Ties That Bind: Pokemon Link & Sever
Sept 10, 2020 16:25:34 GMT
Post by Deleted on Sept 10, 2020 16:25:34 GMT
A new corner of the world of Pokemon, the Tridelta Region, has begun its centennial challenge season. 12-year-old Bernadette is hoping to ascend from unknown to legend as she begins her Pokemon journey. As she races to beat all eight gyms and the Champion, a new villainous team conspires in the dark woods and launch a plot that will change Tridelta forever. Will the strength of Bernadette's will, and the help of her friends be enough to save the region?
---
Chapter One: Send-Off Day
Sunlight crept into the bedroom of 12-year-old Bernadette Gillespie. The girl grunted, rolling over in an attempt to bury her head beneath one of her many pillows. The Cubone sleeping on her pillow followed suit, burrowing under the covers. A Snover in the corner snoozed peacefully, still in shadows. All was quiet, and all was calm. The calm ended when Gladys Gillespie banged on the door.
“Bernadette! I have been shouting for the past twenty minutes. It is Send-Off Day!” she barked.
The lump in bed did not move. Gladys sighed and moved into the room, nearly tripping over a stray roller skate. This room was a death trap, and she was too old for this. Way too old. She stripped the pokeball print comforter off of her child, shaking one exposed foot.
“Bernadette. Send-Off Day.” she grunted, coffee in one hand and attempting to force some sort of energy for the day into her. It was going to be a long one, and she needed to brace herself, but the adrenaline of trying to get Bernadette to school on time was working better than the coffee. Gladys had the look of a tired Skuntank, with the temperament to match. Well, at least if a Skuntank had neon orange hair and an affinity for shredded heavy metal t-shirts.
The sudden chill and general shaking woke Bernadette for good. She rubbed her eyes and felt for her glasses to look at the clock. It was 7:30. School started in 45 minutes! She ruffled her hands through her short blonde pixie cut as if the air circulating would wake her up. No, it was more the fact that Gladys had her in her sights. Bernadette knew despite the thick cat-eye lenses, her mother’s vision was sharp….at least whenever Bernadette wanted to slack off, it was.
“Mooom! You let me sleep in!” she squeaked, rushing to her closet and nearly tripping over the same skate that almost took out her mother.
“How are you going to be on your journey if you can’t even wake yourself up?” her mother asked without any bite. She turned Bernadette toward the bathroom.
“And you’d better shower without me instructing you, too.”
“Ew, mom! Ughhhh I don’t have time!” Bernadette protested. A shower would just throw her off her groove. If “groove” was a frantic stumble around for various articles of clothing.
“Listen, kid - you shower and get dressed, and don’t be loud about it. Your Pops is sleeping. He got in at 4 a.m. to see your special day. So hop to it...go on.”
Gladys didn’t budge. Her mother was a rock, and Bernadette knew it was useless to argue. Waving her white flag, Bernadette took the world’s fastest shower. When she was on her own, she wouldn’t have to do this every day. No one could tell her what to do! She puffed out her chest in the mirror. She was a thin, reedy little thing, shoving on a pair of denim shorts covered in ink and paint from where she’d drawn on them, and a baggy orange and white striped shirt. She’d rather be comfortable today. Tonight was going to be an entirely different story.
After dressing and drying off, Bernadette returned to the kitchen where Gladys sighed, holding out a plate for Bernadette to take her poptart. The girl rarely even chewed them - just unhinged her jaw like some Seviper and swallowed it in chunks. The young girl snatched it, shoving it into her mouth as she sat on the floor to tie on her roller skates. There weren’t many places Bernadette went without her roller skates - they were faster than walking and she wanted to experience every single thing she could in the world...so she had to get things done quick!
“Mmmffanks, Mom!” she choked, giving Gladys a sloppy kiss on the cheek as she rose back up to jet to school. When she said ‘I love you’, she was practically out the door and across the hall of their condominium complex.
She pounded on a familiar, sleek, black door - with no regard for who may be sleeping.
“Salem! Open up!! It’s Send-Off Day, and we have to gooooo!”
That was, of course, assuming that her best friend hadn’t left for school without her already. He’d never done it before, but the racing nerves of being late for her very last day of class ever had Bernadette anxious.
William Belmont opened the door, looking disgruntled at all the noise. Disgruntled, but not surprised, since this was the routine almost every single morning since Salem had been school aged. Willie Belmont had short cropped black hair, and a broad, muscular frame concealed by a camouflage button-down shirt. His thick glasses sat on the bridge of his hooked nose, magnifying moss green eyes. His husband, Kevin, was helping Salem get his leg braces on - always a morning trial depending on how grouchy their son was.
“ ‘Morning, Bernadette.” he said, opening the door wider for her to see inside. “Salem’s almost done with his braces.”
Bernadette was tempted to ask which ones, but thought better of it. Salem was a sickly boy with scoliosis and a sturdy back brace which tried to correct it. That was in addition to the leg braces to help with his genetic disease that Bernadette couldn’t pronounce. All she knew was that it caused him a lot of pain and trouble walking.
“I can do it myself, Dad.” Salem groaned, just wanting to get a move on, already. He gave Bernadette a hurried wave, embarrassed that once again, she was seeing him like this. He was like a Torkoal on its back, exposed for the world.
“Okay, buddy. We’re all done.” his beefy ex-linebacker dad, Kevin, said. He looked him over one last time and patted Salem’s shoulder gently.
“You guys be careful going to school - it’s probably going to be wild with Send-Off Day and all. Arceus, you know, I remember when I was your age and -”
“Yeah, yeah, Dad! Gotta go.” Salem said, clanking over to Bernadette, giving both dads a hug on his way out.
“Love you both, bye!” he said, closing the door behind him. He was already flushed from embarrassment.
“They looooove you -” Bernadette teased, nudging her best friend gently. She was aware that handling Salem too roughly could set off spasms.
“Ugh. Shut up, Bernadette, you are the most ann-”
“Hey, guys!” A tiny voice chirped from down the hall. Bernadette knew who it was right away - the final member of their friend group, Trixie Little. If she hadn’t recognized the voice, she would have easily known the red hair fluffed up in pigtails, or the rainbow colored braces on her teeth.
“Do you like my braces? I wanted them to look nice for Send-Off Day, and my parents wanted me to go to the dentist because who knows the next time I’m gonna get to see one and -”
“Yeah, yeah, Trixie, they’re great. We gotta gooooo, you guys!” Bernadette was practically vibrating with excitement for their day to begin, for the metaphorical clock to tick closer to the beginning of their journey as real Pokemon trainers! She was a blonde whirlwind on rollerskates, and the other two found themselves swept up in the contagious excitement as well.
…
Thankfully, the walk to their school wasn’t very long, and the three friends were able to scoot in in the nick of time. Not that it mattered to their teacher, Mrs. McAllister. She was probably glad to be rid of them. She had them for homeroom for the past three years, and she was probably as tired of them as Bernadette was of her.
“I’m just so excited to meet Professor Maple.” Trixie gushed, turning to Bernadette after taking her seat in the front of the class. “He’s done so much for so many people with how he trains service pokemon. He’s probably really nice! I mean, if he’s spent his whole life helping other people, he has to be good, doesn’t he?”
