The Eon Academy [S.S. Wishmaker Side-Story]

[[Desolate Divine]]

Episode 11: Secrets (Part 1)

Spoiler:

“No matter how helpful they may try and be, and how nice they may try and act, insurance companies aren’t your friend…” Jon said. “They see you as a Money-Miltank, to be milked for all it’s worth. At the end of the day, they would go from sweet talking you to throwing you under a train if it earned them a buck…”

It was Friday of the tenth week of the summer, with Jon teaching the last class for the day, Trainer Career, discussing Pokemon Liability Insurance, and the terms and processes of it that they would need to be aware of. Currently they were all minors, which the League covered insurance for. But if they competed as adults, then they would need their own policy, and Jon was making it abundantly clear that if they didn’t know what they were doing, the insurance companies would prey on that naivety, and get whatever they could out of them.

Abbee and Alyssa had only returned from Johto yesterday. Whilst they had originally been planning to be gone a week, once the funeral was over, Abbee realized that it would do Tyler well to have as much time as he could to sort things out before being responsible for her, and she was hardly going to complain. She was going to wait a week to make sure he was doing okay, when really, she felt more comfortable at the Academy. Jon had given her the option of doing classes and training only when she wanted, however she was determined to see it all through. If she wanted to compete and do her father’s legacy proud, she would need to make the most of every opportunity. Whilst she was always somewhat studious, she was never as focused as Charlotte, at least until now. It concerned Jon a little at first, as if she was trying to block out what had happened, but after hearing her reasoning, trusted she would be okay, and let her do what she saw best.

“By the way, Dylan, as of next week, you will need your own policy, since the League won’t cover you any more. As big of scumbags as I think the insurance companies are, if your Pokemon accidentally hurts someone and is uninsured, you will be in for a big shock financially, and we kind of need them…” Jon explained. “Come by the house tomorrow morning, and I will help find a decent policy.”

Dylan nodded, though wishing Jon had said this privately, as the rest of the class put two and two together.

“Wait, you’re turning 18 this weekend?” Chris asked. “How come you never mentioned this before?”

“I don’t really care too much about my birthday…” Dylan said, not making eye-contact. He was still a little unused to Chris being this friendly with him. Really, Chris was still in awe at the fact that Dylan knocked a door out of its frame with a single bash, and had a newfound appreciation for him since. Justin on the other hand was terrified to make eye contact with Dylan, and Charlotte found this odd dynamic between the three of them to be hilarious.

“Yeah, but we do!” Chris said.

“Since when?” Charlotte asked with a laugh. “What’s Dylan’s surname?”

Chris went white.

“Uhhh…” he began. “I know it’s a guitar brand… Fender?”

“Dylan Fender…” Abbee said with a mixture of disbelief and amusement.

“Fender?” Jon asked, disappointed. “Really? It’s Squier…”

“Hey, Squier is owned by Fender, so I was close!” Chris reasoned. “Anyway, an excuse to have a party is an excuse to have a party.”

“Wow, I feel so loved…” Dylan retorted, surprising everyone. Whilst banter between the five students, as well as Jon, was not unusual, Dylan getting involved like that was definitely new.

“Well look, now that I know your birthday is coming up, I kinda want to do something as well…” Abbee said. “We can’t just do nothing. When is it?”

“Sunday…” Dylan replied, though not sounding overly enthusiastic.

“Well how about we do something tomorrow night? Low key,” Abbee asked. “A meal you like, a cake, and a movie? We don’t even have to call it a birthday party…”

“Yeah, it can be a funeral for your childhood!” Chris chimed in, realizing what he had just said. Abbee had only just returned from her Dad’s funeral the day before...

“Idiot…” Charlotte muttered.

“Sorry, I didn’t think that through…” Chris stammered.

“No, it’s okay, seriously…” Abbee said. “I’m heartbroken he is gone, but also, I know he’d love the idea of me and my friends throwing a funeral for someone’s childhood because they aren’t a fan of birthdays. He’d like to see us having some fun.”

There was an awkward silence, as the rest of the group kind of thought the idea of a funeral for Dylan’s childhood was hilarious, but didn’t want to be the one to say it, even if Abbee said she was okay with it.

“So show up at the lodge tomorrow evening dressed in black?” Abbee asked. “Someone can write a eulogy for Dylan’s childhood? Actually…”

Abbee got her phone out, and before anyone could ask what she was doing, or Dylan could object, she snapped a photo of him.

“Last photo as a child…” Abbee explained. “I will get it printed in black and white, and put it on the table…”

“You cool with all this Dylan?” Jon asked. Whilst he liked the enthusiasm the students brought to the table about this, Dylan brought the least, save Justin who was silent, still brooding over the events of the week before.

“Yeah, why not…” Dylan said with a shrug. “It will be fun…”

The clock reached noon, as Jon sent all of them out for lunch, though asked Abbee to hang back for a second. Her and the others thought nothing of it, and figured it was to make sure she was doing okay. When the others were gone, she approached Jon at the front of the room.

“What’s up?” Abbee asked, curious. She figured Jon was going to ask how she was going.

“If you don’t have anything specific planned for lunch, I have a house guest who has been dying to meet you since the live-stream…” Jon said.

Abbee looked at him somewhat confused. Neither Jon nor Alyssa had mentioned having a guest there, and she would have noticed if there was another person in the house when she was there after finding out about her dad. That was assuming the guest has been there since. The fact he referred to this person as a house guest seemed to imply they had been there a while…

“Okay, yeah I’m free. Who is it?”

