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

[[Desolate Divine]]

Season 3 Episode 7: Unload

Spoiler:

“So there was a Nidoking-” Justin asked.

“Nidoqueen,” Charlotte corrected, as Justin rolled his eyes.

“They’re practically the same Pokemon…” Justin retorted.

“Technically they’re pretty different,” Dylan interjected. “They’re the same species, sure, but Nidoqueen is much bulkier and able to take a hit more, while Nidoking is able to hit harder but take less hits…”

“Which makes this all the more impressive…” Charlotte added.

“Whatever,” Justin said. “So a Nidoqueen, Hitmontop, Haxorus, Samurott, Krookodile, Magmortar, and what else?”

“A Toxtricity and Rampardos,” Charlotte explained. “And guess how long it took Deoxys to knock all of them out?”

“Five minutes?” Justin asked.

“Two…”

Both Dylan and Justin’s eyes widened.

“You mean to tell me that Deoxys was wiping out a Pokemon every fifteen seconds…” Dylan said in near disbelief.

“Don’t get me wrong, these idiots weren’t battling well at all. They’re probably more used to sending out Pokemon to intimidate people into complying, and if they send out a Pokemon, ganging up on them,” Charlotte answered. “And even when it’s using its Attack Form instead of its Speed form, it would not be much slower than Justin’s Ninjask…”

“Goddamn…” Justin muttered, remembering the night the five interns spent holding off the Pokemon. “I’m starting to wonder how it didn’t wipe us out…”

“It didn’t wipe us out, because it was attacking out of blind rage…” Dylan answered. “Think about it. Deoxys followed Charlotte’s every order on Southern Island. It was calm, and following Charlotte’s instructions…”

Charlotte nodded.

“And could you imagine if the military had won in the hearing and taken it?” Charlotte asked. “I know they would have struggled to get it to follow orders, but if they eventually did, Deoxys would be a weapon of mass destruction…”

The trio sat in the dining room, on Monday morning of the sixth week of summer, at 7:50am. Students were starting to filter in for breakfast, whilst the group of students, led by Chris and Abbee this morning, who were preparing the room, were getting the room set up for the morning meal.

“Well, it’s a good thing we won the hearing…” Dylan remarked. “Hell, now I’m the only one out of the five of us without a Legendary Pokemon.”

“At this rate, one of the students might get one before you…” Charlotte teased, as Dylan laughed.

“Really, I’m not that fussed.”

“It’s good to see you’re acting like yourself again,” Justin noted towards Dylan. “We practically didn’t see you for a few days towards the end of last week…”

Charlotte looked between Dylan and Justin, having noticed herself that Dylan had been keeping to himself a lot, though wasn’t sure if it was a coincidence or not.

“Yeah, I guess I just needed some time to come to terms with some stuff…” Dylan replied, before noticing Charlotte’s puzzled expression. “Last Wednesday, my mum, who I haven’t heard from in ten years since she walked out, showed up here unannounced, with some news that had me a little rattled…”

It was Justin’s turn to be confused, having known about Dylan’s mum, but not heard anything about any news.

“What news?”

“She was diagnosed with this disorder, with a long name I can’t pronounce off the top of my head,” Dylan explained, forcing himself to sound less worried about it all than he actually was. “The major effect of it is that she is going deaf, and will be completely deaf before she is forty-five. But the reason she was telling me was because the disorder was genetic…”

Charlotte and Justin both went silent hearing this, as Dylan continued, the room around them filling with campers.

“I always knew my grandmother was deaf, but Mum said that she had worked in a factory during her younger years, and they presumed her deafness was because of the loud machinery and the lack of hearing protection…” Dylan continued, before Charlotte finally managed to bring herself to ask the question both her and Justin were wondering.

“Does this mean you’ve got it too?” Charlotte asked. Dylan sighed, causing her and Justin to worry.

“It’s hard to say right now,” Dylan answered. “It could go either way at this point. I’m going to find out, but there’s something I would need to do first that I’ve been putting off, and I don’t know that I’m ready to do that yet…”

“Who else knows?” Justin asked, still shocked by the revelation.

“Alyssa was there when Mum told me, and she told Jon,” Dylan answered. “I told Abbee because the day after, I was pretty upset by all this and blew her off pretty badly, and felt like she deserved an explanation. And now, you guys…”

Neither of his friends referenced the fact that Chris didn’t know. Whilst there had been relative peace between Chris and Dylan since the day Justin filmed the commercial, which was now airing on all free-to-air TV channels, that was due to them not having to interact with one another. Even when all five interns were in the lodge together, they would not speak in any way that the other had any need or reason to respond. At this point, the other three interns had stopped walking on egg-shells around the pair, accepting this as the new norm.

Before Charlotte could ask what he was putting off, their attention was pulled to Jon, calling out for all eyes to be on him, as she realised that the dining room was now at capacity.

“If nearly everyone is here, I have an announcement to make!” Jon called out, getting the attention of all students present. Dylan looked up towards Jon, wondering what he was announcing, as there was little planned by Jon for the Eon Academy that Dylan wasn’t aware of first.

Once the group eating had quieted down enough that Jon didn’t have to yell to be heard, he grinned and continued.

“It’s come to my attention that most of the activities that involve all Eon Academy students together, are usually educational seminars. Last year, Chris and Charlotte did host a Capture The Flag tournament, however that was largely to do with settling a dispute between them, and there are too many of us here this year for that to be viable,” Jon explained. “So instead, I figured that with over a hundred of us here this summer, we could throw a hell of a party…”

Justin grinned at Charlotte and Dylan, as Jon continued.

“So, on the Friday night of the tenth week of summer, we will have a cheesy prom-style dance!” Jon announced, to mixed reactions, largely excitement from all those except the fourteen to sixteen year old boys who thought liking that would be too uncool.

