Chapter Text
Vaniville Town, Kalos. A quiet, peaceful place. The sound of bird Pokémon flying overhead was the only thing breaking the quiet of the morning. A door opened from one of the houses along the main street, and a young man stepped out, running a hand through his hair. With a light breath in and out, he walked down the path from their home to the main road, getting the mail from the box.
As he walked back, his mind was awash in rapid-fire thoughts. ‘It’s been a few days now… I hope my application went through without incident.’
It had taken no small amount of self-psyching-up to get the courage to send it off, but he’d made his mind up already. As he walked back, he closed his eyes briefly, memories of the night in question coming back.
“Name… full name, I guess. Okay. ‘Peter Galahad Marek’. Age… 13 years old. Sex… male… ‘Place of Residence’. Vaniville Town…”
Peter took a slightly nervous breath as he sat back, glancing out his bedroom window. Most of the kids he’d known in his old home town had already left on their own journeys a few years prior. He was thankful his parents had never pushed him to do it, but it didn’t stop the gossip from other adults…
The memory had steeled his nerves, at the least. With a nod, Peter went back to the paper, slipping a copy of the picture he’d had taken into the proper place and making sure it was secure. “Not bad, honestly… I’m usually awful at getting decent-looking pictures.”
He’d always kind of stood out back in Sinnoh, with his bright blond hair and blue eyes, much as he didn’t enjoy the kind of attention that brought. Most folks were pretty sure it had come from his father’s side. Still, from what he’d read, it wasn’t uncommon in Kalos. He hoped that was the case at least.
Peter was jolted from his memories by a slightly raised cobblestone on the walkway that his foot caught, yelping as he stumbled, almost dropping the mail he was carrying. “Gah!”
In almost an instant, however, he was steadied by a familiar pair of paws. “Crr…”
“Ahah… sorry about that, Samson. Mind was wandering…” Peter smiled, ruffling his father’s Lucario’s head fur. “Thanks for always looking out for me.” He was sure he was going to miss that, out on the road.
While the comment seemingly out of nowhere made the Aura Pokemon tilt his head in confusion, he still smiled and chuckled as his fur was ruffled.
As the two went back inside, Peter took off his shoes. “Got the mail, Mom, Dad.”
“Thanks, Pete. Set it on the counter; we have breakfast ready.”
With a nod, Peter did so, sitting down at the table. When he saw what was prepared, he blinked slightly in confusion. “...Beignet? What’s the occasion?”
That got a chuckle from his mother. “Dear, I know you were trying to be sneaky about it, but it’s very hard to fool Samson. We had a feeling that it would be today.”
Peter grimaced slightly, but gave his parents a sheepish smile all the same. “I, ah… I guess I shouldn’t have expected to slip that past you.”
His father laughed softly, nodding. “We figured it would be good to have one of your favorites today. I know we’ve talked about this before when you first brought this up, but… you’re sure about this? Your mother and I both went on journeys of our own when we were younger, and… it is a good experience, but it’s far from easy.”
He couldn’t deny that his parents would know. His father was a Trainer of some renown, who had placed fairly consistently high in rankings before he ultimately retired and began working for Silph Co. His promotion was the main reason they’d even moved to Kalos in the first place; he was the main sales representative for the region now. Peter had to admit that ‘Sales Lead Antoine Marek’ had a nice ring to it.
“I won’t lie; I think it’s in a mother’s nature to worry about her children, but… you’re a very bright young man, Peter. And you’ve never backed down once you’ve put your mind to something. If you think you’re ready to take this step, I’m behind you all the way.”
That made him smile. “Well… with a Top Coordinator’s backing, how could I possibly fail~?” The joke got a laugh from his parents, just as he hoped. While he knew his mother wasn’t exactly one to flaunt her prestige, he couldn’t help but take some pride in that himself. ‘After all’, he thought, ‘Some of the best memories I have from Hearthome were watching Mom compete in the Contest Hall there. ‘Florina Marek’ is still a name that gets recognition around Sinnoh… Of course, who knows if that applies in Kalos, too.’
The beignets were delicious, as always; lightly powdered with sugar, filled with a rich, sweet jam, and paired perfectly with a nice hot cup of coffee. While he did often get raised eyebrows from adults in Hearthome for his love of the beverage, as far as he was concerned, they could bite him; it tasted too good and raised his mood too well for him to care about that.