Jon grinned slightly before gesturing to the door.

“Okay, keep your secrets…” Abbee retorted jokingly, as she made her way out the door.

Abbee left the room, as Jon followed before he led her to he and Alyssa’s cottage. They walked into the empty house through the back door, as Alyssa and Amelia were visiting a friend in the city, and Abbee looked around the empty cottage, shooting Jon a puzzled look, as she heard the sound of the TV.

“In the lounge…”

Abbee looked towards the doorway, slowly making her way in. She looked around, noticing nobody sitting on the couch, before quickly noticing a small Pokemon on the coffee table, who looked at her curiously. It took her a second to recognize it.

“Wait, is that-” she began to ask Jon who followed her into the room.

“The one and only…” said a rather chipper voice in her head, which she understood to be the Pokemon’s.

“Victini?” she asked, though certain she knew the answer. Whilst Legendary and Mythical Pokemon tended to have a lot of secrecy about them, some were much more well known due to being with trainers in the spotlight. After Jon’s win, Latios was one, as was Avery Miller’s Shaymin. And Victini had probably spent the most time in the spotlight in recent years. Victini had been partnered with Cassandra Silvers, until her death last year.

“I’ve told you before, that after the Diamond Ladies handed themselves in, and started making amends for what they’d done, that I became somewhat decent friends with them, surprisingly enough, seeing as Latios and I played a pretty big part in exposing them,” Jon explained. “Victini here was partnered with Cassandra, until-”

Jon went quiet, realizing he had spoken a bit too quickly.

“Well, Cassandra isn’t around anymore, and had parted ways with Victini before that fire,” Jon said. “I became friends with Victini towards the end of the S.S. Wishmaker incident, and have been in touch with him somewhat since.”

“Victini is the one who wanted to meet me?” Abbee asked. She had a hunch about why, but didn’t want to get too caught up in that…

“I spent the last year travelling the world, seeing the sights, and living as a, for lack of better words, wild Pokemon. And it was great,” Victini explained. “But that being said, it wasn’t the same. I really enjoyed battling alongside Cass, even if at the time it wasn’t honest, and the few battles she and I had after she came clean were the best I ever had. But that can’t happen again…”

Abbee felt a twinge of sympathy for Victini, especially having lost someone close to her very recently.

“Still, even if I can’t battle with Cass, I want to keep battling, and not just to stop annoying trainers trying to capture me. I want to battle for real, and if I want to do that, I need a good trainer,” Victini explained. “I knew Jon was teaching some people, and figured anyone he was teaching would be a good candidate. That and it might give me another crack at that Scizor…”

Jon grinned, as Victini was sharing the thoughts with both. Whilst he did have faith in his Pokemon, even he was surprised when Scizor managed to beat Victini despite a massive disadvantage. And obviously it has driven Victini to train hard.

“Victini showed up after I told you all about the live-stream, so I invited him to come watch,” Jon explained.

“Wait, you were there?” Abbee asked.

“In the rafters. Your Ariados almost made me mess myself…” Victini laughed, as Abbee chuckled. “You were strong. Not the strongest, but still strong, and you looked like the sort to enjoy the ride more than anything else.”

Abbee saw flashes of Victini’s memory, watching her and Chris from above commentating Jon’s match with Steven.

“So I asked Jon if he could introduce me to you,” Victini concluded. “To see if you wanted to team up…”

Her hunch was right. Abbee was flabbergasted. The Mythical Pokemon Victini, choosing her to be her partner.

“I’d love that,” Abbee replied. “But let’s not get too ahead of ourselves. I’d hate for you to jump straight into a Pokeball, then realize I’m not the trainer you thought I was. What if we call the rest of the summer a trial run of sorts, for your sake more than mine, and if you’re happy, I’ll catch you and make it official?”

Truth was that Abbee wanted to seal the deal right now, however knew that wasn’t a good idea. Jon and Latios made such a great team because of how close they were and how well they understood each other. But if that bond wasn’t there, then they would be a detriment to one another, and Latios, being bound by a Pokeball, would be stuck. She didn’t want to risk doing that to Victini.

“Are you sure?” Victini asked. “I had to dodge six trainers pelting Pokeballs at me between Unova and here…”

“I’m sure. Regardless of what she did, following Cassandra Silvers as a partner to you is a big ask,” Abbee answered. “I want you to have time to know for sure you’re doing the right thing choosing me…”

“In that case, sure,” Victini replied. “I’ll battle with you unofficially for the rest of the summer, and if that works out, you can catch me after.”

“Deal…”

“You’d better introduce Victini to the others quickly,” Jon said. “Victini likes to wander, and I imagine if Chris and Charlotte didn’t know any better and saw him, they would be tackling each other to be the first to catch him…”

Abbee chuckled, as she reached down, putting her hand on the coffee table, gently nodding towards her shoulder for Victini to climb up. After a second, the mythical Pokemon obliged, finding a comfortable perch on Abbee’s shoulder, before she left.

As they walked back to the lodge, Abbee filled the time, asking Victini questions about his past battles, and life travelling in the last year or so, with him answering using telepathy. This was all new to Abbee, not having a psychic type Pokemon, or any Pokemon with telepathy. She had occasionally had something said by Latios, but that was rare at best.

