Chapter Text
Ogerpon and her companions had been travelling a long, long time.
Well, no, that wasn't her name. Spring was her name. The name her caretaker gave her, at least.
She and her sister cared deeply for their caretaker. He found them when they got separated from their herd, and took it upon himself to care for them. Oh, how thankful Spring and Autumn both were for his protection.. They had found their first, true, human friend.
Soon, they would be coming upon a village. Their caretaker hoped that the villagers would accept them. Spring could tell he was exhausted. Maybe, Spring hoped, they could find a home in the village. Maybe they wouldn't have to be travelers anymore.
To Spring's dismay, however, what the villagers saw weren't weary travelers looking for a place to rest. They didn't see the kindness in Spring's eyes, nor the beauty in Autumn's vibrant coat.
What they saw were... monsters.
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It was a bright and sunny day in Kitakami. A gentle breeze brought the scent of leaves and nature with it, the sun's rays warmed the earth beneath, and the temperature was just right. Oh, how nice it felt to be back home, Kieran thought. He took in a deep breath, soaking in all the familiar feelings it brought, letting the wind ruffle his hair. It had been far, far too long since he was last in Kitakami. Yes, he and his sister visit their family every year, but having to wait that long was still unbearable. And since it's a school activity, he's not missing any work! Hooray!
Kieran gazed down the center street of Mossui Town. He and his sister, Carmine, were waiting for the Paldean students to arrive. You see, the reason he and Carmine were in Kitakami at this time was because it was time for the annual trip that Blueberry and the Paldean School (it was called Something-Uva academy. He couldn't remember the first part..) would plan together, and since they were already planning to come here for the Festival of Masks, they might as well join with everyone.
...Well, with the Paldean students, at least. Carmine and him were the only two Blueberry students that had come. And since they already had plans to come here, they had arrived a day early. They arrived later in the day, so at most all they could do was say hi to Grandma and Grandpa before putting their stuff away and going to sleep. And before they could do anything fun, they had to wait for the Paldean students to arrive.... which Carmine didn't take too fondly.
..And so, in order to calm her nerves, she decided that she and Kieran would wait outside the community center, and Carmine would battle the first student she saw. Kieran sighed. It was a little annoying how Carmine had practically dragged him here, but there wasn't much else to do. Plus, it would probably be good experience watching Carmine fight. Kieran's been trying to become a stronger trainer recently, for his school and all (also himself), but he keeps getting hung up on seeing his Pokémon get hurt. But he's been getting better recently, at least.
Arceus, when are the Paldean students going to get here? It feels like they've been standing here for hours, and yet, there was still no sign of the others arriving. Didn't they say they'd be here around 2 PM? It's gotta be like, 2:30 now.
Carmine also seems annoyed, if the tapping of her foot on the concrete is anything to go off of.
Kieran's mind begins to wander as he thinks about what this trip will be like. From what he's heard from his sis, the Paldean students are always a wildcard, and that you'll never know what to expect from them. This is his first field trip with the other school, so he has no idea what they might be like. All he knows about Paldea is that they're the region that first discovered Terastilization. Blueberry Academy also has access to Terastilization, thanks to Miss Briar, but he hasn't gotten a Tera Orb yet, mainly because he hasn't been doing much battling. Arc, he hopes the Paldean students don't demand a bunch of battles with them. All Kieran wants is to go to the Festival tomorrow. It is his turn with the mask, after all. The Festival is going to be really fun, Kieran thinks. He gets to eat candy apples, he gets to run around in his true form, people will complement him on his mask and costume (which isn't actually a costume but whatever), and- oh, hey, someone's running up the road to the community center.
Wait, someone's running up to the community center?! Shoot- I gotta tell Carmine!
"Sis!- There! There's one now!"
{ ―――― ☘︎ ―――― }
Florian breathed in and out, taking in the wonderful scenery of Kitakami. Wow, this place was beautiful, he thought, watching as a flock of Starly flew by, catching the soft breeze underneath their wings. The sun in the sky shimmered, the light bouncing off of the crystals adorning his hat almost like tiny little stars. Much like Paldea, this place had such pretty wildlife, and it was very interesting to see so many new Pokémon that he had never seen in person before.