“I know that you weren’t aware of any sort of formal event when you packed for the summer, and as such, I have made arrangements with a few clothing hire businesses on the island to rent out some outfits, at no cost to you,” Jon explained, as Charlotte noticed Alyssa walking into the dining room, waiting by the door, and watching Jon with a worried look. “Additionally, I am well aware of my accelerating age, and slight struggle to know what is hip to you young people, so am looking for volunteers to help with running the event. Things like choosing the menu, decorating the main hall, and choosing music. Have a think about it, and let me know if you’re interested. As you were…”

“This is new…” Dylan remarked, as Justin laughed.

“He is right though…” Justin said. “We do a lot of stuff in our teams, since they are smaller and easier to manage, and the only room that can handle everyone is here and the stadium. So doing a big, fun event with everyone would be good…”

Charlotte’s attention however was distracted by Jon speaking briefly to Alyssa, before heading outside, whilst Alyssa quickly walked towards the trio.

“I’m sorry to interrupt, but Dylan, can I talk to you outside?”

The tone was that of someone who, having worked in media, was a master of faking a calm demeanour, but was trying to hide something.

“Sure,” Dylan said, standing, and walking towards the door. “Is everything alright?”

“We’ll talk outside…”

Dylan walked outside, where Jon waited for the pair of them, confused by his sudden summons from Alyssa.

“Liss, what’s wrong?” Jon asked, sounding confused more than anything. Alyssa gestured to them a few metres away from the door, and waited for a few students late for breakfast to pass. When she was sure that nobody could see or hear them, she spoke.

“Jon, I’m sorry,” Alyssa said. “It’s Jack…”

Jon’s eyes widened, realising what Alyssa was getting at.

“Wendy was out doing the shopping, and while she was out, he had a heart-attack…” Alyssa began, as Jon was forced to come to terms with what she was saying.

“But,” Jon stuttered. “His watch should have called for an ambulance when it detected a fall…”

The last time Jon, Alyssa, Amelia and Dylan had visited Jon’s grandparents, Jack had recently had a fall, and was not able to reach a phone to call for help. Jon had bought him a smart watch, which Jack struggled to use most of the controls on, for the sole purpose that if it detected Jack falling over, it would automatically call for help.

Dylan didn’t know what to say, as he saw Jon’s eyes begin to fill with tears, and Alyssa begin to sob, both at the shock of losing Jack, and seeing her husband break down.

“Wendy had left before Jack woke up, to try and get a parking space near the shops…” Alyssa said, choking on the words. “He was getting dressed when it happened, and hadn’t taken the watch off the charger yet…”

Jon moved forward, hugging Alyssa and holding her tight, as he sobbed quietly. Dylan, shocked at this news, felt a deep sense of sadness hearing it. He had only met Jack a small handful of times over the last two years, but already felt the loss. Even though Dylan wasn’t really part of Jon and Alyssa’s family, Jack had treated him from the beginning as if he were his own flesh and blood, not hesitating in voicing his amazement of Dylan’s natural talent in raising Pokemon. And just as much as the sadness was hearing of Jack’s death, it was also from seeing Jon and Alyssa so broken and pained at their loss. Something he hadn’t seen, or even imagined seeing, from the pair, who had been a solid rock for him in the last two years…

“I’ll call Steven…” Dylan said, quieter than he intended, getting Jon and Alyssa’s attention. “He and I can run the Academy for a week or two, while you two go to Kanto…”

“Thank you,” Alyssa said, as she let go of Jon and hugged Dylan tightly, something he wasn’t overly used to. However, amidst the shock and sadness of the morning’s events, she hadn’t noticed the same thing that Jon had.

“Us two?” Jon asked. “You’re not coming?”

“You guys are his family, and I,” Dylan said, not having thought through his choice of words. “I work for you. The best thing I could do for Jack is make sure you have no reason to worry about things back here...”

Jon was shocked into silence, at Dylan’s choice.

"Dylan, you have every right to be there, and don't think for a second that he considered you any less than family," Jon said. "He would have set his Flareon on you for saying that, and then me for good measure for letting you think that…"

"Dylan, what my somewhat blunt husband is trying to ask..." Alyssa said as Jon chuckled despite himself. "Do you want to come?"

"But what about the Academy?" Dylan asked. "We have a hundred students here…"

"Steven can handle it,” Jon retorted, surprising Dylan with a grin, contrary to his eyes, red from the tears. “If the Hoenn Champion can’t handle running this place for a week, I need to give us both a pay rise…”

Dylan couldn’t help but laugh at Jon’s assurance.

“I’ll come then…”

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

Considering it was the middle of summer, the backyard of Jack and Wendy’s small house in the Vermillion City Retirement Village was colder than expected. Jon and Dylan sat on chairs in the backyard, where a couple of years prior, Jon sat with Jack, the latter appraising his Pokemon, and being shocked at the secret that Jon had shared with him, of catching the Legendary Rayquaza, under the Hoenn government’s noses, and not getting caught. As Jon remembered that conversation, he found himself glad he took the chance, and shared that secret with Jack. Amelia sat on his lap, watching Jack’s Flareon who sat curled up in a small, round bed on the concrete, enjoying the sun’s rays. Whilst the Pokemon looked content, Jon could tell Flareon was mourning the loss of its partner, having been at home with Jack when he passed away. Whilst it was still somewhat nimble for a Pokemon of its age, being older than Jon himself, Jon noticed shortly after they arrived in Vermillion, and first came to see Wendy, that Flareon was noticeably less lively.

“You mind if I join you?”

Dylan turned to see Daniel, Jon’s father, standing by the sliding door from the house, though Jon’s chair was facing away from the door. Dylan briefly looked towards Jon, to see if there was any indication he didn’t want this, though saw nothing, and figured Jon would have happily told Daniel no if that’s how he felt.