Charlotte was in the dining room, eating a bowl of instant noodles she had made for lunch, when she heard Abbee’s voice, however no responses.

“Is she on the phone?” Charlotte thought to herself, hoping her friend hadn’t lost the plot. She heard the door open, as Abbee stepped in. As the door closed, Abbee called out.

“Hey guys, come here for a second! I have someone I want you to meet…” Abbee called out. Now Charlotte was more worried Abbee had lost it and this might be an imaginary friend…

Chris and Justin had been watching TV in the lounge on the opposite side of the entrance, and Dylan had been in the kitchen toasting a sandwich at the time, poking his head into the dining room, and giving Charlotte a puzzled look. He eventually went into the entryway as Charlotte heard Chris speak.

“Wait, is that-”

Charlotte heard the shock in his voice, and stood up herself. As she made her way to the doorway between the entrance and the dining room, she understood why. Dylan was somehow even more silent, and even Justin was talking to Abbee.

“Wait, how?” he asked, before he remembered how uncomfortable it was to talk to her after the phone incident.

“He was looking for a new trainer, and I guess I impressed him…” Abbee said slightly bashful. Charlotte however understood. Even though Abbee was tied for second to her, they were two very different people.

Victini had been partnered with Cassandra Silvers, and whilst she had a reputation for being a stick in the mud when the cameras weren’t on her before being caught, Victini always seemed to be having a party for one, at least. Charlotte could see already the pair would be a good fit.

“Wait, he was watching the live stream?” Chris asked. “Where did he get internet?”

“No internet. For some reason the companies won’t let a Pokemon sign up for cable…” Victini replied telepathically, projecting his thoughts as Abbee burst into laughter at the quip. ”I was in the rafters. Almost got knocked off them by Abbee’s Ariados…”

“You were that close?” Chris asked, as it dawned on him that he could have potentially impressed Victini enough to have wound up as his partner…

Victini nodded as Charlotte chimed in.

“I think you two will make a great team,” Charlotte interjected. “Next time I don’t know I will be so lucky…”

Chris and Justin went back to watching their TV show, as Abbee followed Dylan and Charlotte into the dining room.

“Do you want something to eat?” Abbee asked Victini.

“Sure, anything but chocolate,” Victini replied. “I felt like some the first day I arrived and asked Jon, and he’s fed me nothing but chocolate since. I didn’t have the heart to tell him I only have it as a treat…”

Abbee laughed, as she made herself and Victini a sandwich each, whilst Dylan waited for his to toast. His phone sat on the bench, where he had made his own lunch before, and began to buzz. Abbee passed the vibrating phone to him without a word, noticing the caller ID.

“Bill.”

Dylan looked at the phone, before declining the call, pocketing the phone.

“Everything okay?” Abbee asked, curious. Dylan never talked about life outside of the Academy, so she knew little about him, other than he lived and worked part time in Mossdeep.

“Yeah, I’ll call back later. Just want to eat,” Dylan explained.

“Something important?”

“Just my stepdad.”

Abbee finished her sandwich, as Dylan pulled his own out from the sandwich toaster, and the pair joined Charlotte at the table to eat. As they sat and Abbee cut Victini’s sandwich up into smaller pieces, Dylan’s phone vibrated again, this time sitting on the table. He glanced at the screen before putting it in his pocket again.

“It’s his stepdad again. Something about coming home for a night for his birthday?” Victini said to Abbee telepathically. “He moved it before I could see the rest…”

“You probably shouldn’t read other peoples messages…” Abbee thought, unsure if Victini would hear it.

“Sorry, it was just there…” Victini replied.

“Then why tell me?” Abbee said with her thoughts.

”Because I can tune in to your thoughts. I know you wanted to know what’s going on…”

Abbee was slightly ashamed that Victini was right. She did want to know.

“So are you doing anything with your family for your birthday?” Abbee asked, trying to sound casual. “They’re here in Mossdeep aren’t they?”

“I’ll just wait until I get home. Summer is nearly over anyway,” Dylan explained.

“Surely Jon would let you go home for a night?” Charlotte replied.

“It’s not a big deal. I’ve been going to summer camps the last few years, so I haven’t been home for my birthday in ages,” Dylan said. “They’re fine with it…”

“But this is your eighteenth!” Abbee pleaded. “The funeral for your childhood. Surely your family will want to see you for that?”

“You saw the message?” Dylan asked. Abbee kicked herself for not being subtle enough.

“Sorry, it was a badly timed glance,” Abbee lied, not wanting to throw her new partner under the bus. “I guess I just feel a little bad for them that they never get to see you for your birthday, and now for the big one, they also miss out, to a bunch of people you’ve known for like three months…”

“I don’t wanna skip what we have planned for tomorrow,” Dylan reasoned.

“Then don’t. Your birthday is Sunday, right?” Charlotte asked, “It takes half an hour to drive from one side of the island to the other. What if you went home Sunday night, and got back here Monday morning before classes?”

“That could work!” Abbee said, knowing the biggest reason for being so insistent was the fact she would do anything to have her Dad there for her next birthday, still coming to terms with the fact he wouldn’t be…

Dylan looked at the two girls, before sighing.

“Fine, I’ll chat to Jon during training about spending Sunday night back home,” Dylan said.

“They’ll love you for it,” Abbee replied, as Dylan rolled his eyes slightly.

