Mitchel and I sat at a café on Vernal Avenue. We left Centrico Plaza silently, nodding to each other and walking in search of food. Mitchel once described being a Trainer as the perfect weight-loss program. The stronger the bond between Trainers and their Pokémon, the more energy Trainers used in battles to stay in sync and improve sensory perception. That it also scaled with a Pokémon's strength wasn't lost on me and probably explained why most new Trainers were advised to start with young and local Pokémon.
"That was rough," Mitchel sighed. "I thought I was going to lose in that last battle."
"Seems like I really will beat you," I smirked. He glared at me, but the server bringing our food stopped his retort. I bit into my sandwich and relaxed into my seat. 'Breakfast will forever be my favorite food genre for every meal.'
We didn't speak while we ate. Instead, we let our Pokémon out and got them food as well. Our lunch was pleasantly quiet until the young woman I eyed during the lightning round walked up. Mitchel looked at her, getting nervous as he waited for her to say whatever she wanted to say. She stared at me, growing visibly frustrated as I didn't acknowledge her presence. I kept eating my food, chowing down on fried potato chunks as I watched her from the corner of my eye.
She was pretty. Her umber skin looked smooth and practically glowed in the sun, and her fluffy, mahogany afro bounced slightly with each movement of her head. I looked right at her when I finished, her honey eyes glaring at my soul. "It's not nice to ignore someone," she said.
"Sorry," I replied. "I was really enjoying my breakfast. How can I help you?"
She stared for a few moments longer, but amusement slowly crept through her serious expression. "I wanted to check out my future rivals. You both did pretty good. Especially against that kid."
I chuckled. "Yeah, he was kinda tough. Your Sableye is kinda scary. Is that your ace?"
Her face twisted a bit. "That's really forward," Mitchel said. "You don't just ask someone that in a tournament!"
"Is that Fuecoco your ace?" she asked. Mitchel stared, mortified.
"Nope," I answered, popping the 'P.' Mitchel buried his face in his hands. Nova looked at me and grunted, voicing her displeasure. But she knew Nautilus would win more often than not against her.
The woman smiled. "My name is Luciana. Nice to meet you."
I held out a hand, which she shook. "Marco. Nova is the Fuecoco who caught your attention. Tetsu is my Ferroseed."
"And your ace?"
"You'll meet him when we beat you," I said with a grin. Luciana leaned against the fence of the restaurant, resting her elbows as she talked to Mitchel.
"Who are you?" she asked.
"Name's Mitchel," he grumbled. "I won't tell you my ace, but Pan and Eber are my Pansear and Dwebble here."
"Nice to meet both of you. To answer your question, Gemlin is my ace. And she's going to beat both of you and win me the tournament."
"Oh, is that right?" another voice cut in. The surfer and older woman walked toward us, arm in arm. The woman continued, saying, "Looks like I might have some competition."
"We both know it's one of us that's gonna win," the surfer dude said. They both looked athletic and had the type of tan you could only get from spending a lot of time under the sun. "No one else is worth worrying over."
"Tough talk for someone whose physical attackers were walled by an Amaura," Luciana smirked. The dude's face turned red almost immediately. He moved forward, but the woman stopped him.
"Alain, don't. She's just like her Sableye," the woman said, giving Luciana a disdainful look. "Looking for trouble and a nuisance all around. Maybe that's why her skin is so- Agh!"
I stood up and rushed at her, just barely stopping myself from slamming into her. The surfer, Alain, stepped back in surprise, but then pulled her toward him. "Suzanne, are you okay? What the hell is your problem?!"
I ignored him, staring at the woman as she gaped at me. They were nearly a foot shorter than me, and my mass, while not humongous, made them look just a bit smaller. But it was enough to be intimidating.
"Finish that thought," I told Suzanne. I didn't know what came over me, but the thought of her making fun of Luciana's skin color had me absolutely livid. Maybe it was Suzanne's own tanned skin. Maybe it was me wanting to protect myself because I also had a deep brown skin tone. I didn't know, but that didn't stop me from saying, "I fucking dare you."
"What the distortion are you doing?" Alain shouted as he tried to push me away from her, emphasis on tried. Instead, he pushed himself off-balance and plopped onto his ass. Suzanne's eyes were wide open, her hands trembling slightly as she stammered.
"I, w-well, you know. I-it's just, well, it, uh," she squeaked. The people sitting around us were staring, and several passersby stopped to see what was going on. I narrowed my eyes at her, and she stopped talking.
We stood there for a while. Mitchel stood to the side, still processing what was happening. Luciana was also glaring at Suzanne, her hand hovering over her PokéBalls. Before anything else happened, another person joined the situation.
"Everybody, let's save the tension for the tournament, s'il vous plaît," Professor Sycamore calmly intervened. He was much taller than I expected, around six foot four if I had to guess. He was skinnier than I'd imagined, and his wavy hair longer and grayer than what I remembered from the games. His friendly face was marred with forming wrinkles, crow's feet appearing with his smile.
"Professor!" Suzanne called out. "Tell this savage that he shouldn't be intimidating or bullying others!"
"Savage?" I repeated incredulously. "You're the one who was going to equate Luciana's dark skin with her having a Dark-type Pokémon!"
"You Paldeans are so sensitive," Alain added. "It's just a bit of trash talk. You can't handle that?"
"I will remind you," the Professor said, "that 'trash talk' is generally prohibited during any League event. Do I need to enforce the consequences of breaking such rules?"