“Go ahead,” Dylan said awkwardly, knowing that he and Jon had sat in relative silence for most of the time they sat out there, and Jon just not being in the mood to chat. Dylan nodded towards the empty chair that faced Jon, and Daniel made his way there. He sat down on the empty chair, before reaching his hand out to shake Dylan’s hand.

“It’s good to see you Dylan,” Daniel said, trying to cover up the awkwardness in his tone with a casual demeanour, as Dylan shook his hand. “How have you been?”

Dylan nodded, not wanting to come across as impolite. Truth was, he didn’t know how to act around Daniel. Jon had made it abundantly clear that whilst he was letting Daniel be in his life again, he hadn’t forgiven him. When the pair were in the same room, there was a clear tension in the air, and Dylan didn’t think that was unjustified. At the same time, Dylan only knew of Daniel what he had heard from Jon about his childhood, and the few times he had met him, and honestly, the two seemed to clash. Whilst he heard that Daniel had gotten clean from the drugs and alcohol during his time in prison, and come to regret his actions before his arrest, he honestly struggled to see how the person sitting in the backyard with him and Jon, who seemed likeable enough, was the same one that had abused Jon as a child. By extension, he couldn’t help but wonder if anybody would have that same internal conflict about his own stepdad, Bill.

“I’m glad you were all able to come,” Daniel began, however Jon didn’t give him a moment to continue.

“You think we’d miss it?” Jon asked, his tone remaining neutral, though far from friendly.

“I think,” Daniel said, choosing his words wisely, “that making the trek here from Mossdeep with no notice is no small task…”

“Steven’s handling things back home,” Dylan said, trying to ease some of the tension, and take the conversation somewhere a little more civil. “We weren’t able to get flights to Saffron at short notice, but managed to get them to Goldenrod, and take the train here. So it worked out.”

Daniel nodded, appreciating the effort Dylan was putting in. Jon took a deep breath, before lifting Amelia from his lap, who was watching Flareon with great curiosity, and handing her to Dylan.

“You mind taking Lili for me?” Jon asked Dylan, avoiding looking at Daniel. “I’m going to go check on Liss.”

“Sure,” Dylan remarked, used to keeping an eye on Jon and Alyssa’s daughter when both were busy. He was curious to see what their relationship would be like when she was a little older, and actually understood who Dylan was and why he lived with them.

Jon thanked Dylan, before heading inside the house, closing the sliding door a little harder than he intended to. Flareon stirred for a second at the sound, looking up towards the door, before deeming it as unimportant, and returning back to its snooze.

Daniel sighed, as Dylan sat awkwardly, with Amelia on his lap, who was looking at the Pokeballs attached to Dylan’s belt. He would remove them before the funeral that afternoon, them not fitting with the black formalwear that he wore, however knew he’d likely carry Metagross and Dusknoir’s Pokeballs in their small, shrunken forms in his pocket. Given the fact they were attacked last time they left Hoenn, and Jon and Charlotte had been attacked in one of the safest places in Hoenn a little only a week earlier, it seemed irresponsible not to, and he knew Jon, upset as he was at his grandfather’s sudden passing, would be doing the same.

“I wish I knew what I could do for him…” Daniel said quietly. “But there is a very real chance the best thing I could do for him is to just not have anything to do with him. And that scares me…”

Dylan was initially silent, having known that feeling well, not just with Bill, but his mum as well. She had said that if not for the genetic disorder, she would have left him alone and not come to see him, and honestly, at the time, he would have preferred that…

“I think he’s just juggling a lot right now…” Dylan offered. “I know Jon well enough to know that when he has a problem, he isn’t normally the sort to keep it to himself. Normally, he’ll happily tell anyone what’s on his mind…”

Daniel chuckled, seeming to enjoy hearing that about his son.

“I didn’t realise my son was the Jon Drake I saw on the news,” Daniel explained, as Dylan nodded in understanding, well aware of the pseudonym Jon lived under. “I remember seeing his interview after the High Seas Tournament, telling all the people that were abusing the Diamond Ladies after they came clean, that if they weren’t victims themselves, to go…”

Daniel realised Lili was watching him curiously and stopped himself from finishing the quote, with Dylan unable to help but chuckle at the near miss.

“Anyway, I remember seeing that and having a lot of respect for him being able to tell it how it is. Then when I heard my son had come to see me in prison, and I realised that he was the guy on TV, I was glad that he had made a life for himself, but also knew that he wouldn’t hesitate in telling me what he thought of me…” Daniel continued. “I was expecting to be given a verbal beating, but instead, he was just quiet. Has been since…”

He paused for a second, choosing his words carefully.

“I want to be there for my son, during times like this, but I guess I just don’t have the first idea how to do that…”

Daniel sighed again, before looking at Dylan.

“I know I have no right to ask, and he probably wouldn’t be okay with me involving you like this,” Daniel said. “But you seem to understand him pretty well. What do you think?”

Dylan was shocked that Daniel was asking him about this, and Daniel seemed to see it.

“If you’d rather not talk about this, it’s fine…” Daniel said, before looking back towards the house. “It’s just that I haven’t done a good thing for my son his entire life, and now, the time when he probably needs people around him most, and I feel like there is nothing I can do…”

“It’s fine…” Dylan replied quickly. “I guess I just feel like you’re giving me too much credit…”

“I mean, look who he’s asked to mind his daughter…” Daniel replied, nodding towards Amelia. “I think if he trusts you enough to ask that so casually, you must be in a pretty good spot…”

Dylan wondered if there was a hint of jealousy in Daniel’s statement, knowing that Jon trusted him more with his daughter than Daniel. However he figured there was no harm in telling Daniel this.