************************************************** ************************************************** *****

It was 5:45pm when Abbee found herself silently decorating the dining room with Justin and Victini, only speaking verbally when the shared task required it, and chatting to Victini in her mind. Charlotte had gone with Jon to pick up dinner, which Dylan had requested be dumplings from the restaurant that he went to with Abbee and Charlotte the week before, telling them he had never had them before then, and they were now his favorite, slightly surprising the pair of them. Even though the event itself wasn’t a surprise, they didn’t want Dylan seeing what they’d done with the room before it was ready, so Chris had taken the bullet by asking Dylan while he was outside what sort of diet he should put his Vulpix on, knowing that whilst he didn’t talk much, these days if you got him talking about something to do with raising Pokemon, he could talk for hours…

This left Abbee and Justin as decorators for the party venue. Every bit of decoration was black, and on the table, in an ornate frame was the photo Abbee had taken of Dylan with a black-and-white filter over it. Printed was Dylan’s Childhood with his date of birth, next to today’s date.

“Can you please pass the end of the banner?” Justin asked awkwardly, as he stood on a step ladder, having just put up a removable hook on the wall. Abbee walked over, bringing the end of the banner she and Charlotte had made that morning. She passed it to Justin, who took it, and lifted it up, attempting to loop the string on the corner over the hook. As he was about to place it down, it slipped out of his fingers, dropping to the ground, as Abbee picked it up again, handing it to him.

“I’m sorry…” he said quietly, as he accepted the banner.

“Don’t worry,” Abbee said casually, as she went to get the other end of it.

“Not that,” Justin replied. “I mean, yes that, but…”

There was an awkward silence, as both teenagers tried to think of what to say.

“I’m sorry for taking your phone all the time,” Justin said. “And I’m sorry that you had to find out about your dad the way you did because I was being an idiot…”

Abbee sighed.

“Is this why you’ve been so weird the last week?” Abbee asked. “I was pretty sure this was it, but I wanted to be certain.”

“Yeah…”

Abbee pulled out her phone, opening up the voicemail app, as she spoke.

“Not long before he died, he tried calling me to congratulate me about the live-stream, but I didn’t have my phone, so I missed it,” Abbee explained, as Justin felt his stomach sink hearing those words.

“So he left a message,” Abbee said, tapping the button that caused it to start playing. The pair listened to it, Abbee losing count of how many times she had heard it, and Justin surprised Abbee was sharing with him something so personal.

“I’m sorry,” Justin said. “If I wasn’t such a f**king idiot, you’d have had that final conversation with him yourself.”

“You’re right,” Abbee replied, quickly realizing the miscommunication she invited. “About the conversation, not calling you an idiot.”

“And as much as I’d have loved that, eventually my memory of it would become hazy, and I’d forget. At least now, even though he is gone, I can hear him talk to me whenever I want, telling me this, and encouraging me to do the best I can.”

“I’m not saying the whole phone thing wasn’t childish and silly,” Abbee added. “I did miss out on the last conversation I could have had with my father. But I got this as well, so it sort of balances out. Don’t beat yourself up too much over it. Just enough that you won’t do that again.”

“Dylan already took care of that…” Justin joked, as Abbee chuckled.

“Yeah, I didn’t pick him to go knocking in doors, but that being said, he doesn’t share much about himself.”

Abbee grabbed the other step ladder, and began hanging the other end of the banner.

“But thanks for apologizing. Really,” Abbee said. “I was worried the others were going to be walking on eggshells around us forever…”

“Around you maybe…” Justin retorted. “They’d just tell me exactly what they think.”

“Maybe that’s a good thing for both of us.”

“Yeah, maybe.”

It wasn’t long before Charlotte and Jon arrived back with the dumplings, as well as Alyssa, Amelia and even the Champion, Steven, and Justin went to signal to Chris that Dylan could come into the lodge.

When they were about to enter, Abbee started playing through a bluetooth speaker the most cliche funeral music she could find. Once Dylan had taken it all in, Chris made his way to what would be a stage.

“Dylan’s childhood began nearly eighteen years ago, and sadly, today we must say our goodbyes,” Chris said dramatically, gesturing to the photo on the table.

“As Dylan’s friend, I have taken it upon myself to prepare the eulogy for his childhood,” Chris continued. “Unfortunately, I have only known Dylan a short while, and in that time he has been harder to get information out of than a p**sed off girlfriend.”

“Because you’d know all about that?” Jon asked, causing Charlotte to snort with laughter, and Chris to struggle to keep this persona going, and not laugh himself. Alyssa gave him a gentle slap on the upper arm.

“However, in that time, Dylan has shown himself to be a genius in raising Pokemon, impressing the Hoenn Champion himself, a fast learner, battling at a near competitive level with less than three months of training, a loyal friend, and a human battering ram, knocking a door out of its frame with a single hit…” Chris said, as the others laughed and cheered. Dylan was surprised, unaware he had impressed Chris this much, or that Chris had matured as much as he did, in his own way.

“Even though we are sadly saying goodbye to Dylan’s childhood, which we knew so little of, we hope these traits will live on into adult life,” Chris finished, as the others, Dylan included, applauded his performance. The group soon descended on the table, piling their plates high with dumplings, before finding seats. Chris was about to begin devouring the large plate in front of him when Jon spoke up.

“Before we eat, anything you’d like to say Dylan?” Jon asked. “I’d wait until after dinner, but seeing some of these plates, I think there will be food comas to contend with…”

Dylan was quiet at the best of times, and really quiet the rest of them, so he was unprepared for this.

