Chapter Text
You were young when it sprouted. The gray bulb that predicted your life-long love.
You were out playing with the neighborhood kids, and after a long afternoon of running around with Pokémon, your mother had called you in for your nightly routine. Dinner, bath, and then bedtime. After you had eaten your fill, you mother herded you down to the bathroom. You sat on a covered toilet as your mother filled up the tub. Your mother turned to you, tugging your shirt over your head, and she gasped. You followed her gaze, confused. A dark lump sat on your upper right chest. A bud. Your mother clamped both of her hands down over her mouth.
“Honey?” She called out, dazed. Your father shuffled into the bathroom, and looked expectantly at your mother. She pointed, her finger shaking slightly. Your father followed her quaking point to you, sitting confused on the covered toilet, half-clothed. His eyes opened, then his face melted into a soft smile. He put his hand on your mother’s shoulder. “We’ll explain it after his bath,” he said reassuringly. You kicked off your shoes, and pulled off your socks as your mother continued with your bath with a dazed and hazy expression.
You slipped into your pajamas, wiggling contentedly gently as you still felt the warmth from the bath throughout your body. Your mother guided you by the hand to the living room, where you sat between your parents on the couch. You cocked your head to the side, not having expected the change in routine. Your mother flashed your father an ecstatic, forced-back smile as she sat down. Your father took a breath, then drew up his shirt, and exposed a beautiful tattoo across the left side of his chest. A flower, the shade of your mother’s eyes, painted the side of his torso. Your mother pulled down the collar of her shirt to show another flower, peeking out across her right shoulder, the shade of your father’s eyes.
“They’re the colour of your soulmate,” your father explained slowly. You nodded in acknowledgement. “It-“
“It’ll bloom a bit before you meet your soulmate,” your mother cut in, poking at where your green bud was engraved in your skin. She took your hands. “Someday, (y/n), you’ll meet a beautiful girl, and she’ll be your soulmate, and-” She stopped, your father’s hand on her shoulder, on her flower.
“Your bud appears early in your life,” your father said, his voice filled with excitement and love. “It’ll bloom a few weeks or even a month before you meet your soulmate. The colour your flower is, it’s the colour of your soulmate’s eyes. Once you meet your soulmate, and touch them, you’ll see the colours.” He pulled you onto his lap. He placed a hand over your upper chest. “You should embrace life as it is for as long as you can, before it blooms,” he suggested. “But that’ll happen later in life.” He paused to ruffle your still-wet hair. “Let’s get you to bed. You can show all your friends your bud tomorrow. We can take you to the professor after school, and get you your first Pokémon, how ‘bout that?” You nodded excitedly. “Daddy, what Pokémon are there?” You asked.
“Usually, the professor has a bunch of ‘em,” your father began, picking you up and bringing you down to bed. You yawned, the monochromatic view darkening.
----------------------
You faintly recall that memory as you lay in your bed, staring at the ceiling. It was just past midnight, but sleep was nowhere to be found. You traced your hand over where the dark bud used to sit upon your chest. You tugged your collar up, and looked down at your chest, expecting the mark to be gone. You stared, in shock, at the lightly-shaded flower blooming on your chest. Through your very limited knowledge of basic flowers, you recognized a daisy, somehow. The edges of the petals were slightly crumpled, and a few even slightly torn. You released the collar. With a daunting realization, you concluded you didn’t have much time before you met your soulmate, and settled down with them. You turned to the side, glancing at the monochromatic pokeballs laying on your nightstand. You counted them, making sure they were all in check. Three lone Pokémon. You wondered how long you could still adventure with them, now that you were due to meet your soulmate soon. What if your soulmate didn’t like Pokémon? What if she didn’t like adventuring, or running around, or just any of your main activities? You buried under the blanket.
You thought of paradise. Beautiful flowers, not like the stupid daisy on your chest. They bloomed along the roads you travelled, finding Pokémon around every plant. Eating berries, or jumping out at you, or lazing around… You were, for the first time in years, afraid of what the future held. You remembered a commercial you had seen a few weeks ago of a chain of islands… What was the name again? Aholei…? A…You struggled to recall the name. Your eyes flickered with remembrance. Alola! You had your savings for when you needed them, and you decided it was time. Tomorrow, you planned, you’d show your parents your flower. You’d tell them you wanted to see the world before you settled with your soulmate. You’d pack, and travel to Alola, and rent a house there for a bit. You faintly recalled something about Pokémon trials. You figured you’d go through those. They sounded like a good challenge for you and your Prinplup, Slowbro, and Haunter. Maybe you’d finally find another addition to the team.
You slipped into a comfortable sleep.
Oh how you never realized the plan life had for you.
Your parents, thankfully, took the news well. Your mother was so excited, you’re pretty sure she’d almost passed out. You father gave you some money to support yourself with, and you were so grateful. You figured you’d need it after a while. You did your research, found a nice, reasonably-priced, reasonably-sized house for one person and three Pokémon. You booked a flight for the next day. You began packing what you could, money, clothes, precious belongings, and other necessities. In the middle of the process, you got a call from the airport. With your ticket, they wouldn’t allow Pokemon to be taken along. Your heart sank. You couldn’t take them with you…? You called them out of their containments. They sat in your room as you explained the situation to them. Your parents would watch them as you journeyed.