Once they’d finished, Peter got the letter from the mail pile that had been addressed to him, carefully opening it… “Aha!”
He couldn’t shake the grin that crossed his face as he saw the message of approval from the Kalos Pokemon League, his shiny new Trainer ID enclosed. “Beautiful…”
“We’re very proud of you, Peter.” Florina smiled, before the home phone ringing caught her attention. “One moment…” She picked up the phone, nodding as she spoke to whoever was on the other line… “Well, it seems like time waits for no one. That was Professor Sycamore, over in Lumiose City. It seems as though he’s been notified of your approval to become a licensed Pokémon Trainer. It sounds like you and one other Trainer from Vaniville are to receive your Starters today~”
“Ah? Already? Well, all right, nothing to it, I guess…” Peter swallowed nervously before nodding. “I’ll get packed right away!”
“Don’t you worry, Pete.” Antoine chuckled. “I know you’ll do just fine. You always were very bright when it came to battle theory in school, no?”
“...This is true. Okay. Right. Gonna need a few sets of clothing, food, camping equipment since I won’t always be able to stop at a Pokémon Center for the night…” He kept mumbling to himself even as he went upstairs to his room, and after he’d gotten his over-the-shoulder bag filled as needed, he slipped into comfortable traveling clothes; a light blue short-sleeved shirt, darker jeans, and purple-and-black tennis shoes. Running a comb through his hair to put it in his preferred comb-over, he nodded to himself, giving his cheeks a couple smacks to psych himself up.
When he stepped back downstairs, his parents gave him a pair of bright smiles. “Lookin’ good, Pete. Got everything packed?”
“Mhm. Several sets of clothes, a jacket, food that lasts a while plus a simple camping set… I might have been overthinking things a bit leading up to sending out that application and used a lot of money I saved from odd jobs before we moved to Kalos. Ah, right. I brought as many of my notebooks as I could reasonably fit in my bag, too.”
“Then it sounds like you’ll be in good shape with this.” The device was fairly small, but Peter did recognize it, his eyes widening. “A Vid-Caster. It’s the newest model; it’s still pretty simple overall, but it’s a bit more advanced than things like the Pokégear they have over in Johto. This way you’ll be able to reach out to us whenever you want. We were going to surprise you with this for your birthday next year, but decided to get it ahead of time, since something like this is very useful for a Trainer.”
Florina smiled warmly, nodding as he put the device in his pocket. “It sounds like one of our neighbors’ kids was the other Trainer that just got approved, so you two are going to be meeting the Professor over in Aquacorde Town to the north of Vaniville. Samson is going to walk you both there; Route 1 is pretty calm, but it never hurts, right?”
“Heh… all right. Thanks, Dad. Thanks, Mom.” Peter nodded, smiling over at the Lucario. “I’m ready… whew.”
He was, in fact, not ready for the sheer amount of energy that his neighbor had. She seemed to be about the same age as him, about the same height (which was also quite surprising, given that Peter was rather tall for his age anyway), and with hair that seemed to toe the line between bright red and strawberry blonde, in a short haircut that he was pretty sure was called ‘pixie’ or something like that.
As she greeted him with rapid-fire questions, he was pretty sure his brain was already short-circuiting slightly. “Yo! So you’re a new Trainer too, huh? Glad to see I’m not gonna be the only one; my folks needed me to help keep an eye on my little siblings so I put off starting my journey, but I’m glad it worked out this way! My name’s Serena; Serena Yvernau. What’s yours?!”
It took Peter a moment to parse everything Serena had said before he managed to get any words out. “Ah… Peter. Peter Marek. It’s… nice to meet you, Serena.” He offered her his hand, before yelping as she took it and rapidly shook it, getting a snicker out of Samson. Shooting a glare at the Lucario, Peter pulled back his hand after the shake, rubbing the back of his head. “It’s, ah… I’m sorry. I’m not used to someone actually going out of their way to talk to me like this.”
“Seriously? Well, that won’t do one bit. Might not be a long walk to Aquacorde but I’m not much for dead air.” As the two made their way north out of Vaniville, Samson leading the teenagers, Serena kept peppering him with questions… Peter had to admit that he was kind of missing the quiet.
“So; you and your folks moved to Kalos recently, right?”
“R-Right. Jeez, Vaniville’s kind of an-”
“Everybody knows everybody town, yeah. Some talented people here, though; did you know a famous Rhyhorn Racer lives just down the street from us?”