“Thanks everyone, for everything…” he said, slightly louder than usual, but still quiet by Chris’ standards. “This has been the best summer I’ve ever had, and I wish it didn’t have to end.”

The others cheered, whilst Abbee put her arm around Dylan, pulling him into a side-hug, and Chris began digging into his food. Jon took Amelia to make it a bit easier for Alyssa to eat, whilst she chatted to Steven who sat next to her.

When the table was empty of dinner, and most of the attendees were already full, Abbee retrieved the cake she and Chris had made the night before after everyone else went to sleep from the fridge, surprising Abbee that Chris enjoyed baking, and having kept it covered so Dylan wouldn’t see it. The cake itself was black, like the rest of the decorations, in the shape of a tombstone. Steven burst into laughter seeing it, as Abbee found some candles.

”This has gotta be worth something,” Victini said, projecting the message to everyone there, as a flame appeared at the tip of his finger, lighting the candles. “I’m no Jirachi, but surely a wish made over Mythical Pokemon flame candles has gotta be worth something?”

The group then sang Happy Funeral to Dylan, Jon surprised at how genuinely excited about the whole funeral schtick Abbee was, before Dylan blew out the candles.

As he blew them out, one thought was on his mind.

"I wish I didn’t have to leave…"

Once cake was served, Chris and Justin helped Jon and Steven bring in some couches from Jon and Alyssa’s house, which was admirable in and of itself, because whilst the walk was short, it was still too long to lug furniture between. As they got back, Charlotte had a thought…

“You do realize that between the eight of us, we have what, seven or eight Psychic types who could lift the couches with their minds…”

Jon went pale as Steven burst into laughter.

“I really hope the media don’t hear about this,” Steven joked. “Hoenn Champion and High Seas Champion, trusted to keep region safe, don’t realize they can have their Metagross and Latios levitate furniture. Carries it manually a hundred meters…”

“Hey, I just figured I wouldn’t treat my Legendary Pokemon like a beast of burden…”

“He’s lying…” Victini said to everyone, having read Jon’s thoughts.

Dylan chose a movie, slightly surprising everyone when it was an adrenaline filled street racing movie, filled with fast cars and ridiculous stunts. What surprised them even more was how keen Steven was for it.

“When you’re Champion, you have to keep your cards close to your chest. If it got out I enjoyed these movies, some tabloid would be publishing 'Steven Stone endorses illegal street racing!'”

The group watched the movie, Steven and Dylan both chiming in with bits of trivia about the cars on screen, and talking about which one they’d want to have most, whilst Charlotte asked how come the police don’t just track their plates and knock in their door, Dylan-style.

The movie finished, as Alyssa took Amelia back to the cottage, and those remaining stayed in the lounge, talking about different things, mostly battling, though Dylan and Steven continued to discuss the cars in the movie, and try to explain to the others what made them so great. Eventually Steven decided to take leave, making a point of wishing Dylan a happy birthday, and commending him on how well he has raised his own Metagross. Jon said goodnight as well, walking Steven to his car by the house, as the others stayed up. Dylan tried to get a start on cleaning up, however Abbee quickly stopped him, telling him they will clean it up in the morning.

They spent the next few hours in the lounge, chatting and laughing. Victini loved being in on the conversation, telling stories of his travels both with Cassandra, and after they parted ways, and the students loved hearing about the different Legendary Pokemon Victini knew, and what they were like. When someone asked if Victini had met Rayquaza, he said once, they had a battle and Victini managed to bring it down, conveniently leaving out the fact Jon, Cassandra and Latios were there, though he noticed Chris smirk, and had a hunch he knew the truth about Rayquaza.

One by one the group started to wander off to bed, leaving Abbee, Victini and Dylan alone.

“Is it sad that the best birthday I ever had was a funeral?” Dylan asked.

“Not really, because this was a pretty great funeral if I do say so myself…” Abbee joked.

“Thanks for being so great about this,” Dylan said. “I get making a joke like this wouldn’t be easy.”

“If Dad were here, he would have loved it…” Abbee said. “That’s why I am okay with it. Why I could enjoy myself tonight. But what have your other birthdays been like?”

“I was at summer camp the last few years, so it was just a normal day.”

“Your friends didn’t do anything special, or did you just not tell them, like you tried with us?” Abbee joked.

“I didn’t really have any friends there…” Dylan said. “I mean heck, 90% of the reason I have friends here is because you refused to give up on making that happen…”

“And don’t you forget it…” Abbee retorted. “But I’m glad we could give you a decent birthday, or Funeral for your Childhood.”

“Yeah, same here…”

************************************************** ************************************************** *****

The illuminated clock in Jon’s car read 5:30pm, as he drove Dylan back to his house in Mossdeep. He had remained mostly silent, however Jon was used to this. As they drove, Jon noticed Dylan looking out the window intently at the PokeFood store that Jon had gone into occasionally, when he hadn’t found time during renovations to cook food for his Pokemon himself. He made a point of avoiding bought food, as with nine Pokemon between himself and Alyssa, it became expensive very quickly.

Suddenly it clicked, as Jon spoke up.

“That’s it!” Jon said loudly, shocking Dylan. “That’s where Steven and I recognized you from. You used to work the counter there, didn’t you?”

