name was printed on, "and her novels are really really good. She's not well-known internationally, but in Unova? Any book she wrote would immediately become a bestseller. It's not the first time Shauntel used a real person in which her main characters were based anyway, and these people also benefited from the fame that her books bring about. It's a win-win situation for everyone, so nobody really said anything."
"Successful novel or not, it's hard to imagine Volkner actually giving Shauntel permission to use him as a model for the main character of a yaoi novel. He would flip if he knew about this."
"Then maybe he should first take a read before deciding to do so, because trust me, this novel is a masterpiece."
I looked back at the book in my hand. Say what you want about the somewhat questionable genre of this light novel, but anyone who had given this book a try and had at least read the prologue would admit that Shauntal's skills as a writer are top notch.
"Is there an ebook version of this?"
"Oooh, you are the type to prefer ebooks as opposed to paperback?"
"No, not really, this isn't about that," I grinned. Already, I cannot wait to see Volkner's response the moment he learned about the existence of this book.
"I just really, really want to recommend and give this book to a friend in Johto, that's all."
AN: Don't think I will have time to post a chapter tomorrow so I will do a double update today. As usual, hope you guys enjoyed the story so far.
Character and pokemon list:
Velda Vera, Age: 13, Female, Pokemon Trainer, Member of the International Police
Pokemon on hand:
1) Rapidash (Flamel), male
2) Swampert (Bigblue), male
3) Banette (Dolly), female
4) Flygon (Snap), male
5) Absol (Kelsa), female
6) Charizard (Toothless), male
7) Cradily (Lily), female
8) Espeon (Rena), female
9) Pachirisu (Fuzzy), male
10) Tyranitar (Kratos), male
11) Clefairy (Joy), female
12) Nidoqueen (Ness), female
13) Pangoro (Hulk), male
14) Porygon-Z (Jarvis), genderless
15) Scizor (Archer), male
16) Lapras (Chill), female
17) Gengar (Wacky), male
18) Haxorus, male
Vance Vera, Age: 20, Male, Heir to the Vera Family
Pokemon on hand:
1) Gengar (Macky), male
2) Sceptile
3) Salamence
4) Metagross
5) Gallade
6) Walrein
7) Electivire
8) Weavile
9) Magmortar