FicWad

"I choose..." Sean spoke up, now looking at Fuecoco. "...you, Fuceoco!" The Fire Croc Pokemon's expression brightened up as it hopped on the boy's shoulder, balancing itself on one foot, which made Sean smile. Clavell and Nemona also smiled at the sight before them.

"Fuecoco seems to have taken quite a liking to you, Master Sean. This is your first Pokémon, yes? Please raise it with love and care. And of course, be sure to keep it tucked safely inside a Poke Ball." Clavell handed a Poke Ball to Sean, who accepted it gratefully and returned Fuecoco.

"Sean... I can't believe you actually chose Fuecoco..." Nemona spoke quietly at first, then in an excited tone. "I mean, like, way to make the perfect choice for you! You two make such a good combo!" Sean looked at the Poke Ball, smiling in wonder as Nemona looked to Clavell "Can I choose one of these Pokémon too, Director Clavell?"

The director looked confused as he spoke, "Oh, but…did you not receive a Pokémon when you entered the Academy, Miss Nemona?"

"Not back then, no! I had other Pokémon I was focused on raising at the time." Nemona explained "But now I want to raise a new Pokémon alongside Sean while he raises his own new partner!"

"Sounds like a good idea." Sean agreed.

"Indeed, a rather splendid idea. If you wish to raise one of these Pokémon on equal footing with Master Sean here, I shall be more than happy to allow it." Clavell decided.

"Yesss!" Nemona cheered, putting her hands together joyfully before looking over to the two remaining Pokemon "Since Sean chose Fuecoco, I'll go for this little one!" She looked to Sprigatito, who let out a happy meow "Nice to meet you, Sprigatito. Welcome to the team!" Clavell handed Nemona a Poke Ball for the Grass Cat Pokemon. "All right, then! Now that we've chosen our Pokémon, we have to battle! I'll be waiting for you down at the beach. Come join me when you're ready!"

After saying that, Nemona immediately ran down the path towards the beach with Sprigatito chasing after her.

"As you may have noticed, Miss Nemona is a tad overly fond of Pokémon battling." Clavell explained with a sigh.

"No shame in that, Director." Sean remarked. "I've learned that Pokemon battling is what helps understand a Trainer and the bond they share with their Pokemon."

"Such wise and true words." Clavell chuckled. "But I do hope you'll join her for a battle. It will help you get to know your own Pokémon as well."

"Right." Sean replied with a nod, then began making his way down to the beach himself, where he could see Nemona standing in the center of a battlefield, where she noticed the boy approaching and began to wave.

"Over here!" Nemona called out as Sean now stood on the battlefield. "Anyone can be a Pokémon Trainer as long as they have Pokémon by their side! And it's our duty as Trainers to help our Pokémon grow stronger through battle! So, you ready to battle me, Sean?"

"Yeah." Sean replied. "I'm ready to give it my all, especially since I'm at the beginning of my path as a Trainer."

Nemona smiled excitedly. "Perfecto! I'm so excited! For this battle, I think I'll use-"

"Not so fast!" She was cut off as someone made their way over to the three. A long black dragon was directly behind him. "Your friend here just got his starter Pokemon recently and is only starting out as a trainer."

The man that interceded was Andrew Richardson, the Sinnoh League Champion. Andrew's signature Pokemon was a shiny Rayquaza that could Mega Evolve. He knew that a beginner trainer shouldn't face something they aren't ready for.

The director approached them with Quaxly by his side. "Quite right, Miss Nemona."

Nemona smiled awkwardly after hearing this. "Heh, whoops...Good call. I was about to send out one of my usual partners right off the bat...I guess I'll take this chance to try out my new buddy instead!" She then moved to her side of the battlefield. "C'mon, Sean! Let's have us a fruitful battle!"

"Wouldn't have it any other way!" Sean called as he stood on the other side of the field, then clutched the Poke Ball with a determined look. "Fuecoco, let's go!" He throws the ball, sending out Fuecoco. "This is our first battle together, buddy! So lets make it a good one!" The Fire Croc Pokemon nods as it breathes fire out of its nose.

Nemona smirked at the boy's confidence as she brings out her Sprigatito. "Alright, let's show them how we do things in Paldea! Use Leafage!"

The leaves around Sprigatito's neck glow light green, and it releases multiple green glowing leaves from them. Fuecoco endures the incoming barrage and readies itself, giving out a cry to its Trainer.