Bernadette shrugged. Professor Maple was a well-known recluse. He never showed up at regional events, like Send-Off Day (at least, according to Chad, who had older siblings to confirm) and the Tridelta Cup at the end of the summer. She watched the Cup on television every year and he’d never shown his face.
“It doesn’t matter if he’s good as long as I get my service pokemon.” Salem said, easing himself into his seat. “I know my dads are giving me my starter tonight. I heard he gives out cool pokemon, like Rillaboom and Lucario and stuff. And he’s supposed to be young, too - the youngest Professor in Trideltan history, so he’s smart.”
“Smarts, farts. I wonder if he can battle…” Bernadette mused.
“Not everybody has to battle, you know.” Salem grumbled, annoyed he got derailed. “Some people can’t or don’t because of ethical reasons…”
“Ethical reasons?” Bernadette blinked. Why wouldn’t people want to battle? It brought people together, and tightened the bond between pokemon and trainer!
“But Annie loves to battle?”
“Bernadette, not everyone is your ill-tempered Cubone.” the way Salem pinched the bridge of his nose when he was trying to remain calm made him look like Willie. The same black hair, the same glasses, and same general malaise for idiocy.
“Fine, we’ll put it to a vote. Uh….Trixie! You like to battle, right?”
“Um...well, Bernadette, battling is okay, but I want to take care of them more than anything.. I think it would be neat to run a daycare one day -”
“Ugh okay - uhhh…” she looked around for some kind of support, anyone who would take her side. Ah! There.
“Chad!” she called, scampering to a tan boy with brick red hair. “Don’t you think pokemon battles are great? Salem says not everyone likes to battle, but you do, right?”
Chad was, as it was known, one of the most popular kids in school. He was easygoing, dressed exclusively in tie-dye, and could do cool tricks on his skateboard. He shrugged, taking a moment to think about the question.
“I’ve never really thought about it - my whole family is into battling. All my brothers and my sister have all gone on their journeys...they didn’t make it very far, though.”
“Maybe you’ll be the first,” a tall girl with curly purple hair offered. “After all, with all your siblings, there’s gotta be a champion in there somewhere - it’s just odds.”
It was Aziza. She had big, round glasses and sepia skin. It was so smooth and pretty, Aziza’s skin reminded her of a topaz ring that Gladys wore. Aziza was in Bernadette’s history class, too. She liked sitting with her because she usually packed candies from her parents’ import antique shop in her pocket and shared them with her. She was also the coolest girl Bernadette knew. She was good at sports, and she was smart, though she’d never battled her. Bernadette bet she could beat Aziza with no problem.
Standing with her was Desta, a handsome boy with deep brown skin like mahogany and turquoise locs. He was the best artist in class. He got in trouble sometimes for drawing on his desk - which was bull in Bernadette’s opinion. He was the only goth kid in the whole school. Bernadette liked having art class with Desta because he could always find some way to turn even the most random and mundane of materials into art.
“Aziza’s right - you’ve got a running chance...you can at least see where your siblings started dropping out of the challenge and learn from their mistakes.” Desta offered.
“I’m only one of six, ‘Ziz.” Chad chuckled, spinning a pokeball on his finger. “But that means I got my starter from my parents early.”
“And you brought it?!” Bernadette squawked, looking to the door to make sure Mrs. McAllister wasn’t coming. Chad nodded with a mischievous grin and called out a Shroomish, setting the little guy on his desk.
“Awww it’s cute!” Trixie said, coming over to look at it, tickling the little guy under the chin.
“I’m surprised you didn’t get a Squirtle - doesn’t your family have an abundance?” Salem asked.
“Yeah, but my sibs all failed with a water starter - maybe I’ll do better with grass. Either way, we’re just vibing and getting to know each other.”
Before Bernadette could ask more questions, Mrs. McAllister strode in, causing the class to scamper to their individual seats. Tall and reedy, she was dressed in her usual baggy sweater and slacks.
“Happy Send-Off Day, class!” She said, clapping her hands together. “Now, I know you are all excited for the Send-Off ceremony tonight, but I am asking - Chad, put that pokemon back in it’s ball, Bernadette, focus - that we all pay attention to how things are going to go tonight.”
“Why? We just go to the gym and we listen to a speech and then we go home, get our starters from our parents and then leave on our journey in the morning! Can’t we just, like, watch a movie?” Bernadette offered.
Mrs. McAllister sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. Bernadette had, after a full three years in her homeroom, grasped the concept of raising her hand, but lacked the basic control to hold her ideas in. Maybe on her journey she would learn to find some patience, though Mrs. McAllister doubted it.
“Correct, Bernadette. I know there’s no point telling you to wait until you’re called on; Tonight we are all going to come back here in our Sunday best and listen to our representative and be on our best behavior while he’s here. But, can anyone tell me what Send-Off Day means? Why is it important?” Mrs. McAllister asked.
For this question, most hands went up, and Bernadette’s answer of “We get a half day of school” was either unheard or pointedly ignored.
“Salem?” Mrs. McAllister asked, nodding towards the smaller boy. He cleared his throat, not one for public speaking. However, it was the last day of school - maybe ever - so he swallowed his annoyance.
“Send-Off Day is to prepare us for our upcoming journey. It is to learn everything we need to know so that we are equipped to leave our support system. It’s also a chance to get to spend more time with our families.” he offered, voice almost robotic so he didn’t have to focus on the intent eyes of his teacher.
“Very good! And when you all leave at lunch time today, I want you to hug your families tight. I want you to thank them for getting you this far. They are just one link in your chain of ever-growing charm bracelets of relationships.” she said, leaning one hip against her desk.
“But Bernadette wasn’t entirely wrong. We are going to be watching a movie.”
Mrs. McAllister moved to the corner, wheeling the large television to the front of the class and doing her best to quiet the eruption of cheers. Part of her was sad to send off yet another group, another class, the ever rotating door of students.
“Yay! See! I knew she wasn’t going to make us work on the last day of class.” Bernadette said, turning back to Salem.
“We’re going to be watching a film on what to expect tonight at the ceremony.”
“An educational movie? Ughhh! That doesn’t even count.” Bernadette groaned.
Mrs. McAllister dimmed the lights, and the movie began. It took a minute for the video to track correctly, indicating just how ancient the thing was. On screen, a young, dapper looking man with thick chestnut hair sat at a desk. Chad groaned and nudged Bernadette.
“My brothers say this dude talks forever.” he muttered, pulling out his pocket game system to play under his desk. Bernadette found herself wishing she had brought hers too. She supposed she could always doodle in her notebook.
“I expect you all to pay attention - there will be a quiz after it, which will affect you walking in tonight’s ceremony.” Mrs. McAllister hummed.
“Oh, come ON!” Bernadette huffed, throwing her hands in the air.
Now she had to pay attention to the movie.
…
Thankfully, the movie was painless and the quiz was a joke - not that it made Bernadette happy. She could have been sleeping! Besides, what was Mrs. McAllister going to do? Fail her? Bernadette knew she didn’t want her in her class again.
The rest of the day was spent signing the yearbooks that had been given out a few days prior, and talking about plans for their journey. Not all children went on their pokemon journey - some worked in their family business or simply wanted to continue school. Regardless, it was the end of having Mrs. McAllister for a teacher. Next year, they would age out of her classes. This was the end of the road for schooling for Bernadette. She walked up to her teacher’s desk for the last time and offered out the thin book.