“Huh… no, I didn’t, but that explains what I heard the other day… fascinating…”
“Mhm! Lotta room to expand the town, too; heard rumor that they’re lookin’ to get some higher-end homes built on the outskirts. Wouldn’t surprise me; lotta space out there. Would need to be pretty wealthy to afford somethin’ like that though. So, where are you from originally?”
“Ah… Hearthome City…”
“Oooh, over in Sinnoh?! Spill the deets, Pete; what’s a big city like that like?!”
‘When did we get so familiar that she’s already given me a nickname?!’ It was just a bit overwhelming, though a faint growl from the Lucario got Serena to ease off a bit. “Ah, sorry about that… Samson’s kind of protective of me…”
“Oh, I don’t blame him; from what I’ve heard, Lucario are just kinda like that. So… Hearthome?”
“Right, right, sorry. Ah… well, always busy. It’s where the biggest Contest Hall in the region is, so we got a lot of traffic through there. It’s also where one of the League’s official Gyms is, so Trainers and Coordinators both often would pass through. A lot of fashion lines got started there…”
“Huh… didn’t think that’d be somethin’ a guy would be interested in. I think you and me are gonna get along just fine.” Serena grinned brightly at him, and Peter had to admit that it was… just a little intimidating. Her expression turned more serious, though, and that intimidated him a bit more.
“So… if you don’t wanna say, that’s fine, but can I ask why you started later as a Trainer? Far as I know, most places have ten as the age to start, and that’s pretty typical. We’re both thirteen, right?”
“Yeah… it’s a personal reason.” Peter was quiet for a moment, before exhaling softly; a worried look from Samson was met with a shake of the head. “It’s okay, Samson. I… don’t mind sharing, honestly. It’s mostly because I wasn’t really comfortable with the idea at the time. I stayed with full-time schooling for those three years after, but when my parents and I moved to Kalos for Dad’s work… well, I thought it was a good opportunity.”
“Huh… I see. Well, hey, whatever works for ya. Plus, this way I’ve got a rival my age, so it works out!”
“Wh- rival?”
“Yeah! You and me both started our journeys at the same time, we’re the same age, and we’re both Trainers. It’s fate!”
“I… honestly, don’t really believe in fate?” Peter grimaced slightly. “Still, I like the enthusiasm. You’re a lot nicer to me than most other kids I’ve known, so I’ll take it, I guess.”
He didn’t really want to explain that particular detail, so he had to admit that he was thankful to see Aquacorde’s town limits coming up. Once they’d arrived, Samson bowed to Serena, and hugged Peter (Peter didn’t say anything in response to the ‘aww’ it got from the redhead, but it did make him smile a little bit) before heading back to Vaniville.
“Heh… he watched over me a lot when I was younger. I’m very fond of him. All right, the Professor should be meeting with us somewhere around here, right?”
“Yeah. Should be a cafe up above the little fountain landing where he’s going to meet with us… I think that’s him up there. Professor!” Serena waved, running on ahead, leaving Peter to stumble and chase after.
“Ahhh, there’s our new Trainers. Bonjour, you two. Allow me to extend my sincerest congratulations to you both for taking this step!”
The Professor was seated at one of the longer tables at the cafe’s terrace, two familiar-looking devices on one side, and a small case with three Pokéballs inside on the other. Serena had already sat down across from Professor Sycamore and had pulled a chair out for him; it made him smile slightly as he sat down, getting a chance to get a better look at the Professor even as, upon Sycamore’s asking, he absent-mindedly ordered a cappuccino to drink, paying Serena’s slightly confused look at him little mind.
Peter had been vaguely aware of what his original home region’s Professor was like, though he couldn’t say he’d ever met Professor Rowan himself. Professor Sycamore, however, was like a night-and-day difference, and he had to admit the Professor had quite the impressive appearance. ‘Indigo dress shirt, black dress pants, those stylish shoes… honestly, the lab coat adds to the overall look; it’s a nice contrast against his black hair…’
He’d zoned out for a moment as he gave Sycamore’s outfit the look-over he did, but he snapped back in time to hear the later part of the Professor’s explanation.
“...so, while I wouldn’t wish to impose on either of you, I would be most appreciative if you’d be willing to help me out. Alongside the Starter Pokémon you’ll receive today, I would like for you both to take a Pokédex with you as well, and aid myself and my assistants in gathering information on the Pokémon in the Kalos Region.”
“Like you have to ask! We’re in; right, Pete?”