“Yeah…” Dylan said, slightly surprised that they had recognized him. He had recognized both Jon and Steven on the odd occasion they came into the store, however hadn’t gone out of his way to speak to them outside of what was expected by the job.

“How come you’ve never mentioned it before?” Jon asked. “It makes sense how you’re able to pick up exactly what different Pokemon need.”

“I didn’t think it was that important…” Dylan said. It was not long after that that it came into view. His house. The one he had hoped he wouldn’t be returning to this quickly.

Whilst going home even for a night was the last thing he wanted, he had been worried if he were too vocal about it, people would start asking questions. This was his problem, not theirs.

The car stopped, and Dylan stood out.

“I’d be keen to meet your parents-” Jon said, as Dylan interjected.

“They’re not home. Car’s not here,” Dylan said. “Maybe another time.”

“Okay…” Jon said, his tone slightly confused, but shrugged it off. Dylan hadn’t mentioned the car was normally in the garage.

He said goodbye to Jon, who mentioned picking him up at 8:30 the next morning. As Jon left, Dylan took a breath before going towards the house.

Truth was that the family Dylan was going home to, wasn’t even that anymore. Dylan never knew his dad, as his mum, Nicole, refused to talk about him. Whilst he was young when she left, he was pretty sure she was the type to burn bridges, and because of that, knew none of her family either. Eventually she married Bill, however when he was twelve, she left, not being in contact since, leaving Dylan with his stepdad.

Whilst Bill was friendly enough with Dylan, he never saw Dylan as his son, and Dylan knew it. As time went on, Bill began to drink more and it became more and more apparent how much he resented Nicole for leaving him to raise her kid, and since she wasn’t around he took that frustration out on Dylan. At first it was harsh words, which moved into throwing things around the house. Eventually it turned into shoving and pushing, and then those shoves became strikes. Slaps and punches.

As soon as he could, though he tried even earlier, Dylan got his job at the PokeFood store, saving all the money he earned to pay for summer camps, taking whichever one would get him away from home the longest, however summer always came to an end, and he’d find himself back here.

He had a hunch why Bill had asked him to come visit for his birthday, and it wasn’t anything pleasant. He knocked on the door, wishing he didn’t have to be there, before hearing a voice on the other side.

”It’s open...”

The words were already starting to slur, and it wasn’t even six yet. Dylan opened the door, walking in silently. The hallway was dark, and as he entered he could hear the TV playing loudly in the room next to him. He walked through into the lounge, where Bill sat on the couch, holding a can of premix bourbon, watching the afternoon's football match on TV. Next to him were three empty cans, with an esky on the other side, Dylan not optimistic about how many were left.

“Kick the ball you idiot!” Bill shouted at the TV, as Dylan walked behind the couch, making sure not to block Bill’s view of the screen, sitting on the chair a metre or two from the couch Bill was on.

“Happy Birthday…” he grumbled, not taking his eyes off the TV. Dylan could see Bill’s team was losing pretty badly, which made the amount of empty cans make a little more sense.

“Thanks.”

“I guess you’re now old enough to have one of these with me…” Bill said, putting his hand into the esky and removing a can identical to the one he was drinking. He was right. The legal drinking age in Hoenn was eighteen. Slightly surprised at the apparent act of generosity, Dylan took the can, opening it, and having a sip. Cringing a little at the taste, he read the can and saw they were the double shot variant.

“Thanks.”

“So did this school you’re at do anything for your birthday?” Bill asked, though he seemed more focused on the events unfolding on the screen in front of him.

“They wanted to throw a bit of a party last night, so they did,” Dylan said, sipping from the drink again. If he didn’t finish it, Bill would go on about how ungrateful he was being. That was his go-to whenever he wanted to berate Dylan, and had made it abundantly clear over the years that the only reason Dylan had this roof over his head was out of his good graces.

“Many people there?”

“The four others doing the program, as well as Jon who runs it, and his wife Alyssa,” Dylan said, forcing down another sip. “And Steven Stone.”

For the first time since Dylan had arrived, Bill looked away from the TV, looking at Dylan with disbelief.

“Steven Stone, the Hoenn Champion, was at your birthday party…” Bill sneered sarcastically. “You almost had me going there until you said that…”

There was an awkward silence before Dylan spoke up.

“Has it been a decent game?” Dylan asked, before biting the bullet and attempting to finish the drink. It was moments before he felt the alcohol go to his head, giving his perceptions of what happened around him a slight delay.

“Absolute s**t…” Bill retorted. “I have $50 riding on this match, and I’m not going to see it again…”

Dylan placed his empty can on the ground, however didn’t escape Bill’s notice. He had just finished his own, and fished a new one out of the esky, gesturing towards Dylan.

“I’m good, thanks.” he said politely, causing Bill to chuckle, though Dylan could see his reasons for that weren’t flattering.

They watched the match on TV in silence for the rest of the quarter, before Dylan noticed something. A smell in the air.

“Can you smell something burning?” Dylan asked, as Bill’s eyes widened.

“God-f**king-damn it!” Bill yelled, as he leapt from the couch. “Open the windows!”

Dylan got up, opening the nearest windows, before following Bill into the kitchen. Bill had opened the oven, causing smoke to pour out. Bracing himself for the sound of the smoke alarm, Dylan looked to the ceiling, noticing it was gone. Bill must have gotten sick of the noise when he was hungover.

Bill swore as he removed a charred disk on a metal tray from the oven, that Dylan guessed would have been a frozen pizza in a previous life.