“Oh, do you want me to sign this off, Bernadette? I figured you’d be watching that clock.” Mrs. McAllister chuckled, sitting down to retrieve a pen from her desk.
“What is it you say about the bell?” Bernadette asked, looking at the clock. The bell would ring in five minutes. Five minutes and then she was done.
“The bell doesn’t dismiss you, I do.” she hummed, writing over her own photo on the small faculty page. Dainty, almost elvish penmanship seemed so much more significant now that Bernadette wasn’t looking at it on a failing grade for an essay. In the photo, her dishwater blonde hair was still piled on her hair like a nest, large, circular glasses still magnifying her eyes and making her look like a hoothoot. Not much had changed, but in five minutes, she’d be down a group of 20 kids. It creeped Bernadette out.
“Here you are.” she said, handing her back the book. “I know you’ll be off on your journey as soon as you can be, but enjoy tonight. After all, you only go on your first journey once.”
“Yeah...of course I will.”
And in that moment, Mrs. McAllister looked different. Had she ever taken her own journey? She was thirty and she was here. No kids, only one pokemon that Bernadette had ever seen - a Glameow named Pickles. What was her life like? Did she ever miss her students when they were gone?
...and just like that, the bell rang. With a final click of the ballpoint pen, Mrs. McAllister handed Bernadette’s yearbook back.
“Keep going, Bernadette. I have a good feeling that you are on the cusp of a truly great adventure.” she gave a nod before standing to address the class for one final time.
“I will see you all tonight - and I expect all of you to be on your best behavior!” she raised her voice to be heard over the clatter of chairs and desks moving, the cacophony of noise coming from her happy students. “That means you, Bernadette, and you, Chad.”
“Wh- hey! I’m always well-behaved!” Bernadette whined, taking her yearbook back before grabbing her backpack and circling around to Salem and Trixie.
“Ready to go? My dads are gonna kill me if I’m late. We’re going to the tailor to pick up my suit.” Salem said, falling in step. Bernadette made sure to slow her pace for him.
“And my parents flew in from their conference special for me! My grandma is waiting outside for me to go to the airport and pick them up!” Trixie squeaked, clearly thrilled to see her parents.
Bernadette knew Trixie got lonely - it was why she was shuffled between Salem and Bernadette’s homes. Her parents were hotshot scientists and traveled for a living, often leaving Trixie alone with her grandma to check on her. At least it wasn’t like Trixie’s 9th birthday party. At least they bothered flying in for this big night.
The halls were littered with jubilated kids and empty backpacks, papers, crowded yet oddly vacant. Being in school felt weird when Bernadette knew she wouldn’t be returning in a year. There was a certain air of heaviness, a loss for being able to gather with all of her friends in one place. Normalcy.
Outside, the cool kids - Chad, Desta, and Aziza - were gathered, emptying their backpacks into the trash bin. At least Chad and Desta were; Aziza was carefully carding through all of her notes to see if she could find something useful in there. Some knowledge that may come in handy for future pokemon battles. It was funny to Bernadette that people didn’t just pick up on it like she did. But then again, she didn’t know how to do basic math in her head, so perhaps she shouldn’t be so quick to laugh.
“You guys getting ready for tonight?” she asked, hurling her binder into the garbage where it landed with a heavy thud.
“Yeah,” Desta mused, slinging his own empty backpack over his shoulder. “It’s weird though, right? Like...we’re going off on this journey and who knows when we’ll all see each other again.” he frowned. It was odd seeing him so serious.
“But it’s not like we’re never coming back. Besides, we’re all friends...and friends stick together.” Salem offered, trying to be of some comfort, though his monotone voice wasn’t particularly helpful. He always sounded sarcastic, even when he didn’t mean to.
“We’ll always be friends, right? I just moved here a few years ago. I don’t want to lose touch -” Desta continued, looking around at all of them. He was usually so quick to smile and laugh, to crack a joke and ruffle your hair. It was like watching a different person.
The air was quiet as the group followed his gaze to the playground.
“Of course we will!” Bernadette bellowed, bursting into a laugh, forcing the air to clear, forcing the black cloud away from them.
“It’s not like I’m super easy to get rid of. It’s like Salem said, friends stick together.” offered Bernadette, putting her hand out into the middle of the circle they had inadvertently formed. “We’re gonna be friends forever. Promise. Besides, it’s only a year. And we might run into each other on the road!”
Desta seemed to cheer up at the reassurance of Bernadette, and put his hand on hers. “A promise is a promise.”
Aziza beamed and moved her hand on top of the others, followed by Chad, then Salem and Trixie. The energy of that circle was something Bernadette had never felt before. The unity and commitment to a goal and to each other was filling her with motivation! She wouldn’t stop until she had the Champion title. She wouldn’t stop until she could battle each of her friends in the Tridelta Cup!
“We’ll see you tonight.” Salem said, moving his hand out.
“Yeah, we have a bus to catch.” Chad replied, pulling back his own hand and giving them a wave. Aziza and Desta followed, flanking their best friend with tentative smiles.
As quickly as they had all come together, they were drawing apart again.
“What do you think the ceremony’s gonna be like?” Bernadette asked, kicking a stone across the sidewalk.
“I bet it’s going to be great - and maybe we’ll see Champion Ladybird.” Trixie said dreamily.
It was common knowledge that Champion Ladybird was a Champion of the people - she did her best to expand education, to make Tridelta an accessible Region for not only its citizens, but whoever wanted to take the Trideltan challenge. Bernadette had seen her battle on television and her Bug-type pokemon were a study in technique! Her shiny Heracross was the one Bernadette wanted to fight. It seemed hard for everybody else, sure, but Bernadette had put in her time doing after school battle club and studying pokemon battles for as long as she could remember. Plus, her Snover, Bigfoot, was pretty great - she couldn’t wait to show everyone just how amazing she was.
“Representative Van Goud is just going to call our names and give us our pins.” Bernadette shrugged, kicking the stone again. “That’s what Chad told me. He’s had to go a hundred times because of all his siblings.”
“He doesn’t even have a hundred siblings, Bernadette.” Salem grumbled, rolling his eyes. He was a practical boy with no patience for hyperbole.
“Well, I think it is going to be fun. This is the hundredth year of Trideltan independence...maybe they’ll do something special.” Trixie offered.
The rest of the walk home was filled with chatter about what they would pack, what time the three of them would board the bus to Cape Cresta in the morning, and what pokemon Trixie and Salem hoped to receive from their parents. Bernadette wondered what Pokemon Salem would get from his dads. She already had hers - Annie was found in a box when Bernadette was five, and Bigfoot, was caught on a summer trip with her Pops to Sinnoh - so she didn’t need to do the traditional gifting from her parents, though she knew she was the rare exception.
Most kids got their pokemon when they returned home from school, and they were given time to bond with them before the ceremony. It was very serious business getting your first pokemon in Tridelta. Bernadette had had her two pokemon for a few years now, so she knew she could count on them in a pinch! Annie, though ill-tempered, was incredibly loyal. Bigfoot, as much as Bernadette hated it sometimes, tried to be a second mother. She often tried forcing Bernadette to eat berries if she sensed she hadn’t eaten.