“Honestly, from what I’ve seen of Jon that time you came to Mossdeep, and now, I think he is just unsure. He isn’t the sort to run his mouth if he isn’t certain of something, so when he is this quiet, it’s usually because he is just not sure…” Dylan said. “Normally that isn’t common. Hell, one of the others from the Academy was with him on the weekend, training a dangerous Pokemon off site, and they were attacked. She told me he remained calm the entire time, even when they had four guys with guns coming for them…”

Daniel looked at Dylan, surprise across his face, having not heard this.

“Honestly, I think that losing his grandpa so suddenly has taken those things he is unsure of, and dialled it up to eleven. If it were anything else he wasn’t sure of, he’d be acting the same,” Dylan answered. “In this case, it’s you…”

Daniel nodded, understanding Dylan’s explanation of it.

“That makes me feel a little better. Unsure means there’s still a chance for things to change…” Daniel said, forcing a grin, before changing the subject. “Do you have much to do with your dad?”

Dylan was well aware that Daniel knew of his situation with Bill, and the fact that his mum had walked out, leaving Dylan with Bill, though Daniel had assumed Dylan’s parents had split up while he was young or something of the like.

“I actually haven’t met him,” Dylan admitted. “I don’t even know his name, and from what I heard, he wouldn’t even know I exist…”

“Do you want to meet him?” Daniel asked, well aware of the existence of sons who would rather not see their fathers.

“I do, but…” Dylan began, before changing track. “I have his name in a sealed envelope that my mum gave me. I just haven’t got around to opening yet…”

Daniel remained silent, knowing he had already asked some personal questions, and figured that Dylan would share if he wanted to.

“It’s just that once I find out who he is, that’s it. I can’t undo that…” Dylan explained. “And if he isn’t what I expect, I may find myself wishing I didn’t know…”

There was an awkward silence for a moment, which Dylan inadvertently rushed to fill.

“I mean, I will definitely open it soon,” Dylan added. “I just need a little more time…”

Daniel nodded, as Flareon stood up, and made his way slowly towards the door into the house. Daniel walked over, opening the door to let his late father’s Pokemon partner inside, before returning to his seat.

“By all means, do what you think is right,” Daniel said. “But take it from someone who lost fifteen years of time with his own dad because of his own mistakes, and lost him less than two years after. You never know just how much time you have left with him…”

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

Jon made his way to the bathroom, where Alyssa, having gotten dressed at the hotel, but opting to put on make-up at Jack and Wendy’s before the service, was getting ready. The bathroom was through the door at the end of the hall, with a doorway either side. The one on the left was Jack and Wendy’s bedroom, and the one on the right, was the spare room, which Jack had turned into a trophy room for his own battling career.

Whilst he had planned to see how Alyssa was doing, he felt himself drawn to the spare room, and instead of going towards the bathroom, turned right instead, opening the door slowly.

The door creaked, and as it opened, slowly let light into the dark room. Given the amount of old photos that were at risk of fading if exposed too often to sunlight, Jack kept the block-out blinds on the window closed practically all of the time, the room only lit when someone was in there and turned on the light. Jon slowly walked in, taking in the room around him. It had been many years since Jon had been in this room. Before his grandparents moved into the retirement village, Jack had this room set up largely the same in their previous house, where Jon had lived for a few years before he left home at sixteen to travel. Whilst he would return frequently between trips, it was usually short, with little time to spend with Jack, looking over his own achievements, especially when he had already seen most of it when he lived with his grandparents. When Jon and Alyssa became a couple, his visits became fewer, Jon now splitting his time between competitions between his grandparents, and his girlfriend, and once they married, it became even fewer, Jon having his own home to return to. Jon had only returned to Kanto once or twice a year since the S.S. Wishmaker incident, and the visits were usually short, spent catching up, as opposed to reminiscing.

Jon walked towards the other side of the room, where a large photo was framed and hung on the wall. The photo was coloured, though Jon guessed it was early days of colour film based on Jack’s age. In the photo was Jack, in his mid to late twenties, with his Pokemon team. Next to him sat Flareon, looking much younger than it did now, and on his other side, standing a few inches shorter than Jack himself was his Blastoise. Next to Blastoise was Raichu and Machamp, and next to Flareon was Steelix and Tyranitar. It took Jon a moment to recognise that the photo was taken in the back yard arena of Jack and Wendy’s old house, where Jack had taught Jon how to battle many years earlier.

He was pulled from his thoughts by the sound of the door creaking open, and turned to see Flareon, pushing the door open with his nose, and wandering in, sniffing the air and seeming to recognize the smell. Flareon walked to his side, rubbing his head against Jon’s leg, before Jon picked up the elderly Pokemon, and held it in front of the picture.

“Sad how things change, isn’t it…” Jon said quietly to the Pokemon, letting it take in the faces of the friends it had lost. Flareon sniffed at the photo, before crying out softly, as Jon walked it over to the empty chair in the corner, placing the Pokemon there. As he did however, he noticed a small, foldable table nearby, with something that seemed much newer than the rest of the contents of the room. A scrapbook, bound in leather, with no text on the front.

Cautiously, Jon opened it up, and found himself staring at a photo he didn’t even know existed. A picture of he and Jack in the backyard, many years earlier, with Jolteon and Flareon, training, and by the look of it, Jolteon looking a little worse for wear, with Jack lecturing Jon on some mistake he had just made. Despite himself, he chuckled at the photo, before turning the page, and finding more. The photos transitioned to being of Jack training Jon, to Jon competing at small events, where he remembered his grandparents watching in the crowd.

After a few more pages, the photos were less common, Jon realising this was when he left home to compete elsewhere, where instead, cut-outs of newspaper articles were placed, listing the winners of various tournaments that Jon had competed in.

