Chapter Text
It was a sunny morning. The sun wasn't covered by clouds and there were more Pidgeys than usual.
"A lovely morning," oka-san said. He agreed happily before wrinkled his nose when she kissed his cheek.
He was ten. He was ready for a starter. Already received his trainer ID in hand, all he ever needs before begin his journey was a starter and a Pokédex.
When the sun rose from between the mountains and a Spearow crooned loudly, he opened the door and immediately darted out from his home. Not before gave oka-san a kiss on the cheek and Mimey a happy wave.
The walk to Ookido-hakase's was a short one. Especially by running. Wild Rattata peeked out beneath the bushes and tall grasses, all curious to the lil boy's excitement.
("That was the only time you wake up early in weekend, but still late."
"Come on, dude. You weren't better either.")
The sight of the familiar and most famous (or the only) laboratory in Pallet Town was a sight to behold. Mouth stretched to a wide grin, yet the smile soon evaporated once he saw a familiar ash browned boy standing in front of the gate. The boy noticed him too and matched his scowl with a devious grin.
"Late as ever, Satoshi?" he sneered.
Satoshi rolled his eyes, ignored the boy and went passed the closed gate by jumping over it. If Shigeru was by far superior to him with his big brain, at least Satoshi was better in athletics. He strode passed his friend and went over to the laboratory that thankfully had the door unlocked.
"Hakase! I'm here for my starter!" he greeted cheerfully, arm waved high and smile ever so bright.
The ones who greeted him back first were couple of Pokémon that he had seen around the lab few days ago. Apparently, their trainers hadn't taken them back in yet. An Ekans slithered toward him with a cheery hiss, several Hoppips hopped to tackled him for a hug.
Satoshi's laughs echoed through the hall. A blessing to the ear to hear such a lovely music in this lovely morning. An Igglybuff settled on his head comfortably.
"Satoshi-kun! If I didn't know you better, I thought you'd never came," familiar old male voice interrupted the moment. Warm, lovely wood eyes stared at the boy with a welcoming wrinkly smile "Congratulations on becoming a trainer, my boy."
Satoshi grinned contentedly. Even when Shigeru soon joined them with his hands inside his pockets attempted to looked cool (which he was, back then. Now that Satoshi remembered about it, Shigeru looked like a dork).
"Everyone's already here except you," the grandson of the professor said "We've been waiting for you for ages!"
"Not really," another voice, younger and chipper, interfered. A short black haired boy with black and yellow basketball cap came into view. What the most interesting part about him was his rare golden eyes that almost looked like it was made from melted gold "We've just arrived here less than ten minutes. Beside, we were playing with these buds over here," he said and patted the bald spat of a Mareep.
Next to him was a shy looking brunette girl with pigtails. She was dressed in short blue overalls and matched with red shirt inside. Round white hat with red ribbon protected her head. When she met Satoshi's gaze, shyly she waved at him before adverted her gaze away.
("Ahhh...right. That was when we first meet Hibiki and Kotone after the last day we took care of the Pokémon."
"Hibiki? Kotone?"
"Oh, right. You'd know them better as Regional Champion Ethan and Researcher Lyra from Johto."
"Oh!")
Shigeru glared at him for ruining his time to tease his friend. Satoshi chuckled in satisfaction, winked Hibiki gratefully and let his smile widen when the other winked back in the same manner.
Ookido-hakase stepped in, pulled out couples of red and white orbs that soon attracted the attention of the children "Now now, children. I don't want to listen to any arguments while I'm here. Beside, don't you have something more important to discuss?" he grinned when he saw the excitement in the children's eyes.
"Our very own Pokémon!" Hibiki exclaimed impatiently.
Satoshi barely hold himself from jumping all over the place and he knew Shigeru was feeling the same thing with the way his fists tightly clenched.
"Yeah!"
Ookido-hakase chortled "Alright, alright, children. I shall give your assigned starters and you may try to let them out. Remember, these are the same Pokémon you been taking care and bonding with for the past six weeks. Don't be upset if they aren't the typing or species you want, for they are more than just that."
The four children nodded eagerly. The professor proceeded to called out the first name, which was Kotone.
The girl flinched at her name. Shyly stepped forward and accepted the pokeball with a drawing sticker of pink heart she drew yesterday. The professor also handed her a rectangular item which was known as the Pokédex along with grey case filled with five standard pokeballs.
Kotone moved away so she can check out her Pokémon without interrupting any of them. The next one was Shigeru, who accepted it with a smirk to covered up his nervousness and afterward was Satoshi's turn.
He stared at the smooth surface of the orb, thumb rubbed the drawn sticker of Mimey's hand he tried to duplicate. Inside this ball, inside this ball there was his Pokémon that was waiting to be open.
("Wait, you can draw sticker to your first pokeball?"
"Yup. Oh. I forgot that people didn't do that anymore."
"Pity. I'd draw Grey.")
Satoshi took a nervous breath. Right. He can do this. He just about to see his first ever Pokémon. That was all. Not like he was in a battle yet. Not a hard task. Really.