Finally, they reached the long, shiny condominium building up ahead. They went their separate ways once they reached the elevator. Salem and Bernadette on floor 11, and Trixie on the 12th floor. Bernadette turned to Salem and grinned.
“See you on the other side!” she chirped.
“The other side will be when we get our pins.” he replied easily as he opened the door to his apartment right across the hall from her own.
Bernadette entered her own apartment to the rare vision of both of her parents physically present. Sven Gillespie was a truck driver, and was often on the road. He was a mountain of a man with long, sandy hair and tattoos covering both of his arms. Gladys Gillespie was a high-ranking Pokemon League representative, specifically dealing with inter-Regional conflict. She worked brutal hours, so most days Bernadette was home by herself until 6:00. Now, at 1:30, it filled her with delight just to see them together, her mother in the kitchen and her father on the couch catching up on the local paper while Gladys’ ancient Raticate, Ralph, snoozed on the air vent. It smelled heavenly - roasting meat and vegetables, dried spices.
Gladys emerged from the kitchen, wiping her hands on a dishtowel she stuck in her apron. Hugging her kid was always the first thing Gladys did when she got home after a long day. She dropped her purse by the door and went to hug her kid - every night was exactly the same. Today, though, Sven beat Gladys to it and Bernadette leapt into his arms.
“Hey, kiddo.” Sven said, almost reverently. Every time he saw Bernadette, she just seemed to get older and older - and now she was heading out on her own journey tomorrow morning. He hugged her so tightly she could feel a pleasant crack in her back.
“Pops, I missed you so much…” Bernadette whispered, trying to crack his back too. She wasn’t as strong as her goliath father, so it was futile. She was just happy she got to hug him after all this time away.
“You didn’t think I’d miss your special day, did you?” He asked, setting Bernadette back down on the ground, ruffling her hair. “I wouldn’t miss that for the world.”
“Of course I didn’t think you would miss it!” Bernadette said, squirming to get down. Sven, thankfully, released her. “But I wanna know about what you found when you went to Galar! Three months is plenty of time to find something cool like when we went to Sinnoh. I heard they have funny Weezing there...did you see any? Oh! And Meowth are different there too, right?”
“Alright, kid. Hold your Horseas...now we gotta talk business.” Gladys interrupted. If she didn’t derail this now, her daughter would have been impossible to wrangle back on track. Bernadette groaned and stomped to the couch, where Gladys had pointed.
“Moooom,” she whined, not wanting to have the long talk about her clothes for the ceremony.
“I picked out something just fine. I’ll even let you wear my old denim jacket up there. You just have to deal with it for a couple of hours.”
Gladys’ jacket was something Bernadette treasured. Her mom had that thing since her days of living in the basement of a punk bar - before she met her dad. There were so many patches and pins and spikes on that thing that it made it nearly too heavy to lift on her little shoulders. It was a comforting weight, though, and Bernadette welcomed it.
“You’re gonna make me wear a skirt, aren’t you?” Bernadette groaned, raising an eyebrow.
“Bingo.” Gladys replied.
“MOOOOOM!” Bernadette screeched, looking to her dad for support. Sven just shrugged.
“A few hours won’t kill you, kiddo. Besides, it isn’t like it is a tutu or something.” he offered.
“Salem is going to make fun of me!” she grumbled, shuffling off into the comfort of her room - though not before shooting her father a look of utter betrayal.
On her bed, there was a pink polo shirt with a white skirt laid out, with the addition of a lightning bolt barrette for her short, pixie-cut hair. And in the middle of the shirt, napping, Annie the Cubone.
“Annie, noooo!” Bernadette cried, scooping her sleeping Cubone up.
“‘Bone?” she asked, yawning and batting her eyes. “Cubone!!” she cuddled up into her trainer’s arms and Bernadette couldn’t help but to forgive her.
“You guys know what today is, right?” she asked, sitting on her bed. Her Snover trotted over, wanting to be part of the action too, snuggling up alongside her trainer. She gestured to the Postcards from Alola calendar that was hanging on the wall, but didn’t quite get why today was special.
“Tonight, we are going on our first steps for our Pokemon journey.” she grinned, hugging her pokemon. “And we’re taking our first steps to beating Champion Ladybird!”
“Cubone!” Annie cheered, waving her bone enthusiastically, though nearly hitting Bernadette, who yelped and placed Annie on the floor.
“Watch it, Annie!” she snapped, beginning to shove her uniform for the evening on. But even the near clobbering from her pokemon couldn’t put her in a foul mood. Not even this horrible outfit, and the fact she had to wear pantyhose with it. By the time she poked her head out of the polo shirt and began smoothing back her hair to place the barette, she was smiling again. Both of her parents were here - she already had her pokemon, and she was going to be recognized by the Pokemon League as a real trainer in just a few hours.
“No one’s gonna know what hit ‘em when they see us.” she grinned, at herself in the mirror as she finished dressing. The last piece of the puzzle was adding her mother’s old denim jacket. It was worn and didn’t make the outfit feel so...unlike her.
“Okay, okay. Laugh it up.” she grumbled, stomping out of her room. She was, at least, still allowed to wear her high top sneakers.
Both parents looked up from the stash of supplies they were sorting on the coffee table, and Gladys gasped. “Oh, you look so pretty, kid.” she said, getting up to hug her daughter. Bernadette allowed it, never denying a hug to her parents, even when they irritated her.
“Do you think the other kids are going to look this clownish?” she asked, wrinkling her nose in protest.
“Well, everyone’s parents are going to be dressing them up tonight if it makes you feel any better.” Sven offered, squeezing his daughter again. He couldn’t hug her enough.
“What’s all that?” Bernadette asked, indicating the table.
“It’s something for when we get back from the ceremony.” Gladys said, steering her child toward the dinner table. It was an early dinner, but the ceremony started at 5:00. “I made your favorite, so you gotta sit and eat it - SLOWLY. The ceremony will still be there if you take the time to digest. I promise.”
True to her word, Gladys had made Bernadette’s very favorite dinner: pot roast with mashed potatoes and roasted vegetables. It would be a long time before Bernadette got to have it again, so she wanted to eat as much as she could! However, she also wanted to get to school, get her pin and move along as quickly as possible! Gladys made it next to impossible with how slowly she moved from getting the dishes cleaned up (even with Bernadette helping her!) to continually offering long hugs to her squirming child. Her mom never moved this slowly - not that Gladys Gillespie ever moved fast to begin with. Fast like a Torkoal.
“Hurry uppppp!” she squealed, trying to push Sven out the door as he stood in the foyer, attempting to straighten his tie, large hands unfamiliar with the intricacies. It wasn’t like he wore a tie on the road. Before his truck driving gig, he was a roadie in a metal band. Ties had been few and far between in his life. Gladys hurried over, throwing on a black blazer, punctured and heavy with many pins and buttons. The rest of her outfit was simple - acid washed black denim pants and a silk blouse with Liepard spots.
“How come you get to wear pants?” Bernadette grumbled, more to herself than to her mother. It just wasn’t fair.