Peter just blinked, still a bit thrown off by the familiarity Serena spoke with, but nodded all the same. “O-Of course. Really, it’s the least we can do… I’ve always found the process fascinating, as it is.” Taking his Pokédex, he slipped it into one of his pockets, looking back at the Professor. He’d have ample time to familiarize himself with the device later.
“Excellent! So, on that note…”
Sycamore opened up the longer case, the three Pokéballs inside glinting in the mid-afternoon sun. “While not all new Trainers choose to start with one of the region’s typical Starters, we always make the offer, as the League finds that these particular species are ideal in terms of personality, ease of training, and the like. Now… which of you would like to choose first?”
Peter glanced over at Serena, who gestured to the box… it seemed like she was giving him first pick. He’d done a little bit (more like an almost excessive amount, he acknowledged to himself with an internal grimace) of reading up on the Kalos Starter Pokémon, and while he’d been unsure, he ultimately took the Ball in the center, tossing it skyward.
With a burst of light, a Fennekin sat on the chair next to him, ears flicking slightly. “Ki? Fennekin!”
The sight got an involuntary ‘aww’ from the blond.
Serena, meanwhile, seemed like she was about to explode from excitement. “Ohhhh, I know I was doing the polite thing and letting you pick first but I am so glad you didn’t pick the one I wanted; I’ve been waiting for this for so long!” In almost an instant, she grabbed the Ball on the right, tossing it skyward and catching the Froakie that emerged with a cheer. “Ahah~ I mean, c’mon! Froakie becomes a badass ninja frog; what’s not to like?!”
Her enthusiasm got a laugh from Professor Sycamore as he shut the case, nodding at the two. “And just one more thing for you both, if you’re going to help with the Pokédex… you’ll need some of these.” The Professor handed a trio of Pokéballs to the two with a nod. “There we go. While you can get these at pretty much any Pokémart, this should help you two get started with catching wild Pokémon. Now then… I imagine you both intend to take on the League Challenge? If so, the closest Gym to here is in Santalune City; I hear that it’s an excellent first Gym for challengers to take on. I’d dare say that you two are prepared to properly start your journeys-”
“Not quite yet!” Serena said, making Sycamore stop in slight surprise. “We’ve got our first Pokémon, we’re both here… Alright, Pete; you, me, battle! Let’s start this off right; you and your Fennekin vs. me and Kiki here!”
“...Kiki?” Peter glanced at Fennekin, who gave him the same confused look that no doubt was on his own face, then back at Serena.
“Yeah! Nothin’ wrong with your Pokémon having a nickname! C’mon, you can’t tell me you don’t have one in mind for your partner there.”
He couldn’t really deny that. Plus, judging by the pitch of ‘Kiki’s croaks, the Froakie was female, so it did fit… Peter was quiet for a moment before nodding, looking over at Fennekin. “Well… how does ‘Kurama’ sound?”
Serena snorted, though she tried to muffle it with a cough. “...Like the demon Ninetales from that one show?”
“Wh-no! It’s the name of a holy mountain!” Peter shouted in response, cheeks flushed in embarrassment. “It’s a good name!”
The little fox seemed to agree if the yap he let out was any indication, hopping to his feet.
“Hah, okay, okay, sorry! All right, we’ll battle down by the fountain square; sound good? Looks like there’s a battlefield right there.” Serena gave him an excited grin, downing the last of the lemonade she’d been drinking.
“Let’s do it.” Peter did the same with the last of his cappuccino with a sigh, before getting up and quickly following her to the square.
After Professor Sycamore finished paying for the drinks, he stepped to the center of the arena. “Well, I simply can’t not watch this, now can I? I’ll be your referee. Since you’re both just starting out, naturally, this will be a one-on-one battle. Ready?”
“Ready! Let’s go, Kiki!” Serena threw her hand out, and Kiki jumped from her shoulder, the Froakie slamming her clenched fists together, giving Peter and Kurama a grin.
‘That’s right… a lot of Trainers have a sort of ‘signature’ in their battle call, as it were… well…’
Peter nodded at Kurama, before doing the same as Serena, shouting out with more power than he’d put in his voice in quite some time.
“Kurama! It’s SHOWTIME!”
With an energetic yap, the fox leaped to their side of the arena, lightly hopping on his paws, the fur in his ears glowing with his inner heat.
Sycamore raised a hand up… then down. “Begin!”