"Right! Let's make the next move! Fuecoco, use Ember!" Sean called out.

Fuecoco took in a deep breath and unleashed a ball of fire from its mouth which makes contact with Sprigatito, causing the Grass Cat Pokemon to yowl in pain from the super-effective hit.

"You must've been studying up! Smart move—Fire is strong against Grass!" Nemona complimented, which made Sean smirk. "But we're still going! Scratch!" Sprigatito's claws glow yellow and it leaps forward to swipe at Fuecoco, who managed to avoid the claw strikes.

"Fuecoco, strike back with Tackle!" Sean commanded. Taking advantage of avoiding Sprigatito's attack, Fuecoco tackles the Grass Cat, knocking it back. "Keep the momentum going! Use Bite!" Fuecoco charges forward, opening its mouth to bite down on Sprigatito.

"Quick Attack, now!" Nemona quickly said.

Sprigatito's body becomes outlined in a light blue aura and it zips around to dodge the Bite attack. Fuecoco looked surprised as it saw its opponent running around at such a high speed, as it was unable to avoid the strikes from all sides.

'We need to think of something...' Sean thought with a small frown, watching Fuecoco attempting to hit Sprigatito with Ember only to end up missing its mark. Then, a idea popped up in his head. "Fuecoco, aim Ember at the ground!"

Fuecoco looked at its Trainer before giving a nod and firing the ball of flames directly onto the battlefield. The ember explodes upon impact and releases a wave of flames that spreads across the battlefield and managed to make direct contact with Sprigatito, sending it spiraling near Nemona, who was caught by surprise.

Clavell raised an eyebrow as Sean gave out another command. "Finish it! Ember once more!" Fuecoco wasted no time firing another ball of flames, hitting Sprigatito once more and bringing down the Grass Cat Pokemon.

Fuecoco let out a loud triumphant cry, while Nemona smiled as she returned Sprigatito. "You did really well. Get some rest." She then smiled at Sean. "Wow! Not bad, neighbor!"

Sean walked over and picked up Fuecoco. "You were really awesome out there, buddy. I have a feeling we are gonna be the greatest team out there." The Fire Croc let out a happy craw of agreement. 'I did it... I won my first battle.'

Nemona approached the two with a proud grin. "Look at you, winning your first battle ever! You've got even more potential than I thought! You're gonna be a strong Trainer for sure!" All of a sudden, she returned to her side of the battlefield. "But now I want to try a different strategy! Let's go again—just one more battle!"

'Seriously...?! We literally just finished one!' Sean blinked in surprise as he and Fuecoco were caught off-guard.

Director Clavell stood beside the boy, looking at Nemona. "Master Sean and his Fuecoco are surely weary already from that last battle."

Nemona smiled sheepishly as she ran forward. "Ah, sorry! I got kinda caught up in all the excitement..." She then frowned "I'm really sorry, Sean. Same to your Fuecoco, too."

"It's fine, Nemona." Sean assured her, giving a thumbs up. "We'll battle again another day."

"Heh... All right! Thanks, Sean!" Nemona replied with a smile.

"You two seem to be becoming fast friends, though you've only just met." Clavell watched the interaction with a smile of his own. "Can I count on you to take your new schoolmate here under your wing, Miss Nemona? I'm sure he can learn a great deal from a Champion-ranked Trainer, such as yourself."

"You bet, sir!" Nemona said confidently, then looked to Sean. "Oh, that reminds me! since you're new to training Pokémon, there's an app you definitely need! You have a smartphone, right? Lemme see it for a sec." Sean took out his Rotom Smartphone, which began to float in front of him. Nemona pressed on the screen a few times before it beeped and returned to Sean's backpack pocket. "The Pokedex will automatically register any Pokémon you catch. It's a must-have for Pokémon Trainers! Our homeroom teacher, Mr. Jacq, actually made it himself!"

"Back in my day, we used ordinary paper and handwritten notes to compile our Pokedexes. It's quite the age we live in now." Clavell noted with a thoughtful expression.

"Oof!" Nemona grimaced at the thought. "Filling out a Pokédex by hand? I can't even imagine how much work that would take!"

Clavell began to chuckle. "Ohoho... No, I suppose you can't. Yet no matter how much the times may change, the wonder of meeting new Pokémon never does. That is a truly timeless pleasure. And the more Pokémon that you encounter, the more you'll find yourself growing and changing. I hope you will both work hard toward the goal of completing your own Pokédexes. Now, Miss Nemona, I do still have a few matter to discuss with your parents. Could I depend on you to see Master Sean to the academy? You would be doing me quite the favor."

