Chapter Text
Well, today's the day. The day where I set off on my own.
Goodbye Paldea
Chapter 1
The bus stop was empty, no buses in sight. I clutched my bag, gripping so hard my knuckles turned white. It was still dark out, the sky a shade of deep blue, like the fur of an Azumarill. White wispy clouds floated carefree in the sky. A quick check of my Rotom phone confirmed the time, 6.43am. A flock of Fletchling led by a Fletchinder flew past as a Lechonk scurried by, nibbling on an Oran berry. I barely noticed it, with my heart beat steadily increasing. Come on, come on, where is it… don’t tell me I missed the bus. I fixed my shirt, tucking it in and out almost obsessively. My phone beeped, “From, Mom. Hey honey, are you at the bus stop yet?” Quickly, I replied , “Yes Mom, don’t worry.” The reply was almost immediate, “Ok honey, you can’t be too sure.” I sat my phone down before heaving in a deep breath. I shut my eyes for a rest but the sound of galloping hoofs piqued my interest. A man walked by with his Muddstale heaving a crate of Pokemon kibble. Wow, that man must be so lucky, I wish I could have a partner Pokemon like him.
My mind drifted back to my home, just a ten minutes’ walk from here. There, from dawn to dusk, you would have Pokemon everywhere. Scatterbug and Vivillon by the garden, Psyducks in the pond splashing about lazy as always. I had hated them for their seemingly smug expression. Mankey somewhere up above high in the trees, judging by the swishing sound and the leaves floating down. And of course, my Dad’s Growlithe and my mom’s Rapidash. The thought of them bringing a smile to my lips. I hope they’ll be ok without me. Then, the sound of crunching gravel brought me back. Two other school girls were approaching. They were wearing a different school uniform, I could barely read out the words in the dark but I saw Chartreuse academy printed under their name tags. They sat down on the other side of the bench, quietly but excitedly whispering about something. “D-did you hear? Nidothing posted a name video.” “Yup! I’m her biggest fan!” Nidothing? They knew her too? I mean, she was a big streamer but to think her influence reached all the way here?
My heart pleaded at me to approach them, reveal I was a big fan myself but my words died in my throat. “He—...” Oh no, oh no, did I make a fool of myself? I kept my head down, balling my hands into fists and hoping they didn’t notice my poor attempt at a conversation. Luckily, they continued with their enthusiastic discussion, seeming to not even see me. The silence hung in the air for a few awkward minutes until the bus finally came and the silence was broken. The bus had the words ‘ Indigo academy ’ on it. That was my cue. As I boarded the bus, I looked back, this place was all I had known. Today was the day I stepped out of Paldea, the place I had grown up in, and to Kanto. A lump formed in my throat but I forced it down remembering the promise I had made to Growlithe. Be strong. And I intended to keep it. Whispering to myself, I mumbled, “Good bye Paldea.”
I stepped into the bus, my heart beating rapidly. A helpful Machcamp took my luggage and brought them to storage. “Thanks Machcamp.” I handed over my bus ticket too. The cool breeze of the air conditioner hit me. Whew, thank god mum pestered me to bring a jacket. The bus driver noticed my nerves and quickly offered a smile. “Don’t worry hun, lot of kids your age are nervous too. Well, I’m no regular kid, I’m only the most awkward out there. Just go in there with some enthusiasm and you're good to go.” She finished, flashing her teeth to me with a quick grin. I gave a quick nod before gazing around, seeing if there were any available seats. Most of them were occupied but I found a window seat by the back and quickly hurried to it.
It was only after I sat down that I realized that my hands were still shaking pretty badly in part due to the cold air. I pressed my hands to the window, feeling the smooth glass pane. As the doors closed with a dramatic swish, the bus started to move. I looked outside but saw only houses and stores. However, after we left the town, it was a completely different sight. There was grass everywhere, along with Pokemon. Starly and Squawkabilly soared high above, some in flocks and others alone. Other Pokemon like Oddish and Hoppip bounced around, eating wild berries and resting.
As we started to approach a small forest, I noticed some Deerling and Sawsbuck eating grass, partly hidden behind the trees. Combees flew about, visiting from flower to flower. Suddenly, a brown blur caught my eye, oh my gosh oh my gosh is that an eevee? I whisked out my Rotom phone to check but it fled. I had never seen a wild Eevee before, they liked to avoid cities and towns and even in the wild they were rare. Finally, after many hours, the forest broke and I entered a new area I didn't recognize. The bus driver announced that we had reached Kanto and I started noticing Pokemon I had only ever seen online. Once my eyes caught on a Pokemon I didn’t recognize. My Rotom Phone quickly fixed that. A Pidgeotto, a Normal and Flying type Pokemon. Pidgeotto, isn’t that the evolved form of Pidgey? Checking the Pokeweb, I googled: Piggeotto preevolution. I was right. Glancing at the time, I realised I still had maybe five more hours left to go. Feeling the effects of waking up so early, I rested my head against the windowsill and the last thing I felt was the bus bumping on the rough old road.