As he expected, about a third of the way through the book, Jon found a folded newspaper clipping glued into the book, and upon opening it, had his suspicions confirmed when he saw a front page article about the first High Seas Tournament being taken by a relatively unknown trainer called Jon Drake. The next few pages contained various professional photos from Jon’s matches against Ethan Caldwell and Cassandra Silvers, as well as various articles discussing the battle, and finally, Jon found himself reading an article, which discussed the opening of The Eon Academy. From there, the articles were less about Jon, with more about his students. An excerpt of Lauren Mendez’s thesis detailing the confirmed existence of Regieleki, and the likely existence of Regidrago was there, in addition to more published results, this time, of tournaments that Chris and Charlotte had competed in. Towards the end were articles detailing Justin and Chris destroying the meteor that nearly hit Mossdeep City, and from there, numerous articles about the Deoxys incident, the Whirl Islands incident, and finally the hearing.

Jon was two thirds of the way through the book in front of him when he found the last addition that Jack had placed in it, only starting to realise how long he had been crying for.

”Jon Drake wins hearing to save Eon Academy. Minister Hill disgraced.”

Every page after that was empty, leaving Jon with a knot in his stomach, at the thought that his grandfather wouldn’t be there to see his next accomplishment, whatever it may be.

Jon’s attention was pulled from the scrapbook by the creak of the door opening. Whilst he wasn’t sure who it was, he didn’t turn, not wanting anyone to see him in this state. The door closed, and he heard the familiar quiet, yet purposeful steps he recognized as that of Alyssa, who walked beside him, and wrapped her arms around him tight. As much as he tried to hold it in, he found himself choking up again, causing Alyssa’s grip to tighten. She said nothing, both knowing there was little she could say that would make the situation better, and knowing that Jon probably didn’t want to be told everything was going to be okay. Finally he managed to find the words.

“I knew he wasn’t as young as he used to be, but I thought we’d have another few years…” Jon said quietly. “Some time when s**t isn’t going wrong, and keeping me from coming here to see him…”

“He knew why you couldn’t make it,” Alyssa consoled. “Honestly, when he came to visit last summer, and saw what you had built back home, he looked so proud…”

Jon went quiet, while Alyssa considered how to approach the question she was wanting to ask.

“Will you be okay during the service?”

Whilst Alyssa hadn’t mentioned any specific part, Jon knew what she was referring to. He and Daniel were both giving the eulogy at the funeral that afternoon. Daniel was speaking of the first half of Jack’s life, whilst Jon was speaking on the second half. And whilst Jon had volunteered, she now wondered how he would go delivering his part of the eulogy.

Jon nodded, wiping his sleeve against his eyes.

“I’ll do it,” Jon remarked. “I owe him that much…”

Alyssa nodded, though hoping beyond hope that this wouldn’t be too much for him.

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

The church in which the service was held was stuffy, making it all the more difficult for Jon to focus, as he sat in the front row seat of the hall, alongside his family, as well as Jack’s Flareon. Initially, Jon had been shocked to see how many people had attended to pay their respects to his grandfather, even recognizing a couple of former Johto and Kanto Gym leaders and Elite Four members. Whilst he had known his grandfather had a following during his competitive years, he didn’t realise how many people still remembered him after so many years out of the spotlight.

The room itself was a large room with mud-brick walls, held up by what someone had told Jon to be former wharf posts. Whilst the look was unique, and impressive, the mud bricks acted like a giant oven, and whilst the temperature outside wasn’t uncomfortably hot, the week leading up to the funeral had been one of the hottest on record, with the building retaining the bulk of that heat. Whilst there were ceiling fans circulating the hot air, they did little, with the room too large for conventional air-conditioning systems to have much of an effect. Latios floated in the air, invisible to all present, as to be there, and not distract others, though made a point of avoiding the rotating fans.

In front of him, on the stage, Daniel stood behind a lectern, speaking into a microphone, and sharing with those present about Jack’s life. However Jon was struggling to focus on what was being said, the sense of loss that permeated through him seeming to dull his senses and motivation.

“Now, I’m going to hand over to my son Ryan, who will speak more to the second half of Dad’s life…”

Jon heard the words, and for a moment, didn’t register them, until he felt Alyssa’s hand on his forearm. He looked up, and saw Daniel looking down at him, as he made his way down the steps that led to the platform where he had been speaking.

“You’ve got this,” Alyssa whispered, as she stood up, Jon standing a moment after, and the pair made their way towards the steps leading up to the platform, Jon to share about his grandfather, and Alyssa to be there as support for him.

He made his way to the lectern, pulling out a folded sheet of paper from the inner pocket of his jacket, and placed it on the lectern, taking a moment to find his place. He took a deep breath, looking for a moment into the microphone mounted in front of him, and from there into the somewhat crowded hall.

“As Daniel just said, I’m Ryan, Jack’s grandson, though you may also know me as Jon Drake…”

There was a light murmur from some of those present, some who had noticed Jon before, though not completely recognizing him dressed in a suit and not wearing the signature beanie that he normally wore. In the front row, he couldn’t help but notice Daniel’s shoulder’s slump slightly, being referred to by his first name. When there was silence again, Jon continued.

“In 1983, after competing for the good part of thirty years, Grandpa retired from competitive battling. After travelling around Johto, and later on, Kanto, pretty aggressively for such a long time, he wanted to make a priority of spending time with his family, choosing to remain in Vermillion City, taking on more casual work, helping out at the gym there, the Vermillion City Trainer School, and occasionally taking trainers under his wing at home, training them in the backyard of the house he had worked so hard to build,” Jon shared. “Once Daniel left home, and Grandma retired as well, he retired properly, spending a lot of time at home, hosting friends and family when they visited Vermillion City, and travelling when they could. Grandpa in particular wanted to see and learn more about new Pokemon that he hadn’t seen before. Even when I was catching Pokemon myself, every visit would begin with Grandpa wanting to see my new Pokemon, and make sure I was looking after all of them. And he’d be the first to tell me if I wasn’t…”

There was a moment of laughter, and despite himself, Jon couldn’t help but smile weakly.

