Chapter Text
I tip-toed around my room as quietly as possible, meticulously looking over anything that I might have forgotten to pack with me in my initial flurry. I know I had packed at least two weeks worth of clothing already, some spare toiletries, and what I currently had of my medication. It barely filled a backpack let alone the giant duffel I was bringing with me, but it couldn’t be helped. Nothing in this room had ever managed to truly sink its claws into me. I tied my hiking boots together before throwing them into the duffel and grabbed my sneakers waiting by the door of my room. I pulled out my Xtransceiver to check the time before opening my door.
2:03 a.m.
Good, they would be asleep. I knew I would be able to leave uninterrupted as I opened my door into a hallway of more inky blackness. As quietly as I could I left the overly opulent apartment, I made sure to hold down the knob of the front door as I closed it so it wouldn’t click shut. As it sealed shut, I heaved a laboured sigh and tossed my- no, their keys into the mailbox along with the hastily written note I had made. No point in being accused of theft at the very last second, not after so much planning and waiting. I could feel my stomach tighten as I waited for the elevator to come pick me up, my paranoia telling me that they would wake up at any moment now and demand I come back inside and go to bed before having a “very serious discussion with me” the following morning. But, as the elevator announced its arrival with a quiet ding, and I pressed the button to begin the descent to the ground floor I found the fuel to combat those thoughts.
They were not coming for me.
They couldn’t get me now.
I was at long last free. Seeds sown a year ago were starting to bear fruit and I couldn’t help the smile that spread across my face as I thought about what this all meant for me. No longer would someone talk down to me for being slightly too informal around a business partner. I could breathe without fearing being judged just for how I existed. I couldn’t resist the spring in my step as I jogged out of the elevator onto the ground floor. As the cool summer night air hit my skin, I heaved a massive sigh that I hadn’t realized I’d been holding in. Walking away from the oh-so-coveted high-rise luxury apartments made me feel lighter with each and every step I took towards the eastern edge of Nacrene City. I scoured along the very outskirts of the pricier downtown area to find cheap lodging for the evening until I could get to a Center and register for the Unova League circuit in the morning. Sure I could probably afford better accommodations for a night, but not having any way of making my own money right now and not knowing when I would. It felt like it made more sense to be safe and practical with my cash, plus I still needed to buy the essentials for travelling during the circuit.
A few hours later I was checking into a dodgy motel two blocks down from the nearest Pokecenter, the navy twilight was already giving way to a pink dawn by the time my head finally hit a pillow. I groaned and set my alarm for 10 a.m. It gave me plenty of time to get ready in the morning before I needed to check out of the motel. Despite my early morning escapade, I could still feel my head buzzing with emotions. Elation, anxiety, relief, all of this swirling around in my head providing what felt like a never-ending font of energy. I decided to grab my Xtransceiver and scroll through the Unova forums to see what Pokemon other people had seen around the area. As I was scrolling through some nonsense dribble about moaning in the Pinwheel Forest a thought struck me. I hadn’t blocked my parents yet from my contacts. I quickly closed the forums and navigated to the contacts app on the Xtransceiver before rapidly blocking and deleting my mother and father. I tossed the device onto the side table next to me and flicked off the lamp with a small hum of contentment. Sleep finally took its sweet and silent hold over me as I drifted off in a bed that was far less comfortable than I was used to, but felt far more secure in.
The sound of a radar-like alarm invading my senses never got any easier. I fumbled around the dresser in a daze as I searched for the offending device and its cursed crescendoing sweep. My eyes were heavy with sleep from the previous, to call it a night would be generous given I didn’t manage to get to bed until five in the morning. I shook my head to clear the sleep and literally jumped out of bed. Today was a huge day, including the events that happened prior after all! I rushed through my normal morning routine, opting only to brush my teeth and quickly run a brush through my long hair before tossing my belongings back into the duffel bag I had brought with me. After tossing my key card on the desk of the tiny room I ran out of the motel and did not stop until I got to the Pokecenter.
I took a deep breath to help me calm my nerves as I walked through the Center’s sliding doors and up to the employee manning the counter. They were wearing the standard Pokecenter regalia of a pink and white coloured polo shirt and khaki pants. Their hair was a vivid blue that clashed terribly with the uniform they were made to wear.
“Hi, I’d like to register for the Unova League circuit, please.” I put on as confident a voice as I could while handing them my ID and the application I had already filled out.
“Of course! I’d be more than happy to get you registered for the league, and thank you for filling out your application ahead of time! Should make everything that much quicker.” I watched as they took my application and began scanning it over. My heartbeat quickened in my chest at the anticipation of getting the formalities over so I could start my journey. As I watched, the employee’s expression changed from a polite smile to something much more neutral, controlled. “Well, your application looks excellent and everything seems to be in order, except for one detail. You’ve left your initial Pokemon registration list completely blank. I know it’s very common for first-time trainers to develop their team while out on the journey, but could you please list your first Pokemon? It is a required field after all.”
As I took my application back from the employee I could feel my blood start to turn cool. “Well, I don’t actually have a Pokemon at this moment. My plan had been to register and then using the benefits afforded from being a registered circuit trainer go out and catch my starter.” I put on the most charming smile I could as I not so subtly held my application back out for them to take back.
They looked from me to my application, then back at me as their frown deepened. “I’m sorry miss. I won’t be able to register you until you fill that section out and provide verification of the Pokemon with you. Unfortunately, a policy change this year made it mandatory that to sign up for the circuit at all you must have at least one Pokemon to start with. I suppose someone in the government got tired of seeing trainers register and then not actually go on the journey, instead, they just reaped the benefits for the duration of the season.”