Bump. My eyes jolted awake as the bus hit a deep pothole, I was thrown to the side, my seatbelt straining at my lap to keep me from tumbling out. “Well, that wasn’t a very nice wake up call…” I muttered. My brain had only just caught up from the sudden awakening. Pulling up my Rotom Phone, it was 4pm already. I had slept for about three hours. Unclipping my seatbelt, I got up and stretched a little. The rest of the passengers were asleep, apparently unbothered by that pothole earlier. Checking the small map displayed by the bus, I had around thirty more minutes to go.
I settled back into my seat but the creeping excitement and anxiety about my new school kept me awake. I picked up my Rotom phone and scrolled to a video from Nidothing. The familiar sound of Pokefacts I had rewatched so many times calmed me and I typed a comment under it. “ Thx for the amazing vid.” I closed my eyes, letting the video wash over me. It lulled me into a sense of calm. As I watched, I felt my surroundings quieten down. Sitting up in my seat, I peered out the foggy window, dew drops dropping down its outer side. Almost mindlessly, I started to pick at my necklace. It really wasn’t anything special, just a chain with an emerald hanging down. It would probably go for maybe a few thousand Pokedollars at best but I felt that I had a connection to it ever since I saw it after one of my grandma’s adventures. Grandma. My chest tightened at the word. I hadn’t seen her for nearly a year now. She would always go on the coolest adventures and tell me all about it afterwards. She never would have gone no contact for a year. The emerald’s cool touch calmed me down slightly and I spent the rest of the journey in quiet musings.
Finally, after a whole day of travelling, the bus pulled into the parking lot of the academy. I followed other students in unboarding the bus and followed the stream of students from other buses into the school. As I approached the entrance, I finally took in how great the academy really was. The entrance was in an arch shape with two thick metal beams bent into one point where the Indigo academy sign was placed. The school was surrounded by buildings forming a battle area in the middle of the building in the shape of an ‘L’. Trees lined the buildings, wild Pokemon moving in and out of the shadows. Proceeding forward, the inside of the school was greater with sprawling dining areas and expansive battle areas. My attention was captured by two trainers battling each other, their Pokemon leaping high and low. It was truly mesmerizing. Finally, we were ushered to our dorm rooms, I clutched at my sheet of paper, room 303. The room section of the academy was huge, three full levels with rooms stuffed side by side. Finally, I found my dorm room, the numbers 303 printed on it. My hands were shaking again. Don’t worry, it’s ok. You’re a big girl now. Tentatively, I twisted the door handle and opened the door. A girl my age had her back turned to me, rummaging in her luggage. She had pink eyes, her hair tied in a messy bun, strands of it falling to her back and shoulders with an olive hair clip on both sides of her hair. “Oh where is it… WHERE IS IT???” I took a step back, quickly shutting the door. Oh god on the first day and I already made a fool of myself, did I read it wrong, no this says 303.”
The door swung open and the girl poked her head out. “Hi there! Can I help you?” “Oh… erm, is this room 303? Sorry to bother you, I might have entered the wrong dor—” “Hold on, is your name Liko?” “Yes..?” “Well then you’re in the right place, they assigned us as buddies! Come in!” The girl, whose name is quickly learned was Ann, gestured at me to come in. The room was medium sized with two beds and desks. There was space under the bed for storage and Ann had apparently already begun using it with some of her suitcases stuffed under there. The rest of her suitcases were laid on her bed. One of them, the one Ann had been rummaging through when I walked in on her, was filled with clothes and toiletries. The place was neat with all the things needed for a dorm room, a shared bathroom, separate closets. I offered to help Ann unpack but she waved me off. “Don’t worry bout me, you have your things too don’t you?” Without missing a beat, she pulled out a jumble of her pajamas. Ten minutes later, we were sorting through the shirts and pants while folding and organizing them. During this , Ann told me about her family. “My family? Well, I have an older brother and sister. My sister graduated here too! And my brother? Well, he’s working as a Pokemon professor in Unova. What about you?” “Me?” “Ya, you, do you have any siblings?” Ann asked, folding (or crumpling based on how you look at it) a shirt. “Well, no, I’m an only child. My parents live in Paldea. My dad is a painter and my mom is a teacher. They both met here and when I asked them which academy to go to, they recommended this one. ” “Oooh that’s so cool! My dad works at a farm as a Pokebreeder. My mom’s a full time nurse. Anyway, how did your interview go?” “Oh right! The interview. I thought back and remembered a Chikorita, a Totodile, a Tepig, A Rowlet, a Squirtle, a Cyndiquil, and the paws of something in the background too. When I first decided to come to this school, I had a long online interview. I talked with the teachers and I even met some Pokemon. I hope I made a good enough impression to get myself a wonderful partner. We chattered happily for a while before falling into comfortable silence. Once we folded our clothes, we retired to bed. Before that though, I removed my necklace and replaced it in its jewelry box.
“Oh my gosh! That’s so pretty, can I touch it?” Nodding my head, Ann carefully held it up to the light. The light shone through it, casting a green shadow on the floor. Then, she lowered it and held it around my neck. “That looks so good on you! I wish my necklaces looked so pretty like that.” Ann noted, giving it back. I slipped it inside the jewelry box and slid it under my bed. I gave her a small smile. “Thanks Ann, but I don’t think I’m ready for it just yet.”