"Of course! Leave it to me!" Nemona accepted.

"Then I leave him in your capable hands." Clavell replied, then looked down at Quaxly. "All right, little one. It's time you and I were on our way." Quaxly nods in agreement as it follows after the Director, leaving Sean and Nemona.

"I must also take my leave." Andrew announced.

He was on the trail of a larger than normal Great Tusk that escaped from Area Zero. Hopefully he found it before someone who didn't have any Pokemon did.

"Maybe I oughta make a little more time to work on my Pokédex along with all my battling..." Nemona muttered to herself, then turned to Sean. "Oh! Right! Speaking of Pokédexes, Sean, you've probably never caught a wild Pokemon, right?"

"Nope." Sean answered.

Nemona grinned. "I'll show you the ropes before I take you to the academy. Come with me!" She rushed back up the stairs that led back to the house.

"Alright, Fuecoco." Sean looked at the Pokemon in his arms. "Let's show the Paldea Region what we can do together!" Fuecoco lets out a happy and determined craw of agreement.

Sean smiled at that as he walked up the stairs, past the house where he could see Nemona chatting with his mother. Sean walked over to them, where they noticed the boy with Fuecoco in his arms.

"Oh, Sean! I hear that Nemona here will be taking you to school?" Lauren asked.

Before her son could answer, Nemona seemed to beat him to the punch. "That's right, ma'am. Leave it to me!"

Lauren smiled at that. "So you've already managed to make a friend!" She then stroked Fuecoco's chin, making the Fire Type craw happily. "And I've read about all the wonderful teachers you'll have looking after you at the school. Plus so many handy facilities you can use as much as you like! Add in your new friend, Nemona, and it sounds like your school life is shaping up to be fantastic! Just like your brother."

"You have a brother?" Nemona asked curiously.

"Yeah. He's attending a school overseas." Sean revealed.

Lauren's expression became slightly firm as she spoke up. "Now, you'll be staying in the school dorms, so I want you to promise me you'll eat proper meals. I don't want the school calling me saying you've been hoarding sweets again."

"That... was one time and you know it." Sean reminded with a sigh, which seemed to have amused Nemona.

Lauren reached into the plastic bag she was carrying and held out a sandwich wrapped in paper, along with a small bag of money. "Here's a bit of spending money to start off with. I also packed a lunch for your first day!" She then grabbed Five Potions from the bag. "Oh! And maybe you'd better take these, too."

"Thanks, Mom." Sean said sincerely, placing all the stuff in his backpack for safekeeping.

"Use them on that precious little partner of yours, should it get hurt in battle." Lauren reminded. "I know every day in your new life is going to be full of exciting experiences, far from home. Just try to savor them all—the good times and the hard times, too! But if you ever want to come back home, you know your bed is always ready for you."

"Right. I'm gonna make so many memories with new friends, including Nemona." Sean declared as Nemona smiled in agreement. "Me and Fuecoco are gonna be the greatest team ever too, with the Pokemon I'm gonna meet!"

"Look at you." Lauren smiled warmly, wiping a small tear. "All grown up, and now on an adventure. Makes me remember when you met that special friend of yours during our trip last year."

"Mom..." Sean warned, knowing what she is about to say.

"Special friend?" Nemona asked, wanting to know.

"Oh, my son here met a nice girl when we went to Unova." Lauren began to explain, further embarrassing her son "He really surprised me by helping her catch a Pokemon in the most interesting way, and they spent their last day on the Ferris Wheel together. I thought it was really romantic."

"Mom!" Sean shouted, face flushed in complete annoyance. 'She had to bring that up... I swear she tells that story to everyone...' Nemona began to laugh softly at the boy's predicament.

"Okay, okay." Lauren said as she pulled her son into a warm hug, then moved away. "You two had better be off, I suppose. Take care on the way to school!" She began to walk up the road leading back to home.

Nemona looked to Sean. "Your mother's so nice, Sean!"

"Yeah... and embarrassing sometimes..." Sean deadpanned before speaking clearly. "So, what's next on the agenda?"

"Oh! But I was going to teach you how to catch wild Pokémon! C'mon, vamos!" Nemona practically rushed up the road and stopped at the side pathway "This way!"

She disappeared out of sight, which made Sean and Fuecoco share a glance as they began to take next step of their journey together.