He was a Dragon Type, she was a Fire Type

Chapter 1 - Her Return

Word count: 2002

For Naina, returning home from a six-month travel marathon felt right. She saw all she needed of the world. Sinnoh and Kanto were nice and all, but there was nothing like coming home to the familiar feeling of the Galar Region to ease all the travel bug jitters she had. What she did was daring: no plans, no Rotom phone, nothing. It was just her and her pokemon, their wits and a sense of adventure. Naina had told everyone that she was not going to be home for another week. She thought that if she secretly came home early, she could have a week to herself relaxing with her pokemon, drinking coffee and reading a book on the patio. It wasn't that she hated people, she just wanted a week to herself. She had been gone for so long, everyone would want to see her. So, if she secretly came home and relaxed, she would be ready for everyone.

Naina made her way back to her cozy, two-bedroom apartment in Wedgehurst. She almost didn't recognize how to get home as it had been so long. She shuffled through her back to pull out her keys. As she went to unlock her door, her body tensed as she noticed it was unlocked. Her mind went through a panic, had she been broken into? Did she not lock the door for months on end?

Whoever was inside also felt panicked. "What gives?" The sound of a young adolescent male screamed. The door flung open, and across from her a young purple haired, yellow eyed boy. His face went from anger to surprised.

"Naina? You weren't supposed to be back for another week?" The young boy said.

Naina forgot a minor detail to her secret plan. She had arranged for her friend's younger brother to water her house plants while she was gone. He had been complaining about wanting money in time for his pokemon challenge. She proposed an arrangement with him: water the houseplants, collect her mail, and get paid handsomely.

"Hey Hop, how's it going?" Naina knew what was going to happen next. Her week of post-travel relaxation would come to an end.

She watched Hop freak out in excitement. He hugged her and immediately reached for his phone.

"I gotta tell Leon you're here! He missed you so much!" He reached for his Rotom phone and dialed for his brother.

"Please don't, I just want to relax." It was too late. She admitted defeat and walked into her apartment.

While Hop chatted up a storm with his brother, Naina inspected her apartment. Everything was where it was meant to be. The biggest thing she noticed was how dust-free it was. It seemed that Hop not only did his job, but he went above and beyond to keep it clean. Even though she was annoyed that he spoiled her secret return, she couldn't be mad at him.

Hop hung up the phone. "Hey Naina, turn your Rotom phone back on, Leon is trying to call you."

"He can wait." She shrugged. "You did a really nice job of keeping my plants alive, collecting my mail, and even kept it clean. In fact, it looks like you regularly cleaned my place." Naina rummaged through her bag.

"Of course! You need me to do a job, I'll do it ten times better than expected! By the way, everyone missed you! Leon kept trying to call you, but it never went through. He said he had big news to tell you. By the way, tell me everything about Sinnoh and Kanto. Did you do gym challenges? Did you have battles? Come on, spill!" It almost seemed that his body was shaking as he talked. It felt like she was talking to a thirteen-year-old Leon.

"Easy kid, I'll tell you later about my trip. In short, it was nice and relaxing. Not really meant for battling." She pulled out her wallet and handed him a stack of pokemon dollars. "Here. You did an amazing job, so the extra is for the extra work you did and a tip. Hope this helps with your spending when you do the gym challenge. Now please go home."