Chapter Text
The sun was rising. Its light illuminated the sky, allowing pastel shades of pink and orange to peak out from the horizon, and turning the sky above the ocean from black to dark blue. The sun also revealed the land that had emerged, which Lillie knew was the Kanto region; they were arriving at last. Specifically, it was Vermilion City. The closest comparison she could draw to it would be Heahea City, except Vermilion was a bit larger. From a distance she could make out the short seaside houses, the long dock stretching out into the ocean where many ships of varying sizes were parked- soon enough, the ship she was on would be one of them. Besides the city, coniferous trees stretched in both directions, seemingly endlessly.
Lillie looked upon this scene with wonderment, as she hung over the handrail on the high-speed ship that had taken her away from Alola. This had been her favorite spot to come and stand during the trip. Right at the front of the boat, where wake sped away from her right and left. Especially first thing in the morning, when nobody else was around. This was where she could finally break away from her old life… where she would learn to become a trainer. Lillie knew that she was no more than a helpless little girl for now- but when she stood here, for a moment she could imagine herself as the queen of the world.
She returned to the cabin to find that her mother was awake now as well. She was sitting up in her bed, frowning at her suitcase on the floor.
“I can see Vermilion City in the distance,” Lillie said. “That means we must be arriving soon.”
“Yes… the staff did say we’d be arriving this morning,” Lusamine commented dryly. She began to get dressed out of her sleep clothes.
Lillie sat down at the little table they had for meals, where her bag laid. She reached into it and pulled out a poké ball- the one containing her new pokémon, given to her by Prof. Oak before she left.
She peered in through the lid to her vulpix, snow white and fluffy. She had spent the whole trip trying to think of a nickname for the pokémon.
At one point, she decided to ask her mother for help coming up with ideas. “Don’t bother giving it a nickname; it’ll only make you grow attached to it,” is what she had sniped in return.
“It”… Even though it was accepted grammar, Lillie had always taken issue with calling pokémon by “it.” It made no sense to refer to them like objects, in Lillie’s mind, when some pokémon have been proven to have intelligence equal to- and even exceeding- human intelligence. She had internally resolved to refer to her vulpix as a “he,” just like any of her other male friends.
As she stepped onto the dock, Lillie got her first up-close look at Vermilion City. Now that the sun was fully out, the city was bustling, with shoppers walking to and fro. The harbor area was bustling with sailors and laborers. While walking past, Lillie watched a sailor haphazardly throw a box over the side of a large ship.
“Hey, be careful with that!” shouted the worker who was on the dock to receive the shipment. “Silph Co. is paying good money for those!” Lillie eyed the box curiously; what could be in there?
They stepped onto dry land at last. Lillie took a closer look at the houses she saw earlier. They seemed to be a mix of regular homes and shops, some decorated to attract tourists.
Shortly afterwards, Lusamine came to a stop.
“Wait. I will check my map- there is somewhere I would like to stop here,” she said to Lillie. She began to dig around her purse for a map she got while on the boat.
Lillie decided to take this opportunity to call her friends. She pulled out her Xtransciever- the newest model is powerful enough to reach people from all across the world.
She started a call with the usual suspects. Before long, she saw Sun and Moon’s faces pop up on the screen; Sun’s face pale and smiley, and Moon’s dark-toned and neutral. However, the fourth corner of the screen was still in static… Hau had once again not answered.
“Hey Lillie. Looks like you got there,” Moon said. Based on the scenery behind her, she appeared to be in Seafolk Village.
“That’s right, we finally arrived in Vermillion City!” Lillie said.
“You sound nervous… don’t worry so much! You’re going to be great,” Sun replied reassuringly. Lillie could see the blue ocean behind him, so he must have been on one of the inter-island ferries. “Oh yeah, if you run into Emma… tell her hi for me!”
“What are you two up to?” Lillie asked.
“We’re on our way to a new battle facility that has opened… the Battle Tree!” Sun explained. “There’s going to be some seriously tough trainers there. We’re eager to prove ourselves!”
“Some more than others,” Moon cut in. “I’ve already arrived on Poni Island… Sun here is lagging behind me.”
“Oh, quit being so impatient. I just needed to make sure some… financial assets were in order before I left,” Sun explained.