“In 1988, I was born, and even though we lived in Goldenrod City, and didn’t get to see each other often, he took to being a grandpa like he had been doing it all his life. I always looked forward to when we’d see him and Grandma, and when I was eleven, they gave me my first Pokemon. An Eevee, bred from his own Flareon, that evolved into the Jolteon I battle alongside today,” Jon continued. “Then, in 2002, Grandpa and Grandma took me in when I needed somewhere to stay, without a second thought…”

Jon noticed Daniel shift uncomfortably at the reference, however tried to ignore it. He had considered not being as open as he was about this, however decided against it, viewing his grandparents willingness to take him in as a credit to them, and not wanting that swept under the rug for the sake of his dad’s pride.

“I was fourteen at the time, and even though he and Grandma should have been doing the things retired couples do, they took me in, going back to being there for school awards nights, helping me with homework, and teaching me how to be a functioning adult,” Jon explained. “And not once did they ever let me feel like I was being a burden to them by being there…”

As the speech became more personal, Jon felt himself tense up a little, as Alyssa’s arm around his shoulder tightened.

“You’ve got this…” Alyssa whispered, as Jon forced back the tears that were fighting to emerge. He took a breath before continuing.

“A month after I moved in with Grandma and Grandpa, I found a couple of old tapes of Grandpa’s battling, and didn’t realise until then how well renowned he was. I begged him to train me, and sure enough, he did,” Jon said. “Everything I know about battling that helped me get to where I am now, and everything I teach my students, I learnt from Grandpa…”

Jon considered his next words carefully, knowing that they were effectively the legacy of the man who he respected more than anyone else in the world.

“Not just battling though. Grandpa was there for me at a time when I could not have felt more alone in the world, and if not for him and Grandma, I honestly am scared to think of where I would be right now,” Jon said. “He didn’t just teach me how to be a good battler and Pokemon trainer. I lived with him for two years before I left home to compete myself, and in that time, and after, he taught me what it means to be a good man, a good husband and a good father. He taught me about personal responsibility, both to myself, and the world I live in. He taught me the importance of owning my own mistakes, and rising from them, and when other people stumble, to make sure that justice is served, but they are given the opportunity to rise from their mistakes themselves…”

Jon couldn’t help but remember the time he visited Jack and Wendy by himself after the first summer of the Eon Academy, having been asked by Daniel to vouch for his release on parole, and the words Jack spoke.

“He taught me to trust my own sense of what is right, even when all ways forward seem like bad ones, and to be at peace with the decisions I make…”

Realising how heavy the eulogy was becoming, even for a funeral, Jon changed direction slightly, opting to speak more of Jack’s qualities that were more obvious to those outside of his household.

“Grandpa had this uncanny ability to connect with people, regardless of who they are,” Jon continued. “When I introduced Alyssa to him and Grandma, you would have thought that he had known her for years. They got on like a house on fire. And when Dylan moved in with us, and met Grandpa for the first time, Grandpa didn’t hesitate in treating him like Dylan was his own grandson, no ifs, ands, or buts. Last summer, he visited the Eon Academy, wanting to see what we had built back home in Hoenn, and connected with all the interns there, sharing his wisdom and teaching them something new…”

As Jon read the next line of his notes, realising what he was going to be saying next, his eyes filled with tears, as he looked from there to the seats, where Amelia sat with Dylan, watching him, and somewhat confused by the occasion.

“And I’m so thankful that even if she is still young, he got to meet, and be a part of my daughter’s life. His great-granddaughter…” Jon said through a sob, as Alyssa rubbed his back. He quickly wiped his eyes dry with his sleeve, attempting to compose himself.

“Jack was one of the best battlers of his time, and anyone who disagrees with me about that can challenge me on the battlefield to prove it,” Jon said, making sure his tone came across as humorous, and was thankful when there was a light chuckle from those watching. “But he didn’t want the fame and fortune that came with that skill. He could have easily been a member of the Elite Four, and I think if I were to battle him in his prime, I would be humbled pretty seriously…”

Jon allowed space for another laugh, before continuing.

“But he didn’t want that. He wanted a simple life with his family, and I understand that, now more than ever…” Jon said. “But at the same time, I want everyone to know his name. Not for the skill he showed as a trainer, but for the type of man that he was. I know he wouldn’t like the attention, but considering the legacy he worked so hard to leave, I can’t think of a person who deserves to be known and remembered more than Jack Mason…”

There was a polite round of applause, as Jon thanked those for attending, before he and Alyssa made their way back to their seats, as the minister from the church hosting the funeral introduced the photo tribute that had been put together, and Jon found his concentration slipping once more, as it did before he was called up to speak.

The next few hours were a blur to Jon. Once the funeral came to a close, himself, Daniel, Dylan, and a few others carried Jack's casket to the hearse parked out the front of the building, before following it themselves to the Vermillion City Cemetery for the burial. Once that was over, the wake continued back at the church, where Jon was flooded with condolences, as well as the odd praise for his work in recent years, and though Jon responded politely, by the time the wake was over, he couldn’t remember who he had spoken to. It wasn’t until the end of the wake, when the last of the stragglers had gone, that he was pulled from this fog, by a voice he didn’t want to hear.

“You spoke well,” Daniel said to Jon, causing him to regain his focus. Jon’s expression remained fairly neutral, not having the energy or motivation to fake civility. “Dad would have been even more proud than he already was…”

Jon nodded, though didn’t reply, nor make eye contact. Daniel sighed internally, having it confirmed that Jon wasn’t going to make this easy for him, though didn’t blame him.