Finally, her father was ready, and the three of them left the apartment - along with Annie and Bigfoot. Together, they walked the few blocks to the elementary school. A crowd was already forming a bottleneck at the front doors. There were sounds of children playing, parents chattering, and her pokemon wanting her attention. Bernadette couldn’t find it in herself to do anything but absorb this moment, the electricity before a big change. She looked up at the old stone sign. P.S. 120. This would be the last time she’d be entering its doors.
Bernadette took a breath…
...and walked in.
---
Chapter One: Send-Off Day
Sunlight crept into the bedroom of 12-year-old Bernadette Gillespie. The girl grunted, rolling over in an attempt to bury her head beneath one of her many pillows. The Cubone sleeping on her pillow followed suit, burrowing under the covers. A Snover in the corner snoozed peacefully, still in shadows. All was quiet, and all was calm. The calm ended when Gladys Gillespie banged on the door.
“Bernadette! I have been shouting for the past twenty minutes. It is Send-Off Day!” she barked.
The lump in bed did not move. Gladys sighed and moved into the room, nearly tripping over a stray roller skate. This room was a death trap, and she was too old for this. Way too old. She stripped the pokeball print comforter off of her child, shaking one exposed foot.
“Bernadette. Send-Off Day.” she grunted, coffee in one hand and attempting to force some sort of energy for the day into her. It was going to be a long one, and she needed to brace herself, but the adrenaline of trying to get Bernadette to school on time was working better than the coffee. Gladys had the look of a tired Skuntank, with the temperament to match. Well, at least if a Skuntank had neon orange hair and an affinity for shredded heavy metal t-shirts.
The sudden chill and general shaking woke Bernadette for good. She rubbed her eyes and felt for her glasses to look at the clock. It was 7:30. School started in 45 minutes! She ruffled her hands through her short blonde pixie cut as if the air circulating would wake her up. No, it was more the fact that Gladys had her in her sights. Bernadette knew despite the thick cat-eye lenses, her mother’s vision was sharp….at least whenever Bernadette wanted to slack off, it was.
“Mooom! You let me sleep in!” she squeaked, rushing to her closet and nearly tripping over the same skate that almost took out her mother.
“How are you going to be on your journey if you can’t even wake yourself up?” her mother asked without any bite. She turned Bernadette toward the bathroom.
“And you’d better shower without me instructing you, too.”
“Ew, mom! Ughhhh I don’t have time!” Bernadette protested. A shower would just throw her off her groove. If “groove” was a frantic stumble around for various articles of clothing.
“Listen, kid - you shower and get dressed, and don’t be loud about it. Your Pops is sleeping. He got in at 4 a.m. to see your special day. So hop to it...go on.”
Gladys didn’t budge. Her mother was a rock, and Bernadette knew it was useless to argue. Waving her white flag, Bernadette took the world’s fastest shower. When she was on her own, she wouldn’t have to do this every day. No one could tell her what to do! She puffed out her chest in the mirror. She was a thin, reedy little thing, shoving on a pair of denim shorts covered in ink and paint from where she’d drawn on them, and a baggy orange and white striped shirt. She’d rather be comfortable today. Tonight was going to be an entirely different story.
After dressing and drying off, Bernadette returned to the kitchen where Gladys sighed, holding out a plate for Bernadette to take her poptart. The girl rarely even chewed them - just unhinged her jaw like some Seviper and swallowed it in chunks. The young girl snatched it, shoving it into her mouth as she sat on the floor to tie on her roller skates. There weren’t many places Bernadette went without her roller skates - they were faster than walking and she wanted to experience every single thing she could in the world...so she had to get things done quick!
“Mmmffanks, Mom!” she choked, giving Gladys a sloppy kiss on the cheek as she rose back up to jet to school. When she said ‘I love you’, she was practically out the door and across the hall of their condominium complex.
She pounded on a familiar, sleek, black door - with no regard for who may be sleeping.
“Salem! Open up!! It’s Send-Off Day, and we have to gooooo!”
That was, of course, assuming that her best friend hadn’t left for school without her already. He’d never done it before, but the racing nerves of being late for her very last day of class ever had Bernadette anxious.
William Belmont opened the door, looking disgruntled at all the noise. Disgruntled, but not surprised, since this was the routine almost every single morning since Salem had been school aged. Willie Belmont had short cropped black hair, and a broad, muscular frame concealed by a camouflage button-down shirt. His thick glasses sat on the bridge of his hooked nose, magnifying moss green eyes. His husband, Kevin, was helping Salem get his leg braces on - always a morning trial depending on how grouchy their son was.
“ ‘Morning, Bernadette.” he said, opening the door wider for her to see inside. “Salem’s almost done with his braces.”
Bernadette was tempted to ask which ones, but thought better of it. Salem was a sickly boy with scoliosis and a sturdy back brace which tried to correct it. That was in addition to the leg braces to help with his genetic disease that Bernadette couldn’t pronounce. All she knew was that it caused him a lot of pain and trouble walking.
“I can do it myself, Dad.” Salem groaned, just wanting to get a move on, already. He gave Bernadette a hurried wave, embarrassed that once again, she was seeing him like this. He was like a Torkoal on its back, exposed for the world.
“Okay, buddy. We’re all done.” his beefy ex-linebacker dad, Kevin, said. He looked him over one last time and patted Salem’s shoulder gently.
“You guys be careful going to school - it’s probably going to be wild with Send-Off Day and all. Arceus, you know, I remember when I was your age and -”
“Yeah, yeah, Dad! Gotta go.” Salem said, clanking over to Bernadette, giving both dads a hug on his way out.
“Love you both, bye!” he said, closing the door behind him. He was already flushed from embarrassment.
“They looooove you -” Bernadette teased, nudging her best friend gently. She was aware that handling Salem too roughly could set off spasms.
“Ugh. Shut up, Bernadette, you are the most ann-”
“Hey, guys!” A tiny voice chirped from down the hall. Bernadette knew who it was right away - the final member of their friend group, Trixie Little. If she hadn’t recognized the voice, she would have easily known the red hair fluffed up in pigtails, or the rainbow colored braces on her teeth.
“Do you like my braces? I wanted them to look nice for Send-Off Day, and my parents wanted me to go to the dentist because who knows the next time I’m gonna get to see one and -”
“Yeah, yeah, Trixie, they’re great. We gotta gooooo, you guys!” Bernadette was practically vibrating with excitement for their day to begin, for the metaphorical clock to tick closer to the beginning of their journey as real Pokemon trainers! She was a blonde whirlwind on rollerskates, and the other two found themselves swept up in the contagious excitement as well.
…
Thankfully, the walk to their school wasn’t very long, and the three friends were able to scoot in in the nick of time. Not that it mattered to their teacher, Mrs. McAllister. She was probably glad to be rid of them. She had them for homeroom for the past three years, and she was probably as tired of them as Bernadette was of her.
“I’m just so excited to meet Professor Maple.” Trixie gushed, turning to Bernadette after taking her seat in the front of the class. “He’s done so much for so many people with how he trains service pokemon. He’s probably really nice! I mean, if he’s spent his whole life helping other people, he has to be good, doesn’t he?”
Bernadette shrugged. Professor Maple was a well-known recluse. He never showed up at regional events, like Send-Off Day (at least, according to Chad, who had older siblings to confirm) and the Tridelta Cup at the end of the summer. She watched the Cup on television every year and he’d never shown his face.