You could barely sleep from excitement and dread, but in the late hours of the night, ended up getting a text from a number, calling himself a Professor. Interested, you continued the conversation. His name was Kukui, and he had heard of your travel plans. He invited you to meet with him, and he’d help you adjust into island life. You greatly appreciated his offer and accepted graciously.
Your stomach fluttered as you hugged your parents good-bye. You’d really miss them, you made a point to call them throughout your expedition. Your mother looked like she wanted to cry, but stayed strong, and offered her support, even if there was a time difference. Your father clapped his hand on your shoulder.
“Son,” he stated. “Go.” You understood his meaningful words, nodding. You wiped your eyes hastily as tears threatened to run down your face. The taxi driver sat in the car, watching awkwardly. You hugged your parents one last time, put your luggage into the trunk, and sat yourself in the back of the taxi. The driver turned around.
“Kiddo,” he snivled. “You sure know how to make a grown man cry.” You stared at him, wide-eyed. He turned around, pulling out a tissue, a blew his nose loudly. You shuffled awkwardly in your seat. “Let’s go catch us a plane,” the driver exclaimed.
You felt your stomach lurch as the plane landed. Thankfully, you had a window seat, and there was an empty seat between you and another person. The plane slowed, passing tropical foliage. Your stomach was filled with anxious butterflies as you waited at the luggage pick up. You spotted your bags, grabbed them, and headed for the exit. The Professor Kukui was supposed to meet you there. You stepped outside, horribly unprepared for the blast of warmth and humidity you were greeted with. You immediately began sweating in your sweatpants and t-shirt. You spotted a sign with your name written on it, held by a nice-looking, tanned man in a lab coat, with, for some reason, no shirt on underneath, shorts, and a hat. You shuffled over to him nervously, and he seemed to spot you.
“(y/n)?” He asked.
“Kukui?” you questioned. He grinned, releasing the makeshift sign from one of his hands, to greet you with a firm handshake. His face changed into a concerned one.
“Now that you’re here in Alola, you gotta learn how the natives do it,” the professor said dangerously. He folded up his sign, shoving it into a pocket, and waved both hands in opposite ways. “Alola!” He exclaimed. You copied his movements hesitantly.
“A...lola?” you faltered. Kukui slapped a hand onto your shoulder.
“There you go!” he exclaimed. “You’ll blend in in no time.” He looked you up and down, realizing your clothes. “Maybe not…” he trailed off. “Let’s get you to your island.” He pulled out a weird tablet, tapped a few buttons, then pocketed it. The professor noticed your confused face, and let out a hearty chuckle.
“This is a ride pager,” he explained. “Here in Alola, the pokemon aide us. We provide them love and protection, and they return the favor with transportation and the like.” You nodded in approval as a Charizard landed in front of you. Surprised, you scramble back.
“What the heck!” you sputtered, surprised by the elusive beast laying non-threateningly at your feet. Kukui gave a hearty laugh as he hopped on its back, and motioning for you to join him. He tells the Charizard to grab your luggage please, and take the two of you to Akala island. The Charizard raises its head, positioning itself as you sat on the back warily. As the its wings began to flap, you grabbed on to Kukui. He laughed as you both flew into the sky and you screamed out of terror, tightening your grip on the professor. You leveled out among the clouds, the sun just starting to touch the water, casting what you could only assume was beautiful shades of grey across the tropic sky. After your initial panic, you glanced at your view. You relaxed your grip, taking in the view, up in the sky. You let out a soft, gleeful laugh. The Charizard dipped suddenly, and you scrambled to hold onto Kukui. You landed on an island with a huge volcano on it. For a second, you worried about an explosion, but realized there wouldn’t be a city and towns on the island if it wasn’t contained properly. The Charizard let you down in a grassy field a bit off from the base of the volcano.
“This is Route 6,” the professor explained. “Your house should be a bit up, I’ll walk you up there.” You nod, and he starts walking up the path, dragging one of your bags behind him. You slung another bag over your shoulder and left another in tow behind you. In the fading grey light, you walked up to an illuminated condo. You walked up the steps and rang the doorbell. Stepping back, a gentle, middle-aged looking woman stepped out.
“Ah~ you must be (y/n)!” She exclaimed. She waved her hands like Kukui did, and you repeated the gesture hastily. “So glad to see you’re here in one piece! Let me show you around the house.” She paused for a moment. “I’m Linda, by the way, thank you professor for getting him here.” Kukui shrugged.
“Just doin’ what I can.” Kukui looks up at you on the porch. “I’ll pick you up tomorrow morning, I’ll show you the islands, ride pagers, and just about everything you could think to ask.” He ends his sentence with a wink, catching you off guard. Your face flushes, as he waves good bye, starting his trek to where you presumed he lived. You waved back to him, and Linda pulled you inside, showing you around.
“This is the living room, the kitchen, which I put in some basic food for you, I hope you dont mind,” she steered you down a short hallway. “This is your bedroom, the bathroom, and a guest bedroom.” She stopped, patting you on your shoulder. “I’ll be here if you ever need an ear to listen. Me and my wife live a bit farther down the route,” she explained. You nodded.
“I’ll keep that in mind.” She released her soft grip on your shoulder, dangerously close to where your flower lay on your skin. She pressed two keys into your hand.
“For the house, ones a copy.” She smiled softly. “Just in case.” Linda turned and walked down the hall. You stood, waiting. You heard the screen door slap closed, and you went into your bedroom. You began unpacking what you felt like. After unpacking about half of one bag, you ate some food, set an alarm on your phone, brushed your teeth, and passed out on your bed.