“Can you and I get a beer?” Daniel asked, knowing that Jon wouldn’t appreciate him dancing around the subject. Jon looked at him, shocked, and slightly irritated. “All of this, shows me just how quickly things can change, and I know I have no right to ask this, but I’d like to sit down, and talk with my son, not in a visitation room…”

Angry at Daniel springing this on him at such a time as this, Jon wanted to walk away, knowing that he had little he wanted to say to Daniel. However, he was reminded of his own words that he gave in Jack’s eulogy. That Jack taught him the importance of giving people the chance to rise from their own mistakes.

“One beer,” Jon said coldly, already wishing he could be anywhere else.

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

Given the fact it was five in the afternoon on a Monday, the bar the pair sat in was quiet, which they both appreciated. Jon had found a booth, whilst Daniel had made his way to the bar, returning with two full glasses of beer, handing one to Jon, and retaining the other for himself. As Jon drank his own, and saw Daniel drinking his, he asked the question that had been on his mind since Daniel asked about getting a beer.

“Should you be drinking?” Jon asked, not out of concern, but also making a point of not being accusatory with his question.

“It’s alcohol free,” Daniel replied. “I have a few friends in Vermillion who like to meet up here, so I have an agreement with the bartender. If I order a beer, he pours one of the zero-alcohol ones into a glass for me, and people are none-the-wiser.”

He took a sip, before speaking again.

“Doesn’t taste the same, but honestly, if it means I can do things like this, that is fine with me…” Daniel remarked, though Jon didn’t respond, instead having another swig of his own. Whilst he wanted to say it was probably stupid for Daniel, a recovered alcoholic to come to a bar, he also knew it had been nearly eighteen months since he was released, and chances are, this was not a new phenomenon. If Daniel had been here for at least a year for social gatherings, and coping with alcohol-free beer, then chances are, this was not going to cause him to relapse. At least, Jon hoped…

Finally, Jon asked the other question that had been on his mind since Daniel first asked if they could get a beer.

“Why are we here?” Jon asked. “Grandma is at home after her husband’s funeral, and we’re at some bar, having a drink…”

“Dylan and Alyssa are both there with her, and can help her for an hour,” Daniel answered. “We will be back before the sun goes down. Probably well and truly before…”

“That doesn’t answer my question…”

Daniel sighed, as deep down, a repressed part of him craved a real drink, though made sure to fight that want.

“Because we both lost someone important to us. And this won’t be the last time…”

Jon stared intently at Daniel, as he continued.

“Before we know it, you and your family will be the only family I have left. And I know it’s selfish of me to want this, and I don’t deserve it, but I want to be a part of your lives…” Daniel said, as Jon remained silent. “And here’s the thing…”

The lead up surprised Jon, leaving him unsure of where Daniel was going with this.

“You have more right than anyone to have an axe to grind with me. To tell me exactly what you think of me. But you never did,” Daniel explained. “When you first saw me in prison, I was prepared to be told just how much of a piece of s**t I am. How I ruined your life, and how it’s my fault that your mother was killed. But you didn’t say anything. I knew you were still rightfully angry with me, but you never told me exactly what you thought…”

Jon couldn’t help but groan, as he rolled his eyes.

“So what, you think that we have a beer together, and I tell you just how much I hate you, and we go home as happy families?” Jon asked sarcastically, putting his beer down. “F**k this, I’m going back…”

“Jon!” Daniel said, his tone louder and more forceful than it had been since Jon had met him as an adult. Jon couldn’t help but remember the numerous times he heard Daniel shout his name as a child, although it was Ryan instead back then, usually before he’d get hit. Jon turned to face Daniel, a bitter rage burning in his eyes.

“Are you honestly content with the way things are between us right now?” Daniel asked. “Because we both know there is no undoing what happened. So is rejecting any opportunity to even consider things being better between making you feel any better?”

Daniel stood up, and met Jon’s gaze.

“Honestly, if you’re honest-to-God, happy to write off anything being better between us, then I will walk out of here as well, and won’t expect any more from you…” Daniel said. “But I don’t think that’s the sort of person you are…”

Jon met Daniel’s gaze, forcing back the memories it brought to him from his childhood to maintain it. Finally, he spoke.

“F**k it,” he muttered, before he sat down, albeit aggressively in his seat in the booth they shared. “You want me to put it all out on the table?”

His tone was sarcastic, which Daniel didn’t expect much more than, as he sat down opposite Jon.

“Let’s have our little therapeutic unload,” Jon said sarcastically. “Firstly, I think you have absolutely no right to want anything between you and I, or you and my family. What you do have right now, you have from my good graces, and not a damn thing else, and you keep saying ’I have no right to ask this’, but mustn’t believe that too much, because you keep f**king trying!”

“But while I’m in the mood for sharing, let’s talk,” Jon continued, the sarcasm becoming even more abrasive. “It was fine for me as a kid, lying to the people at the hospital, because I was scared that if I told them the truth, I’d wind up there the next night, and that was if I was lucky. I loved waking up in the middle of the night to gunshots, and finding out from the police who showed up that Mum was dead, and you had run off…”

Jon put down his glass, and began rolling up his sleeves, revealing his tattooed forearms.

“I loved spending thousands getting some bikie-looking dude to spend hours poking a tiny needle into my skin, to hide the scars from you getting s**tfaced, or worse, and changing my name from the one I shared with and inherited from the man I respected most in this world, to hide from the man I should have respected most…” Jon continued, the sarcasm fading without him even realising as his voice began to rise. “It was so easy for me to spend years telling my wife that I don’t want to have kids yet, because I don’t want them to have to maintain my lies so you wouldn’t find us!”