“It doesn’t matter if he’s good as long as I get my service pokemon.” Salem said, easing himself into his seat. “I know my dads are giving me my starter tonight. I heard he gives out cool pokemon, like Rillaboom and Lucario and stuff. And he’s supposed to be young, too - the youngest Professor in Trideltan history, so he’s smart.”
“Smarts, farts. I wonder if he can battle…” Bernadette mused.
“Not everybody has to battle, you know.” Salem grumbled, annoyed he got derailed. “Some people can’t or don’t because of ethical reasons…”
“Ethical reasons?” Bernadette blinked. Why wouldn’t people want to battle? It brought people together, and tightened the bond between pokemon and trainer!
“But Annie loves to battle?”
“Bernadette, not everyone is your ill-tempered Cubone.” the way Salem pinched the bridge of his nose when he was trying to remain calm made him look like Willie. The same black hair, the same glasses, and same general malaise for idiocy.
“Fine, we’ll put it to a vote. Uh….Trixie! You like to battle, right?”
“Um...well, Bernadette, battling is okay, but I want to take care of them more than anything.. I think it would be neat to run a daycare one day -”
“Ugh okay - uhhh…” she looked around for some kind of support, anyone who would take her side. Ah! There.
“Chad!” she called, scampering to a tan boy with brick red hair. “Don’t you think pokemon battles are great? Salem says not everyone likes to battle, but you do, right?”
Chad was, as it was known, one of the most popular kids in school. He was easygoing, dressed exclusively in tie-dye, and could do cool tricks on his skateboard. He shrugged, taking a moment to think about the question.
“I’ve never really thought about it - my whole family is into battling. All my brothers and my sister have all gone on their journeys...they didn’t make it very far, though.”
“Maybe you’ll be the first,” a tall girl with curly purple hair offered. “After all, with all your siblings, there’s gotta be a champion in there somewhere - it’s just odds.”
It was Aziza. She had big, round glasses and sepia skin. It was so smooth and pretty, Aziza’s skin reminded her of a topaz ring that Gladys wore. Aziza was in Bernadette’s history class, too. She liked sitting with her because she usually packed candies from her parents’ import antique shop in her pocket and shared them with her. She was also the coolest girl Bernadette knew. She was good at sports, and she was smart, though she’d never battled her. Bernadette bet she could beat Aziza with no problem.
Standing with her was Desta, a handsome boy with deep brown skin like mahogany and turquoise locs. He was the best artist in class. He got in trouble sometimes for drawing on his desk - which was bull in Bernadette’s opinion. He was the only goth kid in the whole school. Bernadette liked having art class with Desta because he could always find some way to turn even the most random and mundane of materials into art.
“Aziza’s right - you’ve got a running chance...you can at least see where your siblings started dropping out of the challenge and learn from their mistakes.” Desta offered.
“I’m only one of six, ‘Ziz.” Chad chuckled, spinning a pokeball on his finger. “But that means I got my starter from my parents early.”
“And you brought it?!” Bernadette squawked, looking to the door to make sure Mrs. McAllister wasn’t coming. Chad nodded with a mischievous grin and called out a Shroomish, setting the little guy on his desk.
“Awww it’s cute!” Trixie said, coming over to look at it, tickling the little guy under the chin.
“I’m surprised you didn’t get a Squirtle - doesn’t your family have an abundance?” Salem asked.
“Yeah, but my sibs all failed with a water starter - maybe I’ll do better with grass. Either way, we’re just vibing and getting to know each other.”
Before Bernadette could ask more questions, Mrs. McAllister strode in, causing the class to scamper to their individual seats. Tall and reedy, she was dressed in her usual baggy sweater and slacks.
“Happy Send-Off Day, class!” She said, clapping her hands together. “Now, I know you are all excited for the Send-Off ceremony tonight, but I am asking - Chad, put that pokemon back in it’s ball, Bernadette, focus - that we all pay attention to how things are going to go tonight.”
“Why? We just go to the gym and we listen to a speech and then we go home, get our starters from our parents and then leave on our journey in the morning! Can’t we just, like, watch a movie?” Bernadette offered.
Mrs. McAllister sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. Bernadette had, after a full three years in her homeroom, grasped the concept of raising her hand, but lacked the basic control to hold her ideas in. Maybe on her journey she would learn to find some patience, though Mrs. McAllister doubted it.
“Correct, Bernadette. I know there’s no point telling you to wait until you’re called on; Tonight we are all going to come back here in our Sunday best and listen to our representative and be on our best behavior while he’s here. But, can anyone tell me what Send-Off Day means? Why is it important?” Mrs. McAllister asked.
For this question, most hands went up, and Bernadette’s answer of “We get a half day of school” was either unheard or pointedly ignored.
“Salem?” Mrs. McAllister asked, nodding towards the smaller boy. He cleared his throat, not one for public speaking. However, it was the last day of school - maybe ever - so he swallowed his annoyance.
“Send-Off Day is to prepare us for our upcoming journey. It is to learn everything we need to know so that we are equipped to leave our support system. It’s also a chance to get to spend more time with our families.” he offered, voice almost robotic so he didn’t have to focus on the intent eyes of his teacher.
“Very good! And when you all leave at lunch time today, I want you to hug your families tight. I want you to thank them for getting you this far. They are just one link in your chain of ever-growing charm bracelets of relationships.” she said, leaning one hip against her desk.
“But Bernadette wasn’t entirely wrong. We are going to be watching a movie.”
Mrs. McAllister moved to the corner, wheeling the large television to the front of the class and doing her best to quiet the eruption of cheers. Part of her was sad to send off yet another group, another class, the ever rotating door of students.
“Yay! See! I knew she wasn’t going to make us work on the last day of class.” Bernadette said, turning back to Salem.
“We’re going to be watching a film on what to expect tonight at the ceremony.”
“An educational movie? Ughhh! That doesn’t even count.” Bernadette groaned.
Mrs. McAllister dimmed the lights, and the movie began. It took a minute for the video to track correctly, indicating just how ancient the thing was. On screen, a young, dapper looking man with thick chestnut hair sat at a desk. Chad groaned and nudged Bernadette.
“My brothers say this dude talks forever.” he muttered, pulling out his pocket game system to play under his desk. Bernadette found herself wishing she had brought hers too. She supposed she could always doodle in her notebook.
“I expect you all to pay attention - there will be a quiz after it, which will affect you walking in tonight’s ceremony.” Mrs. McAllister hummed.
“Oh, come ON!” Bernadette huffed, throwing her hands in the air.
Now she had to pay attention to the movie.
…
Thankfully, the movie was painless and the quiz was a joke - not that it made Bernadette happy. She could have been sleeping! Besides, what was Mrs. McAllister going to do? Fail her? Bernadette knew she didn’t want her in her class again.
The rest of the day was spent signing the yearbooks that had been given out a few days prior, and talking about plans for their journey. Not all children went on their pokemon journey - some worked in their family business or simply wanted to continue school. Regardless, it was the end of having Mrs. McAllister for a teacher. Next year, they would age out of her classes. This was the end of the road for schooling for Bernadette. She walked up to her teacher’s desk for the last time and offered out the thin book.
“Oh, do you want me to sign this off, Bernadette? I figured you’d be watching that clock.” Mrs. McAllister chuckled, sitting down to retrieve a pen from her desk.