“Go in for a Pound, Kiki!” Serena started off the battle with her command, the Froakie crossing the gap between herself and Kurama and pulling back one of her forelegs, swinging it at the fox’s head.
“Tail Whip! Then follow up with Scratch!” Kurama turned, his tail smacking the incoming Pound attack to the side, before another ‘backswing’ from it smacked across the frog’s face. As Kiki stumbled back, Kurama swung his paw, claws out. “Fen! Kin!”
“Ooh… impressive! All right, Kiki, we’re not done yet. Bubble!” Serena pointed at Kurama, and Kiki jumped back quickly, throwing several handfuls of the bubbles around her neck at the fox.
“Move, Kurama! Ember!” He knew the move was going to be less effective given the types involved, but he didn’t have many options… they were at enough of a disadvantage as it was; he could tell that Kiki was built for speed just at a glance, and Kurama wouldn’t be able to keep up.
“Fe! Ki! Fenne- rhk!” Kurama fired out the Ember, but the incoming bubbles pierced through the spark of flame, the adhesive making it hard for the Fennekin to move. Peter’s eyes widened, and his mind began to lock up slightly.
‘I need to do something. Give a command. Scratch? Another Ember? Gh, he’s stuck, though… w-what can I do?!’
The bit of hesitation was all Serena needed. Another Pound command was given, and Kiki’s attack struck home, leaving Kurama sprawled out on the ground, swirls in his eyes.
“And that’s the battle! As Kurama is unable to continue, Kiki is the winner; Serena takes it!” Sycamore gestured towards the redhead. “Still, that was very well done, both of you. I think you’ll both make excellent Trainers.” The Professor walked over, using a Revive and a pair of Potions to heal up the two Pokémon. “I do hope, when you get that far, that you both stop by my lab in Lumiose City. I would love to check in with you once you’ve gotten a bit more experience under your belts. Until then, safe travels, you two!”
With a wave, the Professor made his way north out of the town, leaving the two Trainers and their partners.
“Whew… I gotta second the Professor on that one; you’re real creative, Pete. For battling at a disadvantage like that, you two did awesome!” Serena gave Peter a thumbs-up, and the blond returned it, just a little shakily as his mind unwound itself.
“Hah… You’re right, of course. I’m… a bit disappointed that I stumbled near the end there, but… well, you said it; we were battling at a disadvantage.” Peter gave Kurama a gentle pet on the head before recalling the fox, slipping the shrunken Ball onto his belt. “I think… there’s a forest between here and Santalune City, yes? I’ll probably spend some time on Route 2; try and get a better feel for battling. Don’t feel like you need to wait on me, okay?”
“Fair enough. Me and Kiki will get going then; we’ll have a rematch soon enough!” Serena pumped her fists, her partner doing much the same, before taking off out of the town, leaving Peter with his thoughts.
“Heh… so much energy… well, I better get going too. Need to keep moving forward.”
It didn’t take Peter too long to get his first capture, either. Shortly after heading onto Route 2, he and Kurama had been accosted by a scrappy Fletchling, and after one well-aimed Ember, the bird had accepted defeat and let himself be captured. Peter couldn’t help but smile at how smoothly that particular battle had gone, and he was quite confident that Roc, as the Fletchling had ultimately picked for a nickname, would fit in well.
Route 2 was more lengthy than he’d thought it would be, ultimately. While he could see the entrance to Santalune Forest in the distance, there was no way he was going wandering around somewhere like that in the middle of the night. Setting up a small campsite in a clearing, he made a little fire pit, an Ember from Kurama setting the tinder alight.
“There we go…” He smiled softly as he got dinner ready; while it wasn’t anything particularly fancy, Kurama and Roc seemed to enjoy the Pokémon food well enough, and a simple sandwich and soup was perfect for him. The temperature was comfortably cool still, and the skies were clear. As his Pokémon settled in for the night, Peter did the same, slipping into his unfurled sleeping bag.
‘Hard to imagine so much has already happened. It’s… intimidating. Almost overwhelming, even. But… I’ll figure it out. …Urgh. All the book study in the world can’t make up for practical experience, huh…”
Still, that was a problem for ‘Tomorrow Peter’. For now, the only thing he was concerned about was getting a good night’s sleep. He could only imagine what sorts of experiences were in his future, and as he drifted off, one last thought crossed his mind before sleep overtook it.
‘It’s… kind of scary. But I can do this. I know I can.’