He and his fellow students had just gotten off the bus. Ms. Briar was explaining the wilderness around them and what they were going to do here, but Florian barely registered it. He was too busy marveling at all the new wildlife skittering about.
Normally he would have been even more exhausted than usual, with how long the airplane and bus ride was, but seeing all these new wonderful things has practically rejuvenated him with pure excitement.
He did also take a nap on the bus, which might have helped.
Whatever the cause, Florian was sure this trip was going to be worth it. He couldn't wait to meet the students of Blueberry Academy they would be joining, to learn about the region of Kitakami, to catch all sorts of new Pokémon, oh he was so excited to-
"Urgh, Ms. Briar, I don't feel so good.." One of the other students complained, clutching their stomach. He didn't recognize them.
“Oh dear, that travel must have given you a dose of motion sickness, hm?" Ms. Briar asked. "Then we can pause here for a moment and take in the view.“
Florian blinked a bit as Ms. Briar turned to him.
“Now, Florian! If you don’t mind, I have a small request for you.”
"Oh, uh, sure. What is it?" Florian tilted his head.
“If you don’t mind, could you go on to the community center in Mossui and tell the caretaker that we’ve arrived? It would also be great if you could explain that one of our students is feeling unwell.” Ms. Briar spoke quickly, nearly losing Florian in its speed.
"Ah- Yes, Ms. Briar! I can do that." Florian nodded. He was excited to go take a look around, even if he shouldn't take too big of a detour.
“Thank you, Florian. Now, go along! I'll take care of your little travel buddy here.” Briar waved him off, and Florian nearly scampered away, his excitement clear.
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It wasn't too long until Florian was walking up the path to Mossui Town. He tried not to take too long on his way, even though he so desperately wanted to run in the grass with all the Pokémon. He did, however, spend some time catching a Cutiefly he'd name Bloom, as he wanted at least a couple new friends from this new region.
As he walked up the road, he noticed two people standing in front of what was likely the community center. And it wasn't too long until they noticed him as well, the shorter of the two gesturing toward him.
"Sis!- There! There's one now!" The smaller one spoke, then following as the taller one quickly ran up to him.
Now that he could get a good look at them, they certainly looked interesting. The taller of the two had long, black hair, the undersides dyed red with what seems like a little bit of green as well? Two little green spikes of hair also seem to be just barely poking up from her head. The shorter of the two also had similarly colored hair, but it was much shorter and messier, with purple instead of red. The green in his hair was much easier to spot, too, nearly overtaking the purple at the ends.
They also seemed to be wearing uniforms, not unlike his own. Are these the Blueberry Academy students they were going to meet up with?
"So.. you must be one of the students from the Paldea region, hm?" The taller one spoke. Goodness, she was tall. Florian wasn't short, but still, she nearly towered over him.
Behind her, the shorter one poked out and gazed at Florian, clearly amazed by his appearance. "Wow... Way cool.." He spoke in awe.
"Hush, Kieran. I'm Carmine." The taller one spoke. Ahh.. So their names are Kieran and Carmine..
"Oh, uh, Hi Carmine. My name's Florian." Florian spoke, raising out a hand for a handshake.
"Florian, right..." Carmine spoke, a condescending smile on her face. "Well, I'm sorry, Florian, but I just can't let an outsider like you into Mossui Town."
"I- Uh- What??"
"If you insist on coming in, you'll have to battle me first." She continued.
Florian blinks. Outsider? Battle?? I thought she was gonna ask me where the rest of the group was, not- this??
The smaller of the two, Kieran, speaks up. "C'mon Sis... You just wanna battle. Makin' this big fuss over nothing.." He seemed bored, like he didn't want to be there.
"I told you to hush, Kiki!" Carmine spat, angrily. Kieran shrinks a little at that.