“’Financial assets…’ god, Sun, you are something else.”
Lillie giggled. Their banter never ceased to amuse her.
“Anyways… I’m hoping to officially begin training today!” Lillie commented.
“How are you feeling about that?” Sun asked.
“Excited… kinda nervous.”
“Don’t be nervous, Lillie,” Moon reassured her. “You’re going to be a great trainer. I know it.”
“Yeah, you’ve already proven yourself with all the time you spent looking about Nebby!” Sun cut in.
“Well… I think it was more chasing after Nebby for the most part,” Moon joked. “But all the same.”
“Thank you guys. I want to give my vulpix a name, but I’m having trouble coming up with just the right thing…”
“You’re probably overthinking it. Just name it something cute, and easy to remember… no need to re-invent the poké ball!” Sun said.
“Time to go, Lillie,” Lusamine said from behind her.
“Okay. Time to go, guys. Thank you!” Lillie said hurriedly.
“No problem. Knock ‘em dead, darling! Oh, and make sure your mother doesn’t try to conquer the world again!” Sun said enthusiastically. He then hung up.
“Miss you… talk to you soon,” Moon said, blowing a kiss through the screen.
Lillie put the Xtransciever away and turned to her mom, who was staring at her haughtily.
“Child… why is your face so pink?” Lusamine asked.
“Oh, um… it’s hot here!” Lillie said quickly, fanning herself with her hands.
Lusamine did not seem convinced. However, she said nothing more of it, and began to make her way through the crowd, Lillie following right behind her like a shadow.
Their stop was a store with a blue roof, which seemed to sell many items that you would normally find in a pokémon center. The inside of the store was slick and sterile, and there were many shoppers buzzing from lane to lane.
Lillie had noticed that they had been drawing a lot of unwanted attention. By herself, Lusamine is likely a figure who would’ve drawn attention, what with her imposing demeanor, elaborate shell-like hair, and fanciful figure. However, Lillie had a feeling that there was another reason why people were watching as they passed as well…
When she was done, Lusamine went to the checkout line, and set a few food items on the counter- presumably for the trip.
“Will that be all for today, ma’am?” asked the cashier, who was a scraggly teenage boy that was staring down at the counter as though still partially asleep.
“Yes, that will do,” Lusamine replied.
The cashier looked up, and when he saw Lusamine, he momentarily stared at her, his eyes widening. Then, he looked up at something in the back corner of the shop.
Lillie turned around and followed his gaze to a small television that was playing the news. On the screen was a picture, the ticker text describing the recent Aether Foundation scandal.
“Um… excuse me, ma’am,” a portly, mom-ish shopper said to Lusamine. “Was that… you on the TV?”
Lusamine turned around. When she saw what was playing on the screen, she scowled. The monitor was now showing a photo of a slowpoke that had been cryogenically frozen…
“Hmph. That is all fake news,” Lusamine commented disdainfully. “You all should know better than to trust tabloid media outlets.”
Lillie felt crestfallen, however. The coverage had seemed pretty accurate to her… How was her mother going to talk her way out of this?
“You can’t fool us, woman,” shouted a bald man with a stubble beard who was dressed only in an undershirt and jeans. “We all know what you did to those poor pokémon in your ‘collection.’ What have you come to Kanto for, eh?”
“That is my business, and my business only!” Lusamine commanded, sticking her nose up at the crowd. She slapped some money and the counter, grabbed her shopping bag from the shocked cashier, and began strutting out of the store.
Even as she left, there were murmurs of dissent from the other shoppers.
“How has she not been imprisoned?”
“Eh, I always told you that the police are useless. Remember when Giovanni got away?”
“What could she have in store for the Kanto region?”
Lillie followed her mom back out the store, trying to convey an apologetic look to the others.
They walked up north from Vermilion City, into what a sign told them was Route 6.
Lillie looked on in awe once again. All around her trees brimming with life. In the distance, she could see a little pond. To their right was tall grass, where Lillie knew that pokémon hid. There were also flowers in bloom, coming in lovely shades of blue, pink, and purple.
Lillie had always loved learning- it was why she read so much. However, this was her chance to finally learn from the world directly. While traveling Alola before, she had always had to worry about Team Skull, or keeping track of her rogue cosmog. But now, her fate was entirely… well, mostly… in her own hands. Now she could learn from the world which had millennia of knowledge stored, in every atom of every dewdrop, and her knowledge of the world would forever continue to blossom, like an ever-opening flower.
