Pokémon Chronicles 零 (ZERO)

Episode 4: The big shot, the gentleman and the retainer

"Ugh, darn that Meg... she always knows how to push it," I huffed, storming up the stairs to my dormitory. The rest of the day had been spent doing various activities, but for some reason, Megan had been allowed to follow me to all of them despite being arrested and watched by all the knights. She wasn't there at first but once she was free, she made every single activity into a competition against me, preventing me from calming down or taking the day as easily as I had hoped to. As such it had been quite a first day, and right now, I just wanted to flop down in a bed.

"Ah-aahhh! Crystie!" Shelly squealed when I booted the door open. I realised what I was doing and shook my head, calming down after a sigh.

"Sorry about that, I'm just mad about something," I admitted, scanning the room properly. Our dorm was mostly occupied by a bunk bed, leaving only enough floor space for a chest of drawers with two compartments and a makeup desk. It looked like Shelly had been using the mirror to clean the scalchop her wore on his belly, wiping it carefully with a cloth.

"Did you have a bad first day?" he wondered, cutely. Just looking at the shy little boy now was enough to make me feel oddly fuzzy inside. Somehow, the weak and young tone of his voice reminded me of the other children at home, whom were always asking me about what it was like outside the house.

"You know what? It was actually pretty cool, except for Meg. I think I can get used to this place, as long as she isn't allowed to roam freely," I complained, sitting on the bottom bunk. It still had a bit of Shelly's stuff on it, so I quickly switched to the ladder.

"But you can't do that... Pokémon are allowed to go anywhere they want in the academy, even to different houses," Shelly informed.

"Wait what?"

"Didn't you find it weird that you could go anywhere in the academy, and there was always a teacher there? They let the Pokémon do what they want, the staff here just supervise," Shelly explained.

"... You know what, I never even thought about it. No wonder Pokémon love it here so much; you really can do what you want and become an expert at it freely here, can't you?" I asked. Shelly nodded.

"You practice at something you want to do in the future, and then when you get accolades from the courses you complete, you get an exam on the thing you chose. If you pass the exam, you get to leave the academy," he continued. "What do you and Meg want to do, Crystie?"

"It's Crystal by the way, not Crystie," I smiled, making him stagger and blush. I hopped up to the top bunk to lie back on the pillow, tucking my arms behind my head. "I haven't even thought about that... to be honest, I just wanted an excuse to get away from home."

"Ah, it was... bad there?" he whispered.

"Not necessarily. I know this doesn't make much sense, but I feel like the world is calling me. So no reason in particular, I just want to explore the world. You know, casual sightseeing on a journey. Nothin' wrong with that, is there?" I explained. I had never explained that reason to even myself, so it felt weird and unusual to say aloud. "As for Meg... go ask her yourself. She's a hot-headed Cyndaquil. You won't miss her."

"Sorry I asked something so personal..." he moaned.

"No worries, just answer my question in return. Why'd you run off when I challenged you to a battle earlier?"

"The... cha-challenge... n-not yet... n-no, we shouldn't ba-battle yet," he warned.

"Hmm? Something wrong?" I asked, earnestly concerned now. Was he afraid of fighting?

"N-no, nothing's wrong... we just shouldn't battle so soon after we first meet... I'm sorry, I just don't want to," he reasoned. I went quiet.

"Huh. Sure, but then what are you doing here at school, where you don't want to battle?" I asked. Another moment of silence fell, so I looked over the bed to see what he was doing, finding him deep in thought.