"Just ignore my little brother. Alright, let's do this. Get in position." Carmine spoke, moving back to give space for them to battle.
They barely gave him any time to speak, honestly. He was just going to head to the community center at let the caretaker know that they had arrived, but now he was in a Pokemon battle. And being chastised for just walking up there! He's a bit annoyed, but he's also used to the whole "being an outcast" thing. Florian just sighs, and pulls out Cherry (his Tinkaton)'s poke ball, ready to fight.
{ ―――― ✧ ―――― }
The battle was... really easy. I mean, it's to be expected when you're fighting unevolved pokemon with the companions you've trained for the past several months, but... Man, Florian kinda feels bad.
Cherry instantly took care of Poochyena with one Gigaton Hammer, and Sol's immunity to status effects made Vulpix's Will-O-Wisp fairly useless.. And Polchageist was barely a problem with Indigo around.
Carmine clearly looked ticked off. She glared at Florian, her vibrant yellow eyes glimmering strangely in the sunlight.
Kieran, however, looked positively amazed at Florian's battle skills. You could practically see the sparkles in his eyes. Their eyes are very expressive, actually. Almost reminds me of Lilac. It's... kind of endearing?
"Wowzers.." Kieran speaks up, "You went and beat my sis?!"
"I can't believe it.. There's... There's no way you should have been able to beat me?!?" Carmine exclaims. Her entire body shakes in anger. Heh, that's what you get for being so arrogant.
"Well, maybe don't underestimate every outsider you see." Florian retorts. He's not actually super angry at them (well, maybe a little bit), but he is a little bit petty.
Carmine sighs. "Fine, I guess you pass. Barely."
"So can I get into the town now?" Florian asks, almost exasperated.
"You can, but only if you become one of my grunts and do every little thing I-"
"Oi! What're you doing, causing a ruckus out here?!" Carmine is interrupted by who Florian can only assume is the caretaker, running out of what looks to be the Community Center.
"Tch, here comes trouble..." Carmine says, who strangely seems more embarrassed than worried.
"C'mon Kiki. We're out of here."
"B-But I!-" Kieran exclaims, looking between Carmine, Florian, and the caretaker, before running after his sister.
"Ah, sorry about that, stranger. You must be one of the kids from that Paldean Academy, right?" The caretaker asks, walking up to Florian.
"Yep, that would be me. I'm Florian. Are you the caretaker here?" Florian asks.
"Mhm!" The caretaker nods, "I help run the community center here in Mossui Town, among other things! I'll be taking care of your group during the trip."
"Ah, I hope those two kids weren't giving you any grief.. were they?" The caretaker asks.
"Eh, it's fine. It wasn't that big of a deal." Florian waves it off. It probably was a big deal, but he doesn't want to have to deal with that during the trip. It's not like he's going to see those two again after the trip.
The caretaker sighs. "I hardly know what to do with those two. Especially that Carmine. Always been a handful, that one. I apologize if she gave you a hard time."
"No no, it's fine, really. I'm here for something else anyway. One of the students in my group fell ill at the bus stop, so they sent me to ask if you could come get them." Florian explained, remembering the actual reason he was here alone in the first place.
"Oh my! Well, I'm glad they sent you over! I'll go and lend them a hand, you go and get yourself settled in the community center."
"Alright. Thank you, Mister Caretaker." Florian smiles.
"Oh please, it's nothing. We'll catch up with you soon!" The caretaker says, making his way down the road to the bus stop.
And, finally, Florian has some time alone.
{ ―――― ✧ ―――― }
It was now about 8:20 p.m., and Florian was laying in his bed. He had long since put up his belongings in the room he would be staying in, and had been mostly scrolling on his Rotom-phone the rest of the time.
There wasn't really much to do anyway, since the actual field trip activities weren't going to start until tomorrow, which makes sense. It gives everyone time to rest up after the long plane and bus rides here. Florian is a little annoyed at not being able to do much today, but most of that was outweighed by the joy of being able to lean back and rest for a day. Arceus knows he's been quite busy lately, with the Treasure Hunt back home, and that whole deal with Area Zero as well...