Alain's confident pose deflated instantly. He frowned, mulling over his thoughts before shaking his head. "No, Augustine. By the way, my father has been waiting for the Gym's estimates. Will you have those ready for him soon?"
The Professor smiled as Alain regained the bravado from earlier. "My boy, we had our conversation the other day. I urge you to stay updated on important issues like this if you plan to follow in your father's footsteps."
Alain's eye twitched. There was definitely some bad blood there, but it wasn't my business. "Well, now that the situation has diffused a bit, I'll have to ask everyone to allow me to speak to Monsieur Pérez privately."
"Why do you want to speak privately?" Alain spat aggressively.
"That is for him and me to discuss, Alain," he responded smoothly. "Je suis affamée. I hope you don't mind having a cup of coffee while I eat lunch."
I followed Professor Sycamore into the café, giving Mitchel my best 'what the actual fuck' look I could manage. His bewildered expression didn't help, but seeing Alain's furious face left me feeling quite positive about it.
A server brought us to a booth with privacy screens, making it feel secluded from the rest of the café. He ordered a galette complete and a cider for himself, and a coffee for me.
"Very brave of you to confront Alain Beaumont so brazenly, mon ami," he said, his gentle eyes searching me. He must not have found what he was looking for because he shrugged and changed topics.
"You've been doing pretty well," he said.
"I'm surprised you're watching," I replied. "It makes sense that you've looked into the people who have made it this far, but it sounds like you've actually watched some of our battles."
"That's because I have," he answered with a small smile. "I've become quite adept at spotting talented Trainers. I've already had the pleasure of meeting Mitchel, but you and Luciana have been the topic of conversation more often than most Trainers. I thought it prudent to meet both of you."
"So why not include her now?" I asked.
"Because she's not involved in… recent events, if you understand," he told me. It didn't take a genius to know he wanted to talk to me about my specific situation."
"I'm not here to discuss specifics," he added quickly. "However, I do want to avoid a mistake I made in the past."
"Mistake?" I probed.
"That is not important," he quickly dismissed me. "What is important is your Pokémon. Their growth is pretty astonishing, especially considering your lack of experience with Pokémon in general."
"What do you mean?" I asked, my eyebrows furrowing automatically.
"I mean that it is quite clear you did not grow up with Pokémon," he answered, his eyes scanning me again. "I won't go into details, but you've recently been introduced to Pokémon, learned how to care for them, and train them to a level expected of someone much more experienced than you."
He stared at me for a few moments. It felt like talking to Champion Calem again.
"It is remarquable, Marco. However, I also see you hitting a ceiling soon."
"What do you mean, a ceiling?"
He sighed. "Most new Trainers get the rush of bonding with a Pokémon, catching a few more for their team, and gaining strength quickly. But that only continues for so long before the improvements reduce dramatically. When Trainers hit this natural plateau, many believe it is their fault and give up. Few make it to the plateau, and even fewer break past it."
I absorbed his words, contemplating what he was trying to tell me. "It is almost like strength training," I absently said as the food arrived. Sycamore took a bite of his gallette and nodded at me to continue.
"Many people gain muscle and strength rapidly in the beginning with general lifting exercises because they hadn't done the exercises before," I explained. If there was something I knew well, it was strength training. "But there's only so much a person can naturally increase in strength and musculature before they need to include other factors like nutrition and individualized workouts."
"Well, I can't say I'm familiar with that form of exercise," he chuckled, "but excellente analogie, mon ami. Many Trainers do not know about the specifics of their Pokémon unless they take the time to learn. Sadly, many do not care for it. It sounds like you may be more open-minded than most Trainers, which will help you in the long run."
"I know I haven't had them for very long," I said, my thoughts wandering to my first day with Nautilus. I looked Sycamore in his eyes, holding the gaze as I felt the familiar fire of determination grow in my chest. "But they're family, and I will do anything to protect them or help them grow stronger."
"That is what I wanted to hear," he stated, grinning widely. "If Calem is right, your future will be turbulent at best. In order to grow strong, you'll need to learn about your Pokémon individually and as a team. In that regard, I wanted to offer some tips."
"Tips?" I questioned. "Wouldn't that be seen as preferential treatment?"
"Mon ami, if the higher up truly cared about upholding standards against such bias, the mayor's son would not have been allowed to compete."
"The mayor's son?" I asked, confused.
"Alain," he answered. "The mayor, and most politicians, do not care for the Pokémon League. If not for the money we make for the region, we wouldn't be as relevant as we are in society. The only reason they tolerate Calem and me is that they can benefit personally. The mayor's son wouldn't qualify for the tournament if he were just another Trainer."
"But since he's the mayor's son, he can get away with it," I finished for him.
"I tell you this because you've already crossed him. The mayor will not like that," Professor Sycamore explained.
"So, what should I do if they try anything against me?"
"Nothing," he smiled. "As of now, I am offering you a position at Sycamore Labs. It comes with some responsibilities but opens many resources that you will need in the future. This is most likely the best way to stay safe from Alain and his father's meddling. They will not like it and try to make it some terrible bias against them, but I will handle that."
"What about Mitchel and Luciana? I doubt Alain will see them as innocent bystanders."
"I will make the same offer to Mitchel and Luciana, since many will only see that as me poaching their talents early," he responded. "You have a good heart, mon ami. Do not lose that."
I sat there for a few minutes. I had no real reason to refuse, but it felt like I was getting sucked into a more complicated plot. Team Flux was already enough to worry about. I didn't need to add another group to the mix. But… young masters like Alain weren't the type to let issues like this go.
"Okay, I accept."
"Great. Now, about the training tips…"