“Well that’s dinner f**king ruined…” Bill muttered angrily.

Dylan walked over to the pantry to find it near empty. Bill hadn’t done the shopping yet.

“Maybe we can pick something up?” Dylan asked, knowing their house was on the no-delivery list for a lot of the local restaurants, because of how aggressive Bill got with the drivers who showed up at the house.

“Yeah, then I get pulled over after a few drinks, and get a DUI…” Bill growled. “You got your mother’s brains…”

Bill got out two plates, and began cutting the cremated pizza into slices, placing half of it on Dylan’s plate, and half on his own.

“Here,” he said shortly, passing the plate to Dylan, who was biting his tongue at Bill’s recent remark, before they went back to the lounge.

Dylan went back to the chair he was on, and tried to figure out the best way to eat this. Whilst a strong flavored drink like a cola would make it mildly unpleasant, compared to just eating charcoal, the only flavored drinks in the house were alcoholic, and he’d need a lot of it to finish the plate. He considered taking Bill up on another can, but knew that it was too strong, and would make him feel sick, either from not eating enough, or eating charred food.

In the end, he decided to try and tough out as much as he could of the pizza unassisted. He managed to finish one of the four slices, however felt his stomach churning, and stopped, as Bill ate his, drinking multiple cans to aid the burnt pizza with going down. After about twenty minutes, when he had finished his pizza, and grabbed another can to wash the taste out of his mouth, he grabbed a second out.

“Here, it’ll make it a little more tolerable,” Bill said, holding the can towards him.

“No, it’s alright,” Dylan replied. “I’m not that hungry.”

He knew that this would not go down well, but having spent the entire time walking on eggshells and trying to figure out how to handle this situation without setting Bill off, he saw no way forward. At least this way, he didn’t have to drink himself sick or eat half a cremated pizza.

“Ungrateful…” Bill muttered. “Just like her. I bust my a** providing for her and her kid, and the ungrateful b***h runs off, leaving me with you…”

Growing agitated, Dylan muttered under his breath.

“I don’t blame her,” he said, almost inaudibly.

“What was that?!” Bill yelled, standing up from the couch. Knowing if he didn’t stand up now, he would be at Bill’s mercy if this got physical, Dylan stood up as well, surprised at how brave, or potentially stupid he was being. Usually he just let Bill say what he wanted until he got too bored or drunk to continue.

“I said I don’t blame her!” Dylan retorted firmly.

“Yeah, well if she is such a saint, why did she leave you here with me?” Bill yelled. “Why am I stuck looking after that b**h’s b*****d kid?”

Dylan felt his hands curl into fists, surprised at how willing he was to stand up to Bill, after all this time. It was only now he realized how much bigger he was, having five inches or so in height above him.

“If I’m such a f**king burden to you, why did you invite me here?” Dylan asked angrily. “I only came because someone saw the message you sent, and thought you actually gave a damn! I didn’t have the heart to tell her that not everyone’s family is like her's…”

Bill shoved Dylan, who stood back slightly, but seemed to surprise Bill with how little the shove actually did.

“You ungrateful little s**t!” Bill yelled. “I should throw you out onto the f**king street!”

“Then why don’t you?!” Dylan shouted back. “It’d be a step up from living with you! Answer the f**king question! Why did you pester me to come here tonight?”

Bill stared at Dylan like a raging bull, still holding the can of premix in his right hand.

“Is it because you just wanted someone else to drink pathetically with you?” Dylan yelled. “Or just so you could talk s**t about my mum, when the best thing she probably ever did was leave your sorry a** here?!”

Bill roared, before throwing the can of drink at Dylan. He tried to dodge it, however felt a sharp pain on his collarbone, as the can struck it. Bill rushed towards Dylan, who grabbed him by the shirt, and threw him to the side. Bill grunted in pain as he hit the wall.

“Get the f**k out!” Bill shouted, groaning in pain as the world seemed to be spinning around him, while he tried to stand up. “And don’t ever f**king come back...”

Dylan walked past him, shoving him with his shoulder as he left the house, unsure of where he would go, both for tonight, and after summer finished, but thankful he wouldn’t be returning there. As he left, he wondered why he did what he just did. The last few years, he dreamed of doing that, however the thought of spending cold winter nights under a bridge, or being hurt in the process of standing up to Bill kept him at bay. He knew he couldn’t fight back like he wanted to, and didn’t have anywhere else to go. But now, things were different.

Dylan found a Pokemon Center, tidying himself up before heading inside to book a room for the night. Whilst trainers did get a set amount of free stays at Pokemon Center with their Trainer Card, those under the age of eighteen needed a permission form signed by a parent or guardian in order to use this. Dylan had tried when he was younger, to be turned away with a permission slip for Bill to fill in. He breathed a sigh of relief when the receptionist gave him a room key, before making his way upstairs to the accommodation.

Once in his room, Dylan sat on the bed, leaving the light off. It was 7pm, and he opened his phone to find a message from Abbee.

“How’re the celebrations going?”

“What celebration…” Dylan muttered to himself before replying.

“Going okay. Nothing special.”

After a few more minutes, Dylan felt his phone buzz.

“I’m sure they appreciate you coming. Try and enjoy yourself!”

Dylan sighed, before closing the phone, and turning on the TV in the room to try and distract himself, and kill time before he could reasonably get to sleep.