....
("He was so nervous that time, wasn't he?"
"Yeah. Gramps actually thought about calling a doctor when he trembled too much."
"Shut up, nerd.")
Finally found his confidence, the young boy pressed the singular button on the ball, felt it enlarged in his palm before pressed it once more. A flash of blinding red light invaded his view and it disappeared as quickly as it came.
A tiny creature stood before him. A bipedal creature with brown coat and pale yellow fluffy fur-like-cotton. It had a pair of long ears with tuff of cotton on its end. A button nose and beady eyes. Soft looking front paws with bean pink toes.
A Buneary.
He get a Buneary.
Not just any Buneary— "Wasn't she the one who punched me?!"
Yeah, that Buneary.
The Buneary looked equally baffled as well. Expecting someone else to be her trainer instead of the rude boy who tried to be a knock off version of the Champion. She huffed dissatisfied, turned to looked at Ookido-hakase the same time Satoshi did the same.
"Why am I partnering with her?!" he asked, pointed at the grumpy looking rabbit.
At the corner of his eyes, Shigeru was holding an Eevee on his arm, the same way with Hibiki who had a Cyndaquil on his head and Kotone was hugging a sweet looking Chikorita.
Out of all four of them, it was clear that Satoshi did not took a liking to his starter.
Ookido-hakase frowned, stepped closer towards both trained and Pokémon "But Satoshi-kun, this one is in the same batch you take care of few weeks ago and in the highest match for you."
The boy replied with a snort "Yeah, and the same one that punched me on the face?"
Both Kotone and Shigeru winched at the recollection, Hibiki touched his nose and squinted his eyes as if he was the one in pain. Ookido-hakase was not an exception at the gruesome reminder.
Due to that 'incident', Wataru nearly pulled out Satoshi and Shigeru from partaking in becoming a Pokémon trainer. In fact, the overprotective father won't let them participate again if oka-san didn't interfere.
("...wow. What an overprotective dad you got there, Sato."
"Eh.")
The professor sighed, rubbed the middle of his forehead that had increased its frown "I know, my boy. I know. But," he looked at the two "you have to trust me on this."
Satoshi puffed his cheeks and huffed, clearly rebelling at the thought. Buneary copied his action, equally peeved with the result. Another sigh came from the professor.
"Then how about this? You try to get along with Buneary for a week, and if you still can't get along, I'll change your partner with a Pikachu. Is that alright?"
"Can't I switch her now?"
"Do you want a Ratticate instead?"
Satoshi flinched at the image of a huge spiky furred rat appeared in his mind. Yeah, better not.
Reluctantly, the boy nodded his head and side glared at the bunny, who threw back a same glare at his side. Shigeru barely covered his mouth with Eevee to hides the smile that started to formed on his face.
That was the beginning of the journey between Satoshi and Buneary, who will be named as Momo in the future. The two started their journey with a rocky start, with both on each other's throats so terribly that even Shigeru began to showed concern for his friend.
Yet everything changed one day. Actually, it changed few hours after the children began their journey.
And it was all started with a Mimey's hand sticker pokeball, a flock of Spearow, a rock and the mythical encounter with Ho-Oh.
Nate blinked in astonishment. His mixed sapphire-emerald eyes flickered between the two ace trainers before him with an awed expression.
"So like, you got beat up by birds and then you be all buddy buddy?"
Satoshi narrowed his eyes, stared at the rookie trainer in suspicion "You sound awfully like Ethan there, kid..."
Nate laughed sheepishly, hand rubbed the back of his head "Hehe. Sorry. It just came out without a second thought."
"Kid got a point tho," Shigeru pipped in, his elbow placed on the armrest and knuckles became a resting place for his head "You really became best friend with Momo right after that incident. Plus, when Gramps wanted to switch her with a Pikachu - your fav Pokemon - you refused to do so," he slumped on the cushioned seat "That incident really changed your relationship with Momo."
The ravenette rolled his amber eyes "Yeah, and Wataru to-san no nearly pulled us out from being a trainer that day," he reminded, took in the shivered look in Shigeru's face "Thankfully he didn't. Whatever reason it was."
"Man, Sato and Mr Gary really had a hectic first day," Nate murmured to Grey who curled on his laps.
Satoshi rolled his eyes again. Says the kid who got kidnapped by Team Plasma.
The Kanto Champion leaned further on his seat, enjoyed the feeling of cold air bashed on his tanned face. Momo, who had been sitting on the other line seat also copied the same act. Both let out breath of relief. Lulu who also next to Momo rolled her ruby eyes, arms crossed over her chest and tried to ignore any sound created in the plane.
She was clearly happy that her trainer get a private jet. She can't handle herself in a place with load of noise when she wanted to rest.
In front of the two bipedal Pokémon were Shigeru's Umbreon, Blackie and Satoshi's Sylveon, Vivo. The two Eeveelutions were cuddling together and soon joined in by little Grey who wanted attention, which the two happily obliged.