“And now, the person I would do anything to be able to have a beer with right now, the one who picked up the slack for you, is gone, and you’re the one I’m here with…” Jon said, gaining a little more control of himself, but his tone remaining bitter. “And honestly, I wish…”

Jon stopped himself from finishing the sentence, however Daniel knew exactly what he was going to say.

“You wish it was your grandpa with you now, after my funeral…”

Jon looked at Daniel, forcing himself to hide the shock he felt that he had even thought that, let alone tried to say it.

“And honestly, if I could swap places with Dad right now, I would in a heartbeat…”

Jon looked down at his beer glass, which was now only a quarter full, as Daniel continued.

“I know I’ve caused nothing but problems for you, and if I could swap places with Dad to try and set things right, I would. I owe you that much,” Daniel continued. “But the fact is I can’t. No matter how hard we both wish I could…”

Jon took another swig, emptying his glass, as Daniel continued.

“But chances are, in ten or fifteen years, I will be the only extended family you have, and you will be all I have left…” Daniel said. “So I’m begging you, to give me the opportunity to do everything I possibly can to try and have some sort of healthy relationship with my son and his family…”

Daniel went silent, and looked down at his glass, taking a sip of his own drink, as an awkward silence filled the space between them. Jon, still bitter about being put in this position, and reeling from the loss of his grandfather, didn’t want to oblige his father.

However, as he looked at the broken man who sat in front of him, staring into a half empty glass of alcohol-free beer, he couldn’t help but ask the question of what his grandfather would want him to do, knowing the answer, albeit, not liking it. He sighed.

“You can start by getting us another round,” Jon said, pushing his empty glass towards Daniel. “And never trying to play therapist like that again…”

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

Three days after the funeral, Jon, Alyssa, Dylan and Amelia left Vermillion City, returning their rental car to the depot in Saffron City, before taking the Magnet Train back to Goldenrod City in Johto, where their flight would depart from to take them back home to Hoenn, after a week away. However, there was a long enough gap between their train arriving in Goldenrod and their flight leaving for Jon to make one last stop on the way home…

“Why are you here Jon?”

Jon was slightly surprised to hear that Lance had dropped the the hell as he sat opposite the former Indigo League Champion in the visitation room, which was ironically the same one he had visited his father in years earlier.

“I didn’t get a chance to properly thank you for what you did at the trial,” Jon answered, with little expression one way or the other. “Fact is that it wasn’t looking like we would be able to keep Deoxys out of the military’s hands, and now that we have trained it somewhat, it is becoming terrifyingly obvious how bad it would have been if they took possession of it…”

Lance scowled, before answering.

“I told you before,” Lance remarked. “I didn’t do it to help you. I did it to screw over Mark Hill, and it worked…”

Jon shrugged, having not expected more from Lance.

“But seriously, why are you here?” Lance asked again, confusing Jon slightly until he continued. “Don’t you have that summer program you’re supposed to be running back in Hoenn? Why are you here in Johto, trying to blow smoke up my a**?”

“Believe me, I got no smoke to blow up your a**, Lance,” Jon remarked. “I’m passing through here after a funeral in Kanto. Steven is keeping the Academy running, with the help of Chris, and the other interns. I actually saw a few of your associates from the Johto League at the funeral. Pryce namely, though I didn’t get a chance to introduce myself…”

This seemed to take Lance by surprise a little.

“Whose funeral would both you and Pryce be attending?” Lance asked, more with disbelief than curiosity. Jon expected nothing less from the disgraced Champion.

“My grandfather, Jack Mason,” Jon replied, though noticed a slight sense of recognition in Lance.

“Did he compete in Johto?” Lance asked, surprising Jon with the sincerity of the question, and the fact his tone lacked the chill that it had every time Jon saw Lance in this place. “The name is familiar…”

“He competed in the sixties and seventies, largely in Goldenrod, and retired in the early eighties to Vermillion,” Jon answered. Something seemed to click with Lance, as he let out a chuckle, despite himself.

“I saw a few of his battles when I was a kid,” Lance replied, taking Jon by surprise. “It must have been just before he retired. During school breaks, my parents used to take me into Goldenrod to watch the local tournaments. I only remembered because his style was so different to everyone else's. Makes sense where you get it…”

Jon remained silent, and was shocked when Lance kept the conversation going.

“Is that what you’re teaching Chris?”

“Not as much these days. He already has it pretty much mastered. Honestly, he is pretty close to beating me, so I think he’d beat you as well, no stress,” Jon remarked, earning an eye-roll from Lance. “Really, there is a tiny hole in his tactics that I am trying to teach him to work past. After that, he will be pretty unstoppable…”

“Especially with that Lugia of his…” Lance added, causing Jon to nod. Shocked at how civil the pair were being, and how agreeable Lance was at this point, though Jon knew they were far from being on good terms, Jon tried his luck, asking a question that had been on his mind in Lance’s case for a while, though more frequent having spoken to Daniel recently.

“If you were to get out of this place today, here and now…” Jon asked. “What would you do?”

Lance seemed taken by surprise at the question, and Jon was expecting to be told to go f**k himself. However, Lance spoke calmly.

“I’ll earn my reputation back, whatever it takes…”

Jon felt his skin crawl at how Lance finished his answer, however had to ask the question.

“How will you do that?”

Lance thought over this a moment, though looked suspiciously at Jon. Jon gave nothing away, waiting for Lance to answer the question.

“As Champion, I had things I stood for,” Lance explained. “And regardless of whether you think they are right or wrong, everything I did, I did because of what I stood for…”

Jon was surprised at how much he actually understood what Lance was saying. Whilst he hadn’t forgiven Lance for his attempted murder of Violet and Jarena, and the fact that he had destroyed the plan that could have prevented the existence of witchcraft being made public, he could see what Lance was saying.

“And when I get out, I am going to make people see that,” Lance answered. “Whether they want to or not…”