“Do-do people actually do that? I thought that was just a myth, or incredibly infrequently occurring. Okay, well all I need is the one Pokemon, right? If I go catch one and then come back and prove I have one on the form I should be all good?” I slipped the form into my backpack and tried my best not to sound defeated which must not have gone as smoothly as I was hoping it was going. The Pokecenter employee gave me a sympathetic smile as they reached under their desk for something.
“That’s correct. Given your age and health, I do not doubt that you’ll be approved by our automatic system! I know the circumstance is incredibly unfortunate, so let me get you started. Here are a few basic Pokeballs, we typically give out ten free ones to trainers that have been approved for their entry into the league the first time around. I can’t give you all ten since you haven’t been approved, and technically I shouldn’t give you any. But I’ll give you five now and then the rest when you get approved.” The employee said with a sly wink as they deposited the small red and white balls into my hand. I was taken aback by how dense they felt, having never held one before. I quickly dropped them into a pocket I had dedicated to balls in my backpack.
I ran out of the Center after muttering a quick goodbye and started walking west towards where I knew the entrance to Pinwheel Forest was. My parents had done a diligent job in dissuading me from ever going near the forest on foot. There was a sort of on-ramp for vehicles that went around the forest to respect the land at least somewhat and the forest itself was untouched and dense. Whenever I drove on the highway to get to Castelia I recall thinking that the forest itself didn’t look so vast. Going through it would undoubtedly be quicker so I could never imagine why they didn’t just cut through the forest given how brazen the Unovan government has been in disrespecting Unova’s geography.
As I reached the tree line it dawned on me how much of a difference a shift in perspective could make. Despite the sun just beginning to hit its peak in the sky, the forest was shrouded in darkness, the thick bundle of trees doing their best to prevent sunlight from reaching the floor, even casting their imposing shadows beyond the confines of the forest. Even with the entry path that had been made specifically for trainers to enter and leave the forest, I couldn’t help the feeling that I was intruding. With a deep breath, I steeled my nerves and took my first step into the unknown.
I don’t know if it’s this damn forest or my own hubris, but what I thought would surely be a quick journey to catch my first low-level pokemon very quickly had become a five-hour endeavour. It was rapidly approaching nightfall and I was down three Pokeballs after several failed capture attempts and covered head to toe in dirt after physically wrestling with a Timburr in a futile effort to intimidate it into submission. As I sat on a stump removed from the traveled path and hung my head in defeat, I began to contemplate why I kept failing. The reason jumped into my head immediately; my parents were right and I’m not actually ready yet.
I quickly banished the wretched thought from my head with a hard shake. That isn’t right or rational and I know it isn’t. Okay so maybe I shattered my first ball by throwing it full force into what was clearly a very sturdy and incredibly old tree, but my inexperience didn’t mean I wasn’t ready! Just that I had to become experienced. Each of these failures to catch my starter was simply a new lesson in what not to do, but that didn’t make the pain of failure any less. I wasn’t even being particularly picky like I hear about other first time trainers being, I am more than willing to take anything that comes my way.
Then the thought hit me, maybe that was the issue. Maybe the Pokemon here could tell that I wasn’t thrilled about training and raising them specifically. I cradled my head in one of my hands and reached for my phone to research the various kinds of pokemon that could be found in the forest. Maybe if I had an exact goal planned out, my conviction would change and the pokemon would be more willing to cooperate. As I was swiping through field reports on Pinwheel Forest I heard a what sounded like muffled sniffles coming from behind me.
“Hello? Is anyone there?” I cautiously made my way towards the noise I was hearing, the sniffles gradually turning into low keening and strangely melodious cries. They sounded, agonized? Potentially in pain. I rushed through a patch of particularly stubborn thicket only to feel my breath catch hard in my throat.
A Phantump. Phantump weren’t known to be particularly dangerous, but seeing one was never a joyous occasion. It would be cruel to celebrate the loss of a child after all. I softly approached it, keeping my hands loosely at my side to appear less threatening.
“Hey, it’s okay. Can you look at me?” I try my best to speak softly to it, making sure it has enough distance from me that it knows it can easily get away if it’s uncomfortable. The Phantump lets out a quite thunking sound, like a woodblock being gently struck. “I suppose you got lost out here, I’m so sorry. but things will be okay.”
I’m not sure why, but something felt so kindred about the spirit in front of me. It felt instinctual as I set down my bag and slowly reached in for one of my last remaining Pokeballs. After pulling it out I held it up to the curious ghost, letting it observe the red and white sphere from a safe distance.
“You got lost exploring, I’m sure. I know you’re just looking for a friend, but I can’t stay here in the forest with you. But, that doesn’t mean I can’t be your friend. Would you be willing to leave the forest to go on another adventure, with me?” I gently clicked the button in the middle of the Pokeball, letting it expand to its ready form. I could feel a spring coil in my gut as I held my breath while the Phantump inched ever so slightly closer.
For just a second it looked at me, looked as though it were truly studying me as a person and not just my offer. After what felt like a lifetime, an indefinite fermata over this rest in time it let out that same woodblock chime it had previously. Then touching the ball in my hand before letting itself be pulled inside. I watched in wonder as the ball shook once before it let off a distinct click, the sound that confirmed a catch. I stared in wonder as the ball shrank down to a more portable size, a smile threatening to split my face.
“Well, okay then. I think we need a name for you, soooo…” I hummed to myself, chewing the inside of my cheek gently. As I thought about our encounter and the encroaching dusk in the woods, a soft smile wormed it's way out of me.
“I think this is good. Welcome to the team, Lament.” I touched the ball gently to my forehead before setting it in its place on the first slot of my belt. As cheesy as it is, I couldn’t help myself as I pulled my headphones out of my bag, already beginninig to hum a familiar opening trumpet line as I tread my way out of the woods.