Nate stared at the interaction between the three Eevee's evolution line at his seat, a nostalgic gaze expressed in his colourful eyes. The boy quickly pulled away and looked back at the window, which he only saw was the dark blue sky that lacked of stars.
Unknown to him, the Kanto Champion was secretly observing his action. Amber eyes shifted toward the three Pokémon that became a bundle, before gazed back at the rookie trainer.
He closed his eyes, fingers quietly tapped the armrest in patterned rhyme. Everything was blank in his mind until an image of a tall, black haired male with red and white basketball cap get dumped in. Immediately, he opened his eyes, barely controlled back his breathing pattern and created a hitch in his aura, in addition caused Lulu to snapped her head toward him in alarm.
He relaxed back, silently assured her in aura that he was indeed fine. Lulu was skeptical about it, but trusted him in the end.
The flight continued on quietly without a single hitch. At some part Nate had dozed off, followed by Shigeru after Satoshi confiscated his laptop and smartphone for trying to do his work even in the middle of a flight.
"Technically, we haven't arrive yet," the ash brown haired boy tried to reasoned.
"Yeah and that black spot under your eyes are your starting point of your emo phase. What are you? Alain? Go to sleep, bro."
Not one to easily relent, Shigeru voiced out that he wasn't tired nor easy to go to sleep. He tried to prove the fact by showing his foster brother that he wasn't easy to go down.
He failed after five minutes.
Arceus, Satoshi obviously going to shove this on his face when dinner arrived.
Several hours later, the flight landed to their destination point. Listened as the jet about to descended down, he leaned forward and gently shooks Nate awake.
"Come on, kiddo. The flight arrived. Wake up."
Nate grumbled tiredly, fist rubbed his face and sapphire-emerald eyes fluttered open. He looked quite cute, with the light blue neck pillow around his head and his chocolate hair became extra fluffed up every time he wakes up from long slumber.
Like a fluffy Torchic, Satoshi thought.
Then, the Champion turned to his brother. Wordlessly he swatted the researcher on his head and quickly looked away when the latter yelped. Simultaneously avoided the death glare from the brunette.
"SATOSHI!! YOU—"
An air hostess came out with a professional smile glued on her face "Dearest passengers, we have now arrived to the—," she trailed out when she saw the famous researcher Shigeru Ookido was choking their beloved Regional Champion, while the adorable boy they brought with them was trying to ease them up.
She blinked few times, clueless of how she should acted on situation like this. Thankfully lady luck was on her side when the cute boy said something out loud.
"Oh!" he beamed "We've arrived in Alola!"
Instantly all arguments ceased out. The air hostess thanked whoever blessed the presence of the cute child.
Later on, the three along with their Pokémon exited the private jet after made sure no item was left behind.
("Nate, your wallet."
"Ah! Thanks, Sato!")
It was the middle of the night in the tropical country. Cold breeze weakened Nate's movement, even more so as he was still asleep and nearly fallen off at the side of the road couple of times. It gave both Satoshi and Shigeru heart attacks until the former offered the rookie a piggy back ride.
Thankfully, the one who planned the roadtrip was Shigeru. So the hotel he booked was quite close to the airport. Satoshi called out Kuro and Shigeru used Aerodactyle named Ari to carried them toward their temporary stay.
"The room's nice. Nice," Satoshi commented, strode over toward one of the beds and laid Nate gently on it without waking the kid up.
Followed behind him was Momo who carried the still sleeping Grey. The rest of the Pokémon had been transferred back into their respective pokeballs right after the flight landed and they reached the hotel.
Satoshi carefully draped a comforter on the younger male's body, Momo eyed him and scoffed each times the younger trainer squirmed in his sleep. The Lopunny's trainer glared at her in betrayal.
"You try to do it without waking the kid," he whispered.
The rabbit had the gal to rolled her eyes at him and walked toward the couch like it never happened. Satoshi sighed, far used to her behaviour. Since she was still a Buneary she already get that attitude from Arceus knows where. Not like it ruined Satoshi and Momo's bond though.
"I'm gonna take a bath," Shigeru declared after puts his luggage right next to his bed.
Blackie came out from his pokeball and curled next to Grey who was sleeping near Nate's feet. Not long after, Vivo came out in her own will from her Heal Ball and joined the two Eeveelutions.
Satoshi quietly took a picture. He smiled at the sweet picture before a realization ran through his head.
"....Shigeru."
"What?" the researcher's voice echoed from the bathroom.
"There are only two beds."
"And?"
"...," the couch it was then.
Momo who disgusted at the prospect instantly went into her pokeball. Her trainer let out a loud exasperated sigh and turned over to the only couch in the room. Fortunately, it was the type of couch that can pulled out a bed.
After Shigeru and Satoshi had taken their baths and managed to coxed Nate for his turn, they settled in for the night as quietly as possible.
If that excluded Shigeru and Satoshi threw pillows at each other while Nate and Grey tried to hide themselves in the blanket as possible.