“This Bill character… he will be providing lodgings for us, correct?” Lusamine asked Lillie as they walked along.
“Oh, yes mother. Everything has been arranged.”
Lillie tugged on her bag nervously. She would like to use this opportunity to get a head start on training… but would her mother approve of the hindrance?
“What is bugging you, child?” Lusamine asked her, catching onto Lillie’s tick.
“Um… I was thinking, maybe… since we are in a route…”
“Ah. You would like to play around with your new pokémon.”
Lillie gulped. “Um… yes. If it is okay…”
“Well, I don’t know what a novice like you is going to be able to do out here… Hmm, perhaps one of those children will be weak enough for you?”
Lillie saw what she was referencing- a group of three children were playing in the flowers. They looked to be younger than her, only about seven or eight years old. Was it right for her to prey on younger trainers for experience?
However, it turned out that it didn’t matter either way. One of the boys had spotted her, and upon making eye contact, it was too late to back out.
“You! I bet I can beat you!” the little boy said. He had spiky green hair, and a determined look in his eyes. The other two kids hung back to watch. Lillie began to wonder about the opposite problem now- wouldn’t it be humiliating if she lost to a younger trainer?
“Go on ahead,” Lusamine told her, a devilish grin on her face.
“O… Okay,” Lillie stammered. She reached into her bag, and pulled out the poké ball. She threw it, releasing her vulpix.
“Go get ‘em, Sandshrew!” cried the boy, releasing his own pokémon.
It looked like a sandshrew… but Lillie noticed that its hide was tan, unlike the white that sandshrews usually were, and it lacked the “hood” shape around its eyes. Lillie had read about regional variants- this must be a Kantoan sandshrew!
“Sandshrew! Use scratch attack!” the boy screamed, in a voice which Lillie considered unnecessarily loud.
The sandshrew charged forward, and dragged its claws straight across the vulpix’s face. Lillie physically winced at the contact, feeling almost as if she had been scratched herself. She instinctively leaned down over her vulpix. However, the vulpix was okay- it shook off the attack and regained a fighting stance.
“Oh no… I’m sorry for that,” Lillie said stupidly. “Um… hit it back with whatever you got” Lillie ordered, realizing at that moment that she didn’t know any of its actual moves.
The vulpix, however, seemed to know what to do. It took a deep breath, and chilled the air, causing the water vapor to turn into snow. Then, it released its breath, sending the snow pelting at Sandshrew. It seemed to hit it hard. Sandshrew fell, and did not get up.
“Awh, darn… I shouldn’t have challenged you!” The boy lamented.
His two friends ran up behind him. “Ha ha, AJ got beat by a girl!” one of them said, a little girl with pigtails. “Will you admit that girl trainers are better now?”
“No way… we just need to train harder!” AJ asserted. He returned Sandshrew to his ball. “Oh, right. Here you go.” He handed Lillie a measly 30 poké dollars.
Lillie did not mind, however. She had just won her first pokémon battle! And it had been easy… too easy.
She grabbed her vulpix by its torso and lifted him up to her face. “You did amazing, Vulpix!” she said. He cheerily gazed back at his trainer.
“Oh, this is silly… you need a name already!” Lillie thought back to what Sun had said earlier. “You’re probably overthinking it. Just name it something cute, and easy to remember… no need to re-invent the poké ball!”
“I’ll name you Snowy,” Lillie decided. “Is that okay?”
Snowy purred in approval of the name.
She returned Snowy to his poké ball, and turned back to her mother, hoping to see her looking proud, or happy for her. Lusamine, however, had her arms crossed.
“Hmph… you practically recoiled when your vulpix took that attack,” she commented. “You need to just get used to this. Your pokémon are going to get hurt. That’s what pokémon battles are all about.”
“Oh, um… I’m sorry,” Lillie said sheepishly.
“Honestly, child. How are you going to be a leader when you have such a weak will? Come on. Let’s get moving again.”
Lillie followed behind her, wondering about her mother’s last, cryptic comment. “How are you going to be a leader when you have such a weak will…” A leader of what?