“What is it you say about the bell?” Bernadette asked, looking at the clock. The bell would ring in five minutes. Five minutes and then she was done.
“The bell doesn’t dismiss you, I do.” she hummed, writing over her own photo on the small faculty page. Dainty, almost elvish penmanship seemed so much more significant now that Bernadette wasn’t looking at it on a failing grade for an essay. In the photo, her dishwater blonde hair was still piled on her hair like a nest, large, circular glasses still magnifying her eyes and making her look like a hoothoot. Not much had changed, but in five minutes, she’d be down a group of 20 kids. It creeped Bernadette out.
“Here you are.” she said, handing her back the book. “I know you’ll be off on your journey as soon as you can be, but enjoy tonight. After all, you only go on your first journey once.”
“Yeah...of course I will.”
And in that moment, Mrs. McAllister looked different. Had she ever taken her own journey? She was thirty and she was here. No kids, only one pokemon that Bernadette had ever seen - a Glameow named Pickles. What was her life like? Did she ever miss her students when they were gone?
...and just like that, the bell rang. With a final click of the ballpoint pen, Mrs. McAllister handed Bernadette’s yearbook back.
“Keep going, Bernadette. I have a good feeling that you are on the cusp of a truly great adventure.” she gave a nod before standing to address the class for one final time.
“I will see you all tonight - and I expect all of you to be on your best behavior!” she raised her voice to be heard over the clatter of chairs and desks moving, the cacophony of noise coming from her happy students. “That means you, Bernadette, and you, Chad.”
“Wh- hey! I’m always well-behaved!” Bernadette whined, taking her yearbook back before grabbing her backpack and circling around to Salem and Trixie.
“Ready to go? My dads are gonna kill me if I’m late. We’re going to the tailor to pick up my suit.” Salem said, falling in step. Bernadette made sure to slow her pace for him.
“And my parents flew in from their conference special for me! My grandma is waiting outside for me to go to the airport and pick them up!” Trixie squeaked, clearly thrilled to see her parents.
Bernadette knew Trixie got lonely - it was why she was shuffled between Salem and Bernadette’s homes. Her parents were hotshot scientists and traveled for a living, often leaving Trixie alone with her grandma to check on her. At least it wasn’t like Trixie’s 9th birthday party. At least they bothered flying in for this big night.
The halls were littered with jubilated kids and empty backpacks, papers, crowded yet oddly vacant. Being in school felt weird when Bernadette knew she wouldn’t be returning in a year. There was a certain air of heaviness, a loss for being able to gather with all of her friends in one place. Normalcy.
Outside, the cool kids - Chad, Desta, and Aziza - were gathered, emptying their backpacks into the trash bin. At least Chad and Desta were; Aziza was carefully carding through all of her notes to see if she could find something useful in there. Some knowledge that may come in handy for future pokemon battles. It was funny to Bernadette that people didn’t just pick up on it like she did. But then again, she didn’t know how to do basic math in her head, so perhaps she shouldn’t be so quick to laugh.
“You guys getting ready for tonight?” she asked, hurling her binder into the garbage where it landed with a heavy thud.
“Yeah,” Desta mused, slinging his own empty backpack over his shoulder. “It’s weird though, right? Like...we’re going off on this journey and who knows when we’ll all see each other again.” he frowned. It was odd seeing him so serious.
“But it’s not like we’re never coming back. Besides, we’re all friends...and friends stick together.” Salem offered, trying to be of some comfort, though his monotone voice wasn’t particularly helpful. He always sounded sarcastic, even when he didn’t mean to.
“We’ll always be friends, right? I just moved here a few years ago. I don’t want to lose touch -” Desta continued, looking around at all of them. He was usually so quick to smile and laugh, to crack a joke and ruffle your hair. It was like watching a different person.
The air was quiet as the group followed his gaze to the playground.
“Of course we will!” Bernadette bellowed, bursting into a laugh, forcing the air to clear, forcing the black cloud away from them.
“It’s not like I’m super easy to get rid of. It’s like Salem said, friends stick together.” offered Bernadette, putting her hand out into the middle of the circle they had inadvertently formed. “We’re gonna be friends forever. Promise. Besides, it’s only a year. And we might run into each other on the road!”
Desta seemed to cheer up at the reassurance of Bernadette, and put his hand on hers. “A promise is a promise.”
Aziza beamed and moved her hand on top of the others, followed by Chad, then Salem and Trixie. The energy of that circle was something Bernadette had never felt before. The unity and commitment to a goal and to each other was filling her with motivation! She wouldn’t stop until she had the Champion title. She wouldn’t stop until she could battle each of her friends in the Tridelta Cup!
“We’ll see you tonight.” Salem said, moving his hand out.
“Yeah, we have a bus to catch.” Chad replied, pulling back his own hand and giving them a wave. Aziza and Desta followed, flanking their best friend with tentative smiles.
As quickly as they had all come together, they were drawing apart again.
“What do you think the ceremony’s gonna be like?” Bernadette asked, kicking a stone across the sidewalk.
“I bet it’s going to be great - and maybe we’ll see Champion Ladybird.” Trixie said dreamily.
It was common knowledge that Champion Ladybird was a Champion of the people - she did her best to expand education, to make Tridelta an accessible Region for not only its citizens, but whoever wanted to take the Trideltan challenge. Bernadette had seen her battle on television and her Bug-type pokemon were a study in technique! Her shiny Heracross was the one Bernadette wanted to fight. It seemed hard for everybody else, sure, but Bernadette had put in her time doing after school battle club and studying pokemon battles for as long as she could remember. Plus, her Snover, Bigfoot, was pretty great - she couldn’t wait to show everyone just how amazing she was.
“Representative Van Goud is just going to call our names and give us our pins.” Bernadette shrugged, kicking the stone again. “That’s what Chad told me. He’s had to go a hundred times because of all his siblings.”
“He doesn’t even have a hundred siblings, Bernadette.” Salem grumbled, rolling his eyes. He was a practical boy with no patience for hyperbole.
“Well, I think it is going to be fun. This is the hundredth year of Trideltan independence...maybe they’ll do something special.” Trixie offered.
The rest of the walk home was filled with chatter about what they would pack, what time the three of them would board the bus to Cape Cresta in the morning, and what pokemon Trixie and Salem hoped to receive from their parents. Bernadette wondered what Pokemon Salem would get from his dads. She already had hers - Annie was found in a box when Bernadette was five, and Bigfoot, was caught on a summer trip with her Pops to Sinnoh - so she didn’t need to do the traditional gifting from her parents, though she knew she was the rare exception.
Most kids got their pokemon when they returned home from school, and they were given time to bond with them before the ceremony. It was very serious business getting your first pokemon in Tridelta. Bernadette had had her two pokemon for a few years now, so she knew she could count on them in a pinch! Annie, though ill-tempered, was incredibly loyal. Bigfoot, as much as Bernadette hated it sometimes, tried to be a second mother. She often tried forcing Bernadette to eat berries if she sensed she hadn’t eaten.
Finally, they reached the long, shiny condominium building up ahead. They went their separate ways once they reached the elevator. Salem and Bernadette on floor 11, and Trixie on the 12th floor. Bernadette turned to Salem and grinned.
“See you on the other side!” she chirped.