Florian shivers at the thought. It had been a couple months since then, but the thought of it still brought back lots of anxiety. But Florian can deal with it. He did make it out alive, after all.
Anyways, back to the field trip. Florian was excited to learn about all Kitakami had to offer. He wondered if they had any special traditions or festivities they could learn about. Oh yeah, and weren't the two Blueberry Academy students also from here? Kieran and Carmine? Maybe he could ask them about it!
Oh, but Carmine didn't seem the fondest of people coming into her hometown. I guess it makes sense, she probably doesn't want it to be flooded with tourists. Kitakami does seem pretty small. At least, compared to Paldea, at least.
Florian wonders about Blueberry Academy, and what it must be like there. He doesn't know too much about it, Ms. Briar didn't really speak much about it. But it's probably a good school, Florian thinks, if Naranja-Uva Academy partners with it for field trips every now and then.
Those two Blueberry kids really did intrigue him. Even if they weren't really the nicest to him, he finds himself wanting to talk to them again. The small one, Kieran, did seem pretty nice. Even if he... didn't really talk much.
Man, I wonder what they're up to right now..
{ ―――― ✧ ―――― }
"They're what?! They're saving the activities for tomorrow?! That's the same day as the Festival!!" Kieran yells.
"I know! I thought we would have at least started them today." Carmine replies, also annoyed, but not nearly as annoyed as Kieran is.
"Dang it- I might not get done in time for the Festival!! That's the reason we both came here!! For the Festival!!" Kieran paces around his room, anxiety clearly visible.
"Hey, Kiki, calm down. I'm sure they'll let you spread out the field trip stuff out through multiple days. And plus, the Festival also lasts a few days. You don't have to be there every day, y'know?"
"But I like going there every day! Especially when it's my turn with the mask!"
"Kieran, please, it's going to be alright. You're just anxious because the festival's almost here and you saw a cute boy you wanna be friends with. You'll be fine."
"I know but- WHAT?!?!" Kieran nearly squeals at that last remark.
"Oh come on Kiki, you think I didn't see the way you looked at that guy? You were practically mesmerized by that Florian kid!" Carmine teases. "I mean, I'm not judging-"
"I don't like him like that!!! He's just. Good at Pokémon battles. That's all!" Kieran's face is a bright red.
"Yeah? Is that all?" Carmine has a mischievous smile on her face.
"Yes. That is all."
"You don't think his hair is pretty?"
"His hair is blue and shiny."
"You don't think-"
"Get out of my room, Carmine!!"
"Alright alright. I'll get out. But don't think you're out of the woods just yet!~" Carmine closes the door, making sure to smirk at Kieran on the way out.
Ughhh. Carmine. She can be so ruthless when she teases. Kieran flops onto his bed, taking his headband out and letting his hair fall down, away from his horns.
He doesn't like Florian. At least, not like that. He just thinks he's cool. I mean, he's got strong Pokémon. That's something to admire. Kieran's always wanted to become a strong trainer, but he hates when his friends get injured, even if they always assure him that they're fine afterwards. He's also pretty cool looking. I mean, that hat with the crystals on it? It was soooo pretty... It almost reminded him of the Teal Mask he and his sister share. Kieran wonders who gave him that hat, or if he made it himself. And.. does it work like their mask does..?
No. It's just a normal hat. It can't work like the Teal Mask does- Florian's not a Pokémon. Kieran would know.
Well, he doesn't seem fully human, either, but no Pokehuman with any sense of self preservation would just let their nonhuman parts show, so he has to be human. He probably just dyed his hair. That odd feeling being near him means absolutely nothing. He's a normal human, just like the others.
Ughhh, being a human is so hard. There's so many expectations and social norms that are so hard to understand... It makes his head hurt!! Sometimes Kieran wishes he could just go back to living in the mountain with his sister.
He sighs. At least he'll be able to live out a little of that fantasy tomorrow. Hopefully. If things don't go south.