************************************************** ************************************************** *****

It was 9:30 Monday morning when the students sat in their tactics and strategy class, where Jon was explaining different items and how they affect Pokemon. Abbee sat next to Dylan, who had shown up on his own that morning. Jon was surprised, as he was supposed to pick Dylan up, however Dylan had arrived at 7:30, telling Jon his stepdad had to be up early for work and gave him a lift.

However, as they took notes, Abbee couldn’t help but feel something was off about Dylan. He was quieter than usual, and not in a good way, seeming distracted by something.

Charlotte had asked a question which Jon was in the process of answering, when out of the corner of her eye, Abbee noticed Dylan’s hand go up to under the collar of his shirt, seeming to alleviate some sort of itch. However, there was something else. Between Dylan’s hand moving out from under the collar, and his collar returning to its normal place, she noticed something dark.

She told herself it was just a shadow, but something seemed off about it. As the mornings classes continued, she couldn’t shake the feeling something was wrong. Both with Dylan’s demeanour, and this mark she thought she saw. As she thought of this, what Alyssa told her about Jon’s childhood wouldn’t leave her mind. However she didn’t want to go and report this on such minor speculation, mostly a mark she thought she saw. If she was wrong, it would cause problems for Dylan’s family.

It reached noon, as the five students left the makeshift classroom in the monastery, and went back to the lodge. Once the other three were out of sight, Abbee spoke up.

“Dylan, you got a second?” she asked, ceasing her walking.

Dylan turned to face her, stopping walking himself, and spoke.

“What’s up?”

“Are you alright?” she asked. “You seem a bit... off... today?”

“Yeah, I’m fine,” Dylan said, though Abbee could hear just a hint of nervousness. She stood forward.

“The only reason I asked, is because I thought I saw something…” she said quietly, before quickly grabbing Dylan’s collar, and pulling it to the side, revealing a large dark bruise on his collarbone, with a strange crescent shaped discolored mark through it. The pattern seemed familiar, but she couldn’t pick it.

“What’s that?” Abbee asked sternly, letting go of his shirt.

“I tripped,” Dylan said. “Honestly…”

“You got a bruise like that from tripping…” Abbee replied, not convinced. “On what?”

“There was a gap in the gutter, that I didn’t see,” Dylan explained. “My foot got caught, and I fell, and landed on the curb.”

“Really?” Abbee asked.

“Really, it’s fine,” Dylan said, as he started walking towards the lodge again.

Once they reached the lodge, Abbee mentioned having lunch, however Dylan declined.

“I might try and catch up on some sleep,” Dylan said. “I was up early this morning, and the family thing went later than I expected.”

Abbee didn’t object, as Dylan went upstairs to his room, and she began making lunch, thinking over everything she saw and Dylan had said. She made a sandwich, before grabbing a can of soft drink from the fridge, and making her way to the lounge, where Victini had been waiting for her, and Charlotte sat, watching TV. She opened the can, placing it on the coffee table, as she ate her sandwich, still trying to figure out if Dylan was telling the truth or not.

Abbee placed her plate down absentmindedly on the coffee table, accidentally bumping the can of drink, knocking it over, as it started to spill.

“Goddamn it,” Abbee said, as Charlotte noticed.

“I’ll get some paper towels,” Charlotte said, before getting up and leaving the room. Abbee picked up the can, before realizing something.

“You okay Abbee?” Victini asked, as he noticed how intently she stared at the base of the can.

After a few seconds, it clicked for Abbee. The bruise on Dylan’s collarbone was the right size and shape for being hit with a can, even the crescent shaped discoloration on it, which seemed to line up perfectly with the round base of the can. Dylan had been hit with one, based on the size of the bruise, probably a full one, and very hard. It was no accident.

“Goddamn…” Abbee muttered, as Charlotte came back into the room.

“It’s just a spilled drink,” Charlotte said. “We’ll clean it up.”

“Yeah…” Abbee said quietly, as she helped Charlotte clean up the mess.

By the time it was cleaned up, it was nearing 1pm, and Charlotte had left for her training session with Jon.

“Abbee…” Victini said. “What’s going on? You can trust me…”

Using her thoughts, Abbee showed Victini the conversation with Dylan she had this afternoon, and the realization about the can and the bruise on his collarbone.

Victini sighed.

“I hate to say it, but I think you’re right.”

“I just wish I had let it go the other day about him seeing his family,” Abbee said quietly, as to not be overheard. “He went because I guilted him into going, and I’m guessing because my Dad just died, he felt like he had to…”

“It’s not your fault,” Victini said. “It’s nobody’s, except for the person who gave him that bruise. Besides, as horrible as this is, chances are it’s been going for ages, and if this didn’t happen, nobody would know...”

“Still…” Abbee replied.

“You gotta tell Jon about this, you know that, right?”

“I know…” Abbee said. “I am training with him after Charlotte, so I will tell him then…”

“You’re doing the right thing…”

“I hope so.”

“No, there’s no question about it,” Victini said firmly. “You’re doing the right thing…”

Abbee watched the clock with anticipation, and at 1:45, made her way with Victini in tow to the arena, arriving five minutes before she was due to start training. Charlotte was wrapping up her session, greeting Abbee as she arrived, before thanking Jon and making her way back to the lodge. As Abbee stood towards Jon he spoke up.

“You ready?” he asked, grinning and ready for another battle.

“Jon, can we talk for a second?” Abbee asked. “It’s about Dylan…”