“The other side will be when we get our pins.” he replied easily as he opened the door to his apartment right across the hall from her own.
Bernadette entered her own apartment to the rare vision of both of her parents physically present. Sven Gillespie was a truck driver, and was often on the road. He was a mountain of a man with long, sandy hair and tattoos covering both of his arms. Gladys Gillespie was a high-ranking Pokemon League representative, specifically dealing with inter-Regional conflict. She worked brutal hours, so most days Bernadette was home by herself until 6:00. Now, at 1:30, it filled her with delight just to see them together, her mother in the kitchen and her father on the couch catching up on the local paper while Gladys’ ancient Raticate, Ralph, snoozed on the air vent. It smelled heavenly - roasting meat and vegetables, dried spices.
Gladys emerged from the kitchen, wiping her hands on a dishtowel she stuck in her apron. Hugging her kid was always the first thing Gladys did when she got home after a long day. She dropped her purse by the door and went to hug her kid - every night was exactly the same. Today, though, Sven beat Gladys to it and Bernadette leapt into his arms.
“Hey, kiddo.” Sven said, almost reverently. Every time he saw Bernadette, she just seemed to get older and older - and now she was heading out on her own journey tomorrow morning. He hugged her so tightly she could feel a pleasant crack in her back.
“Pops, I missed you so much…” Bernadette whispered, trying to crack his back too. She wasn’t as strong as her goliath father, so it was futile. She was just happy she got to hug him after all this time away.
“You didn’t think I’d miss your special day, did you?” He asked, setting Bernadette back down on the ground, ruffling her hair. “I wouldn’t miss that for the world.”
“Of course I didn’t think you would miss it!” Bernadette said, squirming to get down. Sven, thankfully, released her. “But I wanna know about what you found when you went to Galar! Three months is plenty of time to find something cool like when we went to Sinnoh. I heard they have funny Weezing there...did you see any? Oh! And Meowth are different there too, right?”
“Alright, kid. Hold your Horseas...now we gotta talk business.” Gladys interrupted. If she didn’t derail this now, her daughter would have been impossible to wrangle back on track. Bernadette groaned and stomped to the couch, where Gladys had pointed.
“Moooom,” she whined, not wanting to have the long talk about her clothes for the ceremony.
“I picked out something just fine. I’ll even let you wear my old denim jacket up there. You just have to deal with it for a couple of hours.”
Gladys’ jacket was something Bernadette treasured. Her mom had that thing since her days of living in the basement of a punk bar - before she met her dad. There were so many patches and pins and spikes on that thing that it made it nearly too heavy to lift on her little shoulders. It was a comforting weight, though, and Bernadette welcomed it.
“You’re gonna make me wear a skirt, aren’t you?” Bernadette groaned, raising an eyebrow.
“Bingo.” Gladys replied.
“MOOOOOM!” Bernadette screeched, looking to her dad for support. Sven just shrugged.
“A few hours won’t kill you, kiddo. Besides, it isn’t like it is a tutu or something.” he offered.
“Salem is going to make fun of me!” she grumbled, shuffling off into the comfort of her room - though not before shooting her father a look of utter betrayal.
On her bed, there was a pink polo shirt with a white skirt laid out, with the addition of a lightning bolt barrette for her short, pixie-cut hair. And in the middle of the shirt, napping, Annie the Cubone.
“Annie, noooo!” Bernadette cried, scooping her sleeping Cubone up.
“‘Bone?” she asked, yawning and batting her eyes. “Cubone!!” she cuddled up into her trainer’s arms and Bernadette couldn’t help but to forgive her.
“You guys know what today is, right?” she asked, sitting on her bed. Her Snover trotted over, wanting to be part of the action too, snuggling up alongside her trainer. She gestured to the Postcards from Alola calendar that was hanging on the wall, but didn’t quite get why today was special.
“Tonight, we are going on our first steps for our Pokemon journey.” she grinned, hugging her pokemon. “And we’re taking our first steps to beating Champion Ladybird!”
“Cubone!” Annie cheered, waving her bone enthusiastically, though nearly hitting Bernadette, who yelped and placed Annie on the floor.
“Watch it, Annie!” she snapped, beginning to shove her uniform for the evening on. But even the near clobbering from her pokemon couldn’t put her in a foul mood. Not even this horrible outfit, and the fact she had to wear pantyhose with it. By the time she poked her head out of the polo shirt and began smoothing back her hair to place the barette, she was smiling again. Both of her parents were here - she already had her pokemon, and she was going to be recognized by the Pokemon League as a real trainer in just a few hours.
“No one’s gonna know what hit ‘em when they see us.” she grinned, at herself in the mirror as she finished dressing. The last piece of the puzzle was adding her mother’s old denim jacket. It was worn and didn’t make the outfit feel so...unlike her.
“Okay, okay. Laugh it up.” she grumbled, stomping out of her room. She was, at least, still allowed to wear her high top sneakers.
Both parents looked up from the stash of supplies they were sorting on the coffee table, and Gladys gasped. “Oh, you look so pretty, kid.” she said, getting up to hug her daughter. Bernadette allowed it, never denying a hug to her parents, even when they irritated her.
“Do you think the other kids are going to look this clownish?” she asked, wrinkling her nose in protest.
“Well, everyone’s parents are going to be dressing them up tonight if it makes you feel any better.” Sven offered, squeezing his daughter again. He couldn’t hug her enough.
“What’s all that?” Bernadette asked, indicating the table.
“It’s something for when we get back from the ceremony.” Gladys said, steering her child toward the dinner table. It was an early dinner, but the ceremony started at 5:00. “I made your favorite, so you gotta sit and eat it - SLOWLY. The ceremony will still be there if you take the time to digest. I promise.”
True to her word, Gladys had made Bernadette’s very favorite dinner: pot roast with mashed potatoes and roasted vegetables. It would be a long time before Bernadette got to have it again, so she wanted to eat as much as she could! However, she also wanted to get to school, get her pin and move along as quickly as possible! Gladys made it next to impossible with how slowly she moved from getting the dishes cleaned up (even with Bernadette helping her!) to continually offering long hugs to her squirming child. Her mom never moved this slowly - not that Gladys Gillespie ever moved fast to begin with. Fast like a Torkoal.
“Hurry uppppp!” she squealed, trying to push Sven out the door as he stood in the foyer, attempting to straighten his tie, large hands unfamiliar with the intricacies. It wasn’t like he wore a tie on the road. Before his truck driving gig, he was a roadie in a metal band. Ties had been few and far between in his life. Gladys hurried over, throwing on a black blazer, punctured and heavy with many pins and buttons. The rest of her outfit was simple - acid washed black denim pants and a silk blouse with Liepard spots.
“How come you get to wear pants?” Bernadette grumbled, more to herself than to her mother. It just wasn’t fair.
Finally, her father was ready, and the three of them left the apartment - along with Annie and Bigfoot. Together, they walked the few blocks to the elementary school. A crowd was already forming a bottleneck at the front doors. There were sounds of children playing, parents chattering, and her pokemon wanting her attention. Bernadette couldn’t find it in herself to do anything but absorb this moment, the electricity before a big change. She looked up at the old stone sign. P.S. 120. This would be the last time she’d be entering its doors.
Bernadette took a breath…
...and walked in.
